Crow’s Revenge (Devil’s Murder MC #5)

Chapter 9

Sadie returned to me.

I knew the moment she set foot back on pack lands. Her delicate, sweet scent grew stronger and drifted in the wind, tickling my nose. More than that, I felt her presence. My wolf recognized his mate. The vargulf salivated at the thought of fucking her again.

My reaction was instant. A hard-on that could hammer nails.

But Sadie wasn’t alone. She brought Carson, that fucking warlock. And those goddamn crows were here.

I shoved to my feet, knowing it was time to confront my enemy and that wasn’t the president of the Devil’s Murder MC. Although, he would definitely disagree.

The vargulf’s days were numbered. I’d see to that. If I died, so be it. It was worth it to save my mate.

The pack had been unleashed to hunt but with strict guidelines: no harming Bella or the Devil’s Murder members. They could intimidate, scare, or whatever else they wanted as long as they didn’t touch them.

I knew they needed to run. Their wolves were restless. Tensions ran high. The vargulf had grown impatient and insatiable. I constantly battled his will. The result was a leader who seemed at war within himself, which caused confusion within the pack.

Someone would challenge me to lead soon. I’d have to rip out his throat. I didn’t want to spill the blood of my brethren. The vargulf was unfazed by it—another reason he had to be put down. No leader should enjoy the thought of killing his clan, especially the Alpha.

Sadie would meet me at our favorite spot. In the late hours of the night, when the vargulf slept, I took her to the waterfall and bathed with her in the moonlight. There, exposed to the stars, we kissed and shared secrets.

I lost my heart to her in those precious stolen moments. Me. The vicious, ruthless monster. The murderous president of the Dirty Death MC. A man who never dared to dream of redemption. And she’d given me her trust.

For that reason alone, I knew Sadie would come.

Howls from the pack occasionally filled the forest as I walked to the waterfall, eager to see my mate. The vargulf seemed confused when I stopped here, fighting against my will. Over recent weeks, I had grown stronger while he’d grown weaker. The Alpha dominated the vargulf often.

He couldn’t make me fuck or kill now at his whim.

Sadie’s soft voice pulled me from my thoughts. “Undertaker.”

I hated that name. The vargulf. What he represented. All that he’d done. “Sadie.” I turned to her, noticing the healthy glow to her skin, the fresh flush in her cheeks, and the extra heartbeat thrumming inside her. Oh. Wow.

“You’re pregnant.” I dropped to my knees. “Beloved.”

A brilliant smile lit up her beautiful face. “You dominated him.” She meant the Alpha wolf had done it, not the vargulf.

“Yes. It’s not without difficulty.”

She turned to Carson, who stood beside her, poised to unleash his magic. I didn’t blame him for feeling protective when I felt the same.

“We can still save him.” She sent a pleading look to Carson. “Please.”

He dropped his chin. “I’ll try.”

“That’s all I can ask.”

“It has to be done, Sadie. When the time comes, don’t hesitate.” She knew what I meant. Only my death would leave the vargulf vulnerable enough to be killed.

Sudden tears filled her eyes. “What if I can’t?”

“Then he will.”

Carson sighed. “Yeah. I will.”

“I know what you are,” I told him. “How you hunt the vargulf. It’s in your blood.”

“For generations,” he confirmed.

I nodded. “Sadie.”

She walked closer even when Carson tried to grab her arm. “No. He won’t hurt me.”

“I don’t like it.”

“It’s not your choice.”

“Fuck,” Carson cursed, releasing her.

She approached me unafraid, and I lifted my hand, brushing my knuckles across the smooth, flawless skin of her cheek. “Do you remember?”

My name. I’d given it to her. The Alpha’s real name.

“Yes.”

“Good.” I needed to kiss her one more time before it all went to shit. “A kiss to seal our promise.”

She lifted her face, receiving my kiss with a passion that ignited my lust and fogged my brain. Sadie held a power over me no other being ever could. My mate could destroy or save me. It was her choice.

The crows didn’t understand our ways. Crow didn’t see the sacrifice of an Alpha. How much I would give up for Sadie.

That was why I used the magic of a witch to banish them from my lands. No fucking crows. The vargulf was pleased with himself for thinking of it.

Sadie wrapped her arms around me and hugged my waist. I didn’t hesitate to enclose her in my embrace. My head lowered, and I inhaled her scent. For a few seconds, everything was right. Perfect. As close as I’d ever get.

I pressed a hand against her stomach. “I’m so fucking happy. Are you?”

“Yes.”

“Tell him about me. I don’t want him to learn only the bad. My legacy should be more than the vargulf.”

“He’ll know about you,” she assured me.

That had to be enough. We were wasting time. I dropped my hand and took a few steps away from Sadie. I held her gaze, preparing for the vargulf’s response. “Do it.”

“WE’RE ALMOST BACK TO the SUV,” Crow assured me before kissing my temple. “Just a few more minutes.”

“You sure you’re okay to keep carrying me?”

He scoffed. “Babe. You aren’t heavy.”

“Yeah, but we’ve been walking for hours.”

Cuckoo snorted. “I checked my phone. It’s been forty-five minutes.”

I lifted my middle finger and flipped him off.

“So feisty.”

“No. I’m hangry, tired, and my ankle hurts.” All legit reasons to be grumpy.

“Give her food,” Crow ordered. “You said you had snacks.”

Cuckoo opened his messenger bag and pulled out red licorice strips, Smarties, barbecue chips, and a granola bar. “What do you want?”

Crow growled. “Didn’t you bring anything with protein?”

“I’ve got Snickers.”

“Christ,” he muttered. “Babe, I’ll feed you once we’re on the road.”

I kissed his jaw. “Okay. For now, I want the Snickers.”

Cuckoo handed the candy bar over, and I unwrapped it, chewing as my stomach rumbled.

“Is there anything to drink?”

“Gatorade. Here.”

“Finally,” Crow muttered. “Something that makes sense.”

“I pride myself on being unpredictable,” Cuckoo defended.

“And you are,” Hawk agreed.

“Thanks, man.”

Claw snickered. “Ain’t ever boring with you guys.”

Truth.

“We haven’t heard any howls in a long while,” Hawk observed after we walked a few more minutes in silence.

“I don’t like it.” Crow adjusted his hold. “What’s the compass say? How close are we?”

“Maybe fifteen minutes. Hard to say.”

“Why?”

“Because we’re walking a bit slower now, pres.”

Hawk was right. I slowed them down. At least, I did with Crow.

“Sorry, but not sorry,” I sort of apologized. “It’s my ankle’s fault.”

“Don’t you be sorry, Bella. You’re good, babe.”

A sudden chorus of howls shattered the calm. They overlapped, growing higher in pitch, angrier, and more frantic.

“Shit!”

“Fuck, pres!”

“Run!” Crow yelled, ordering Claw, Cuckoo, and Hawk to get their asses moving.

I jostled in Crow’s arms and buried my face in his neck, trying to be as least cumbersome as I could.

The noise startled birds, and they flew into the air. Chaos seemed to ensue around us. I heard growls, too.

What was happening? Was it us? Or something else?

We made it to the SUV, and Hawk opened the door as Crow reached it. I was settled on the seat as he climbed in beside me.

“We can’t wait long for Carson and Sadie.”

Wait. Were they here, too?

My gaze swept over the area outside the SUV and landed on the boulders and tunnel that marked the entrance to the jail cells. Oh. Shit. Rebel!

I couldn’t leave her here.

“Babe. I need your help with something.”

He reached for my hand. “Anything.”

“I met someone when Undertaker put me in his dungeon. At least, I think it might have been a dungeon. It’s not important.” I sighed. “There’s a girl in one of the cells. Her name is Rebel. She’s a prisoner, too. We can’t leave her there.”

“No,” he growled. “We can’t.”

He ticked his chin at Hawk. “Go.”

“Wait!” Claw yelled, stepping up to Crow. “Send me, pres.”

Crow relented. “Fine. Release anyone you find. No one deserves to be kept behind bars and subjected to Undertaker’s sick pleasure.”

Claw turned to me. “Where?”

“See those rocks? There’s a set of concrete stairs. Follow them down.”

“On it,” he shouted, running in that direction.

“What’s the plan, pres?”

“We stay here. Guard the SUV. Be ready for trouble.”

“What about Carson and Sadie?” Cuckoo asked, withdrawing his gun.

“We wait until the last possible second. I don’t want to leave them stranded.”

Cuckoo and Hawk nodded, taking defensive positions outside the SUV. Crow shut the door. He held his Glock in one hand, ready to use it.

“Why are Carson and Sadie here?”

“Because Carson is working a spell on Undertaker. I want him unconscious so I can take him back to The Roost.”

Oh, shit. “Revenge for Rook?”

“The club deserves it. It’s their choice. I’m giving them the fucking option.”

I didn’t doubt Undertaker deserved everything he had coming to him. This still felt kinda wrong. “Will the crows attack him?”

“Probably, but not before every member of the club gets their turn first.”

That sounded. . . bloody.

“So Carson isn’t just a federal agent, huh?” I knew that. It had been hinted at. But no one thought to fill me in with all the recent shit that had gone down. Gail just got to The Roost. Talon was tortured by Undertaker and almost didn’t make it. Laurel, Crow’s mother, decided to pop into his life out of nowhere. It wasn’t like he didn’t have a ton of shit going on.

“Damn, babe. I didn’t mean to exclude you.”

“I know,” I admitted truthfully.

“He’s a warlock. Yeah. Crazy, right? He uses earth magic or some shit. He can help with the vargulf.”

The vargulf. That was the darkness I felt around Undertaker.

“But he’s not just a murderous beast. He’s also an Alpha wolf. His clan’s leader.”

Wait. “He’s two beings in the same body?”

“Yeah. It complicates everything.”

I’d say so.

“These two parts,” I wondered. “Is one good and one bad?”

He blinked. “I guess so. That’s what Sadie says. The vargulf murdered Rook. He’s raped, murdered, kidnapped, and tortured people. He sent Chronos to pick up Bree.”

“Shit,” I whispered.

“But the Alpha wolf, he’s different. Arrogant. Lethal. Cunning. I can sense all those things about him. But he doesn’t feel evil like the vargulf.”

“I don’t know if I can separate the two,” I admitted truthfully. “Not after what happened to my sister.”

“Then you know why I have to have justice and vengeance for my father.”

I did.

“It still feels weird, doesn’t it?”

He lifted a hand to cradle the side of my face. “Yes. Because you’re not a cold-blooded killer. You have compassion.”

A shout drew our attention as Claw ran toward the SUV. I saw Rebel behind him, along with two others—all women.

What the fuck, Undertaker?

Claw opened the side door, and the women climbed in. He then clicked the door shut behind them.

I turned to Rebel. “Hey. You okay?”

“We will be now.”

I waved at the other two girls: a redhead and a brunette.

“Fuck,” Crow growled.

I turned, catching Sadie as she ran toward us. Carson was dragging Undertaker by the boots!

Hawk, Claw, and Cuckoo rushed to help.

I wasn’t sure how they managed to shove that big man into the SUV with us. Undertaker ended up in the back, and the vehicle sagged under his weight.

“Why is he with us?” Rebel asked, looking pissed.

“He’s magically subdued,” Carson promised as he sat behind the wheel, throwing it in drive.

Around us, howls split the air. The pack was converging.

Honestly, I thought they would have arrived sooner, but seeing Undertaker unconscious, I could guess why they got riled up.

We had to get out of here!

Carson sped away as wolves exited the forest. He pushed down on the gas, lurching the vehicle as we passed through the main gate. I noted it had been destroyed, like someone had demolished it.

Damn. They bulldozed through it on the way in.

I watched as the wolves gave chase, but they weren’t as fast. We left them behind as I sank into Crow’s embrace.

“You’re safe now, Bella. We’ll handle the wolves once we’re home.”

I rested my head on his shoulder and yawned. I needed a nap.