Chapter Twenty-Four Ace
Rage coursed through my body. Seeing Matt’s limp form on the ground and the knife in the rogue’s hand set my Alpha blood on fire. My lips curled back on my muzzle, exposing long rows of sharp teeth. A deep growl echoed up through my chest.
If I could speak, I would’ve been calling him every name in the book. But in wolf form, all I could do was be menacing. Judging by the fearful look in his eyes, I was scaring the shit out of him.
He hurt my mate.
Energy coursed through my muscles as I sprang forward, my body crashing into his. My jaws wrapped around his shoulder, piercing clothing and flesh alike. Blood filled my mouth as he stumbled backward and off the side of the small sandy cliff.
Gravity disappeared as we went over the edge. We fell for five, ten, then fifteen feet before the pair of us crashed into the sand. It was steep there, our bodies rolling through the sand as momentum carried us down the rest of the way. At some point on the way down, we came apart. When I finally stopped and managed to shake the vertigo from my head, I saw the man lying twenty feet away, his hand clutched over the wound on his shoulder.
I saw fear in his eyes. But there was a will to live there as well. That’s why I wasn’t surprised when he started yanking off his clothing, his body already shifting into wolf form. He might know I was an Alpha and that he didn’t stand a chance, but that wouldn’t stop him from trying. Besides, he’d already snuck up on Matt, so clearly he had some skill.
I glanced up the hill to where Matt was lying in the clearing. From that part of the beach, I couldn’t see his limp form anymore. I didn’t know if he was alive or dead, but I wasn’t about to let this asshole get away with either. The only way he’d be leaving this place was in a fucking body bag.
A deep growl pulled me back to the stranger. Instead of the hulking form of a man, I saw a large gray wolf working his way out of a pair of jeans. He stepped forward, the clothing falling away at last. Lowering his head, he let out a deep barking growl. He showed a lot of spunk. I had to give him that. Facing off with an Alpha wasn’t necessarily the smartest thing to do, but it took guts.
Too bad his were about to be outside of his body.
I didn’t give him a chance to make the first move. Digging my paws into the sand, I raced toward him, my head low. He tried to dodge to the right, but I saw it coming a mile away. Without slowing, I leaned forward, shoulder-checking him directly in the chest. A high-pitched yelp filled my ears as he flew through the air, landing in a heap in the sand a few feet away.
Again, I didn’t give him a chance to attack. Before he could get his feet back in under him, I had my teeth sinking into his right haunch. He cried out as I gave him an aggressive shake, muscle and sinew tearing against my teeth. The taste of blood filled my mouth and I tossed him aside like a ragdoll. He was moving slower now, giving me the opportunity to pounce him.
The air left his lungs as my massive paws landed on his chest. He tried to cry out, but there was hardly a sound. Reaching down, I wrapped my teeth around his neck and gave a squeeze. His airway flexed and condensed, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. I could see the fire going out in his eyes. That instinct to fight and win had all but left him as soon as he realized a single bite would snuff out his life. Werewolf healing could take care of a lot, but it couldn’t put an esophagus back in your throat.
The wolf beneath me began to crack and shift, the gray fur falling away until there was just a bloody, sniveling man. I stared down at him, my golden Alpha eyes practically glowing in the dark. My body was so filled with rage and hate toward this stranger. He’d hurt my mate, and that was unforgivable. All I had to do was bite down. That’s all it would take to end his life.
“P-Please,” he begged, his voice strained as I slowly crushed his windpipe. “I d-didn’t hurt h-him…” He stared up at me, his eyes illuminated by a burst of fireworks behind us. They were full of tears. “H-He’s alive…” He lifted a hand, pointing back toward the cliff. “L-Look…”
My eyes swiveled in that direction, the nearly pitch-black hill outlined against the starry night sky. I felt a flutter in my heart as I saw movement. Something or someone was at the edge of the cliff, looking down at us.
“Ace.”
I heard my name on the wind. It sounded like Matt’s voice, but I wasn’t entirely convinced I hadn’t made it up.
“Ace!”
Another firework boomed behind me, lighting up the sky. There, on his belly at the top of the hill, was Matt, his face momentarily highlighted by the burst of green sparks. My jaw slackened, letting the rogue drop to the ground as I lifted my face toward him.
He was alive.
“Ace,” he said, his voice cracking. “I’m okay. Just don’t… don’t do anything stupid!”
I looked back down at the man whose chest was under my heavy paws. A deep growl reverberated through my body. Slowly, my own form began to crack and shift, the black fur crumbling away as I took human form once more. All except my eyes, which remained bright and golden.
“If you so much as fucking move,” I growled. “I’ll rip your fucking throat out.”
The man nodded dumbly, his body trembling. For someone who had committed a kidnapping, he sure didn’t seem to be very tough. Either that, or he just wasn’t used to getting caught. I figured it was probably the latter.
A yelp above me brought my attention back to Matt. He’d dropped over the edge of the little sand cliff, landing on the steep hillside below. In a matter of seconds, he had rolled to the bottom. I wanted to rush to him, but I didn’t want to let my prey go. As far as I was concerned, his ass could go sit in jail.
“Are you okay?” I called, pushing myself to a standing position. I kept one foot in the center of the rogue’s chest, fully aware I was still naked. “Are you hurt?”
“I’m okay,” Matt called back, forcing himself to his feet. He swayed for a moment, rubbing the back of his head. “He clocked me real good…”
I growled down at the man, suddenly trading my knee for my foot on his chest. There was a loud crack as my entire body weight landed on him, signaling at least one broken rib. He whimpered in pain, but I didn’t fucking care.
“Why?” I snarled, inches away from his face. “Why did you take him?!”
Matt stepped up beside me, laying a hand on my back. “I’m okay, Ace. Don’t hurt him too bad–”
“Fuck that!” I snapped, punching the rogue hard in the shoulder. “Why are you doing this?!”
“P-Please,” he stammered, clearly shaken. “I w-was hired t-to do it…”
“You were hired to stalk me?” Matt asked, his speech still a little slurred. “And to run me over with your truck?”
Fury flared in my chest. “That was you?!” I punched him again. “WHO HIRED YOU?!”
“A-Alpha Thomas!” he cried, tears streaming down his face. “He said the boy had c-committed a terrible c-crime and had to be dealt with! I n-needed the money and he said I c-could join the pack if I d-did this! Please! I’ve been practically starving for months!”
Now that I took a moment to look at him, I realized he was at least telling the truth about that last part. While he had a big frame, he was mostly skin and bones. It was no wonder he couldn’t even attempt to outrun me or square up with me in combat. He was practically a skeleton.
“That’s the Alpha from my old pack,” Matt said, his voice cracking. “He… He sent someone to kill me…”
“Is that what you were supposed to do?” I barked at the rogue.
He just nodded, a pathetic whine building in his chest. I looked back at Matt, my heart breaking for him as the news sank in. An Alpha was supposed to take care of his pack, to be there for them no matter what. That was their calling in life. And even though Matt was no longer part of the pack, I couldn’t imagine the betrayal he felt in that moment. Not only had they kicked him out, but his Alpha, the one he’d been trusting his entire life to lead him and his family, had tried to have him killed.
I’d never heard of a pack leader taking such extreme actions. Or such illegal ones. There were consequences for doing such things that went far above and beyond the power of an Alpha.
“Listen to me, you stupid motherfucker,” I growled, turning my attention back to the rogue. “I will let you live on one condition. You go back to that asshole and tell him that if he ever sends someone after my mate again, I’ll kill him myself.”
All the color drained from the rogue’s face instantly. “I… I can’t do that!”
“Would you rather have your throat ripped out and your body left here to become seagull food?” I snapped. “This entire town is full of rogue wolves and every single one of them would help me make sure you were never found again.”
He shivered beneath me but finally nodded.
“Good.” I took my knee off his chest. “If I ever see or smell you here again, consider your life forfeit. Understood?”
The rogue nodded, then scrambled away down the beach, clutching his broken ribs. I could smell the scent of blood rolling off him, but he’d be fine. His werewolf healing would make sure of that. And I didn’t fucking care anyway.
I turned my attention back to Matt, wrapping him up in my arms.
“You’re safe,” I said, taking a deep breath for the first time since I realized he was gone. “Thank the moon you’re safe…”
Matt’s body quaked against mine. I glanced down, seeing the tears rolling down his face.
“They… they tried to have me killed…” he sobbed.
“And failed,” I replied, pulling him back against my chest. “No one’s gonna hurt you,” I said, squeezing him tight. “Not while I’m around.”
He just stood there, his forehead resting against my chest as I held him. Behind us, the fireworks continued to crackle and boom in the air, showers of sparks lighting up the beach where we stood. But all of it was forgotten. All that mattered was him, safe in my arms where he belonged.
Everything was going to be okay.