Chapter 34 #3
With a surge of primal rage, I broke free from the fight and charged him, shifting back to human form at the last moment for greater control. I hit him with the full force of my weight, my fist connecting with his jaw in a blow that would have shattered a human's skull.
Victor staggered but didn't fall, spitting blood as he regained his balance. "There he is," he sneered, shifting back to human form as well. "The great Alpha, finally showing his true colors. Fighting like a common thug."
We grappled, crashing against the cabin wall with enough force to shake the structure.
Inside, I heard Leo cry out in fear, and the sound drove me to new heights of fury.
I drove my fist into Victor's solar plexus, feeling ribs crack beneath the impact.
He responded with a vicious upward strike to my wounded shoulder, his fingers digging deliberately into the silver wound.
Agony exploded behind my eyes. I staggered, momentarily blinded by pain, and Victor seized the advantage.
His claws extended, slashing across my chest, leaving deep furrows that immediately began to bleed.
He followed with a kick to my knee that would have broken a human's leg.
I fell to one knee, and Victor's fist crashed into my temple.
"I'm going to kill you slowly," he hissed, circling me as I struggled to rise. "And then I'm going to take your mate—claim her right here, while you watch the life drain from your eyes. And your son will be raised as mine, never knowing his father died a failure."
Inside the cabin, Alison had disappeared from the window. I could only hope she was taking Leo to a more secure room, away from the violence.
We rolled away from the cabin, a tangle of fur and fangs and hate, crashing through underbrush, neither of us willing to yield.
Victor fought with the calculated precision of a trained killer, targeting my wounded shoulder, my weakening limbs.
But I fought with the desperation of a man protecting everything he loved.
When we broke apart, both bleeding, Victor shifted to human form again, his eyes glittering with malice. Blood poured from a gash across his forehead, another from his lip. His left arm hung at an awkward angle—broken or dislocated.
"Everything was meant to be mine! She was meant to be mine," he spat. "Do you know how long I've planned this? Years, Lucas. Years of watching you squander what should have been mine."
I shifted as well, wanting him to see my face, to understand completely. The silver poison had spread, making every movement a struggle, but I forced myself to stand tall. "She was never yours to claim."
Something moved in the undergrowth behind Victor—a flash of blonde hair, the gleam of metal.
Alison had emerged from a hidden exit. She must have figured out that there must be another way out of the safehouse and found it.
Quick thinking on her end. In her hands was the crossbow from the cabin's arsenal, loaded with a silver-tipped bolt.
Victor, focused entirely on me, didn't notice her approach. "I'll enjoy breaking her," he continued, oblivious to the danger behind him. "Teaching her where her true place is—beneath me."
"Look behind you," I said quietly.
His eyes narrowed, suspecting a trick, but something in my expression made him turn. Alison stood twenty feet away, the crossbow aimed steadily at his heart, her face a mask of cold determination.
"I belong to no one," she said, her voice steady. "Least of all you."
Victor lunged toward her with inhuman speed, but not fast enough. The crossbow twanged, and the silver bolt buried itself in his thigh. He stumbled, howling in pain and rage, the silver immediately beginning its work, preventing his accelerated healing.
That moment of distraction was all I needed.
With a roar of fury, I charged him again.
This time there was no strategy, no restraint—just the raw need to eliminate the threat to my family.
Victor fought back with the desperation of a wolf who knew he was beaten, his claws raking down my side, his teeth snapping at my throat.
But I was fighting for more than territory or pride. I was fighting for my mate, my son, my pack. With a final surge of strength, I pinned him to the ground, my hand at his throat.
"Yield," I growled, applying just enough pressure to show I could crush his windpipe with a twitch of my fingers.
Victor's eyes darted past me to where James and a group of my wolves had arrived, surrounding us. The battle at the compound must have turned in our favor. Victor's remaining fighters were either dead or subdued, standing with heads bowed under the watchful eyes of my pack.
Victor went limp beneath me, defeat evident in every line of his body.
"I yield," he rasped.
The aftermath was a blur of activity—securing Victor and his remaining wolves, treating the wounded, and assessing damages.
The silver wound in my shoulder required special treatment, the poisoned tissue cut away before my natural healing could close the injury.
Throughout it all, my focus remained on the cabin where my family waited.
When all was finally settled, Alison flew into my arms, her body trembling with relief.
"You're hurt," she whispered, touching the wounds on my chest and arms, her eyes lingering on the gaping hole in my shoulder.
"I'll heal." I buried my face in her hair, breathing in her scent, reassuring myself that she was safe. Leo clung to both our legs, and I lifted him into our embrace, holding my family close.
"You fought the bad wolves, Daddy," Leo whispered, his small hands touching my face with wonder. "And Mommy helped. She was brave."
"Yes, she was," I agreed, meeting Alison's eyes over our son's head. "Your mother is the bravest person I know."
"I did what I had to do," she said simply, but I could see the remnants of fear and adrenaline in her eyes. Taking that shot at Victor had cost her something—crossed a line she perhaps hadn't been ready to cross. We would need to talk about that, but later.
Later, once Leo was asleep in one of the cabin's bedrooms, and I had my wounds taken care of, Alison and I returned to the pack house where Victor waited under heavy guard.
The once-proud man was subdued now, his injuries treated, but the silver bolt still embedded in his thigh—a precaution to keep him weakened and compliant.
My rival's arrogance had vanished, replaced by the wary look of a predator outmatched.
"What happens now?" Alison asked quietly as we approached the meeting room.
"Justice," I replied, though the wolf in me howled for vengeance.
Victor looked up as we entered, his eyes calculating even in defeat. "The conquering Alpha returns with his mate," he said, his tone mocking despite his situation.