Chapter Fifteen #2
As we neared the warehouse, the stench of the rogue wolves grew stronger. Some were asleep, others were already starting their day. I signaled for the group to split—Maya and Jerome leading their teams to the east and west while Joanna and I took the rest to the rear of the building.
We moved in silence, the rain masking our footsteps. Two rogue wolves in human form guarded the rear entrance, their eyes scouring the perimeter. I nodded to Joanna, and we struck as one, taking down the guards before they could raise an alarm.
Inside the warehouse was a maze of rusted machinery and crumbling crates. We slipped through the shadows, our eyes adjusting to the dim light filtering through the broken windows above. One of the main halls was ahead, the voices of the traitors growing louder with each step.
I gave the signal to fan out, surrounding the unsuspecting rogues. Joanna stayed by my side, her silver blade catching light as she readied herself for the fight.
As the first rays of dawn filtered through the windows, I let out a low growl. The signal.
My unit attacked as one. The rogues were in their human forms as well, their reactions slow and clumsy as they struggled to catch their bearings. My wolves, armed with silver, of all things, slipped behind the traitors and tore through them.
Joanna fought beside me, her movements fluid and deadly. The speed at which she could pull back an arrow on her bow was incredible. The silent silver tips never missed their mark.
The hunters, despite being outnumbered by werewolves, were holding their own. Rebecca moved with a dancer’s grace, her silver blades flashing as she cut down werewolf after werewolf. Malik, for all his arrogance, was a formidable fighter, his short swords carving into each rogue.
I used my wolf bond to check how the others were doing. Jerome and his team took out many of the sleeping rogues, but now the traitors knew we were here.
A howl reverberated through the warehouse. The sound of clothes being shredded as the rogues shifted echoed throughout the building. And like a ripple effect, my wolves did the same.
The rogue wolves were now alert and fighting back with all they had.
Maya’s team burst into the warehouse from the east. Moments later, Jerome’s team arrived from the west, catching the rogue wolves in a pincer movement.
Growls filled the air. The battle raged on, bodies falling on both sides. Grace and Robert fought back-to-back in their beautiful wolf forms, their camaraderie evident with every synchronized strike. But Robert’s arm was a mutilated mess, and his limping was putting them at a disadvantage.
I lost Joanna in a swarm of rogues. She moved so quickly and without hesitation that it didn’t take me long to realize… in the throng of werewolves, unlike her kin, she didn’t need the ribbons to identify us.
A rogue in wolf form lunged at me, teeth bared in a snarl. I sidestepped, the claws of my hybrid beast tearing through his side. He yelped in pain and ran away, but another took his place. And another.
They just kept coming. Their numbers seemed endless, and their size only got bigger. I needed to fully shift, but if I did… I wouldn’t be able to communicate with her.
But I sensed my pack’s strength waning, their energy draining. We needed to end this. And fast.
“Blackwood, what the fuck are you waiting for? Shift, damn it!”
I don’t know how she knew I needed that, but with Joanna’s command, I didn’t hesitate.
I let out a roar, the sound shaking the walls as I shifted into my complete wolf form. The rest of my clothes ripped away as my body changed. Power coursed through my veins, the primal instincts taking over.
I launched myself at the nearest rogue, my jaws clamping down on his neck. He yelped in pain, struggling to break free, but I held on, shaking him until I heard the satisfying snap of bone. I tossed his limp body aside, already moving on to the next target.
Two more rogues flew in front of me. I met them head-on, my claws ripping off chunks of fur and flesh. They fought back, but something fierce was driving me: the need to protect my pack…
To protect Joanna.
I spotted her out of the corner of my eye, her arrows still finding their marks with unerring accuracy. Her knife sliced throats of rogues that made the mistake of getting too close. She moved with precision, her body a blur of motion as she took them all down.
I tore through another rogue, biting his leg and dragging him to the ground. I could taste the bitter tang of his blood, the coppery scent filling my nostrils as I ended his life with a swift bite to the neck.
A yelp from Grace caught my attention. I turned to see her on the ground, a massive rogue wolf looming over her, his muzzle pulled into a snarl. I growled, leaping toward them, but before I could reach her, Maya was there.
She dove between Grace and the rogue, her claws spread wide as they slashed the wolf’s face. He recoiled, giving Grace enough time to find the strength to scramble to her paws.
Maya stood her ground, claws caked with blood, as she faced off against the snarling rogue.
He lunged at her, but she was ready, sidestepping his attack and clamping her teeth down on his side.
He yelped and stumbled, but before Maya could strike again, Malik jumped up from behind and drove his two swords into the rogue’s back.
“Fuck!” Rebecca, a hunter we met in Cedar Grove, swore up to Joanna from a stairway. “They have prisoners down here! We need to protect the civilians!”
“I’ll stay with them,” a trembling voice called out. Peter, one of our newest members, ran to the hunter, his clothes still pristine.
She grabbed his arm, looking him up and down. “You’re a baby.”
“I’m sixteen,” he challenged, pulling his arm from her grasp. “And are you okay with pulling real warriors from the fight to babysit?”
“Let. Him. Through,” Joanna grunted mid-fight. Blood trickled down her forehead.
Rebecca cursed under her breath. “Close the cell door behind you, and do not let anyone in.”
Peter nodded before hurrying down the stairs.
A decapitated hunter fell at my feet, snapping me back into the fight. Thick, red liquid bathed the body from neck to ankle, making the black leather glisten… The indigo tattoo on her right wrist was barely noticeable under all the blood.
I scanned the chaotic scene. The battle was far from over, and my pack and the remaining hunters were growing tired. We needed to turn the tide and fast.
A large brown wolf lunged at me, its teeth snapping mere inches from my face.
I reared back, using my size to my advantage.
With a swift movement, I pinned the rogue to the ground, tearing into its throat.
I could taste its fear, its desperation as it struggled to break free.
But my grip was iron, and with a swift jerk of my head, I ended its life.
As I rose, I saw Joanna, her back pressed against a crate, three rogue wolves advancing on her.
Her breath was coming in quick gasps, her eyes darting between the hungry beasts.
She held her silver knife in one hand, her bow discarded on the floor beside her.
Fatigue etched onto her face, the strain of battle wearing her down.
I leaped toward them, my growl echoing through the warehouse.
The rogue wolves turned, their eyes wide with surprise as I barreled into them.
I shredded one of them, my claws raking across its back, before turning to face the other two.
They pounced, but I was faster. I dodged their attacks, my teeth sinking into the flesh of one while my claws slashed at the other.
Joanna took the opportunity, her blade flashing as she drove it into the heart of one rogue.
The other turned to her, but I was already there, my jaws clamping down on its neck. It struggled for a moment before going limp in my grasp.
Joanna looked up at me, her eyes filled with gratitude. “Thank you,” she mouthed.
But before I could do anything to acknowledge her thanks, a blinding pain shot through my side.
“Marcus!” Joanna screamed.
I looked down, my vision blurring as my hands wrapped around the metal pipe jutting from my side. I snarled, searching for the one who threw it.
Thomas, in his wolf form, stood a few feet away, his face contorted with hatred.
There’s the traitor, Thomas spat through the bond. Consorting with humans? Looks to be proving deadly.
I pulled out the pipe, the searing pain fueling my rage. I lunged at him, but he was ready, dodging my attack and striking me with a knife with a wrapped hilt. I yelped, stumbling back.
Joanna rushed to my side.
A group of rogue wolves closed in around us, their eyes glowing with malevolence. Joanna stood protectively over me, her weapon held out.
Does she think she can take us all? Thomas sneered, circling like a vulture. He looked at me, sadistic malice in his gaze. Perhaps before I kill her, I’ll allow my brothers to have their fun with her and make you watch as she begs for the sweet release of death.
Infuriated, I struggled to stand, the pain in my side traveling throughout my body. I nudged Joanna behind me, my hackles raised and my teeth bared.
We were surrounded, but I would fight until my last breath to protect her.