Chapter 27 Wrath
Wrath
I bully her outside, poking and pushing her until she’s ready to snap. I grip her shoulders and point her toward the forest as I bite down on the urge to laugh.
“Picture your wolf.”
She snorts but closes her eyes.
“Now, step into her. And run!”
She falls forward at my shove, shifting and landing on four feet like she was born to it. I lift my head and howl.
There’s a scrambling inside the house, and Hazard bursts out, shifting on the fly and landing in a playful leap. He runs crazily around the clearing and does circles around her.
She stumbles and walks slowly, picking up speed as she turns, looking for Hazard. The rest of the pack joins us. We stay spread around her, guarding her back as she finds herself.
I see the moment that finding herself becomes experiencing the world as a wolf. The colours, sounds, details are all so much more, but it’s the smells. It’s like we can see the world through scent. It’s remarkable, but I forgot that until right now.
She stops at the treeline, looking down into the valley; her fur lifts and catches in the wind. She truly is the most beautiful wolf.
Her eyes are blue, too.
Unique.
Not like us.
Or maybe exactly like us.
She steps out and looks up as a falcon soars past, circling over us before it vanishes. It’s only us and the wild up here. No people, no wolves. She can be herself and be safe being herself.
Khaos stands beside me as Angel and Hazard lead her down, racing beside her. Riot ranges ahead of them, making sure everyone is safe.
I shift into my human form.
“I don’t know how to go back to a world without her, Khaos.”
He looks at me and looks away.
“You feel it, too,” I whisper. “You feel how perfect she is.”
He dips his chin just once.
It’s all I’m going to get from him, and I should be grateful to get that much. I sit down, running my fingers through the grass as she runs.
“She’s a miracle. My miracle. An omega, Khaos. When was the last time one was recorded?”
I have to have her. To make her ours. It’s the only reason I will accept for how the last few years unfolded. We were meant to meet her, and this was supposed to happen.
My mother would have bundled her up and brought her into the fold without thinking twice.
For the first time, I accept that my mother isn’t here anymore. She’s gone. Maybe she helped guide us here. Maybe this is my mother looking out for us.
That thought brings peace, and the anger inside me tempers and stops burning quite so bright.
“I’m going to bring her home. I want her to meet my father, and I want us to be a family, a pack.” I make the promise to myself. One day, I will bring her home.
The silence is brittle and deep.
Khaos steps away but looks back. He jerks his head, demanding I join them.
I shift and follow my alpha down into the valley where the omega who has captivated my heart and soul is playing in the wildflowers.
She glows in the moonlight. The light lands on her silver coat and makes it shine. She’s a dark ghost in the shadows. Casey keeps up easily with Angel, who is the fastest of us. She’s intuitive and just lives with sheer joy in every discovery.
Casey flops down in the grass, and I walk over and touch my nose to hers. Her eyes lift to watch me, glittering with the moon’s reflection.
I lay down beside her, pressing my bulk to hers, making sure we’re safe, listening and keeping an ear open while she rests.
Hazard curls up on her other side.
Angel, Riot, and Khaos encircle us, staying awake, ready for anything.
Anything but her.
I turn my head so I can watch her.
I think my mother would be okay with me not being there if she knew I was bringing this omega home to the family. I think in her dying moments, she would have forgiven me.
I get up, pacing unhappily, and then I howl.
The pack joins in, but then her voice lifts to the sky, intertwining with ours.
If there were any doubts, they are completely gone now.
I love her.
I’m not going anywhere without her.