Chapter 113

Vi plucks a ring with a deep red stone and presses it into my palm. “Here. How does it feel to touch a red jasper?”
Heat rushes up my arm, but this time, it isn’t unsettling. It’s *powerful*. My lips curl into a slow grin before it fully spreads, teeth flashing. 
“I feel *strong*!” At least physically. 
Az and Lily’s wolves bark in approval. And I smile at them.
“See?” Vi turns to her parents. “This isn’t normal.”  
Beside me, Ethan tenses, his body going rigid.  
Panic flickers in my chest. Does he suspect something? 
No. He can’t. That evil black light inside me hasn’t shown up since that night, which means it’s gone. Right? 
Ethan exhales, exchanging a glance with his parents. “Not all of them,” he carefully starts saying. “But usually witches have a connection with crystals—” He stops himself, shaking his head. His hand finds mine, squeezing reassuringly. “Don’t worry, there’s no need to look at me with that scared face, love. You’re not one. There’s got to be another explanation. Probably it happens just because you’re naturally amazing.” 
His smile is meant to comfort me, but something about it feels forced.  
I return it anyway, slipping the red jasper back into the chest. Then, out of curiosity, I pick up a diamond ring, holding it up to the light.  
When I glance back at Ethan, his smile is gone. His jaw is clenched tight.
“Ethan?” I ask, dropping my enthusiasm.
Glancing back, I see the concern crossed his parents’ and sister’s eyes, too.
Then, Ethan’s eyes seem to refocus. 
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?” I ask.
His lips part, but he doesn’t seem to find the words to explain, as though he’s still listening to someone in his head.
“Ethan.” His father rises and meets him on the couch. 
He says, his voice sounding rough like the stone next to me, “Our pack’s going to get attacked!”

🐺 🐺 🐺
***Alpha Ethan***

No. Not now. Not when things are finally looking up in my life!
Not before I can mark my mate. My sweet Little Dove.
After confirming with Christine what she had just said and mindlink Josh, I order, “Mom, Vi, you know what to do. But first, get Alicent to the packhouse’s bunker. Move now!”
“What? What do you mean?”
“I’m not going to risk your safety!” I tell her harshly.
Despite wincing at my tone, she asks, “I’m staying with you!”
“I can’t stay by your side. I have to go to the front li—”
“Then I’ll go with Vi and Emma! Why can’t they stay with me here?”
I take a short, deep breath. “For Goddess’ sake! We don’t have time for this! The packhouse bunker is huge, but they have to go to another bunker, the central one in the center of Blackmoon. So they can make sure all the pack members who can’t fight can get there in time and stay protected.” I look at my tiny human’s fragile body. “Baby, you can’t fight shit, and you’re too precious to me. I won’t risk you being left unprotected.” 
She looks up at me fiercely. “I know very much I can’t fight, but I can help whoever needs my help at the bunker.” She stands up abruptly. “I’ll go with them!” 
While I stare down at my Little Dove, my father has already left the living room to talk to Christine and Josh. Az’s wolf, next to Lily’s, whines, looking at me and urging with his eyes for me to decide quickly, probably sensing the danger coming, too. I sigh deeply. “Okay, you can go with them.” She gives me a bright smile of relief. “But you’re supposed to stay inside the bunker and not outside. Got me?”
“Yes, yes, yes, Alpha!” She says, coming towards me and giving me a hug around the waist with a huge smile, and for a moment, I forget everything that’s about to happen. I kiss the top of her head as she snuggles into my chest. “Now, go!”
I turn her around and slap her ass so she can move on. Then, I shift and let Kral run to the Blackmoon’s massive gates.
When Christine mindlinked me with our code for an invasion, I was grateful I was already sitting down. A wave of panic slammed into me—my first thought was that the evil witch was back for revenge. That ancient, twisted hag is fucking powerful, and even though we outnumber her, I know better than to underestimate that witch. I should have hunted her down and ripped her throat out when I had the chance.  
But when I demanded to know who was invading near our border, Christine’s answer caught me off guard. Still, the panic didn’t ease. We’ve got cameras covering every inch of the pack’s territory and surveillance stretching miles beyond our borders, all of them to buy us time. 
Time to get everyone to safety in the bunker, time to fortify our defenses, time to prepare for bloodshed. 
And yet, even with all that, the tension in my chest is suffocating. This isn’t just an invasion; it’s a threat to everything we’ve built, and I can feel the beast in me snarling, ready to tear apart whatever dares to cross our line.
I expected the news about a mob of wolves heading our way and ready to attack to come from Jordan, not Christine, since Jordan’s already back in the pack, and he’s still my damn Gamma! 
This is his fucking responsibility. Why the hell am I hearing this from anyone but him?
Kral runs so fast that the wind makes him squint. In the sky, the sun had just set. I can sense the rogues getting closer. They’ll be here any minute. The time we have is short, but crucial.
Mom’s always fighting during situations like this, and Vi has always been by her side. This isn’t the first invasion where she’s joined Mom to ensure all the children and those unable to fight are kept safe.
In my mind, I quickly start barking orders through the mindlink to all my warriors. They’re already trained to know exactly what to do in their roles, so there’s no need for lengthy explanations.
‘How’s everything?’ I mindlink my mother and Vi at the same time.
‘Things are going as expected.’ Vi is the first to answer. ‘Maggie and Theo were already close by, and after your mindlink to the whole pack about the attack, she raced over to help us.’ 
‘*She*’ll be safe, son.’
I fucking hope so.
I don’t answer them. I focus my orders on the Werewolves who will be on the front lines.
When Kral finally arrives at the gates, in record time, my father is already there with Josh, Christine, and the other warriors. All of them in their wolf forms.
Where’s Jordan? I thought that motherfucker was already here!
But before I can mindlink him, chaos takes over.

🐺 🐺 🐺

The air fucking stinks.
The stench of rogues.
The metallic tang of blood.
The pungent stench of sweat.
It must have been just a few minutes since the rogues invaded the pack, but it felt like an eternity. As my wolf advances on the throat of yet another motherfucker, feeling the taste of the grit of dust and dirt on his tongue, I hear the cries of wounded warriors not that far away. Near Kral, Dad’s dark gray wolf with black paws is battling two wolves on the front line, as well as Christine’s wolf.
‘Dad, they’re fucking running into the pack!’
His wolf growls. ‘I noticed.’
As soon as we managed to kill the first invaders, others started running into the pack as if they had a specific target. In the back of our mind, I wanted Kral to run to them because my son and his mother were there, but I needed to stay here to contain the invasion, trusting that Vi and Mom would protect them. Kelly is not a fighter, but she got in the pack yesterday, and I’m sure she must be outside the bunker along with Maggie, my sister, and my mother, protecting everyone.
Seconds pass, and I decide. ‘Dad, I’m going to the bunker. They’re not running randomly. They seem to know where they’re going.’
Fucking rogues. They’re running towards the bunker like they know where it is.
‘Go. We’ll take care of it here. We’ve already reduced their numbers considerably.’
‘But we can shrink them even further,’ Christine replies. Her wolf sticks out its tongue before biting the face of one that weakly has returned to their human form.
Kral’s eyes find Josh’s brown wolf, and only to him, I mindlink, ‘If anything happens, let me know immediately. Got it?’
‘Yes, Alpha.’
And then, Kral sprints towards the bunker because that’s exactly the path that all the rogues who managed to get past the front lines are going.
Kral quickly and mercilessly kills everyone he finds along the way without stopping the pace. The metallic tang of blood lingers on his mouth as I mindlink my son. However, when I’m about to connect with his mind, I immediately feel the sting of his pain. ‘AZRAEL! What are you doing?’
‘I’m fighting!’
‘I gave you a clear order!’
‘You said I was supposed to take care of Mom, and I did.’
‘What do you mean?’ Kral runs even faster.
I’ve never been so glad to have already done the ceremony to integrate Az into my pack. Although it was quick, his mother cried before, during, and after the process and only stopped because she started laughing when Lily said she would never talk to Az again because he minlinked me first before *her*.
‘The rogues got to the bunker before everyone could get in, and one charged at Mom and I—’
‘You protected her.’ I add, Kral biting a wolf’s guts and throwing the rogue away so he could get out of the way. ‘You did good, son, but get into the bunker now. Stay with Lily and Theo.’
‘But I can—’
‘Now, Az.’
I can almost hear his huff. ‘Okay, Pops.’
‘Ian,’ Vi mindlinks to me next. ‘There are so many of them. They’re all coming for the bunker like they knew our tactic before they invaded us!’
No shit. ‘I’m on my way.’
Although it seems impossible, Kral sprints even faster, jumping on one of the rogues’ heads in the process to gain momentum.
I can only imagine how scared my sweet mate must be right now, watching all this happen. Weeks ago, she didn’t even know our world existed. 
I wish I could’ve told her differently, but it was inevitable at that time. Even though after I finally came clean, I already knew it would take some time for her to come around, I had no idea she’d be that hurt by the news like that. 
But I racked my brain. I tried to think of anything else I might have covered up, wanting to earn back her trust. 
No more lies.
It was tough to win back her trust, but I know that if it were the other way around, I would be freaking angry too. She is so much better than me.
As I turn the corner to go to the center of Blackmoon, I can already spot the bunker from afar. Here, the path seems to be clearer, which gives me an advantage in seeing around.
Although it’s not as chaotic as near the gates even after they’ve subsided, around the bunker, it’s not at all formidable.
Kral runs at full speed, his paws pumping with adrenaline. Mom is in her wolf form, and she alone is killing several at the same time; whoever sees her all dressed up in fucking Coco Chanel can’t even imagine the strength of her wolf. Behind her is Vi, in human form with weapons in hands, one of them seems to run out, and she bends down and picks up more ammunition at her feet. It shouldn’t be, but the scene is kind of funny, since she’s still in the red dress that she was going to dinner with Jordan, but since every moment was precious, she didn’t even change her clothes, she went as she was to help everyone. 
However, that’s not what catches my attention; it’s the fact that Kelly is right behind my sister, leaning against the wall near the bunker, watching everything. She should be fighting! Her aura from afar is neutral, as always, even with everyone’s despair in front of her. 
Kral growls, running faster. This time, killing two at once before they get close to my mom’s wolf. Kral jerks his head around, looking for Kelly’s brother, but he’s nowhere to be seen. Before I even get close, all my pack members who are fighting around the bunker look up in my direction, and despite the smell of stinking rogues, it doesn’t stop my senses from feeling their relief. They know that I have no mercy for those who threaten them. 
‘Ian, on your left!’ I turn around just in time and bite a wolf that dares to attack me. 
‘Where the fuck is Jordan, Vi?’ 
Vi shoots and takes down a rogue next to a glass window at the underground bunker’s entrance. ‘I don’t know,’ she replies.
Fucking hell!
BOOOOOM!
Kral goes feral when he notices one of the rogues has shifted back to human form and shatters the bulletproof glass window with a huge explosion.
Kral redirects his route and runs to the location, killing four rogues, one by one, that pass by until he gets close to the broken window. On the other side of the massive window, I spot Lily, Maggie and Az’s wolves after first noticing my mate behind them.
Kral growls. ‘Why isn’t she down there?’ I bark through mindlink to Maggie as my wolf blocks the rogues from entering the place. Two wolves charge at Kral, but he dodges one and bites the other, then uses his prey's body to catapult the other rogue away.
‘She was helping the last members get into the bunker, Alpha.’
‘Get into the bunker! All of you right now!’
When I clear the rogues near the huge window, I go to where my mother and Vi are. Kelly is no longer here. 
Together and with other warriors nearby, we fight, killing all the rogues nearby. Kral is exhausted, but now it is not time to fucking rest. We can only let our guard down when the pack is completely safe.
When there are finally no more living intruders around us, and I only sense more rogues approaching far away, my sister turns to me, “I’m going after Jordan!”
My wolf nods at her, and she runs in the other direction with her gun in her hand. I feel Little Dove behind me, and Kral turns to her. 
Goddess above! Look at her eyes! I wonder what she thinks of me right now.
Kral approaches her, and she hugs him even though he is covered in blood. “I was so worried!” She says softly, tears coming out of her eyes. “I hate this new world!”
I almost laugh. Her hand strokes between Kral’s ears, making him even more possessive of her. Lethal. Just to protect her.
Then I sense four rogues coming closer, and I shift back immediately because she can’t speak through mindlink, and there won’t be time for her to get to the banker. “Little Dove, there are more rogues coming,” I say just as I begin to see them running, not towards the bunker but towards us, as if she were the target...
I growl. There is only one way to weaken an Alpha like me—killing his mate.
“Oh my god! You’re covered in blood!”
I look down at my naked body, blood that was on Kral’s fur covering my skin.
“It’s not my blood, love.”
“Promise?”
“Yes.”
I kiss her forehead, and before shifting, I order, “Stay behind me!” 
Kral immediately positions himself in front of her, like her own guard, and we hear her whisper, “Well, duh. I’m not going to go in front of you where those stinky wolves are aiming their fangs!”
Kral and I laugh in our mind, before my wolf races to the rogues and start the attack. 
As Kral tears into the wolf closest to him, something catches the corner of his eye. One of the attackers shifts back into human form, snatching the knife his wolf had been carrying in its mouth. The man bolts toward Kral, blade in hand. At the same time, the other two wolves pin my wolf down, their jaws clamping hard on either side to immobilize him. Kral thrashes violently, his body jerking in sharp, desperate movements to break free, but before he can escape, the man with the mullet drives the knife into Kral.
He aims for the heart, but as Kral moves, he ends up hitting his leg.
Fucking hell! The knife is poisoned!
The smell of wolfsbane and fucking witches invades Kral’s senses.
“No!” Little Dove screams from the other side.
Kral advances on the man when he tries to stab him again, and then he drops the knife and shifts. Yet, Kral bites the rogue's wolf neck, but it’s too late. The other rogue shifts and stabs Kral in the side with the poisoned knife.
My wolf lets out a roar of pain.
I’m not prepared for what happens next.
Kral falls to the ground, his body trying to heal, but the poison prevents it. Fuck!
A ray of light appears in the twilight. Kral looks at it and realizes that’s where our mate is.
Little Dove doesn’t look at us. Instead, she closes her meadow green eyes and grits her teeth. A dark sort of light unravels from her chest, spilling from her body as it coats her skin. 
It veins up her neck in broken branches of darkness, crawling up her jaw as it hits her eyes. 
When my sweet Little Dove opens her eyes, the green irises are gone. 
All that is left is blackness. 
No pupil. 
No sclera. 
And then, seeming instinctively natural, she bites her wrist hard, blood dripping on her lips, and she raises her hands, aiming at the rogues who are about to kill me.