Chapter 181
HANNAH
The pain in my hand radiated upward and outward. In a quarter of an hour, maybe less, my arm would go numb from how tightly Cade was clutching it.
I didn't care though. The pain was the only thing that kept me grounded as we waited for the duel to start.
I hadn't looked at everyone present- the crowd was too much anyway- but I was sure that Asher wasn't here although all the important people in the territories were present. Some with their families.
"Are you nervous?" I asked Cade in a voice only a step above a whisper.
I noticed he was tapping his foot nervously. Now he stopped.
"I am," he admitted. He jutted his chin in the direction of the fighting ring which was still empty. It was very similar to the one where I had fought and killed Julia in what felt like a lifetime ago. "Whatever happens in there today will redefine history. We can't afford to loose."
"Don't worry," I said with a confidence I did not feel. "Your father is one of the strongest persons I know. He's going to win this."
Cade started to smile but he couldn't quite make it. He settled for a jerky nod instead. He turned to stare with fixed concentration at the still empty fighting ring.
Beside us, Chase, Cade and Willa also sat, faces tense, backs straight. Waiting.
I had tried to be their strength, their courage at this time but deep down I was scared, perhaps even more than they were.
Dawson was dangerous. Many times I had underestimated him but I wasn't making that mistake anymore. He was cunning, manipulative, desperate. He knew his fate now rested in Wallace's hands and that this was a winner-takes-all situation.
If he won, he got to be the Alpha of Breakstone and Icestone.
I knew what his first decree as Alpha would be- to rip us apart. Literally.
There would be no black book or ceremonial dagger or ritual for me this time. It would be a quick stab to the heart or the throat- whichever one would get my blood flowing fast enough for him to drink.
That couldn't happen.
Please don't let it happen, I prayed to the goddess.
I started as the drum, signalling the start of the duel banged once. A hush fell on the crowd of spectators. Steel doors built into the fighting pits slowly opened. From the left one Dawson emerged. Alpha Wallace emerged from the right.
The two Alphas sized each other up.
"It's starting," I heard Willa moan.
The drum banged again, it's final note shivering in the air. The Alpha's figures seemed to blur and shimmer like something seen through a heat haze. There was a loud tearing sound and the next moment the Alphas were no longer men but wolves.
In that split second, Dawson's black furred wolf lunged.
"He wasn't ready!" I heard someone tell.
But that was Dawson's way, wasn't it? Fighting dirty. He didn't care how he won just as long as he won.
Alpha Wallace's russet coloured wolf stepped aside at the instant Dawson got to touching distance. Dawson kept running past, unable to stop. He collided with the edge of the ring. He turned again to face Alpha Wallace again.
This time the Alpha charged, his paws digging into the dirt and throwing it aside. Dawson met him head on. The sound of their huge bodies colliding set my teeth on edge.
The great beasts rolled on the floor, so fast they were almost blurs. Yelps, growls and roars filled the air as they both fought for dominance. The russet wolf raised it's head, snapped at the other's neck. The black wolf howled as a spray of blood followed. It dripped on the golden sand, turning it almost black.
"Yes," I gasped. "Yes!"
The russet wolf started to take a snap at the other's neck again but with a tremendous effort, the black wolf threw him off. The Alpha skidded on his back paws before regaining his balance. His muzzle and teeth smeared with blood. Dawson got to his feet, shook the blood out of it's fur. There was a ragged bloody gash at the side of it's neck.
"Father has drawn first blood," Chase said to Willa, excitement making his voice tremble.
Willa nodded. Her lips moved but not a sound came out. Her nails were digging into Chase's arm but neither of them seemed to notice.
Dawson let out a deafening roar. Another. Yet another.
He was cussing out the Alpha. Alpha Wallace's stood still and silent, waiting for him to come, waiting for him to make another move.
I approved. It was what I would have done if I were in his shoes.
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