Chapter 182
HANNAH
A low growl now came from Dawson. Almost flattening himself on the ground, he approached his opponent cautiously. The two werewolves began to circle each other. The black wolf sprang again but the Alpha was quicker. He leaped over Dawson in a graceful arch, grabbed his tail between his teeth and gave it a savage yank. Dawson howled, tried to snatch his tail back. The Alpha shook it back and forth, refusing to let go.
And then Dawson twisted his body around, swiped at the Alpha's face with his claws, leaving deep bloody gashes in it's wake that exposed the flesh. The Alpha immediately let go of Dawson, tried to blink away the blood I was sure was clouding his sight.
Dawson, seeing this, pressed his advantage. He lunged at the Alpha, clawed at his shoulder, his back, his neck, moving so fast the Alpha didn't have a chance to defend himself.
The sand underneath them grew black, this time with the Alpha's blood. The Alpha let out a whine, stumbled and fell. Hoarse shouts erupted from the crowd.
Cade sprang to his feet.
"Get up!" he yelled.
I was shaking so badly I couldn't trust myself to stand.
Dawson's wolf blurred as he shifted back into his human form. His teeth was bared in a ferocious grin.
"Is this him?" he yelled at the crowd. He gestured to the Alpha who was trying and failing to get to his feet. "Is this the one you want to replace me with?" Dawson turned to the werewolf council, sitting in the front row, watching silently with their black and white robes spread out behind them. "This pathetic excuse for an Alpha can't even defend himself."
Dawson shook his head. He shifted back into his wolf form and circled the Alpha, snapping tauntingly at his hindquarters whenever the Alpha struggled to rise.
"Come on. Come on," I heard someone say.
Chase? Jace? Willa? I didn't know at that point.
The Alpha shut his eyes. The crowd started to murmur. When he opened them again, they were glowing with a fierce inner light. The Alpha stood.
Dawson sprang. Alpha Wallace let him come. He opened his jaws wide, closed them around Dawson's front paw and bit into it.
Before Dawson could recover, the Alpha started to bite and tear at every part of Dawson's body he could reach. The black wolf's struggles got weaker and weaker until the russet pinned him to the floor, grabbed hold of his neck with his fangs.
The black wolf's scream was almost human as the russet wolf tore it's head off with a final, savage yank. For an instant there was a deafening silence.
I stared, not believing the evidence of my eyes.
Dawson, dead?
The crowd roared. People screamed. People clapped. People leaped right out of their seats.
Willa, pale and wide-eyed grabbed my shoulders, hugged me, pulled away and shook me.
"Hannah! Hannah!" she shouted, laughing and crying at the same time.
I started to say something then realized I had been screaming and had been doing so for quite a while. My throat felt raw and sore but I couldn't stop. I didn't want to stop.
My mates pushed their way to the front, climbed over the wooden barricade separating the stands from fighting ring. I followed them. Willa was right behind me.
We all fell on our knees before Alpha Wallace. Ke was bruised, bleeding but still standing now in his human form with his enemies severed head at his feet, the dead eyes looking up at the sky with an expression of shocked surprise.
A while later, when a little of the excitement had died down, one of the council members rose to his feet. He put up both hands for silence. By degrees the arena grew quiet.
In a loud carrying voice he said, "Today we have all seen justice done. The goddess has in her mercy has punished Dawson, a disgrace to our kind, a murderer, a liar and a traitor. Let this be a lesson to all. The wheels of justice may be slow but... it will crush all offenders eventually." He paused to let this sink in then went on, "Wallace is henceforth no longer just the Alpha of Icestone but of Breakstone pack as well." The councilman bowed. "Congratulations, Alpha."
The crowd went wild, clapping and cheering and stomping their feet.
Something like a smile lit up the grave features of the councilman. This time, it took a little more time before the crowd grew quiet enough for him to speak.
"By law-" the councilman went on, addressing Alpha Wallace. "You are required to make your first decree as Alpha of these nobles packs. What is it to be?"
The Alpha stepped into the middle of the ring. His eyes searched the crowd until it fell on my father.
Alpha Wallace said, "For my first decree, I appoint Elliot Baker as my chief advisor."
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