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“Good luck, Oh and Eli. Destroy Jake will you.”
“With pleasure.”
The dirt road that leads to Quinn is narrow, with overgrown branches scraping the top of my SUV. In the distance, I see a lone lamppost by what looks to be an old barn. Several vehicles sit off to the side of the barn, meaning there is a significant amount of people here; this fight is gonna be bloody. Adrenaline pumps through me; I know Quinn is here, and I want her in my arms. I come to an abrupt stop and fly out of my vehicle. I can’t contain my rage any longer.
“Where is my mate!”
Jake emerges from behind a car, walking with all the swagger of a dead man. He has another thing coming if he thinks he will survive this. I can’t imagine being so completely unaware of my own destruction like Jake obviously is.
Chapter 17 - Eli
“Eli, you didn’t have to come all the way out here. I was about to come to you, could have saved you some gas money”
My wolf scratches at my mind, desperate to be let out. But I know it’s important to stay focused; this isn’t about me getting revenge, it's about me getting my mate back.
“Where’s Quinn?”
“Ah, she is tucked away, safe.”
“Jake, I have never really liked you. Your arrogance and inability to lead with respect have made it difficult to work with you over the years. However, the action you are taking right now has signed your death warrant. Quinn is my mate, so my suggestion is to give her up willingly, and I might make your death quick.” My wolf howls in my head, because he does not want his death to be quick. What's a little white lie among friends?
“She came to me, Eli, or did she not tell you that? She is my property and always has been. She is a part of my pack and, therefore, under my pack rules.”
“She hasn’t been a part of your pack in years. Besides, I know how you run your pack, based on fear and manipulation. Quinn may have driven here of her own free will, but she does not want to stay here. You threatened our daughter; I won’t let you hurt either one of them.”
“What exactly are you going to do about that, hm, Eli? Your pathetic group won’t be able to stand against us. I think it’s finally time to show you the Clearwater pack won’t stand for this any longer. We have lost enough people to your pack; it’s time we honor them and kill all of you. If that means I also get to see you die, I will be even more pleased.” This guy has so many screws loose thinking he can take on all of us. We have twice as many shifters as he does, and my pack and the council members are better trained than his entire pack. From my right, Thorn walks up, pulling Jake’s attention from me to him.
“Jake Griswold, my name is Thorn Orwell. I am a council representative, and I am here to tell you that if you surrender yourself to us, we won’t punish your pack for the transgressions you have committed. Attempted forcing of a bond, threats to a child, and threats to another pack without cause have forfeited your life. However, if you choose to fight, we will be forced to put everyone down and then deal with the remaining pack accordingly.”
“Ha! Do you think I’m afraid of the council? If I had cared what the council had to say about me, I would have 'fallen into line' years ago. The council is a bunch of weak wolves who no longer know what it means to be real shifters. We are primal beings living off instinct and survival of the fittest. The weak should be dominated, and killed if need be. You are just the representative of a group of shifters who no longer know how to be shifters. We fight for what we believe in, not take people to trial or placate them. You all are the problem, trying to ‘civilize’ us when we are meant to dominate and win. Quinn will help me find your weaknesses. To right the wrongs of the council and the Twilight Meadows pack. She will give me the insight I need to take you all out, but for now, I will settle for the sorry excuses of wolves standing in front of me.” The other shifters standing around Jake nod along to his eccentric ramblings, though a few shift their eyes, assessing the fight they are about to get into. You can tell some of them are being coerced to be here, but it's still astonishing to see the number of people who are on board with Jake’s thoughts. They can’t all believe this; Jake is literally throwing away their lives, sacrificing them for his own personal gain, surprise, surprise.
“Fine, it’s your choice and your funeral.” With that, the men that came with Thorn flow out from behind him, shifting mid-air as they head for their attack. The relative quiet turns into loud snarls and howls of shifters fighting. Talking to him was a waste of time, and I am no longer willing to waste time. Quinn is here somewhere, and I will find her. I shift almost instantly because my wolf has been simmering at the surface for days now. Looking at the chaos, I see my pack fighting and holding their own against Jake’s. I look from wolf to wolf, trying to find my target, when I see Jake behind a couple vehicles, yelling at one of his pack members to ‘attack’. Typical, he’s ordering his pack to their death as he tries to fall back from the fighting.
My legs pump hard as I bolt towards him, adrenaline pumping through me, helping me focus on why my lilac hasn’t felt truly safe in years. Jake swings his head in my direction and sees me jumping over a vehicle to try and land on him. He rolls off to the side and shifts into a dark brown wolf, almost the same size as me, and I am a big wolf. The growl in my chest escapes as saliva drips from my mouth; my wolf wants to taste his blood, showing the dominance we have over him. We circle each other, looking for weaknesses. I’m crouched a bit lower to the ground, eyeing his side and neck. Jake doesn’t take long to act—which is not surprising, because he never thinks before he acts—and jumps, trying to land on my back. I roll out of the way, causing him to lose his footing, and roll a couple times before standing on his legs again. I make a straight shot for his side, clamping my jaw down onto it. I try to start shaking my head, but he manages to get a hold of my back leg, biting down and yanking on me, tearing the skin open. I release my hold to twist and kick him off me.
We face each other again, my back leg pulsing in pain, it won’t take long for it to heal, but I’m pissed at myself for being so open like that. I make the first move and dart to the left, drawing his attention to his weaker side. At the last second, I move to the right and get a hold of his underbelly, ripping him open and causing him to roll to his side. The blood lining my mouth feeds the wolf, spurring him on to finally destroy this pathetic excuse of an Alpha. Still, before I can get over to him again and finish him off, Jake howls. Two other wolves collided against me from either side. My attention fully diverted to the two wolves, Jake limps away. The grey wolf tries to attack my side again, but I catch him before he can. I get a hold of his neck and shake my head violently, ripping his throat out.
The second wolf, a dark red one, charges me. He doesn’t seem to have any plan but to steamroll me with force, but he is smaller than I am and obviously not as experienced. After he attempts to jump me, I remove him quickly as well. With the fighting still going on around me, I look for Jake again. He has limped over to the other side of the barn, where a couple of council members and Clearwater pack members are fighting it out. Obviously, the council members are decimating them. Jake looks to be heading for the tree line, trying to escape the mess he has created. I run behind the barn to get over to the other side; no way am I letting him escape to continue wreaking havoc on Quinn’s life or his pack's. He needs to be put down. He almost makes it to the tree line when I barrel into his side. We go toppling over each other and hit the side of a wide tree together. The wind is temporarily knocked out of me as I try to right myself. Jake makes a slight whimpering sound, and I am overjoyed by the amount of pain he is in. He doesn’t deserve a quick death, but I want my mate, and this fight is taking far longer than I want it to. Before he knows what’s happening, I land on top of him and go for his neck. My maw clamps down around his throat. I don’t hesitate to rip it out; the gurgling sounds die out as the life in his eyes fades away. He’s dead and we've finally won, even if the others keep fighting the leader is dead ending the tyranny Jake has caused over the years. My wolf howls at the top of our lungs showing our triumph. Panting and looking around, I can see that the Clearwater pack has been mostly dealt with. Dominic, my Beta, is standing surrounded by a pile of Clearwater shifters, making me beam with pride knowing I picked a good Beta, but it’s not finished yet.
I run to the barn and push open the door with my paws. Sniffing the air, I can smell her close by. In the darkly lit room, I can see a couple figures in the back corner; with my wolf eyes, I can tell it’s Quinn and another shifter. My wolf howls and heads over to them; just as I am about to pounce on the male holding Quinn, I hear her voice, obviously weak from what she has experienced.
“Stop,” she says, and my wolf listens, because that’s our mate. My wolf doesn’t shift willingly but at this point, I need to be able to talk to her, so I shift back into my human form. There is a gaping wound on my leg, and I am covered in blood, but I don’t care; I want my mate.
“Let her go, pup!”
The male holding on to her slowly moves to the side, not making any quick moves, which is smart on his part.
“Eli, he helped me. He was trying to help me escape.” I look at the male and notice he is a bit shaken and doesn’t seem to want to fight. His body language is loose, and he stands in a non threatening position trying to show me he is no threat. Without second-guessing, I head to Quinn and kneel in front of her. She is pale and obviously weak. I pull her into my arms and hold her tight; she wraps her arms around my neck and squeezes me tightly back.
“You came.”
“Of course I did. You are my world, Quinn.” I kiss the top of her head and stand. I need to get her out of this cold and drafty barn. She is shivering, and I can’t see her fully to assess her injuries. I look over at the shifter who apparently was helping Quinn, eyeing him suspiciously.
“What’s your name?”
“Niam.”
“Stay here. I’ll send someone for you.”
