Chapter 86: Is it Over Yet?
His claws extend as he turns to face her. The pure murder in his eyes makes Anna’s mouth instantly snap shut.
"I’m going to kill you." He bares his fangs at her, slowly rising to his feet. "I’m going to fucking KILL YOU!!"
The Enigma wolf completely takes over the moment the words leave his mouth.
His shoulders broaden as he half-shifts in the middle of the clearing, limbs longer than usual, jaws wide, black fur covering his back, eyes red and silver. Adrian becomes inhuman, caught between man and wolf.
Anna’s eyes grow wide in fear. "Adrian, what are you-"
He charges before she finishes the last word, his arms raised, ready to tear her into pieces.
Anna’s hands are shaking as she presses the trigger, fearing for her life. The silver bullet grazes Adrian’s side, close to his ribs.
He staggers, groaning in pain, but he doesn’t fall to the ground completely.
Anna gasps in shock. Considering how battered Adrian looks, the bullet should’ve made him collapse at least, especially since it didn’t completely pierce his skin.
But Adrian just growls in pain for a few seconds before charging again, the bloodlust in his eyes making her knees shake.
"Adrian, please..." She tries to fire the second time, but nothing happens. The chamber is empty.
"No, no, no!"
Adrian crashes into her with enough force to send both of them rolling across the ground. The gun flies from Anna’s hand.
She screams as Adrian catches her by the throat and pins her against the dirt, claws digging into her throat.
Blood drips down her neck and lips. "Please..." She sputters, clawing at his arms, desperately trying to breathe. "Please, Adrian."
Her eyes bulge as he squeezes tighter, but before he can fully finish it, a second figure suddenly lunges toward him.
The Alpha who brought Nyra, but he has shifted into a black-and-brown striped wolf with a few grey patches.
Julian reacts immediately, also shifting. "Get away from him!" He growls, tackling the man from the side and sending both of them crashing into the ground.
The remaining girls don’t hesitate. Using the distraction, they quickly rush to Nyra, lying barely conscious on the sand.
Nyra’s eyes flutter weakly as Naya kneels beside her. "Nyra, sweetheart, can you hear me?"
Nyra can’t answer. Her head falls limply against Naya’s shoulder.
"She’s freezing," Lena whispers, panic rising in her voice. "We need to get her to the truck!"
Together, they carefully lift her.
Nyra lets out a weak whimper, one hand instinctively clutching her stomach. It still hurts even though the bleeding has slowed.
"Easy," Leah whispers. "We’ve got you, don’t worry."
Unfortunately, Anna sees them moving before they get far, and her face twists with unfiltered rage.
"No!" She screams just enough to gasp toward the trees. "All of you out. NOW!"
Apparently, Anna hadn’t been lying when she said she had the place surrounded. Following her command, six huge Alphas jump out from behind the trees like they’d been waiting this whole time.
Julian’s expression drops, panting hard as he finally manages to subdue the first man. "Of course there’s more."
Anna laughs breathlessly. "You really thought I was bluffing?"
Adrian slowly turns his head, his silver-and-red eyes sweeping across the men.
They are big and large, almost as big as him, and very fast.
One of them charges toward the group of girls still trying to escape, and Adrian has no choice but to release Anna and turn.
His claws meet the man’s attack, and the impact sends the Alpha stumbling backward.
Another comes from behind.
Julian intercepts him. "You’re going to have to get through me first!"
Julian lands a hard punch, then another, fighting desperately despite being outnumbered.
Adrian, on the other hand, is literally a blur between the Alphas. You can barely see him, just a black, blurry shadow flying between the men.
The first two men can barely see him before Adrian knocks them to the ground, slamming their heads together again and again until they collapse together in the sand.
Another one tries to attack him from behind, but Adrian sees him before he can even charge. He claws the man across the chest, wounding him, then slams his leg into his side, breaking his rib.
Another one attacks, then another.
Naya stares in disbelief. "He’s fighting all of them. How is that even possible?"
"He’s not even fighting normally anymore," Lena whispers.
Adrian’s movements become almost impossible to follow. He ducks beneath one attack, drives another opponent backward, then turns on the next.
Within minutes, several of the attackers are down.
Julian is breathing heavily, blood running from a cut above his eyebrow.
"Adrian!" Adrian looks toward him. "Two left!"
Two Alphas remain standing, hesitant to charge now after seeing the raw power of the wolf in front of them.
And Anna is gone.
Julian’s eyes widen as he frantically looks around. "Where is she?"
A metallic click answers him.
Everyone turns to find Anna standing several meters away. The gun is back in her hand, and she has somehow loaded another magazine.
Her eyes are wild. "I should’ve just killed that bitch when I had the chance."
She raises the weapon and points it at Nyra, who is still being carried toward the truck parked behind some trees.
Adrian sees it first, shouting at Nyra to warn her. And without a second thought, he jumps in as Anna pulls the trigger.
Bang--the sound is far too loud for the size of the gun.
The bullet hits Adrian in the stomach this time, forcing the powerful wolf to a stop.
And for one horrifying second, the entire clearing goes silent.
Then Adrian releases a loud groan of pain, a deep, powerful sound that shakes through the trees and sends birds running from the branches.
Nyra’s half-lidded eyes snap open at the sound of her mate in pain. "Adrian, no!"
Naya and the other girls freeze by the edge of the truck. They turn in time to see Adrian drop to one knee.
Blood spreads across his fur from the bullet wound, trickling down to the dirt beneath him.
But despite the pain and the bullet lodged in his stomach, he still looks toward Nyra. Still trying to make sure she’s safe.
Anna is frozen in shock, the gun shaking in her hand. She hadn’t meant to--no, not him! Just why the fuck did he jump in front of the bullet?!
Through everything, the sounds of sirens slice through the tension, turning everyone’s attention to the distant road.
Julian’s eyes widen with relief. Their backup is finally here. Took them long enough.
"Thank God," he mutters under his breath as several vehicles burst through the trees.
Moon-Crest officers pour out, wearing protective positions and safety vests. Behind them, Mr. Adams and Jason also rush into the scene.
Jason’s eyes widen when he sees the state of his friends, especially Adrian lying limply in the sand, and all the bodies around them.
"FREEZE!" the men order, weapons pointed at the remaining attackers.
The two surviving Alphas immediately raise their hands in surrender.
Anna, on the other hand, doesn’t move. She is still staring at Adrian lying on the ground. "No, no, no. This wasn’t supposed to happen."
She slowly approaches him. "It wasn’t supposed to be you."
Adrian can barely open his eyes, but the up-and-down movement of his chest proves he is still alive.
Anna’s face crumples. "Why? Why did you do that? Why did you take a bullet for her?!" Then she looks up at Nyra, who’s staring at Adrian with tears flowing down her cheeks.
"Don’t you dare cry now, this is all your fault!"
Before anyone can stop her, she grabs her gun from the floor and points it at Nyra again.
"I’ll end you once and for all."
Jason reacts first. He points his gun and fires, straight at her stomach.
Anna gasps in pain. She looks down slowly at the blood spreading across her clothes.
The weapon slips from her hand.
She collapses to her knees, gasping for air, a hand pressed against the wound. No one attempts to help her. No one even blinks an eye at Jason for shooting her.
Finally, she falls sideways onto the ground, her eyes falling closed.
Finally. Finally, it’s over.
The moment the immediate threats are removed, the police officers start working on getting all of them to safety.
Medics are called, and the area is secured. A bleeding Adrian is carried from the middle of the clearing and into the medic van.
With the last ounce of strength, he manages to open his eyes, searching for the other stretcher, trying to check if Nyra is okay. "W-where is my mate? Is she okay?"
"Future Alpha, please don’t talk. You’ll only make the injury worse," one of the paramedics says.
"M-my mate," he sputters again, coughing blood.
Julian rushes to his side. "She’s okay. I swear to you, she’s going to be okay. We’re taking the both of you to the hospital now."
Adrian nods, face peaceful like that’s all that matters in that moment. Then his eyes fall closed, and he slips into unconsciousness.
Julian watches helplessly as both stretchers disappear into separate ambulances. Then he turns toward Jason, who is still helping his father clear the area.
"You came at the right time."
Jason nods. "I did."
Julian’s voice shakes. "Thank you. Thank you so much for coming."
Jason looks at him quietly. "I didn’t do it for you." His eyes drift toward the ambulance carrying Nyra. "I came because of her."
Julian sighs in response. Because somehow, even till now, Jason still painfully has feelings for Nyra.
He pats his back in acknowledgement and rushes over to the rest of his friends to check if they’re okay.
---
Hours later, the hospital corridors are painfully quiet. Adrian and Nyra lie unconscious in neighboring rooms, connected to several machines.
Their friends sit outside, exhausted, terrified, and covered in the remnants of the night’s chaos.
Nobody knows what will happen when they wake up.
Nobody knows whether Nyra’s body will recover.
Nobody knows whether Adrian’s Enigma abilities will survive the damage.
And nobody knows what is going to happen yet. If they’ll ever get answers to what exactly happened to Anna in the time she was gone.
Mr. Adams finally stands. "We would need to call Nyra’s parents. To inform them that Miss Anna is dead now."
Julian turns to him. "Where is the body?"
"It should be in the morgue." The man frowns. "Why?"
Julian shakes his head. "No, because I didn’t see any of your men loading in her body."
The officers exchange looks. "What do you mean you didn’t-" Mr. Adams argues, turning to the handler his men loaded the bodies to. "Did my team load in the body of a young woman?"
The man looks confused. "What young woman, sir?" He glances at his list. "No, we only filled in six rogue Alpha wolves, sir."
Simultaneously, Naya, Leah, and Lena’s faces pale.
If the morgue didn’t load Anna in, then where exactly is she?