Chapter 20
The feeling was excruciating. A phantom pain radiated from my belly and my heart beat so hard, I thought it might explode.
Julien was bent over me, panic in his eyes.
Ignoring his questioning, I leapt to my feet and ran towards the way we had come. It was easy to ignore the pain throughout my body as I ran. The pull towards him was too great, too immediate.
Julien was heavy on my heels, swatting at the branches that whipped behind me. I could feel every punch, every kick as though I were there. As though it were happening to me. I wasn’t sure how this connection between us worked but I knew without a doubt it was real.
The rogues had betrayed me, they were trying to kill Grayson but so far he was still alive and fighting back. I didn’t know where I was going but the pull between us guided me and I followed. Julien and I had been walking for almost an hour and I feared Grayson may not be alive by the time I made it back.
My legs wanted to give out but they pushed on, running faster, harder, and longer than I had ever pushed them before. I jumped through the brush, scratching my naked legs and arms. Julien was having a hard time keeping up as I ignored any pathways or trails.
I made it in less than half the time, surprise shocking me as I recognized the dirt path leading up to their village. As I neared the pit, not one of them was in sight. I could feel Grayson near but I couldn’t see him.
A streak of blood followed by a puddle sat where Grayson had been against the tree. I ran to it, looking around for any sign of life.
He wasn’t dead, I knew it in my bones. Eyes from every direction were felt on my back and the air was thick with a tension that made my hands shake.
I took a few steps back, looking around at the stillness of the surrounding trees. Julien ran down the path but paused once he got to me. His hand reached slowly for mine as he looked around, he felt it too. It was too quiet and too still. Even the wind seemed to halt.
A rumble started beside me and I looked to Julien whose eyes had begun to change to a familiar sight. A low growl was vibrating from him as a snout formed over protruding teeth. I jumped back, fear replacing the fondness I had towards him.
His attention wasn’t on me, however, and I frantically looked around for what he sensed or saw. A flash passed me that sent my hair flying around and suddenly there was blank space where Julien had been.
A commotion behind me made me spin around. I had only seen Grayson in his wolf form one time and it was in the veil of darkness, only the moonlight shining down to reveal his true nature. He was large and pitch black furred.
Julien was smaller. A mix of white, grey, and brown fur. Grayson had Julien pinned snapping at his throat while Julien dodged and kicked with pawed feet. Grayson caught a leg and bit down, a whimpering howl coming from Julien.
A dark brown wolf came barreling from the forest and slammed into Grayson’s side, knocking him several feet from Julien’s body. A tornado of snapping snouts and thrusts of claws burst between the two wolves as Julien limped towards me, holding his hurt paw in the air.
I didn’t know what to do, what I even could do. I stood and watched as the wolves fought. Julien approached me and I backed away slowly, unsure if he would hurt me in his wolf form. He didn’t act aggressively, his back rubbed against my thighs as he turned and sat on my feet.
His head nearly reached my chest as he sat, watching the fight with me. His leg was suspended in the air and dripped with blood but still he guarded me. The other two wolves emerged from the treeline and I yelled out for Grayson.
He was outnumbered and injured. My heart was racing and my hands were shaking, a sick and empty feeling in the pit of my stomach. The smallest wolf was also shades of white, brown, and grey and I assumed this must be Jax.
A pure white wolf that was the same size as Grayson circled around with a calmness that told me it was Dominic. The brown one that had been fighting with him before, Marek I realized, jumped back to allow Dominic to take over.
The jet black and supreme white between the two of them was like yin and yang as they circled each other, bowing and growling. This had to end, they would kill each other. Even if Grayson did win against Dominic, he would have to deal with the others next.
"Dominic, don’t!" I screamed but the words were unheard. Grayson lunged and missed, lunged again and bit Dominic’s shoulder but was bitten on the cheek in return. They fell back and the dance continued. Jax and Marek were barking and jumping around, snarls against bared teeth.
Each attack happened so fast, I cried out as each assault landed. Blood splattered the dirt and they panted heavily with exhaustion. Tears streaked my dirt stained face and I looked down to Julien who was too calm where he sat.
He knew as well as I did that Grayson would not win this fight. I had to do something, I had to stop them. My breathing came in quicker with the rise and fall of my chest as I mustered up the same feeling I had in the castle with the servant girl.
Blood was pooling beneath Grayson from a slice on his stomach and the multiple bite marks across his body. I was scared to see what he would look like in his human form with all these injuries. I could tell he was tiring, the blood loss and spent adrenaline taking its toll on him.
I slowed my breathing into deep and calculated breaths. There wasn’t much time left. It felt like a rolling ball of light in my chest, collecting the energy of my soul. I followed the feeling, letting it build slowly.
Julien noticed it before I did, standing from his position on my feet and backing away with his tail tucked and head down. Jax and Marek’s barking had quieted and their attention shifted towards me.
Even Dominic’s ears had pricked and he cocked his head towards me. I could see the amethyst sparkle in every one of their eyes except Grayson’s. His attention didn’t falter from Dominic’s but his stance was failing him.
He was too weakened to fight anymore, one more attack could kill him. Yet he still snarled with angry resentment, as stubborn as ever. He was so infuriating but still I couldn’t let him die.
The force inside me was starting to take over and the wolves before me began to blur. A ringing set into my ears, my slow breathing the only light in the darkness. Waves crashed around me in every direction, just like in my dream.
Like a bubble, it popped and a scream fell from my lips. "I said, stop!" It echoed through the empty air, buzzing with electricity. A purple wave followed, blasting every dog to their backs. I fell to my hands and knees, gasping for air.
What was that? The shock of the power scaring even me.
I looked up. The werewolves were no more and only naked men lay around me. They struggled in the dirt, startled by their forced transformation.
Grayson’s human eyes locked with mine. His expression wasn’t one I had seen before. I studied it, could it be...admiration? He only hesitated for a moment longer before pulling himself to his feet and bolting for the trees.
Julien reached for me and I quickly looked down at the dirt. His manhood was on full display and it didn’t phase him to be so exposed to me.
"Are you ok?" He asked.
Was I OK? I was the one who caused this. Of course, I wouldn’t have needed to if they kept to their word. I ignored him and jumped to my feet. The pain in my ankle had returned and I struggled to limp my way across the field.
Jax was holding his head with one hand as he lay flat but I could see his chest rise and fall. Marek was in a seated position with his head between his knees. Dominic was already to his feet, recovering quicker than the rest and debating whether or not to chase after his enemy.
Everyone was alive. Injured but alive. Whatever my power was could incapacitate but didn’t kill. I sighed a breath of relief but allowed my anger to return on my trek towards my intended target.
He wiped a smear of blood from his open mouth. He was bruised and bitten in too many places than what had occurred while I was present. They must have been fighting far worse before my arrival.
I stomped up to him and he glanced up, only just noticing my presence once I was directly in front of him.
"You said you wouldn’t kill him," I said with all the hurt I could muster in my voice. The understanding and patient looks from our previous conversations were non-existent now. He looked at me like I was just some petulant little child throwing a temper tantrum.
My own anger boiled over and I pulled my hand back. I swung my open hand as hard as I possibly could, landing my slap directly across his left cheek.