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I WANTED TO CRY. MY instinct was to cry out for my daddy. I wanted my daddy to save me. I looked up at Decker, who was standing over me with an evil smile. “It’s over. One word from me and it’s all done. I can’t believe this is finally happening. I’ve waited for this moment for years. I’m almost sad that it’s over. My hatred for you and your father has burned through my soul for so long, I’m going to feel a little empty inside. I suppose the fact I will be alpha of two clans will help fill the hole.”
“Fuck you. Quit fucking blabbing. I don’t give a shit. You are a loser. You always have been, and you always will be. I don’t give a shit what you do. My people are ten times stronger than you. They will fight back. They will never stop fighting. You can banish them, but they will haunt you. You will never live in peace.”
He pulled the gun from the back of his belt. I imagined my death would be at the hands of a wolf, in wolf form. I never thought I would die such an undignified death. He raised the gun, prepared to shoot me. Then, out of nowhere, he fell to the ground in a heap. My mother materialized on top of him in wolf form. She tore out his throat in one viscous bite.
I crawled away, horrified at the amount of blood and gore. “Mom!” I screamed when I finally found my voice.
She transformed, standing naked and proud in the clearing. She wiped blood from her face. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. What are you doing here?”
One of Decker’s men came out of the forest. He looked dazed. When he saw my mother standing naked, he immediately pulled off his shirt. “You’ll catch a cold,” he said.
I stared at him and burst into laughter. He looked at me like I was the crazy one. “Are you okay, miss?”
I managed to get to my feet. “I’m okay. Are you okay?”
He touched his head. “I’ve got a bit of a headache. What exactly is going on out here?” He looked down at the ground and gasped. “Decker?”
“You know him?” I asked.
“He’s, he’s the—”
He couldn’t say it. “How much are you aware of?” I asked him.
He shook his head. “I’m not sure.”
“That’s not important,” my mother said. “We’re about to have a lot of company.”
In a flash, the guys rushed into the area. They were all out of breath. “Dammit, Azalea!” Ares shouted as he rushed toward me. He jerked me into his arms for a bear hug. He hugged me so tight I couldn’t breathe.
“Let go, Ares,” Radolf said.
He released me before grabbing my arms and giving me a good shake. “Damn you, woman.”
“I’m sorry.”
I caught another glimpse of Decker’s body. I had to turn away. “Why don’t we go home?” Kya said.
I had not even seen her. She’d been dwarfed by the guys. The guys were staring at the man from the Ironclaw. I held up a hand. “He’s okay. The spell over him is broken. The others are probably feeling the same. They aren’t a problem for us.”
“Guys, she needs to go home,” Winter said. “Get some ice on her cheek.”
“Mom, are you okay?” Kya asked.
“I’m fine. Get her out of here.”
“Come with us,” I said.
“I need to stay here and make sure the Ironclaw are okay.”
“Mom, they’ll be fine,” Kya said. “You need to come back with us if for nothing else to get some damn clothes on. You are flashing everyone.”
The guys looked away. I had to fight back a laugh. It seemed crazy to be worried about what she was wearing when there was a dead body still oozing blood not five feet away.
“Let’s get her home,” Hawk said. “Can you walk?”
“I’m fine, really.”
“That shiner doesn’t look fine,” Kya pointed out.
“Radolf and I will handle this situation,” Ares said.
I took another look at the body. It was a revolting sight but not half as revolting as the man. Hawk wrapped an arm around me and started walking me back home. I could feel his anger bubbling beneath the surface. He was not happy with me. I wasn’t really surprised. It was going to take a long time before he was going to trust me again.
“I’ll get you something to wear, Mom,” Kya said.
“Why don’t you go clean up?” Sky said to me.
I nodded and walked upstairs. I went into the bathroom and looked in the mirror. “Damn,” I muttered and touched my lip. It felt like it was three sizes too big and it was caked in dried blood.
My cheek was red and tender, but thankfully it didn’t look all that bad. I gently washed my face, being careful not to split my lip again. I changed clothes, leaving my dirty ones on the floor before going back downstairs.
Hawk handed me a cup of hot chocolate.
“Thank you.”
Kya and our mother came into the room. “How did you know?” I asked Winter. “How did you know where to find me?”
“I’ve been watching. I suspected Decker was up to something. I figured the only way I could keep an eye on him was to go dark.”
“You’ve been invisible?”
She shrugged. “It was the only way I could get close enough. It took me a while to find him. When I did, I watched and observed.”
“Have you been watching us?” I asked.
“I’ve popped in on occasion, but I’ve been watching Decker. I watched him with the other pack. We need to get to them and explain what happened. They are not going to understand.”
“The dude out there looked pretty confused,” I said.
“I’ll go at daybreak,” she said.
“I’ll go with you,” I offered. “I need them to know we have no problems.”
“Good plan. We’ll all go.”
“Want to tell us what you were thinking?” Hawk asked.
“I know you are mad. I get it. I did what I thought I had to do. I didn’t want him to kill everyone.”
“You had to know he was going to betray you,” Sky said. “Decker is a weasel. He would never stick to his word.”
“I knew that,” I said.
“You knew that, and you did it anyway,” Berrion said.
“I was going to kill him,” I said.
“Again? Did you think it would actually work?”
“I took a gun this time,” I said.
Sky slapped a hand to his forehead. “Oh good. So much better.”
“I wasn’t planning on getting close to him. I was going to meet him and shoot him before he could attack me. Unfortunately, he got the jump on me. He got the gun and things went sideways.”
“Hence the black eye,” Berrion muttered.
“Yes. It’s not as bad as it looks.”
“I think you already know how bad this is,” Sky said. “Ares is furious. He’s going to be the one you have to convince.”
“What about you, Hawk?”
“What about me?”
I gave him a look. “You know what.”
“It’s going to take some time,” he said.
I nodded. “Okay.”
“Why don’t we try and sleep for a couple of hours?” Winter said. “You have a busy day tomorrow.”
“Thank you again, Mom. You saved my life.”
“It’s my job to protect you. I wish I could have protected you all these years. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you then.”
“You can be here for me now, though.”
“I think I’ve burned that bridge one too many times.”
“No, you haven’t. I want you to stay. For good this time. No more running away.”
“Are you sure?”
“I’m positive. Kya has a home with this pack. We both want you to stay.”
“I don’t know. I’ve not made any friends, and leaving you a second time certainly didn’t help matters.”
“Tomorrow, rather in a few hours, we will go to the Ironclaw. Then we’ll come back and talk to our pack.”
“I’ll wait up for Radolf and Ares,” Hawk said.
“I’ll wait with you.”
“Go to bed,” he said in a voice that left no room for argument.
I walked upstairs. I would give him time to cool down. I took a minute to just go over the last hours. Decker was dead. I had yet to really process that. He was dead. He couldn’t bother us anymore. He couldn’t make any trouble for me, my pack, or the Ironclaw. I couldn’t wait to see them. I couldn’t wait to see their eyes and for them to see me. I prayed Declan was still alive.
There were going to be some struggles as they came to grips with all that had happened. I was sure some of them would be upset with me. I would offer them any help they needed to get back on their feet. I lay in bed and felt like the world was spinning.
I heard the front door open and close, followed by the deep voice of Ares and Radolf. They were home. Everyone was home. My mom was back. I was alive. It was all good. The rest of the stuff would get better. I closed my eyes and drifted off to sleep.
It felt like I had only been asleep for a few minutes when Berrion was gently shaking me awake. “Azalea, we need to go to the Ironclaw,” he said in a soft voice.
I nodded, wiping my hand over my face. “Okay, I’m ready.”
He softly laughed. “Maybe you can brush your teeth and run a comb through your hair.” He pulled a small twig from my hair. “On second thought, maybe you should shower.”
“Okay. Don’t leave without me.”
“You’re the star of the show, baby.”
I smiled and leaned up to kiss him. “Thank you.”
He helped me out of bed. I stumbled into the shower, letting the water wake me up. This was a moment I had waited a long time for. When I went downstairs, everyone else was already up and ready to go. I suddenly had a case of the nerves.
“Maybe I shouldn’t go,” I said. “I have a feeling there are going to be some angry families.”
“Which is why you need to go,” Radolf said. “Don’t back down. You have to be authoritative and make sure everyone understands you are the alpha. There will not be anyone else challenging you. This is one of the hard parts of being alpha, but you can do it.”
“You’re right. Let’s do this.”
We set out together. When we arrived at their territory, there were a few people milling about town. Their confusion and despair were evident. I felt horrible for them. I saw Declan coming out of a house.
“Declan!” I shouted his name and ran toward him.
He turned to look at me. His hair was a little long and he hadn’t shaved in a while, but he looked healthy. I threw my arms around him. “Azalea? What is going on?”
“How are you? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I feel hungover. What the hell happened? I’ve got some pretty wild memories running through my mind, but I’m not sure if they are real.”
“I’m sure they are real. We came to explain everything. We wanted to make sure everyone was okay. I can’t tell you how happy I am to see you. I was so worried you were dead.”
“I’m alive, I think. I have no idea if I have a job. Everything is a blur. I seriously feel like I’ve been on a bender. I don’t know what day it is. Nothing.”
I hugged him again before I was very gently but forcefully pulled back. I looked over my shoulder to see Sky standing there. “This is Declan,” I said. “Declan is the one I had look into my father’s death. I was worried Decker was going to go after him first. He didn’t. He’s alive!”
“I see that. Your mom is getting a crowd together. You should probably be there.”
“Yes, of course. Declan, come on.” I reached for his hand. I heard a low growl from Sky. I wasn’t going to push it. They tended to be a little on the possessive side.
We walked to the town square where everyone had gathered. I felt terrible for them. They were floundering.
“Hello, everyone,” I said. I didn’t have to speak very loudly. They were all talking in hushed tones as it was. “Most of you know me, but just in case you are feeling a little foggy, I’m Azalea. I’m the daughter of the late Anton, and I am the current alpha of the Evencrest. I want you all to know our alliance is firmly intact. You’ve all been through something horrible. My entire pack is here to help you recover.”
“Where’s our alpha?” someone asked. “Is he dead? Did that happen?”
I hated to give them the news. “I’m sorry, he is. Decker killed him. Trust me, I understand what all of you are going through. Decker kept you all under a spell, so to speak. You have a lot to recover from. We are here to work through this transition with you.”
There were some hushed whispers. They had their heads together. I could feel something happening. The guys did as well. They tightened ranks around me. It was Declan that stepped forward. “We’ve talked and we would like you to be our alpha. You saved us. You deserve our loyalty.”
I stepped back, shaking my head. “I didn’t do this. This wasn’t me. Winter, my mother, she killed Decker. She ended our nightmare. She deserves your loyalty. She is the one you want to be your alpha.”
My mother looked at me with shock. “What are you doing?” she hissed.
“This is your place,” I told her. I grabbed her hand and pulled her to stand beside me. “Will you accept her as your alpha?” I asked the crowd.
There were more whispered conversations before they all agreed. My mother had tears in her eyes when she looked at me. “Do you accept the Ironclaw as yours?”
“I do. I absolutely do.”
We spent another hour talking to the others. There were some apologies and a lot of tears. I was grateful there wasn’t a lot of anger. I worried they would resent me. I gave Declan another hug before I was led away. My mother was staying behind to work through some issues before she came back to the house.
The quiet walk home wasn’t full of tension. It was more of a calming peace. We took our time, enjoying nature as we walked.
