chapter 71
Lily POV
Waking to the feel of my heart pounding in my chest, my entire body felt like it was wired, and my skin buzzed lightly as a cold rush of adrenaline rushed through my body making goosebumps rise on my skin. Startled by the sudden feeling, I jump out of bed, scanning the room. Damien is nowhere to be seen, and on his side of the bed, the covers were ripped back like he left suddenly.
That’s when I realise the feeling consuming me isn’t mine, but his. Grabbing the first thing I lay my hands on, I dress quickly before running down the stairs. Layla is stirring to life as she feels the tension in the air.
“Darian said to stay inside there is a rogue attack he felt us wake up”
“Fuck that, we need to help” I tell her, throwing the front door open.This is property © of NôvelDrama.Org.
The entire town is in chaos and I know something has gone terribly wrong, as the first thing I see is Callie and Max fighting off rogues in the middle of the park. Warriors fighting up the street and around the outskirts of the park that is in the dead centre of the town. Not hesitating, I jump into the fray to help.
Callie is fighting two wolves and they seem to have the upper hand as they injure her. Max has three wolves on him but seems to be faring better. I watch as the black wolf pins Callie to the ground and the other tries getting to her neck.
Shifting mid jump, I tackle the wolf Layla tearing out a chunk of its fur as we skid across the ground. Spinning quickly we grab its tail ripping it backward but not before he pivots, his jaws snapping dangerously close to our face. Missing by centimetres only to latch onto my side. Seeing an opening Layla tears through the wolf’s throat, ripping it out. The wolf goes limp at our feet. I feel blood running down our side like I have turned a tap on.
I hear Max whine loudly trying to get to Callie, but he is still cornered by the three wolves. Callie on the ground next to the swings with another two wolves attacking her. Her back legs are ripped apart pretty badly as blood coats her fur.
“Where the fuck, are they coming from?” Layla growls while lunging at the wolf that is attacking Callie. We pounce on its back digging our claws in and tearing into the back of its throat. It growls before tossing us off and we hit the slide. Layla gets up baring her teeth and growling menacingly as it stalks toward us. He is big, his brown fur covered in mud and dirt.
We lunge at him just as he lunges, and we clash together before his weight knocks us backwards and he lands on top of us. Layla whimpers as he rips off a chunk of her ear. But that just angers her more as she digs her claws into his underbelly and scratches him. He shudders before she kicks him off, and she jumps on him, not giving him enough time to react as our canines go through his neck. She shakes her head viciously, ripping his throat apart as he slumps on the ground.
I notice warriors fighting off more that have broken through the borders when Max howls loudly. But it’s too late. If I had the pack link, maybe I would have been warned in time. Not being a pack member is a real disadvantage right now. I turn to see a black and white wolf lunge at me, his teeth sinking into the side of my face near my eyes, his teeth tearing away fur and flesh, making Layal yelp.
Her vision going dark on that side as her eye swells shut instantly. The wolf then sinks his teeth into the back of her neck. Thinking quickly, she drops on her back, rolling. His canines snapping dangerously close to our face again. Getting up, we slipped slightly as the dirt had now turned to mud from the blood pouring out of us.
Layla wobbles on her paws before regaining herself just as he lunges again, tearing into our flank. Suddenly Max jumps over me before tackling the wolf, ripping it to pieces. Callie comes over, nudging us.
“You’re going to need to shift Layla, you won’t be able to hold out much longer” I tell her as we stagger.
Layla stands up on shaky legs before shaking out her fur. Blood and fur spraying everywhere as Max and Callie move backwards towards me, their eyes on the streets. The warriors fighting around the park also pushed back as more rogues came into the park.
We take position in a circle. There were nine rogues and five of us. The warrior next to us stares worriedly when Layla’s steps falter, looking past us as he sees Callie injured before moving in front. Natural order kicking in. Male werewolves always have it drummed into them to protect the she-wolves. It irks Layla that she doesn’t want to be seen as a damsel in distress.
The wolves circled around us, baring their teeth with hunched shoulders when the white wolf stepped forward and I realised he must be in charge as he nodded, and they all lunged simultaneously. Callie and I get knocked back to the middle as the warriors block the two wolves from attacking us when we get attacked from the side.
I get knocked out of the circle as I am hit by a brown wolf with white patches. Using our back legs, we kick him off and he hits a tree. Not wasting any time, we bite into his stomach, ripping his intestines out. Blood coating our already saturated fur. Hearing an agonised cry we turn just in time to see a she-wolf barrelling towards us, the wolf we just killed must have been her mate as she abandoned the fight she was in to attack us.
She lunges forward and we sidestep but not quick enough as she scratches into our already injured flank. Layla whines and is getting weaker from the blood loss. We don’t heal like normal wolves and it was starting to take a toll on her.
Layla lunged back, managing to rip off a chunk of fur, but she was faster as she tackled us, biting into my shoulder and forcing us on our back. Layla scratches her face before I suddenly feel it. Layla is forced to shift as she weakens, leaving me trapped under the she-wolf. I put my arms under her neck, just keeping her jaw away as she snaps her teeth at my face. When she can’t get through that way, she tears into my arm making me drop it, making me scream as I feel her canines sink into my soft skin.
Manoeuvring quickly, I wrap my arms around her neck, pulling her against me but keeping her teeth away as I squeeze, strangling her. She struggles against me and I wrap my legs around her torso, squeezing with every bit of strength I have left. Her back claws digging into my thighs as she scratches through my flesh, trying to get loose. I scream at the pain but refuse to let go, knowing if I do, I am dead.
“Damien is close, I can feel him getting closer, hang on” Layla says as I try with all my might to not let go. Just when I think I can’t hold on anymore. I see muscled tattooed arms come into my line of vision, his hands grabbing the wolf’s head before he twists, jerking her head to the side and I hear a crack. She goes limp against me and I roll her off slumping on the ground trying to catch my breath.
Damien then turns around running to help his warriors. I watch as a wolf lunges toward him and I expect him to shift but instead he just pivots before grabbing its throat and squeezing its legs hanging in the air, when I hear the sickening crack before he drops it. Stepping over its limp body when another attacks. It is over quickly, and I slump back down on the ground when I realise he is okay.
Turning my head, I see Callie in human form and Max in wolf form. Callie is injured and Max is licking her wounds trying to seal them. She will be okay with her wolf healing her fast. Me on the other hand, not so much as I lay bleeding out on the ground, too weak to even move. I can feel blood pooling around me, and my body feels slack and jelly like.
I stare up at the clear sky, the stench of dead rogues in the air, Layla has gone quiet and I am too weak to even try to find her. Suddenly a shadow falls on me and I see Damien bend down, his arm going behind me knee’s and the other under my back near my shoulders. He lifts me against his chest and tingles spread over my skin, easing the pain but not enough to take it all away.
I feel myself slipping as weightlessness consumes me, and I feel my head roll back as I go limp in his arms.
“Why isn’t she healing?” I hear someone say.
“Because she can’t” he growls angrily, and I feel him run. The sickening sensation of my eyes rolling into the back of my head and I slip away, giving in as I see nothing but darkness.