Chapter Forty-Nine

Dom

The moon rises on this pack, and I find your rule lacking.

Old words among wolves. Words that Evander once said to Liam, and then my father once said to Evander.

The challenge was issued, and now I had all the wolves of Moonpeak around me to witness the fall of Evander's reign.

But Evander wasn't content to settle things between the two of us. Evander had called the rogues.

Where he could have been hiding them was beyond me. Now that we knew their dark-magic origins, a lot of things made more sense. The way they didn't leave enough scent to track. The way they didn't move quite right. The way they didn't seem to act or think beyond an instinct. They were animated somehow, or possessed, or whatever they were. I was sure Jerod could tell us later, but the only thing that mattered now was that they were attacking the pack.

My pack.

I snarled, lashing out at Evander and raking my claws across his nose.

What have you done? I snarled. You bastard!

I didn't ask to be a wolf! Evander snapped, catching my leg with his teeth and ripping skin as I dragged it from his mouth. But I know how to use all the skills at my disposal. Alpha Liam was weak. His idiotic code of honor killed him, just as it killed Lily, just as it killed John.

The fire of anger that sparked in me was only fueled higher with every loved one he named. I lunged forward, sinking my fangs into the side of his neck, but his thick fur prevented much damage, and I sprang away.

"The basement!" June cried. "There's a bitten human trapped in the basement of the pack house who might shift tonight!"

Fuck.

"Fuck!" Anna cried.

"We will take care of them," Naomi said. "You stay with your mate."

My first instinct was to keep June where I could see her, but that also meant keeping her where Evander was, and the rogues that now came toward the field. My wolf wanted her to go, to be a luna.

"No, she needs me, but—" June's hesitations came through our bond clear as day. She was very torn, but I thought her wolf knew what she needed to do too.

"We will do our best," Naomi promised.

No, that wouldn't be enough for a wolf like June.

Go! I told her. Go, be a luna, June. But be careful.

She paused, only briefly, and began running.

"I love you, Dom!" she cried. "Win for Moonpeak."

I squared my shoulders, digging my paws into the earth. I intended to win. She didn't need to worry. I wouldn't be a wolf she needed to worry about.

A furious roar from the side nearly caused me to look, but I kept my eyes trained on Evander. The field around us was still awash in the black haze of whatever unholy thing Jerod had called forth. The glowing red pillars of light still shot up from the ground where Jerod's hellhound and I had buried things, and one from inside the pack house.

Amelia, what's happening? I asked.

Rogues incoming! she snapped. Bernard and I have the north, you just worry about your own ass.

Aaron, how bad is it? I asked.

Snarling, howling, ripping noises started to sound around the field. By now, everyone was shifted. The moon was high and the wolves were out. There was panic in some of them as the moon brought the pack to its closest state. I might not have been alpha yet, but I could still tell that some of the wolves were frightened and not able to fight.

There's a lot of them, Dom , Aaron grunted. I'm worried about the kids.

Drip. Cool water hit my nose as I spoke with Aaron. The first drops of rain fell, promising a muddy mess of a fight ahead.

Get them in the pack house. Get June. Maybe she can help if the situation with the new bite is handled.

I will , Aaron promised and I could feel him run off.

My attention was placed back on Evander as he slid in quick as lightning. He nipped my front legs and drew back.

Tell me, Evander , I demanded. Why come all the way to Moonpeak in the first place? Why set up your plot and take a peaceful pack from Alpha Liam at all?

Liam was a fool, he had a pack of werewolves at his fingertips, and he coddled them! Evander snarled, and we came together in another ferocious scuffle, biting, tearing, and pulling back again.

Alpha Liam was an outstanding wolf! I snapped, rushing Evander and ramming his side as we both toppled over each other. But look what you did to his mate! His daughters!

Nothing had to happen to them if they had just bowed down and obeyed their own laws , Evander hissed at me.

That pissed me off. That pissed my wolf off. If I was killed and the new alpha tried to hold on to June the way Evander tried to hold on to Lily, Amelia, and Naomi, then I'd beg the moon to bring me back just long enough to kill the bastard. Thank the moon that Lily had rathered go out with honor, that Amelia had rathered leave to become strong enough to challenge him.

But for whatever hell he had held Naomi under, he would pay.

What did you do to Naomi in that house? I growled. What did you do to her?

Nothing , Evander snarled . Not for lack of trying, the prude bitch. But with her in the house, the wolves would shut up about finding a luna, finding betas and warriors and all the rest of the shit they whined about.

A wolf for ten years, and yet you know nothing about our ways , I said.

Evander laughed. The strongest wolf wins, those are your own ways! Allow me to show you which of us is truly strongest, son of a beta.

The strongest wolf, yes , I snarled. You went far beyond your wolf, you used magic to cheat.

I'll show you strength! Evander roared. I don't need magic to beat a lowly beta wolf like you!

Evander launched himself at me and I met him head-on. Teeth ripping flesh, claws raking across skin. I struggled to gain the high ground, sinking my teeth into the meat behind his ear before he threw me off. In turn, he kicked hard as I fell off, scraping claws across my softer stomach and knocking the wind out of me.

A roar of pain and a sharp howl of despair. I finally tore my eyes away from Evander; I couldn't help it this time, because it was where I knew Amelia was.

The sounds of the fight all around us were clear now. Rogues had come from all directions, attacking the village. The strongest of our wolves were trying to hold them off, but they were definitely outnumbered.

Amelia was grappling with a rogue, and a giant white wolf next to her was half down on the ground. His face was caked in a river of red blood, and the tiny white wolf behind them howled in misery. That one was Bianca, I thought. So that would make the big one Alpha Bernard, the bloody winter wolf.

The brute of a white wolf stood back up, but with some trouble. The drips from the sky were turning into a full-fledged rain now, making the earth under us soft and slick. But he roared, fury and rage as he barreled into a fresh line of rogues anyway. His reputation wasn't exaggerated, he was a brutal fighter and a reckless terror when faced with an enemy. It was almost like he was fueled further by being outnumbered, and it reminded me a bit of Amelia.

Fascinating, but stupid. This was not the night for suicide missions.

Amelia, your left! I called to her.

She lunged in, snapping the neck of the rogue she was fighting, and her head snapped left. She ran to join the big white one in his fight, and I almost wished I had enough time to watch them. The pair of alpha wolves, because that giant bastard had to be an alpha, had a vicious grace on the battlefield.

Get back to your own fight! Amelia snapped. End this!

Evander rushed at me, and I evaded him at the last moment. The sharp movement brought the extent of the damage he'd done to my stomach to my attention. I likely had blood dripping, mixing with the falling rain, into the mud under me. The rain roared in my ears, wiping out the scents of the field around me until all I could focus on was Evander.

We circled each other again, then I pounced as his eyes flicked away for a moment.

Latching onto him with teeth and claws, I ripped fur and a piece of his ear before kicking away again. He went wild with anger, charging blindly and ramming into my side.

You fool of a wolf! Evander spat at me. I gave you every opportunity to crawl back here with your tail between your legs, and instead you have the balls to challenge me!

I didn't bother answering his statements, made entirely to get a rise out of me. But he either thought he could prod something out of me or was really spewing nonsense he believed, because he kept going.

Amelia I could see. In fact , he laughed, I thought she was going to challenge me from the start! I'll admit, you were a surprise, Dom.

Dominic!

Smokey. I turned, catching Evander, who had stopped circling me and licking his wounds. Jumping high, he was about to land over me when I rolled away. Away, and straight into a solid mass beside me.

I snarled, scraping back up to my feet and whirling around to see Smokey's wolf in a heap on the ground, blood spilling from his underbelly, and on the other side of him stood a crazed rogue.

Smokey! I called.

It was clear now that Evander had been about to back me into a trap between him and a rogue wolf. But Smokey had jumped in the way. Nathan snarled, engaging the rogue in a quick and painful death. Watching Nathan really fight was a thing of brutal beauty.

Smokey lifted his head, his old white face staring at me calmly.

I'll be fine, kid . He coughed, blood seeping out of the sides of his mouth. End this. Avenge Liam. Avenge all of them.

Smokey coughed again, and I turned back to Evander.

You cheating coward! I roared . I'll kill you!

My wolf let out a harsh barking sound, and we rushed at Evander, smacking our claws across his face, dragging fresh lines of blood across his eyes. I jumped off of him before he could retaliate, then struck again. This time, teeth latched onto his throat.

It's over, Evander , I told him, and bit down.

He let out a gurgling howl; I had punctured his throat for sure. But with one last kick from his back leg, he lashed out and slammed all the weight he could put behind the blow into my already torn-up stomach.

My jaw jerked, tearing out the remains of his throat as I slumped backwards.

The rain fell, and my vision blurred as I watched the last traces of life disappear from Evander's body. Blood flowing out of his wounds, mixing with the muddy field he lay on.

I swayed, only just staying on my feet.

Dom! June cried. I could feel her coming closer, but there was no way for me to discern the direction it came from.

Then the true realization hit me as I heard a sound I wasn't sure I'd actually hear in my lifetime. Not used on me, at least.

The call of a new alpha.

A loud, proud note with a bittersweet hint in it. One wolf started it. It could have been Amelia, but I wasn't sure. Another quickly joined the first. Then another, and more wolves until I registered that the fighting around us was finally stopping and the wolves of Moonpeak were free to see Evander's body.

Dom! June had reached me. She had blood around her mouth but otherwise seemed fine. She inspected me as I stared blankly at Evander's body. It was finally over, but he'd left something behind that still needed attention.

I started moving. I leaned over and nudged June's face with my own, then walked to a still gray figure a short distance away.

Now I could see the wolves around me. I saw injuries and blood. I saw the bodies too. The only blessing now was that the mindless rogues outnumbered the Moonpeak wolves among the corpses, but too many familiar faces were there.

For the survivors, recognition and surprise still sat plainly on their faces. This had really happened, and it wasn't Amelia to come back from the past to take care of Evander. It was John's pup.

Even Jerod, Carmine, Dani, and Ryker watched silently, letting our pack have our moment to stop reeling from the fight.

Tanner , June choked out.

I glanced at her. She stood over the body of a smaller wolf. Broken spine, from the look of it.

I'm sorry, June , I said. She shook her head and kept walking. Observing the bodies. Whether she knew it or not, it was exactly what a luna would want to do after a battle.

Dom, you're bleeding pretty badly , Aaron said.

I ignored him and kept walking. Amelia stood next to a familiar old gray wolf, and my heart tightened. Jack and Carson padded over to join her. The rest of Moonpeak was silent as they watched me and June walk through the dead.

Hannah and Linda had made it out with minor injuries, but Bruce didn't make it at all. One of the wolves Nathan had brought was so badly injured in one eye that I wondered if even a wolf could recover from it. Alpha Bernard looked torn to pieces, but he didn't flinch or complain from it. Brutus, one of the wolves from his pack who had come with Bianca, was dead.

My feet stopped in a bloody puddle. The still form of a once-great wolf lay before me. Rain fell hard as it tried to clean the sins of the night.

I lifted my head, meeting Amelia's gaze. In unison, we raised our heads and let out the mournful call of a lost loved one.

Others were quick to join us. In just a brief moment, the whole pack was singing a song for Smokey.

Fucking hell . A very faint sound came across the mind link. The whole mind link, every Moonpeak wolf nearby could hear it.

I stilled, the notes of mourning fell away and silence replaced it.

I ain't dead . . . yet . . . boy , Smokey's soft but distinct thoughts came through clearly.

Smokey? I choked out.

Smokey! Carson chimed in.

I rushed to turn him over. Part of his neck was badly broken, but somehow the old bastard was hanging on. The other Blightfang came close, hovering to see him for themselves.

Smokey! I called. You're alive.

Hold on. June pushed forward. Oh my god, get Doc. Doc!

Coming, Luna.

Doc pushed through, scraped up pretty good but still standing. He and June took over, looking at Smokey and trying to gently nudge his body into the best possible position for healing while Smokey called them every name under the sun.

But he was alive! The old bastard was alive, barely. And I owed him my life.

The first rays of daylight began to peek through the mountaintops around us. The moon's demanding journey was fading, and the stronger wolves could start shifting. I shifted first, all the while keeping an eye on Smokey's situation.

"That was one hell of a night, Alpha Dom." The giant of a man who must have been Bernard came over to me, Amelia with him, and Bianca was shifting right behind them.

"You did it," Amelia said, looking behind me at Evander's body in the background.

"Yeah," I said.

"Took your damn time about it though," she snapped, then looked at me with a smirk.

"When are you going to get off my land, Winter Wind bitch?" I asked back.

Alpha Bernard laughed, patting me on the back a little harder than necessary.

June gasped, causing my head to snap in Smokey's direction. But it wasn't Smokey who had distressed her.

"You're a mess!" June cried as she rushed to my side. Only now did I look down at my burning torso in its human form. The skin was pretty well shredded, and I would be bleeding through bandages for a while, I was sure.

I winced as she put her fingers lightly over some of the exposed muscle.

"I've got Smokey, June," Doc said. Now in his human shape, he was having an easier time maneuvering Smokey's injuries.

She turned back to inspect my torso closer.

"I can't let this slide," June said, looking around for more shifted wolves. "Aaron! Can you go get my red bag from the village? It's in my living room. I need my medical supplies."

"Yes, Lun . . ."

We both glanced up at Aaron, his expression of shock startling us.

Then he took off. Blazing across the field and heading straight for the pack house of all places. I could see people coming out now that the moon was down, Anna leading the village children into the sun. They looked shaken by the evening's events as they came to find their parents. I just hoped their parents weren't among the dead.

Right after the children, Naomi half carried a naked woman out the doorway. The woman looked disoriented, alarmed, and her eyes widened as she and the rest of the Moonpeak pack watched Aaron run at full speed to her side before he embraced her.

"Oh shit," June whispered. "Is that . . . ?"

She gently took one of my hands and pressed it to a bad wound on my stomach. "Hold pressure to that, I need to check on Kat."

June ran off at full speed, rushing to the side of the new bite and Aaron. After a moment's discussion, they began to walk back this way.

I started to chuckle until it hurt my stomach. I looked over my remaining wolves. At Smokey, who miraculously held on for his life, even now with Doc at his side. At the wolves who remembered me from ten years ago, the wolves who were new since then. The old, the young, the strong, the weak. The dead.

Whatever came of it, they were mine to take care of. Mine and June's.

"Dom, this is Kat, my best friend." June came back, introducing a terrified-looking human to me and the rest of the naked and bloody wolves.

"She was crazed most of the moon," Naomi said. "Just at the end she managed to turn, and we walked her through turning back."

"June Bug." The girl looked close to tears. "What is happening?"

"Shh, it's gonna be okay now. You did so good, Kit Kat. Here, sit with me on the grass. And Aaron here is probably going to keep a hold on you. Can you let him do that for now?"

"You mean like hold me steady?" Kat asked.

"Um . . . yes. That." June got them settled and sitting down as she sat next to Kat, checking her pulse and soothing her. Aaron, exhausted and filthy as he was, looked completely refreshed despite the night behind us. I didn't know what June's friend from Seattle was doing all the way out here, but she was definitely shaken after a traumatic night.

A traumatic night for us all. I sighed, looking around the field at the expectant faces full of questions.

"Moonpeak pack." I called around the field as the last of us was shifting from our fur. "I, Dominic, swear to uphold the values of a proper alpha."

Nods of approval and a few cheers made their way around.

"At my side, I present to you Juniper, your luna."

The cheers were a little more enthusiastic this time as the pack started to realize what was happening. Really realize that I wouldn't sit in the pack house like a king on his throne, working alone and above the rest.

"I name the ever-loyal and fiercely strong Aaron as my beta if he will have me." I looked down to where Aaron was holding his newly found mate in his arms. He paused, stunned, then nodded. That earned us a few more cheers.

"Moonpeak pack, it's over. From here on out, we're a proper pack once more."

The wolves dropped the cheering altogether and lifted their heads as one. Some human throats mixing with some wolves, they let out the howl of a unified pack. It would reach the Salt Fur pack. It would reach the humans. It would ring across the mountains, and the rivers, and the trees.

Moonpeak pack was finally free.

Now, and for as long as I had breath in my body and June at my side.

Moonpeak was finally free.