38. Chapter Thirty-Seven

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Locke

I prowled on the edge of the woods. She was there—I could see her put Idris down and let him go. As their conversation continued, it made my heart thump harder and harder.

The lies he spat, the fucking audacity.

My lip curled, my fangs dripping. My cock was hard, I couldn't help it. I was a sick fuck wanting to sink my fangs into his throat and let my mate watch me rip him to pieces. She'd watch me slowly dismember him, take him piece by piece until I took out his heart. I'd swallow it whole and let his blood smear on my body.

Then I'd take her, I'd fuck her over his corpse.

My body shuddered, and I leaned my head back against the tree.

Fenrir purred with me, our hand stroking our shaft.

Our mate watched her enemy with intent to strike. She was listening to the bastard's monologue, while he tried to sway her against me.

That would never happen.

She was far too deep within my grasp, too far deep into my soul. It was an idea that Idris would never know. Bonds cannot be broken.

"He's lying, " I linked her. "I have your sister and she is being protected by one of my most trusted men. "

My mate didn't move, didn't show any signs that she heard me. Good girl.

"Remember that male that got too friendly with you at the bar? Mr. Lucky Charms?" Idris circled my mate.

Emm didn't show any interest, she just kept her eyes narrowed.

"He took the tiniest lock of your hair. You didn't even know it!" Idris snorted. "He did it for your father, just to make sure it was you. I guess you have changed a lot over the years." Idris looked my mate up and down. "He kept sending his men to your camper, to see if they could find an idea where your sister was so he could pay off the cartel with her, but I don't think they were expecting your guard dog."

"And where is my father, now?" Emm's voice remained eerily calm.

Idris clasped his hands together. "Far from here. Once he realized there were beasts in the area, and who exactly I was, he stayed far away. We do, though, have an arrangement." Idris winked at her.

"And, that is?" My mate walked closer. Her fur bristled on her back, her claws lengthened.

Idris remained motionless, as vibrant sparks of electricity crackled and danced along his fingertips. "Easy there, now that you are away from your pack, you are weaker. I'm sure you have learned little from your mate now, have you?"

"I'm here, near you, " I told her. "As long as your mate is near you can absorb that small charge, but it's going to fucking hurt."

"I'll take my chances," Emm snapped. "What is the arrangement?"

Idris grinned. "I like your spunk. The arrangement is that you come with me. I will leave your sister and her son alone. You will leave your mate and his pack here. What happens to the pack is no longer your concern. You will be given to the cartel to pay off your father's debts only this time instead of marrying into the cartel, you will be their weapon."

"And if I refuse?" My mate raised an eyebrow.

Idris threw his head back. "Then, everyone you know and love will perish. Brutally, slowly, and I'll leave your mate for last so you feel every bit of pain he does." Idris' smile grew wide enough to reach his pointed ears.

"How do I know you will keep your word?" Emm tilted her head.

I crossed my arms and leaned against the tree.

"A binding contract. Just a handshake, the magic will weave itself." Idris held out his hand, his nails long and creepy as shit.

Emm stared at it a long moment and I read the thoughts swirling in her head. She would not shake it and I almost chuckled about what she was going to do next.

Emm reached out her hand, pretending to take it. Idris was fucking giddy, watching her reach closer until Emm instead balled up her fists and punched Idris right in the nose.

Idris sent over a ball of light so strong it pushed my mate back onto her ass. I leaped forward and used my arms to run a four-legged sprint and jumped on the bastard.

My claws dug into Idris' back, and I could feel his electrifying charge flow through me. I growled in rage and pain as I clung to him. Emm charged at us, her fur standing on end, her teeth bared in a vicious snarl.

Her fangs bit into his shoulder and Idris let out a blood-curdling scream like the fucking bitch he was. He threw out his arm, and his electricity seemed to multiply, zapping my mate and me both. It was like being shocked by the entire power grid. I could feel my muscles spasming, my bones rattling, and my consciousness slipping away.

He blasted both of us from his body. I shook my head and jumped back onto my feet, ready to tackle him again.

Idris held onto his shoulder, as black tar oozed from his skin where Emm had latched on from earlier. The venom was working. It looked just as it did when Journey had bitten him the first time. It would weaken him just enough to deliver some final blows.

"You fat cunt, you'll pay for that."

Idris' hands swirled in the air and I charged. His one hand came down and a red glow blasted from his fingertips and enveloped my body. It felt like every muscle and nerve was being pulled and twisted at the same time, I let out a piercing roar as it held me in the air.

Emm lay in the dirt, still getting over the previous blast. She may have force-shifted into Lycan, and she thinks she is fucking unstoppable, but she is still weak. She can't fight for long.

With a sudden jolt, her eyes snapped wide open as Idris released a bolt from his other hand. The deafening crack fills the air, causing her to startle. The bolt missed and hurtled towards the ground. She jumped away just in time as the bolt met the dirt, and a cloud of dust and debris erupts.

"Hold fucking still," he growled. Idris lowers his hand. I was still unable to move with a red glow around me.

"You can't fight forever, Emm, you're going to become weak. Run back to the pack."

Emm snorted and circled Idris, who was pulling shit from his pockets.

"Nope, not leaving you here, " she snapped. " I've already lost one person, I can't lose anyone else," her voice cracked in the link.

Idris' gaze flickered to his pocket and Emm took the shot. She darted one way and then another using her lycan speed. Her claws ripped into his other arm and she pulled, causing his right arm to be pulled out of its socket. She sank her teeth into the limp arm and, again, his body became an electrical charge and knocked her off.

Emm, again, was thrown, this time at my feet.

When I tried to move, the inside of my body pulled and tugged, straining the sinews of my muscles. I couldn't even lean down to pick her up.

Idris narrowed his eyes and smirked. "Well, if it's a game you want, little wolf, then let's play."

Shit.

"Get up, Emm. Now!"

Emm blinked immediately and looked up at Idris.

Idris pulled out a pair of long, sharp knives from his belt and held them in his hands. He blew on one and it floated into the air. Emm took a deep breath.

"Just a knife. I can dodge those easily," she mumbled.

"Not these," Idris taunted.

"They're enchanted, they won't stop coming at you. Fucking leave and get back to the pack! " I roared inside the link.

"If you are going to talk out of your ass, at least turn around so I can hear you better," she snapped at me.

Emm lunged at Idris with the lycan speed she possessed. It was slower than it should have been had she had been trained and not recently shifted, but she was still fast. Idris was quicker, his magical daggers proving to be a lethal asset.

He dodged her attacks, his legs working just fine. He held out the dagger again and it rose into the air. The pointed end aimed for Emm and flew with outstanding speed. Emm gasped, feeling it hit her shoulder, and hissed.

"NO!" I was able to roar, pulling and twisting in the red bonds that tied me.

Idris's menacing laughter echoed through the air as he retrieved a gleaming dagger from his concealed stash. Gripping it tightly, he held it aloft, watching as it hovered weightlessly. With a forceful exhale, he blew on the blade, causing it to slice through the atmosphere and find its mark on Emm's shoulder, eliciting a sharp and agonizing pain.

I roared again, this time the bonds that held me faltered and I began to break free.

"You fucking bastard, you fight me!" I yelled at him.

Despite Idris' ability to heal, he was bitten twice. Venom was running through his body. His skin was grey and he was having trouble, even with his magic. He could throw the knives, try to heal, or keep me pinned. He couldn't do all three.

Idris snickered, and walked closer to Emm, pulling another knife from his sash.

Amid their matched chaos, Emm's body shifted back to her human form. I knew she couldn't maintain the lycan form. Her body was giving up.

Idris' sinister laughter echoed through the air as he maliciously hurled yet another blade towards her. With a surge of adrenaline, I managed to break free from the restraints that held me captive, his weakening magic granting me freedom. Instinctively, I positioned myself to shield her from further harm, bracing as the blade pierced my shoulder. The searing pain shot through my body, accompanied by the metallic scent of blood that began to flow down my arm.

I turned my head slowly, my fangs dripping with anticipation. "My turn."

Idris backed up several steps toward the lake, and bubbles came to the surface. I smirked and let my claws clink together, as Idris let another dagger rise from his hand. He blew on it and as soon as it went into the air, my hand raised and I caught it with ease.

"Someone has become weak—again." I taunted.

Idris smirked despite being cornered. "Is that so? Go ahead, kill me." Idris opened his arms. The last few remanding daggers dropped to the ground. "Rip out my heart. See if I care?" He laughed again, and I wondered if I really was the crazy one here.

If it was a trap, I didn't know but I didn't really care. I was ready to sink my teeth into his throat and end him for good. To kill him with my bare hands, feel his blood on my teeth.

I took a determined step forward. His eyes flashed with malice as he lunged towards me, his nails slashing across my abdomen. The sharp pain seared through me, but I refused to show weakness. I clenched my jaw, feeling the warm trickle of blood down my side, and locked my gaze on him. With a swift motion, I raised my arm, the metallic scent of sweat and anticipation filled my nose ready to end this once and for all.

My mate was slowly healing behind me. I could feel her. But to keep her safe, I needed to end him quicker than I really wanted to. As my hand reared back, the bubbles behind him gave way to two blow-holes. A large snake-like head rose above the water, and Idris and I both stood back.

A magnificent blue dragon, its towering form covered with shimmering silver scales and adorned with vibrant yellow accents, loomed above us. As it gracefully opened its nostrils, a refreshing cascade of water poured down upon us.

I could smell Anaki's scent, his recently-mated scent. "Anaki?" I linked

Without hesitation, Anaki launched into action, moving swiftly and silently like a cobra. With lightning speed, Anaki's powerful grip ensnared Idris by the torso, pulling him forcefully into the depths of the water. The surrounding waves trembled violently, echoing with the tumultuous commotion. As the chaotic struggle unfolded, Anaki's sleek body twisted and turned, mimicking movements of a crocodile.

I stood in shock until the waters calmed and I could no longer see Anaki or the Idris.

The hell?

Sadness hit my chest, a new feeling since starting the fight here next to the lake, and I realized I needed to tend to my mate. I dashed toward Emm who was laying naked in the dirt in her human form. Blood was drying on her skin, tears streaming down her face.

Her body was healed, but definately not her heart.

I gently lifted her and cradled her in my arms, feeling the warmth of her body against mine.

"Princess, it's okay." I rocked her in my lycan form. "Everything is going to be alright, I'm here now. He's gone. Your sister and nephew are safe."

But your grandmother isn't.

I didn't say it, but she knew it that was what I was thinking. Guilt consumed me more than anything. If I hadn't brought them here, then maybe she would still be alive?

"Don't." She sobbed into my furred chest. "Don't you dare say it's your fault."

My mate's fingers clutched my fur tightly to the point it hurt. "They would have found someone; they found my father. I mean—gods, I wish I had paid attention." She shook her head. "I wish I had listened to her more closely, understood her better."

"What do you mean?" I tilted her head up with my claw.

She looked so damn beautiful, but when she cried—fuck, I don't know—she looked even more so.

"She said once we found our soul mates, that we didn't need her anymore. That they would protect us. At the time I didn't believe her, didn't believe in—"

"Mates. You didn't believe I'd find you."

"Didn't believe in any of it." She heaved in a breath. "I wish I could go back and tell her I loved her. Tell her she isn't crazy; tell her I believed her."

I pulled my mate to my chest and rocked her slowly. "I'm sure she knows. Why else do you think she was in the duke's clutches? She knew her fate, Princess."

My mate cried harder, and I held her.

It then clicked for me. As it always did, much later, with the cryptic words of a priestess, and the words of a witch or a warlock. Emm had to suffer as I did when I became Lycan. She had to know what pain I went through when I became what I was. I lost my mother and Emm's grandmother was as close to a mother as she could get.

I gritted my teeth, my cheek resting on her head.

I still think we are just pawns that the gods like to play with in this damned world, but what did it matter? Nothing, nothing mattered to a mortal soul like mine. There would still be pain and suffering no matter what I did to this pack.

Once Emm's grandmother died, that was when the pack-link was established. I could link everyone that was mated, and soon, those who were healthy enough could join the pack. Those that were too far gone, I suppose cell phones would still have to be our primary source of communication.

"Everything alright?" Hawke linked as I let my mate sob.

"Yeah, we're good. Idris is gone."

"Gone or dead?" Hawke's heartbeat was loud through the link.

"Goddess, I hope he's dead."