15. Elisabed

15

Elisabed

“Elisabed,” said August gently. “Sorry, love, but we need to move.”

I stirred as his hand rested gently on my shoulder. My body felt heavy and sore, my mind hazy from the aftermath of the heat. My official heat may be over, but I still craved them with an intensity that scrambled my thoughts. I blinked at him, the room dim in the late evening light.

“Already?” I murmured, my voice thick with exhaustion.

Marshall appeared behind August, already dressed and pulling on his jacket. “We’ve stayed too long as it is. It’s not safe here anymore.”

Finn leaned against the doorframe, his usually playful expression softened by something almost tender. “Come on, darling. We’ll let you sleep when we arrive at the settlement.”

I rolled my eyes at him but managed to sit up, my body protesting the movement. Despite my exhaustion, I didn’t want to sleep—I wanted to continue the ecstasy from before. The nest they had built around me was warm and comforting, and leaving it felt like ripping away a piece of myself.

Still, the stares of the humans had felt like a looming threat on our heads, and I knew better than to delay our departure for my desires.

The alphas helped me dress quickly. Their hands were efficient yet careful, lighting me up with every touch. Soon, we were packed and ready to leave.

The setting sun was barely visible when we exited the inn, stepping into crisp, biting air. The forest loomed around us, and the dirt road stretched ahead like a quiet promise of safety—or danger.

“Let’s keep moving,” August said briskly. “We want to be out of this territory before nightfall.”

They set a swift pace, the tension in the air palpable. The events of the day hung between us, unspoken. I felt their watchful eyes on me as they guided me along the uneven road.

I now knew they had chosen me for a specific purpose, which had nothing to do with any feelings for me, but I couldn’t help thinking about their soft words and the way they worshiped me. Everything happened so fast that I never thought to confront them about it. Marshall hadn’t told me to keep it a secret, but I didn’t want to disturb our new peace.

How could our connection feel so real if I was just a means to an end? What if something had changed? What if the bond between us was stronger than just a need ?

I was so lost in my thoughts and growing desire that I didn’t notice the uneasy feeling beginning to creep over our group. My skin prickled, and the hairs on the back of my neck suddenly stood on end. Startled, I glanced over my shoulder, my instincts screaming that we were being watched.

“Something’s wrong,” I whispered, my voice barely audible.

Finn was the first to react, his body tensing as his eyes scanned the surrounding trees. “I smell it, too.”

Marshall’s growl was low and dangerous. “Humans.”

We didn’t have to wait long to see them, and all lingering thoughts from my heat disappeared with the newfound danger.

A group of men emerged from the forest’s shadows, their faces twisted with hostility. They were armed with crude weapons—rusty blades and wooden clubs—and their eyes burned with animosity.

“You don’t belong here!” one of them barked, stepping forward with a scowl.

Another man pointed his knife toward me, spitting on the ground. “We know what you are, little wolf slut. You don’t have a place in human lands.”

They were the kind of words I’d only heard in cautionary tales warning against humans when I was young, and the alphas immediately closed ranks around me, their movements instinctive.

“Turn around,” August commanded with a dangerous growl. “Walk away, and I might forgive you for the way you’ve spoken to my woman .”

But the humans weren’t interested in retreating. They laughed at August’s words, and the same man repeated, “What? Your slut doesn’t like when she’s called by what she is—a bitch ?”

Without a second thought, Finn lunged.

“Elisabed, stay back!” ordered Marshall, stepping in front of me like a human shield.

I wanted to obey, but the scene unfolding before me was too much. Finn fought with feral precision, his movements a deadly blend of strength and grace. After a moment of hesitation, August jumped into the fight in his human form. He hit the humans with a skilled precision meant to leave them unconscious instead of dead, but the humans were desperate, and desperation made them dangerous.

One of them managed to land a strike on Finn, the blade slicing through his thick coat and across his side.

The moment I smelled his blood, something inside me snapped.

For the first time in my life, my wolf surged forward, feral and wild. The lingering heat from my recent cycle fueled our collective rage. Without hesitation, I shifted, my body transforming into the giant, black wolf I hadn’t seen since childhood.

They hurt him. They dared to hurt him.

Mine.

It had been so long since I was in my wolf form that I couldn’t differentiate my rational thoughts from my primal ones. Without thinking, I launched myself into the fray, my claws tearing through flesh and teeth, snapping with lethal precision. My alphas stood frozen for a second, watching me with their mouths open. If it was the shock at seeing my wolf for the first time—the color of my coat like the blackest night, unable to even reflect the light—or the ferocity of my attack, I’d never know.

My wolf was in charge now; the only thing on her mind was joining Finn in the fight and making them pay .

The humans didn’t stand a chance.

Their shouts turned to screams as Finn and I tore through them, a violent symphony of snarls and cries. My wolf reveled in the carnage and the primal satisfaction of defending what was mine. I had never felt so close to her before.

“Elisabed, that’s enough!” said Marshall urgently.

But I couldn’t stop. It had been so long since my wolf had had complete control that she was unwilling to give it back, and I’d forgotten how to take it.

Finally, Marshall physically intervened, his massive frame blocking my path. I faltered, the weight of his presence bringing some clarity back into my mind.

“ Stop ,” he ordered, his expression blank. “They’re already dead.”

I took a deep breath and shifted back slowly, my body trembling as the adrenaline faded. The sight of the blood on my hands, my body, the carnage around me...it made my stomach churn.

Finn shifted beside me, his chest heaving, his side still bleeding from the wound. Despite the injury, he grinned at me. “Not bad, little omega. “Didn’t know you had that in you.”