Page 199 of Claimed

“I did it with the poison in the hospital that had my mom-”

“This is different,” Aphra says. “I don’t know of a way. But Stacy–”

“What about Erica?” Grey tries. “SCC says she’s the most powerful witch seen in generations.”

“Maybe…” Aphra shrugs.

“Grey,” I say.

“We’ll get Erica here,” He says. “You tell her the spell and maybe she can help.”

I grab his hand. “The gun, Grey. I need that gun.” I rush to go for it myself, demanding to the alphas crowding the doorway, “Out of my way, please! Arcana Falls alphas! Please keep surrounding him, please don’t let him leave!”

Grey hesitates, but seems to decide something and shifts to wolf shape again. He rushes out the back door by the bathroom. Wyatt is across the space by the library exit and now it feels like a race is about to happen as he pushes his way, walking over top of Tyson’s wolf in his bubble.

“He’s in that bubble so he can’t get that gun, right?” I ask Aphra, grabbing her hand and rushing to follow Grey.

“He can’t penetrate his own shield. Not to eat, drink, nothing. He has to take another dose to end it and he has one in there, but those bullets I spelled for Soleil? Yes. Thosewillpenetrate anything. They’ll penetrate that shield. One for the shield and then a second shot will take him out.”

I get outside and Grey is already running back toward the building, the gun in hand. I grab it and it’s not hard to see my brother, bouncing outside as if running on air over top of a huge snarling brown wolf.

My brother flips doing a mid-air somersault as the brown wolf punts my brother’s shield as if he’s inside a transparent beach ball. Next he bounces off Mase’s huge pure white wolf, who tries to bite but instead sends Wyatt airborne again, now bouncing off a black and white wolf’s head. It looks like a game of wolf shifter volleyball. It hits the roof of this barn and comes down to bounce off Mason’s white wolf’s nose again. This time Mason throws his wolf’s weight into it, jumping up and sending my brother extra high before he bounces off a tree trunk. Wyatt lands not far from Tyson’s wolf, bouncing twice before Tyson barks, growls, and snaps at it, then bops it up into the air again and I can tell that my brother isn’t having the fun that the six Arcana Falls super alphas are suddenly having. A ginger colored wolf kicks with his back legs to make my brother land on the black and white wolf’s head and bounce yet again. The black and white wolf barks like he wants it sent back in his direction so Tyson’s wolf half-shifts to man-shape and he whacks hard with what’s halfway between a paw and hand and I hear my brother grunt from here, holding his head as he bounces. I’m sure that headache feels just awesome.Not.

I can’t help but laugh; they look like they could play all day long.

The rush is off because my brother is still being punted around among the six wolves and there are a whole lot of spectators out here now, including all of the Silver Hills pack, some of which are getting back into their clothes. Many are laughing.

Grey asks, “What’s the story here, Blossom?” He’s referring to the gun.

“I knew it was in there, saw the butt of it sticking out of my brother’s leather jacket when I ran in to use the bathroom. He told me yesterday he had special bullets in it that’d kill every one of the council. Aphra coated them in something. They will take him out, right, Aph?”

Aphra is beside me. “I didn’t know what they were being made for, but yeah.”

Grey whistles to get the attention of his council co-alphas and we walk over there.

They’re surrounding my brother, who stands in the middle, eyeballing the gun in Grey’s hand. He looks worried. Good.

“May I?” I ask.

My mate looks at me quizzically. I hold my hand out and he gives me the gun.

“More poetry,” I say to Grey, whose eyes twinkle.

Wyatt is glaring at me, shaking his head with disgust.

I speak loudly, “All this began when he forced me to use a gun. He hates that I’m a better shot than he is. Has hated it his wholemiserable life. Hates that I have a stronger nose, too, don’t you, Wyatt? We’re all done with you. Either you come out from there and let us get on with the voting process to decide whether you go to the SCC to stand trial or the pack decides to end your miserable life tonight. Come out or I’ll shoot and you know I’m a good shot. You know you don’t stand a chance.”

Looking panicked, Wyatt starts running over top of the brown wolf, then Tyson’s wolf, trying to get away. Instead of the shifters going after him, they back up, giving me a direct path and perfect line of sight. I hold the gun out and get my brother lined up. He looks over his shoulder as he’s running and I aim for his head and flex my finger, pulling the trigger. What looks like glass shatters around Wyatt, disintegrating instead of landing, and he trips and falls before he scrambles, trying to run again.

I’m about to shoot again knowing this one will hit him, but suddenly there are at least ten wolf shifters chasing after him. And now more of the pack are shifting, joining in.

I see not far ahead that several of the pack are on him. And now Wyatt is screaming and bloody as several of them bite and snap. There are so many I don’t recognize them all, but I do recognize some. Addy. Eloise. Jennifer. Misty. Caroline. Walter. Malachi. Patsy. Warren. Floyd. Larry.

A strong, warm arm wraps around me to give me comfort, but I give my mate a quick kiss and begin to shed my clothes, saying, “I need to be part of that.”

“Go,” Grey urges. “But hey?”

I stop.

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