Page 21 of Moon Guardian
He’d already faced off against the wolf with a metallic coat, which had left him wounded, but not as badly as he had let on.
This wolf worked on the element of surprise, stealth and unexpected attack, just as he did now, dragging me further into the forest to finish the job when he had put some distance between him and the other alphas.
I had already proved to be difficult to kill. He didn’t want to risk going for my throat only for me to get away and my life be taken by another alpha, leaving him in agony for the rest of his life.
Even if that’s what he deserved.
That’s what they all deserved.
My vision dotted with black spots as pain ripped through my body, but a wave of cool strength refilled my veins, something inside of me regenerating my muscles as they tore.
Goddess magic, I realized. It was still inside of me, although changed, somehow, because of my unexpected act of destroying the Crescent. It had fractured the heart of the Goddess, allowing me to absorb her very essence, something I had already been doing for quite some time.
Why me?
How had no other human figured this out before?
Perhaps the Goddess had chosen me, had grown bored of her wolves, especially when they had failed by losing so many alphas.
Perhaps she viewed me as a new challenge, something to see if her wolves were still worthy of her.
Or, perhaps, humankind was finally evolving to a point to learn how to use the power that governed the wolves against them.
Whatever the case, I couldn’t allow this wolf to drag me to my death. Slowing him down would allow the other alphas to catch up to us, and right now, that was my best shot at survival.
Branches sped past us, proof of the unnatural speed these wolves were capable of. I picked one out in the distance, gauging its position until just before we came under it.
I pushed against the ground, using all of the energy that had gathered in my core, expending it and leaving me breathless in an instant.
Whatever magic I had absorbed, it could regenerate, but it took time to build back up again. Whatever energy I had expended that had mated me to the alpha of all four packs had drained me considerably, and now I wondered if I had enough left to survive their instance that I be rejected.
I kicked, using the wolf’s snout to launch myself into the tree. He howled as I frantically climbed, crying out when I had to use my bad arm, managing to put as much distance between myself and his snapping teeth as I could.
Wolves could climb, too, especially massive supernatural shifter wolves. However I wasn’t exactly trying to get away, I was just trying to buy myself some time. His massive size would work against him, making branches difficult to navigate.
My theory was shattered when he burst through the branches, clawing at the trunk and sending scraps of it to the forest floor as he smashed his way through the obstacles, snapping at my feet.
Triple shit.
A cascade of snarls from below told me that the other alphas had arrived, and I never would have thought the sound would bring me relief.
My assailant yipped when a massive maw closed around his leg, dragging him down and leaving me free in the branches.
For the moment.
All four alphas circled one another below my perch, facing off for a final fight to see who was the true alpha among them all.
They all had their strengths. I wasn’t sure if there could be a clear winner, which could work to my advantage. Maybe they would kill each other and do me the favor of not having to do it myself.
The thought twisted my heart in an unexpected way and I realized an ugly truth.
The rejection went both ways. If I failed to reject them, all of them, then I would live with this pain forever.
I clawed my fingers through my shirt again, teaching myself to accept the ache for what it was.
Punishment for failing Charlie.
A flash of white broke the scuffle below, leaving a blinding trail of moonlight in its path.
