SWNOVELS Chapter 16: Jaxon
He stormed out of the morgue and shifted before headed to the woods after Seth had told him where Jude was heading. Many Enforcers had tried to intercept the berserk wolf but none had succeeded. Instead, many were injured because of it. Jaxon’s wolf ran as fast as its paws could get. From its peripheral view, Jude wasn’t that far and quickly, the Alpha raced to him before collided with the berserk wolf to the tree. This wasn’t the type of berserk where a werewolf lost his mate. Jaxon would have known it. Jude didn’t have a mate yet. He had just shifted two years ago. There was no way he could find his mate that quick while he barely got in sync with his wolf. There was only one possibility of why he had gone berserk. This must be the drug. His scent changed too.
Jude lunged to the Alpha and managed to get a strong hold on his front paw and the bone cracked. Jaxon didn’t want to hurt this young wolf but if he was left with no choice, he had to. The Alpha sunk its teeth close to Jude’s neck but not close to its vital part of the neck. He didn’t want to accidentally killing his Enforcer. He just wanted to contain him. Jude howled before let go of the Alpha’s front paw and ran. While Jaxon was trying to chase with his broken paw, Cohen ran past him and chased after the berserk wolf.
“Don’t push yourself, Jaxon!” the Southern Alpha shouted.
As an Alpha, Jaxon hated being useless even if his entire body broken into pieces. He wanted to help as much as he could, but right now, he could barely run with his broken paw. It would take time for it to heal. Maybe not days but a few hours at least. With the help of his nearby Enforcers, they helped him to the pack mansion before the heavily pregnant she-wolf ran out with a blanket and draped it over his body as he slowly shifted. Mira checked his arm while he was laying down on the floor as his body suddenly felt burning after the bite. His eyes felt heavy too.
“Jaxon, hey, hey,” Mira patted his cheeks. “Stay awake.”
Amanda ran into the mansion with her bag and crouched next to him, “It’s the drug. His wolf is forcing him to pass out.”
Jaxon’s eyes felt heavy but his ears remained active.
The white witch rummaged through her bag before she pulled out a bottle with clear liquid in it, “Tilt his head. This should neutralize the drug.”
Cohen was right about the witch’s potions. The taste was utterly disgusting. Jaxon almost spat it out but Mira held his jaw closed after Amanda had poured the potion into his mouth. He felt violated somehow. He could feel the burning eased from his body before his broken arm healed.
An hour later, Cohen returned with blood all over his body. Mira ran to her mate as she inspected his body for any possible injuries.
“Baby, it’s not my blood,” Cohen stopped her frantic hands before turning to see Jaxon, “We have a mess to clean.”
The Eastern Alpha stood up and asked, “What mess?”
Suddenly, the redheaded Luna reached for the remote control and switched on the TV. There was a breaking news aired and a female reported was talking before Mira turned the volume up.
“According to the amateur video posted online today, a wild wolf attacked the camping site where the family of five were staying since two days ago. Two victims died on the scene while the other three who are critically injured had been rushed to the nearby hospital. The police had sent a hunting party to hunt down the wild wolf before it takes another vic—”
Jaxon punched the TV. The drug had caused Jude to take innocent lives. If they found out that the wild wolf was more than just a wild wolf, the entire world would know about the existence of supernatural species and there would no longer be peace.
“Find him and contain him before further damage,” Mira instructed the two Alphas.
They nodded and went out of the mansion. For the next few hours, Jaxon spent time in the woods as they tried to track down Jude from his last known location. The search never stopped even when Jaxon had to attend Hanson’s funeral. The Eastern Alpha was restless and kept zoned out during the entire ceremony. His mind was thinking what if Jude had already taken another life while Jaxon was here for the ceremony. A second after the ceremony had ended, Jaxon and Cohen resumed their searching. They went wider and further from the territory. Everyone barely had any slept. A day passed, Jude was nowhere to be found. Jaxon grew even anxious and restless until he received a phone call from Zia. Her voice managed to ease a little bit of his worries. He was exhausted but that didn’t stop him from coming to the park to meet her.
He asked her out but something about her eagerness of saying yes was giving him a little suspicion. He didn’t know what yet but his wolf was staying alerted when she came to the park and sat next to Jaxon. Never had his wolf acted this way especially around their mate.
“2 hotdogs and 2 iced Americano,” Zia ordered at the food stall owner at the park.
Jaxon handed the money before she could do so. After they had gotten their order, they went back to the same bench and enjoyed their food in silence.
“So, what kind of work do you do?” Zia asked before took another bite of her hotdog.
“Family business,” he replied short. “My dad owns the local supermarket. The same place where I met you.”
Her mouth dropped opened, “Seriously?”
He nodded as he went on, “My mom is a professor in the town’s college.” he stared at one of the families at the park, “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”
Zia followed his gaze, “Yes, it is.”
“He could have all these.”
“He?”
“My uncle,” his voice cracked whenever he thought of Hanson. “He was killed a few days ago. His wife is pregnant of their first child. It’s truly sad to think that his son would grow up without a father.”
He felt her hand rested on his as she said, “I’m sorry for your loss.”
I hope you are truly sorry, Zia Ashton.