SWNOVELS Chapter 18: Jaxon
He stood in the crowd behind the police’s investigation tape as he watched the officers carried out three body bags from the gas station’s store. This was the second attack that involved the same wild wolf within 24 hours.
Jude’s wolf.
Jaxon and his Enforcers were nowhere near to catch the berserk Enforcer. He knew that if he caught Jude, the latter would have to be put down. It means that Jude would be sentenced to death for what he had done. He had killed eight people in 24 hours. The three victims who were rushed to the hospital after the camping attack, well, they died in the ambulance. Jude had killed eight humans and Jaxon knew that this wasn’t his fault. He did this because of the drug.
“We found him,” Seth informed Jaxon as he walked away from the crowd. “He’s at the river.”
The Alpha entered his car and drove to where the river was. The same river where he used to go fishing with Hanson. It wasn’t that far from the town, maybe thirty minutes of driving because of the dirt road and ten minutes to walk to the river by foot. When he arrived there, Jude was already in his human form and covered in blood because of the bullets. He was shot a few times while he was fleeing from the store earlier. Jaxon crouched next to him as he checked Jude’s wounds. Ten gun wounds and several claws marks.
“I’m sorry,” Jude said while he was holding onto the wound on his ribs. “I didn’t know what’s gotten into me.”
“We’ll talk about this when we get home,” Jaxon muttered. “You need to get medical attention.”
He shook his head, “No, Alpha. I’ve killed innocent people. You have to kill me. That’s the law.”
“The drug did this to you!” The Alpha protested because he didn’t have the heart to kill someone who was controlled by the drug.
Jude didn’t know why he acted that way. He killed because of the drug controlled his mind and wolf. He didn’t mean to kill anyone. Jaxon knew this guy since he was young. He trained under Hanson’s guidance. Jude could never hurt an innocent person. Let alone killed them. He wasn’t that heartless. Humans viewed werewolves as heartless creatures. They were wrong. Werewolves were capable of feeling compassion, love and all sort of feelings. They weren’t as heartless as the humans thought them to be.
“Alpha, please,” Jude begged as he brought Jaxon’s hands to his neck. “I am proud to have you as my Alpha. I’ve served my duty. I’ve served you and your family well. Permission to discharge from my duty, Alpha.”
Jaxon locked eyes with him before he turned to see his beta and several Enforcers who came there. They all nodded their heads to the Alpha to grant Jude to be discharged from his duty and to fulfill his last request.
The Alpha returned his gaze to Jude as he said, “Jude Carson, you are discharged from your duty with full honor and respect.”
“Do it now,” Jude murmured softly.
The Alpha’s claws extended on his right hand and he slit Jude’s neck with them. The Enforcer gave him a weak smile as blood flowed out of his neck. He made no effort to put his hands on his injury. Instead, he accepted his fate obediently.
“Thank...you.... Alpha....” those were Jude’s final words before the life essence escaped from his body.
Jaxon’s body tensed as he stood up and gave an order, “Prepare for his funeral.”
With that, he walked away. He understood that Jude rather died in his hands than died by the impending sentence from the Council. Jaxon didn’t want it to come this way because he was hoping that Jude would seek for his protection for a while until things had settled down. He was young for this fate. He had just turned 21 a month ago. He didn’t get the chance to have a mate or a family of his own.
As much as Jaxon hated his next action, he knew he had to do something before Zia Ashton and her family did more damage to his pack. Nobody told him that his mate’s last name was Ashton. Jaxon found about it on the first day he met her and it was the things inside her car that made him realized the truth.
When she didn’t move from her spot, Jaxon had to walk to her and carried her in his arms. She was as light as the feather before he placed her on the seat. That was when he saw several letters on the front passenger’s seat. On one of the letters, the name Zia Ashton was written. At first, he thought it was a coincidence for her last name to be Ashton until he saw another letter behind the one with Zia’s name. The letter had ‘Joshua’ written above the address. Jaxon grabbed the seatbelt and buckled it for Zia before his hand secretly reached for the letter. Then, he saw Joshua Ashton’s name on it.
But he kept his assumption to himself until the incident in the bar where Zia found out her boyfriend cheated behind her. When Jaxon was punching the daylight out of the douche bag, he saw the tattoo on Brody’s chest. The same tattoo that Mira used to tell him about the several human hunters who she had come across, but failed to kill because they were as elusive as she was. The hunters had the same tattoo as Brody. The tattoo was a symbol of the organization that Brody was working with. Mira was surely a woman with any knowledge about hunters. She was a walking encyclopedia.
Another assumption was confirmed when Jaxon brought Zia back to his house. He knew what he did was wrong when he lifted her shirt up a little bit to see her right hip while he was hoping he wouldn’t see it there on her skin. Unfortunately, the same tattoo was there too. Whoever had this tattoo, the men who would have it tattooed to their chest while the women would have it tattooed to their hips.
Jaxon picked the phone and dialed a number. A woman answered on the other end.
“I want to make a dinner reservation for two,” he said through his clenched jaw.
He wanted to see who would crack through their lies first. Would it be him? Or would it be anyone from Ashton’s family? Would Zia admit the truth that she had killed his uncle?
Well, he was about to find out soon enough because he was an expert when it came to pretending everything was okay and perfect. He was an expert in playing dumb.
He hung up after had made the reservation, “Game on.”