The Unwanted Wolf

CAIN

A wave of powerful energy washed over me, and I instantly knew something was wrong. I ran to Adira’s room, needing to check on her. When I got there, a wave of fury rushed through me. I stood there staring at the hole she had created to escape. I underestimated her abilities. Even with the belladonna lining the metal walls, she managed to dig deep and use her magic to escape. No wonder the Council of Magic was afraid of her.

It took me most of my life to be powerful enough to use magic, even in the presence of belladonna. I trained my body to get used to the drug, and slowly it didn’t affect me as much. There was no way Adira had training like that. She barely had training in using her magic in any manner. It must have been her wolf side that made it easier for her to break past the barriers of the drug. It was still impressive that she figured it out so quickly.

I ran through the prison, knowing I had to reach her before she got too far away. She still didn’t understand why I was doing this, and I was starting to worry she never would. I was going to have to take it up a notch, show her what the council was capable of. Maybe then, just maybe, my insolent daughter would understand that my actions were to save her from a force that would take more than her mate away from her.

I made it to the front of the prison, and I was surprised to see the two guards standing in the front like nothing had happened.

“Where’s the prisoner?” I demanded.

The two men looked at each other, completely confused by my question. I had placed these men outside the prison, so if anyone used the only entrance to the place, they would see it. They were lower level sorcerers, too, which is why they needed to be outside.

I let out a frustrated sigh and pushed past them. Clearly, Adira had found another way out. I had to get her back before she made it back to the werewolves. If she returned home, I had a feeling I would never have a chance to save her again.

I took a deep breath to focus on and sense Adira’s presence, but then a wave of dark magic hit me. I opened my eyes to see a dark shadowy tornado spinning in the distance. I could feel the immense power all the way from here, and I recognized the dark energy as the same energy that tried to attack Adira before.

My stomach fell with that realization. The Son of B***d and Magic found Adira. If I didn’t do anything, the whole reason I couldn’t be with my soulmate would be for naught. I had to do something. I had to stop him from taking Adira.

ADIRA

My heart was still racing with the appearance of Mark. He showed up out of nowhere, and I had no idea how he found me. We didn’t have our mate connection anymore, so he couldn’t find me that way. It didn’t really matter how he got here. I was just grateful he showed up when he did. I felt more like myself with his hand in mine. The ache of being separated from him never quite went away, even after Cain removed the mark.

I squeezed his hand tighter, never wanting to let go of him again. I had spent more than a fair share of time away from him. It was almost overwhelming having him here again, and I could feel the emotions building to tears, but I swallowed them down. We weren’t safe. I could let myself fall apart when I was finally home.

Xavier gritted his teeth and threw another attack at Mark. I easily deflected it again. I let go of Mark’s hand and stood in front of him. I wouldn’t let him harm my mate.

“You will never get me. Just accept this now,” I said. “I won’t let you hurt my mate or take me.”

Xavier growled. “You’re really starting to get on my nerves.” He lifted his hands in the air, and black tendrils shot up, surrounding Mark and myself. They moved and twisted and hovered around us. They were ready to attack us from all angles, but he held off.

Mark gripped my arm and pulled me into him. His entire body was tense, and I knew he was afraid. I stood tall, knowing I could handle this attack if Xavier decided to release it. The magic inside of me began growing stronger as my desire to protect my entire family filled every cell in my body. This was no longer about getting home to my mate. I had to make sure we all left here in one piece.

“Last chance. Either let me kill that mut and you come with me willingly, or I could just kill all of you,” Xavier said. His voice shook with anger, and I knew this wasn’t a bluff. As much as he wanted me for the use of my power, the darkness consumed his mind. If he had to kill me, he would do it without hesitation. It was the reason I would never choose him. I didn’t care if I could grow stronger and change the world in whatever way I wanted. I would rather have a man by my side who loved me wholly, instead of one who just wanted to use me.

“Not a chance,” I muttered. I raised a shield around Mark and myself, ready to take on whatever attack came our way.

Xavier raised his hand to bring the tendrils down on me. Before they hit, Xavier was knocked off balance. I looked over and saw Reyland’s wolf form dash at Xavier. Reyland knocked Xavier to the ground and bit his arm. He tried to bite the sorcerer again, but Xavier flung his arm, shooting a black tendril out of it. It hit Reyland and sent him flying. Reyland hit the ground and rolled to break the fall.

Reyland quickly got back on his paws and snapped at Xavier. His chest was heaving up and down, and the smell of b***d filled my nose. He was definitely injured, but he was still ready to fight. Reyland dashed forward, lunging at Xavier again. Xavier tried to throw another attack at Reyland, but this time I quickly reacted, blocking the black tendril with my own magic. This allowed Reyland to finish his attack, and he managed to bite Xavier’s side.

Xavier cried out in pain, and dark magic flared from his body, shocking Reyland back again. I ran forward, knowing I needed to start going on the offense in order to divert Xavier’s attention from Reyland. I knew Reyland’s wolf was strong, but Xavier was on another level, and I was afraid Reyland wouldn’t be able to survive if he continued getting attacked.

I threw balls of light magic at Xavier, but he sensed my presence and easily blocked them. I continued throwing my attacks at Xavier, not giving him a chance to breathe. He deflected all of the attacks, and I didn’t hit him a single time, but it kept him distracted. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Mark change into wolf form. Reyland and Mark then ran at Xavier from the opposite sides while I continued hitting Xavier from the front.

Mark and Reyland leapt into the air, ready to attack Xavier from either side, but Xavier suddenly disappeared, causing the two of them to knock into each other instead. I watched as they fell to the ground with a thunk. I felt a dark presence directly behind me, but before I could react, a dark tendril wrapped itself around my waist.

“You should have given yourself to me. Now you’re going to watch that mate of yours die in front of you and you won’t be able to do anything about it,” Xavier whispered into my ear.

Mark shifted back into his human form and looked at me. For a moment, it felt like time completely slowed down. Here I was, finally reunited with the love of my life, the only man who never tried to push me to do something I didn’t want to do. He was patient with me from the beginning, giving me time to open up to the love he knew I deserved. He always fought for me, finding me no matter what happened. He worked with Alpha Lyna to bring an army to protect me and the pack.

Xavier was threatening his life, and I was terrified. I tried to raise my hands to use my magic to put up a barrier around Mark to protect him from whatever happened, but Xavier restrained my hands in anticipation of my resistance.

“Not a chance, sweetheart,” he whispered into my ear. A wave of disgust washed over me with his words. Being touched by his magic made me feel absolutely sick, and I needed to get away from him. I needed to save Mark. I needed to be stronger and better.

Xavier lifted his hand to attack Mark, and I screamed as I tried to break free. Mark’s eyes latched onto mine, and he smiled. He mouthed the words, “I love you.” It felt like he was saying goodbye to me. I refused to accept it.

A black tendril shot out of Xavier’s hand, aiming straight for Mark. He tried to jump out of the way, but Xavier anticipated the dodge and adjusted his attack. There wasn’t enough time for Mark to get away. Just as the blast of magic was about to hit Mark, Reyland jumped in the way, pushing Mark out of the way at the last second.

The attack hit Reyland in the side and knocked him to the ground. He rolled onto the ground and stopped moving. From where I was, I couldn’t tell if he was still breathing from where I was. My body went cold at the thought of Reyland being dead. We were just starting to fix our relationship, and he had just saved Mark from Xavier.

Mark sat up with wide eyes, realizing what had just happened. He rushed over to Reyland’s side to check on him. He pressed his hands against Reyland’s side, and I could see b***d on Mark’s hands. This wasn’t good. I had to get to Reyland and do what I could to heal him.

A surge of magic flowed through me as the desperation increased. Xavier’s dark magic was blasted into a million pieces, freeing me from his grasp. I turned and kicked Xavier in the chest, adding a blast of light energy into the attack. Xavier fell back and landed on his back. I quickly shifted over to Reyland’s side to see what the situation was.

Mark looked at me with wide eyes, and my heart raced. Reyland was still breathing, but his breath was ragged. Mark pressed his hands onto Reyland’s wound, trying to stop the breathing.

“I’m sorry, Adira,” Reyland choked out.

“Don’t talk. I’m going to heal you.” Tears poured out of my eyes as I pressed my hands against Reyland. All of the anger I had felt towards Reyland disappeared, and I just felt sad. I felt sad for the time we lost together, for the pain we both had to endure. I couldn’t stand the thought of our relationship ending just like this. He was the only true parental figure I had, and I couldn’t lose him now.

I focused on sending healing energy to Reyland’s body to slow the bleeding and give him a chance to move on, but before I could do much, I was yanked back by my hair. I grabbed my hair and looked up, seeing Xavier’s eyes boring into mine.