Page 44 of Because You Rejected Me

Turning on the spot, he took off at a dead spring, disappearing into the woods below. Less than half a heartbeat passed before I practically threw myself down the dune to go after him. My paws slid in the sand, my body turning sideways in places and nearly colliding with several trees. Calling on that Alpha energy buried in my blood, I tensed my muscles and dug harder, sprinting like a streak of lightning down the dune. I leaped off of trees, over logs, and dove through brambles without hesitation.

I reached the bottom of the dune in record time and took off, running parallel with it to the north. The rogue was in human form, so he couldn’t outrun me. Of that much, I was certain. But I had a feeling he wasn’t trying to outrun me. He’d taken Matt for a reason, and I was terrified of what that might mean. A few seconds could be the difference between finding Matt alive or dead. I couldn’t bear to think of the latter.

Rushing through the woods, I kept my nose to the air, making sure I didn’t take a wrong turn. Branches and bramble tore at my fur, but I didn’t care. I had to find him. Had to get there.

Suddenly, I burst into a small clearing.

Perched at the edge of a sandy cliff was a small concrete foundation, one that clearly hadn’t held a building for decades. In the center of it stood a dark, hulking figure, a long knife clutched in his left hand. At his feet was another, smaller figure lying lifeless on the ground. The wind kicked up, and the scent of blood met my nose once more.

Matt.

Chapter Twenty-Four: Ace

Rage coursed through my body. Seeing Matt’s limp form on the ground and the knife in the rogue’s hand set my Alpha blood on fire. My lips curled back on my muzzle, exposing long rows of sharp teeth. A deep growl echoed up through my chest.

If I could speak, I would’ve been calling him every name in the book. But in wolf form, all I could do was be menacing. Judging by the fearful look in his eyes, I was scaring the shit out of him.

He hurt my mate.

Energy coursed through my muscles as I sprang forward, my body crashing into his. My jaws wrapped around his shoulder, piercing clothing and flesh alike. Blood filled my mouth as he stumbled backward and off the side of the small sandy cliff.

Gravity disappeared as we went over the edge. We fell for five, ten, then fifteen feet before the pair of us crashed into the sand. It was steep there, our bodies rolling through the sand as momentum carried us down the rest of the way. At some point on the way down, we came apart. When I finally stopped and managed to shake the vertigo from my head, I saw the man lying twenty feet away, his hand clutched over the wound on his shoulder.

I saw fear in his eyes. But there was a will to live there as well. That’s why I wasn’t surprised when he started yanking off his clothing, his body already shifting into wolf form. He might know I was an Alpha and that he didn’t stand a chance, but that wouldn’t stop him from trying. Besides, he’d already snuck up on Matt, so clearly he had some skill.

I glanced up the hill to where Matt was lying in the clearing. From that part of the beach, I couldn’t see his limp form anymore. I didn’t know if he was alive or dead, but I wasn’t about to let this asshole get away with either. The only way he’d be leaving this place was in a fucking body bag.

A deep growl pulled me back to the stranger. Instead of the hulking form of a man, I saw a large gray wolf working his way out of a pair of jeans. He stepped forward, the clothing falling away at last. Lowering his head, he let out a deep barking growl. He showed a lot of spunk. I had to give him that. Facing off with an Alpha wasn’t necessarily the smartest thing to do, but it took guts.

Too bad his were about to be outside of his body.

I didn’t give him a chance to make the first move. Digging my paws into the sand, I raced toward him, my head low. He tried to dodge to the right, but I saw it coming a mile away. Without slowing, I leaned forward, shoulder-checking him directly in the chest. A high-pitched yelp filled my ears as he flew through the air, landing in a heap in the sand a few feet away.

Again, I didn’t give him a chance to attack. Before he could get his feet back in under him, I had my teeth sinking into his right haunch. He cried out as I gave him an aggressive shake, muscle and sinew tearing against my teeth. The taste of blood filled my mouth and I tossed him aside like a ragdoll. He was moving slower now, giving me the opportunity to pounce him.

The air left his lungs as my massive paws landed on his chest. He tried to cry out, but there was hardly a sound. Reaching down, I wrapped my teeth around his neck and gave a squeeze. His airway flexed and condensed, making it almost impossible for him to breathe. I could see the fire going out in his eyes. That instinct to fight and win had all but left him as soon as he realized a single bite would snuff out his life. Werewolf healing could take care of a lot, but it couldn’t put an esophagus back in your throat.

The wolf beneath me began to crack and shift, the gray fur falling away until there was just a bloody, sniveling man. I stared down at him, my golden Alpha eyes practically glowing in the dark. My body was so filled with rage and hate toward this stranger. He’d hurt my mate, and that was unforgivable. All I had to do was bite down. That’s all it would take to end his life.

“P-Please,” he begged, his voice strained as I slowly crushed his windpipe. “I d-didn’t hurt h-him…” He stared up at me, his eyes illuminated by a burst of fireworks behind us. They were full of tears. “H-He’s alive…” He lifted a hand, pointing back toward the cliff. “L-Look…”

My eyes swiveled in that direction, the nearly pitch-black hill outlined against the starry night sky. I felt a flutter in my heart as I saw movement. Something or someone was at the edge of the cliff, looking down at us.

“Ace.”

I heard my name on the wind. It sounded like Matt’s voice, but I wasn’t entirely convinced I hadn’t made it up.

“Ace!”

Another firework boomed behind me, lighting up the sky. There, on his belly at the top of the hill, was Matt, his face momentarily highlighted by the burst of green sparks. My jaw slackened, letting the rogue drop to the ground as I lifted my face toward him.

He was alive.

“Ace,” he said, his voice cracking. “I’m okay. Just don’t… don’t do anything stupid!”

I looked back down at the man whose chest was under my heavy paws. A deep growl reverberated through my body. Slowly, my own form began to crack and shift, the black fur crumbling away as I took human form once more. All except my eyes, which remained bright and golden.

“If you so much as fucking move,” I growled. “I’ll rip your fucking throat out.”

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