Page 70 of Wolf Crowned

I didn’t have my mates to help me this time. I wasn’t going to fail.

I screamed as I threw myself at him.

He caught me midair or tried to. My momentum was too much. I drove my claws into his shoulder as he toppled backwards with me on top. He landed with a thunk. I didn’t let up. I swiped my claws down his body, drawing blood.

His eyes widened. He gasped. I doubled my fist, giving him an uppercut hard enough to send his head snapping back.

Someone hit me from behind, wrapping their arms around my waist, lifting me up and throwing me to the ground.

I rolled across the gravel; the rocks digging into my flesh, cutting me. I landed on my back as my attacker launched themselves at me again. He landed in a squat as he straddled me. He jerked me up and then threw me back to the ground hard enough that my head bounced.

Stars burst across my vision. I coughed, wheezing, trying to fill my lungs.

He balled one fist and curled his other hand around my sweater collar. I couldn’t let him keep the upper hand. I had to keep fighting.

My mind scrambled, muscle memory kicked in. I tucked one foot back, hooking it with his as I lifted my hips. I grabbed his arm and rolled with everything I had until I was looming over him. He caught my pawed hand as I tried to slice him with my nails. I yanked my hand back, but his grip was iron clad.

I snarled and balled my other hand and punched straight down into his face. The bones crunched beneath my knuckles. Blood squirted from his nose.

Howls erupted and in my peripheral vision the door to the prisoner quarters on the other side of the drive flew off its hinges. Men came darting out one after another and more than I could count.

One group was free. Three more to go.

I smashed my hand into the guy’s face again, knocking him unconscious. I shot to my feet and ran for the other door of the compound closest to me. I twisted the knob. Locked. I rammed it with my shoulder. The door rattled, but refused to budge.

Leo hollered my name as he came charging forward. “I got it. Alpha step aside, please.”

I scrambled out of his way. He raced for the door and didn’t stop. He hit it with a thud and a crunch. The door toppled in and Leo with it. They both landed on the floor inside the compound.

A woman helped him to his feet.

He motioned to the door. “Alpha Sloane is here to rescue us. Come on, we have to fight.”

I scanned the growing crowd. All the prisoner quarters were liberated. First mission accomplished. My heart swelled. This was going to work.

I whistled, hoping to get everyone’s attention. “Those of you who can fight I need you to help me. We’re making a stand and taking down Alpha Dane. If you can’t fight, please don’t feel obligated.”

I put a hand on my chest as the crowd quieted and all eyes turned to me. I pointed in the direction we’d come from. “We didn’t run into people on our way up here. If you need to go, we have a small group that can help take you to our evacuation point.”

I patted my chest. “Anyone capable of fighting, I ask that you help us now so we can eliminate Alpha Dane and his men once and for all.”

I didn’t wait for anyone to respond before taking off at breakneck speed again. We had to keep Alpha Dane’s men away from our evac point and the main house. Footsteps pounded on the ground behind me. I sucked in a deep breath. I didn’t know how many men we had fighting with us now, but this was it. These past few months have been leading up to this moment.

In the distance was Pack Wolf Blood. They had a mixture of men and wolves racing straight for us. And in the lead was Alpha Dane.

Twenty-Five

Lincoln

“Wolfsbane grenade!”

I ducked and slowed down as the grenades we’d put together catapulted through the air. They landed hundreds of feet away, right in the thick of my dad’s men. The second they hit the ground they exploded. A puff of smokey poison shooting out of them.

I jogged forward, making sure the wolfsbane dissipated before I got too close. I shouldn’t have worried about it. My dad’s men kept running through the mist like it was nothing. They had to be affected...at least a little.

I pumped my fists, narrowing my eyes as my pack and my dad’s collided on the battlefield. I slammed into the first guy with my shoulder, wrapping my arm around his waist and lifting him up. I tossed him to the ground, put both hands on either side of his head and snapped his neck.

I shot back to my feet. I’d lost Sloane in the chaos.

---