Page 34 of Rejection on the Full Moon

[Who is near the west side of the pack house and can be there ASAP?] I call out through the link.

[Miles and I are, we’re on our way.] Christian calls out. Relief fills me when Miles rounds the corner of the building, his grey wolf form spotting me instantly as he rushes towards the Soulless I’m fighting. Christian is hot on his trail, his form being a beige wolf covered with blood and wounds. I return my focus to the Soulless in front of me, keeping his attention on my body as I continue to attack. I needed to keep him busy long enough for Miles and Christian to take him by surprise, it would be our only chance at defeating him.

[Take care of this Beta, I’m going to help Dominic.] I link, ducking out of the way just in time for Miles to tackle the Soulless to the ground and turning my body towards the direction I last saw Dominic. I catch sight of the dead bodies from our earlier kill, but Dominic and the leader of this Soulless pack are missing. The trail of fresh blood sends me into a panic the moment I recognize the scent as my mate’s. His injuries are worse than before, and I have no clue where he went. Following the trail, my paws carry me through the trees. Bare bushes have their branches snapped, indicating a battle took place beforehand, as fur from both Dominic and the Soulless is left tangled in the brambles.

Then I spot them.

Dominic is cornered into the face of a large cliff with nowhere to go. Backed up between a rock and a hard place, the Alpha Soulless paces back and forth, his lips pulled back over his gleaming fangs in a snarl. I push off the ground even faster, Dominic’s eyes meeting mine before I tackle the white wolf before me, my teeth biting into the back of his neck, getting a good grip. Black blood oozed from fresh wounds I intuitively know are inflicted by my mate as the leader struggles against my grasp. His hind legs kick at my underbelly and break skin, but I hold on tight. Dominic limps towards us, his body moving quickly as he lunges at the wolf, his teeth sinking into the trapped wolf’s throat. The bone beneath his teeth snap, and the wolf stops moving, his hind legs falling to the ground.

Backing away from the body, Dominic falls to the ground, panting. I rush to his side, carefully licking his wounds clean.

The battle is over, and this means our job is done. We can go home now.

[I’m fine, Amberle.] Dominic sighs into the link, his own tongue flicking out to lick at the wounds on my stomach. A cooling sensation follows as Dominic’s cleaning starts the healing process for my wounds.

[Never, EVER, go off on your own like that again, Dominic. I am not ready to be a widow.] I growl, headbutting my mate and letting out a relieved sigh. I know Dominic is just saying he’s fine to stop me from worrying, but the fact that he hasn’t moved since collapsing tells me that he has lost a lot of blood.

[I won’t, I promise.] Dominic reassures me, nuzzling and kissing my muzzle gently as he whines. I wait for Dominic’s breath to even out before suggesting we head back to the pack house and to assess the damage. The two of us walk back slowly, with Dominic leaning against me. Blood had stopped oozing from his wounds since his healing kicked in, and another wave of relief washes over me. We will both need some rest after today, and he will definitely need a check-up with Forest Paw’s pack doctor before we head home.

[All of them are dead.] Lease’s voice rings clear into the pack link. An abrupt cheer from everyone causes me to wince.

[Good. Separate the Soulless from our dead and burn them, and have the snow removed. We don't want to scare the pups.] Dominic takes control. The pack house comes into view with cleanup on its way. Wolves from both Forest Paw and Blood Moon work together, forming a pile of dead Soulless closer to the forest. Dominic and I pass wolves who give us a relieved smile, happy to see us still alive. We reach the window where our only entrance and exit is, with pack doctors rushing about to check on everyone.

[Get yourself checked out, please. I’ll be in our room getting cleaned up.] I tell Dominic, nuzzling his neck gently and giving him a quick lick before I spring upwards, leaping onto the roof and climbing inside. I shift back to my skin form, happy to see my uniform and weapons still in their hiding spot. I gingerly pick up the bundle of clothes and make my way up the stairs and into my room.

With the anger and adrenaline gone, my stomach begins to churn. I throw my clothes onto a chair just inside the room and rush towards the bathroom, just making it to the toilet when the toxic blood, gore, and fur from the Soulless that I managed to swallow during the battle land in the toilet bowl. After what feels like an eternity of throwing up and having to flush the toilet four times, my stomach finally settles. I find myself leaning against the counter with no energy left.

“For a strong wolf, you sure have a weak stomach,” Dominic states, catching my attention as I see him move from his spot, leaning against the door frame and limps towards me.

"I have a refined stomach. Anything that isn't food shouldn't be there." I retort, getting a chuckle from my mate as he helps me up. He settles me on the bench inside the shower, turning to get the water running before the spray begins. Water rains down on me, helping to wash off the blood that has frozen to my body due to the winter cold. We help each other clean off, careful of our tender wounds. The water runs off our bodies and down the drain, the tiled shower floor, a dark burgundy colour from our own blood mixing with the blood from the Soulless. It took forever to get the gore out of my hair, with Dominic having to shampoo it three times before my red locks were finally clean.

With our bodies washed and muscles relaxed, I decide to stay in our room, too tired to for socializing. Dominic smiles as I climb into our bed, ready to get some sleep as he dresses. Giving me a quick kiss, he promises to return with food after seeing to our pack mates and making sure that the cleanup is done properly.

I must have dozed off soon after he left because the room is dark when I am awoken by another kiss, and the smell of food reaches my empty stomach. As I eat, Dominic informs me that no one died from Blood Moon, and that we will be leaving tomorrow to head home. I felt excited, ready to be done with this place. However, Forest Paw lost fifty wolves in the battle, their bodies already being cremated to be sent to their families. I still felt sad, as they were wolves I grew up with, wolves I knew.

It is an inevitable fact of battle, but with the news of the few who were lost, I lose my appetite. I pass the plate to Dominic to put aside and ask him to come hold me. Wrapped in his embrace, I find myself falling into another deep sleep.

Chapter 21 – Allies Turned Enemies

I groan as I snuggle into the warm bed, my body exhausted from everything that has happened over the past few days. I wanted to keep sleeping, my body ready to doze back asleep again, when I notice that Dominic is missing.

I jolt upright, but I soon realize that that was a bad idea as my head spins and my stomach churns. I reach for the trash can beside the nightstand, then throw up whatever food remains in my body from last night’s dinner. With my stomach now empty, I sit in bed, brows knitted together. This is the first time after a battle where I’ve been extremely sore, exhausted, and feeling sick in the morning. And then it hits me—morning sickness.

I start counting how many days it’s been since my heat ended, realizing I should have had my period by now. A smile spreads on my face as my hands caress my stomach. I have a one-hundred percent feeling that inside me is mine and Dominic’s pup. Turning to look at Dominic's side of the bed, I find a note and pick it up, reading his messy handwriting.

Gone to get things in order for our trip home. I packed our bags and left out an outfit for you on a chair, I will be up around 12:30 if you haven't woken up by then.

Love Ice.

I kiss the note and fold it gently, getting up and putting it in my purse so that I can put it in a memory box I kept at my house. I guess now it would be mine and Dom's house when we get back. I grab the clothes that Dominic had set aside for me, smiling at the shirt I had gotten from him the first time I trained our wolves, and quickly dress. My stomach protests the need for food, and I make my way down to the dining hall. Scarlet meets me in line for the buffet.

“How are you feeling?” She asks with a smile.

“Tired, you?” I answer while filing my plate with everything that appeals to me. Scarlet whistles, seeing the mountain of food that I carry to a table close by.

“Hungry?” The she-wolf chuckles, motioning to the plate I was now devouring like I would never see food again. I blush and nod, taking a sip from the large glass of orange juice. I bring up the idea of sending her some files I have of old training programs I created for Blood Moon. I want to give this new Head Tracker of Forest Paw a fighting chance in keeping her position and making this pack stronger once I leave. The excitement in her face is all the answer I need as we finish our meal and head upstairs. She promises to meet me in my room, where I promptly take a seat on the bed, laptop booted up and ready to go.

The sounds of construction vehicles can be heard even on the top floor, causing a headache to form. Last night, after the battle, a crew began to clean up the bloody snow, using these trucks to also scoop up and haul away the snow that piled high in front of the pack house doors.

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