Page 95 of Hayden's Haven
It was too late. The bones beneath Drake’s skin were already fluttering. “You dare growl at me, female? For once, my brother is correct. Only those of this pack have a right to challenge.”
“I mated your brother. I’m as much a part of this pack as you.”
“We’re not mated! We haven’t blood-bonded.”
Drake laughed. “You know a blood-bonding isn’t required. You screwed her. We all heard it. Proof enough. Welcome to my pack, doctor. And you’re right. A female has the right to challenge. I accept your challenge, doctor.”
Drake finally looked at Hayden, without a hint of sympathy in his eyes. “Sorry, brother, you have no choice but to watch me shred your mate to pieces.”
* * *
MILA
Hayden growled and surged forward. Had it not been for the three guards restraining him, Mila had no doubt he would have killed Drake when the alpha turned his back on him.
“You’re unfit to be alpha,” Hayden shouted. “I’m the true alpha here. I earned the position when I challenged and killed Logan. I’m reclaiming my birthright. Today. Now!” Hayden issued a growl of his own, louder, fiercer than any she’d ever heard before.
Mila hated manipulating the circumstances, forcing Hayden into challenging Drake. But it was the only chance he had. She couldn’t let him be carted off to the DSA and take the fall for Drake. Chitman’s plan had worked. He had said Hayden would issue a challenge to override her challenge.
“Ah, there’s the brother I remember. The one who likes to fight. I accept your challenge,” Drake said, in a mocking tone. “But you’ll have to wait your turn.”
Wait his turn? That was not how this was supposed to work.“I cede my turn to Hayden,” Mila said.
Drake was stalking toward her, claws on both hands still extended. Oh, God, oh, God, what had she done? Why wasn’t he listening? He was supposed to fight Hayden first, and then fight her if Hayden lost. But Hayden wouldn’t lose.
“You don’t get to choose the order of the challenges,” Drake said to her, pitch-black eyes revealing an emptiness she hadn’t seen before. “If anyone gets to choose, it’s the alpha.”
A large knot formed in Mila’s stomach. Chitman had tricked her. She had believed Chitman when he said she would be able to cede her turn. She had been so desperate to keep Hayden from walking to his death she had believed Chitman.
“And I choose to start with you, female,” Drake said as he grabbed Mila by the throat.
Mila couldn’t breathe. He wasn’t going to make this quick, simply break her neck or rip out her throat. Drake flung her against a tree like a ragdoll. Pain traveled up her back as the wind was knocked out of her. Laying on her side, she watched helplessly as Drake stalked toward her, shifting mid-stride. His wolf’s teeth were as long and deadly as she remembered, and they were coming right for her. The white wolf lunged for her throat.
He never reached her as another white wolf slammed into him from the side. Her head was too foggy, giving the scene before her a surreal look, especially with the deafening sound of shouting and then howling from all around. The previous circle of shifters disappeared, replaced by a circle of white wolves with shredded clothing beside them. One shifter with glowing yellow eyes remained in human form. Callen. He caught her attention and motioned his head toward the right as he took a subtle step back behind one of the wolves. He wanted her to slip away, to leave Hayden.
The battle between Hayden and Drake raged on. Blood stained the snow and the beautiful white coats of both wolves. She couldn’t tell which brother was which. Jaws snapped and growls echoed through the trees, drowned out by the cheers when the slightly larger wolf landed a particularly nasty bite to the other wolf’s forearm.
She was sure the wolf with the injured front leg was Hayden because of how he’d been drawing the other wolf away from her. Hayden’s wolf was limping, favoring the leg, which meant he couldn’t leap, only wait for Drake to attack. Mila sought out Callen again, but he was gone. He had slipped away, leaving her and Hayden.
Drake leapt at Hayden, but Hayden anticipated the maneuver. He leapt out of the way; he’d been feigning the severity of his injury! With a hairpin change in direction, Hayden descended on Drake and sank his teeth into the base of Drake’s neck. He missed Drake’s throat, but rent a long gash down Drake’s shoulder, causing the alpha to misstep and go down.
Despite the blood gushing from his shoulder, Drake didn’t stay down. As Hayden went for Drake’s throat a second time, Drake sank his teeth into Hayden’s wounded leg.
Hayden let out a high pitched howl as his leg gave way. Hayden went down hard, throwing Drake’s wolf off balance and forcing him to let go. Both wolves rose. Hayden’s leg was a bloody mess with gouged flesh, but the tear in Drake’s shoulder was bleeding excessively, more than it should. . . unless the artery in Drake’s shoulder had been nicked.
Both wolves had slowed down, but neither was stopping. Each had too much to lose.
Mila’s was sure her heart stopped as Drake leapt through the air. Before Drake landed, Hayden pivoted, ran and jumped, slamming Drake from the side.
Drake’s body struck a tree, hard enough to daze him for a brief second. Hayden lunged, but Drake was wily, fast. He twisted beneath Hayden, ultimately gaining a position over Hayden, holding him down.
A hand clamped over Mila from behind, silencing her as she was dragged into the trees. She kicked outward until she heard Callen’s voice.
“Quiet,” he whispered a second before releasing her.
She couldn’t take her eyes off of Hayden, who had shifted back to human form and lay beneath Drake’s feet. Both men were breathing heavily, and covered in blood. Drake wasn’t moving away from Hayden, but it had nothing to do with brotherly love.
Hayden had torn into Drake’s right upper thigh and left shoulder. Drake was in as bad shape as Hayden, except he had come out on top. Hayden had lost.
