“No,” Candice whispered.
“Shut up! Yes, drink it, Liza. Be free from what was forced upon you. You didn’t have a choice before, so take your right to choose back!” He made a fist in victory as he watched Elizabeth bring the bottle closer to her…
Before letting it crash to the floor, it’s contents pooling on the floor at their feet. Elizabeth watched his reaction, and saw Jeremiah’s eyes widen before they narrowed again.
He growled, “You idiot! That was the only potion we had!” He grabbed her by the hair and pulled, twisting her neck sideways so that he could whisper in her ear, “You will pay for that. Dearly!” He pushed her away again as she crumpled to the floor. She felt her wolf rising again, this time it was stronger and she couldn’t force it away.
Jeremiah stormed back over to the table and selected another vial from the case. He popped the cork and turned back towards Elizabeth. “This potion is the closest we have to a true Hybrid potion. Would you like to see what it can do?” Without waiting for a response, he brought the bottle to his lips and drank it. He licked his lips and within moments his body began to tremble.
His skin rippled with new hair and muscle growth, his face and neck covered in fur. His fingernails became claws as did his toes as they burst from his shoes. His clothes ripped and tore in places where his body grew stronger. His ears morphed to be more wolf like, as did his eyes and nose. It was a horrible mix of wolf and man, and it was despicable.
“Now, dear Liza. I don’t think my master would be upset if I gave you a little payback for ruining our only potion like that.” Jeremiah’s voice deepened to become even more terrifying than before as he approached her, flexing his new claws. His eyes bore into hers, glowing so much like Nick’s did when he shifted into his wolf form. Her thoughts turned to Nick, seeing him smiling and happy, his soft caresses she might never feel again. His smell, his touch, the feel of his weight over her and…
Just as she was about to give up, to let her kidnapper win, a black rage filled her mind and spirit through the bond. Within seconds she knew what that meant. Nick was coming, and not only was he coming, he was almost upon them. A loud howl could be heard even this far underground, Nick’s howl along with what sounded like over a hundred wolves joining in.
“You thought I’d go down this easy? Let’s go then.” Her green eyes glowed as the wolf took over.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Nick sat at the head of the table and looked out at the pack he was now the Alpha of. One of the last things he wished to do was now his reality. But it had to be done, the only way he could protect and save the center of his existence was to step up to the role he was bred for, an Alpha of a werewolf pack. As the wolves filed in a few at a time the faces he had lived with and known for countless years looked up at him in both amazement and confusion. Beatrice was still most likely in her room, trying to process what had happened, but Nick couldn’t think about that right now, only one thought was running in his head, one person who meant more to him than life itself.
Elizabeth.
Even though they had only been a mated pair for less than a month, his connection to her was stronger than anything he had felt in his two centuries of life. He had finally found the reason he was still living in this world, the one person who could finally cleanse the darkness and misery of his past. His mind wandered for only a moment, then the memories of the past washed away as the bond with his Mate burned in his mind. He realized that he was still sitting at the table with his, and his Mate’s, friend Camilla next to him.
Most of the wolves of what had been, moments ago, Beatrice’s pack were now his and he needed their help. He stood and most of the chattering that had been going on came to a complete halt. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, as he tried to concentrate around the crying of his soul that was now far away from his warm embrace.
“Wolves of the Pack-Den.” he began as his voice boomed across the dining dall, “I, Nicholas Connor, am now your Alpha!”
The words still sounded foreign to him but he continued. “As you all may know, many wolves have been going missing for many months now, and now even my own Mate has been taken! The kidnappers have made a grave error in taking members of our Pack! We will not stand for this, something will be done, and it will be done now!”
Wolves looked at each other, still mildly confused and somewhat terrified. But another voice calling from down the hallways rang in a voice that caused everyone's head to bow slightly.
“No one will be doing anything,” Beatrice stormed past the tables and made her way straight to Nick, “You will stand down and let the proper wolves handle the situation!”
She was challenging him here to retake control of her pack, but she realized once again that she had made a horrible mistake.
Nick’s eyes glowed with the blue fire he had felt many times before, “BEATRICE,” his voice resonated throughout the entire pack, and everyone’s head bowed even lower, even Beatrice's. “You will remove yourself from my sight or I will have you thrown into the Hold for insubordination!”
Slowly and quietly Beatrice walked backwards away from her Alpha. “Yes, Sir,” was all she was able to squeak out before she disappeared behind the doors.
Nick took another deep breath and looked at the wolves in front of him, now confusion was nowhere to be seen. Everyone now looked at their Alpha with their full attention, ready and willing to do what he asked.
“I need all able-bodied fighters to meet me at the Den entrance in thirty minutes, pack light but enough for a few days. I’m not sure where they have taken our friends, but I assure you that not even death itself could stop me from finding my Liza!” He found himself beginning to heat up the air around him, both Camilla and Darren were sweating. “Go now! We will be meeting with Lord Byron’s pack on the way! These fools will regret what they have done!”
With that, every wolf began to scatter as they howled. Nick sat down only for a moment when Camilla touched his shoulder, she winced a bit as his heat caused her hand to burn somewhat. He instantly recalled his power as she smiled at him.
“Don’t worry, Alpha,” she said with her playful tone that always refreshed his mood, “We’ll find Liza and the others.”
“I know,” he confirmed. “Come, let’s get going.”
The next thirty minutes was a blur of activity, wolves running around doing a multitude of different tasks. Some wolves were gathering provisions and supplies for the journey ahead, while others were saying goodbyes and best wishes to their loved ones. Nick only managed to grab a small bag of clothes and snacks before he couldn’t wait any longer, he made his way to the entrance of his Pack-Den, but was stopped halfway through his march.
“Nick?” said a slightly meek but familiar voice, “It is Nick, right?”
Nick turned around to see Ginger standing in front of him, still in her hospital gown. He looked behind her to see Ben slowly jogging up to them. “Ginger, what are you doing here? You should be resting.” His glare fell on Ben causing the wolf to shrink from the force.
“You’re gonna go find Liza. So, I want to help.” She tried to look into Nick’s eyes, but found herself unable to. “She’s my friend and I want to help her. No matter the cost.”
Nick looked down at the girl in front of him, she almost reminded him of Colin in a sort of odd way. “I know you want to help, but you are still recovering, if we took you with us we would have to slow down until you learned how to access your inner wolf, and by then it might be too late for Liza.” He wanted to help her, but he needed to help Elizabeth first.
“But… you could teach me on the way,” she attempted to bargain.
Nick chuckled, which he was surprised that he could considering the situation. “That is Liza’s honor. She will be the one to teach you, as I taught her. I will make sure to bring her back.”
His hand rested on top of her head and she knew it fruitless to continue her request. Nick looked over at the quickly attentive Ben and nodded
at him, the wolf moved to Ginger and placed his arms around her for support.
“Oh, and Ben,” he said as he turned back to his destination. “Make sure Beatrice stays out of trouble.”
“Yes, Alpha Nick!” he said with almost too much cheerfulness in his voice.
Nick shortly found himself standing at the mouth of the Den entrance with a few other wolves already there to greet him. Each gave him a nod of approval and acceptance, they were ready to follow him to the ends of the Earth if he so wished. Not long after, the rest of the wolves gathered and Nick looked back at his Pack, not knowing what was ahead of them.
“The time is now, my friends,” he addressed the gathered wolves, “Let’s find our missing packmates and the fools that stole them away from us!”
Howls and growls responded as they all rushed forward after their leader. Nick had only one thought that drove his feet and soul, the burning bond that told him that he had to find his missing part, his Liza.
***************
It only took them moments to find where Elizabeth had been attacked. At the sight of his Mate’s blood, Nick flew into a rage and punched the nearest tree, leveling it completely. His packmates whined a bit, which clamped down on the inner wolf that was trying to take Nick over, he took a deep breath and picked up the trail and followed Elizabeth’s scent. After a few more hours they found a camp where the attackers had placed her in some sort of wheeled cart, it became harder to follow her scent as the slight drops of blood had stopped. Nick did not falter in this new development, he continued to follow his nose and his bond screaming at him that she was that way.
Even though half a day felt like years to Nick, they had finally found what they were looking for, an abandoned site full of werewolf activity. Nick growled low as he saw movement on the edges of the camp, there were more than he thought there would be. Just from the signs of life around the site, he guessed that there were at least fifty wolves in the area, compared to the fifteen that he had with him, the odds didn’t look too good. He surveyed the area for hiding spots, vantage points, or even weapons to even the playing field. Nothing he saw would be able to help them, broken down waterslides, filled in pools, rotting bridges and rundown concession stands, this was an abandoned water park. He tried to remember this place, but it was Camilla who whispered something first.
“This is River Country,” she nearly gasped, “I came here once when I was younger.”
Nick turned his head toward her. “What do you remember? Is there a place where they could hold a lot of kidnapped wolves?” He was beginning to feel a bit frantic, but did his best not to let anyone see.
Camilla closed her eyes, and after a few moments pointed in the direction of what used to be a restaurant, “That is the biggest place here, and they have a few guards around it.”
Nick closed his eyes and focused his entire being to feel inside the building, and then he felt that feeling he’d been missing for far too long. Hope. “She’s in there!” He bit back the tears building inside. “I know she is, I can feel her!”
Beside him spoke the deep voice of Darren. “But how do we get in? There are too many, if they see us they’ll tear us apart, or worse, the hostages.”
Nick gritted his teeth, he knew Darren was right, but he wished he wasn’t. Their pack just wasn’t big enough, dozens of ideas began running through his head, but none of them seemed to ensure the safety of his entire pack. If only there was some way to get them away from the building, to make them not notice them.
That’s when his prayers to the Goddess were answered. A howl from the north rang throughout the encampment, causing the wolves in the park to turn toward the sound. Nick grinned a somewhat wicked smile, he knew that howl very well and what it meant. Backup had arrived, Colin and his Pack had come to help their friends, and to save the wolves trapped in this nightmare.
Nick jumped up and shifted into his Hybrid form so fast that his pack had to double-take to make sure that someone else hadn’t slipped their way into their ranks. He took a step forward and turned back to his pack members, his voice reverberating in their minds.
“NOW!” His white fur glistened in the dying sunlight, “Show them no mercy, for they will show you none!”
The other pack members shifted into their wolf forms and dashed after their Alpha. The first few Feral wolves didn’t know what hit them, as four fell to the ground with a forceful crunch. The Ferals turned to see what the commotion going on behind them was, and quickly found themselves regretting the fact, as the howls from the north had closed in. Colin’s pack swooped in with twenty more wolves, tearing down another five Ferals as they made their way toward Nick’s pack. The Ferals began to catch on that they were being attacked and shifted to meet their foes head-on. When one Feral turned to the dilapidated Restaurant to warn the others of the attack, he didn’t make it far as a clawed hand struck him down before he accomplished his task. A sandy-brown wolf on two legs and somewhat disheveled hair stood above the crumpled Feral and dared any others to try the same.
Nick trotted up to the tan form, as two more Feral came rushing up to him. He grabbed both wolves by the scruff of their necks and moved them rapidly towards each other with a resounding crack. Nick didn’t skip a beat as he stepped up to his friend and brother.
“Nice of you to join us Colin,” Nick-Wolf’s voice projected into the mind of his friend, “You were just the distraction we needed.”
The beige wolf huffed, a wolf version of a scoff. “Distraction am I?” If his muzzle could smile, it would have, “I think of myself more as Vanguard.”
The two Hybrid wolves clapped their paw-like hands together, as a ringing of a bell sounded throughout the complex.
“Pleasantries will have to wait for later, I’m afraid,” said Colin as he watched, more Ferals came from the woods surrounding them.
Nick kept his sights set on the building as his bond flared with pain and fear. Rage filled him as he bounded forward to his Mate. “Liza is in there! I have to help her, she’s in danger!”
Colin swiped his massive claws at the approaching Ferals. “Go!” he bellowed, “we’ll handle these vermin.”
Nick rushed at the building only to be stopped by the sight of several monstrous creatures leaping from the structure. Each looking like a mixture of a wolf and a bear, searching for a location to cause havoc. One locked its sights on Nick and let loose an unearthly howl. Nick only hesitated for a moment before his bond, burning with agony, pushed him forward toward the aberration. Nick flung his clawed hand at the beast, it connected but the thing barely moved, it swung its massive arm at Nick, hitting square in the chest. Nick tumbled to the ground, grabbing his aching ribs, this was no ordinary wolf, this must be one of those Berserkers Colin had warned him about.
His ivory head turned and barked an order. “Watch out for these big ones, they are immensely powerful.” His warning came too late. He heard the deafening crunch as one of the beasts brought its enlarged limb down unto the back of one of his pack members.
Nick’s blood ran cold as one of his friends stopped moving, then his blood began to boil. His blazing eyes turned to the creature that had stuck down one of his pack members. The air heated up around him as he shot forward like an arrow and he plunged his claw deep within the Berserkers chest. It quickly lost its ability to move as Nick turned back to the Beast that had struck him, again the air around him blazed with heat, but the claws on his hands began to glow red hot. He took a few steps forward as the beast charged him. Nick nimbly avoided the jagged claws aimed at him, and with a simple flick of his wrist sent its head away from its body.
“YOU WILL NOT STOP ME!” His voice caused everyone to stop moving for a moment. The bond in his head aching nearly to the point of paralysis. “I will find my Liza!”
The pause was just enough for Colin to regain his senses before another Berserker regained his. Unfortunately for this creature, it was in Colin’s element and with deft movements he touched the ground and entrapped three o
f the creatures within a prison of rock and twisted wood. Darren also took his chance at one the monsters, he quickly leaped onto the back of the massive beast and clamped his massive jaws around its neck. As it roared in pain other pack members from both packs latched down onto the limbs of the creature. The beast writhed in attempts to rid itself of the smaller wolves, but eventually its movements slowed and finally came to a stop.
“We got this,” Colin yelled. “Go, last time I’m going to tell ya!”
Nick once more turned to the rundown excuse for a hideout, with more Ferals throwing themselves at him, he easily batted them away like flies. Another Berserker stood in the way of Nick and his meaning of life. The creature lashed out but found its advance halted as a paw grabbed its face and the heat of the sun burnt into its skull. Nick tossed the lifeless creature aside and stepped into the wooden structure, a few other Ferals saw Nick and instantly fell to their knees. Their morale had been broken and these wolves now begged Nick for their lives. Multiple thoughts ran through his mind, but finally made a decision that, if it worked, would turn the tide of the battle outside.
Pureblood (Pureblood series) Page 26
