Everything got darker.
Chapter Fifteen
Oh, my God. Somebody hit me with a mountain. I rolled onto my back and tried to pull my arms free, but the tug of a rope stopped me. Someone had tied my arms up. Every nerve in my body screamed in protest. The hard concrete floor didn’t help matters. A hushed silence fell over the room. Wherever I was, I wasn’t alone.
"Let her go!"
I leaned slightly forward, and I had a horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach. We'd been caught, and judging from the voice I'd just heard, so had Henry. I didn’t want to open my eyes, but I didn’t think I had a choice in the matter. Sooner, rather than later, I would need to open them and see the mess I’d managed to find myself in.
"Henry, calm down." Rose chided, her voice coming from somewhere to my right. "Why did you even come? You don't know her."
He snorted. "I've known you my entire life, and obviously, I don't know you at all."
The words were harsh, but Rose deserved every one of them. A hard kick to my shoulder made my eyes snap open. The first thing I saw was Michael, tied to a stone slab. He wasn’t even fighting. Why wasn’t he trying to get away?
Colin’s bald had caught my attention, and I studied him as he stood next to—but not amongst— a crowd of wolves who were all in human form. Though just barely. They reminded me of the boys who'd tried to grab me. Animals wrapped up in human skin. Colin never took his eyes off my brother, but he moved his lips at a steady rate.
Is he doing something to keep Michael calm? There wasn’t any time to ask the question, and I doubted I’d get an answer anyway.
Henry wasn't far away from me, but they’d tied him up pretty well. There was a guilty look in his eyes, as if he felt bad for not keeping me safe. I wanted to tell him it isn't his fault. Going after my brother had been my decision to make. My choice. I would have changed the whole getting caught part, but not the part where I had been able to see my brother, had met Henry, and had found out the truth about myself.
Just behind him, I caught sight of Rose glaring at me. She probably blamed me, but I didn’t care. I was more worried about Henry. I knew he had to feel conflicted, being between me and her. The person he thought he knew and the one he’d tried his hardest to keep safe.
I rolled onto my knees, and my head throbbed with renewed pain. From my new position, I saw a crowd of people—the homeless and runaways who'd been reported missing but had really been recruited by Jonas. Some of them were kids, but others were older. When Jonas had changed them, he hadn't been picky. It looked like his main concern had been having a large pack.
I couldn’t see him, but I felt him as if he were a black, pulsating mass that touched my senses like an oil slick. It made my skin crawl like a hundred bugs moving over my skin.
"My friends, our time to come out of the shadows is dawning." Jonas stepped out from behind me, the move dramatic liked he’d been studying villain 101. Everyone looked at him with adoration in their eyes. Why couldn’t they see how mad he was? A war between two packs, with humans in the middle? I didn’t see it ending well for anyone.
A cheer and a few howls from human mouths, which was slightly less impressive, rippled through the crowd.
"We will have our revenge!"
I frowned as I looked down at the floor. What does he mean revenge?
"I may not be like you, but I will not stand by as a clan runs out of control. Arturo needs to be eliminated. For an Alpha to let his clan run amok and bite innocent humans is unacceptable."
I glanced across at Henry. I couldn’t keep the disbelief off my face. Oh, my God. Is this how he planned to start the war? By saying Arturo started it?
"You're lying," Henry protested as he struggled to get to his feet. “You’re the one behind this. Not him”
Jonas smiled at the crowd, turned, and strolled up to Henry, who was about to stand. Then, the man smacked him hard across the face. The sound resounded around the space, bouncing off walls, and I winced. Henry fell back to his knees and spat blood on the floor.
"Of course you'd say I was. You're Arturo's lapdog, after all. My friends—” he faced the crowd again, his arms stretched open “—don’t listen to him. I've kept you safe. I'll always keep you safe. Arturo doesn’t care about you."
I braved another glance at the crowd. Henry's outburst hadn't swayed them. Their eyes were glazed over, trapped in Jonas’s words
He stalked towards me, grabbed my arm, and yanked me to my feet. The world spun.
God, they hit me hard.
"We could use you on our side, dear. You've been nothing but a pain so far, but it would be a waste to simply kill you."
"Let me go." I whispered the words, but I made sure I was loud enough that the other wolves heard. We needed more time.
Jonas shook my arm.
Guess he doesn’t like being ignored. "Excuse me?"
Henry frowned at me. The confused expression on his face meant he probably had no idea what I was about to do.
"Why am I even here? I promise I won't tell anyone. Just let me go." I tried to pull my arm free. "Please let me go. I'm only sixteen. I don't want to die."
Tears stream down my face. I look out at the wolves. Some of them look uncomfortable. Others don’t care. I knew nobody wanted to be involved with a young girl's death. At least no one who had a firm grip on their sanity. They’d all heard Jonas threaten me, but I was guessing he hadn't told them about me being a genetic wolf. My strength vanished, and I fell to my knees.
"Please, somebody. Please help me."
Pain exploded across my cheek. God, if people keep hitting me, I'm going to lose some vital brain cells.
A rumble ran through the crowd. They may have been lower wolves, but I had played on their most basic instinct—family.
I knew that wolves were pack animals and family meant a lot to them. So I played my trump card. "Please, I'm sure my mum is searching for me. I just want to go home."
There was blood in my mouth, but thankfully, my vision had cleared again. I watched the confusion leave Henry's eyes. We just needed to distract Jonas long enough for Arturo and his backup to get there. Backup Henry hadn’t said was coming, but I had to believe that they were. We needed to keep Jonas’s attention focused on us, not the whole killing-my-brother thing.
Rose smiled. I didn’t want to feel any sympathy for her, but I could see she'd been placed in an impossible situation. She’d picked the wrong side. How many deaths would there be? Did she care?
Jonas started to unravel. If he’d hoped this was going to be easy, he'd really had it wrong. "You know of the ritual, my friends. We must kill the traitor, Michael. With his death, we will be strong enough to take the clan and the city."
"You're lying. Arturo has nothing to do with this."
Of course, Henry hadn’t been able to let that comment from Jonas stand. I sent him a dirty look, and luckily Jonas didn’t catch on. The plan wouldn’t work if he killed Henry.
Jonas froze, his face red enough to make me wonder if he’d busted a blood vessel.
"Who will you believe, my friends? The enemy or the Alpha who has kept you safe?"
We were losing the crowd again, but I could see shadows at the fringes of the crowds. Darting shapes moved near the back of the room before a handsome man walked toward the crowd. He was different from the other wolves. He radiated power, and even I could feel it. He was the polar opposite of Jonas, whose power made my skin crawl.
"I think they should believe me."
Jonas stopped on the stage. "The enemy is here, friends. We must fight."
Roars and howls ripped through the room. The power coming from Arturo spread through the crowd like a golden wave. I felt the calmness, and it was like standing within the rays of the sun. All around the room, I saw werewolves—actual werewolves. They had everyone trapped, but as the calmness expanded, I was less worried about a fight.
Is this the true power of an Alpha? I absently wondered Despite Jonas having his hand tight
against my throat. I didn’t care what happen to me. I just want Michael to be safe.
“Yes,” Arturo responded.
I finally understood why he wanted to arrive there in force. He was drawing his power from his pack of wolves, and they were the shadows darting around the room. I'd never seen anything move so fast before.
As I watched, Arturo continued to spread his influence around the room, and joy washed over me. We're actually going to win.
Then I saw Colin with a knife in his hand. In all the excitement, I'd completely forgotten about him. He was still chanting, and the overhead lights caught the curve of the blade.
Henry seemed to see what was happening. Suddenly, Henry was free and running at Colin. with his mouth twisted in an inhuman snarl. He launched, catching Colin around the waist and sending them both crashing into the floor.
"No. I've worked too hard to give up now," Jonas screamed, his face a warped mess of rage and anger.
I hit the ground, hard as Jonas rushed to my captive brother. His hands were tipped with claws, and with a slowly developing sense of doom, I realized what he was about to do. A loud scream filled the room, and it took me a moment to realize that it was coming from me.
Michael twisted, and Jonas's claws missed their intended target. My brother, still trapped in wolf form, flexed and the bonds snapped. Within seconds, Jonas transformed into a musky grey wolf.
Arturo stood in the middle of the crowd, his hands stretched out as if he was holding the wolves by an invisible leash. Rose screamed, but I felt like a puppet with its strings cut.
I couldn’t focus on Henry. I needed to believe that he would be okay, even if I couldn’t see him. He was fighting Colin, who was fat, balding, and no match for the younger, fitter wolf. Michael, on the other hand, was on the losing side. Jonas’s attack was frantic, and I could see blood.
Oh, God, I've got to help. How can I help? I looked around while still standing on the slightly raised stage, but I couldn’t see any obvious weapons. Until I spotted a pipe, laid against the wall, as if it had been left behind by the tunnel workers and had rolled against the wall. Quickly, I moved my arms under my legs, bringing my bound hands in front of me, and I darted for it. My fingers were numb but I was still able to pick it up.
I ran toward the fighting wolves. "Get your claws off my brother," I practically screamed at the light-colored wolf as I brought the pipe down hard.
“Rachel, no!”
The pipe caught the side of Jonas’s head, splitting the skin, and the fur darkened with blood. His head snapped around, glaring at me with murder in his amber color eyes. I didn’t see Jonas’s paw until it was too late, and when it connected with my head, I went down.
Before everything went back to a familiar shade of black, I saw Michael and Henry, both in the wolf form, leap at the Jonas.
It could be worse. It could be one of them lying here in my place.
***
I’m not dead. Well, if I am, it sucks because my entire body hurts.
I was lying in someone's arms. Henry.
He brushed the hair away from my face. "Rachel, it's time to wake up."
But I don't want to. Come on. I just want to sleep. Haven't I earned it?
"I know you don’t want to, but we won, and you really need to wake up. This is because of you."
My whole body went still. Wait a minute. You can hear me?
A small laugh reached my ears. "All genetic wolves can talk that way. The only reason you didn't hear me and Michael talking is because we could block you. I figured talking to you through the bond might freak you out."
A sudden rush of embarrassment hit me. I braved a peek up at his face, and the first thing I saw was Henry's beautiful brown eyes.
"Are you okay?"
He readjusted me in his arms until I was sitting. "I'm fine, Rachel."
I studied him closely, sure he was lying. The gash at his hairline was still leaking blood, and because of the sight, something else dawned on me.
"Oh, God, is Michael all right?"
Worry crossed Henry's face for a brief second. "He got the worst of Jonas's attack, but the healers have taken him. He'll be fine."
I glanced around the nearly empty room. Arturo was still there, shepherding Jonas's makeshift army out of the room. He smiled at me.
"What's going to happen to them?"
"Arturo will offer them a choice. Stay or leave. He has already started calling around to the other English clans to see if anyone can take them in. Especially if they don't want to stay. This isn't their fault. They were just pawns in Jonas's war."
That proved Arturo was the better Alpha. I was sure Jonas would have killed Arturo's supporters.
"I can't believe we all made it."
"I can't believe you went after Jonas with a steel pipe."
I settled back into Henry's arms. "What else could I do? I couldn't just stand by and watch him kill my brother."
"You're a strange girl, Rachel Valentine." From anyone else, it would have been an insult, but Henry seemed pleased. He looked down at me as if he'd never seen me before. “I don’t think I’ve ever met a girl quite like you.”
My feelings for him had been gradually changing over the short time I'd known him, and it looks as if Henry was finally on the same page.
“Let's see, I've helped stop a war and saved my brother. All without becoming furry. Anything else left to accomplish?" I turned my face and kissed him. It was short and sweet, but judging from his reaction, it took him completely by surprise.
"Thank you."
He smiled at me, and I was glad to see the kiss hadn’t freaked him out.
"Not a problem. I can see life is never going to be boring with you."
I still had no intention of becoming a wolf. I was only sixteen after all. In a few more years, I would need to make a decision, but not yet.
Michael was safe, and that was all that mattered.
I'd worry about telling my parents another day.
Moon Page 10
