Fighting Fate (Redwood Pack #7)

by Carrie Ann Ryan

  The woman was a machine.

  Another wolf attacked him and he growled, his vision going dark.

  Fuck. Not now.

  He threw head his back and howled, the adrenaline coursing through his veins putting him in overdrive. His wolf went on autopilot, taking over his body as he killed four more wolves in quick succession.

  Logan just prayed they were Central wolves and not Redwoods.

  When the darkness took over him like this, he was never sure.

  He howled again, using whatever inner strength he had to pull himself to the forefront, pushing his wolf back. Blood coated his arms and chest, while dead Central wolves lay at his feet. Their tattered remains evidence that Logan had lost control once again.

  He couldn’t even feel relief that he hadn’t killed his own Packmates at his utter loss of control due to the blood running in his veins. He shook his head, pushing those thoughts to the back. He’d deal with that later. He always did.

  “Logan! Down!” Pat yelled over her shoulder, and he ducked, trusting her implicitly. She used his shoulder as a launching point, putting her foot down and jumping so she could attack the wolf on his other side.

  He rolled off as she jumped, giving her more momentum, then got to his feet again so he could take down the next wolf. He and Pat fought in tandem, killing wolves as a unit. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the other dominant Redwoods fighting as well, working in pairs and kicking ass. They were all closer to him than the one wolf he truly wanted to protect so he could see them better. Pat gripped his arm and they fought their way to the first set of wolves of her family.

  Kade and Jasper, the Heir and Beta, fought alongside one another, kicking ass and killing wolves left and right. Kade looked over at his shoulder at Logan and nodded, his eyes pure gold, the control over the strength of his wolf intimidating. Logan took down another wolf at Jasper’s feet and the Beta helped him end its life quickly. Pat fought at the women’s sides, her body low to the ground as she helped eliminate those who came at her daughters. Kane and Jasper’s mates, Melanie and Willow, also fought together, their skills far superior to what they’d had when Logan had first met them. Everyone had been forced to train to improve their skills, and it was clearly working.

  Out of the corner of his eye he saw another pair fighting against twice as many wolves and he pulled Pat toward them. Adam and Bay fought together, Bay doing most of the low-to-the-ground work as Adam’s prosthetic leg didn’t allow for that. But the Enforcer and his mate knew how to fight as one unit, their mating bond stronger than most because of everything they had lost in order to make it. Logan helped Bay take down a wolf quickly as Pat stood by her son’s side, aiding him where she could.

  Beside them, Reed, Hannah, and Josh also worked as a unit. The men stood on either side of Hannah, protecting her as much as they could. She didn’t fight hand-to-hand, making her seem weak to those who didn’t know the power that ran through her veins. Hannah’s power as a witch made her just as deadly as any wolf with sharp teeth and ready claws. Each time Reed would take down a wolf with his claws or when Josh would rip apart another wolf with his immense half-demon strength and blades the former human kept on his person at all times, Hannah would call up a wall of earth and slam the wolves down and push them away.

  They’d clearly been practicing.

  Logan pulled away from the group quickly, running toward the Omega and his mate as a wolf tried to come up behind them. It was for nothing though as Maddox turned on his heel, taking down the wolf who would have hurt his mate without even blinking. The Omega gave Logan a nod before going back to the fight. Maddox would take down a wolf with his strength, and Ellie killed it at her feet. He knew the pair could read each other’s minds and send messages through their mating bond, so that’s how they were able to fight without speaking aloud and giving away their plan. Neither of them were fighters by nature, but they would protect their Pack and their families with their lives.

  Pat pulled him to another set of Centrals that were coming up along some of Edward’s enforcers. He and the Alpha female raked their claws along the other wolves’ sides, ducking out of the way of vicious bites and snarls.

  North and Lexi fought close beside Pat and Logan, North’s wolf stronger than most of the wolves on the field even without his sight. Lexi would tell him where to attack and then help him in every way possible. Lexi could fight in human form better than any of the other women out there because she’d always fought in that form when she’d been younger because of her latency.

  Unable to help himself, Logan risked a glance at Cailin. Her blue-black hair blew behind her as she fought off another wolf. His own wolf begged to fight alongside her, protect her from those who would dare harm the woman he craved. Doing so would only put more distance between them. Not only could she fight for herself, but the Alpha fought next to her. Edward battled just like his wife, all out, yet making it look effortless.

  There was a reason they were the Alpha pair.

  Knowing Cailin would be safe in her father’s hands, he turned to the Central wolf in front of him, killing it quickly.

  Too quickly.

  It was as if the fifty or so Central wolves attacking them were mere cannon fodder.

  Something was wrong.

  He went to Pat’s side, instinctively checking her for injuries while looking out for the next attack. “Why are we killing them so quickly?”

  Pat shook her head, her attention on the horde coming at them. “I don’t know, Logan. We’ve always been stronger than the Central wolves, but not to this degree. These look like their weakest fighters, and yet Caym brought them to the front? Why is that?”

  “I’m not sure I want to find out,” he answered honestly.

  She met his gaze, and he swallowed hard. There was something going on here that they didn’t understand. The unknown was a deadly enemy, one they couldn’t fight.

  Caym stood on the other end of the clearing, his arms folded over his chest, that annoying smirk on his face. Kade and Jasper each tried to make their way to the demon, but the bastard’s power pushed them back. No matter how hard any of them tried, they couldn’t get close enough to Caym. Though the claw marks on his face, courtesy of Logan’s sister, Lexi, stood out, reminding him that the demon could be hurt under the right circumstances.

  Logan and Pat fought off more wolves, the Redwoods effectively neutralizing at least eighty percent of their enemy. It wasn’t enough though. When it came to Caym, it was never enough.

  His attention kept straying to Cailin, his wolf not backing down until they could be fighting at her side.

  “Go to her,” Pat said from his side. “You’re distracting yourself because you can’t be near her.”

  Startled, he looked down at the mother of the woman he wanted to be his mate. “What about you?” he asked.

  Pat growled, kicked a wolf out of the way, and then sighed. “I’ll go with you. Edward is by her, and my wolf needs him just as much as your wolf needs my daughter. Mating isn’t easy, Logan.”

  He nodded then began to fight his way toward the two people he and Pat needed most. Logan wasn’t about to argue with the woman about the fact that Cailin hadn’t accepted his mating. That would come later. Right now, the battle roared around them, and that sickly feeling in the bottom of his stomach wouldn’t go away.

  He needed Cailin.

  Now.

  Just when he was ready to move, more wolves came out of the clearing. He cursed, pissed that he couldn’t get to Cailin; the enemy in front of him needed his attention.

  These weren’t like the wolves from before. No, these were the stronger wolves. Caym’s sentinels. And from the way these new wolves only surrounded two sets of fighters, Logan knew the game plan had been revealed.

  The Central wolves weren’t going for any of the other Jamensons. No, their focus was on Edward.

  And Pat.

  Logan pivoted, helping Pat with the seven stronger wolves who had come at her. Edwa
rd had twice as many, and Logan knew Cailin was at her father’s side, helping.

  It seemed Caym was after the Alpha mated pair, and only death would be the answer.

  Logan clawed at the nearest wolf, growling as the bastard bit down. Luckily the Centrals couldn’t contaminate others with their demonic taint by tearing flesh. Pat killed two more, but unlike those wolves Caym sent in as cannon fodder, these newer wolves had the strength and power to fight back and possibly win. Each blow hurt like hell and he knew that if there were any more of these wolves out there, the Redwoods might not prevail.

  Logan could see the others trying to make their way to them and the other stronger wolves, but the opposing force grew in numbers.

  They were cut off but not out.

  He dug his claws down another wolf and pulled its lungs through its rib cage. The wolf looked startled for a moment before collapsing. As a unit, he and Pat killed the remaining stronger wolves, blood soaking their clothes. He finally looked up at Cailin and saw she and Edward had killed their last sentinel.

  All of them carried cuts and gashes, oozing blood.

  That had not been as difficult as it had been in the past, but it was far from easy, and he had a feeling that was not the last of it.

  Logan had taken two steps toward the woman he craved when a flash of light seared his eyes and his body flew back twenty feet. A sharp pain lanced up his arm, blood trickled down his arm, sprinkling on the ground as he slammed into it.

  He coughed, rolling over to reach for Pat, making sure she was unharmed. “Pat?”

  “I’m fine,” she rasped. “Get to Cailin. Now. There’s something wrong. Even more wrong than what’s happening. Logan. Please.”

  He nodded and forced himself to his feet, pulling Pat with him. Smoke, fire, and debris filled his vision, but he took it step by step, trying to find his way to the one person who could soothe his wolf. He wiped the blood from his brow, grimacing at the crimson stains on his arms. The blood was not just from the wolves that lay dead at his feet and he wished he could wash it off his wounds, not wanting to contaminate himself with whatever the Centrals held within their bodies. The others might say the taint of being connected to the demon couldn’t be passed on that way, but that didn’t mean he wanted to take the chance.

  “What happened? Was that an explosion?”

  Pat coughed and squeezed his arm, her gaze going around the clearing, straining to see through the smoke. “I think Caym blew up that copse of trees over there…seven…eight…oh thank the goddess, all my babies are okay.”

  Logan clasped her hand. He had no idea how she could cope with the thought of losing her immense family. Every single son and daughter was there, their mates by their sides. The grandchildren, at least, were back behind the groups of houses, the maternal wolves caring for them.

  “We’ll get them out of here,” he promised, not knowing if it was a lie or not.

  Pat nodded, her face set, determined.

  He and Pat fought off two more wolves and were almost to Edward’s and Cailin’s side when Caym’s voice stopped them in their tracks.

  “Sacrifices will be made for the greater plans. Fall to your knees now and pledge your allegiance. If you do this, then you might survive the battle. If not…well, the time has come. Choose.”

  “Never,” Pat shouted at the same time as Edward.

  Logan threw his head back and howled, the Jamensons and other Redwoods joining in. They were Redwoods, fighters. They would not bow down to a demon from hell. They would not lose.

  Caym smiled, the scars on his face tugging as he did so. “So be it.”

  He turned toward Cailin and Edward and held out his hand.

  “No!” Logan screamed, trying to get his feet to move faster, trying to reach her in time.

  He’d be too late though.

  He couldn’t lose her.

  Not now. Not like this.

  “Cailin!” he shouted, but he wouldn’t be fast enough. He could hear others around him shouting, feel Pat beside him, taste the salt on his tongue from the tears he hadn’t known had fallen.

  It happened so fast, yet Logan saw every detail, every breath, every movement as if it was in slow motion.

  Cailin turned to Logan at the sound of his voice, her eyes wide, her body trying to move out of the way. He saw the understanding in her eyes, knowing she’d never make it, knowing this was the end.

  Edward moved faster than all of them, faster than any wolf should have been able to and pushed Cailin out of the way. He growled, facing the demon and his power head on as Cailin hit the ground.

  Caym screamed in delight, and Logan looked over to see the demon’s palm light up. Lightning shot out, arcing and heading directly toward where Cailin stood.

  The lightning hit their Alpha straight in the chest, the strong man’s body lifting off the ground, flying a few feet before slamming back down again in a pile of smoking limbs and broken dreams.

  For a moment, Logan couldn’t comprehend what he was seeing, what he was hearing.

  In the breadth of silence that followed, the bonds of his Pack flared, the moon goddess’s powers breathing new life where one was lost.

  Pat screamed beside him, dropping to her knees.

  In front of Logan, beyond where Edward lay, Kade’s knees buckled, the mantle of power slamming into him.

  Out of the corner of his eye, Logan saw a small boy run to his mother. Melanie ran to him, picking up the little boy who screamed, clutching at his chest.

  Wolves howled around him, mourning and anger warring and threatening to consume them all.

  All of this, the new Alpha in Kade, the new Heir’s powers in the little boy, Finn, the immense pain and loss radiating from Pat told Logan what he already knew.

  Their Alpha was dead.

  Edward was no more.

  Sacrificed to save his daughter.

  Logan pulled Pat to her feet, needing to get to Cailin’s and Edward’s sides. The former Alpha female stood on shaky legs and gripped his hand.

  Before they took their next steps toward Edward’s body, Pat stopped and faced Caym. She raised her chin, the power within her coming from deep inside, the dominant wolf not backing down.

  “Fight until your last breath, my wolves,” she said, her voice eerily calm. “Fight. We will not fall.”

  The Redwoods howled, their pain so thick Logan had to swallow hard to breathe.

  He pulled Pat toward where Cailin sat, her father’s head in her lap, tears streaking down her face, her body shaking.

  The Central wolves had either died or had gone behind their master. Dead bodies lay in a grotesque, macabre tableau, their blood staining the earth, the den itself. Central wolves, weak, dying, and long forgotten by the Redwoods, scurried away, their tails tucked between their legs even in the sight of the immense failure of the Redwoods. He could sense his own Pack trying to get at Caym but not succeeding. The demon’s personal wards and powers—despite been used in such an immense show of power just then—were too strong for them. They wouldn’t be able to. Not now. They didn’t have the power to defeat the demon.

  Logan looked up at the demon as he shifted his stance, facing him. Caym grinned, the sheer sadistic delight in his eyes making Logan want to retch. The demon held out his arm one more time and Logan cursed, the lightning arcing toward him at a remarkable speed.

  With one last glance at Cailin, he knew this was the end, knew that he’d lost it all before he’d ever had a chance to hold the idea of something more in his hands to begin with.

  Small hands from a wolf that smelled like pain, warmth, and kindness, pushed at him with a force he didn’t know they possessed. He slammed into the ground, shouting as Pat screamed above him, her body glowing white-hot before falling on top of him, the weight feeling a frail shadow of what had once been.

  Caym disappeared in a cloud of smoke as others ran to where Logan lay. Tears streaked down his face, but he ignored those as the others came to his side, sitting up so he coul
d cradle Pat in his arms.

  Her body shook, and her eyes were open. She hadn’t died as quickly as Edward, but from the wounds on her chest, he knew not even the Healer, Hannah, would be able to save her. He pressed his palms over the wounds, trying to staunch the blood to no avail.

  “Why did you do that?” he cried. “You can’t leave them. They need you.”

  Pat gave a weak smile, a small trail of blood seeping from her lips. “She needs you more.” She coughed, a spray of blood catching Logan in the face. “Take care of her. Take care of my baby.”

  The last flash of light seeped from her eyes, and she stilled in his arms. He clutched her close, knowing Cailin did the same to her father only a few short feet away.

  Others gripped at him, screaming, trying to get to their fallen mother, leader, savior, but he couldn’t let go.

  He squeezed harder before throwing his head back, letting an inhuman wail rip through his throat.

  Edward and Pat had died for those they loved…for Cailin…

  Logan wasn’t worthy. He’d never be.

  The Redwoods were losing a war they had no hope of winning, and they’d just lost the most important part of their soul.

  Logan couldn’t breathe.

  The end was near, and this time, he didn’t see a way out of it.

  Not alive.

  Chapter Three

  Silence.

  That’s all Cailin could hear.

  Silence.

  She blinked once. Twice.

  Yet the silence remained.

  The nothingness.

  How could there be anything else when the world had ended?

  Maybe she would wake up from the nightmare, pinch herself and find herself tangled in her sheets. Maybe then she could run to her parents’ home and find them there.

  Alive.

  Breathing.

  Not dead.

  Cailin opened her eyes, not remembering when she’d closed them.

  Her parents wouldn’t be there.

  They’d left.

  Her mother and father were dead.

  And Logan wasn’t here.