There was a weird standstill in the fight.Ezra, Farkas, and Geri were moving toward Shixyll who was throwing curses aimed at Ezra.The pack was moving in the formation of an arrow toward Ezra with Rourke at the front, and Ulric, Tala, and Due right behind him.
The witches' flummoxed standstill only lasted a few seconds, then they began to draw power.As if trapped in a nightmare, Rourke watched as every single one of them shaped forms in their hands, their claw-like fingers forming balls of different-colored lights.They were getting ready to throw them.
He wanted to close his eyes.His heart stopped beating; the air turned to lead in his lungs.
They would kill Ezra.
Right as the first witch let go of their fireball, Ezra dove in behind one of the witches with a shield and disrupted it.The ball hit, and the witch screamed, but it soon turned into a gurgle as blood poured out of their eyes, nose, and mouth.
Ezra tackled the next witch, and Farkas finished them off.Lightning hit the pack, and judging by the whine, someone was hit.Rourke didn't stop to see who or how bad.He had to get to Ezra.
The next moment, the sky turned into a rainbow of explosions.Several witches threw their curses at the pack, but Rourke kept running.
He was closer now, and he had to choose.Should he run toward Ezra or Shixyll?
The next second, he was on the ground.
Ulric ran past him, but Tala stopped by his side."Rourke?"Fear was evident in her voice.
He shook his head.He didn't think he was hit by a curse.The fireball had knocked him over, but he wasn't in pain.Strange, but there was no time to wonder about it.He flew to his feet, and Tala nodded.
It took him a second to locate Ezra.He was closer to Shixyll than he'd anticipated.He'd stopped attacking the witches he passed, going straight for her.Fuck.He didn't stand a chance against her.
Rourke would never reach them in time.
* * * *
Chapter 23
Ezra ran.He ran like he'd never run before.And he was faster than ever before.It had to be adrenaline, but he found it so much easier to run today than he had when he'd tried to leave the pack.
Shixyll was trying to kill Rourke.She had ordered the clan to kill Ezra, believing it would kill Rourke.The moment she'd given the order, he'd seen the fear on Rourke's face, which made him believe it might be true.Would the mate bond kill Rourke if Ezra died?
He didn't know, but he couldn't chance it.
His breaths rasped in his chest, and his legs ached from the strain he put on them, but he had to stop her.
She flung another curse at him, but he sidestepped.It made her grin a chilling grin, and she drew power anew.
"Mom."He didn't think she heard him."Please."The last was a whisper.Pleases had never helped before, he didn't think they would now, either.
Farkas gave a pained yip, but then an arch of blood painted the air, so he believed whomever it was who had hurt him had been taken care of.He couldn't look.Looking away from Shixyll now could cost him his and maybe Rourke's lives, and what would the pack do then?How would they continue without a leader?Would they all be slaughtered here on the field?
Ezra was only a few steps away from Shixyll when her curse hit him straight in the chest.He screamed.She'd flung her magic at him many times before, but then she'd always tried to control it, make it slow and excruciating.Now she urged it on.His skin stretched thin, the pain enough for black dots to dance before his eyes as his chest burst open.He kept moving, kept running despite not being able to make out more than the shape of her.
When he was close enough, he raised the car key and jammed it into her throat.She screamed and the curse dropped.
Ezra panted as he blinked away the dots.Something wet and sticky was trickling down his chest, but he didn't look.He stared at Shixyll.What had he done?He placed a hand on her arm.Her fingers curled as if she was gathering power despite having a car key sticking out of the side of her neck.
In the next moment, a huge form appeared behind him.He was too weak, too tired to react, but his mind told him it was Rourke.A snarl loud enough to make the planets tremble rose from him, then a clawed hand reached past Ezra, and Rourke tore out Shixyll's throat.
For a second, Ezra believed she would try to talk, then a smile stretched her lips, and the life left her eyes.
There was blood everywhere, her hands limp against her side.
"Mom."Ezra touched her shoulder, and Rourke made a sound he'd never heard before.Ezra sent him a pleading look, a silent cry for help.Horror was written all over his face, and he did nothing but stare at Ezra.
"Mom?"Ezra shook her and tears trickled down his cheeks.He bent over her and rested his forehead against her belly.
