I’d pushed Hector back before I even saw Gunner’s haunches tense to spring. When he was midair, I ducked out of the way, lowering myself to the ground, then leaping up at the last second. My fangs hit his chest. Gunner sputtered and fell. He clearly hadn’t expectedthatmove.
“Stop this!” I snapped. “Enough is enough! Look around you. Your army has stopped fighting. They look to you for guidance, and you give them nothing butcallousness.”
Gunner didn’t reply. His next attack happened before I finished speaking. There was no reasoning with him. He wasn’t listening, nor did he care. All he wanted was my blood on his fangs and my corpse athisfeet.
This time, I tried a similar tactic. I tried to get out of the way, but his momentum caught me off guard. I slipped and his body slammed into mine. We collided in a flurry of spit and fur, snarls and growls, fangs andclaws.
“Virgil!” I heard Hectorcryout.
The back of my head hit concrete. I grunted as Gunner ripped into me, clawing and biting my chest. I was in a dangerous position, but I couldn’t roll away because he had mepinneddown.
“Get off of him!” Hector snapped. In the next moment, another wolf slammed into Gunner. I knew instantly it was Hector, and my heart raced with terror. He was too small and too pregnant to fight this crazyalpha.
“Hector! Leave right now!” Icommanded.
The attack took Gunner off guard and he shook his pelt with a violent snarl. It gave me enough time to slip out from under him and get to my feet. Hector stood across from me with all the fur along his backshotup.
“When have I ever listened to alphas?” Hectorgrowled.
Despite the situation, I felt a pang of affection for him. He was a stupid omega who put himself in dangerous positions, but he wasmystupidomega.
Gunner was wild. He swung his foaming muzzle back and forth, as if he couldn’t decide which one of us he wanted to kill more. The fight surrounding us had ceased. The only ones in combat now were the threeofus.
“Stand down, Gunner,” I repeated. “This fightisover.”
He attacked me again. I was getting weary, but his reactions were easier to predict. He wasn’t thinking anymore. I easily dodged his attack and glaredathim.
“Stopthis.”
He glanced desperately to his guards, who didn’t seem to know what to do. Suddenly, an excited glint shone in his eyes. He raised his head and laughed. “My reinforcements! You came! Good! You’ll all get promoted if you rip this wolf’seyesout!”
The familiar voice came in an almost sarcastic drawl. “Who's rippingeyesout?”
Gunner paused. We all looked towards the stream of wolves entering the fray. Everyone moved aside to let them pass. When I recognized them, my heartleapt.
In a circle surrounding Hector, Gunner and I were our friends from Indigo Mountain - Flint, Jericho, Ken, Mason, David andWesley.
Gunner didn’t seem to know what to say. Finally he smiled weakly and approached the latterthree.
“You returned to me! Of course you did. Wesley, you were always such a good fighter, even for an omega,” Gunnercrooned.
But Wesley’s eyes were hard and fierce. He didn’t dignify Gunner with aresponse.
Gunner’s face fell. He turned to Mason. “You’re one of my omegas. I know it. Youcameback.”
Mason said simply, “Eatshit.”
Gunner’s expression wavered. “David,please-“
Slowly, David approached Gunner. He shifted into human form. For a moment, my heart skipped a beat. What was hedoing?
Happily, Gunner raised his head and even wagged his tail. “Yes, David. I knew you were the smartest one. I was so sad to have lost you thatnight-”
David punched Gunner in the face. Something cracked. Gunner was froze inshock.
“That,” David growled, “was for everything you did to my mate Niko, you sackofshit.”
Shaking, with blood running down his nose, Gunnerbackedup.
