MADDOX

We made sure that Emmett’s bleeding was controlled. By the time it had mostly stopped, he looked very pale, and his healing didn’t seem to be working. Allie was holding his head in her lap and dressing his wound now that it had stopped bleeding enough to bandage it. The blanket she’d used to staunch the bleeding was soaked, and I was worried about the amount of b***d he’d lost. I wondered if he’d been severed from his wolf-like Beta Damien, but I didn’t want to panic him by bringing it up.

We’d covered Sulien with a blanket, and Sol was sobbing over his chest. She was crying so hard that her breath was coming in ragged gasps, and it tore at my heart little by little every time I heard it. She couldn’t be consoled, and I didn’t blame her. I had accepted the consequences that came with being a warrior already, but my friends didn’t sign up for this. This war wasn’t being fought a day’s drive past town; it was being fought again in our homes. We escaped this once, and now, we would have to face it again.

Missy grabbed Julie a blanket and a change of clothes, but it hadn’t been very long since we’d finished fighting. Julie was still exhausted, and she was weakly trying to console Sol by rubbing her back as she sat against her grieving friend, clutching the blanket around her.

“… Your Delta and Gamma will direct your teams. These vampires are here to kill us all, but we will not let them….” Liam’s voice came through our link. We all looked at each other in confusion. Alpha could do that?

“I know he wants us to go to the packhouse, but I need to know that my brothers and sister are safe first. I also think we should find my dad and help him. Warwick wants to ruin my dad’s life, so he has to be in danger too,” Missy insisted.

I linked Austin, “Austin, it’s Maddox. I have Missy, and she is safe, but she wants to know where her siblings are before we get everyone to the packhouse. Do you have any idea?”

“I took a patrol to Lyssa’s to get them. When I got here, they had already stopped the first attack but more showed up quickly. I think they are trying to capture the kids for Warwick. Beta’s are here, too. If you can, get here and help me get them to safety. Lyssa is hurt and can’t get them all out of here,” came his reply. He sounded worried, and I knew the fight wasn’t going in our favor.

“We’re on our way. Just hang in there,” I told him.

“They’re at Lyssa’s, and they’re fighting vampires they think are trying to take the kids. We need to get over there, now!” I explained to Missy. She nodded quickly.

I looked around at our friends. They couldn’t move right now, so they were probably safer here. Missy made sure everyone had clothes, so I instructed them to get to the packhouse as soon as they felt strong enough to move quickly. Julie nodded her understanding as she pushed herself up to pull on the clothes. A few of the vampire bodies still twitched or jerked, and it worried me they weren’t entirely dead.

“There’s gas in the shed out back if you’re able to burn these before you go. If you see any sign of danger, either get out and into the woods or hide upstairs in our bedroom. Use your best judgment,” I told them as they looked at me bleakly. I didn’t want to leave our friends, but there wasn’t time to get injured people to the packhouse and then back to Lyssa’s to get Missy’s siblings.

“It’s fine; you’re a real warrior now. You can’t stay here with… us,” Emmett coughed with a small laugh that sounded painful.

“Don’t die, a*****e,” I told him playfully. He annoyed me, but looking at him now, I didn’t want to lose my friend. He also seemed less annoying while lying in Allie’s lap, not desperately flirting with everyone. She’d refused to move, only letting Missy pull a blanket around her shoulders, so Emmett still blushed every time he looked up at her.

Missy pulled me to the door, knowing we couldn’t do anything more for them at the moment. All we could do was hope no more vampires came for them. We had to get to Lyssa’s house now. As we ran, I could feel the anxiety and stress through our bond, and I wished I could hold her right now. The distance flashed by, and we arrived at the home of our former Alpha.

I could hear the fighting in the back, so we went to the front door knowing Austin would have the kids away from any action. There, we found the kids huddled around Lyssa, who sat on the couch with a blanket pulled around her. She didn’t look very good, and I could guess what had happened. Little Liam looked up at us, and relief washed over his face as he ran over to hug Missy. They all did. Watching her surrounded by the kids as she comforted them, I couldn’t help but think about her with a litter of our pups. I snapped myself away from that happy thought and strode towards the back door to see Austin trying to fight the final remaining vampire. The ground was littered with the bodies of other vampires, and three other wolves lay unmoving. Austin’s chest was heaving as he tried to fight his opponent; he was slowing, and he was too tired to continue. I felt Missy at my back.

I threw the back door open and ran to him, wanting to stop the inevitable, but I wasn’t fast enough. Austin fell for a feint and stepped directly into a solid punch that dazed him. As he stumbled back, the vampire wasted no time plunging his teeth into Austin’s neck.

“NOOOOO!” Missy’s scream echoed through the backyard, and the total horror, rage, and a mix of other feelings hit me through our bond like a wrecking ball. I didn’t even know she’d chased after me until she’d shifted and leapt over me. Her jaws clamped down on the vampire’s head and tore him away from Austin. A fountain of b***d sprayed from Austin’s neck, and I caught him as he fell. I pressed my hand to his neck, trying to staunch the flow of b***d, but it didn’t matter. The light was gone from his eyes, and he was staring through me. I closed his eyes and laid his head on the ground gently. Looking up, Missy was having trouble finishing the vampire. He had one hand on each side of her jaw and was successfully keeping her from being able to close her mouth fully. He had a grimace on his face.

He looked at me pleadingly, “You mind getting her off me? I just came for the puppies. Let me have them, and I’ll be on my way. There will be more of us here soon. I won’t be the last.” He grunted as he resisted my mate’s attack.

“You’ll not be taking the Alpha’s children today,” I told him fiercely.

His stuttering pleas were cut short when I ripped his throat from his neck, ending his resistance to Missy. She dropped the broken body and shifted back. She fell to her knees with tears in her eyes as she looked down at Austin’s lifeless body.

I gave her a moment to grieve as I kneeled behind her, softly rubbing her back.

MISSY

This wasn’t happening. Austin was my childhood crush; I never cared that he had a mate. He treated me like a little sister, always humoring me and looking after me when Liam wasn’t around. He scolded me for worrying Lea, was there when I needed advice, and now…

I couldn’t bear to look at his lifeless body. My chest hurt, and I couldn’t breathe. It felt like when I lost my mom. What did Austin do to deserve this? Any of us? I don’t care what grudge Warwick had with our pack in the past; none of us were even alive to participate in it! I was done with this war, done with this pain. I couldn’t handle losing anyone else; this was painful enough.

I could feel Maddox’s hand on my back, and I was grateful for his presence. The calming effect of his touch was probably the only thing keeping me sane right now. First Sulien and now this.

“We have to get the kids back,” I told Maddox, standing suddenly. I couldn’t sit here anymore; I needed to act.

“You sure you don’t want another minute?” he asked me gently. His eyes were full of remorse.

“No, Austin will still be gone, and if we don’t help, then we might lose someone else. I won’t lose anyone else I love,” I demanded, more of myself than him. The tears burned at the edge of my eyes, but I blinked them away and refused to let them fall.

I accepted the oversized shirt Maddox pulled from the bag he’d hastily packed before we left our house and pulled it on as I walked back into the house. Our shoes were discarded long ago, having no point with our shifting back and forth.

“Take the kids,” my grandmother insisted. “I need to stay here. I’m too old, too injured. Once I’ve healed a bit, I’ll be right behind you.”NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

I looked at Maddox, not knowing what to do. She was an adult who could make her own decisions, but she was also my grandma, who I refused to lose. Liam would be distraught to lose his mother so soon after his father.

“Do you promise you’ll come up after you’ve healed?” Maddox asked from my side.

“There’s a safe room in Robert’s office. They’ll never even know I’m here,” she replied, looking relieved we weren’t forcing her to go.

Maddox helped her shuffle into the safe room, sitting her on the couch within it. I covered her with more blankets and gave her water from the fridge in the room. She seemed content, and the kids said their goodbyes before filing out guided by Maddox. I stayed behind to talk to her.

“You’re my grandma,” I started, not sure where I was going, but I didn’t want to leave anything unsaid in case I didn’t see her again. “I know I’m adopted, but…”

“That doesn’t matter to me, Missy. You’re mine, the same as Liam. The same as Azly.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I don’t know why, but hearing her say it aloud made me feel better, “Then don’t let us lose you too. Grandpa is gone, but we all need you.” She grabbed my hand and squeezed it in hers; it hit me how fragile she felt now. I hugged her tightly, praying it wasn’t the last time.

“I can only promise you that I will do my best, but I won’t give up. I’ll heal here and make it to the packhouse if it’s the last thing I do.”

“Don’t make it the last thing,” I scolded before pulling away. She smiled at me in return. “I love you, Grandma.”

“I love you, too,” she replied quietly, pulling the blanket tighter around herself. “When you leave, the air filters will kick in, and it should kill my scent leading into the room. I’ll be safe here. Your grandfather was very prepared.”

“I’ll find you later then,” I promised, leaving the room and making sure the door closed behind me. It was amazing that the wall sealed itself with no visible marks, leaving no indication there was a room there.

I grabbed Azly from Junior, and we all left the house together. Leo and Lucas held Maddox’s hands while Junior and Delilah held each other. We moved as fast as we could with small children, and surprisingly, we didn’t come upon any vampires. We stayed in the trees to keep as much cover as possible until we got to the packhouse. As we got to the edge of the trees and walked past the prison, Maddox hesitated.

“What? We need to keep moving,” I told him.

“Vlad,” he replied plainly. My eyebrows furrowed. “They could come for him to tie up loose ends. He gave us intel on the vampires, even if it was only a little. If we let him die in his prison cell, you’ll never forgive yourself.”

“I don’t….” I couldn’t honestly say I didn’t care, but I was still furious with him. He’d helped cause all of this. Why did my mate care?

“We’re going,” he said, walking in that direction and not giving me any choice.

“The kids?” I hissed. “We can’t take them to a prison!”

“We’ll be in and out. It can’t be any more dangerous than what we’re doing now.” I looked down at Delilah and Liam, who were hesitating while Maddox pulled Leo and Lucas with him. I nodded to them, and we rushed to catch up to Maddox.

I pulled Azly tight to me, and Delilah and Lucas came closer as we walked. Azly was cooing and babbling into my chest, and I tried to keep her as quiet as possible. We worked our way down the floors to where Vlad was. My heart was beating quickly as we hurried down the hall. The last time I was here, I slapped him in the face. He didn’t deserve our pity, but he meant something to me at one time; it was hard to let that go. Vlad looked up, his face splitting into a smile as he saw me and then quickly becoming expressionless as Maddox and the other kids came into view.

“What’s going on?” he asked in confusion.

“Vampires are attacking, and we’re bringing you with us. I’m not going to let you die here if they come looking for you,” Maddox told him, shuffling through the keys to find the right one. We assumed the guards ran to the packhouse to help because no one else was here.

“I don’t deserve your mercy….” Vlad mumbled, averting his eyes from us.

“I don’t have time for this,” I said coldly. “Get out of the cell, now.”

He had no further argument and walked out to follow us. We were back out of the prison doors quickly, but Maddox stopped suddenly. His eyes were far off for a second, and fear flooded my stomach.

“Missy… Your dad is hurt, and Damien is fighting the Sire that hurt him. I’ve fought a Sire and won. I should go help. Take the kids, get inside the packhouse,” he started to direct me.

“No!” I shouted, cutting him off before lowering my voice to an angry whisper. “I have to go too. He is my dad!” I looked toward the packhouse, knowing that a vampire could easily intercept my siblings before they got there.

“There’s no one else to take them. They can’t go by themselves,” Maddox reasoned.

I looked down at little Azly and then at the boys and Delilah. They weren’t safe out here in the open; they couldn’t fight like Maddox and I could. But I didn’t want to split up. The longer we stood here debating this, the more trouble Damien and Liam could be in.

“I’ll take them,” Vlad said boldly. “I will protect them, and the packhouse isn’t far. Let me do this.” I didn’t know what to say. I turned to Maddox, trying to gauge his reaction. Vlad had no wolf but he could move them along quickly.

Maddox seemed to be thinking about something before he dropped to one knee to talk to Junior. “Little L, you’re in charge here. Can you get your brother and sister back to the packhouse? Vlad is going to come with you to make sure you’re safe.”

Junior looked at Vlad distrustingly, but he nodded, “Go help my dad. He needs you.”

Maddox stood up and gave Vlad a piercing look, “If you do anything stupid, I’ll kill you myself.”

“That’s fair. But I won’t let the kids get hurt. I never wanted them to get hurt. You can trust me,” Vlad told him, although the last part felt pointed in my direction.

Maddox pulled Azly from my arms, although she didn’t seem to want to leave. Vlad took her gently, pulling her close to him and patting her until she calmed.

“Go now and do not stop. Someone needs to link me when they are in the safe room,” Maddox growled. He wasn’t happy about this, but we both knew there weren’t many good options.

“Keep them safe, or it won’t be Maddox you have to worry about,” I gave my own warning. I was putting my entire family in Vlad’s hands, and I prayed I wasn’t making a mistake.

“I promise,” he told me, smiling. It was the same smile that used to brighten my day but right now, I wanted to slap it from his face. He turned, leading the children away.

We sprinted toward the training field where Damien and my dad were supposed to be. As the field came into view, I saw Lea dropping to her knees next to a body. The stench of vampire was overwhelming as we got closer. There was no way my dad was dead; I wouldn’t let it happen.

JUNIOR

I don’t like Vlad. I can protect Azly and Leo, Delilah and Lucas, too. I am the future Alpha. We stopped the vampires from hurting Grandma. This boy was in prison because he hurt Sissy before, and she shouldn’t let him be saved now.

“You’re a bad guy. Why are you helping us?” I asked him while we walked fast. My legs were starting to hurt, but I wasn’t going to tell him that.

“I’m not as bad of a guy as you think I am,” he told me; he looked sad. “They killed my mom and took my wolf. I thought it was over when I came to your pack, but then I fell in love with your sister, and Warwick told me he’d kill her if I didn’t do what they said. I couldn’t let anyone hurt her, just like I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

I didn’t know what to say, so I stayed quiet. We were close enough to the packhouse to see warriors near the back doors. The warriors were yelling, and people ran to the packhouse from all over to get to safety.

A loud growl sounded behind us. Vlad turned, and I looked over my shoulder to see a girl vampire coming toward us. She had b***d on her mouth, and her teeth looked sharp. Vlad came to a stop, and I turned around to yell at him.

He shoved Azly into my hands and said, “Run. Call for the warriors. You can make it. I’ll keep the vampire away.”

“Just run with us!” I squeezed my baby sister tightly as he stood and turned around. I didn’t understand what he was doing.

“Just go!” he shouted. “Tell Missy I did it for her. Tell her… I loved her.”

The girl vampire smiled evilly at us, and Vlad raised his arms to shield us. My eyes went wide as she started to come toward us. I turned, shouting, “run!” Delilah grabbed onto Lucas and Leo and pulled them with us as we sprinted to the packhouse. Jacob came rushing at us.

“You have to help him!” I yelled to the warriors. “He saved us!”

I looked over my shoulder and felt cold. The girl vampire was standing over Vlad, and he wasn’t moving. A wolf came out of nowhere, tackling her away.

“He’s gone, Junior,” Jacob told me as he picked Azly and me up. I struggled against him, trying to get down. Shouldn’t he be helping Vlad too? He just saved us. “Let me get you inside.”

I didn’t understand why they wouldn’t help him. He couldn’t be dead; Missy was going to be sad now. Jacob took us inside, where all the other pack members were getting into the safe room. Mr. Felix and Miss Marci were huddled over Miss Lacey, and Miss Abigail was crying.

“Stay here, all of you,” Jacob said as he moved us over to the side. “We will come back to find you when it’s safe, but you need to stay put.”