Chaos sent everyone in different directions. Janessa shrieked and buried her face in Catriona’s shirt. Nester quickly put himself in front of them while others ran. Ness and I didn’t wait to see if anyone would help the young shifters struggling against the wolves.
Ness didn’t shift. Her hand curled, as if making a fist. I saw the flash of electricity crackling between her crooked fingers. Hesitation crossed her face an instant before she reached for the wolf atop Haylee.
I couldn’t stop to help my mate. Kelsey howled in pain. I grabbed the wolf atop her by the scruff of his neck and pulled. The sound of flesh tearing made me pause. The wolf, Jackson, tightened his jaw as he stared me down mockingly. He dared me to pull again. Blood already dripped down Kelsey’s skin.
Distantly, I heard Marcus’s yelp of pain. These two worked for Alvin. While they were in this form, there was no way to tell if they’d come on Alvin’s orders or if they’d attacked on their own. If they knew where Alvin was hiding or how to reach him, then I needed to know.
The sooner we could find him, the better. If I could dispose of Alvin now, then I could focus on other problems.
Bending, I jammed my fingers between Jackson’s jaws and pried his muzzle open. He whimpered, then tried to hide the sound behind a growl. No wolf was a match for a dragon. Not unless they used underhanded tactics. I couldn’t smell the reek of poison in Jackson’s mouth, which told me that he hadn’t thought that far ahead.
Perhaps they had come here of their own accord, then. Disappointed that these fools might not lead me to Alvin, I held Jackson’s mouth open so Kelsey could wriggle out from under him. I hefted the wolf into the air by the scruff of his neck. He kicked and snarled but couldn’t find purchase.
Behind me, Ness hissed in pain. I spun just in time to watch Marcus bite onto her arm. He jerked his head and dragged her onto her knees. Her eyes flashed angrily. I moved to help her, but she spoke faster than I could run.
“Lie down,” she growled with the hum of her arcana threaded through her voice.
I shuddered, remembering how her arcana felt as it forced me to do her bidding. Marcus struggled against it, the same way I had. However, he was not half the shifter I was. His knees buckled and dropped his body to the ground.
“Let go.” Ness’s voice wavered, as if it might fall apart under the power of her arcana.
She could be terrifying someday. Her arcana transcended pack. It was more than an Alpha’s power. Ness’s voice allowed her to compel just about anyone, and the command stuck fast.
Marcus released her and dropped his head, proving that both commands still had ahold of him. Just as Ness breathed a sigh of relief, I noticed the flicker of discovery flash across Marcus’s face. He leapt to his feet and darted past her. Ness reached out to grab ahold of him, but she was too slow.
What gave him the power to withstand her command so quickly? I’d fought off Ness’s commands in the past, but I hadn’t succeeded. Even when she’d asked me how I felt about her, I’d simply found another way to show it. Marcus seemed to shrug off Ness’s words like they were nothing.
Something was wrong.
I rushed forward to grab Marcus, too. His teeth found purchase in Haylee’s forearm. He yanked her between himself and me before I could reach him. Growling, he slowly backed away, dragging Haylee along like a shield. He looked between Ness and me warily.
“You slimy son of a bitch,” Ness growled.
Blood dripped down her arm as she stood. When she wobbled on her feet, I put out a hand to steady her. Jackson snarled in my other hand. I gave him a shake to silence him. Marcus’s attention snapped to his brother.
I watched Marcus make a decision. Jackson yelped, a call for help. Marcus ignored his brother. The ominous growl emanating from Marcus grew louder. He released Haylee. I thought he would run, but then he tensed. My heart flipped in my chest.
Without thinking, I dropped Jackson and lurched forward. Haylee whimpered and cradled her arm against her chest. He should have run. Marcus lunged for her throat.
Behind me, Ness shouted a command at Jackson. “Stay right there.”
I dropped to my knees between Haylee and Marcus. I managed to throw up my arm at the last second. Marcus’s teeth sank into my flesh and not Haylee’s. Though pain seared my arm, I let out a breath.
Marcus, seeing his mistake, quickly released me. He spun and darted between the nearby houses. I got to my feet so I could give chase, but the cries and whimpers behind me drew me to a halt. The pack needed a leader.
What kind of leader would I be if I abandoned them for the thrill of the chase? They needed someone to tend to their wounds and make them feel safe. Ness and I had prevented most of the damage.
When I turned back to them, I wasn’t expecting their gratitude. The way they looked at me had changed. I thought they would blame me for the attack, but hope seemed to fill the air now. Catriona gave me a gentle smile before kneeling to tend to Kelsey.
My own arm burned, but it was nothing compared to the poison those two wolves had used on me before. I ignored my own pain and went to help Ness off her knees. She’d fallen at some point. I wondered how much energy her arcana had used. Worried, I gently lifted her arm so I could inspect her bite wound.
“Don’t worry about it,” she whispered.
There was a tremor in her voice that made my dragon snarl with fury. I sucked in a ragged breath while trying to hold the beast back from hunting Marcus down. This had taken a lot out of her.
What made this any different than before? I’d watched Ness spend entire mornings practicing with her arcana. She’d used it a handful of times here, and it seemed to drain her. I cupped her cheek, and she gave me a wan smile that made my heart ache.
Tell her, I thought.Tell her how you feel so that she knows. That way, should anything happen, neither of us would die without knowing.