CHAPTER 5

KAEL'S POV

“Did they harm anyone?” I ask Omega Carden as we head towards the vehicles covered in snow.

“They killed seven of our Watchers and injured two,” Carden says grimly, and I exhale, clenching my jaw.

Damn it. Goddess knows how badly I want to beat the sh*t out of Eric right now. I should have prepared. I should have known Eric would attack soon enough.

For the past few days, there have been signs of humans passing by the vanity point. Their footprints, voices, and scents have been lingering. There’s no possibility they could see us, but there’s been more to Eric’s experiments lately.

Ever since he captured Freda, the black magician, my pack has been in danger—because of me. I had been too busy obsessing over a hybrid to realize I was putting my pack at risk.

And now seven of my men are dead because of my mistake.

“Make sure the convoy carries enough armories. None of Eric’s men should leave that border alive. Keep one alive,” I order, and Carden nods in understanding.

He fixes his gaze to the tank booting up and shouts, “Gather as much armory as you can! Save at least one and spare no lives!”

They begin running around, grabbing as many weapons as they can reach. I stop by a green army vehicle. There are at least twenty of these tanks here and fifteen other cars we’ve stolen from the human territory—only we’ve made them better, more powerful than the humans ever did.

For the past five years, I’ve spent my time—wasted others—trying to make this place as safe as possible. Secluded from foreigners. I’ve prepared for Diana to awaken.

I want this place to be as comfortable for her as it can be. It’s not just the humans after her. The wolves are too. Alpha Zander is, and I know he’d stop at nothing to have her beheaded.

I need to protect her at all costs. She’s mine now. I live for what I love and die for what I live.

________

Delta Kymon pulls over a few meters away from the vanity point.

I get out of the car at once. It’s sundown when we arrive, so I can barely see. I grab a pair of binoculars.

Carden presses the blue button on the tank, and a strong icy step forms. I climb it to the top of the trunk, then use the binoculars to get a good view of the vanity point.

I tap into my vision, using as much of it as I can. The vanity point is only visible to wolves, so I can see the activity from the outside.

There they are fifteen to twenty-five wolves standing on the opposite side. Gadgets are sprawled around as they try to break the vanity point.

There are armed men hiding behind corners. I look further, trying to locate the one man I want to murder with my bare hands, but Eric is nowhere in sight.

Instead, there’s a man leaning lazily on an old Toyota. A toothpick in his mouth as he passes orders.

He seems oddly familiar.

“Split into four quarters. Make sure you round up every corner. I want more men on the right than on the left. Don’t use grenades or explosives—just the guns. No one should shift; we don’t want to risk exposing ourselves. Also no one should attack only I pass a signal," I say, and they all echo an obedient response.

“And…” I look deeply at that man. That familiar smirk on his frivolous face. “Get me the male in the red suit, no matter what. We attack from behind!”

Everyone marches into position, leaving only me at the center of the vanity point.

I run a hand through my hair and dissolve my werewolf features. I feel my eaves turning human, my eye color fading, and my genes reshaping.

Sh*t. I hate having to be in full human form. It’s not as painful as shifting into my wolf, but at least I’m not turning into a miserable creature.

‘I do agree with that!’ Kayden, my wolf, says. ‘The whole human aura sucks.’

My lips curve up, and I shut my eyes before stepping into the vanity point. I step out of my world, and just like I feared—I feel human. Completely weak. It’s like Kayden is no longer in me.

The Kryptonite had done far more harm than I expected.

The only way to save Diana was to get the poison out of her body. I had no option but to suck it out—injecting some of it into myself.

I have no time to reel in shock when approximately forty-two guns shift in my direction.

Toothpick guy stands right quickly, an amused look on his stupid face. He dares to step close to me.

“Kael, right?” he chuckles and stretches out a hand. “Remember me?”

And that’s when I recognize him. Dante Groover. Eric’s former security head.

“It’s been years. Are you still wearing the same shoes?” I drop my gaze to his worn-out Oxfords. “Has Eric finally fired you, or are your feet still the same size as a kindergarten kid?”

Dante frowns, and it puts a smile on my face. He points a warning finger at me, like that’s supposed to scare me.

“You know f*cking well it’s only this size because of Eric’s stupid experiment!”

“Well, if that makes you feel better—sure.”

Dante clenches his jaw and then exhales, trying to dispel his anger. His lips curve into a bright smile that makes me want to punch it off.

“Where’s Diana? I was hoping she's still alive.”

Her name—her name alone is enough to make me send a punch to Dante’s face. His men raise their guns, but Dante shoots out a hand stopping them.

“Easy, tigers,” he laughs, holding his bleeding nose and looking at me. “Still as obsessed with her as before?”

“Tell Eric he made a stupid mistake trying to kill her,” I shout. “When I get my hands on him, I’ll rip every part of his body apart.”

“Calm down, Kael, no need to get upset. Okay, right, look. I no longer work for Eric because I kinda stole from him, and now I’m on the run.”

“Really? I’m supposed to believe Eric didn’t send you here?”

“Nope. He didn’t.” Dante shrugs, takes out a cigar, and lights it. “I just came here to get Diana, and also, of course, to kill you.”

He rolls up his sleeves quickly, revealing a deep hole in his tattooed arm. He glares at me, nose flaring.

“Remember this? Remember how you tied me up and sent a hot iron rod into my arm?” he snaps, eyes burning with rage.

I smile and shake my head. “Maybe I should have cut off your tongue instead.”

Dante throws the cigar away and steps forward. I hear my men preparing to attack, but I signal them to stand down—not yet.

“I won’t hesitate to ruin your pretty face and cut off that goddamn mouth of yours, when I get my hands on you. Now, I want you to lead me to Diana.”

“Are you serious?”

“Do I look like I’m f*cking joking?!”

I take a step back and turn around. There’s no use wasting time talking to someone as foolish as Dante.

“You’ll regret killing my people and coming here,” I say, then silently snap my fingers.

As peaceful as silence can be, danger always finds its place. My men erupt from the shadows. Gunfire splits the silence. Carden tosses me a weapon mid-run—I snatch it from the air and pivot hard, dropping two of Dante’s men before they can lift their barrels.

Dante roars, ducking and drawing his gun from under his blazer. He sprays bullets, wild and erratic. One whizzes past my ear.

Carden, ever precise, fires back and takes down five in seconds.

Too easy. It's too easy.

I shift position, aiming at another of Dante’s soldiers. The guy cowers.

“Please...please, don’t kill me!” he begs, shaking like a leaf in a storm. “Dante forced me to do this! I didn’t know, we were coming here!”

I pause, keeping my finger steady on the trigger. My instincts scream something’s wrong.

“Alpha Kael!” Kymon’s voice snaps through the chaos.

I whirl around just in time to see him drop another attacker mid-charge, the shot echoing into the snow-draped silence.

I spin back. The trembling guy is still there, sweating a lot like he's sick.

“What do you mean? Are you trying to fool me?!”

“No. No. Dante—he… he’s trying to… he wants to…” He pauses when his body convulses violently.

His arms wrap around his neck as he strangles himself. I run to him, trying to pry his hands away, but some invisible force seems to be making him do it.

“His hands shoot to his throat, strangling himself. Not metaphorically. Physically.

“Help… help me—” he gasps, clawing at his own skin like he’s possessed.

I rush to him, trying to pull his fingers free, but it’s like an invisible force is driving his body against itself. His eyes roll back. And then...he drops.

Dead.

“Sh*t,” I hiss, backing away. “He was being controlled.”

A sudden crack—louder than the others—rips through the air.

Carden’s scream pierces me like a blade.

I whip around. He’s on the ground, writhing, blood darkening the snow beneath him. Far off, Dante’s retreating car fishtails in the snow, bullets bouncing off it.

“Cover fire!” I bark.

My men unleash fury, but Dante is already vanishing into the shadows of the trees.

I sprint to Carden, sliding to my knees beside him. His face is pale, contorted in agony. The bullet’s in his leg, messy, but not fatal.

Still, the bastard’s wailing like he’s been gutted.

“You’re not dying,” I growl, trying to mask the relief in my chest. “Calm the hell down.”

“Would you stop wailing already?!” Kymon barks, irritated.

“Why don’t I put a bullet in your leg first?!” Carden cries.

I look out at the distance where Dante’s car vanished. None of my men are dead, except for the seven he initially killed.

Omega Leon storms over, eyes sweeping the clearing. “We’re clear. For now.”

Carden groans under my grip, teeth clenched against the pain.

" When I get my hands on that bastard, I'll. Oh sh*t!" He lets out a string of curses against Dante as he continues wailing.

I glance at the dead body of the man who strangled himself. The snow around him is already soaking red, steam rising from his mouth.

Dante and Eric must be up to something. I just feel it.

No more games.

No more warnings.

I rise slowly.

“Get Carden patched up. Burn the bodies. We leave nothing behind, not even ash.”

Kymon nods and starts barking orders.

I stand there a moment longer, snow falling in sheets around me.

Dante made his move.

Now it’s my turn.

And when I come for him…

There won’t be anything left to send back.