Chapter 15
Dahlia’s POV
Nate frowned, as he approached us. “Dahlia? What are you doing p>
I couldn’t say poison. I couldn’t say Gina. I just pointed at Axel’s mouth, as my eyes widened with terror.
Axel didn’t answer. His eyes suddenly went wide, his pupils blowing out until the blue was gone and only black remained. He let out a sound; a high, thin whistle that made the hair on my arms stand up.
“Axel!” Nate yelled, catching him as his legs gave out.
The hall went dead quiet.
Then came the sound; a wet snap. It was like a tree’s branch breaking. Axel’s small body started to jerk and twist. His bones were lengthening too fast, tearing through his clothes, shifting with a violence that no six-year-old should ever have to face.
“He’s shifting!” someone screamed. “He’s too young! It’ll kill him p>
I tried to get to my bag, but two of Gina’s guards stopped me in my tracks. Nate was on the floor, holding Axel, his face was white with terror.
“Fight it, Axel! Stay with me!” Nate was crying now. He looked very frightened.
The shift didn’t look like a blessing as it should. Axel’s skin seemed to glow with a sickly silver light, and then, with one final, agonizing crack, the boy was gone.
In his place stood a wolf.
It wasn’t a puppy. It was a lean, lethal-looking beast with fur so white that it resembled the color of a winter moon. But the hall didn’t erupt in cheers. They were silent because of the mark. A jagged, dark grey streak ran from the wolf’s right eye down to its shoulder.
“The Great Alpha,” Elder Silas whispered, his voice shaking.
It was a perfect replica of Nate’s grandfather. The man who had built this pack from nothing. A legend that had been dead for thirty years was standing in the middle of the room, baring its teeth.
The wolf let out a howl. It wasn’t a child’s cry; it was a deep, chest-vibrating roar that made the chandeliers rattle.
Nate stared at the wolf, his hands shaking. He looked at the markings, then at me. He finally saw it; the proof he’d been looking for. Axel wasn’t just his kid; he was the pack’s history reborn.
Across the room, Gina looked like she’d seen a ghost. She had wanted to kill a brat but she hadn’t expected to wake up a monster.
Axel, the wolf turned his head toward Gina. He let out a low, guttural snarl, his nose wrinkled as he smelled the rot on her. Even as a beast, he knew who had done this to him.
Suddenly, the pressure in my chest reduced. The sheer force of Axel’s power had shattered the Hex.
“Nate!” I screamed, the sound tearing out of my throat. “The food! She poisoned him! She’s the reason the pack is dying, Nate! She’s siphoning the strength of the unborn for herself p>
Nate looked confused. It was a lot to take in. I had to explain everything to him later.
I pointed at Gina, who was backed against a pillar with her claws out, ready to fight.
Nate stood up. He didn’t look like a king anymore. He looked like death. His eyes were the same terrifying, electric blue as the wolf at his feet.
“Gina,” Nate called out. His voice was quiet, but it spread to every corner of the room.
The wolf didn’t wait for a command. Axel lunged, aimed straight for the woman who had tried to erase him.
The noise in the hall was deafening. It wasn’t just the screaming; it was the sound of a hundred chairs scraping against the floor and the heavy thud of bodies hitting the floor. Gina didn’t even have time to yell. She just stared up with wide, terrified eyes as the wolf slammed into her chest.
They hit the long dinner table with a crash that sounded like a car wreck. Plates, glasses, and food flew everywhere.
Axel or the wolf that used to be Axel didn’t let go. He was tearing Gina’s gold dress. But the blood that came out of her wasn’t normal. It was thick and black, like old oil. It spilled on the white tablecloth, smelling like a swamp.
“Get him off her!” Elder Silas shouted. He sounded very scared. “Someone stop that thing p>
But the guards didn’t move. They stood there like statues. They were staring at the mark over the wolf’s eye. It was a dark grey streak that every member of this pack knew from the history books. To them, it was like a ghost had come back to life to settle a score.
“Nate, do something!” I screamed. My voice felt like it was coming through a throat full of broken glass.
The Hex was gone, but the pain was still there. I tried to run toward them, but my legs were shaking so hard I nearly fell.
“His heart! He’s too small for this shift! It’s going to kill him p>
Nate didn’t go for the wolf. He grabbed me by the shoulders. His grip was so tight that I thought it was going to leave bruises, but I didn’t care. His eyes were glowing. It was a bright, scary gold.
“Is it true?” he barked. He sounded like he was losing his mind. “What you said about the babies? About Gina p>
“Look at her, Nate!” I pushed him away, pointing at the mess on the table. “Look at the blood! She’s been stealing from the pack for years! She’s a leech p>
Gina had managed to grab a silver knife from the table. She was holding it between her and Axel’s neck. The silver was touching his fur, and I could smell it burning.
It smelled like hair and chemicals. Axel let out a high, pained yelp that made my heart drop, but he kept biting and clawing at her.
Nate saw the smoke. He saw his son being burned. Something snapped in him.
He didn’t just growl; he made a sound that shook the windows in their frames. He shifted right there, exploding into a massive dark wolf.
Immediately, he went for the knife. He grabbed the silver blade in his teeth and ripped it out of her hand, throwing it across the room. It stuck into the wall with a loud thud.
Gina scrambled backward on the floor. She was covered in that black gunk, her hair was a mess, and her face was ruined. “Nate, stop! I did it for the pack! I was trying to make us stronger! You were distracted by her p>
She looked at the silver wolf, then at me. Her face twisted into something ugly.
“He’s a monster!” she shrieked. “No kid should be able to do that! He’ll kill you all before he’s grown! I was trying to save you from him p>
I didn’t wait for Nate to do anything else. I saw a heavy glass pitcher of water on a side table. I grabbed it and threw it as hard as I could. It hit the pillar right next to her head and shattered, soaking her.
“You poisoned my son,” I said. My voice was low, but it felt like ice.
I walked toward her, and for the first time in ten years, I wasn’t afraid.
“You put a spell on me so I’d have to watch him die and not say a word. You aren’t a Luna. You’re a parasite p>
Axel, the wolf suddenly collapsed. The energy from the forced shift was gone. He fell over on his side. He was breathing in short, shallow gasps, and silver foam was bubbling at his mouth.
“Axel!” I ran to him, sliding on the floor.
I pulled his big, heavy head into my lap. He was burning up. It felt like I was touching a hot stove. “Nate, he’s too hot! He’s cooking from the inside out! We have to cool him down now p>
Nate shifted back into his human form. He didn’t care that he was half-naked or that the whole pack was watching. He knelt down next to us, his hands shook as he touched Axel’s fur.
I was trying to pet Axel’s ears, trying to get him to wake up. “She has the medicine to stop the poison. She has the records of every baby she stole. Get her, Nate! Now p>
A loud roar of anger went through the crowd. It was the women who started it; the ones who had lost their babies over the last few years. They started moving toward Gina like a slow, angry wave. They looked like a mob, ready to pounce on her.
Gina saw them coming. She knew Nate wasn’t going to protect her anymore. She looked at the big open balcony behind her.
“You’ll never save him!” she yelled at me, her face was full of hate. “He needs the antidote only I have access to! Without it, his heart will stop by morning! You killed him, Dahlia! You killed your son p>
She jumped up from the ground, then shifted into a small, skinny brown wolf mid-air and disappeared into the dark woods.
“Go after her!” Silas yelled.
“Let her go,” Nate muttered. He didn’t even look up. “The woods are full of people she hurt. She won’t make it far. The pack will find her before I do p>
He looked at me, placed his hand over mine on Axel’s hot fur. “How do we save him? Tell me what to do p>
“We need the medical wing,” I said. I was crying, but I didn’t have time to stop. “I need ice, lots of it. and I need someone to lock Aidan and Ariana in a safe room. Do it now, Nate p>
Nate stood up and started shouting orders. The pack moved.
When we got to the medical wing, I stopped being a mother and started being a doctor. I didn’t care who was watching. I barked at the nurses, throwing equipment out of my way.
“Get an IV going! I need Cold saline!” I yelled.