Page 23 of Midnight Whispers (Forbidden Entanglements #1)

Chapter Twenty-Three

C ass was in deep shit. There wasn’t any other way around the trouble he was in, but to experience it. He’d walked right into a damn trap. Hindsight, being what it was, he should have waited until Iven arrived. Since he hadn’t been able to save Krieger, doing so would have saved his life.

He stared the alpha down, watching him. He would give the sign for the next attack. Cass was the only one in his third form. It gave him an advantage.

He’d injured two wolves severely enough for them to stay down. The rest geared up for the next fight.

Cass had several bite wounds already. They would have killed him if he were in his human or wolf form. His strength saved him from a worse injury.

The fighting had stopped. They were in a moment of reprieve on both sides. It was how the alpha wanted it. Prolonging the attack meant Cass would suffer for longer. Attacking someone in such a way wasn’t considered ethical. It was a law amongst wolves not to do exactly what the alpha was doing to Cass. Wolves considered it torture. From where Cass bled out, it felt like it.

Some alphas had a third form, like Cass did. For an alpha who led a pack, they almost always needed one because it set them apart. Wolves considered a third form as stronger and deadlier than others. The better to protect the clan with. Alpha Miller should have shifted into it. If for no other reason than to show strength. But maybe he thought he didn’t have to show it since he had eight wolves to do the killing for him.

Riley entering his mind stole his focus. Cass tried not to think about Riley. Fear for his precious mate would rule him, clouding his choices, not that he had many of those left. Cass tried to shake Riley loose, but Riley clung to the recesses of his mind like a monkey. He told Riley to leave, but all he got in return was a scowl on Riley’s handsome face.

He needed to focus. The reprieve wouldn’t last long. He needed to get Riley out of his head so he could concentrate on the next attack.

Cass’s stomach twisted in knots. Knowing what was coming again, over and over, until he succumbed to his injuries, each attack bringing him closer to death. But at least Riley wasn’t there to see it.

He needed to think of a way out. Talking wouldn’t do it. No one who killed as easily as the alpha would listen to reason. And anyone who followed an insane alpha was a little insane, too.

Could he shift and outrun them?

After the next attack, if he survived it, he might try to make a run for it. He couldn’t fight his way out. There were too many of them.

Cass’s internal dialogue took a backseat when the alpha pawed the ground.

Two wolves came forward, working together. They snarled as if he were the enemy. Last month, they’d all been at the pack run. The betrayal was the worst part of it all. Maybe this was how Gregory May felt right before he died. And the three victims a few yards away. Miller had even betrayed Krieger.

What would they tell Gran about his death? Would they make him a martyr somehow? They would have to. He had a good reputation in town and amongst the pack. He knew people considered him a fair deputy.

The attack, when it came, was like the rest. Cass had practice by that point. He’d gotten better at dodging, which was what he did. One went high, the other low. Their momentum made one of them fall to the ground. But the other stayed on his feet, stumbling but righting himself.

When he lunged, Cass deflected. The wolf yipped in pain and landed feet away.

By then, the other wolf recovered.

Cass expected him to attack from below, but he didn’t. He went for Cass’s neck. Cass reacted too late.

Cass growled when the wolf’s teeth sank into his shoulder.

Cass tried to reach for the wolf. He positioned himself well enough that Cass couldn’t get a hold of him. He tried to shake the wolf off, but it hung on by teeth and misplaced loyalty.

Blood tickled his skin and matted his hair. He could see it on his chest. He’d bleed out from that one wound alone. It was a matter of time.

How long could he keep going? That was the real question.

His heart ached with the way his pack treated him. The emotional damage was life-changing. The injury surpassed the physical ones on his body.

He transferred the pain into anger and roared. Searching for the nearest tree wasn’t difficult. Despite the small clearing they were in, the forest was dense. He turned away from the tree and slammed the wolf into it. The wolf yipped but didn’t release Cass. Cass rammed him into the tree even harder. As soon as Cass moved away, the wolf slid to the ground.

He wasn’t sure if the wolf was dead, but he was at least unconscious. His lifeless body lay at the base of the tree on his side.

The dizziness came in waves. Was it blood loss? Or maybe slamming his already injured body against a tree twice knocked a few screws loose. Cass needed to assess his body but he didn’t know if he had the time.

The alpha would send another two more wolves to fight him. He had to run before then. But Miller didn’t wait. He sent two more wolves after him as soon as Cass defeated the last two. Maybe Miller knew he was close to defeating Cass and wanted it over with.

That made two of them.

It hit him all at once that Riley was in his mind for a reason. Cass could smell him before he saw him, and so could Alpha Miller.