Page 34 of Paying The Vampire

He pushed me off and we both rolled to our feet. We circled each other, snarling and growling. I knew how many other wolves he had killed, but I could not allow myself to be cowed by his past. The only thing that mattered was this fight, and in this fight I was going to give everything to win.

We charged forward again. He swiped at my chest, while I managed to dig my claws into his arm and draw blood. He roared at me and then the fight began in earnest, but there was something off, there was something different and it took me a few moments to figure out what exactly that was. But, when I did, I knew that I was going to emerge victorious. There were a couple of moments when he could have taken a killing strike, but he hesitated, instead trying to knock me down and get me to yield when killing me would have been far more efficient.

And that’s when I knew he was still seeing me as his son. He was still trying to protect me and save me from myself, when he should have been willing to fight to the death no matter what. There was nothing more important than being the Alpha, not even your own flesh and blood. He had lost sight of what was important, so it was time for me to reign supreme.

My eyes gleamed as I thought of a plan to use this against him. The next time we rushed together for another clash of claws I pretended that he had gotten the best of me. I cried out, a gurgling, horrible sound as I fell to the ground. He towered over me and glared at me. He should have taken the killing blow then, but instead he was paralyzed and wanted to offer me a chance of redemption. I would make him pay for that mistake. As he leaned over me and offered me a chance to rise I lunged up, snapping my arm out and tearing at his throat.

The Alpha, for I no longer thought of him as my father, staggered back, clutching the wound as dark blood seeped out, staining his flesh with a dark shadow. I rose and strode towards him, and in his eyes I could see the helplessness as he realized his mistake. I’m sure he must have hoped that I would offer him mercy as well, but I was beyond mercy. I had learned so much from him, including how not to make the same mistakes, and how not to underestimate a threat.

He tried to plea for mercy, but because of the wound in his throat the words came out as a gurgled mess. He held out a hand and tried to shake me away, no doubt hoping to conjure memories of all the things we had experienced together as he had raised me from a pup, but there was nothing he could say or do that would convince me. I had my mind set on the righteous path I needed to follow, the only path that would carry the wolves into the future.

So I walked up to him and I gripped his head, and with my savage claws I thrust my hand into his chest, right into his beating heart. I felt the warm blood trickle out and stain my paw, and I watched the life fade from the eyes of the one who had brought me into this world.

He slumped down. A silent gasp surrounded me as they had not expected me to slay my own father. I lifted my head to the sky and howled with all the might that I could muster, and I was pleased to hear that the other wolves were joining in with me, accepting my authority.

I then shifted back into my mortal form and looked each one of them in the eye. Some of them viewed me with suspicion, others with fear, while the rest knew that I had proven my strength and so had the right of things. If anyone dared disagree with me then I would deal with them swiftly, and they would end up like my father.

“I am now the Alpha of this pack, which was my birthright. But I was not willing to wait, and nor should any of you wolves have to wait for vengeance! I will not stand here and have our territory invaded. I will not stand here and allow those abominations to come into our homes and take what is ours. There is no telling when another strike may happen, and I am not going to cower like him.” I pointed to the wolf who used to be my father. “We have lived through wars and have triumphed through so many different things, and I am not going to stop now. We have grown soft under the old Alpha, and that is to our detriment. From now on we will not shirk from war. We will not hide from the world. We will not be ashamed of our place! We are wolves, and we are proud!”

I howled again, and they all joined in. We gave rise to a cacophony and anything that could hear us would know to be afraid, for there was nothing that could cope with the might of wolves when we were all unified against a common foe, and it had been too long since we had faced the threat of vampires. I took one more look at my father and then spat on the ground, storming away.

*

Naomi followed me. She placed her hand on my shoulder.

“Are you well?” she asked in her soft voice. I bristled with tension.

“Of course I am. I am Alpha.”

“But this can’t have been the way you wanted to go about it. You can talk to me Brandon. I’m sure you didn’t want to kill him,” she said.

“Of course I did. He was weak. He was going to shy away from a fight. That is not what wolves do.”

“But he’s your father…”

“And he was the Alpha. And he failed. I would have thought you would have been happy now that you are the mate of the Alpha. We no longer have to wait to implement our plans.”

Naomi looked away, crestfallen. “I wasn’t aware that our plans were war.”

“A wolf should always plan for war.”

“But we know how dangerous vampires can be Brandon. Are you sure this is wise? What if your father had a point?”

I turned around and glared at her, flashing the whites of my eyes. “Do not speak to me of this. You are my mate and it is your job to support me in everything. If you dare to doubt me then I shall choose someone else. You need to be worthy of me Naomi.”

“I am,” she hissed, but then her gaze faltered again. “I just don’t like thinking of leading our friends into battle, not when they’re going to die.”

“They are not going to die. We are wolves. Would you rather the vampires have an open invitation into our territory?”

“We know how dangerous they are.”

I waved a hand in dismissal. “It does not matter. We shall find them and teach them a lesson.”

“Brandon… is this really what this is about? Are you sure it’s all about vampires?”

“What else is it about?” I asked, blinking at her in confusion.

“It’s about her.”

My throat tightened. “I thought we were done with this. Willow was pledged to be my mate once, but she never showed the wolf inside her. She was not one of us. I don’t know why that vampire wanted her, but she is not the reason why I am doing this. It is all about him, about that wretched creature who dared to come into our territory. He is the only reason why I am fighting,” I replied.

“I hope so, because if we are to raise a family together then I would hate to think that your heart belongs to another.”

“How could it ever belong to one who has been shunned by the moon?” I spat. But deep inside I knew that something had stirred when I realized the vampire had taken Willow. I did not want her, but I did not want anyone else to have her as well. I would find this vampire and bring Willow back where she belonged, and I did not care who suffered in the process.

*****