Page 21 of Redeemed Wolf (Grim Wilds #4)

Chapter 21

Silas

The chorus of warning howls grew into a haunting crescendo. First from one side of town, then the other, until wolves from all sides were baying.

“Let’s move!” I grabbed Carter’s hand and together we ran straight back the way we’d come. In case of emergency, it was protocol to meet in the center of town. I saw everyone running, on two legs and four, parents carrying children, and a sharp lance of regret struck deep into my chest and lodged there.

I should’ve made it a priority to get them out first, never should’ve come here in the first place. Now I’d put them all at risk.

“How the fuck did he find us so quickly?” I barked at Shan as our paths converged.

“I have no idea!”

I saw Tristan behind him, carrying Vesta. Isaac ran as his wolf alongside his mates, his teeth bared to attack anyone who got too close, friend or foe.

We all met in the parking lot of the community center, the kids and elderly pressed into the middle to protect them. I was glad to see a few of them had thought to grab weapons, military-grade assault rifles we’d taken as payment for our last job with Grim Wilds.

“Can we get them out?” I asked Pacey over my shoulder as I scanned the tree line.

He moved to stand shoulder to shoulder with me. “No, they’ve blocked the roads. No one’s getting in or out.”

“Through the woods then,” I suggested, but Shan was shaking his head.

“Nope, I saw movement along the back perimeter. They came prepared. They’ve got us penned in.”

My teeth ground together as I sorted through all the possibilities. I refused to stand here and let them mow us down.

Carter pulled on my arm. “I can talk to him, get him to see reason. He’ll listen to me. I’m his…” His voice trailed off as he realized what he was about to say. That he was his son.

I loved that my mate thought we could get out of this without bloodshed, but it was a pipedream. This was the man who’d been experimenting on our kind for decades. We were nothing but a science experiment, and I, for one, would rather die fighting than be locked in one of his cells.

The sound of truck engines was loud as we all huddled together, drowning out our panting breaths and pounding hearts. I heard a pup sniffling and their parent frantically humming a lullaby to calm them. How did we get here? What could I have done to avoid it?

It was too sunny and bright for a war, though an unnatural stillness had settled over the forest. The birdsong had died off. Oh, to have wings so we could fly away , I thought with regret, and my wolf flashed me his razor-sharp fangs, reminding me that we were not defenseless.

Sighing, I let go of Carter’s hand and grabbed the hem of my shirt, peeling it off. Around me, the others did the same, tossing our shirts to the ground. The alphas made a loose circle around the others, and I nudged my mate back behind me. “Carter, I need you to stay back.” Our child was growing inside him, and I needed to know that they would survive this. Even if I never got to hold my son or daughter, I could die a happy man knowing they would thrive in the world I’d left behind.

“What? No, I can help!” he insisted, shoving at Pacey. “Pacey, get out of my way.”

I glared at my Beta when he moved aside to let him through, but he just shrugged. “What? He’s the Alpha Omega, I have to obey him.”

Turning, I grabbed Carter by the shoulders and moved him back. “No, you can’t help,” I insisted, every instinct in my body screaming to shield him from danger. I could see fire in his eyes as he geared up for an argument, but before I had a chance to explain, a deep voice cut through the air.

“Don’t be too hard on him, Carter. Shifters get very protective when their mate is pregnant—they’re like animals that way.”

I spun around to see Eric prowling out of the trees—except he wasn’t Eric, not really. “What the fuck?” Something was wrong with him, his body distorted like in a funhouse mirror. He was taller, and his silver-blond hair usually coiffed to perfection seemed to be falling out in patches. His skin was peeling all down his neck, leaving angry red flesh exposed beneath, like he’d been scratching at it.

“I can smell it on you, you know,” Eric continued, strolling closer, casual as could be. “The fetus . Yet another monstrosity being brought into the world.”

Carter’s shock jerked the tether between us like a whip, lashing at my insides, and he stepped into me instinctively, his hands hot on my skin as he pressed himself to my back.

I scanned Eric for a weapon, but I couldn’t see a gun or a knife. My senses were still on high alert, alarms blaring in my mind, insisting that he was a threat. He smelled different, like charred meat soaked in formaldehyde. Gods, what has he done?

Pacey growled low in his chest, claws lengthening. “Easy,” I said under my breath. We didn’t want to provoke a fight, not when we didn’t know what we were up against, but I couldn’t see another way out of this. Maybe if I could cause a big enough diversion, the others could slip through their defenses, make a break for it.

“How did you find me?” Carter asked, peeking over my shoulder at him.

Eric laughed, an ugly, raspy sound that seemed to claw its way out of his throat. “Did you really think I would let you walk away? There’s a tracker embedded in your arm, implanted when you were young. You were an important commodity; I wasn’t about to risk losing you. I always knew where you were.” His gaze flitted to mine, his message clear. He’d always been watching, waiting to see what we would do. Was this entire thing a set-up? Had he known who I was right from the beginning?

Had we unknowingly walked into his trap?

As if in answer, four more figures stepped out from the forest, flanking Eric’s sides. They were mostly human, though deformed in the same way as Eric, some with bits of fur poking through their skin, almost like they were caught in the middle of a shift. I recognized them as employees from the lab—Sandra the lab tech, her tattoos hanging in loose flaps of skin; Nathan Randall, the rat-man, his once-lean frame now hulking with new muscle; the guard from the front desk, his eyes a sickly yellow color no longer hidden behind glasses; and… “Greg?”

His head had been lowered, but he looked up when he heard his name. His eyes were the same, though bloodshot, but the rest of him… unrecognizable. His clothes hung strangely over misshapen limbs. “Sorry, Silas. He made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.” He stared at me intensely, as though trying to convey some kind of message. What did he mean? My blood went cold. Was he not given a choice?

Eric’s grin was full of mismatched teeth and bloody gums. “My goal was always to have a legion of super soldiers, breeding them, raising shifters from infancy to follow my command. Unfortunately, shifters are a stubborn bunch. I could never quite control them, though I was close with Carter.” I reached behind me to take Carter’s hand. “So instead, I turned my attention to what their DNA could do for me.”

Eric held up one hand, staring at it in awe. The knuckles were flared, the skin of his palms thick and callused, his fingers too long and ending in thick, black nails. “I can feel it pulsing through my veins, thick and toxic as it bonds with my DNA. I’m already so much stronger, but it does not come without a cost. I fear I have sold my soul…” He frowned, working his tongue around in his mouth, before he reached up and yanked out one of his teeth. He spat a wad of bloody phlegm onto the ground at his feet before tossing the tooth after it. “I’ll no doubt end up in Hell when this is over, but first… I’m going to rid the world of your plague.”

Eric gestured with his hand and his minions stepped forward, moving to flank us. “Back up!” I shouted, and we shuffled back fast as a group, trying to put distance between us and the threat, but a gunshot rang out from the other side, and I heard someone shout in pain, along with a responding round of gunfire. Our retreat halted, and the pack pressed closer, heads swiveling. The copper tang of blood accentuated the stench of fear.

“There’s nowhere to run, Silas,” Eric taunted, leering. “But please, feel free to fight back. I would love to see what these bodies can do…”

I lowered to a crouch, growling, muscles tensed to pounce. But before I could make a move, Greg burst into action, pivoting and swiping his long arm in an upward arc. He claws sank deep through the torso of the ex-guard who’d been poised to attack. Blood sprayed through the air, but the creature didn’t go down. In fact, it only seemed to make him mad, his wounds healing abnormally fast.

“What are you waiting for?” Greg shouted. “Take them down!”

While Greg kept that one occupied, the rest of us played divide and conquer. Isaac was already a wolf, so he darted out and sank his teeth into Sandra’s leg. Damon was right behind him, shifting to go high, jumping over Isaac and knocking Sandra to the ground where they descended on her. Alphas from my pack converged on Nathan, but he was ready for them, keeping his center of gravity low and swatting them aside with a sweep of his arm. He was knocked back by a bullet to the shoulder, another to the thigh, but he just kept going, the wounds sealing shut before our eyes.

Meanwhile, I tried my best to keep my mind clear of distraction. I had to trust that my pack could take care of themselves. I prowled toward Eric. I’d dealt with worse monsters than this. My father, then my Alpha… A tiny voice of doubt tried to whisper to me that I was never strong enough, fast enough, smart enough to win one on one. I’d been beaten, abused, left to bleed out and die, but still, I had survived.

And I was no longer alone…

Pacey moved to walk at my side, and we traded a glance. He was pack, my friend and found family, and he always had my back. Together, we’d found something to fight for. Something worth dying for.

Eric smiled in welcome, his arms held wide. “Take your best shot.”

The two of us attacked, splitting to come at him from both sides. Pacey went full wolf, while I remained half shifted, taking claws and fangs, sharper vision and reflexes, but this way, I had more control over my movements. I slashed and bit, ducking and dodging his swipes.

Eric moved faster than he had any right to with his awkward frame. It was only a matter of time until he drew blood. When Pacey dodged in on the left, teeth flashing, I mistakenly thought Eric would be distracted. I moved in from behind, aiming to bury my claws deep under his ribs, but at the last second, he spun, his fingers sinking low into my gut.

I grunted, the pain registering distantly in my mind, but I was focused on my target. I slashed at Eric’s neck. If I could get a kill shot, it would be worth it. There was no way I should have missed from this close, but instead of pulling away, Eric drew in closer, inside my reach. He sank his teeth into my shoulder, and I felt hot blood pour down my chest.

My wolf whined, sharing in my pain. I should’ve died, was prepared for it. I’d cheated death before, and I was no cat; there were no nine lives for me. But before Eric could tear out a mouthful of muscle and flesh, Pacey landed on his back. My Beta was no dainty pup, and his full weight bore down as he bit Eric’s neck, dislodging his teeth from my flesh.

I dropped to a heap on the ground, groaning, as Eric arched back, reaching over his shoulder to grab Pacey by the paw. “No!” I cried, reaching as he swung Pacey toward the woods. Pacey’s back struck a tree with a sickening crunch, and he dropped hard, pawing uselessly at the ground before going limp.

We’d been in plenty of fights before, against shifters, animals, and humans, but this wasn’t like anything we’d faced before. I hated to admit it, but we were way out of our league. I turned my head to survey the damage and saw too many limp bodies, both theirs and ours. Relief filled me when I noticed that the parents with young children had managed to get out when the fighting started. Now, the only figure that remained standing in the parking lot was Vesta.

A shadow fell across where I lay, and I fought to crank my head around to look up at Eric. The look on his face was pure disgust. “What did we ever do to make you hate us so much?” I gritted out, trying and failing to push myself up. The wound in my gut was healing but not fast enough.

“In another world, another lifetime, maybe creatures like you were revered as gods, but all I see when I look at you is a perversion of the human race. Humans are the apex species, not you. You think you’re better than we are, with all your superior skills, but if you’re so natural, then tell me, why the hell are you all in hiding? It’s because you know you’re abominations too.”

“I don’t think I’m better than you,” I said, smirking. “I know it.”

“Tell that to your mom when you see her in Hell.” He lifted his foot and set it on the side of my head.

“ Fuck ,” I cursed as he pressed down, the pressure building. I tried to move, tried to push him off, my claws slicing up his leg, but it was like I was no more a nuisance than a fly buzzing around his head. The pain! It felt like my head was going to split right down the middle. All I could see was red, red, red! I opened my mouth to scream, but no sound came out.

But then the pressure stopped, his foot lifted. Through the ringing in my ears, I heard the sweetest voice. “Stop! Please, Dad, you don’t have to do this!”

I blinked to clear my vision, but I couldn’t understand what I was seeing. My mate, my love, pulling Eric’s arm to get his attention. Tears streamed down Carter’s cheeks, dripping off his jaw, and instead of disgust, Eric looked softer somehow, almost tender to Carter’s pleading.

Eric turned to face Carter. “I had hopes for you, you know. Hopes for a cure, that we could somehow excise that impurity from your blood. I thought I could save you. You were my son…” Eric reached out, as if to touch Carter’s cheek. “I don’t want to kill you, Carter. I’ve never wanted to hurt anyone, but let’s be honest. Death is a mercy for them. And for you…”

The look of grief and regret on his face was a contrast to the way he pulled his arm back, preparing to slash my mate’s throat.