Thunder and Lightning

Jaxon

Suddenly, the battlefield fell silent.

The war cries that had filled the air moments ago were now nothing more than whispers.

Alex, Zara, Sky, and I looked at the broken door of Fort Vulpes, puzzled.

“What just happened?” Alex asked.

“Jodie happened. I’m sure of it,” I replied.

“What do we do now?” Zara asked. “If she’s already taken out Anthony’s army, do we even have a chance of reaching Quinn? She must be on high alert.”

Zara was right.

I had been banking on Anthony’s attack as a distraction, so we could sneak into Fort Vulpes and get Quinn out.

But who knew what kind of nightmare Jodie had unleashed inside the fort that had silenced the battlefield…

We needed to know what was going on inside if we were to plan our next move.

“Stay here,” I told the others. “I’m going to sneak in and see what’s happening.”

“Jax,” Alex protested. “If Jodie sees you, she’ll tear you apart. Let me go!”

I put a hand on my friend’s shoulder.

“We’ve already lost one good wolf today,” I said, my voice heavy with regret. “All because of my selfishness. My infatuation. I won’t let anyone else die because of me.”

“We care about Quinn too,” Zara said. “She’s our friend.”

Sky nodded in agreement.

“I know. But as Alpha, it’s my job to protect my pack. To put myself in harm’s way for you. You three are all I have left, and I won’t let anything happen to you as long as I can help it.”

Alex’s eyes were filled with fear.

It was touching to see how much he cared.

“We’ll stay close then,” he said. “If there’s any trouble, we’ll be there.”

I nodded and gave him a small smile.

“Alright, let’s go.”

We stayed close together as we cautiously left the shadowy alcove carved into the side of Fort Vulpes.

We crept along the stone wall until we reached the door.

With a nod to my friends, I moved ahead and peeked through the large hole in the door.

I had to cover my mouth to keep from gasping.

The entire army was frozen in place.

Jodie was standing on a balcony above them, a menacing grin on her face.

I followed her gaze to the floor, to two arms raised in the air.

One hand was holding the other arm, which was struggling to get free.

Looking past the soldiers, I saw that one of the arms belonged to a warrior.

But the other hand belonged to a girl.

Not just any girl…

Quinn!

Quinn

“Did you really think you could escape me that easily?”

Aunt Jodie’s laughter echoed from the balcony.

I tried to pull away from the soldier who had betrayed me, but his grip was too strong.

Not that I could have gone far with my feet stuck to the ground.

Even in the midst of being caught by Aunt Jodie, I couldn’t help but wonder.

~How did he know who I was?~

I looked at his face, trying to place him.

He did look familiar.

~Oh shit.~

It was Alpha Anthony—the jerk who was always trying to outdo Jax. The power-hungry leader of Oak Marsh Pack who wouldn’t stop trying to take over.

But…why was he here?

And why was he turning me in?

Above, I watched as Aunt Jodie jumped off the balcony and floated down to the floor.

“Witch!”

“Sorceress!”

“She-devil!”

The soldiers trembled as my aunt passed over them.

Just as she landed in front of me, I felt something cold and sharp against my neck.

I tensed as I turned my head to the left.

A young man with fiery eyes was standing there, a knife against my neck.

Aunt Jodie laughed. “Well, Quinn… You sure know how to make friends.”

“You want her alive?” Anthony shouted at her. “It’s going to cost you.”

Jodie rolled her eyes.

“You do realize I could turn you into ash right here, right now—without spending a dime?”

“Not faster than I could cut her throat. And I’m guessing this little Luna is worth a lot to you, considering all the trouble you’ve gone through.”

Aunt Jodie considered his words, a smirk on her face. “You’re bold. And funny. So, what’s your price for this captive of yours?”

“Your pack submits to my new order,” he said, a wicked grin on his face.

~New order? What the hell is he talking about?~

My pack wouldn’t be stupid enough to let someone with such a fragile ego take over…would they?

Aunt Jodie burst into laughter. I felt Anthony’s knife press harder against my neck. He was furious.

“Me? Submit to you?” Jodie said, laughing so hard she could barely breathe. “You’ve got some nerve! You have no idea what I’m capable of, do you, boy?”

Anthony took a deep breath, trying to calm himself.

“You’re powerful, no doubt. But why waste your abilities protecting a pack of rebels, when you could use them to ensure the peace and security of our kind?”

Aunt Jodie’s eyes widened in mock surprise.

“Oh, so this new order is going to bring us all together in peace, huh? Whose version of peace? Yours?”

“Absolutely! Mine!” He responded, his grin unsettling. “After all, you’re talking to the Alpha of the upcoming empire!”

“So, you’re the head honcho of this revolutionary movement! I’m dying to know the name of our werewolf savior!”

“Alpha Anthony,” he sneered, full of self-importance.

“Alpha Anthony?” Aunt Jodie echoed. “I’ll remember that. I have a feeling I’ll be seeing it on a tombstone soon.”

“You better watch your mouth, witch,” Anthony spat, his anger palpable.

“It’s been a blast, ~Alpha~. But I’m afraid we don’t have a deal. I suggest you put that knife down unless you want that tombstone sooner than you think.”

“You’ve made a mistake, witch,” Anthony warned. “You’re going to regret it.”

He pulled his knife away from my throat, then pointed it at me.

I gasped, closing my eyes tightly.

“No!” A frantic voice yelled from behind me.

I opened my eyes to see a strong hand gripping Anthony’s arm, stopping the blade from piercing my skin.

Aunt Jodie’s face was a picture of genuine surprise.

I twisted around to see Jax standing next to me, pushing back Anthony’s blade with all his strength.

“I should have fucking killed you when I had the chance!” Anthony yelled.

With a powerful grunt, Jax wrestled the knife from Anthony’s grip.

“Well, well… It seems we have a real hero here,” Aunt Jodie said, her smile cruel as Jax forced Anthony back into the crowd.

Alex grabbed Anthony from behind and pushed him to the ground.

Jax pointed the knife at her.

My heart pounded with fear. Aunt Jodie had no reason to keep Jax alive now. She would surely kill him.

“Jax! No!” I screamed. But he kept the knife aimed at my aunt.

“Let her go, Jodie!” he demanded.

Jodie rolled her eyes. “What a foolish hero. You do realize you’ve just sealed your fate, right?”

“I’m not leaving here without Quinn.”

“You and your crude kind are so stubborn,” Jodie chuckled. “But I’m afraid you will be leaving here, Alpha Jaxon. And you won’t be coming back.”

With a powerful grunt, Aunt Jodie shot a beam of blue light from her hands, aimed directly at Jax.

But my mate dove to the floor and rolled toward Jodie.

The beam flew over his head and hit one of the soldiers behind Jax.

His agonized moans filled the air as his soul left his body.

My heart pounded as Jax jumped up and lunged at Aunt Jodie with his knife.

“Not as dumb as I thought!” she said, sidestepping Jax’s blade.

“~Fulmenio!~” she shouted.

~BOOM!~

Thunder roared as a bolt of lightning tore through the roof of Fort Vulpes, causing rocks to fall.

The bolt of light raced toward the ground, hitting Jax where he stood.

“No!” I screamed in sheer terror.

Jax’s cries of pain echoed through the atrium, mixing with the sound of thunder.

Then, suddenly, they stopped.

The lightning was gone. And so was Jax.

All that was left was a charred mark on the atrium floor.

My mate…

The love of my life…

Was gone.