The Hunted Wolf – Chapter 78

ADIRA Mark, take the serum now, I linked, watching as Xavier held a blade against Freya’s quivering body. The serum wasn’t a permanent solution, according to Zayla. She said it would only allow magic resistance for a short period of time, anywhere from thirty minutes to an hour, so Mark needed to take it right before the fight.

Now it was time for me to distract Xavier. “You are threatening the wrong person. At least threaten someone I care more about.” The words hurt as they came out of my mouth. As hurt as I was by Freya, I never wished any harm to her. She was still my mother after all, and even though I was okay with never seeing her again, a part of me still loved her. I just wanted to bluff Xavier and make him think I didn’t care at all.

Xavier smirked and tilted his head. “Is that so? I guess you wouldn’t care if you watched me slit your mother’s throat right in front of you then, huh?” Xavier felt challenged, and he loved every moment of it. Some twisted part of him wanted to call my bluff and the other part of him wanted to spill some b***d.

Cain thrashed against his restraints, trying to break free. I could see the pure panic and heartbreak in his eyes at the thought of losing his mate. Against all odds, they had found each other decades later, but when they ran away to get their happily ever after, they were taken by the very enemy that tore them apart years ago. Only now Cain didn’t have his magic to protect his mate.

I was the only one who could do anything to stop this from happening. Xavier’s hand started moving, and immediately I shifted behind him. I flung a ball of magic, hitting him in the back and knocking him forward. I threw another attack, knocking the blade out of his hand. The weapon flung across the room and clattered to the ground.

Xavier laughed in response. “I knew you cared. I know you better than you think. You only think you are in love with that wolf because you don’t know what real love can look like. Just imagine being with someone who will let you accomplish anything you want. With me by your side, you’ll be unstoppable. I will make sure you have everything you ever wanted. Just take a small taste, and you’ll see what I mean.”

Xavier shifted and ended up directly in front of me. He placed his hands on my cheeks, trying to hold my face still in order to k**s me. I heard Mark’s growl echo around the room as he changed into his wolf form. He dashed towards us, trying to attack Xavier. I knew he wouldn’t get to me in time to stop the k**s, so I placed my hand on Xavier’s chest and sent a jolt of magic through his body.

He stumbled backwards, and Mark was quick to pounce on him, pinning him to the ground. Xavier shot a black tendril out of his hand and hit Mark in the chest. Mark was sent flying, rolling around and around until he managed to land on his feet. He let out another snarl. He seemed relatively okay, and I knew the serum was working.

Xavier shifted so he was standing up straight again. “I’m impressed you took that blow so well. At such a close range, my magic should have destroyed your body. You’ve gotten strong, wolf.”

I didn’t want to give Xavier another chance to attack, so I started sending a barrage of magic attacks flying in his direction. While I distracted Xavier, Percy and the others ran over to Freya and Cain and started working on untying them. Mark dashed towards Xavier, lunging at him with his teeth bared again. I stopped my attacks briefly to give Mark a chance to hit him without the risk of my magic hitting him.

Mark bit down into Xavier’s arm, but before he could rip the sorcerer’s arm off completely, Xavier shifted to safety. When he appeared again, he showed up right next to Cain. He pushed Percy, Hunter, and Julian away with a blast of magic and then grabbed Cain’s face.

“Don’t move if you don’t want me to kill your father right now. Don’t shift or use magic or it’s over,” Xavier warned. His eyes locked with mine, and all I saw was pure darkness.

I froze, afraid to make a move. I refused to be the reason Cain died. I took a deep breath, and for a moment everything slowed down. I looked around the room, trying to figure out how to save Cain from Xavier’s rampage. Even if I did as Xavier wanted, he wouldn’t spare the people I cared about. That was the reason villains were more powerful than heroes. True evil didn’t care about feelings or agreements. I knew it would be pointless to make a deal with this monster. There had to be another way.

Mark was ready to pounce, but he wouldn’t be able to get to Cain in time. I could shift and try to stop Xavier before he killed Cain, but he already has his finger on the trigger. I knew I wouldn’t be fast enough to shift to Xavier and stop him from hurting Cain. Besides, Xavier would see me coming the millisecond I decided to use magic.

There was only one solution I saw to stop Xavier from killing Cain, and I wasn’t even sure if it was worth it. With another deep breath, I reached out my hand and envisioned Cain shifting away. My magic reached out to him with a familiarity, and when it reached him, it enveloped him before shifting his entire body across the room. At the same second, Xavier shot a black tendril out, but it hit nothing but air.

Xavier lifted his hand up and inspected it closely. “You truly are incredible, Adira. For someone who barely knew magic months ago, you have grown magnificently. I can’t wait to share power with you.”

He curled his fingers and aimed his magic at Freya. Once again, I shifted her across the room, keeping her safe from Xavier’s attack. I had never shifted anyone else before, and I didn’t even know it was possible until just now. It was something I wanted to do, so I tried it. The power inside of me was growing and buzzing from the determination I felt at that moment to protect the people around me. I almost felt invincible.

“Get them out of here,” I ordered Percy. I knew it was more important for Freya and Cain to get out of here safely than have the three warriors here to help me. I would just be trying to keep them safe instead of focusing on getting rid of Xavier.

I knew Mark and I would be able to handle Xavier on our own, and the others would be here any second to provide extra back up.

“Good job saving your mommy and daddy,” Xavier said. “I wonder if you’ll be able to save your ‘mate’ too. You know, I picked this place because I thought it would be fitting for you to see your mate die in the same place you met him. It’ll be an ending and a new beginning for you. Quite poetic, huh?”

This time it was me who laughed. “What makes you so sure you are going to win this time? We beat you once, and we weren’t even prepared last time. Tonight the only person I will watch die is you.”

I started attacking Xavier again. I wasn’t interested in hearing him talk and distract me any longer. He couldn’t get into my head, because I wasn’t afraid anymore. I was tired of the threat, and I was a mama bear, ready to protect her family.

Xavier blocked all of my attacks, but he was losing ground. As I pressed forward, he kept stepping back, barely able to keep up with all of my attacks against him. Mark flung forward and attacked Xavier again, making the sorcerer bloodied from the bite marks. Xavier tried to attack Mark, but I was able to deflect the attacks with my own magic.

Xavier stopped moving, pinned to the ground, injured, and worn out. It was over. We had the upper hand, and Xavier wouldn’t be able to escape this time. I loomed over his body as Mark held him on the ground. Mark was baring his teeth, ready to rip out his throat.

“I warned you not to mess with me.” I looked down at Xavier, a sense of relief flowing through me. This battle had been even easier to do than I thought, and soon I would make sure Xavier would never be able to harm me or anyone else I knew again.

Xavier smiled at me, which was not the reaction I expected. “You underestimate me again, my dear. Do you really think this was my entire plan? Threaten your family and hope you rolled over and gave into my wishes? I told you. I know you better than you realize. I knew you wouldn’t stop fighting me until I was dead.”

My chest tightened as Xavier spoke. I was missing something, but I couldn’t figure out what. Xavier was much too lighthearted about the situation. Of course he had a backup plan. He was prepared for us today, and he knew he would be at a disadvantage.

“What are you talking about?” My voice cracked as panic slipped into my voice.

“Do you really think I would want the body of a weak sorcerer like this? Of course not. I realized the only way to truly get the power I wanted and to fulfill the prophecy was to simply take your body.” Xavier’s eyes went glassy as he slipped his hand out of Mark’s grasp.

Mark lunged forward, ready to kill Xavier, but he wasn’t fast enough. Xavier used his magic to summon his blade from before. It flew into his hand, and he gripped it tightly. He flung his hand, stabbing himself right in the neck. He instantly started coughing up b***d.

Xavier locked eyes with me and choked out his final words, “I’ll see you on the other side.”

My eyes were wide as I tried to process what had just happened. Xavier had stabbed himself, and now I was watching him bleed to death. A sudden realization hit me, and I flew to my knees, pressing my hands against the wound. I couldn’t let this body die. Xavier’s magic was trapped in the body, and he was trying to release himself from the host body.

I tried to heal the wound, but it was impossible to do with the knife still in the body. I pulled out the blade, and the wound started gushing b***d. Xavier had hit himself in the artery, and he was bleeding too fast. My magic wasn’t enough to save him.

Mark changed back into his form. “Why the hell would he do that?”

Xavier’s body stopped moving, and black magic shot from the body, just like when I forced Xavier out of Jori’s body. The black cloud hung in the air for a moment, but this time, instead of disappearing, the magic lunged forward, hitting me directly in the chest. I could feel Xavier’s magic filling my body, fighting for control. It felt similar to when I tried to take on Cain’s magic, only this time it hurt as Xavier fought for control over me.

I couldn’t breathe, and everything started going dark. I felt the rush of air as I collapsed. The last thing I felt before passing out was Mark’s arms catching me before I hit the ground, and the last thing I heard was Mark calling, “Adira!” over and over and over again.