Page 16 of Wolves Betrayed

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Anders couldn’t believe it,not what he had seen, not what he had heard, not what he had witnessed.

Talon’s paw swatted at his head, and Anders jerked back to avoid the blow. The other werewolf had an impressive swing as the gust of air accompanying it testified.

He means to kill me. Probably meant for that all along.

Well, others had wanted him dead for a long while. Anders liked to disappoint others on that account. He saw no reason why it should be any different with Talon.

The two circled each other. The sounds of the other battles around them faded away. All Anders could hear was the beating of his own heart and the easy breathing of his foe. Talon seemed to be a more than capable opponent. He wasn’t rushing his moves, and he was taking his time, looking for a weakness, just the same as Anders was doing.

Talon snapped at him, his fangs coming dangerously close to Anders’s flank. No way would he allow himself to be bitten by such a villain.

Tired of being on the defensive side of things, Anders decided to take the offense back to Talon. He nipped and clawed then darted away before coming back forward to do it again. Anders moved too quickly for Talon to be able to retaliate, already moving to locate another spot to claw his foe.

But Anders was weary from his recent battles, and Talon, who didn’t seem to have any injuries, was wearing him down. If Anders remained so heavily on the offensive side of things, he’d paradoxically be the one to end up dead.

It was time to end this once and for all.

Before he could even try to pin and hold down the werewolf, Talon was on him, slashing and biting and tearing chunks of fur. It was all Anders could do to remain on his feet. So long as Talon didn’t pin him, he’d be all right. He could survive this. He could.

After a few well-placed kicks, Anders thought he might be able to survive this. But then he spied Misti. She was hiding away from the battle. Was she injured? Two werewolves were fighting near her. If the wrong one survived, would they attack her?

Anders moved toward her when something hard crunched down on his tail. Talon yanked on it. Agony shot through Anders, inflaming the open wounds on his body. His foe was trying to climb on top of him. He’ll pin me and kill me, and Misti will be stuck with him for the rest of her life, regardless of how short that might be.

The idea of Misti touching the man, of them claiming one another, of her giving him pups distressed him so much that Anders found the strength within him to twist his way out from under Talon. Without delay, he launched toward the other werewolf. They rolled, first Talon on top then Anders then Talon again. His claws dug into Anders’s shoulders, and he lifted him up before slamming him back down onto the ground. Talon did this two more times, and Anders’s head connected with a rock. Specks of light dotted his vision after the blackness quickly faded.

Anders dug his own claws into Talon’s hands and rolled with his hips and legs so that he was on top. His teeth sank into the soft fur and tender flesh of Talon’s throat. Talon’s claws slashed at every part of Anders—his face, his sides, his teeth and gums. Even his clawed feet tried to hurt Anders’s legs.

With a snap of his jaw and a quick shake of his head, Anders ripped out a chunk of Talon’s throat. Blood spurted out in rhythm with Talon’s heartbeat. His claws dug more frantically into Anders, but slowly, they slipped away as Talon crossed over to the land of the dead.

Feeling relieved, Anders spat out the werewolf bite. He had done it. He had been victorious. He’d vanquished his foe. Despite his body’s weariness, he felt light. Happy.

He stared down at his fallen foe. For the first time, the severity of what he had done began to sink in. He had killed the heir of the Wild Shades pack. He had killed his rival for his love.

And he might have just doomed them all.

And that was when he saw that Misti was watching him. Even in her werewolf form, he could read the expression on her face. She had witnessed the entire thing. She had seen him attack and kill her husband. If the others learned what he had done, he’d be killed. Maybe Misti would be too because they had come pleading to the Wild Shades together.

But he hadn’t a choice. He had to kill Talon for what he had done. He had to make Misti, and everyone else, understand that.

From Misti’s long and lonely howl, Anders knew that convincing her he hadn’t murdered her husband for selfish reasons wasn’t going to be easy. By killing Talon, he may have saved her life, but he might have also ensured that her life would not include him.

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