Raven pov
The wolf brought me and the child safely back to the safe house where we were immediately taken in by one of the pack healers. My wound was tended to and the silver bullet was removed. The instant relief washed over me as the wound healed back and the pain vanished. I couldn't help but think back to Lucan who was at battle with those hunters.
"Oh my god, you are alive" the sound of Esme's voice broke me from my inner thoughts. She approached, roughly grabbing my face for a closer look.
"I was looking everywhere for you. I thought the hunters must have killed you" she rambled checking other parts of my body for any serious injury.
I let out a low chuckle, "As you can see I am fine" I raised an arm waving it for her to confirm my claim. Her face relaxed and her palm came over her chest with a sigh.
The little girl peeked from behind my gown where she clutched tightly to my dress, Esme furrowed her eyebrows at me.
"You have a child?" she questioned,
"No-..." I was cut off by someone's scream.
"Noami!!!" a woman shouted from another side of the room looking over to our side. The little girl came out from behind me rushing to the woman who had called her name.
"MAMA," she shouted in response, jumping into the woman's arms. They held each other tightly as tears streamed down the woman's faces. My heart melted with joy.
The woman thanked me over and over again. Asking if I wanted anything in return for what I had done. But I calmly refused. She was adamant so I decided to hold her up on the favour.
Finally, she left someplace with her daughter in hand. I smiled, glancing at Esme who happened to have been staring at me with an all-knowing smile on her face.
"What?," I asked, getting nervous under her gaze.
"You amaze me every single time" she commented.
"Happy to-" Some of the guards burst in with wounded men on their shoulders, they were badly injured and blood-soaked. It was hard to tell the original colour from before. I stiffened watching them as I saw no sign of Lucan. Did that mean he was fine? My heart raced anxiously, there were too many wounded men. Was he okay?
"How they found the entrance is still a mystery. If we don't hold them back we would have to move to the neighbouring pack which is the southern pack." she looked troubled by the thought of it.
Making me wonder, " how bad is it," I asked
She stared at me, " Just where the hell are you from, you don't know the southern pack" she joked with a small laugh.
I laughed nervously.
She sighed, the little smile she had faded instantly as she looked in a daze. " For other wolves, it isn't relatively bad but for low-born wolves, it's like hell. I used to live there before I came to the western pack." Esme glanced at the ceiling taking a small gulp of air before adding, " it was a living hell for me" I reached out instantly taking her hands in mine, squeezing them to reassure her I was here for her.
"We don't have to worry the alpha must be out there kicking their butts as we speak" I grinned and she lightened her face a bit.
" I hope so" with a small doubtful tone.
We left to go help the other maids when I felt something constricting in my chest. My heart tightened, becoming painful and it was hard to breathe. I paused in my steps. Even my hands trembled. I looked to Esme who had stopped by my side, noticing my pale face.
She placed her hands on my shoulder, her face filled with worry "Is something wrong?" she asked
My voice came out as a whisper. It couldn't be heard. Why did it hurt so bad? For a brief moment, the pain subsided and I was fine. I stood upright blinking confusedly at myself.
"What's wrong?" Esme asked again.
"I don't know, I just felt strange but it stopped," I said, unsure of my own words.
"Should we go back to the pack healer, maybe she missed something."
I smiled reassuringly at Esme telling her it was fine. The guilty feeling of burdening them while they had to take care of wounded soldiers. Nah, I just couldn't.
I waved it off dismissively " I'm fine it must have been me being weak I am a runt after all" I joked with a half smile.
"Yeah, I indeed forget how much we can't handle every time I see you going past your limits," she said in a small voice looking away in the distance.
It wasn't further than two steps before I fell to the ground feeling numb to my bone, the fading sound of Esme's screams filled the room.
Lucan pov
The hunters closed in on the giant black wolf beaten up and bruised. He still struggled to stand on his feet.
"How the hell. Shoot him down." They shouted shooting multiple tranquilisers into his body.
One of his legs gave out succumbing to the drug being shot into him. He fell to the ground with a grunt. Some women who didn't make it to the safe house were caught. They wailed frantically for any guard who would help them.
The hunters' men rang curses and threats at them to quiet down.
The leader of the hunt, with a gleeful smirk, looked at his prize wolf weak and breathing shallowly in front of him.
His ego swelled in him as he retreated,
"Let's load them up and go. We have won this fight" he shouted to his men who in turn rejoiced. Taking their alpha was one step to their demise. He couldn't wait to go back home to his daughter and tell her the wonderful news.
The wolves caught went along submissively defeated and lost, they loaded them up into the truck they had brought along with them.
"Jay I have to say I had my doubts" his friend approached him. He also had a relaxed smirk on his face.
Jay laughed and in an audible tone "We should open the cellar for a drink tonight, it's all in me." He tapped his friend on the back. The others cheered on Jay. He looked to his friend, " This was all for them." He said In a rough grunt.
Unnoticed to the hunters while they rounded up the wolves. A white majestic wolf landed down from the rooftops onto them tearing apart the hunter caught in between its jaws.
Jay was stunned and so were his men. His eyes widened as the vicious creature covered in white glistering fur tore apart his men.
After the wolf was done it pulled up its head with a snarl. Green eyes shined darkly with fury at them.
"What a beauty," he said, It went after the rest of his men. They had rushed for their guns about to shoot.
"Don't kill it you numbskulls I want it alive." He shouted, arousing confusion among his men. His friend dragged him back by the shoulder.
"Are you crazy, it's going to kill us, we have to kill it." He urged.
"NO" he snapped at his friend, earning a surprised look from him.
"What's gotten into you," he said like he didn't recognise the person before him. The white wolf went to the wolves pulled down under a net, releasing them one by one.
Jay marvelled at her strength, he didn't want to leave without her. "Make sure to catch her alive." He said. Some of them hesitated, looking at him like he had gone crazy. They were going to die if they didn't go back.
"We have enough of them, let's go, we can come back another time." One of them tried to reason with him.
"You cowards'' he snatched a tranquiliser gun from one of them. Most of them had already started to retreat into their trucks.
"You are such a beauty," he said in awe, aiming it at her. He cocked the gun while she was busy devouring some of his men.
Fangs caught the gun and his arm in its mouth, raising him above the ground. The alpha had woken up. And he bit into the hunter's left arm, ripping it off his body. He cried out in pain as he fell to the ground. His arm lay in the mouth of the beast.
Fear caught him in his knees, as he crawled away with one arm. The alpha went on for another strike but was thrown off by a bullet aimed at his face. His friend cocked another bullet aiming for the alpha's head. Before he could pull another trigger. The white wolf knocked him over, eating off his face as he mumbled crying for help.
His friend was no more, they all retreated to the entrance leaving behind the wolves they had captured.