25

Stevens P.O.V.

We've been running for hours. Who knows how far away we are from the pack now. No wonder I couldn't reach Silva via Mindlink. Beyond a certain distance, even that no longer works. But hopefully not for much longer and I can hold her in my arms again.

"When are we there?" Cody asked, turning to Jaxon. But I was dying to know, too, because my mind was all about seeing my beautiful wolf again.

"I don't know exactly, but it's not around the corner. After all, you would have noticed otherwise when hunters set up their fortress right around the corner." , he said a little annoyed. I really couldn't understand why he was annoyed now. After all, we all wanted to arrive at some point...

"Fortress?" Arsen suddenly roared in the mindlink. He was very tense the whole way. He hated the hunters more than anyone else.

We ran for a few more hours in this tense situation and slowly everyone wanted a break, except for me. All I wanted was to be with my mate. I had to make sure nobody hurt her.

"Let's take a break!" Arsen now suggested the thought I dreaded. All the warriors stopped, enjoying the break except me. I wanted to continue. But Jaxon next to me didn't stop either.

"We're here." He said before stopping abruptly.

Then I suddenly saw the slope in front of us. I was just able to brake so that I was now standing on the edge of this slope and looking out over the landscape in front of me. I heard more noises behind me, which made it clear to me that Arsen and the rest of the warriors were here now, too.

However, I was far too distracted by the huge fortress stretching down the slope across the entire clearing. Huge walls had been built at the edges of the forest, which were supposed to keep wolves like us from entering. In the midst of these walls something like a castle was being built, around which other buildings, which looked cold from the outside, stretched. Only one building caught the eye. It was slightly larger than the other buildings, although quite a bit smaller than the 'castle', and was mostly a wooden hut, while the other buildings were of steel and concrete. However, it was certain that we had to get in there before we could continue looking for my mate.

"Hunter!" Arsen said tensely again through the mindlink while starting to growl.

"And now?" I asked him. Maybe as an alpha he has a plan how we can get in there.

"Eyes shut and go for it. If they're not prepared, these hunters can't do anything." , said the alpha. At first I was totally confused because I thought he was about to hatch some complicated plan. But then I remembered that he's an alpha. Someone who would rather bang their head against the wall while the beta, who isn't here, hatch complicated plans.

But I shouldn't care. The main thing is that I get to Silva quickly. Besides, we can't do anything anyway if Arsen gives us an order.

"Well then...attack!" , the alpha gave the command.

"I think I'll wait here." , Jaxon said in the Mindlink before he got into a sitting position. Shortly thereafter, as a group, we were already dashing down the slope and toward the large wooden gate.

I really have to say that the hunters aren't very smart and it looks like Arsen's plan is going to work out great. I mean, the hunters build a fort out of steel and concrete, but the gate is wood? How much IQ do they have please?

We kept rushing towards the gate without even thinking of stopping. The hunters would probably discover us now anyway. There is no turning back now. But I didn't want that either. Silva, here I come!

We didn't stop, we just kept walking. The gate is not an obstacle. In the next second we had completely broken through as a group and were now standing in the rubble of the goal. We positioned ourselves to face threats from either side, but it was quiet, too quiet.

Suddenly there was a loud growl, coming from the direction of this strange big wooden hut. Arsenic jumped at the growl and growled back while running a little towards the stranger wolf.

The alien wolf had reddish fur and yellow eyes. Everything about him reminded me of my 18th birthday. He was it. This Devin, who almost killed me back then and also threatened my mate. That means that Silva can't be far either. But first this psychopath has to pay for what he has already done to me and my mate. He's definitely not going to get out of here alive.

"Arsenic, let me challenge him." , I spoke to my Alpha in Mindlink. You couldn't actually refuse a direct challenge, but I asked Arsenic beforehand, although I won't really wait for an answer.

As expected, he growled back "No!" . But that no longer interested me because I was absolutely certain of what I was going to do next.

"Hereby I, Steven Summers, call upon you, Devin. Fight me for life or death." This time, I aimed the Mindlink directly at Devin, whose head shot out at me.

"I suppose." Said his psychotic voice in my head.

Arsenic couldn't do anything now either. From now on, I was on my own, but that was my fight.

"I hope you know what you're doing." Arsen said again just before stepping back a few steps so I could take his place, which I did.

Shortly thereafter, I was the one running in circles with Devin. Since nothing else happened except that we growl at each other, I dared the first attack and dived towards Devin. At the same moment, shots rang out, which distracted me, which is why Devin immediately had the upper hand.

He dodged my attack and grabbed my hind legs. He then pulled hard on this, so that I crashed to the ground.

Why did I just let myself be distracted? If I don't get back on my feet right away, this fight will be over sooner than I thought. I can't lose. I have to win for Silva.

Stevens P.O.V.

Just as I was trying to get up, Devin's wolf jumped onto my back, sending me crashing back to the ground. He grabbed my shoulders and started to drag his paws all over my back.

I started whimpering in pain. I had to escape or it looks really bad for me. But unfortunately my attempt to crawl away failed, because Devin had fixed me firmly under him. Why is he bigger than normal wolves?

Suddenly the weight was off my shoulders. Devin wasn't into me anymore. I didn't know why, but I didn't care. It took me a few more seconds to regain my strength, then I got up and looked for my opponent. However, I found him struggling with arsenic. Arsen probably stepped in and saved me from him after all.

It was a stupid idea to mess with him, but I'd do it all over again when it came to my mate.

I watched my Alpha and Devin for a moment. I found that even Arsen was hard to fight with, and Arsen is a really powerful alpha.

Then I took stock of my surroundings again and fixed on another enemy wolf. A she-wolf who smelled just like that weird psychopath. So, without thinking, I jumped at her.

Immediately she landed on the ground so that she turned her stomach towards me. A thought occurred to me. If she reeks of Devin, then maybe she's his mate, and then maybe she's carrying his kids in her womb.

I should kill her. Devin would then be so weak that it would be easy for us to take him out as well. He finally wanted to take my mate away from me and I take his mate away from him for that. Nobody touches my Silva!

The next moment, blinded by anger, I rammed my claws into her chest. Devin almost killed me back then. He took 5 years of my life from me. Now he will pay for it. The wolf in front of me slowly took on the shape and coat color of Devin in my mind, so I imagined she was him...

I felt his blood on my paws. So I keep scratching his chest down to his stomach. He whined and tried to free himself, but this time he was trapped.

Everything around me blurred. I've never felt like this before. All my senses were fixed only on the wolf below me, which is about to die. I've never seen anything like it, but I've heard of wolves going into a state called bloodlust when trying to protect their mates.

I was in this bloodlust right now. I had to save my mate from that monster.

Devin suddenly rolled onto his stomach and tried to crawl away from me. This time it was he who had to crawl in front of me. But I will be nicer to him and kill him immediately.

I jumped onto his back and grabbed his neck. Just one more quick move and he'd never get in my way again.

"STEVEN ENOUGH!" I suddenly heard Arsen say in his alpha tone. But why now? I almost ended it. This nightmare was almost over. Nobody could have separated Silva and me.

I let go of Devin and took a few steps away.

To clear things up a bit, I shook my head a few times and the bloodlust passed as quickly as it had come. But what shook me was that in front of me was not Devin's reddish wolf, but a silver she-wolf covered in red liquid. She was pretty much drained from the fight and transformed back into her human form.

So she lay there, turned on her stomach with her head in Arsen's direction, who suddenly said, "Oh fuck!"

And then I took a closer look at the wolf in front of me. Her petite figure, her long brown hair. And the next moment I recognized her again.

That can not be true. That couldn't be true. I hurt her! I hurt my own mate! Why didn't I recognize her? She will be afraid of me and hate me. I hate myself.

"Silva? OMG SILVA?" I got totally hysterical. What do I do if she dies now? I couldn't live without her anymore. She can't die because I was too stupid to recognize her. She can't.

I ran to her and rolled her onto her back in my arms.

"I'm so sorry," I whispered, tears blurring my vision. I can't lose her. I just can't. She has to stay with me.

Silva closed her eyes.

"Please stay with me," I begged. Please. She mustn't give up. She must stay with me. I love her.

"Everything will be fine, Steven. I won't let her die," said Lucas, the warrior doctor, who was also there. He took Sylva out of my arms, which I really didn't want to let him do. However, it just happened because I was getting too weak.

All of a sudden I just didn't have the strength. And by the second I was feeling more and more drained.

"Oh fuck, your back," said Arsen, who was now standing next to me. But I only half noticed that, because the next moment everything was just too much and I fell sideways to the ground.

It was all just too much for me...

Then I too fell unconscious. Hopefully Silva and I will wake up together. And if she doesn't wake up, then I don't want to wake up either.