My Personal Hell, D. Richardson [ebook reader browser txt] 📗

middle of the room.

“Is everyone prepared?” she asked. I nodded, eyeing her closely. When she ran a hand through her hair.

“Hey, are you okay?” She gave an almost hysterical laugh.

“Of course I’m not okay. Half of us don’t know what we’re doing.”

“That’s why you’ll be in wolf form. You may not know but your wolf does.” She sighed, sitting and letting out a small chuckle.

“You sound so sure.” I felt my expression shift to one of confusion, before sitting next to her.

“Of course I’m sure.” She looked over at me. And I took a deep breath, choosing my words carefully. “You are the alpha female. This is your pack, these are all your children. You are the ultimate mother. And a mother protects her own, at all costs. I’m sure because I know you’ll succeed. When the chips fall, they‘ll be looking to you. And you‘ll lead them to victory.” She stared into my eyes, as though she desperately wanted to believe me. When I didn’t deviate she nodded, taking a deep breath.

“Okay, then lets go lead the troops into battle.” I smiled and left the room to make sure the children were all secure.

Before I could get to them Sadler pulled me into an empty room. I turned to look at him. He was dressed similarly to me. Though he really pulled it off. I looked up at him as his eyes stared into mine.

“Don’t do this. Don’t get on that field,” he leaned down, speaking with so much earnest I had to blink for a moment, before I sighed.

“Please, Sadler…,” I paused when I saw the tears in his eyes.

“I’ll beg,” he whispered, and I jerked back like I had been shocked. “Please, I’ll beg if you want me too, just don’t go, stay here, help protect the females.”

“I can’t do that.”

“Why not? He could kill you.”

“I can die just as easily here.” He took a shaky breath.

“Please…” I reached up to put my hand on his cheek. He grabbed it, turning his face into my palm.

“Do you trust me?” I asked, he looked back at me.

“Of course,” his voice was hoarse as though he had been screaming for hours.

“Then trust me to walk away from that field.” He stared at me for a solid minute before taking a deep breath and nodding.

“Okay, okay, just, be careful.” I smiled up at him.

“You know I will.” An hour later we were walking through the woods. Stephan’s men were already on their way to their positions, making sure not to run into Van’s group before they reached the clearing.

When we got there, his group was already there. I was at the back of our group. So by the time I reached the right spot, there was a large ring of wolves circling the spot where we would be. I took a deep breath before moving to stand three paces behind and to the left of Sadler.

Keira and Chris looked at me when Van and his males mimicked our triangular positions. They had never actually seen the enemy, and upon first sight, they could be extremely intimidating. I gave them a firm nod, and after a moment they returned it. I didn’t just trust myself to survive. I trusted those two to guard my back with every ounce of their strength.

“Female’s, Drake? Are your males so inadequately trained, that you had to bring in females?” Van taunted. Drake barely even looked at him. I let my eyes wander over the six men.

Mark was looking as menacing as ever, though the other three males looked nervous. As though they weren’t entirely sure they should be there. Then Luke caught my eye. His smirk sent a chill up my spine. But after a moment, I felt a renewed strength. Almost a glee at being on the battle field.

All I wanted was to see his blood drown the ground. I knew it was my wolf. She was giving me all of her strength, her senses, and her instincts. I was able to return his smirk, and mean it.

“Let’s just get this done,” Drake’s baritone crossed the field with ease.

He had balked a little when it came down to putting Asher in his place. But after actually listening to my reasoning, he finally caved. Asher was just underhanded enough to survive a confrontation with Van. At least that was what I was counting on.

If Asher didn’t survive this day, I would never forgive myself. Especially after he had come to me, to tell me that he was glad I had found Sadler. He gave us his blessing even if I didn’t want or need it. He wished us the best of luck in our lives together.

“Very well,” Van muttered, his voice carrying across the field regardless of his low tone.

Guidelines indicated that the challenger would be the first to attack. The general idea of the battles was a head to head fight with the pack’s best warriors. No weapons, just hand to hand, and the side with the most left standing won. I took a deep breath, and then they were on us.

As suspected the three lesser wolves came for me and the girls. I was locked in combat with one of them when he was thrown from me. I straightened my stance as Luke smiled down at me.

“No one can have you but me.” I smiled back, just as he took in my scent, growling at the result he found.

“Looks like someone beat you to it.”

“It’s fine, after I collar you, I’ll kill him for touching what’s mine.” I bared my teeth.

“You have to win first.” He snarled at me, and took a swing.

Once upon a time, not too long ago, I would have taken that blow without a second thought. But this time I ducked. He swung again and again, never managing to lay a hand on me. I was trying to find a way under his guard when I miss judged his next swing.

His fist connected with my stomach and I went down to one knee. I heard his laugh despite the ringing in my ears. My vision blurred for a moment before clearing to show his legs right in front of me. He thought he had won. So I spun on my knees, knocking his feet out from under him.

He jumped up, just as I got to my feet. But this time I was faster, never giving him the chance to start his barrage of fists again. I kicked him in the chest sending him back several feet. Unfortunately, he didn’t hit the ground. After taking a deep breath he circled me.

“Don’t piss me off, girl. I don’t want you dead yet,” he snarled, his eyes flashing a brilliant blue.

“That’s a shame, because I want nothing more than to slit your throat,” I growled.

He smiled and came at me again. I was ready for him this time. When he swung I dodged to the right, catching his arm with my left and pinning it to my body before bringing my elbow down, snapping his arm in two. He screamed out in pain as I released him only to deliver a round house kick to the side of his head with all of my strength.

He hit the ground flat on his back, his arm still cradled to his chest. I took the moment to let the pain in my midriff fade a little as he got back to his feet. His balance was off and his dominant arm was useless, but he bared his teeth at me.

Looking at him I saw all the times he had brought that whip down on me. Every time he took pieces of my flesh. Every time he left me tied to a table for hours unable to move. I looked at him, and all I could see was red. For the first time in my life I pressed the attack.

He met me in the middle and I dropped to my knees, bringing my fist to the inside of the his knee. I heard the bone snap and he fell to the ground. Instead of laying there he grabbed my arm, rolling us so that I was beneath him.

His dead weight nearly crushed my chest as I tried to dislodge him, but he wouldn’t budge. He dug his teeth into my shoulder as his good hand circled my neck, cutting off my air supply.

The pain was excruciating as he tore at my flesh, and I scratched at his arm desperate for a breath. Until finally I found some momentum and circled my leg around his broken one. When I yanked he pulled back to scream in pain, my blood covering his mouth and jaw.

I rolled us until I was straddling him and he tried to swing at me with his good arm. But I caught it at the last second, bringing it down on my knee and snapping it at the elbow. He bellowed in pain as I stood, my breath coming quickly as I wiped the sweat from my eyes.

I put the heel of my boot on his neck, pressing down until he started to squirm, trying to get out from under me. He looked up into my eyes and I stared directly into his. Watching as his gaze turned to one of fear, and then straight terror. He knew he was going to die, and he knew that I would be the one to hand him his death. I reveled in his fear as I watched the light slowly fade from his eyes.

After he stopped moving I pressed harder, crushing his wind pipe, then backed up, turning to survey the rest of the fight. It was over, Sadler stood standing over Mark, blood dripping from a cut over his right eye. Though he looked in tact. Bastion had dispatched his own challenger, who was actually the man that Luke had thrown off of me. He was barely even short of breath.

The girls stood next to their own bodies, panting, though whether their opponents were dead or not, I wasn’t sure. Asher was the last with a conscious enemy. Van was kneeling on the ground, blood coating his teeth as he groaned in pain.

“It’s over, we’ve won the challenge,” Asher stated, but Van looked up, smiling at him.

“You may have won this challenge, but your pack should be mine by now. And now you and your allies with die.” As soon as he finished speaking at least fifty wolves came charging out of the trees behind us.

As planned as soon as they showed themselves, Stephan’s and the rest of our men came from behind Van’s. His head snapped around, eyes wide as he realized that we were prepared for them. He looked back around, until his eyes found mine. He snarled at me.

“You bitch.” And then slumped over on the ground, as Asher kicked him in the head.

Keira and Chris flanked me as we braced ourselves against the onslaught of attacking rogues. I had warned them ahead of time not to let any of them bite them, for risk of being marked. Several males on both side shifted, trying for the advantage.

Once they reached us it was all a blur. Our allies reached us just as the rogues so that we ended up in the middle of a hundred man collide. Neither side seemed to have an advantage both simply fighting to survive.

I was single minded, facing one opponent and then another, one never more significant than the one before him. Blood covered me as I broke this male’s nose. Used my ring to take out another male’s eye, just as I had the very first rogue I had ever squared off with. Half way through I was forced to use my knives instead of my fists. That’s when the blood really started to pour.

After slicing one, and then spinning to bury my dagger to the hilt into another man’s stomach, I pulled a male that had dragged Chris to the ground off of her. I