Wild at Heart
Chapter 55

I lost track of how many wolves I’d killed, but I knew I wouldn’t like the number of lives I’d taken. War was a time of kill or be killed, and I couldn’t let anyone in my pack, or my allied pack get hurt. My focus was mainly on Nick, as I could see him fighting in his wolf form from a distance. I don’t know why I was so worried about his safety when I saw the way he fought. With Stefan’s blood still dripping from his fur, he was ripping his way through the South and West pack.

I was pleasantly surprised with how well the East pack was defending us. They weren’t backing down from a fight and they weren’t leaving us behind. Maybe I was wrong to question Nick’s interest in having them as allies.

From the corner of my eye, I caught Grayson thrusting a sword into his own packmate. He kicked the bloodied body from his sword and turned to me.

“Not all of us want to fight, Emma.” He said.

“Stefan abandoned his pack, he retreated, you don’t have to fight.” I told him.

“His followers aren’t backing down so easily.” I wouldn’t have thought they would, but I had hoped they would.

“Do you have followers?” I asked. If Grayson had a group of the South pack that wasn’t willing to keep the fight going, we could save thousands of lives between the four packs.

“Some.” He responded with a nod.

“Good,” I said. “Then gather them and try to hold off the others in the South.” I instructed him. “If I can get the West to surrender and retreat, the South with lose their leverage.”

“Work your magic then, Luna.” He smiled at me and I felt something inside me lighting a fire to try and save everyone. I turned from him and went running in the direction of the West Luna. She looked like a fierce warrior; swiftly defeating an Omega of the East pack. She turned her anger on to another wolf, but I jumped in front of them with my hands up in a surrender. The woman looked at me with confusion in her eyes as she defensively held a spear in her right hand.

“My name is Emma and I’m the Luna of the North pack.” I held my ground and kept my voice steady, but I left my hands up to show her I meant her no harm. “I’m not here to fight, I want to make peace and stop this war.”

“If you’re not here to fight, then you have mistaken what it means to be in a war.”

“Are you fighting in the war? Or are you here out of fear of the South pack?” It was ballsy to test her in a time like this, but I had to call her bluff. “Stefan has abandoned his pack; this war can end right now. Just surrender and no one else will get hurt.”

“I’ve heard a great deal of the Red Wolf of the North.” She grinned at me, but she still held her spear in the air. “With all the rumors, I never would have thought you to be so stupid.” I lowered my hands, knowing she wasn’t on my side. “You come to fight against the best warrior the West has ever seen, and yet you yield no weapon.”

“I may have made some questionable decisions in my life, but I’m not stupid.” I responded. “I am the weapon.” I lifted my leg and landed a hard blow to her kneecap. She yelled out in pain and lost her balance. I grabbed her spear with both hands and flipped myself over her back, landing behind her. I pushed the spear over her head and pulled back until it hit her throat just under her chin. Her body thrust backwards into mine and I held her in place. “Surrender.” I stated. She struggled under me, but I held her tightly, until an elbow connected with my rib and I lost my breath. She slipped out from under the spear and managed a good blow to my chin. I blocked the next fist with the spear handle and twisted her wrist. She screamed again and I pushed on the spear, holding her hand captive. She fell to her knees and pulled the spear from her. I thrust my foot into her chest, and she fell backwards to the ground. I pointed the spear at her throat as I stood over her. “Surrender or die.” I told her. “Do you really want your life to end this way? Knowing that someone as stupid as me is now Luna of your pack?” For a moment I thought she would never surrender, and I would actually have to push this spear into her throat and end her life. But she closed her eyes and nodded at me.

“Beta!” She called out. “Pull back!” After the words left her mouth, I stepped backwards and tossed the spear to her. She caught it with one hand and used the other to push herself off the ground.

“I’m not your enemy.” I said. “I never was, and I hope to never be.”

“I hope to never be in this position with you again.” She said with her eyes lowered to the ground. I could see her packmates running towards the West territory, some bolting in the middle of combat. I watched the Luna as she turned her back to me and jogged off towards her Beta who helped her the rest of the way until they were out of sight. I stood by myself with only a few East pack members on the hill and looked down at Nick. He was still in his wolf form, fighting more of the South. The number of wolves opposing us was just a mere handful. Was it possible that we succeeded? Was it possible that the war has ended, and pack is okay? Nick’s wolf turned to look up at me. I smiled at him and he let out an ear-ringing howl. We did it.

By the time I made my way down the hill and to the others, Nick was in his human form; a mere pair of sweats clinging to his hips to cover his human anatomy. Grayson had taken his new pack and retreated to their new home in the South. The North and East were all that remained. Reginald had ahold of Nick’s hand with a creepy smile on his face.

“I’m glad we were able to make this work.” He said. “I look forward to working with you in the future.” Reginald suddenly threw his hand in the air, still holding Nick’s, and displayed it to the wolves around us. “What a great fight.” He announced. “Our victory will be celebrated for weeks to come.” The two packs cheered, and my eyes locked with Octavia. Her mocha colored cheeks were covered in blood and I could see a bruise beginning to form around her left eye. I wondered what kind of celebrating her father had in store for her. “Our allies will be welcome in our pack to join in the celebration of food, liquor, and most importantly, women!” Nick ripped his hand from Reginald’s and his nose flared in anger. I could see a vein begin to pop from his neck and I stepped closer to his side, trying to calm him with my presence.

“I can’t thank you enough for your valent efforts in this war.” Nick spoke to the packs now. “Our victory wouldn’t have been so smooth if not for your actions.” He turned to Daniel and I saw them exchange something between their eyes. “But the East pack has been far from perfect for many years now.” He turned to Reginald who only looked confused by Nick’s statement. Nick’s claws began to distend. “Your rein as Alpha of the East pack is over.” He stated coldly. Suddenly, his hand shot up and his claws cut through Reginald’s throat like a knife to butter. I gasped and turned my head, but I felt the blood splatter on my cheek. When I turned again, Reginald’s lifeless body was falling to the ground in front of me.