A Wolf's Miracle

Chapter 38

H a r l a n

From the moment Diana and Selene ran, absolute chaos ensued. The witches, fueled by revenge attacked Violette giving the wolves an opening to go after the rebels.

Although they didn't expect witches to appear, it was always possible. Because of their humanity, witches constantly interfered in affairs that had nothing to do with them. It was annoying when the good ones butted in, but it was dangerous when the shadow-touched did.

The shadow-touched were a coven of witches for hire, they would do curses and help anyone for the right price. They were also users of black magic, which to Harlan, made them even more irritating. 

But they were like wolves in the sense that if you messed with one of them, you would have to deal with all of them. Violette knew this, but she was unafraid, she wanted to die either way.

"Hey princess" Blaze shouted. "Don't die," Blaze said to the vampire before launching himself against some of the witches.

 Harlan suspected, mainly because Blaze hated Violette, that he was saying this to her so she would keep distracting the witches. But he couldn't be sure. Because there was something in his friend's eyes that indicated he meant it.

But that wasn't important. All it took was one look for his brother to understand what he meant.

They would hunt for the ones who went after the girls first. There was no hesitation in either of them. Every single rebel that showed up tonight would die a gruesome death.

The witches were the first to go down fast, Violette was practically ripping through them, her eyes glazed with delight, her fangs dripping with blood. The power that she'd accumulated in her amulet was too big a rival for the younger witches, the ones she attacked first.

There was no doubt in Harlan's mind that Violette was a skilled predator, she knew who to hunt for and who to stay away from. Always targeting the ones who looked more afraid of her, the ones that were shaking with fear, but also the ones that were brave enough to face her despite having little power.

The more powerful witches were hunted down by Blaze and his men, a single bite was enough to have them dropping like flies. Harlan even caught him staring as Violette fed on her victims after they passed, being almost high on blood. It was utter bliss for her it seemed, to be so unrestrained.

The remaining witches fled faster than he could see them.

The rebels couldn't turn and neither could they, so it was a nasty fight. They were outnumbered and their witches had been as useful as a rock in a gunfight. 

Their plan consisted of the element of surprise, that was the only way they could do actual harm. But the only surprise was promptly handled and their advantage was gone. 

It was a massacre.

____

"Their leader wasn't here" Blaze announced as he tossed some of the dead bodies into the fire they'd just rekindled.

"Then the man is a coward who hides behind his men" Elowen announced, flinching as she fixed her dislocated shoulder.

"I hope they made it," Damien said, staring at the fire, lost in thought.

"I'm sure they did" Arden limped over to sit next to her mate. "They are both very strong."

"And Callum is in position, he will make sure those two are okay," Blaze said.

"The three of them" Elowen assured and Damien sighed. Because he knew that if she were dead he would know.

And so would Harlan. He would know if Diana was hurt. He wouldn't admit to himself why, but it was there. Maybe one day he would be ready to accept it. Maybe one day he would be the man she deserves.

But he was going to tell her anyway, he must have been out of his mind. He had no idea what he was going to say at that moment, but he knew he needed to say something. Because it was driving him crazy.

He wanted her more than he'd ever wanted anyone. He desperately wanted to touch her, kiss her, be with her... He needed that. He needed her.

He wanted her to be his forever. And he couldn't allow that for himself.

"Where is Violette?" Arden asked, looking around.

"She's probably coming down from her high, vampires get like that once they lose control," Elowen said with a shudder. "And boy did she go on a killing spree tonight."

"I wonder if Diana is okay," Blaze said and Harlan could feel his blood boil.

"She's fine" Violette's voice came from the log behind them, and all of them jumped. She looked completely out of it, her mouth was stained with blood and her chipper attitude was gone.

"How do you know?" Blaze walked over and she just looked at him with no emotion. She got up and started walking away, Harlan had the need to follow her.

They walked for a while until she abruptly stopped and said "Why are you following me, Harlan?" she sounded tired.

"I'm curious"

"About?"

"You"

"Your girlfriend is fine, Callum sent a letter" She showed him the back of her hand and a piece of paper appeared between her middle finger and her index, shadows coming off of it.

Harlan didn't doubt before he snatched it and as he read it, he could feel his pulse quiet down. He sensed they arrived so the alpha went to greet them.

"I suppose you trust that alpha" she sighed, finally turning around and looking him in the eye.

Her ice-blue eyes were filled with sadness and lacked that usual spark of life in them that made her so mischievous. 

"We'd trust her with our lives," Harlan said confidently and she lifted an eyebrow.

"Her? I thought males were the only ones capable of being alphas." She didn't seem too surprised. 

"Most alpha females are killed the moment they are born, Cora is one of the last" He looked away. He'd been part of those who hurt the alpha females. He'd been a killer he--

"Don't go there" Violette interrupted him "I learned a long time ago not to blame myself for the things I did when I was starved of love" he stared at her in surprise. "We've all done horrible things, we're the monsters in human stories for a reason." she snorted.

"I was human once, it's a strange feeling" she admitted "But it was always funny to me how truly horrible humans can be... to those of their own kind who are different" she mused, "A human's main emotion is fear, they are always afraid of something; being poor, dying, being alone...etc."

"You have a strange view of humanity," Harlan said.

"A monster is a manifestation of a human's fears, of what they consider ugly and wrong. But more often than not, they have more in common with the creatures in their stories than we do" She smiled "So you can be a monster, but rest assured because no matter what you do, you are never going to be as bad as them."