The Alpha's Omega | BOOK #1 [Werewolf]

Ava | Chap. 9

"This place is absolutely amazing!" I gasped, clenching Cade's arm harder than intended from excitement.

We'd spent the entire morning exploring and discovering every corner of the mansion, from the rose garden, to the courtyard, to the beautiful surrounding forest; I'd now pretty much seen everything I'd need to see. Now remembering everything would be a whole other ball game...

My amusement continued as we entered the walls of a circular hedge maze, now wondering why exactly they needed this in the first place. Turning to Cade to voice my thoughts, he gave out a soft laugh as he tapped my shoulder.

"Curious little one aren't you?" My cheeks flushed red, as I felt a sudden rush of embarrassment wash over me. "Let me ask you something first; what is a wolf's biggest allie?"

My brows furrowed in thought as I dug to the back of my memories and recalled the hunting lessons my mother had given me but I couldn't think of any fitting answer. I shook my head in response.

Cade smiled. "Agility, discretion and most of all, control. This may look like a normal maze to visiting tourists, but take a closer look and tell me what you see."

Following his words I swept my gaze across the maze walls, searching for anything out of the ordinary. I smiled sheepishly. "It... Smells like Wolf?

- You aren't wrong, but that isn't what I meant. First-" Cade suddenly halted in his tracks, brows furrowing as he gazed down, eyes darting from side to side.

My initial thought was some sort of a stroke when he gestured to me to stay put, raising his hand. My lips parted as to ask what was wrong when he grabbed my arm and pulled me down into a crouch. He placed a finger by his lips and quickly gazed over the bushes.

What's going on?

A deafening silence lingered as Cade peeked around the hedge's corner. Every hair on my skin rose with a shiver, the stench of fear emanating from me in potent waves. I felt my hand tremble in his palm, triggering him to squeeze his hold as a gesture of comfort.

The sound of a gunshot from the horizon, ensued by a bellowing howl.

Cade tugged onto my arm, and before everything had sunken in, I found myself dashing through the maze. Chaos surrounded us as more gunshots exploded from every direction, accompanying the cacophony of barks and snarls. I once again parted my mouth to speak, hoping to get answers as to what was going on, when a large figure barreled into Cade, ripping us apart.

Head buzzing from the impact, I came to as a massive golden wolf locked teeth and claws with another, larger wolf, both tearing at each other like wild dogs fighting over a meal. I backed myself into the wall of the hedge staring at the storm of teeth and claws when an audible snap reached my ears. Hanging limp from the golden wolf's jaws, the opponent's neck had twisted into an awkward angle and it dropped limply onto the ground, death glazing its bulged eyes. My breath caught in my throat.

"Ava!" Gazing up, I blinked as a hand cupped my cheek and pulled my eyes away from the dead wolf. "Hey, look at me." Cade's icy blue pools gazed into mine. "Are you alright?"

My eyes unwillingly darted to the body but Cade's head leaned into view, asking me to stay focused on him. Everything went by so fast, I hadn't had time to process his words until I took a few calming breaths to ease my beating heart.

I finally nodded. "Yeah... I'm okay."

A soft smile lifted his lips. "I have to get you out of here. Come on." His words melted into growls as he transformed back into his wolf form, his massive shape towering over me as he stood up.

Dear Selene, his wolf is massive!

Standing up, my knees nearly buckled as I struggled to keep myself calm, urging Cade to support me with the help of his head. To my surprise, he pushed me up with his snout, prompting me to saddle myself onto his back. Eyes wide, I dug my hands into the fur of his neck, hoping it would be enough to prevent a nasty fall. Within a few leaps, Cade had cleared the entirety of the maze, dodging battling wolves scattered throughout the court as more enemies poured out of every corner.

Breaching the maze's outer walls, bullets whistled from every direction, as the chaos continued. Bodies littered the floor, tainting the grass with pools of crimson as both allies and enemies clawed at each other's throats. A guttural scream shrieked from a distance, turning Cade and I's attention towards the village where a pillar of dark smoke rose into the clear skies.

I nearly choked on my words. ''They're attacking the village! My mom lives there we have to save her!'' Cade's ears flattened onto his skull and turned around, dashing instead towards the forestry. I felt my heart sink into my chest. ''NO GO BACK! WE HAVE TO SAVE THEM!'' Tears streamed down my cheeks. ''We can't leave her behind..." I barely heard his growl when he responded, too choked up to focus.

Panic clawed at my heart like icy shards. Is she going to be okay? Did she leave the house in time? What about the civilians? Are they safe? Who's helping them? I tightened my grip onto Cade's fur, fighting the urge to leap and run. What can an Omega like me do against an attack of this size anyways?

Minutes went by. Cade didn't stop running, when a strange blurriness crept into my vision. Suddenly, my thoughts began to churn, bubbling into a mass of incoherent words when I noticed this strange stickiness to my stomach. I gazed down, terrified when I saw the red stain on Cade's fur. Did he get shot? Is he injured? I touched my right side and hot liquid oozed onto my fingers. Shit...

''Cade...'' I pulled his fur. ''I'm shot-''

For a moment I feared he didn't hear my words, but he eventually slowed down and prodded me to step down. Sitting down by a tree, I couldn't pull my eyes away from the bleeding wound, panic scattering my thoughts. Am I going to die?

''Ava!'' Looking up, I realized Cade had turned back to his human shape. He scrambled to my side, lifting my shirt to examine the wound. ''I need to stop the bleeding.'' Without warning, he ripped out a piece of fabric from my dress and pressed it against my side. I bit my tongue and held back a guttural scream, suddenly feeling a wave of nausea crawl into my throat. ''Can you walk?

- Walk... I...'' I couldn't think. A strange tingle crept up my spine, turning my visions to a blur. Cade's muffled voice reached my ears and his hands cupped my cheeks as he held me up. I tried to reply but nothing came out.

Gazing up, my consciousness slowly slipped into darkness. I'm so cold...

-*-

Thank you for reading!