Maddox turned and sprinted as he heard Bygrave’s disapproving voice call from behind, “Tsk, tsk. I will find you when I’m done here, boy.” It was a promise, not just a taunt.
Bygrave never raised his voice, but Maddox heard him clearly even as he crashed through brush and foliage toward their parked vehicle. He heard Langston growl, but Bygrave remained silent. Maddox’s eyes burned as he fought back tears of anger and frustration. Bygrave didn't think he was man enough to fight alongside him, and now he was about to cry like a child.
“Why am I so weak?” he demanded of himself. The feeling of helplessness suffocated him as he ran from the Alpha who had become his close friend, the Alpha who was trying to give him a chance at life.
“Not weak,” Tom countered. “You must protect the pack. Protect your mate.”
“I KNOW!” Maddox exclaimed, cutting him off.
He didn't need validation; he needed to stop abandoning Langston like a coward. He needed… he didn't know what he needed. The sounds of the one-sided fight behind him were deafening: Langston’s gnashing teeth, growls, and the thud of his paws. The only sounds from Bygrave were the sickening crunches of blows landing, punctuated by Langston’s occasional pained yelp. Langston wasn’t inflicting much, if any, damage in return. Then, Maddox heard it—a sound etched forever into his memory.
A crunch, like a tree shattering, echoed through the forest, followed by a guttural, agonized scream that pierced him to the core. Something inside him broke. He was no longer afraid.
“No!” Tom demanded. “We have to get to your mate!”
Ignoring Tom, Maddox spun and ran back toward Langston and Bygrave.
“Ah, returning to me. This makes my job much easier; I thank you!” Bygrave called out, his mocking tone infuriating.
Maddox doubled his effort, sprinting faster than he ever had before. He wanted to kill Bygrave. He wanted to tear him apart, to adorn the ground with his limbs, to look into his terrified eyes before ripping his head from his shoulders. Bygrave would look down on no one again. They didn't know their place? No, he hadn't learned his yet.
As he drew closer, he smelled blood. He burst through the trees to find Bygrave standing on the lawn, no longer pristine. Trees lay scattered, broken and splintered, the earth churned where their fight had spilled from the forest's edge. Bygrave met his gaze and smiled, pulling a handkerchief from his pocket to wipe the grime from his face.
“I swear, the uncivilized fighting style of your people astounds me. Literal dogs.” He spat on the ground in disdain. Then Maddox saw Langston, in human form, prostrate at Bygrave’s feet. Lying face down, Langston struggled for breath, his gasps agonized. He was covered in bruises, but a gaping wound near his lower back was immediately apparent.
Pushing himself up in agony, Langston gasped, “Run!”
In horror, Maddox realized what Bygrave had done: Langston’s spine was shattered. That was the crunch he’d heard from afar. Langston could only move his upper body as he pleaded for Maddox to leave him to die.
“I won’t let you die,” Maddox growled, rage consuming him. His body hummed, his skin burned. He needed to spill the vampire’s blood. Harlan Bygrave had to die.
“You have no choice, but I admire your pluck, young man.”
“I’ll fucking end you,” Maddox declared, beyond control. He couldn't—and didn't want to—back down.
“You walk a fine line between laudable and foolish, but I believe the latter is more appropriate,” Bygrave said, stepping forward and placing his heel on Langston’s broken back. He pressed down, and that scream tore through Maddox again.
Maddox shifted and was airborne before he consciously decided to move. He crashed into Bygrave, who’s eyes widened in surprise as Maddox’s jaws snapped toward his face. Bygrave managed to raise his hands, preventing Maddox from fully closing his jaws, but Maddox’s teeth sank into his face, drawing blood before Bygrave pushed him away. The initial lunge had moved them far from Langston, who, for the moment, was safe. Maddox was determined to keep him that way, and he would kill Bygrave to do so. He’d never considered himself a match for an Alpha, but he knew he would kill this Sire who had so easily crippled one. He was a warrior; titles and power no longer mattered, only his will to end the creature before him.
“How dare…” Bygrave began, clutching his face. Maddox ignored him. He lunged again, interrupting Bygrave’s angry outburst, aiming for his face or neck. This time, Bygrave swatted him away hard. Maddox acknowledged the pain but pressed on. He relentlessly attacked any opening, focused on tearing Bygrave apart. Bygrave's expression shifted from the disdainful amusement of his victory over Langston, to anger, and now to desperation. Maddox thought only of killing Bygrave and getting back to Langston. That was all that mattered.
“What… are you?” Bygrave roared, reeling back, unable to mount an effective attack.
If Maddox could have answered, he wouldn’t have known how. One minute he was a frightened child, protected by an Alpha; now he was terrifying the vampire who had crippled him.
“Enough of this shit,” Maddox raged.
He couldn’t find an opening to kill Bygrave quickly. It was clear they'd trained to fight four-legged wolves. Werewolves usually fought in wolf form, but that didn't mean it was Maddox's only option.
He launched himself openly at Bygrave’s face, feigning a mistake. Bygrave’s face twisted from desperation to glee as he threw a powerful overhand punch that would have shattered Maddox’s jaw—if Maddox had still been there. He’d shifted, ducking under the punch. His knee shot between Bygrave’s legs, his arms wrapping around Bygrave’s knees. His ear found Bygrave’s hip, and he knew he had him. Bygrave's momentum carried him into Maddox’s arms, and Maddox seized the opportunity. He exploded to his feet, lifting Bygrave over his shoulder. Without hesitation, he swung Bygrave’s legs to one side and slammed him to the ground, driving his shoulder into his chest with all his might. He heard the air leave Bygrave’s lungs before his body shattered beneath the force, leaving them in a crater. Blood spewed from Bygrave’s mouth as Maddox easily mounted him, placing a knee on either hip. Bygrave weakly reached toward Maddox’s chest, trying to push him away. Maddox grabbed one of Bygrave’s wrists and, using the other hand, straightened his elbow, then drove his hand through the joint, snapping the arm. Tom purred as Bygrave’s screams, though still agonizing, began to soothe the gaping hole in Maddox’s soul that Langston’s screams had created. Maddox repeated the process with the other arm. Now with both arms broken, Bygrave was defenseless. He knew it was over.
Bygrave closed his eyes; Maddox didn’t know who he was praying to, but it wouldn't help. He grabbed Bygrave's hair, wrenching his head from the ground. Extending a claw, he slashed across Bygrave’s throat, tearing it open. Blood drenched him as Bygrave vainly tried to grasp his throat with his mangled limbs, life fading from his eyes. Standing, Maddox used Bygrave’s hair to pull him to his knees as he continued his ineffective struggle for breath.
Using his hair to force Bygrave’s gaze toward Langston, Maddox made him look at the man he had so disdainfully considered beneath him. It would be the last thing Bygrave would see. Langston's face was a mixture of emotions Maddox couldn’t decipher, but for a second, he thought he saw horror. Stepping behind Bygrave, he reached around his face and grabbed his chin. Placing his knee at the base of Bygrave’s neck, he violently pushed with his knee and pulled with his hands. The vampire’s head ripped from his body, which fell heavily to the ground. Bygrave blinked, as if trying to speak, but lacking the ability.
Looking into Bygrave's eyes, Maddox spat, “Fuck you.”
Then, he placed his hands on either side of Bygrave’s head and crushed his skull. He struggled, his biceps burning, but finally, it gave way. Bygrave’s skull shattered, leaving only stains on Maddox’s hands.
Without bothering to clean himself or find new clothes, Maddox rushed to Langston’s side. He didn’t think he could worsen Langston’s spinal injury by moving him, and Langston would die if he was left, so he gently lifted him into his arms and started toward the car. He strained his ears for any sign of vampires, but found none. They probably considered sending a Sire after a couple of wolves overkill—and it should have been. All Maddox knew was that he had to get Langston to safety, and nothing would stop him. As he trudged through the forest, he saw no one. As he approached the car, he focused on the sounds and scents around them. Nothing. It was a good sign, but he remained vigilant, knowing that if anyone stood between him and the car, or Langston’s safety, they would never stand again.