Fight for Me

Nick grunts, seeing the bleeding hole in his abdomen. But looking back up at her, Layla doesn’t see anger or disgust in his eyes.

Before she can ponder any longer on it, out of nowhere, a wild rogue jumps Maxim. They roll to the ground, but Maxim was swift in blocking and keeping the wolf’s jaws from him.

Layla turns and runs as she sees another rogue joining the crowd.

Blake’s gaze follows her, but is distracted the moment another shot is fired and he feels a sharp burning pain in his leg. Turning his head, he sees the scared woman getting ready to shoot him again.

The doctor staggers up and screams from anger as he has nothing else but his silver blade to use for protection.

Not bothered by anyone else, Nick staggers after Layla as he puts pressure on his stomach.

More shots echo through the forest as more fighting breaks loose.

With a quick glimpse over her shoulder, Layla spots Nick and tries to run faster, but she can barely feel her legs as she wobbles through the trees.

But before she can get any further, she halts as she comes face to face with an out-of-breath but smiling Samantha, who seems to have finally removed the bandage from her face, showcasing a hideous claw-mark scar covering half of her face. It seems like it got infected and festered, since Layla is certain she just scratched Samantha. It wasn’t that big or that deep.

Lost in thought at what Samantha would be doing out here, as if looking for Layla, Samantha takes a step forward and cuts Layla’s throat with the silver blade in her hand.

Samantha stares as she enjoys the scene of Layla’s blood spraying all over her clothes.

Gggggrrrrhhhh!!!!!

A loud growl has her looking up and she sees Nicholas stomping over to them with his hand still over his bleeding wound.

Maxim finally rips the rogue’s jaws open and splits its head. Seeing Blake handling the two hunters, he sprints after his brother, aware that he was injured. If he doesn’t get the silver bullet out soon, it will continue to eat away at his flesh and the bleeding won’t stop.

But having heard the loud growl, he’s not sure what to expect ahead. Nicholas didn’t seem angry. Even when Layla shot him. But then he chased after her.

Finally getting a glimpse of his brother, he is stunned to see Nicholas shoving Samantha against a tree.

Maxim quickly jumps between them, hoping to separate them. Not only is Nicholas injured, but Samantha is practically human now. What is she doing here in the first place?

But seeing the splatter of blood on Samantha, Maxim looks between the two, searching for the answer. But his eyes find the small limp body of Layla, as she’s covered in fresh blood having spilt all over her neck and onto her clothes.

Seeing the bloody dagger in Samantha’s hand, he puts two and two together.

Maxim clenches his jaw, and yanks the dagger from her.

“What did you do!?” His wolf pushes through, commanding an answer.

Trying to calm her racing heart, she responds coolly. “It was justified.”

Another growl comes from behind him, -from Nick.

Maxim grips her hand tighter, hoping her whimper of pain will prevent Nick from getting to her. He’s almost relieved his brother is not at his full strength. Not that it will stop Nick from trying to spill blood.

“Owh! You’re hurting me.” She whines. But seeing the anger on Maxim’s face not dissipating, she continues to argue her case. “She was a threat. To everyone here. You heard what that old man said.”

Shit. She heard. But we don't even know if anything that man said is true.

Annoyed with her whiny voice, Nick walks over to Layla’s body and kneels down in front of her. Through the moonlight he can see the cut on her throat almost completely sealed again.

She’s healing. He sighs with a shallow breath of relief.

He clenches his jaw as he pushes his fingers into his bleeding wound. He grunts loudly and the flesh around the wound slightly tears, as he pushes in further. Removing his bloody hand, he drops the silver bullet onto the ground.

From a distance, Blake comes running with a slight limp, but stops when he sees Nicholas kneeling in front of a bloody body. But with the familiar long raven hair, he can think it only to be Layla.

She’s ……dead?

Blake drops to the ground with a swirl of emotions clenching his gut. Just a few hours ago, he was the happiest man in the world, with Layla by his side. Then it all turned to anger and betrayal when she didn’t deny the allegations. But then she ran, and he instantly felt that he needed to follow her. He needed answers. He couldn’t have her disappear on him again with more questions.

Nick remains calm and quiet as he’s waiting for Layla to eventually wake up once the cut is completely healed, just like last time.

He then feels Tyler pushing through a mind-link.

Alpha. We’re just about rounding up the last couple of rogues. The hunters we found here, were all killed on sight. Though, we found a forwarded message on one of their phones, clearly explaining our patrolling schedule among other things.

Nick can sense the worry and insinuation in Tyler’s link.

Assess the damage when everything is handled. -Is all Nick commands before he instantly opens another link with Micah.

Looking back down at Layla, he can see the cut completely healed now. But she’s not waking up. His palms are starting to feel like they’re sweating, as if he’s ………worried. He’s never felt this way before. Is something wrong?

But he doesn’t know how any of this is even supposed to work. Should he just wait?

He knows she’s not dead, even though he senses no breath or heartbeat from her. If Melinda is right, and their bond isn’t broken, then he would have felt her death, just like he felt her being intimate with someone else.

But then again, he didn’t feel her pain the last time he saw her die either.

Dammit. What are you?

Everything about her is a mystery.

That’s when Micah shows up, walking straight to Nicholas, and handing him the doc's bloody phone with a curt nod. But seeing his evading eyes, Nick’s suspicions are already confirmed.

Looking down at the phone, he growls loudly and his hand trembles as he tries to keep his anger from shattering the phone.

Nick stomps over to Maxim and Samantha, who’s apparently still badmouthing Layla.

“She’s a traitor! She even seduced your brothers. It was only a matter of time before she tried to seduce you too-.” Samantha continues.

“ENOUGH!!” Maxim interjects her ridiculous accusations. He’s just trying to keep the peace for as long as he can. Especially seeing his brother approaching Samantha with that death glare.

As Maxim tries to block Nick from Samantha again, Nick tosses the phone at him. Maxim looks up from the phone’s screen with a disappointed look, and the lack of confusion on his face has Nick believe that Maxim must have had similar suspicions as well. Especially with what that doctor said before.

Nick sidesteps, but Maxim tries to stop him again. Nick gives him a livid and knowing look.

“Nicholas……She’s just a foolish child.”

“One that helped orchestrate an attack on my pack, and put the lives of everyone here in danger. A member of your pack committed treason on my land.”

With that last statement, Maxim already knows what his brother means. Samantha is a member of his pack. As alpha, if he doesn’t fix this, Nick will. If Maxim doesn't acknowledge her crime, he would be just as guilty for condoning it. And that would mean his pack’s alliance with Nick’s will be over. Any members of his pack here, will then be considered enemies of the Shadow Moon pack. Including Abby. They’ll either be locked up and tortured as punishment, or killed.

Maxim takes a deep and shaky breath. He already knows what he has to do. What he will do. He will keep his pack safe, - and definitely his mate and pup.

With a nod from Nick, Micah walks up and pulls Samantha’s hands behind her back and kicks her knees in so she’ll kneel.

“Wait. Wha-what do you think y-.” Samantha struggles futilely.

“You know what you have to do.” Nick steps back.

Maxim glumly stands before a kneeling Samantha, who clearly hasn’t grasped her predicament yet with her confused ranting going on.

He finally speaks, with his alpha-command, getting everyone’s attention, and has the moonlight as his spotlight. “For the crimes of disgracing your pack, by endangering an allied pack, and for treason against your brethren, you are sentenced to death with no honour, no grave and no mercy.”

A deep silence fills the air, as even the wind blowing through the trees go deaf.

Samantha’s eyes widen as realization hits her. Her face expresses confusion and horror, knowing she might be stopped from finally being with Anthony.

In the far distance, she sees a glimpse of Anthony’s approaching figure, as if it was fate. She smiles with renewed hope, as she knows he is here to rescue her. Now he’ll confess his undying love to her in front of everyone. And Layla won’t be able to ever get between them.

But her brows wrinkle with a deepened confusion as she sees that blasted so-called mate of his walking next to him. What’s worse, is that they’re holding hands.

“But my mate-.” Her voice dies out as Maxim rips her head from her torso, and Micah drops her stiff body to the ground. Clenching his jaw, Maxim drops his sister-in-law’s head, and his eyes glaze over.