The fight seems to go on forever, both of them drenched in blood with chunks torn off each other when Jax takes a brutal attack. Donnie breaks his hind leg between his jaws and Marabella whimpers, the sound nearly costing Jax as he glances at her. Donnie rips into his side, giving him no choice but to shift back.
“Shh, he is fine,” I tell her, but she shakes her head.
“His leg is broken. He can’t fight like that.”
“He heals quickly, he has had worse injuries, watch,” I tell her. Jonah easily maneuvers even with his broken leg and regains the advantage. His leg is busted badly from the break, but he keeps his weight off it while it heals. He is swift on his feet, lithe, and moves with precision. Donnie may be lethal, but Jonah has speed his father can’t compete with.
Jonah sidesteps kicking his father’s wolf in the head with his broken leg, and he has him. Donnie is knocked down. All Jonah has to do is make him submit when he wraps his arms around his father’s neck. Marabella calls out excitedly and Jonah glances at us. He looks at his father, struggling in his hold, trying to break free when Andrei shifts back, trying to get out of the chokehold. Jonah has him when he suddenly lets go.
Everyone gasps, wondering what’s going on. Andrei gets to his feet, going on the attack when Jonah drops to his knees and bares his neck in submission.
“What are you doing? You had me!” Andrei growls at his son. Everyone looks around in confusion, trying to figure out what the heck is happening.
“Jonah?” his father hisses, and Jonah suddenly gets up. Andrei lets out a breath of relief, but Jonah bows to him before walking off and heading toward us. It’s then I notice Rose a bit away from us, not noticing her before. Jonah scoops up a pair of pants and tugs them on.
“Jonah?” Andrei calls. Everyone else is watching. He had him, he would have won. Once he has pants on, he makes his way over to his sister and she glances up at him.
“What are you doing?” she asks him, looking out nervously toward her father.
“It’s all yours, sis,” Jonah says, gripping her shoulder. Rose gapes at him, glancing from her brother to her father, who tosses his hands up like he is annoyed. I know they have spent all Jonah’s life training for this. “I don’t want it,” Jonah whispers, pressing his forehead against hers.
“But you have trained for this. You wanted this, Jonah?” Jonah pulls away and shrugs. He glances over at Marabella and me.
“Now I want something else. You will be great,” he says, leaning down and kissing her head. He then turns and walks toward us. I stare at him gobsmacked. What the fuck just happened?
I unwrap my arms from around Marabella and she moves toward him and he wraps an arm around her, walking toward me. “What are you doing?” I ask him.
“I don’t want the title, I don’t need it,” he shrugs.
“You’re just giving it up?” I ask, unable to believe what I’m hearing. Great, what a waste of my time. He quits and I’m about to get my ass beat for the sake of it. Let’s be honest, they aren’t really a challenge, and I am literally going to be just letting them beat me.
“No, it should have been hers to begin with. The pack doesn’t need me. Rose will take over just fine, but you do need me, and I can’t be here for them when you are in the city.”
“We could have worked it out Jonah, you didn’t have to give it up for me!” I insist.
“Yeah, I did. I’m Kaif’s guardian. I intend to see it through. I promised to remain by your side to watch over Kaif. And I intend to keep that promise and I can’t if I’m here,” Jonah says.
“You’re a damn idiot. You could have been an Alpha!” I stress.
“Technically, I already am. Your mark made me one anyway,” he wiggles his eyebrows.
“But this is your home?” Marabella says, looking up at him. I glance at her and Jonah kisses her head.
Jonah shakes his head. “Not anymore, it’s not.”
Andrei comes over to talk to Jonah with Sage, and Marabella steps over to me when I see Ezra and Mateo approach us.
Marabella leans into me. “I didn’t tell them, I swear,” she whispers.
“I know. I’m not angry. They are just trying to protect you,” I tell her.
“Mara, go to Sage,” Ezra says, but Mara shakes her head.
“Now bub,” Maddox growls at her.
“Please, just drop it,” Marabella says, tears brimming in her eyes.
“Now!” Mateo says, his eyes turning black as his wolf steps forward.
“No!” Mara says, positioning herself in front of me. I stare at her, wondering how she can side against her fathers after what I did.
I grip her arm and Mateo growls menacingly. “It’s fine, do as they say,” I whisper to her, but she shakes her head.
“You’re my mate,” she whimpers, tears streaming down her cheeks, and I frown. She shouldn’t be crying over me getting what I deserve, especially after what I let the shadows do. I lost control and it could have turned bad. My intention was to scare her, but they hurt her.
“And I did wrong, now go,” I tell her, walking past her.
Mara grips my arm, making me stop. “Kaif?” she asks.
“Staying out of it.”
“But Maddox,” she glances over at her father.
“I’ll be fine,” I tell her and Sage comes over, stroking her arms while glaring at me. I nod, walking to the center and I shrug off my jacket and roll my shirt sleeves up.
“Let’s have it then,” I tell them as Andrei, Mateo, and Ezra start heading my way, caging me in. I watch as each of their wolves comes to the surface and the ripple of anger surrounding me is obvious when the entire ground suddenly starts shaking like an earthquake. The ground ripples in a wave and Ezra, Mateo, and Andrei stagger for a second.
It isn’t my magic. I know that much when Eziah suddenly steps forward.
“Eziah?” Ezra asks. Eziah flicks his wrist and the ground trembles before splitting and cracking, heading toward me and stopping at my feet. What the fuck? Kaif presses forward, also not expecting him, but I can feel the ripple of energy oozing off him.
“Leave him, he is fucking mine,” Eziah growls.