Kiara:
For a moment, I stand frozen in time, trying to process what has just happened. Zane is shot, and masked men in black who bundle the godfather while Yusuf stands in front raided the room. I understand he was upset about the ceremony, but this is no way to exert power. I want to act, but my wolf is hurt, pulling me back to reality as I look at Zane groaning on the ground, his blood slowly turning black.
“Argentum!” I gasp.
“You will not get away with this, Yusuf!” Boris yells. Yusuf glances at his father, walking towards him. He grabs his jaw and digs his hand deep into it, causing the old man to scream in pain.
Family members back away in fear. Yusuf takes a step away from his father, then faces the crowd, running a hand through his hair to keep it sleek.
“Family!” he begins with his arms wide open. “I do not mean to scare you, but I am here to give you a better life. A life that cannot be obtained under something filthy as that,” he points at Zane, who is growling on the ground.
Zane’s claws become visible, and his fangs, too. His hair pops out a bit, allowing him to stand up.
“I won’t allow you to do this, Yusuf!” Zane yells, rushing towards his brother, but the moment he gets close enough, he collapses on the floor. Yusuf shifts slightly to prevent Zane’s body from touching him.
I remain hidden in the crowd, terrified of getting hit by argentum again. I don’t have another cure with me, plus I don’t want to risk taking the fake cure.
“He is a monster who has been living amongst us. The wolves are not our friends, and they have, in one way or another, taken our family members. I will not allow one of them to rule us,” Yusuf says, snapping his fingers.
“So what’s it going to be?” Gia’s voice comes from behind.
She loved Zane, but looking at her face, I can tell that love has vanished. She is eager to see him die.
“Just to let you in on something, brother. Your entire cure is gone, and your life ends now,” Yusuf says. Then I see the argentum stake being presented to him. It had been cut, leaving only a slim stick, which made sense about the bullets used.
“Now, we say goodbye to the monster my father wants to rule,” Yusuf says, raising the stake, but before it can fall on Zane’s chest, a bullet knocks it out of his hand.
“Everyone, get down!” Rufus yells. Everyone falls to their knees, including Gia, who crawls backward, aiming for the front door as the room becomes chaotic, with bullets flying around.
“I thought you incapacitated them!” Yusuf yells at one of his men as they both duck for cover behind a large pillar.
Yusuf glares at the man and then says, “Give me a little cover while I end this right now.”
When he says this, I raise my head, seeing him rush towards Zane. A bullet has never really hurt a wolf before, so I stand up, letting Bailey take over, knocking Yusuf down to the side.
“The female wolf!” he exclaims. The man with him aims his gun at me, but I slap the gun out of his hands.
I howl loudly, causing his men to cease fire. Everyone in the room starts running helter-skelter while Zane’s men remain unfazed. I growl at Yusuf while he lies on the floor for a moment, backing away on his butt until his back strikes a pillar. Then I stare into his eyes, watching them change to yellow and a smile forming on his lips. He shifts into a wolf in the blink of an eye, head-butting me.
His wolf is nothing compared to mine, and I know I can take him, but he runs away before I can get over the sensation in my head. When I look around, the crowd has dispersed, and it is just Zane, slowly dying, Ariana cowering in a corner, the godfather, and Rufus with the rest of the guards.
I slowly shift back, rushing towards Zane.
“You can kill me now, and I will gladly pass away in peace,” he says. I ignore him, touching his neck to see that his veins are still active.
A guard helps Boris up, and he rushes towards Zane, his face fallen.
I place my hand on Zane’s chest, feeling his heart still pumping.
“I can save him,” I say to the old man, who glares at me, his mouth open, but I speak before he can say a word.
“We need to get him to the cottage right now!” I yell. Rufus rushes to Zane, slinging him over his shoulder. I take off my shoes, tossing them away as I dash up the stairs to my room to get the grimoire.
I could do the spell by heart, but I don’t want to risk making a mistake in my panic. A part of me can’t understand why I am doing this, but there is a sudden drive within me to save Zane, despite the fact he has been nothing but an asshole.
When I reach my room, I pull the book out from underneath the bed, opening it to see a petal of the ghost Dahlia lodged in it. It is dried up, but I hope it can stabilize him. I rush back as fast as my legs can take me. As soon as I reach the car, I open his mouth and shove the petal into it.
He lets out a loud cough, giving off a wheeze before passing out.