Bound to Kill

Chapter 14

Alexa

Bile rises in my throat as Darius confirms my worst fear. My mouth moves, but words don't come. Hunter! It's not until Darius wraps his arms around me that I realise sobs rack my body. For the longest time, we hold each other.

"I'm so sorry, Darius!" I force the words past the boulder in my throat, knowing my pain is only a fraction of his.

"Me, too." His voice breaks.

I squeeze my eyes tighter, willing the tears to stop.

The Alpha clears his throat. "Let's go see him; say goodbye."  In silence, we head toward the infirmary, leaning on each other—supporting one another.

Seeing Hunter lifeless, burns and wounds still marring his body, brings on another flood of tears. He should have healed by now. I bite down on my lip so hard I taste blood.

Lana breaks the silence. "We found hundreds of microscopic pieces of silver embedded in his brain." She takes a shaky breath. "Paul must have hidden silver throughout the cabin in preparation for an attack like this. Hunter wasn't able to heal with it in his system. There was nothing we could do."

Overcome with rage, Darius loses control of his wolf. A sorrowful howl rips from his throat as he shifts. I drop to my knees and bury my hands in his fur, spilling more tears. "I will make that son of a bitch suffer. No matter what it takes," I vow through gritted teeth.

After spending some time with Hunter, we check on Amanda. Some burns still cover her arms and face, but she's healing.

"I ran blood tests. Luckily, no silver was in her blood. I'm weaning her off the meds and expect a full recovery," Lana says.

Thank the Fates.

"Let me know as soon as she wakes," Darius requests. His relief pumps through our link.

"I will, Alpha."

Pack enforcers arrive at the infirmary to transport Hunter to his final resting place. Walking silently, I numbly follow Darius as he helps carry the Beta to the pack burial site. Two rows of packmates stand at the front door, making an aisle for us to traverse. They follow us to the cemetery. It's quiet; even a human could hear a pin drop.

After the pallbearers lower Hunter into the ground, packmates take turns to say a few words. Some speak of his strength and leadership; others talk about his humour and antics.

"He was always there when I needed him, cheering me up when I was down, calling me out when I was wrong..." Although Darius stands tall and appears to hold it together as he speaks, his grief flows through our bond in waves. "Even as a pup, he was there to keep me out of trouble. Well, at least, most of the time." That gets a few laughs. I smile, thinking of the mischief those two must have caused together as kids. "We've lost the heart of our family today, but we'll always carry his memory in ours. Rest easy, brother."

I slip my hand into Darius'. A few others say their goodbyes. I want to say something, too, but my guilt weighs too heavily. Instead, I speak privately. I'm sorry, Hunter. If I could take your place, I would. Thank you for accepting me. Don't worry about D. I'll take care of him.

After the burial, everyone returns to the assembly hall. Darius says the name of every packmate we've lost over the last few days.

"Only time will heal our grief, but they died warriors, with honour. They'd haunt our arses if we mope around." Laughs reverberate around the room. "So for them, we'll stay strong. And we will avenge them." We all bang our fists on the table in agreement.

Darius and I are the last to leave when the meeting ends. I study his face, noticing the dark circles under his eyes. "You look exhausted. Did you get any sleep?"