Greykin Valley

| 56 | Liberation

Damon relented and let Maleki break his silver collar, and the moment it was off his body, he could feel his strength returning, and although his desperation to get to Jackson was intensifying, his desire to tear Kane apart was stronger.

He morphed into his Prime form—

"Where do you think you're going?" Cyrus questioned as he grabbed his arm before he could storm off.

"To kill that sick fucking—"

"No, no killing. My job is to get you the hell out of this place. We can talk killing when we get back to—"

"I'm not going to give him the chance to get away!" Damon snarled, pulling his arm free.

But Cyrus grabbed him again. "Look, I want that piece of shit dead just as much as you, but there's a time and a place. Right now, my guys are up there giving us a window to get as far away from this place as possible, and I won't be losing our window. We ain't prepped for war, all right? This is a grab-and-go."

Damon scowled and tried to pull his arm free again. He wasn't going to give up his chance to slaughter Kane for killing his packmates and almost killing his son. He wanted to make him pay—he wanted to tear him to pieces and feed him to that Amarok himself. But when he looked at his pack and watched as Maleki pulled their collars off, he hesitated. Not only did he want to make sure that what was left of his pack made it to safety, but he also wanted to get back to Jackson, who was up there right now with Cyrus' wolves. He didn't want to do something out of anger which put his wolves or the man he loved in any more danger.

"We're gonna have to deal with him anyway," Cyrus assured him. "You'll get your revenge."

With an aggravated huff, he pulled his arm from Cyrus' grip and turned to face his pack.

"Sebastien, go find Raphael and help Jackson find the amulet," Cyrus instructed.

Sebastien nodded and morphed into his hound form. Then, he took off and flew out of the arena.

"Where's the Amarok?" Cyrus asked Damon.

The Alpha pointed towards the huge stone wall keeping the Amarok contained.

Cyrus then pointed at Tokala, who rubbed his sore neck. "You, Redblood. I need you with me in case they let that thing out."

Tokala frowned. "What?"

"Why him?" Wilson questioned.

"Because my Redblood's occupied," Cyrus answered as he waved his arm, urging them all to leave the cage now that their collars were off. "Come on, move it."

Everyone hurried out of the cave.

"I don't know what being a Redblood has to do with this," Tokala exclaimed as Cyrus grabbed his arm.

Damon was wondering that, too. "I'll help with the Amarok—"

"No offence, but you're too far down the bloodline to stand a chance," Cyrus dismissed. "Go with my wolves and get your pack out of here."

Tokala then pulled his arm free and stopped walking. "I honestly won't be more useful than the chief," he insisted.

A loud explosion shook the ground, and a flash of crimson light cut through the dark again.

"He mustn't be like Raphael," one of Cyrus' wolves muttered.

Cyrus then sighed. "Whatever. If the Amarok's let out, I'll get Raphael on it. Now come on!" he insisted, ushering them all up the slope. "Let's get the fuck out of here."

"What about Jackson?" Damon questioned as he hurried up the slope with his pack.

"He'll be right behind us once he finds the amulet," Cyrus answered.

"I'm not leaving without him," the Alpha denied.

"Neither am I," Wilson called.

"Jackson's fine," Cyrus insisted. "Nobody's hanging around, nobody's breaking off, and nobody's fucking up my plan. I'll drag you out if I have to."

Damon didn't want to leave until he knew that Jackson was safe. The closer to the arena's exit he got, the louder the sound of the battle was, and the stronger the scent of blood grew. He didn't have to see to know he was about to head into a warzone and knowing that his mate was somewhere in the middle of it made him panic. Cyrus didn't honestly expect him to leave Jackson behind, did he?

He scowled determinedly; if he had to sneak off, he would. He wasn't leaving this place until Jackson was at his side.

Cyrus and his wolves led the way up towards the surface, and when they emerged from the arena tunnel, Damon's suspicion was confirmed. There were wolves everywhere, snarling and tearing and roaring and slashing. There were men and women firing rifles, and a massive explosion of crimson ethos came from the middle of the battlefield. Sebastien's blue flames were flying through the air, and Maleki sent a devastating blast of silver power towards three of Kane's wolves when they charged towards the pack.

"Let's go!" Cyrus called, veering left.

Before Damon could bolt, Wilson burst towards the battle in his tiger form.

"Are you fucking kidding me?!" Cyrus exclaimed. "Go after him!"

Three of Cyrus' wolves chased after the muto.

Damon took his chance. He rushed in the opposite direction, and now that he wasn't bound in silver, he could feel Jackson nearby. So he followed his mate's scent, ignoring Cyrus' yells. He didn't care about what he was sent here to do. He wanted to get to Jackson, and he wasn't going to let anything stop him.

The Alpha cut his way through the battle, destroying every wolf in his path that he saw with Kane's mark. He couldn't stop himself from searching the destruction for Kane on his way to his mate, but there was no sign of him. Had he run like a coward?

He couldn't let his desire for revenge consume him; he had to find Jackson. And once he found him, he'd hunt down Kane and make him wish he'd never laid hands on his pack.

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