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| Damon |
Damon tried to focus on the fact that his body felt a whole lot better after bathing in the lake, but he couldn't stop seething. Jackson was spending more and more time with Wilson, and whenever he looked at the muto, Damon saw a look in his eyes that made him want to pounce. He was certain that Wilson wanted his mate for himself, and Damon wasn't going to let it happen.
He glanced back at them while he led the way towards a glade. Jackson was talking about his stepdad, and Wilson was staring at him with that longing look in his eyes. And every time Jackson said something, Wilson had to butt in and make it about something he did with Jackson however many years ago.
The Alpha clenched his jaw and scowled ahead as the snow started falling. He wanted to put that tiger in his place so badly, but he knew that it would hurt Jackson, and that was the last thing he wanted to do. But he could only put up with so much.
"Do you think Kane will send more wolves this time, chief?" Tokala asked, walking beside him.
"It's possible," he replied, glancing at him. "Sebastien should return with a number soon, and then we can plan before we reach our ambush point."
"What if we found some cadejo?" Lance suggested.
"I, uh...don't think that would work," Julian called. "Kane's used to dealing with them."
"And it's too dangerous," Wesley uttered. "After that infected fae, we have no idea what else might be out here."
Damon couldn't formulate a solid plan until he knew how many wolves he was dealing with. However, he could throw out ideas and ask for them from his pack. "Whether Kane sends ten wolves or twenty wolves, we're equipped to deal with it. Not only do we have me and Sebastien, but we also have Jackson. His demon ethos is probably our biggest asset right now," he said, glancing at his mate, who looked a little flustered in response to his compliment. "But if anyone has any ideas, you can share them."
Remus stuttered, "What about...well...I don't know."
"What about what?" Bly asked with an encouraging tone.
"Well..." Remus drawled. "I was thinking about what happened to Brando back when we were at that castle ruin."
"Oh, the mine?" Brando called.
"Yeah," Remus said with a nod. "What if we find a cave and collapse the entrance? That way, we don't even have to kill anyone. I mean...they'll probably starve to death eventually, actually...."
"Good," Wesley snarled. "They all deserve a slow, painful death for what they did to Alastor and Enola."
"Or we could lead them into a cave and Jackson fills the place with fire," Wilson called.
The rage buried inside Damon began to surface as he snarled and sharply turned his head to look back at him. "How many fucking times do I have to tell you to keep your fucking nose out of my pack's business?!" he yelled, stopping and turning to face him.
As the pack came to an unsure halt, Wilson scoffed and shoved past Lalo so that he could see Damon. Lalo stumbled and complained, and everyone else quickly backed away.
"If I have something to say, I'm gonna fucking say it," Wilson snapped back.
Jackson stepped in front of Wilson and frowned disapprovingly. "Can we please not do this here?"
"If not here, then where?!" Wilson snarled at him.
And that made Damon even angrier.
"I'm sick of this controlling, possessive piece of shit talking to me like I'm a stupid child!" Wilson growled, taking his eyes off Jackson to scowl at Damon. "You might be able to treat everyone else like a bitch, but I'm done sitting down and taking your bullshit!"
Damon didn't reply. The moment the muto charged towards him, he burst forward. They collided and snarled, snapping their jaws and swiping their claws. Damon didn't care—all he wanted to do was teach this asshole a lesson—so he didn't hold back. He clamped his jaws around the tiger's leg the moment he got the chance, and when Wilson wailed as his teeth tore his flesh, Damon used all his strength to launch the muto through the air.
When Wilson's body hit a tree, the sound of his breaking ribs made Jackson adorn a horrified frown, and it caused Damon to stop and hesitate for a moment.
But Wilson climbed to his paws, snarled furiously, and raced towards him.
"Stop!" Jackson insisted.
The muto clashed with Damon, who used his strength to shove him away. He didn't want to keep fighting; he didn't want to make it worse. Jackson didn't want this, so Damon didn't want it. But Wilson kept coming back; the tiger managed to smack Damon's muzzle, so Damon hit back, and the force made Wilson stumbled to the side.
"I said stop!" Jackson shouted, rushing over. "You guys are wasting your time with—"
Wilson harshly kicked Jackson away with his back leg before he could get between them, and then he pounced at Damon.
Damon watched Jackson tumble across the snow-covered ground; he wanted to run to him, but before he could snap out of it, Wilson sunk his teeth into the Alpha's neck.
With a painful wince, Damon flinched and tried to throw him off, but no matter how hard he yanked or slammed his paws into the tiger, he wouldn't let go.
"Get the fuck off me!" he yelled.
Wilson laughed through his clamped teeth, pulling harder and harder and harder—
Damon snarled furiously, watching Julian try to help Jackson up. Knowing his mate was hurt was enough to horrify him, but the fact that Wilson was responsible made him angry enough to kill him. But that wasn't an option.
However, he'd still put him in his place.
The Alpha roared in frustration, and without hesitation, he morphed into his Prime form. As his body transformed, Wilson lost his grip, and Damon immediately snatched the tiger's neck, picked him up, and pinned him against the closest tree.
"Listen to me, you piece of shit," he growled glaring into Wilson's eyes as he squired around, trying to escape. "The next time you so much as touch my mate, I'll rip every fucking limb off your body, and when you're this pathetic, legless freak, I'll leave you out in the snow to bleed out—or maybe I'll draw some cadejo over and watch them tear the flesh from your bones."
Wilson snarled and struggled. "You ain't got the fucking balls."
"Don't I?" he tested, leaning his face closer to his. "Jackson is mine, and whether you like it or not, it's going to be that way for as long as we live. This is the last time I'm going to warn you: know your fucking place, and if you step even an inch over the line, you know what's coming."
The tiger scoffed at him.
"Do you understand?"
He growled—
Damon tightened his grip, digging his claws into his flesh. "Do you fucking understand?"
With a struggled grunt, the tiger choked, "Yes."
The Alpha let go of him and stepped back. He watched him for a moment, ensuring he wasn't going to pounce once he turned his back, and then hurried over to Jackson, returning to his normal wolf form.
His mate was sitting between the pack, who were all standing around him.
"Jackson?" he asked worriedly, moving through the crowd.
When he set his eyes on his mate, pain and guilt struck his racing heart. Wilson's kick hit Jackson's face, and a ghastly cut slashed across his muzzle. Blood trickled down onto the snow, and there were tears in Jackson's blue eyes.
Damon frowned sullenly. "I'm sorry," he said, moving closer to him.
To his relief, Jackson didn't push him away. Damon nuzzled his neck and pulled him closer, holding him as he cried quietly.
"It's okay," he told him.
"I said stop," Jackson murmured, his voice muffled in Damon's fur.
"I know," Damon replied despondently. "I'm sorry. I won't let that happen again."
Bly stepped out of the crowd. "I should really put something on that," she said, nodding at Jackson's wound.
"Jack?" came Wilson's shaky voice.
Damon snarled angrily and carefully let go of Jackson. Then, he stood protectively in front of him as he lay down on the snow behind him. "Get the fuck away from him," he warned, ready to attack.
Wilson glared at him for a moment, but when he looked down at Jackson, the anger left his eyes. "I'm sorry," he said and then glanced around at everyone. "I just...lost control for a second."
Tokala scoffed at him. "For a second? You could have killed someone. What the hell was that?"
"Did you even ever learn to control yourself in your tiger form?" Wesley questioned, moving closer to Damon in order to defend him and Jackson if need be.
Wilson started stuttering. "I did, I just...I just...I'm sorry!"
"Sorry isn't gonna cut it!" Julian suddenly blurted. "You hurt Jackson! You're supposed to be his friend!"
"I think you'd be better off elsewhere," Lance snarled.
The entire pack moved closer, forming a protective circle around Jackson.
But that was when Jackson spoke up. "Guys, it's okay," he mumbled, slowly climbing to his paws. He moved out from behind Damon but stayed close to him. Then, he glared at Wilson. "I told you to stop. I asked you yesterday to stop this."
"I'm sorry, Jack," the tiger said shamefully. "I couldn't...stop."
Jackson shook his head. "You shouldn't have attacked him in the first place!" he exclaimed. "I don't know how many times I need to ask you or tell you or try to get you to understand. I'm Damon's mate, and I love him the way he is. I don't need you to act like my mom and try to save me from him!"
Wilson scoffed and frowned in confusion. "He's...I..." but he didn't snap back. He lost his frown and looked away. "I'm sorry."
"So you keep saying," Jackson muttered.
"Chief, what do we do?" Tokala asked quietly. "We can't risk something like this happening again. If he can't fully control his tiger form, none of us are safe."
"I can control it!" Wilson shouted. "I'm just sick and tired of being treated like a child! I'm here to help, so let me fucking help!"
"Calm down," Jackson growled but then winced and lifted his paw to the slowly healing cut on his muzzle.
Damon wanted to side with Tokala. He wanted Wilson gone...but the decision was ultimately Jackson's. He loved Jackson, and he cared about him, how he felt, and what he thought. He wasn't just going to banish his friend if he didn't want the same thing.
The Alpha carefully licked Jackson's muzzle to try and soothe his wound a little. Then, he quietly asked him, "What do you want to do? It's your choice."
Jackson glanced at him and looked down at the snow. A pondering expression appeared on his face, and after a few moments, he looked at Damon and shifted his gaze to Wilson. "Wilson, you're my best friend, okay? But I've asked you I don't know how many times to try and get along with Damon. He's not going anywhere, and I don't want you to go anywhere, either. But if something like this happens again...I...."
"You what?" Wilson asked with a frown.
He shook his head. "Just don't let it happen again."
Wilson didn't argue. "It won't." He shot a glare at Damon.
The Alpha snarled quietly and turned to face Jackson. "Are you okay?" he asked him, keeping his voice hushed. "Do you need to find somewhere to rest?"
"No," he mumbled. "It's just a small cut. We should move, right? We don't want Kane's wolves catching up."
Damon nodded and looked around at his pack. "Come on," he said before moving forward. He walked past Wilson, who he heard snarl quietly, but he did his best to ignore it.
As Damon led the way, he stuck closely to Jackson. He was going to do everything in his power to keep Wilson away from him. He didn't care if it made him look like an asshole; that muto hurt his mate, and he was certain he'd do it again. Wilson evidently didn't know how to control himself, and that made Damon feel an even stronger urge to keep him away from Jackson.
From this moment forward, as far as he was concerned, Wilson was his enemy; he couldn't leave him alone with Jackson, and he was going to keep a very close, very watchful eye on him. And the moment he so much as looked at Jackson in a way that seemed like he might attack, Damon wouldn't hesitate to put him down.
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