Broken Kingdom
Chapter 2

Ford

Two of the boys on the sand drop their guns immediately and lift their hands, but it’s too late. Maxim’s men have already mowed down the entire group, including Alexander.

I race past the dead and dying to kneel beside him, grateful to see his eyes still open as he gasps for breath.

“Hold on,” I say, my breath rushing out as I open his shirt to replace an armored vest beneath. Relief dumps into my b***d, making my hands shake as I check to make sure the bullet didn’t pierce the Kevlar. “You’re going to be okay,” I tell him. “You’re just bruised, maybe a few broken ribs at worst. Stay here. I’ll be back to get you as soon as I can.”

I’m about to stand when he grabs my wrist, holding on tight as he grunts, “Hammer and his men are getting drunk on the quad. Most of our people are being held captive in the Variant house, but not all the fighters want to fight. Give them the chance to surrender if you can?”

I nod and promise to try, but I’m not in charge of this offensive. Maxim is and he’s just lost half the men he brought to this fight as well as one of his best friends and second-in-command.

Hermione might still be alive, but it isn’t looking good. Her com device is offline and none of the survivors who escaped into the woods above Lost Moon have seen her. And Maxim, like most of the Alphas I’ve known in my life, answers pain with violence. He’s going to slaughter every Hammer ally he replaces and worry about the collateral damage later.

Maybe if he didn’t think his sister has died just a few days ago things would be different, but it’s too late to tell him that Diana might be alive now. He’s already leading the charge toward the gates.

I squeeze Alexander’s shoulder and start to rise, but he grits out, “Wait, Ford. Just in case something happens to me, you should know. Jean-Paul took Juliet. Or he was planning to. Hammer promised him Juliet in marriage in exchange for his help taking Lost Moon. I doubt he’ll wait long before making the union official.”

My jaw clenches so tight that my back teeth begin to vibrate. “Where’s he taking her?”

“I don’t know,” Alexander says. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he heads back to Montreal. They think they’ve won. As long as you don’t let the outside world know any different, he won’t feel any need to hide.” He pulls in a labored breath and adds, “I’ll help you. I’ll do whatever I can. I’m so sorry I let you down.”

My brow furrows as the meaning of his words hits like a punch in the gut. “You were working with them,” I rasp.

“Beck was going to kill Catherine,” he says, tears filling his eyes. “I didn’t think I had a choice.”

“There’s always a choice. You could have told us. We could have protected her together.”

“I wasn’t sure of that,” he says. “She’s the most important thing in the world to me, Ford. I couldn’t put her at risk. Imagine it was Juliet. Wouldn’t you have done the same?”

I don’t know what I would have done, but I know I can’t waste another second here on the beach. I need to join the fighting. The sooner we take Lost Moon, the sooner I can be on my way to replace Juliet.

I start toward the gate, when something pricks at the back of my mind, and I turn back, “What about that day in the woods? When you stepped in to save Juliet from Beck?”

“Beck told me what he had planned,” Alex says. “He wanted to make sure you trusted me.”

“And we did,” I say, feeling like a fool.

“I’m sorry,” Alex says again, wincing as he pulls in another breath. “Hate me if you want. Hurt me if you want. Just replace Catherine and make sure she’s safe. She’s innocent. She had no idea what I was up to. She’s always been a real friend to you and Juliet, and I want to be one, too. If you’ll let me.”

“I have to go,” I say, rising to go again.

“I’ll join the fighting on your side as soon as I can,” Alex says, grimacing as he touches ginger fingers to his chest. “As soon as it doesn’t hurt to breathe.”

“Stay here,” I say. “Like I said, you probably have broken ribs, and you don’t want to get in Maxim’s way. He’s shooting anyone that he doesn’t know for damned sure is on his side. As much as I’d like to see a bullet through you right now, Catherine doesn’t deserve the pain of grieving her brother.”

I turn and run through the sand to the sea gate.

Thankfully, the first face I see is a friendly one.

Trevor and a tiny boy I recognize from the dorm—one of the seventeen-year-olds who landed early admission—are guarding the entrance. They’re both armed, but the younger kid is so slim his arms are trembling simply from bearing the weight of his weapon. The good news is that it seems like most of the fighting is taking place further up the rise, near the quad.

Clapping Trevor on the shoulder, I say, “You did good. If Alexander comes up from the beach, let him in, but no one else.”

Trevor nods, his face pale but his expression determined. “Will do. Hammer tried to come through a few minutes ago, but we shot at him. He shot back, but he missed.”

“Just barely,” the younger kid pipes up. “I could feel the bullets hot by my face.” He shudders. “I don’t ever want to be around guns ever again.”

“Where did he go?” I ask, an ugly hope fizzing in my stomach. The only thing better than seeing Hammer dead on the battlefield would be getting to put a bullet through him myself.

Trevor points to the right. “That way. Toward the art museum, I think.”

I nod and say, “Keep up the good work,” before sprinting in that direction. On my way, I cross a corner of the quad, getting close enough to the fighting for a few bullets to whizz past my head, as well, but I don’t stop to return fire. I have to get to Hammer before anyone else does.

I need to see the light go out of the old man’s eyes.

But first, I’m going to tell him that Juliet’s mine. I’m going to tell him that we’re united and in love and that, together, we’re going to erase his name from the Zion pack history books.

I race through the small stand of trees beside the lake in time to see Hammer and a taller, thinner man running toward the museum building on the other side. Behind him, Hammer drags President Benoit, her hands tied in front of her. I pause for a second, lifting my weapon, but I can’t be sure I won’t hit Juliet’s mom, and they’re already circling around the side of the structure.

I push harder, sprinting across the grass with my pulse pounding in my ears. It’s so loud that for a moment, I think the whomp whomp sound filling the air is coming from inside of me.

Then I see the blades of the helicopter rising from behind the museum and grind to a halt with a savage curse.

I lift my gun, weighing the risks of firing at the chopper, but it’s already turned and started out toward the sea.

I catch a glimpse of my stepfather in the passenger’s seat and then nothing but the tail of the helicopter as it zooms away into the golden sunrise. I curse again, wishing more than I’ve ever wished for anything that I had Juliet’s powers. I’d really love to transform into a flame-throwing bird and chase them down, but I’m land bound and the best thing I can do now is keep anyone else from escaping.

I run back toward the quad to join the fighting to replace the last of Hammer’s men on their bellies in front of the faculty building, their hands held behind them as Maxim’s team moves smoothly and efficiently down the line, cuffing them and checking for hidden weapons.

But there are only thirty or so captives. The rest of the force Hammer brought to take Lost Moon are dead on the grass. The entire quad is littered with bodies, many of them familiar to me. I recognize men I trained with as a kid, women I respected for their skill in hand-to-hand combat, and kids not much older than Trevor lying in pools of their own b***d.

I wonder how many of them wanted to fight and how many were forced here to please their Alpha?

I don’t know. I may never know. All I can do is return home and try to make up for all this senseless bloodshed. And if my pack is filled with people who truly believe Variants are second-class shifters who should be sold into slavery…

Well, I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Juliet and I will cross it—together.

She’s still alive. I know it. I can feel it. Our connection is stronger than ever, and I intend to use that to my advantage to get her back.

Thoughts already spinning with a plan, I start back across the lawn to Maxim Thorn, ready to ask the Wolf King of New York for one final favor.