Wolf Dominion Volume 2
Chapter 22

Opular was correct.

We wolves weren’t strong apart.

We were stronger together.

Skye’s family is eating a grilled late dinner, celebrating all together on top of Hades’ apartment, where he has a nice open terrace area. They look so happy and united, especially Mila, who keeps talking of Opular’s future takedown.

I stand with Fyre, who is by the edge of the balcony overlooking Cracklen, looking haunted. She was still a kid, and no matter how many times I reminded myself of such… she always surprised me.

“I’m going to kill you,” Fyre speaks to the city, but speaks of me as I stand with her.

“Why?” I ask.

“Because there is only room for one, and I am made to replace you,” Fyre turns to me now, raising a brow, “…or maybe I’m just the back up Luna, but you and I can’t co-exist together.”

“You hate Wolf Dominion,” I state, “What kind of Luna would you be?”

Fyre slowly smiles, before she answers, “Nothing like you. Whore.”

I grab her ear, quick and mean, “Don’t talk to me like that –”

Handling her so rough, she consequentially rips her nails into my arm, immediately causing blood to flow down my fingers. I grit my teeth and don’t make a noise, while she keeps her nails dug in deep to inflict maximum pain.

Even as I unhand her ear, she holds my arm, at her mercy.

“No one disgusts me more than you,” Fyre slowly takes her nails out of my veins, to watch my every expression. Her young eyes are full and wide with passion, and fury, “You’re weak, you run and lie and you have no idea what you’re doing. What’s your plan? No need to answer. You don’t have one.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” I hiss.

“You shouldn’t be allowing the Alphas to rule again,” Fyre holds out a hand, and drops her voice to a whisper, “Are you an idiot?”

“I’m the Luna.”

“The Lunatic,” Fyre slowly shakes her head at me, “I’m the Luna. You’re the Lunatic,” I say nothing, as she slowly smiles, “You want to know why Opular thinks you’re so funny?” she whispers even more quietly, “The same reason I think you’re funny,” I have no idea what she’s talking about, until she turns and picks up a beer bottle, smashing it on the ground to grab all the Alpha’s attention on this rooftop terrace, “Listen to me you dogs!”

“Oh, here we go,” Raygar chuckles and takes a seat, while the other Alpha’s silence themselves and give Fyre their full attention. I roll my eyes and lean back on the balcony, and cross my arms over my chest, ignoring my bloody arm, waiting for her speech instead.

“What is it?” Skye begins to ask carefully, and Fyre smiles sadistically.

“Opular said he’ll remove his sights from Cracklen, this new haven, and all prospect of ID tagging… if we hand this stupid slut back over to him,” Fyre chuckles about me, before turning to me, “On my order, you’re banished from the Dominion and you’ll march yourself back to Cat Dominion, and pay for your crime of running, leaving all of us to be enslaved while you had a cry in a corner, about how sad your life is.”

The silence is thick.

But I’m not angry.

Although the others are shocked by her audacity though. What can you say to a fucking child talking like that?

“You’re right,” so I agree with her, and now it’s Fyre’s turn to be shocked. She blinks slow and looks at me only for a moment.

“THEN LEAVE,” Fyre screams, and finally starts to cry – breaking down on the spot. She starts to fall apart in her hysteria, as if a memory consumes her, and I have to catch her before she drops to the ground.

“Calm down!” I try to yell, but she won’t stop screaming incoherently.

Vastian rushes over and injects something into her arm – until she passes out. Squatting by me, Vastian puts an arm on my shoulder and his eyes are glazed.

“She’s traumatised Ryder.”

“You think?” I whisper, “She almost died in the desert. Then you did this to both of us in the lab, you made us into these mad warriors of your Dominion. Then she was a slave. Now she’s this – out of control.”

“Well, well, well, we have another lunatic in the city,” Hades waltzes over, replaceing it all rather amusing.

“Watching a child breakdown is not funny,” I stand up to face him, “She’s terrified of being in another war, is that not obvious?”

“I’ve met wolves like her,” Hades shrugs, “She won’t last long. Too reckless. More Omega than Luna. That is a ticking time bomb, I used to be the same, bad temper – until I found things more funny than anything else,” Hades sighs, “And meaningless,” he’s thinking of his ship, looking around Cracklen with a far away look.

“That’s your escape,” I realise, “I wonder what you used to be like when there was no prospect of a way off this planet.”

“Unpredictable is an understatement,” Vastian stands with Fyre in his arms, “I’m taking her to bed to rest. She’ll be calm when she’s had a full night’s sleep.”

“She lost her mind more and more while enslaved,” Raygar admits, “No matter what Lemeri did that was kind… kind of made her worse,” Raygar seems perplexed by the young ferocious kid.

“She’s a real warrior,” Mila tries to explain.

Skye has another idea, after hearing us all out, “Some of us can’t be told what to do, or we lose our minds,” he explains smoothly, “I reacted the same under Tyra.”

“Too used to getting your own way,” I joke, but Skye’s eyes cut.

“No,” Skye shakes his head, denying it.

“I survived just fine being your slave,” I retort.

“…because you liked it…” Skye murmurs, in front of everyone. Hades whistles, as if afraid I’ll attack. But I’m not provoked.

“I was comfortable enough,” I murmur back.

“Anyway,” Mila interrupts with a small hiss, “No Opular for you, Ryder, he’s mine.”

“I won’t kill him,” I state, “I promise you, I’ll only–”

“You’re not going anywhere near him,” Skye overrides the conversation, his voice rising, “We all stay in Cracklen until we work out the takeover.”

“So did you fuck them all?” Mila asks me, in front of all her family.

We’ve all come to stand in a circle now, Vastian the only one absent as he tends to Fyre.

“Yes,” I answer honestly, “I enjoyed it, but…” all the men hold their breath, “I don’t want fighting. You can take your turns, separately next time. Alone. Not all together. You all hump me like an animal. I do prefer… romantic gestures. Seriously,” Mila snorts. Skye, Hades and Raygar go quiet, and all look sly, “What,” I ask, dry and deadpan.

“You didn’t like being gagged?” Skye asks, raising a brow.

“You seemed desperate,” I’m just being honest, “Eat, get your usual calm patient self-back – and then you won’t have to be so frantic when you fuck. I lost some respect for you, Skye,” better to keep them on edge, even if I did have a good time.

Skye is pissed off, and Raygar kind of replaces it funny, while Hades is looking at me suspiciously.

“Ryder,” Hades drags on a smoke, “…look behind you…”

I turn around, to see a new comer.

It’s a nurse.

She’s holding my son by the hand, he’s so tiny, but he can already stand as he holds her hand.

I can’t breathe.

I… I… had still been… avoiding… him.

He’s looking at me, with big brown eyes, and he is a very calm baby, a calm demeanour like Skye.

My heart nearly drops into my stomach.

Because behind her is a tall giant in a robe.

He’s holding the nurse hostage.

But there is a strange turn of events, just as quickly as I notice him there.

As Opular pulls down his hood – the fool he is coming here alone – he smiles as his long blonde hair falls out of his robe.

“My boy!”

His voice echoes, and I watch my son turn around and squeal in delight.

“DADDY!”

The nurse is shoved aside and Opular scoops up little Ryder, holding him to his chest in a tight hug.

“Argh, my gift,” Opular waltzes forward with total arrogance, looking straight at Skye, “From you, Alpha. Just reminding you… your son is my pet. Hostage.”

“You take my son and now his!” Mila almost launches herself – but Raygar and Hades swiftly pull her back, lest there are snipers looking in.

“Why are you here? Because I killed Tyra?” I ask, stepping forward and trying to remain as calm as possible.

“You may be surprised to hear the answer,” Opular sounds completely uninterested in his dead daughter, which I replace disturbing… “The nurse managed to get a call into me, said the baby wouldn’t stop crying for me. I ask, where’s his mother… she says… nowhere to be seen,” Opular judges me, harshly, “You’ve never met your son?”

“I wasn’t… I just wasn’t… ready,” I feel so pathetic saying it, and everything Fyre accused me of – being weak, lying, a whore – it all feels real, when I see little Ryder holding who he thinks is his father, totally unaware I am his mother.

“Wasn’t ready,” Opular bounces Ryder onto his shoulder, trying to hide his disgust, “I’ll be taking my son.”

“Is he happy with you?” I ask, Opular nods, and I can’t believe I’m about to relinquish this… but… “…then take him…” I whisper.

“NO,” Skye steps forward, shaking his head, “That’s my fucking son.”

Skye walks right up to Opular, until their foreheads make contact, and Skye looks down at the baby, who is giggling at him.

“S-slave,” the baby looks at Skye and then Opular for approval.

“That’s right,” Opular responds.

“So you came here to provoke and then to die,” Skye speaks without emotion, “You’ll be dead in a few minutes, I’ll take my time.”

“Kill me in front of Ryder,” Opular dares him, “There is a knife in my back pocket, grab it – stab me in front of little Ryder. I do love him you know. I’ve come to love him. Perhaps at the beginning I despised him, but now… he is mine. I raised him. As we agreed Skye.”

“So, what of a truce? You want our Luna dead –”

“Have your truce, just stay in Cracklen, stay out of my way,” Opular blinks, shrugging, “I won’t lose another child to another wolf,” Opular looks past Skye, to Raygar, “You’ll never see my Meri again. Ever. She’ll be properly mated to a First Sworn in a few weeks. My daughter Lemeri and my son Ryder are my family now.”

“I murdered Tyra, you don’t care?” I ask, completely aghast.

“She died in battle, defending me, my Dominion,” Opular responds, matter of fact, “She did what is expected of us all.”

“You are at peace with that?” I ask, “Then why did you tell everyone you want to execute me?”

“That’s for you to see who really is loyal,” Opular winks at me, “It won’t be my concern. It’s yours. I’ll see you within the week… you’re welcome to see your son… to be a mother… whenever you want…”

“Just leave you fool,” Skye puts his hand on Opular’s face and shoves him back. Little Ryder starts to cry at the movement, while Opular is taken aback by Skye’s hard humiliating push back, and then this too, “And take your son with you,” I hear it in Skye’s voice, a disowning of his own blood.

He cuts his heart off from him.

I feel myself stay silent, as Opular’s eyes roam over the family meeting, and he turns to leave.

He walks straight into Vastian upon his return.

Vastian is shell shocked, while Opular only stays a second to gloat.

But at the last minute.

I make my move.

“I will go with you!”

I push forward, and I swiftly jump over the gate to the terrace rooftop.

Skye cannot touch me, I’ve run too quick.

Vastian holds Skye back, as he yells my name, while I rush to walk side by side with Opular.

“For your son?” Opular asks. I nod, but there is more.

We needed to finish what we started.

I had more to learn – and I was free to roam. That’s why I was going back.