Chapter 361

[ 971 words ]

Talia’s POV

The Alphas moved in on Solon with their weapons raised, and my wolf jumped between them and him.

‘Get away from him,’ I growled through the mind link. ‘Don’t touch him.’

“It’s… okay… it’s okay, Talia,” Solon managed to say as he fought the infection.

The Alphas continued closing in, weapons at the ready, their eyes fixed on Solon as though he were already a monster. They had watched bitten warriors turn into mindless beasts all night, and now the Alpha King was changing before their very eyes. Every instinct told them to put him down before it was too late.

But my wolf had only one instinct.

Protect Solon, no matter what.

“Talia,” Nolan’s voice broke through, rough and tense. He pushed through the crowd, still covered in Kargon’s blood. “The toxin’s in him. His eyes are turning red. Any second now, he’ll lose control, and you’ll be the first he goes after. Step back. Solon wouldn’t want this. Please.”

‘No,’ I growled through the bond. ‘There has to be something we can do. We killed the Rogue King. We have his blood now.’

“There isn’t enough time, Talia,” Nolan said, and I could hear the pain in his voice. Solon was my brother, but he was family to Nolan too. “I promised your father and Solon I’d protect you. Don’t make me force you, Talia.”

Every Alpha watched me anxiously, weapons still raised. Behind me, I could hear Solon writhing in agony, fighting a battle he was slowly losing. But I couldn’t… I just couldn’t leave him to die.

The standoff stretched on, neither side willing to give way.

“There is a way,” Camilla said, stepping past the Alphas with her hands glowing. Solon’s head jerked toward me, and I could see my brother was gone behind those red eyes. He lunged at me then, jaws open, aiming for my throat.

Camilla lowered her hands to cast a spell, and Solon hit the ground hard. For a moment, I thought she had killed him, but then I saw he was still breathing, just barely.

“He’s unconscious. You have an hour, maybe less, before the spell fades. Tie him up with whatever will hold him. Then get the healer to make the antidote. Once the spell is gone, there won’t be another chance for him,” Camilla said.

“Derek, tie him up now,” Nolan immediately ordered.

Derek was already moving with another Silverfang warrior. They quickly tied Solon’s wrists and ankles and strapped his chest. Their faces were grim and silent. Then they dragged his limp body into an iron cage, locked it, and stepped back, not sure if the bars would hold him.

‘No one goes near him until I say so. Do you understand?’ I said through the mind link. The Alphas agreed, though they didn’t like it. I knew why they hesitated, but I wasn’t giving up on Solon. I couldn’t save my father, but I can save Solon.

Nolan hurried across the yard, looking around, and started giving orders. The Alphas turned from Solon to him as he took charge. “Colin, Henry, deal with the remaining rogues. The rest of you, stand guard until it’s finished.”

“What about our men? If there’s an antidote…” one Alpha started.

“If you can restrain them, do so, but do not risk a bite,” Nolan said. “We can not have a mad Alpha. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Alpha Nolan!”

Nolan grabbed the empty flask from Henry. He walked back to Kargon’s corpse and filled it with the Rogue King’s blood. “We need to get this to Leslie now.”

‘Get on my back,’ I said through the mate bond, crouching down. ‘I’ll get you there faster.’

Nolan didn’t argue. He climbed onto my back, holding the flask close. I ran across the yard toward the hospital wing, dodging the wreckage.

I carried him straight to the doors. He jumped off and rushed inside before I even stopped. My wolf ran after him, my legs shaking with exhaustion.

Leslie was on her feet the moment we came through. “What happened? Where’s Solon?” she demanded.

“He’s bitten. We’ve got him chained, but Camilla’s spell is only keeping him unconscious. This is the Rogue King’s blood. You have everything you need to make the cure now.”

Leslie froze. The color drained from her face, but she quickly composed herself and took the flask from Nolan.

“How much time do I have?” she asked, her voice tight.

“One hour,” Nolan replied grimly. “Less now.”

Leslie ran to her lab without saying anything else. I changed back to my human form and stood in the hallway with Nolan, even though my legs were shaking. All we could do was wait and count the minutes.

I’ve waited in a lot of hallways before, but this was the worst. Every minute that passed took more of Solon’s life. We should be celebrating our victory, but now we’re just waiting to see if we can save Solon. I wish I could kill Morgana and Kargon again.

‘Try to stay calm. Leslie can save him,’ my wolf told me.

I half expected Nolan to say something to calm me, but he stayed quiet. Nolan was as anxious as I was. He just stood next to me, his arm around my waist, letting me lean on him.

Thirty minutes had passed when I heard Colin’s voice in my head. ‘Talia, Solon’s moving. He’s still asleep, but he’s pulling at the chains. Whatever Camilla did to him is wearing off. You don’t have much time!’

‘Let me know the moment his eyes open,’ I replied. ‘And keep everyone away from the cage!’

“We need to let Leslie know he’s waking up,” I told Nolan. I turned to the lab door, about to knock and ask her to hurry even though I knew it wouldn’t help, when the door opened under my hand.

Leslie stood there, eyes red as if she’d been crying for hours, a loaded syringe already in her grip.

“It’s ready,” she said. “Take me to him. Now.”

If you find any errors (non-standard content, ads redirect, broken links, etc..), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible.