Alpha's STOLEN Mate (by Abigail Hayes) novel Chapter 137

Chapter 137

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I arrived at the training grounds early and waited in the moonlight. Exactly ten minutes later, Cross appeared, looking completely relaxed

-not a trace of fatigue from his earlier activities.

“Frost!” He stretched lazily. “Listen, I’ll give you one last chance. Kneel. Apologize. And I’ll call off this execution you’re begging for.” His

smile turned predatory. “Otherwise, you’re going to watch me rip out your heart.”

I shifted without answering. My gray wolf form materialized, smaller than it used to be but still lethal. I bared my fangs.

Cross laughed, not bothering to transform. Instead, he drew a dagger from his belt-and my blood ran cold as I recognized it.

“Know this blade?” he taunted, twirling it in the moonlight. “That’s right-the same one I used to stab your precious Queen. Since you’re

so obsessed with her, Frost, since you want to taste her so badly…” He licked the blade theatrically. “Let me give you a taste of her blood!”

The rage that consumed me was beyond reason. I lunged, claws extended, aiming for his throat.

But Cross was faster than I’d anticipated. He dodged left, then right, his human form somehow matching my wolf’s speed. The dagger slashed out in controlled arcs, each strike coming within inches of my vital organs.

Fuck. He’s toying with me.

I shifted tactics, using my speed to create after-images. One gray wolf became three, my form blurring as I moved in unpredictable

patterns.

“Fuck!” Cross snarled as he stabbed one of the phantoms, his blade passing through empty air. “You still have enough energy for

illusions?!”

He leaped high to avoid another phantom charging from the ground, bringing his dagger down to pierce its skull. But again-nothing but

illusion.

That’s when the real attack came. I dropped from above, my claws extended, aiming for his head while he was still airborne and

vulnerable.

Cross tried to twist, to bring his blade up in defense-but my tail whipped out first, striking his wrist with bone-breaking force. The

dagger flew from his grip, spinning away into the darkness.

My claws connected with his face.

I hooked my talons into his eye socket and pulled.

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Chapter 137

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Cross’s scream was inhuman as his eyeball came free, dangling from my claws for a horrifying moment before I flung it aside. He crashed to the ground, one hand clutching his ruined face, blood pouring between his fingers.

“FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!” he roared, staggering backward.

But even wounded, even half-blind, he maintained frightening composure. His hand went to his pocket, emerging with a small vial filled

with dark liquid.

No. I’ve seen that before-

Cross drank it in one gulp.

The transformation was immediate and grotesque. His body convulsed, bones cracking and reforming. When he shifted into his black wolf form, the missing eye had regenerated-and his entire physique had swelled to nearly twice its normal size. Muscles bulged beneath fur that now looked more like armor, and his eyes glowed with unnatural red light.

Fuck.

The enhanced black wolf attacked with inhuman speed and strength. I dodged, using my agility to stay ahead of his jaws and claws, but I could feel my body failing. Each movement was harder than the last, my muscles burning with exhaustion that had nothing to do with the

fight itself.

My condition is worsening faster than I thought.

Cross’s jaws snapped shut inches from my throat. His claws raked across my side, drawing blood. I was losing ground, and we both knew

Then his massive paw closed around my neck.

He lifted me off the ground, his grip tightening with inexorable pressure. I thrashed, but he was simply too strong. The enhancement

potion had made him monstrous.

This is it, I thought distantly as my vision began to darken. This is how I die.

Images flashed through my failing mind:

My mother’s face, weathered and kind, the day she’d told me to find a better life than slavery.

My sister’s laughter, rare and precious in our harsh world.

Elowen.

God, Elowen. I never told you. I never said-

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Chapter 137

I’d lived twenty-three years. Escaped slavery, risen to Beta of the most powerful pack in the territory, served a King I respected. But I’d

never told the woman I loved how I felt.

Maybe the witch was right. Maybe I’ve been living for everyone else.

Cross’s claws began to pierce my throat, ready to tear it out completely-

And then a blade erupted through his chest.

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Alpha’s STOLEN Mate