Wolv

28 - Leaving the pit

Kémé howled in agony, spitting out both rage and tears simultaneously at the bloodied-ball of fur that lay crumpled at his paws. Blood soaked the granite beneath his feet, sopping up into the fur covering his toes.

The wolf before him was barely recognizable as such. Its hips had been bludgeoned in, and a good chunk of its tail had been shot off. Blood pooled at its mouth.

It was Alawa who lay at his feet.

Dead.

Kémé nuzzled her neck, hoping beyond hope for a response. I stared at the scene, wide-eyed. All I could see was Alawa's mangled body; everyone else had faded out of view.

The battle had been won; the enemy dead dragged away, and already forgotten. After all, who could mourn the enemy when your own had suffered so greatly?

Eleven wolves had been killed, and virtually everyone else had been injured. Two of the Alphas would never walk again; three others had had limbs shot off.

The pack count now stood at thirty-five.

I shot a glance back down into the den at Mingan's motionless form, than turned back to Kémé.

I hated him, more than I'd ever hated anyone before, even more than I'd hated my own father. All the pain he'd caused, and all the harm that had come to those few that I cared about...it was unforgivable.

But all that malice I held was evaporating from within me, disappearing into the clouds above. He had lost someone now; he knew how it felt.

I stepped away from the den entrance and pushed through the throng of Alphas that surrounded Kémé. Each was tending to their own wounds; for once, none of them were focused on their leader.

Gingerly, I lifted a paw over the last of them, receiving nothing but a distracted growl in response.

"I wouldn't go any nearer if I were you," the golden-brown Alpha muttered, then returned to licking her mangled paw. I pressed forward, despite the warning.

Kémé's nose twitched as I approached, but he kept his head stooped down over his fallen mate.

"They were retreating. We whittled them down until they were all dead. We had won," he whispered quietly. Even with my enhanced hearing, I could barely discern his words. His voice shook with grief. "We missed one of them. He took Alawa from me before I could get to her!"

"I'm so sorry," I rasped. I had nothing to be sorry for, but the words had just slipped out. I really didn't know what else to say to him.

"Why? You didn't kill her." His eyes strayed away from Alawa's corpse, and slowly found their way to my own. "This isn't anyone's fault. It just happened. If you hadn't met that Doctor, someone else would have eventually. If anyone is to blame, it's me." He lowered his head, looking utterly defeated.

"Tell them," he whispered. "My life here is over without her. Tell them what you saw."

I opened my mouth and drew in a breath, preparing to speak. Before I could form any words, Kémé buried his head into Alawa's fur. "The pack is ruined now. And it is high time that my secret be made known. You, of all people, should be the one to tell them." A muffled whine reverberated from his throat. "I'm no better than the man who did this to us. I'm no better!"

My jaws snapped shut. I'm no better. The words rang through my head, sounding too reminiscent of an event I thought I had forgotten.

I blinked my eyes several times. An image from a life I'd long forsaken drifted through my mind.