Chapter 35

"What the hell is she?" Someone whispered next to me. The question brought back memories of what Sadie had said about the two vampires when they were feeding. Could this be what they meant? Is it possible that they sensed something in her blood—something that none of us knew about her? Her deadly eyes turned to Alec. "I've been waiting for this for a long time... I'm going to enjoy tearing you into pieces," her lips twisted into a cruel smile. Her voice was barely recognizable, sending chills down my back. It was distorted, as if caught between human and beast. Alec released his Alpha aura, which felt different somehow. Seeing this, Sadie increased hers, bringing everyone to their knees, including me. Alec half-shifted—something no werewolf has ever been able to do. He rushed toward Sadie. The man had guts; I’ll give him that. I watched as they collided, their impact shaking the entire ground beneath our feet. I could feel the tension in the air—the anger and hatred between them. The wind picked up, and by the time it cleared, Sadie had Alec in the same position he had her just moments ago. It was shocking, not only to us but to his entire pack. I didn’t know what happened or how it happened, but something was different about her. She was powerful, and gone was the girl I met three years ago. A gasp escaped my mouth when, out of nowhere, a pair of majestic white wings unfolded from her back. She launched a few feet off the ground before dropping Alec. He hit the ground hard, leaving every one of our pack members scrambling to get away from them. Over and over, Sadie didn’t waste any time; she launched herself at Alec, punching him and plummeting him to the ground. Each of her punches was powerful, almost as if she were using extraterrestrial strength. “Shit,” King cursed beside me as Sadie lifted him before flinging him like he was nothing but paper. He hit the wall hard, demolishing the entire structure. “She’s going to kill him,” I said, remembering what she had said. There was a lot of bitterness for what Alec did to her, and who could blame her? The bastard tortured her for months. I may not have been there physically, but I could feel her pain and agony day in and day out through my dreams. Her pain was unimaginable, not just physically. As if that wasn’t enough, even after torturing her, he still didn’t leave her alone in peace. He wanted to inflict as much damage as possible by labeling her a traitor. To add to his sins, Alec had almost killed Aspen. That is one thing I believe Sadie will never be able to forgive him. She felt nothing for him except pure hate. That alone was enough for her to kill him without any remorse. If you had asked me, she wouldn’t have been able to take him down before. Sure, she was the best in the pack, but Alec was an Alpha—a powerful one at that. Given that she couldn’t shift, she wouldn’t have been a match for him, who, word has it, is a beast in both human and wolf forms. This new version—whatever she was—was more powerful than anyone I had ever encountered. This new form could easily take out Alec without breaking a sweat. “We have to stop her,” King said, worry coating his voice. Sadie flapped her wings, heading straight at Alec at a rapid speed. He wasn’t able to move when she landed another blow, then followed it with a kick to the gut. He crumpled to the floor, but Sadie didn’t stop there. She followed through with kick after kick and blow after blow. Alec was bloodied and barely seemed to be moving. She lifted his unmoving body, and right before our eyes, she broke his spine. I winced when I heard it snap. He roared in pain as Sadie dumped his weak body to the ground. He was a werewolf, and he would heal in a couple of days, but it was still excruciating, and he would be in a hell of pain. It took their Alpha roaring in pain to unfreeze his people. I guess they were in shock; no one had ever been able to defeat the mighty Alpha Alec until now. The fact that he was defeated by the woman he tortured was a surprise. I sensed a different kind of aura. It wasn’t as powerful as Alec's, but it was still strong, so I guessed it belonged to his Beta. “You’ll pay for this, Sadie!” he shouted. Sadie turned, facing them with those piercing white eyes. “Ah, Jason... you’re next. I’m going to destroy all of you before finally killing your pathetic, weak Alpha,” she said with a cold smirk. She held a hand up high, and a golden staff shot down from the sky, landing in her hand. She pointed it in the direction of Alec's pack. “Be prepared to die.” It was the only warning she gave before she attacked. With the kind of force she was using, this was going to be a massacre. “Is Aspen safe?” I asked King as I watched Sadie demolish Alec's pack and destroy the pack house in the process. “Yeah, I told Martha to get to the safe house and stay there until we come for them,” he replied. “I’ve also told the rest of the pack to stay away and keep safe until all this is over.” I nodded and turned to my best friend and sister. “Sadie!” I shouted. “Please listen to me; stop this.” She didn’t give any sign that she heard me. I am a powerful witch, but given her aura, I knew I was no match for her. I doubted any of my spells would work on her. Alec was down, his Beta was down, and now she was working her way through the warriors who were trying to fight her. I started to panic, knowing that in a few seconds they’d all be down. “On second thought, I’ll kill your best friend first, Jason; that way, you can watch as he dies, just like you watched in his office as he was about to kill me,” Sadie said after finishing with the last warrior. “No,” he tried to say, but his voice was weak. Sadie just laughed before walking toward Alec and lifting him up by his neck. “Do something,” the unknown guy next to me said. “She’s going to kill him.” “I’m not as powerful,” I whispered, staring at him, wondering why the hell Sadie had not hurt him, given that he was also a member of Alec's pack. “Just like you, I’m helpless.” He didn’t wait for me to finish before rushing toward Sadie. I shook my head, thinking he was dumb. Didn’t he see what happened to the rest of his pack? Did he really think he could take her on? “Sadie!” he shouted. “Please don’t kill him. You’ve already hurt him. Don’t end him, and don’t end the others.” “He hurt me, Micah... He should pay for what he did.” “I know, but I’m begging you, please... spare them,” he said, slowly approaching her. “Why should I spare them? They deserve to die.” He sighed. “Because you owe me. I saved your life, and I’m asking you to return the favor by sparing them.” I was confused. How did he save her life? King and I stared at each other, the same question ringing in our heads. We got our answer in the next second. “Fine,” she said before dropping Alec. “They’re alive because you helped me escape the dungeon. I will spare them this once, but the next time this bastard tries to attack or threaten my friends and pack, I’ll end his pathetic life.” “Thank you,” he muttered, bowing down to her. She turned to us. “Lock all of them in the dungeon, except for Micah.” Without another word, she spread her wings and shot into the sky. The three of us were left looking after her, and the only question ringing in my head was: what or who is Sadie Evans?