Reign Of The King The Falcon Ridge Series Book 10

The morning sun pulls me into reality. All night, my dreams were flooded with Ricky and many potential nights together.

I open an eye as a wonderful aroma of orchids fills my nose. My face buried in her hair.

My arm is wrapped around her soft, amazing body. I shift slightly to cuddle a bit more. Funny, I never was a cuddlier before, I actually kind of like it. The warmth of her body has my wolf actually purring in his cage.

I was almost settled to go back to sleep when Ricky stirs.

I smile and move her hair from her neck. “Good morning.” I kiss her cheek.

She hugs my arm. “Good morning, sexy.” Her morning voice has my mouth watering.

I pull her around and cup her cheek. “You’re the sexy one.” I grin as I lay my lips softly on hers.

“I guess we can have that breakfast.” She smiles.

“Well, you planned it that way didn’t you?” I kiss her nose and cheek.

“Kinda.” She shrugs.

“My crafty, little devil.” I smile. I lean on her as I give her a deep kiss.

Her phone pings.

I break the kiss. “You really need to silence that thing.”

She chuckles and reaches for it. She opens the phone. “It’s my emergency line.”

“Again?” I say.

She sits up. “Oh my God.”

I sit up. “Ricky. What is it?”

“Five hundred Nordics have been seen on the move.” She looks at me.

“Phoenix?”

Her eyes widen. “No. They’ll be here in a matter of hours.”

“To Falcon Ridge?” I ask.

She nods. “Zander, we don’t have the weaponry here. We don’t stand a chance.”

She gets out of bed. She opens another window in her phone.

“What are you doing?” I ask getting up and standing beside her.

“I’m texting the Phoenix air hanger. Maybe the helicopter can beat them here. They can’t bring much and training will be bare minimum. But maybe it will give us the chance we need to fight back.” She says as she types.

“Ok. Get cleaned up. We leave immediately.” I demand.

We both dress and head downstairs. “Nala!”

“Good morning, Sire.” She says.

“Morning. Falcon Ridge is under attack. We need your skills.” I place an arm on her.

“From whom?” She asks.

“Nordic wolves.” I inform.

She nods and removes her robe. She shifts to a lion and roars loud.

Ricky looks at her. “Cool.” She grins.

“No time.” I eye her and grab her hand.

We all run to my driver’s SUV. I let Nala in the back seat and Ricky and I take the front. I peel out to the Unit.

I skid to a stop and there’s people running everywhere outside. Trucks are lining up and leaders are barking orders as the soldiers climb into the backs.

We run in and avoid the crowds. Nala’s in front clearing a path.

“Where are the Alphas?” I ask as we run.

“Um…possible the war room. Down there.” We turn down a hall. Nala roaring the whole way as people stick to the walls.

We see a door and soldiers are coming in and out.

“Yep they’re here.” Ricky says. “Declan!” She calls as a young man runs towards.

“Ricky, they’re right up our ass. What do we do?” He says as he joins her side. “Is that a lion?”

“Yes. Declan this is Zander and Nala. Declan’s my best friend.” Ricky’s introduces as we enter the room.

“Hello.” I say quickly. “Nala, come.” I

I walk into the room and Nala joins my knee.

“Whoa! Dude.” Grey says as he backs off.

“A fucking lion?” Luke barks.

“We are at war. Yes, a lion.” I scowl. “Now, what is going on?”

The Alphas take their seats as do I. Nala sits at my side and Ricky’s on the other side.

River stands up front. “As of 0300 this morning, radar picked up the signatures of the Nordic pack crossing into Alliance territory. At 0400 they triggered the outside border alarms. There coming fast ladies and gentlemen.” He looks around the room filled with people.

Wren pipes up. “Is the armor ready?”

“No. We have no time.” He informs.

Jayson flops his arm on the table. “There must be something.”

River nods. “We still have our Kevlar sleeves for regular attacks, but I can’t say they’ll protect us from these bites. Also, the rest of you will be unprotected. Especially in wolf form.”

“Great.” Grey rubs his head and looks to his twin brother Wes.

Bastian stands. “Don’t worry. This is no different than any other battle.”

“Except that our junk could end up being popsicles.” Luke scowls.

“Think positive.” Bastian arches a brow.

“Right.” Ricky leans on the table. “Now, remember, their power doesn’t work if they’re in human form. So if you can get them to shift, then you can take care of them. If anyone gets bit, try to not let them get smashed. We can try to reverse the affects in the labs.”

She leans back. “I have a Phoenix helicopter coming with weapons. Heat guns and electric nets. I’m sorry, but you’ll have to learn on the fly. I’ll help where I can.”

River leans on table. “Ok. Let’s crush some ice.” He grins.

The table groans as the Alphas stand.

He holds his arms out. “What? That was funny.”

As we walk out, I grab Ricky’s arm. “You’re not fighting. You’re staying here.”

She chuckles and takes off my hand. “You’re so cute. Sweetheart, the day you tell me I can’t fight, is the day I find you unattractive. Suit up.” She taps my chest and struts up the hall.

Nala’s lion lets out a little growl.

I look down at her. “Figures, you would find her humorous, Nala. Let’s go.” I growl.

****

We gather outside around the city limits. The people in and around the western border have either joined the fight or quickly evacuated. Most of Red Rock is here.

We wait on the edge of the main four lane highway. The unit has evacuated and blocked streets from here to the unit itself. They aren’t getting to the city.

I wait at the front of the army. Bastian and William flank my sides. The other Alphas are behind me an all Alpha pack. The rest of our army waits in their units.

River and Ricky are directly behind me and Nala is sitting at my feet.

River leans to me. “We should be seeing them soon.” He says to my shoulder.

I nod in response and cross my arms.

Nala starts to growl low.

“Easy.” I warn.

“They’re here.” Ricky says quietly.

The highway churns in movement as five hundred wolves run towards us.

As they come into view the rows shift to human forms on after another. A wave of wolves turning to humans as it crashes towards us.

They walk to a distance between us.

“Nala.” I look to her and walk out with her lion at my side.

My chest is out and my fists are balled. My head is tilted.

The one I assume is Gabriel Frost, steps forward as well. We meet with a distance between us. Our armies wait.

“LEAVE THIS PLACE OR LOSE YOUR LIFE!” my Kingly voice booms over the offending army.

“I’M HERE FOR MY MEN! GIVE THEM TO ME OR I’LL FREEZE THIS WHOLE GODDAMN CITY!” Gabriel shouts.

His army is getting restless behind him.

I flash my white eyes as my wolf surfaces. Nala roars and snarls.

“YOU WILL DIE BEFORE YOU LAY YOUR FIRST STRIKE, WOLF!” I shout as I become flanked by all the Alphas behind me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Ricky run up with Christian.

Christian steps to my side. “GABRIEL, STOP THIS!” He pleads.

“CHRIS, COME HERE!” Gabriel yells.

“ONLY IF YOU TURN AROUND AND GO HOME!” Christian shouts.

“YOU DOUBLE CROSSING ME, CHRIS?” Gabriel growls.

Christian steps forward. Nala takes steps behind him, instinctively ready to protect if anything happens. This display has me staying put. I trust Nala’s instinct.

“GABE. YOU’VE BEEN LED ASTRAY. YOU DON’T NEED TO DO THIS!” Christian yells.

“CHRIS, YOURE NOT SUPPOSED TO THINK. YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO FOLLOW ORDERS. NOW COME HERE.” Gabriel’s throws a finger to the ground.

Christian folds his arms. “NO, GABE. I WONT. I LOVE YOU LIKE A BROTHER, BUT NOT IF YOU’RE BENT ON DESTROYING YOURSELF AND KILLING OTHERS.”

“CHRIS, I’M DOING THIS FOR THE PACK! WE WERE MEANT FOR SO MUCH MORE. PHOENIX IS RIGHTFULLY OURS. THE BLOOD SPILLED IS FOR YOU!” Gabriel steps a foot closer.

“ELI WAS YOUR SON!! YOUR ONLY BLOOD!! DON’T DARE SAY YOU SPILLED HIS BLOOD FOR ME!!” Christians face twisted in anger as he screamed.

“ELI SACRIFICED HIMSELF. HE DIED FOR THE ICE, CHRIS. YOU SHOULD TOO.” Gabriel barked back.

“THE ICE IS POISON! IT’S MESSING WITH YOUR MIND, GABE. STOP THIS OR I’LL BE FORCED TO END YOU!” Christian leans with his fists balled.

“SORRY, CHRIS. NOT HAPPENING!”

“ENOUGH!” I shout stepping forward and pushing Christian back. “YOU WILL COMPLY OR FACE THE KINGS WRATH!” My anger rolls off me in waves.

“WELL, KING. BRING IT!” He waves his hand in the air and all the wolves pull bottles out of their pockets, popping corks and shooting the blue liquid like a shot.

“The ice.” Christian leans to me.

“I gathered." I eye them.

Their eyes glow ice blue as they throw their vials.

I crouch as Gabriel locks his eyes with mine.

His army releases and he joins them. Five hundred men run toward us.

“THE POTION NEEDS TWENTY MINUTES TO FUSE! KILL AS MANY AS YOU CAN!” Ricky shouts.

She tosses heat guns to Luke and Christian. “BUTTON ON THE SIDE! HOT AIR BLASTER! TRIGGER IS FLAME!”

“Wicked!” Luke grins.

I run straight for Gabriel. I stop and brace myself in a crouch. Like time slowed to a crawl, I upper cut him and he flies back into the army. I’m grabbed by passing wolves.

I’m snapping necks and ripping heads off.

William is throwing wolves. I’m thrown into him. He helps me. “Let’s do this.” He grins.

I smirk. “Lets spill some blood.” My eyes flash white and his purple as we both turn with left and right hooks. William is snapping backs and tossing the wolves back. I’m calling my Zeta and throwing uppercuts.

Nala has changed to an elephant and stamping on what she can and throwing men with her trunk.

River, Bastian and Grey come up beside us as we push the Nordics back.

“WHERES THE ALPHA!” Bastian links.

I look around. “I’ve got him.” Gabriel is fighting another solider when I come up behind him and punch him in the kidney and throw him into a pile of fighting bodies.

He stands and glares his eyes glow blue. He looks around and jumps as do all the other surviving Nordics.

They all bursts into their wolves.

“THEY’RE SHIFTING! WATCH THE VENOM!” River links

“Nala!” I yell.

She shifts to an eagle to get out of the snapping jaws of the ice wolves at her feet.

A Nordic wolf lands his jaws on my Kevlar sleeve. His bite pressure pierced the sleeve, but my Zeta healing doesn’t allow for freezing.

In a flash, I have his jaw and ripping his head in a half.

I grab a wolf off William and throw him half way across the battle.

I help him up. “Thanks.” He breathes.

“Anything for my brethren.” I clap his blood coated shoulder.

We both jump and punch down on a pair of wolves coming at us. Our fists penetrating their skulls.

Lucius is in wolf form. He grabs a wolf by the back and slams him into the ground. I turn and his blonde wolf with black ears nods and runs back into the battle.

Grey and Wes have also shifted and are fighting ice wolves viciously.

Wes is bit in the side. He shifts and hits the ground. “Grey!”

Grey shifts. “Wes!”

Wes is struggling. “Grey, help….”

His side instantly starts to freeze. “Nonononono….WES!” Grey tries to stop it. William and I run to his side.

“GRE…..” Wes chokes as his head freezes solid.

“NOOOOOO! WES!!” Grey screams.

Ricky’s shoves us out of the way. “Grey, careful. Don’t break him. I can help.”

I lean to her. “Will he live?”

“Hopefully.” Ricky says. “We need to get him to lab 6 now.”

I look to William and Lucius. They both nod.

We jump back into the fight and push the Nordics back.

“Luke. Christian. We need to clear the area."

“On our way your, Royal highness.” Luke grins as he fires heat blasts at the ice wolves who scream and yelp out of the way. Writhing on the ground, clawing for grip.

“Take that you icy bastards.” Luke cackles as he fires repeatedly.

I look behind me and medics are carefully loading Wes onto a gurney.

“Push them back more. Get them out of here!” I link.

Nala’s eagle has grown to an imaginable size. She’s grabbing ice wolves and flying them up high and dropping them.

Christian is firing the electric nets on wolves like a Taser. The wolves shift and he pushes a button and the net comes back to charge again.

River and Jayson are tearing throats out ferociously. The pair are clearing paths of death. Tossing heads and bodies as they plow through the battle.

Lucius’ wolf is clamping heads and tearing them off. His wolf grows in size as his almost feral wolf attacks relentlessly.

After pummeling another skull, I hear a large howl.

I stand as do all the other Alphas. Gabriel is at the highway. Nala narrowly misses his wolf with another Nordic that squashes on the highway beside him.

The Nordics turn tail and run out of the city.

“THEY’RE RETREATING!” I hear through the link.

We all stand. Tired, covered in blood. The area is covered in bodies both frozen and not.

“Any frozen men, get them to the labs!” River barks.

We run back through the city to Unit.

We all run into the lab area.

“Ricky.” I grab her and hug her.

She pushes me off her. “Hugs later. Right now, I have lives to save.”

I nod. Declan comes up behind her. “Ricky we’re ready.”

“Ok.” She says.

We run to lab 6. There’s a large coffin sized steel tub in the middle of the floor filled with water.

Ricky rolls up her sleeves and places sensors in the water all around the inside wall of the tub. “We’ve been experimenting with bringing the pool to other areas. In case of things like this.”

She rushes and turns on monitors and rolls carts to the tub. “The waters power is stable if we dump a bucket of original water into it once a month.”

She prepares an oxygen tank. “Mica. Be ready with the defibrillator.”

“Gotcha.” He says and rolls the cart to the tub.

Ricky breathes a breath. “This may take longer than usual, so hold on to your hats.”

The medics pick Wes up.

“Careful!” Grey yells.

“Grey. Quiet.” Ricky warns.

The medics lower Wes' frozen body into the water. He thuds on the bottom.

The water freezes almost instantly.

“Wes!” Grey leans on the tub.

“Grey. It’s normal. Trust me.” Ricky puts her hand on Grey’s who’s face is full of worry.

Gold lights swirl under the ice. Lighting bolts hit Wes’ body. We all watch closely.

“What is happening?” I ask quietly.

Ricky looks at me and smiles. “Life.”

Declan points. “Ricky, look.”

The lightening strikes, but then flash and strobe out to nothing.

Ricky’s smile fades.

“What’s going on? My bros still frozen!” Grey starts to panic.

“Must not be enough power.” Ricky looks around. She turns to Grey. “Is Mia here.”

“Yeah, she’s upstairs.” He thumbs over his shoulder.

“Call her.”

Grey’s eyes cloud over and then return to normal. “She’s coming.”

After about ten minutes Mia walks in. “Grey?” She looks in the tub. “Wes!” She runs and lands next to it.

“Mia. He’s just frozen, ok. You can save him.” Ricky nods.

“How?”

“This is pool water. We need you to boost its power. Can you do that?” Ricky looks at her.

She looks at Grey. “But, I’ll get attached….”

Ricky shakes her head. “No. This water isn’t connected to the life force, ok. Your bond to it will not reconnect. We just need you to use the Phoenix to boost this water and save Wes.”

Mia looks at Grey and Wes.

Grey smiles. “My foxy lady’s got this. Come on.”

They hold hands across the tub. “Ok. I’ll try.”

“That’s my girl.” Grey preens.

Mia slowly rubs her hands together. She places them on the ice.

She closes her eyes. The ice under her palms glows red and blue as her healing Phoenix surfaces. The ice around her hands turns back to water.

The ice in the tub retreats away from her.

“That’s it, baby. You’re doing it!” Grey laughs

The lightening strikes again and just as before. Gold streaks run from the tub sides to Wes' body. It jerks with every hit.

The water bubbles from everywhere. We all watch closely as the pool lights up bright gold and the water churns.

Mia’s brow cinches as she tries harder. Her hands glow brighter.

“Come on, baby, you can do it.” Grey says quietly.

The bubbles increase. The waves thrash in the tub. We have to back off when they get too much and the water starts to splash out.

The water stops thrashing and the light starts to calm down completely.

We all lean to the tub. Watching tiny bubbles rise to the surface. Then bigger bubbles. Then more thrashing.

Wes breaks the surface with a huge gasp of air.

“WES!” Grey laughs. He grabs at his brothers head and hugs it. Moving his wet hair out of the way.

“Grey? What?” He looks around as he hangs on the edge of the tub.

Mias crying and Ricky’s laughing with her hands in a prayer on her nose.

I’m absolutely astonished. “He’s…he’s alive.” I point.

Ricky looks at me. “The Lazarus pool.”

Wes coughs up some water. “You’re right…that is fucking weird.” He breathes as he looks at Grey.

Grey fist bumps him. “Welcome to the club, bro. Bros forever.”