Falling For The Demon Wolf-Chapter 54: Back TO Base

Violet.

Broken. Bloodied. Barely breathing.

My heart stopped, then roared to life with a fury I couldn’t contain. She was lying there like a discarded thing, her hair matted with blood, her limbs twisted unnaturally. My vision blurred, but I didn’t need to see clearly to know the scent that clung to the air—hers. Pain. Fear. Blood.

I gathered her in my arms, and her body collapsed against mine—limp, fragile. Her head lolled against my chest, and for a horrifying moment, I couldn’t feel her breathe.

"No. No, no, no," I murmured, pressing my ear to her lips. There it was. A shallow breath. Faint, but there.

My hands trembled.

She was alive.

Barely.

A growl ripped through my throat, primal and feral, shaking the trees around us. I tilted my head back and roared. The forest answered with silence, even the birds afraid to challenge the rage of an alpha with his mate nearly torn to shreds.

Footsteps pounded behind me—Rhys, Selene, Jade, Cian—all of them slowed as they entered the clearing. And when they saw her...

"Moon above," Cian breathed.

"Get the horses ready," I barked without looking up. "We’re leaving. Now."

"Yes, Alpha." Rhys turned on his heel, already moving.

Jade let out a soft sob, her hand covering her mouth. But I couldn’t focus on her. All I could see was Violet. Her blood. Her stillness.

I held her tighter.

"You came to find me," I whispered against her temple. "You reckless, beautiful, stubborn girl..."

She’d come after me. Disobeyed me. Fled the pack and the guards to follow my trail. And she paid the price for it.

My jaw clenched, fury boiling in my veins.

Behind me, a presence stirred. The scent hit me before the figure appeared—foul, bitter, like rot in the wind.

I didn’t need to look to know it was him.

The rogue master.

He stepped out from the shadows, calm and collected, like he hadn’t just allowed my mate to be brutalized.

"If you take one step closer, I’ll rip your spine out through your mouth," I warned, my voice low and deadly.

"I don’t intend to fight you," he said smoothly. "But you should know... I told them not to hurt her."

"Didn’t stop them."

His eyes flicked to Violet in my arms. "No. It didn’t. But it awakened something in her, didn’t it?"

My grip tightened, claws halfway out.

"She’s not like the others," he continued. "Her wolf’s blood—dormant all her life—woke tonight. You felt it. The shift coming. The tremor in her scent. Didn’t you wonder why it’s so strong now?"

I didn’t answer. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

"She’ll come back," he said. "Not because she wants to. But because she’ll need answers. And when she does... try not to stop her."

"I’ll kill you before that ever happens."

He smiled—slow and mocking. "She’s one of us. This is where she belongs."

Before I could launch forward and tear him apart, he vanished into the trees like a shadow swallowed by the night.

I stood slowly, Violet still cradled in my arms, her warmth fading too fast.

"Alpha!" Rhys shouted from the treeline. "Horses are ready."

"Then move," I growled.

The others cleared a path, and I mounted with her in my arms, her head resting in the crook of my neck. I could feel her breath, faint and fluttering like a candle about to burn out.

"I’ve got you," I murmured against her hair. "You’re not leaving me. Not like this."

I kicked the horse forward, the wind tearing past us, my warriors falling in line behind.

And all I could hear were the rogue master’s final words, echoing in my skull like a curse: 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

"This is where she belongs."

Over my dead body

The camp burst into movement the moment we arrived.

I leapt from the horse with Violet in my arms and didn’t wait for anyone else. "Move!" I barked, pushing through the crowd. Warriors and omegas parted instantly, their eyes darting to the blood dripping from my shirt... her blood.

The healer’s hut door was flung open before I even reached it. Maren, our head healer, stood there pale and wide-eyed. "Lay her down, Alpha. Quickly."

I carried Violet to the far cot, my hands shaking as I lowered her onto the soft linen. Her body remained limp—so quiet, so still it made something in my chest crack wide open. Her face was bruised, blood dried at the corner of her mouth, and there were gashes across her arms and ribs that hadn’t even begun to heal.

Why isn’t she healing?

Maren was already working, cutting away the torn remnants of her shirt to get to the wounds. "Get me clean water, wolfsbane tincture, a burn poultice, and thread—now!" she shouted to her assistants.

One of them gasped at the sight of Violet’s side. "She’s—oh gods, she was whipped."

My fists clenched. I turned my back, staring at the wooden wall so I wouldn’t punch a hole through it. My wolf paced, snarling in my head, desperate to go back out and tear through every last rogue who touched her.

"She’s lost a lot of blood," Maren muttered behind me, her voice strained. "Some of these wounds were done with silver. Bastards wanted them to scar. Her shift hasn’t happened yet... but her wolf is waking."

I turned sharply. "What?"

Maren glanced up at me. "She’s on the edge of shifting. I don’t know if it’s the trauma or the pain that triggered it. But her body is fighting itself to stay human right now. Whatever you did before this—it started something."

I moved to her side again, watching her chest rise and fall in shallow breaths. "She came after me," I said quietly. "She followed my scent like a pup with no sense of survival."

And I let her.

I left her behind.

"This isn’t your fault, Alpha," Maren said, reading me far too easily.

"Isn’t it?" I ground out.

She didn’t answer.

Rhys stepped into the room, followed by Jade, her face pale and eyes red from crying. "Is she... is she going to be okay?"

"She’s stable for now," Maren replied without looking up. "But she’s not waking up anytime soon."

I said nothing.

I couldn’t.

My chest ached with a pressure I couldn’t release. I sat beside the cot, brushing a strand of blood-soaked hair from Violet’s face. Her skin burned with fever. I hated seeing her like this—helpless, wounded, a shell of the fierce woman who had screamed at me in the kitchen just yesterday.

I should’ve never let her leave the pack house.

Jade stepped forward, hesitating. "Can I... can I sit with her?"

I nodded once and moved aside, giving her space. Jade slipped her hand into Violet’s, tears silently falling as she mouthed a prayer to the Moon Goddess.

Rhys came to my side. "We’ve increased patrols. If the rogues try anything—"

"They won’t. Not yet," I said, my jaw tight. "They got what they wanted."

Rhys frowned. "You think they took her just to provoke you?"

"No." My eyes didn’t leave her face. "I think they wanted to wake something up."

Rhys was quiet a moment. "And did they?"

My wolf stirred under my skin. I didn’t answer.

"She’ll come back looking for answers," the rogue master had said.

Whatever they knew about her—whatever she didn’t yet understand about herself—it was only the beginning.

But first, I was going to get her back.

Whole.

Safe.

Mine.

I stood there longer than I should have—watching her chest rise and fall, each breath so faint it barely moved the sheets. Her bruises were darker now under the harsh light of the healer’s quarters, and her skin was still burning up. But at least she was alive.

Barely.

Maren stepped away, her hands coated in blood and tincture. "She’s stable, but she needs constant monitoring. If her wolf tries to surface too fast, her body might not handle it."

That was all I needed to hear.

"She’s not staying here."

Maren blinked, startled. "Alpha?"

I turned to Liora, one of the older omegas standing just inside the doorway. "Prepare the guest room in my quarters. Clean her up, fresh sheets, warm water—everything. I want her moved there before sundown."

Liora hesitated. "But Alpha, she—"

"I said move her," I snapped, then took a breath to steady the anger burning under my skin. "I’ll watch over her myself."

Rhys gave me a look but didn’t argue. He knew better.

Liora bowed her head. "Yes, Alpha."

Jade glanced up sharply. "You’re taking her to your quarters?"

"She’ll be safer there." I didn’t elaborate. I didn’t need to.

I wasn’t leaving her out of my sight again.

Liora rushed off to prepare the space, and within minutes, she returned with a basin of warm water, cloths, and a change of clothes. I stepped aside as she and Maren gently cleaned Violet, careful not to aggravate her wounds. Blood stained the water, and I fought the urge to look away when they peeled back the bandages to check the stitching on her side.

My wolf paced behind my ribcage like a caged storm, snarling at the sight of her pain.

"She’s ready," Maren said softly.

I didn’t wait for help. I moved to the cot and bent down, lifting Violet back into my arms. She didn’t stir. Not even a flicker of awareness crossed her face. I cradled her as if she were made of glass and walked straight out of the healer’s hut.

Every eye in the camp followed us.

No one spoke.

They knew better.

Back in the pack house, the guest room beside mine was already warmed by the fire. The sheets were fresh, the room cleaned to perfection, the windows closed against the breeze. Liora bowed low as I entered, then silently stepped out, giving me space.

I laid Violet down on the bed and sat beside her.

Her breathing was still shallow, but steady.

Her skin, now clean, was marred by a map of bruises and silvered wounds. Some had started to scab, others were still raw. Maren said she’d live.

But healing... that would take more than herbs and rest.

I reached forward, brushing my knuckles down her cheek, careful not to wake her—though I knew she wouldn’t stir.

"You shouldn’t have come after me," I murmured. "But I should’ve known you would."

I leaned back in the chair, eyes still on her, jaw clenched tight.

"Sleep, little storm," I whispered. "I’ve got you now."

And this time, I wasn’t letting go.