The Midnight Foxxx

Chapter 23

MADDOX

A solid wall of muscle comes hurtling towards me as we collide like two atoms. Though I have a few inches and probably at least an extra fifty pounds on him, he’s able to grapple with me and hold his own. He throws a punch aimed at my jaw which gets easily blocked, only for his other fist to land a direct hit into my stomach. Air is forced out of my lungs.

“Son of a b***h!” I wheeze and the vampire smirks. Years of sparing with Asher and Wilder, who never hold their punches, and I’ve never taken a hit that powerful before.

“You’re too cocky,” the other male goads at me and throws another hit directed at my jaw. Instead of blocking, I dodge backwards, creating some distance between us. With a little more breathing room, I assess my opponent. His hands are held up in a defensive stance in front of him. There’s a purple liquid dripping down his arm and that’s when I notice the hand. His left hand is completely mangled. How he's even managing to make a fist with it is astonishing. I throw an experimental fist at his left side, and he's quick to dodge, predictably avoiding a block with the injured appendage. A smirk tugs at my lips. The vampire's eyes narrow.

"Maybe just a little," I throw another punch to his weak side, anticipating him to dodge again and using the opening to sweep his legs out from under him. Instead, my fist is caught in a disfigured hand, bone crunching from the impact and splattering blood on both of us.

"Crazy bastard," I snarl and swing with my other arm, only for it to be caught as well, locking our hands together in a stalemate.

"Maybe just a little," the other male parrots back at me mockingly. We push against each other, each trying to overpower the other. His injured arm begins to tremble under the immense pressure.

"That hand of yours can't hold forever," the taunt goes unacknowledged, his poker face staying firmly in place. His unwavering determination is unsettling. There’s no sign of either of us giving in any time soon. With a quick pivot of my foot, I shift my weight back and use his heavy body and strength against him. The sudden loss of push back has him losing his balance and falling forward. Keeping a tight grip on the other, I use his forward momentum to yank him towards me, flipping him up and over my head and throw him like I’m playing shot put. When I release him, he keeps his hands shackled to mine, pulling me with him as he’s flung off the porch. My body feels like a rag doll as I'm swung up above the vampire's free-falling body, then whipped down to the hard earth below. The air is knocked out of me on impact, landing with a hard thud on my back. I feel disoriented, the sky and clouds above me spin like a kaleidoscope.

"I'm going to ask ONE more time," a heavy weight suddenly drops on my chest.

"f**k!" I cough, still trying to catch my breath.

"Where. Is. Vixen?" he grabs my hair and yanks my head up to look him in the eyes. His amber irises glow like molten pools of gold. I growl at him and go to shift, but my arms are quickly pinned down by his knees, splayed out to my sides as if I’m being crucified.

"I don't think so. Try to shift like this, and you'll rip your arms out of their sockets," the vampire sneers.

"Go to hell," I rasp, trying to throw him off me, but he doesn't budge. "What in Goddess's name are you?" A grin plays at his lips.

"I've been around a long time, pup. I'm not some fresh spawn," The sound of bones cracking and skin tearing assaults my ears as two large appendages sprout from his back. They unfurl and extend out to their full size, revealing massive wings.

"You're a f*****g Lord?" my eyes go wide at the display, "Why the hell are you working for that asshole? You should be stronger than him." My head is slammed back into the hard ground.

"People do crazy and stupid things for love," he says cryptically. Sadness softens his rigid features. Before I can read too much into it, the large male is suddenly ripped off of me. Without skipping a beat, I’m springing up right onto my feet and whipping my head in the direction the vampire was pulled in. In a tangle of limbs is Wilder grappling with the huge male.

“Wilder!” Panic surges through me as I watch my Gamma get slammed into the ground, face first.

“Well, aren’t you a persistent one? You’re supposed to be dead,” the vampire's scleras have turned jet black, accentuating the glowing amber of his irises. I watch as his nose twitches and his lips curl into a snarl.

“I can smell her on you,” Wilder lets out a pathetic whimper as he’s lifted into the air by the back of his neck, like he was nothing but a newborn kitten. “Why do you smell like her?” The red head doesn’t answer, just squirms in the tight grip, clawing at the dagger like nails digging into his neck.

“This is between you and me, leave him out of it,” I plead.

“WHY IS HER SCENT ON YOU?” He roars, his voice having morphed into a demonic growl. Wilder is shaken violently like the answer he seeks with come loose and fall out of him.

“Did you touch her again? If you touched even a hair on her head, I will have you begging for death,” the angrier the vampire becomes, the more inhuman he sounds. It has my instincts going berserk, and for the first time in my life, they’re telling me to run.

“Just put him down. She’s… she’s badly injured, but she’s alive. Put him down and I’ll take you to her,” those glowing orbs lock onto me and his large hand squeezes Wilder’s throat.

“Did. He. Touch. Her?”

“I will deal with him myself. Just let him go,” those demonic eyes narrow at me, “if you kill him, I won’t cooperate.”

“I expected better of the renowned Alpha Maddox Drake, condoning a rapist in his pack,” with an annoyed huff, he reluctantly drops the Gamma, who lands gracelessly on the ground at the Vampire Lord’s feet.

“WHAT?” He doesn’t elaborate more, simply moves forward, purposefully placing a foot on Wilder’s leg and stepping down slowly. The red head starts screaming, squirming in pain until there’s a loud, disgusting crack. The smaller male goes silent, breathing shallowly.

“What the f**k?” I yell.

“I didn’t kill him,” he shrugs, and walks over Wilder like one would a door mat. I’m too stunned to speak, still processing his words before blatantly snapping his femur in half. He continues to approach, and despite fear fraying my nerves, I hold firm, refusing to show any weakness.

“Now, are you going to take me to Vixen? Or do I need to break the sniveling little pup some more?” a large, cold hand is placed on my shoulder, sharp claws digging in painfully, but not enough to break the skin.

“f**k, alright,” I rip my shoulder out of his grasp and turn around, starting towards the medical bay. Over my shoulder I see my Gamma still laying there. ‘Rapist’ echoes in my mind, and though I don’t want to believe it, a lot of things start clicking into place.

“He‘ll live. For now. Keep moving,” the vampire shoves me forward. Reluctantly, I comply and lead the way. When we enter the infirmary, Natalie picks her head up from the work on her desk, only to shriek and tumble backwards.

“s**t, Nat, are you okay?” I rush over to her and help her up.

“What… Why is that thing here?” She hisses in horror.

“He’s here for her,” I nod my head towards the unconscious woman on the hospital bed.

“Well, she can’t leave, she’s still healing. Moving her will reopen the wound,” she protests.

“Relax. I’m handling it. What I need you to do is grab some supplies and go out to the front yard. Wilder is hurt and needs medical attention,” Natalie keeps eye contact for a moment before sighing and doing as she’s told. When I turn back around to face the vampire, I’m speechless. The beast of a man who just a moment ago was throwing around full-grown men like it was nothing, is now bent over Vixen, his forehead pressed to hers in a intimate and loving gesture. The sudden softness is jarring and my wolf stirs as I’m struck with a sudden feeling of jealousy and possessiveness.

“What happened?” He asks, skimming a hand over the bandages covering her torso.

“We aren’t completely sure. We think she was trying to teleport, but something went wrong. She ended up fifteen feet in the air and fell, landing on the stair railings and got impaled,” I say sullenly. A deep rumble resonates from his chest.

“I can smell Wilder on her. What did he do? Did he hurt her?” Bile rises in the back of my throat at the memory.

“No. I don’t know what he was planning on doing, but I stopped whatever it was…” an unpleasant shiver goes down my spine.

“He’s done that before? To her?” Amber pools gaze into my emerald ones. Hate, fury, and disgust simmer dangerously beneath the surface of those golden eyes.

“Yes,” one of those dangerous hands stokes Vixen's tan cheek. She stirs, nuzzling into the familiar touch. Rage burns through my veins, hot and red as a river of lava.