Mated to My Fiancé’s Alpha King Brother - Chapter 262

Chapter 262: Chapter 262
Damien’s POV

My jaws tightened around Voss’s throat.

This was it. The end. One more second and he’d be dead.

His pulse hammered against my teeth. Weak. Erratic. Dying.

Good.

I thought about everything he’d done. Everything his father had done. All the pain. All the death.

My parents. Sera’s parents. What they did to her three years ago.

All of it ended here.

I prepared to bite down. To crush his windpipe. To watch the light leave those yellow eyes.

Then something hit my right shoulder.

Sharp. Fast. Like a bee sting.

I barely felt it. Just a minor irritation. Probably one of his rogues trying to save him. Pathetic last-ditch effort.

Didn’t matter. I’d kill Voss first. Deal with whoever shot me second.

My jaws started to close. Voss’s eyes went wide. Terrified. Accepting.

Then the pain hit.

Not the sting. Something else. Something deeper. Starting at my shoulder. Spreading.

Fast.

Too fast.

My grip on Voss’s throat loosened slightly. What the hell?

The pain intensified. Like fire. Like acid. Burning through my veins. Racing toward my heart.

I tried to ignore it. Tried to focus on killing Voss. But my body wasn’t responding right. My muscles were twitching. Spasming.

“What—” The word came out strangled. Wrong.

Voss’s bloody mouth stretched into a smile. Wide. Triumphant.

“Finally,” he croaked. “Took long enough.”

The burning reached my chest. Exploded outward. Every nerve screaming.

I stumbled back. Released him completely. My legs wouldn’t hold steady.

What was happening? What the fuck was happening?

“Over here, Alpha.”

The voice came from the trees. Female. Familiar.

I turned. Barely. My vision was blurring at the edges.

A figure stepped out of the shadows. Holding a bow. Arrow still nocked. Ready for another shot.

Valerie.

Sera’s sister. Gabriel’s wife. The bitch who’d run off to join the rogues.

She was smiling too. That same cruel smile I’d seen on Gabriel’s face. On Emma’s. The smile of someone who’d won.

“Surprise,” she said. Almost singing it.

My shoulder burned hotter. The pain was everywhere now. In my blood. My bones. My fucking soul.

I needed to pull out whatever she’d shot me with.

But I couldn’t. My wolf wouldn’t let go. Couldn’t let go. Something was wrong with the transformation.

“Don’t bother trying,” Voss said. He was standing now. Limping. Bleeding. But standing. “The poison doesn’t let you shift. Keeps you trapped. Helpless.”

Poison.

The word hit like a second arrow.

“Wolfsbane?” I managed to snarl. Even talking hurt. Every word scraped against the fire in my throat.

“Better.” Valerie walked closer. Casual. Like we were having a pleasant conversation. “Much better. Voss and I have been working on this for months.”

She gestured to the arrow still embedded in my shoulder. Black fletching. Silver tip.

“Regular wolfsbane just makes you sick,” she continued. “Burns a little. Weakens you. But this?” Her smile widened. “This is special.”

“We mixed wolfsbane with silver dust,” Voss added. He was circling me now. Predator and prey reversed. “Then added some other ingredients. Secret recipe. Family tradition.”

“My father used it on your father,” he said. Almost conversational. “Worked perfectly. Quick. Efficient. No chance of survival.”

No.

No no no.

This couldn’t be happening. I was winning. I had him. I was about to end this.

The pain doubled. Tripled. My legs gave out. I collapsed. Hit the ground hard.

Every muscle was seizing. Cramping. Tearing themselves apart from the inside.

I’d never felt anything like this. Never imagined pain could be this intense. This all-consuming.

Even the wounds from the ambush hadn’t hurt this bad. Even the forty-three stitches. Even bleeding out.

This was different. This was agony in its purest form.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Valerie crouched beside me. Just out of reach. “Watching the mighty Alpha Nightshadow brought to his knees.”

I tried to lunge at her. Tried to make my body move. Attack. Fight.

Nothing happened. My muscles wouldn’t respond. Just kept spasming. Convulsing.

“The dose we gave you is massive,” Voss said. He limped closer too. Standing over me now. “Enough to kill three Alphas. You’ve got maybe five minutes. Probably less.”

Five minutes.

Five minutes until I died. Here. In this forest. Poisoned like an animal.

No.

I had to fight this. Had to push through. Had to—

My heart stuttered. Skipped a beat. Then another.

The poison was reaching it. Wrapping around it. Squeezing.

“You should have just let me kill you in the fight,” Voss said. “Would’ve been quicker. More honorable.”

He kicked my side. Right where my stitches had torn. Fresh blood flowed.

I barely felt it. The poison pain drowned out everything else.

“But you couldn’t help yourself,” he continued. “Had to keep fighting. Had to be the hero. Had to prove you were stronger.”

Another kick. Harder.

“Well, look at you now.” His voice dripped satisfaction. “Not so strong anymore, are you?”

I wanted to respond. To snarl something defiant. To show him I wasn’t beaten.

But I couldn’t. Could barely breathe. My lungs were burning. Seizing. Fighting for air that wouldn’t come.

“I’m going to enjoy this,” Valerie said. She was closer now. Kneeling right beside my head. “Watching you die. Knowing I helped kill you.”

“After you’re gone, we’re going to your pack,” Voss added. “Going to take everything. Your territory. Your resources. Your warriors.”

He paused. Let the words sink in.

“Your family.”

The mention of my family sent a spike of rage through the pain. Hot. Sharp. Momentarily clearing my vision.

Sera. Adrian. Lily.

I had to get up. Had to fight. Had to stop them.

I tried again. Pushed with everything I had. Every ounce of strength. Every bit of will.

My body moved. Slightly. My front paw twitched.

“Still trying?” Voss laughed. “That’s cute.”

He stepped on my neck. Pressed down. Not enough to crush. Just enough to pin me. To prove his dominance.

I was trapped. Poisoned. Dying.

And they knew it.

“Sera will be fun,” Valerie said. Her voice turning dreamy. “Breaking her again. She was so much stronger after last time. More defiant. This will be even better.”

“And your kids?” Voss pressed harder. “Well. We’ll see. Maybe they’ll be useful. Maybe not.”

No.

No no no no no.

I had to stop this. Had to warn someone. Had to—

My heart stuttered again. Longer this time. Three beats. Four. Five.

Then it started again. Weak. Irregular.

The poison was winning.

“Any last words, Nightshadow?” Voss leaned down. His face filling my vision. “Any final message for your family?”

I tried to speak. To say something. Anything.

My jaws moved. Nothing came out except a weak whine.

Pathetic.

“That’s what I thought.” He straightened. “Valerie. Want to finish him?”

“With pleasure.”

She raised her bow. Nocked another arrow. This one with red fletching.

“This one’s just regular wolfsbane,” she said. “But it should speed things along. Put you out of your misery.”

The arrow pointed at my chest. At my heart.

One shot. That’s all it would take.

I thought about Sera. About her green eyes. Her stubborn chin. The way she’d looked at me that last video call.

*Be safe.*

I’d failed her. Failed to come home. Failed to protect her. Failed everything.

Sera would be hurt again. Broken again. And I wouldn’t be there to save her.

Everything I’d fought for. Everything I’d tried to protect. All of it lost.

Because I’d been stupid. Arrogant. Had thought I was invincible.

Had thought I could win.

Valerie’s finger moved to the trigger.

I tried one last time. Desperate. Primal. Pure instinct.

My body lurched forward. Jaws snapping. Trying to reach Voss’s throat.

Almost made it. My teeth closed on empty air inches from his flesh.

Then Voss’s foot slammed into my face. Hard. Brutal.

I went down. Hit the ground. Couldn’t get back up.

My muscles had given out completely. No strength left. Nothing.

Just the pain. The burning. The feeling of my body shutting down.

My vision was darkening at the edges. Tunneling. The world shrinking to a pinpoint.

Voss’s face. Valerie’s smile. The trees above. The sky beyond.

All of it fading.

My heart beat once. Weak. Struggling.

Twice.

Three times.

Then nothing.

No beat. No rhythm. Just stillness.

My lungs seized. Stopped pulling air. Stopped fighting.

The pain was everywhere and nowhere. Fading. Distant. Like it was happening to someone else.

I felt my consciousness slipping. Sliding away into darkness.

This was it. The end. Death coming for me.

I’d failed everyone. Lost everything. Died alone in a forest while monsters laughed.

My last thought was of Sera. Her face. Her voice. Her touch.

*I love you.*

I’d never get to tell her. Never get to make things right. Never get to hold her again.

The darkness closed in completely.

My breathing stopped.

My heart stopped.

And I felt my life slipping away.