CHAPTER 22

This is my fight. She's my omega. MY MATE", I whispered. Cas sighed heavily then knelt down beside Sam, who was still trying to catch his breath. He laid a hand on my brother's shoulder and disappeared with a flutter of wings.

"Not for long, dog!", Lucius spat just before launching himself at me. His shoulder collided with my stomach, knocking the wind out of me. He landed on top of me and wrapped both hands around my throat, cutting off my air. "You think you can beat me, dog?! HUH?!", Lucius snarled, saliva spraying from his lips. "I've been around since your great grandaddy was in diapers! I've put down wolves bigger and stronger than you!" I had to do something to get his hands off my throat before I lost consciousness. If that happened, I was done. I brought my leg up, wrapped it around his neck, and jerked him off of me. As he flew sideways, I spun us both so that I was now on top of him, sitting on his stomach and pinning his arms to the floor.

"Yeah, well. I've got something that they didn't have", I whispered with a shit-eating grin.

"What? Your weak-willed pup of a brother or the angel that's in love with you?", Lucius snarled impetuously. I just chuckled at him for a moment as he struggled to throw me off.

"Nah, I have a soulmate that I love and loves me back. And I have a brother and friends that would die for me, and I would do the same for them. Those are things that only come around once in a lifetime! No... let me rephrase that. Once in a hundred lifetimes! You'll never understand what that means, you fucking asshole, because you will NEVER have it!" I expected to see anger on his face, but a wide smile broke across his lips instead. "What are you grinning for, asshat?"

"Aw, nothing, Deano", Lucius chuckled before lifting his head enough to whisper in my ear. "I just can't believe you forgot about them!"

"Them?", I said in confusion.

"Yeah. Them." I suddenly felt myself being jerked backwards by my upper arms and slammed to the floor on my back. I found myself looking up at the two wolves that Sam had knocked out with the log chair. They held me down by my shoulders and wrists. Now I was strong, but these two knot-heads were GINORMOUS! Almost as big as Lucky. I wasn't going anywhere. Dean, Dean, Dean...", Lucius said with a chuckle. He stepped up close to my feet with his arms folded across his chest and a wicked smirk on his face. "I really had hoped for more of a challenge from you. You should have known that that chair wouldn't keep my boys down for long."

"Yeah, well, I tend to get distracted when pervs threaten to rape my brother." Lucius leaned over me with his hands on his knees and laughed.

"Maybe I was wrong about the angel! Maybe... hmmm...", Lucius chuckled, scratching his chin. "You and your brother got a thing goin' on the side, Dean? What must your precious Omega think about that?" I think I stopped breathing for a minute because my brain went all fuzzy and I had to make myself take a breath.

"You sick-ass bastard!", I snarled, trashing around under the weight of the 2 large wolves, holding me down. "I'm not a twisted motherfucker like you!"

"I may be twisted, Deano, but I am the Alpha that's going to eat your heart and claim your Omega!" Lucius stood up straight with his hands balled into tight fists. I could see blood dripping from his fingers as his nails pierced his palms. "Oh, and I've decided to claim your brother as well."

"NO! You leave him alone, YOU FUCK!" I thrashed and fought, but I'm ashamed to say that I didn't budge Lucius' goons.

"Awww! Sorry, Dean! But look at the bright side! At least he'll live." He snickered at me and winked. "Even if he'll be spending most of that life on his hands and knees!" Lucius uncurled his fingers, revealing his long black talons. A loud bang had all of us turning our attention to the door that suddenly flew off it's hinges and toppled to the floor.

"The only one who'll be on his knees will be you... begging my brother NOT to kill you", Sam growled low under his breath. Then, faster than even I could see, Sam sprinted across the room and slammed into one of the wolves that was holding me down. At almost the same time, Cas appeared and plunged his silver angel blade through the heart of the other.

As soon as I was free, I pounced on Lucius, who hadn't seen any of it coming. I was so focused on the Alpha in front of me, that I lost sight of Sam. But I could hear him growling and snarling, while the other wolf screamed in pain, so I had to assume that Sam was holding his own. Lucius flew backwards, landing hard on his back, with me on top of him. I grabbed his wrists, pinning him to the dingy floor, and leaned over him as he struggled to get free. When it was clear that I was stronger than he was, he stilled. I could see the growing panic in his one good eye, and I grinned.

"Beg", I whispered low in his ear.

"Wha... what?", he croaked, his eyes going wide with fear.

"Beg for your life... pup." It felt good to use the degrading term he had been calling Sam on him instead.

"PLEA...!" His plea was suddenly cut off when I sank my teeth into his Adam's Apple and clamped down until I heard a crunch. I jerked my head back, feeling the warm spray of crimson, as I ripped his throat out. I stared down at him as he gurgled and chocked on his own blood. And I continued to stare into that yellow eye until it glazed over and became unfocused, telling me that he was dead.

I sat up, spit Lucius' trachea out onto the floor, and just sat on top of him, panting. I couldn't seem to look away from that sickly yellow eye that was fixed on me.

"Dean", Sam whispered with concern. "You ok?" I could hear him, but for some reason, I couldn't answer or look away from the werewolf that had nearly destroyed my pack. I could hear Sam walking up behind me and moving to kneel at my side. He put his hand on my shoulder, but I never moved or flinched. "Dean..." But before he could get another word out, I shoved my sharp claws up under Lucius's ribcage, grabbed his heart, and tore it from his lifeless body. And without a second thought, I started ripping into it with my pointed teeth. I shuttered as I felt the warm, slick pieces of the Alpha's heart slide down my throat. My wolf was howling triumphantly inside me as I feasted on my rival.

Halfway through my victory meal, I was suddenly aware of the Alpha beside me, and, with the heart still gripped in my teeth, I whipped my head around to stare into his frightened eyes. His scent told me right away that he was no threat to my dominance and I relaxed, pulling the heart away from my mouth. I don't know why, maybe it was instinct, but I held out the bloody, oozing mass of muscle out to him. But instead of taking it, he just stared at me wide-eyed. I stuck it under his nose, trying to make him understand what I wanted. My wolf was still in control, making it impossible to get the words out passed my teeth. Sam shook his head frantically, backing away from the meal I was offering him. When I growled at him, he froze.

"I think he wants you to eat it, Sam", Cas said stepping up to my other side.

"Yeah, I know, Cas! Just... just gimme a second!" After a moment, Sam swallowed hard, reached a tentative hand out, and took it from me. He lifted it to his mouth and sniffed it with his eyes closed. A deep sighed came out of his mouth and he started tearing into it before he even took another breath. My wolf swelled with pride but there was one more who had to have a taste of the victory before we were done. I snatched the mostly consumed heart away from my brother and offered it to the angel standing on the other side of me. He seemed confused by my actions and only stood there staring at the offering.

"I think he wants you to eat it, Cas", Sam said, throwing Cas' own words back at him. Cas shot Sam a bitch face and took the heart from me. He crouched down, took a large bite, and tried to hand it back.

"No... brother", I growled pushing it back toward him. I was starting to come back to myself, but all the right words hadn't come to me yet. Those 2 words were all that I could manage. Cas held the heart but gave me a strange look.

"I think he means that you're one of us. A member of our pack." I smiled and let out a pleased grunt. That's exactly what I meant!

"Pack!", I said, pushing the heart toward him again. Cas' eyes seemed to brighten, and his mouth turned up slightly at the edges. Cas' version of a smile. He looked down at the heart, took a deep breath, and finished off the small piece that was left.

"ALPHA!", a voice from behind us shouted breathlessly. My Omega was calling me and she sounded like she was in pain! And the smell wafting from her was all wrong! Was she alright?! What was happening to her?!

"OMEGA!"