A/N: What? Double update this week? Ya, I surprised myself too, LOL. Part of the reason is I quickly want to go back to Simon's POV, but also because it's a bit short and I suck at fight scenes, so this is the best I got. Sorry if it's not the epic fight scene you were imagining, but the results are expected. Enjoy! Let me know what you think! The next chapter will be MUCH longer, so hopefully, it'll make up for this shitty fight. Next chapter also concludes Part 1 of this book, can't wait for you guys to see what happens with Simon :)

Chapter 24

Vince's POV

I had skipped the subsequent doses since my time in the basement. Although everything felt out of whack, it was safe to say that I could shift. I had practiced three times since then, all of which Xavier stayed to watch in case anything happened. He had also taken it upon himself to keep the pills on him so I didn't feel the need to take it. As much as I wanted to down some pills, I knew everything could go back to normal as soon I finished dealing with Michael later on today. The shifts were still painful, but I had slowly gotten accustomed to it, and my wolf was probably enjoying this way more than I had.

I could tell Xavier wasn't enjoying it, but I could care less. He needed to see that this needed to be done in order for me to stop Michael.

"We have an hour," Xavier said as we headed to the RCPP. "The betas will stay at the pack boundary line. I'll have Dwaine and Lucas with us."

I hummed as we entered the building, a few of the staff greeting us. Some got us refreshments as we headed to the small conference room.

As they stood there expectantly, I frowned. "Can you give us some privacy?"

They hurriedly ran off, leaving us the pitcher of water. Xavier grabbed some water before turning to me. "You think you'll be alright if it comes down to a fight?"

"Is that concern?" I nearly laughed. "You didn't look happy that I had shifted."

"As much as you annoy me, I don't trust Michael if he becomes the alpha. He's too unpredictable."

"That won't happen," I told him. "Over my dead body will he become alpha."

---

I couldn't help but notice how eerily quiet the forest was as we approached the clearing. Even the bird calls and chirps of smaller animals had all but vanished. Xavier and the others followed close behind as we finally got a glimpse of Michael in his human form. With that signature smug look, he almost appeared bored standing there with his arms crossed.

I was expecting his whole posse to show up, or at least a couple of loyal rogues he snagged along the way, but it was just him. A part of me half-expected Simon to be there as well, like some kind-of hostage situation.

For some reason, seeing him all alone gave me a strange feeling in my chest. I blamed it on the lack of meds, but a part of me still wondered.

"Where is he?" I demanded. Michael's brow rose, as if in curiosity.

He scoffed. "You think he'd wanna be here? To witness me kick your ass?"

"Where is he?"

"I didn't promise you to bring him here. You think I keep tabs on him? That's your job, not mine." He rolled his eyes. "Besides, you think he'd be dumb enough to show his face around here? You're truly dumber than I thought."

"I haven't seen Simon in months," he explained. "But, that doesn't mean I could kill him if you hadn't shown."

I snarled, wanting to punch him square in the jaw, but Xavier held me back.

Unamused, Michael spoke, "you haven't changed, Vince. Father's rage still flows within you. Never thinking, just doing. No wonder history is repeating. You must be making him real proud, aren't you?"

The sarcasm that dripped in his tone made me want to break his neck. Without Xavier, Dwaine, or Lucas here I probably would have too.

"What do you want?" I growled.

He sniggered, "you know, I thought a lot about things. I could make things real simple. Kill Simon, kill your precious pack mates. Maybe even kill Sarah the same way you killed David. An eye for an eye kind of thing, you know? But what better way to get my revenge than take what you love. You don't love Simon, you could care less about your packmates, I don't think you even really love Sarah either. But since you act and think so much like father, there's one thing I know the both of you love more than anything."

Every second, the urge to attack him grew exponentially, but nevertheless, I held my tongue. I already knew where he was going with this.

"You two love power. Crave it. And I know you don't want to give that up, which is exactly why I brought you here. Granted, I didn't expect you to bring a whole crew, but even I know that you respect tradition. After all, it's not the first time our family has fought for the alpha role before," he glanced at Dwaine, who clenched his jaw. It was a sore spot for him, considering our fathers, brothers had fought for the alpha role a long time ago.

"You won't win," I spat.

"We'll see about that. Shift," he commanded with a smirk. He crossed his arms, waiting for me to follow.

Reluctantly, I grit my teeth before shifting just as I had done this morning. It was still painful, but a hundred times better than the first time.

"I'm impressed," he scoffed. "I figured your wolf would've died by now, given all those drugs."

"Shut up," I said. He huffed before shifting as well. Xavier, Lucas, and Dwaine stepped off to the side, watching with bated breaths as Michael stood tall in his wolf form.

His wolf looked jarringly similar to our fathers, pitch black with piercing gold eyes. The only difference was the white splotch on one of his back legs, the same splotch mother had.

In the back of my min,d there was a slight fear that maybe I wasn't as prepared as I thought I was. After all, Xavier was right to say that he was unpredictable, a real mystery. We didn't know what kind of tricks he had up his sleeve. But I wasn't going down without a fight.

But it appeared Michael was relaxed, almost mockingly too calm about the situation. His tail resting in a relaxed state with his ears up and relaxed as well. It was the same attitude he carried in my dream, I could just picture that stupid smirk on his face.

I growled, lowering my upper body, my tail in an alert position. He didn't seem to care as I approached him slowly.

"If you wanna fight, then let's fight," I snarled.

He glared at me, those golden eyes seemed to stare through me. "I win, I become alpha. I lose, well, then I leave."

"Good," I snapped.

He started to circle around me, his body slowly getting into an alert stance, as I circled him too. I waited for him to make the first move, but it seemed he was doing the same. So I tested my luck, stepping closer. He let out a low growl, to which I matched, letting out a quick bark before continuing to circle.

I got more and more impatient as he didn't make an attempt to attack, so I lunged at him. Baring my teeth, I went for his neck, trying to grasp at the delicate skin, but I realized I was too late. Pain blossomed at the back of my neck, as I felt his canines puncturing my skin right above the vertebrae in my neck.

Despite being able to shift, I was still slower than him. It had happened so fast, that it only took him a second to grasp the nape of my neck before he tossed me down to the ground. As I stood back up, he stalked toward me, his head low and poised ready to attack.

I snarled at him, trying to figure out a way to outsmart him. We started to circle each other again. If I went for his neck, my neck would also be exposed, but that would be the way to incapacitate him. The fastest and easiest way to win, but I didn't have the speed. But there were trees around us. If I could throw his body into one, it might work. If I grab a hold of his leg or manage to get a hold of his neck somehow without getting bit, it would work.

I charged again, trying to grab a hold of his hind leg, but again, he was faster. He raised a paw, slashing my side. It felt on fire, the skin tearing apart, blood immediately spurting out. I stepped back from trying to calculate my next move. I moved closer to the tree line, waiting it out as I tried not to focus on the burning pain from my side.

He stalked forward, still not making the first move, as his tail swayed back and forth, almost like this fight amused him.

In a futile attempt, I charged forward, lowering my head further as I approached him, reaching up to attack his throat, only for him to thwart my attack again. This time he grabbed a hold of the front of my neck, his canines threatening to break skin as he jerked me side to side. A deep guttural sound from his throat as I could helplessly get thrashed around. Then suddenly, I was airborne, flying into a tree nearby. My shoulder took the brunt of it, the pain sharp then slowly spread down my spine. Stumbling to my feet I tried to match his growl. I rushed him, trying to jump on his back, trying to claw at his back, but he quickly turned, body slamming me to the ground.

The three deep scratches on my side were throbbing at this point. Despite being off the meds, the speedier healing process was not helping the wounds at all. The blood was still oozing out of it, as it seemed to refuse to coagulate. My shoulder hurt from the tree I got rammed into, and the energy I had from earlier was all but sapped. I could see Michael's legs walking toward me, the fear of losing pushing the last bit of adrenaline in focusing on trying to stand back up. The small punctures and scratches were taking its toll, and I could barely get my upper body to an upright position when he reached me, his wolf form towering over me as those golden eyes glowed sinisterly down at me. Not even my attempt to attack his back had left any wound on him. His fur was completely clean aside from my blood from my side.

Despite the last few growls I let out, I knew there was no way I could do it. I couldn't get up.

But I didn't want to believe it. I couldn't lose. Not like this.

He bit my neck, slowly putting pressure on my windpipe, his paw on top of my injured shoulder. I tried desperately to claw at his leg, but I could hardly raise my legs a few inches.

"Do it then, kill me, why don't you?" I struggled to say as he put more pressure on my neck. "You already won."

He leaned forward, cutting off any air from entering my lungs. My head felt lightheaded as he whispered in my ear, "I'm not a murderer like you. I don't kill for the fun of it. I'm not like you."

He stepped off, a wave of relief hitting me as I coughed, trying to get the air back in.

I couldn't move, just stared at him as he continued to glare down at me. I couldn't believe it, refused to. He won.

"I'm the alpha now," he said casually, his lip curling up in that infamous smirk I hated.