Chapter 107 Cold Betrayal
1336words
The air was musty, thick with the scent of copper nearby. The metallic taste of blood lurched at the back of my tongue, my wolf nearly drooling to latch its mouth around another shifter's throat.
I couldn't fight the need any longer. Violence wasn't something I particularly enjoyed, but it was undoubtedly something I was good at. The warrior inside me cried out, unable to sit on the sidelines any longer. After all, the stories and legends whispered about me by packs near and far weren't exactly lies. I would do anything to keep my pack safe, and even though this wasn't a direct threat to my pack, I knew somehow deep in my gut that they were connected or were about to become connected quickly.
Alpha Christian had been like a brother to me my entire life. He didn't think twice when rogues infiltrated the pack borders of Midnight Moon. He and his men shifted in a moment's notice, dashing to secure my pack borders. Here we were now, except the roles were reversed—instead of joining the fight, I stayed back in the comfort of a vehicle, surrounded by my own men to keep me safe.
Adeline, my thoughts wandered. Sophia. Every one of my shifters in Midnight Moon. I would fight a hundred battles to keep her safe, to keep them all safe.
My heart nearly exploded in my chest when Adeline insisted on coming along, determined to stand by my side no matter what could be thrown our way. Immense pride floated through me. Our mate was stronger than any of us had given her credit for—a protector by nature, one who would strengthen our pack sooner than I realized. Still, she hadn't had proper training yet, and I couldn't risk the implications that could follow. There was only one option: stay behind under the protection of my men. That was the option I had no intention of bending on.
I reluctantly ripped myself away from my mate, my wolf torn over leaving her behind or protecting the borders. My men stood on guard as if they knew what my next move would be. I made sure to leave at least fifteen enforcers behind to protect my mate and my sister. If anything happened to either of them, I was sure Alpha Christian wouldn't be thrilled about it.
Tunnel vision took over my senses as I raced toward the clearing, my primal instincts in overdrive to settle the looming threats. We weaved in and out around the trees, leaping over fallen logs and ducking under branches. Our paws smashed against the forest floor with vengeance, becoming louder and aligned—all of us pissed and determined to protect our kind.
My paws skidded against the dirt to a halt. A large grey cloud formed at the tree line, making it impossible to see and difficult to even breathe. "Alpha, fire ahead," Daryl scowled through the mind link.
Daryl was an exceptional tracker, although he was smaller than the rest of the enforcers. "How far?" I called to him.
The fog of grey was multiplying by the moment. I knew we didn't have much time left, but I had to think logically. Leading my men into a blazing fire would lead to more casualties. It was nothing short of a suicide mission.
Daryl stuck his nose into the air. "We should be able to make it; we'll have to steer west," he replied urgently through the mind link.
Without another thought, I leapt forward into the dense cloud of fog, feeling the pain shooting through my hind legs. We had to get in and out of this mess efficiently and easily.
It must have taken us a few minutes longer, but my body relaxed when all my men made it through the fog and toward the pack of shifters ahead. Alpha Christian shifted into his human form as soon as he laid eyes on the arriving help.
His nostrils flared with agitation. "Damn it, Jax, where are they? You fucking left them?" he demanded as his hands balled into fists.
A growl ripped its way from my throat at his aggressive tone as my bones broke and knit back together. "You think I'd leave my mate and my sister unprotected?" I scolded. "What the hell happened here?"
He raked his hand through his disheveled hair. "I have trackers on it now. Someone lit nearly half the forest on fire. Artificial, that we know for certain, but there's been no trace of anyone unfamiliar around the territory. I swear to the Moon Goddess, once I find out who's responsible, they won't live to see the light of day," he said through gritted teeth.
I caught Daryl from the corner of my eye, his nose pressed against the forest floor. "What did you find?" I asked him through the mind link.
His head shot up. "Four rogues and a familiar scent," he answered back through the mind link.
I tried to steady my glare, plastering on the best poker face that I could muster. If Daryl registered the scent as familiar, it must have been someone we knew. Maybe worse, someone from Midnight Moon. If one of the shifters from my pack had a hand in this, it could evidently lead to war between our packs. A war I wasn't willing to wager with an Alpha who was soon to be mated with my sister.
I must have somehow fallen short. Alpha Christian cocked his head back, a fire growing within his eyes. "What did your men find?" he asked in hesitation, each word longer than the last.
I took a deep breath, knowing that I could regret this but also not prepared to deal with the consequences. "Four rogues," I replied calmly. "My men found the scent of four separate rogues."
Alpha Christian turned and balled a fist that connected with a nearby tree trunk, leaving a dent in the bark. "These fucking rogues," he yelled in a chilling tone. He paused for a moment, his glare shooting daggers into mine. "Wait, how are you so collected right now? One nearly killed your mate."
The truth was I was fuming, livid that the rogue attacks were still being conducted. Rogues had taken away my father, ripped me of any normal teenage years I could have had, nearly taken my mate from me. The potential consequences of one of my shifters being involved in the attack, though, made it imperative that I remained level-headed. "I vowed to find that rogue, and I will, along with any other rogue that stands in the way. Cooler heads prevail, Christian. You know that," I said as I clenched my jaw tightly.
"Focus on putting out the fire. The forest is going to take years to grow back. I'll take my men and survey the area," I explained, crouching down and shifting back into my wolf before Alpha Christian could object.
I turned and made haste, the thumping of my shifters' paws immediately behind me. We scurried around the grey fog, my mind recoiling at who could have mounted an attack of this size and, more importantly—why? It was a clearly drawn line; the packs throughout the country all knew that about the alliances each one held. To cross Alpha Christian was as if they were to cross me.
We continued running the perimeters of the border until my body stalled. My eyes shot down, sending my scent into overdrive. Two pairs of paw prints sat embedded in the mud close to the creek. The foul scent confirmed Daryl's tracking accuracy—rogues had been involved in one way or another. I called forward one of my men, "Tracks. Go inform Alpha Christian. His men should survey the area," I demanded in my Alpha voice.
He nodded and took off in the direction we had come from. Another one of my men pressed forward. "Alpha—the Luna and Sophia have disappeared," he muttered through the mind link, pushing his large head down in surrender.
