0055
Neah.
The following three days saw more Lycans appear.
One would turn up, or sometimes two.
They never turned up in the same place, but they all had the same goal, trying to break through the boundaries.
None of them made it far.
A meter, maybe two before being torn apart.
Some tried in their human form, others had already shifted.
I didn't recognize any of the unshifted ones. And when their bodies were searched, bite marks were found, confirming that they were not pure Lycans.
Alpha Dane was growing more and more pissed too. He paced more, talked to himself more or rather he spoke to Aero, trying to decide on the next steps. And if he wasn't talking to Aero, he was snapping at everyone else.
Though it worried me that these Wolves were going to hit burnout. Jenson had them working around the clock, with barely a few hours rest in between and if they started to fall, we would be screwed.
Still, I had to remain at Alpha Dane's side. He never spoke of it, but I knew he would blame himself if someone got their hands on me.
'He's doing it again.' Nyx mutters
I look up from the kid's book that I'm supposed to be trying to read. Alpha Dane is looping the desk, striding around it with a deep scowl on his face. His feet practically burned a hole in the plush grey carpet. "It doesn't make any sense."
I didn't know if he was talking to me or Aero.
I revert my gaze to the book, silently sounding out the letters in my head. There wasn't a lot I could say even if I wanted to. This was not my area of expertise.
From the corner of my eye, I see how he picks up the weird little paperweight thing that sits on the corner of his desk.
He lobs it at the wall.
The act makes me flinch and cower.
Memories of the past creeping in.
Today was not the first time he had thrown something.
And the guilt inside me continues to grow.
The Lycans were only here for me.
"Sorry." He mutters. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"Has there been another?" I ask quietly, already knowing the answer by the look he gives me.
He bobs his head, his crimson eyes not quite meeting mine.
"Jenson thinks they are trying to find a weak spot. An area that is not as well protected. But my pack is growing tired. We have a large amount of land to cover."
"They need rest." I mutter absentmindedly
"I am well aware." He scowls. It wasn't my intention to irritate him. I quickly ask another question.
"Why do they send one or two at a time?"
"Easier to lose one or two over thirty or forty. They lose one, they can create another to replace them."
I was hoping Nyx had something to say, but all she does is sit and watch him. She did a lot of that.
"All because of me." I murmur. All because my uncle had some fucked up idea about me carrying a child for him and Cassandra. I frown in disgust as I gaze at the kid's book in my lap. "Why...why now?" "What do you mean?"
"Why make more Lycans now? Why not years ago when numbers started dropping? Devon kept talking about it being a dying breed, about me being a dying breed. They could have just created more." "Because they probably never thought that they would end up in this position."
"You mean, they never thought they would lose me."
He nods his head, if it were the other way around, I would do exactly the same."
'He's right.' Nyx murmurs. 'It's quite a smart move."
'Smart for Trey.' I mutter back. It was probably one of the few things Devon had told the truth about. None of it was Trey, it was all Cassandra, and I couldn't wait to kill her.
Alpha Dane and I hadn't spoken about it. Not once since we had sex in the forest. It almost felt like it was a forbidden conversation, speaking of the joy I had felt at seeing the dead Lycan.
That dead Lycan wasn't the first. Each one, Alpha Dane would take me to them, asking me to try and identify them. And each and every time, I found myself staring at the dead body with its torn out throat, a smile etched on my lips. He was right. I had a dark side. Or maybe it's just years of trauma finally bubbling to the surface.
I look up to see Alpha Dane peeling the lodged paper weight out of the wall. His shoulders are tense, his crimson eyes are a little darker. He puts the paper weight back on the table. I knew it was only going to be a matter of time before it was lodged in the wall again.
The office door is suddenly thrown back on its hinges as Jenson barrels in. He doesn't even acknowledge me and leans on the desk. The men stared at each other and I knew instantly the conversation was being held through a mind link. That is not a good sign.
Alpha Danes' eyes momentarily flicker to me. It was quick, and if I hadn't been paying attention, I wouldn't have seen it. "What's wrong?" I mumble, half wondering if I actually wanted to know.
Jenson turns around to look at me. "The Lycan that has just been taken down asked to see you."
"M....me?"
'Stop panicking!' Nyx snaps. ' Ask him why?'
"Why..... why did he want to see me?"
"That's a good question. And it isn't a he."
"It's... it's only ever been men that have turned up. Was she bitten?"
He nods his head. "I think it will be a good idea for you to talk to her."
"She's alive?" I splutter in shock. They hadn't even hesitated to kill any of the others, why didn't they kill this one?
Alpha Dane moves around his desk. "Neah, she's a kid. There are certain lines I won't cross"
"A kid?"
"Fifteen to be precise." Jenson sighs. "She is saying that she was dropped off by a blonde woman. Told to walk through the forest and to not turn back. And to ask for someone called Neah." "Cassandra?"
"She didn't give a name, but yes, likely. She is very emotional. She is tired. She wants to go home to her parents. She is very confused."
'She's a kid, Neah, we can't ignore her.' Nyx murmurs
"Where is she?" Tears are brimming in my eyes and I have no idea why. I didn't know her and yet I felt so sad for her, she was turned because of me "With Eric." Jenson tells me
"Are you sure you want to do this?" Alpha Dane eyes me carefully.
I nod my head while sucking my bottom lip between my teeth.
Jenson leads us across the grounds towards Beta Eric's house.
"He took her to his home?"
"Smaller place to keep an eye on her." Jenson mutters
Beta Eric opened the door to the three of us, just like everyone else, he looked exhausted. "She's cried herself to sleep."
He gestures for us to come in. A young redhead is lying on the sofa, curled up in a small ball, much like how I used to sleep back at Moonshine.
"Has she said anything?" Alpha Dane asks
"Her name is Jessica. The last thing she remembers is going shopping with her friends before she wakes up in the car of some 'hoity-toity' woman. Then the tears started again and about five minutes ago, she crashed out." 'Why would they turn a kid?' Nyx asks
"This is low." Beta Eric murmurs as he drapes a blanket over the redhead
"We all know that they don't care how low they stoop." Jenson mutters
We let her have a good thirty minutes to nap before Beta Eric wakes her.
The tears flow the moment she sees all of us staring at her.
She sits up and brushes her shoulder-length hair behind her ears.
I see the bite mark on her neck.
.. "Jessica?" I ask softly.
I knew what it was like to be surrounded by these men, to feel way out of your safety zone.
"Jess." She whispers and her soft blue eyes dart around the room
"Jess, I'm Neah."
"What's wrong with me? I'm... I'm hot...I feel sick......I want my mum. I promised her I would be home for dinner." Big fat tears roll down her face which she quickly brushes away.
'She doesn't know.' Nyx mutters. She doesn't know what's been done to her.'
"Can someone take me home?" She continues to weep.
"Unfortunately not." Beta Eric mutters. "It's not safe for you at the moment."
She lets out a little whimper as Alpha Dane gestures for me to follow him outside. "What do you want to do?" He asks
"Me?"
He nods his head at me. "The girl has no idea what she is, or even where she is."
"Why would they do this? Why would Cassandra do this?"
"They are appealing to your heart. The men are not working, and they have just discovered that someone has found their way in."
"I hate them." I feel my hands ball up into fists as I close my eyes. "They ruined my life and now, they have ruined a young girl too. Who is what, never going to be able to go home again? Never going to be able to see her family and friends?" "Do you believe her?"
"I smell her fear."