Chapter 23 - Brandon
I picked everyone whom I was sure was ready to handle a hybrid. I had Kaleb stay behind as a watch in case anything went wrong in town. Jade stood ready, almost eager, as she waited.
“You sure about this?” Kaleb asked, looking directly at Jade while he asked it. “I know she is useful and has a power, but this is the real deal. Anything can happen out there.”
As scared as I was of taking her, I knew she would be able to handle herself. Jade was changing and growing as an individual, and she wanted to prove that to everyone else.
I hooked the radio onto my pants and nodded. “And the hybrid that came into town was the real deal, too, and she handled it.”
Kaleb frowned. “You know what I mean, Brandon. In town, there were tons of other people. It’s just you eight out there this time. And we don’t know how many you are going against out there. It could be one, or it could be ten.”
“I’m aware of that,” I said, knowing he had a point and that he was just scared for Jade. But I also knew if we wanted to win this, Jade was going to be a huge piece of the puzzle.
“I respect your concern, but you know I don’t agree to anything unless I see fit. I didn’t just agree because she asked. I agreed because she has a point. She has a power that we have hardly seen, but we know it’s strong. Leaving her here would be a waste.”
Kaleb stared at Jade for another moment before he sighed. He knew he wouldn’t be able to change what was going to happen, so he might as well hop on board. He tilted my head. “So you’re telling me you don’t feel nervous at all having her out there? You’re not scared of what could happen.”
“I didn’t say that. I said it would be a waste to leave her. That doesn’t mean I’m not scared that she’s going with us. It terrifies me, but I’m pushing that away because I know she’s ready.”
“I understand you’re going out on a mission, and anything can happen, but if my sister doesn’t come back, I’m blaming you for whatever happens.”
“Noted.” I patted him on the shoulder. “Watch the pack while I’m gone and let me know if anything happens here.”
We ended up leaving ten minutes later. We each had a small pack to wear as we made our way into the woods. I explained that anything could happen and everyone needed to stay vigilant.
Jade remained near me at all times, her steps keeping up with mine.
We moved quietly and quickly. The further we walked, the more nervous I grew.
Jade walked with purpose and confidence, but I couldn’t help but feel a sense of worry.
We never knew what was coming, and I’d seen enough to know what the hybrids were capable of.
The group was quiet as they moved. They walked in pairs, staying within eye range as we moved. No one really spoke, and the only noise around us was the sound of footsteps and twigs. The wind had died down, not even rustling the trees.
“You’re quiet,” Jade whispered softly, bumping her elbow against my side. “What’s wrong?”
I looked at her for a moment before pulling my gaze back to the woods. I listened for any snap that wasn’t us, any sign that something was coming, but it was quiet. There was no extra noise, no footprints to say one was near us.
“I wished you had stayed back,” I admitted. “I just fear that something is going to jump out and I’ll lose you.”
She frowned, and I watched pain flicker in her eyes. “Brandon…”
“I know you’re able to protect yourself. And I trust you when you say that you can, but that doesn’t take the fear away. You haven’t seen how deadly they can be. How quick and violent they will be. I know you saw what it did to Nick, but… that’s nothing compared to what I’ve seen.”
I thought of all the murder scenes and the blood stains that, no matter how much you scrubbed, would never come out.
I thought of the victims and how ripped apart their bodies were.
Some people were never identified because their faces were so severely mutilated.
I remember seeing so many families of the victims who cried.
No amount of begging was going to bring them back.
Those images would remain engraved in my head until I died. I never wanted Jade to see something like that, to know just how terrible it could be.
Jade walked closer, her gaze softening. “I know you’re scared, but I promise if I couldn’t handle it, I’d tell you. I’m just as prepared as everyone else is, and I’m thankful you agreed to let me come..”
I wrapped an arm around her, pulling her close. “I will always believe in you, Jade. I know you have great potential. But that doesn’t mean I want you to have to use it.” She leaned into me for a moment before she broke herself free and continued to walk a few steps ahead of me.
Every few hours, we stopped to rest. I watched Jade, making sure she wasn’t growing too tired. If she was, she wasn’t letting on. She remained perky, her eyes always searching around like the rest of us.
“How far have we walked?” Asher asked as he pulled his boat off, fixing his sock. Everyone looked tired and seemed to be getting on edge. We had walked for hours, and we’d come across nothing, which surprised me.
“Eight miles,” I said after pulling my map up. “We are about two miles into the other pack, so everyone needs to remember we might run into hostility since we aren’t on our land anymore.”
“Why didn’t you just call the other pack’s Alpha and ask if they knew anything?” Chuck, another member we brought, asked. He was a little heavier set, but I’d see how big he was in his wolf form, and he would be powerful against a hybrid.
I had tried, but I never got an answer. I wasn’t sure if it was because their Alpha didn’t want to take my call or if there was something else at play. But I wasn’t going to sit on my hands and wait to find out. I figured if we ran into someone, we would handle it.
“Didn’t take my call,” I said with a shrug.
“We also don’t have a good connection with them,” Asher said, tying his boots. “I heard, apparently, your father cut ties with them a couple of years ago. Something about being hostile and backing out on deals.”
Whether that was true or not, I didn’t know. Either way, we needed to keep going. I wanted us to get back before it started getting dark.
“Jade, where do you feel the pull?”
Before Jade could even respond, the radio beeped, and I pulled it free from my pocket. “Yes, Kaleb?”
“A hybrid had just appeared, stalking outside of the town. I sent a couple to check up on it, but something feels wrong. Have you guys found anything?”
I tightened my fingers on the radio and looked at Jade. She looked around her eyes, seeming to see something we couldn’t. Then she frowned. “I don’t feel it now.”
“What do you mean?”
She shook her head. “It was heading that way, but it just…disappeared.” She pointed to the North of us. She looked frustrated as she turned around, her eyes glued to the way we were coming. “I feel the pull back at the pack now.”
“Fuck,” I said. “It’s a diversion. They planned this. They wanted us here while others attacked in town.” Which meant we needed to get back.
“But what about the pull I felt out here? It was stronger than the pull at home, which means there must be more out here.”
“We should head back,” Lynn said, shaking his head. “We haven’t come across anything out here anyway. Our pack needs us back to help.”
“But I felt something here, Brandon. I don’t think it’s that simple.”
“Either way, we need to get back home,” another person said. “We can’t stay out here while our home might be falling apart.”
I agreed, but Jade’s head whipped around toward the left of us. She stared into the woods like she was seeing something we weren’t.
“Jade, what is it?”
She started walking, and I watched her for a moment. But she didn’t stop. She kept walking. So, I yelled. “Jade! Where are you going? We need to head home.”
She didn’t turn back. She continued to walk, and everyone looked at me with a confused expression on their faces. I ran a hand over my face and sighed. “Follow her.”
We all started walking after Jade, but she started running. My heart raced as fear hit me. Where the hell was she going?
“Where the hell is she going?” Asher asked, looking at me.
“I don’t know.” After we rushed after her, I could smell the change. It was burning wood, and smoke started to appear in our view. It grew hot, and everyone started to cough.
“Brandon!” Jade’s voice came out pitched, and I ran ahead. She stood a few feet ahead of me, frozen like a statue. I grabbed her arm, feeling my entire body shaking.
“What the hell did I say? I said to stay by my side. You can’t just run off when you want. Do you have any idea how dangerous it is out here?”
She pointed, and I pulled my eyes toward where she was pointing.
My eyes widened as I took in a town, but a large part of it was burning.
I didn’t see anyone, almost as if it had been abandoned.
There was fire everywhere, and smoke was pouring out of buildings.
The streets were empty, and cars were parked along the road. My stomach lurched at the sight of it.
What the hell was going on?
My heart stopped beating as I took it all in. This was the pack I had been talking about, and it was entirely in flames. There was blood everywhere and fire eating up everything. There was garbage littered everywhere and bodies all around.
“Shit,” someone said behind us as the rest of the group caught up to us. I heard people gasp, and everyone started talking. Noise erupted around us, but my eyes remained on the scene.
“We need to help,” Jay said.
“No, this isn’t our problem,” someone said. “We have a problem back at home. We don’t need to turn this into our town.”
“But these are people. What if there are people here who need our help?”
“Who we cut ties with!”
“If we were on fire, we would want people’s help.”
“People who cut ties with us aren’t coming to save us, so why should we save them?”
The group continued to argue, but I looked for survivors.
You could tell the fire had been going for a while, but not entirely too long.
There could be people here, or the place could have been entirely empty.
It was a guessing game. I didn’t hear anyone, but that didn’t mean they weren’t deeper in the disaster.
“Brandon.” Jade’s hand reached for mine, her fingers tight. “I feel there are hybrids here, and there are people here. We have to help them. You need to make a decision.”
Of course. I was Alpha. I made the call on whether we should help or turn back and go home.
Jade stepped close, her body pressing against mine.
Her eyes softened as she stared at me. “Brandon, we need to help them. Whether or not we are still friendly with them, it’s clear they need a hand.
There could be children. As Alpha, you have to make this call.
I know you aren’t the type of person to turn your back on people in need. ”
I stared at Jade for a moment, taking in her serious expression, but she had such soft eyes. She was right. I didn’t want to turn my back on people who needed help. But our pack needed us. I couldn’t just ignore the hybrid that was circling our town.
But Kaleb was there. He could handle it.
If he really thought he needed us, he would have sounded more urgent on the phone.
We could quickly do a search and head back home.
That was the right thing to do. If there was no problem, it was just a detour for us, but if there were people in need, we were saving lives.
I looked at the rest of the group. “We’re going to do a quick search before we head back.”
“And what about our pack?”
“Kaleb is there and can handle it for the time being.” It was why I left him in charge. He wasn’t Alpha, but he was Beta, and he could handle it. I trusted that.
“Spread out and search,” I said, waving a hand. Everyone was moving at once, and I looked at Jade, who smiled. She gave my hand a tight squeeze.
“I knew it was in there. That kind-hearted man.”
I felt my heart skip a beat, but I know we don’t have a moment to fall into each other.
Every second counted. “Stay close to me,” I said finally before releasing her hand.
“And keep your eyes peeled. Anything could happen, and while we are going in there to save people, my top priority will always be you.”