Chapter 37 - Glass
Third person POV:
"They're coming to move them! We have to get them now," she fretted, getting out from under the patio couch on the balcony and peering quietly into the room, watching Alyssa wrap a sleeping Tenley in a blanket.
"No, they will catch us! We need to wait!" He hissed back.
She turned around, "I did not cover our scents and hide under that damn couch for the last several hours just to miss the opportunity to take back what's rightfully ours." She whispered and glared behind her, "we need to get them now, there is no way we will breach the safe house. Now get your ass up, on three we enter..."
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Brent's POV:
"We need eyes on Dalton's mother, has anyone thought to do that?" I glared and pointed my question sarcastically at my Gamma. I was in the middle of coming up with a short term plan while Alyssa and Tenley were en route to my office. I would've gone to get them myself, but I wanted a base plan set so that I could take them to the safe house myself. This was war and I didn't care who I had to take down to ensure their safety. I had already sent 30 warriors to the airport to get on the jet to Wolf Moon in search of Dalton. I had another 50 deploy out to our pack borders, now having over 100 wolves on patrol .
"We currently do not have a location verification on Dalton's mother, we are working to find her now," Ryan finally answered.
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose, "how, how have we gotten so lax on this situation that we have lost the location of three fucking suspects? HOW!" I roared, making Jess and Caitlin jump. The Beta and Gamma females had shown up moments ago as they would also be going to the safe house.
"I'm sorry Alpha I, I don't know. Everything was great and online one minute, and the next it wasn't and it didn't become immediately apparent to me." He shook his head, "I wish I had a better answer for you..." His voice was full of defeat and frustration, as it should be. This was a major fuck up.
I shook my head, fucking great..just great.. I put my head in my hands, trying to calm my racing thoughts so that I could get back to the plan in front of me.
'Alpha...you need to get down here...'
The flat tone of my Beta sent my heart slamming into my chest as I stood from my desk and ran out of the room.
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Alyssa's POV:
This is not at all how I thought today would go. I should be slipping into my perfectly tailored velvet black dress for the ball, but now I was in a rush to get to the safe house. Brent's chilling words made me completely forget about the ball I was sad to be missing. He sounded so worried, and in turn, I was stressing, but I would be with him soon and that's the only thing that kept my mind and heart calm.
"Okay, Ten," I whispered as I pulled her dead weight off of the bed. She was snoozing hard and it wasn't near as easy for me to pick her up anymore, especially with her growing little brother making it awkward to carry her. I finally got her in my arms and had just about made it to the door to knock when a sound behind me caused me to turn around. I walked back a few steps, looking around for a moment. Not seeing anything I turned back to continue walking to the door. The sound of glass shattering met my ears. I turned around at the sudden intrusion, shock and dread filling my every sense. I knelt down and carefully placed Tenley on the floor next to the bed, her body partially under it as I was trying to keep her protected.
"What the hell are you doing in here?" I seethed, my wolf coming closer to the surface.
'Don't you dare shift and kill our pup,' I growled at her.
She responded by pulling back but stayed closer to the front of my mind to offer me comfort and strength.
"I am coming to take back what is rightfully mine." She smiled and walked toward me, the glint of a syringe just barely visible in her enclosed hand. My panic rose, but I stayed as calm as I could. I had 10 guards and Anderson on his way.
"I have my guards right outside of the door, and my Beta is close. You will not get away with this," I nervously shouted while walking backwards to the door, causing her to laugh sadistically.
"You stupid woman, we won't be here much longer." Her eyes diverted to something behind me as my back collided with something, or rather, someone. I looked back and my blood ran cold, my breath hitching in my chest as my throat constricted and my eyes dilated with fear.
"Hi, sweetheart. "
No...
The woman waved her hand, "okay, time to go. Get the girl."
"NO!" I screamed, aloud this time.
"She. Stays. Here." I growled through gritted teeth.
She laughed and rolled her eyes, "you really think you have any power here? Really?"
'Half shift,' my wolf grumbled lowly.
'You swear you'll stay in control and not full shift?' I pleaded.
'Yes. Now go!'
Without another thought I let my teeth and claws elongate, noticing that Tenley was stirring. The two of them approached me, half shifting as well. Usually they would be no match for a Luna, an Alpha female, but being pregnant I was nowhere near my full strength, hence the 10 guards, but I wasn't going down without a fight, no fucking way.
She came near me and before she could react I shoved my claws straight through her bicep, causing her to roar and brush her claws across my cheek. A surface level injury began to drip down my face, Tenley was now awake and crying in fear.
"Baby girl, go to the bathroom and lock yourself in there, NOW!" I was devastated to yell at her, but she was trying to walk toward me for protection and I needed to get her away from the situation as fast as possible. I was heartbroken that I couldn't hold her and that she was going in there all alone, but I couldn't think about that for long with the circumstances in front of me.
I had barely missed a jab in my distraction with getting Tenley to go, turning and slipping slightly but I was able to regain my footing and stuck my claws through the man's leg. Unfortunately he was able to rip my forearm wide open at the same time, making me falter with pain as the woman took her chance to shove the syringe into my shoulder. I attempted to fight further, but my body went numb, and everything went black.
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Anderson's POV:
I kept walking along the hall, getting frustrated that the damn guards had not yet met me. Did they not fucking listen when Brent told their asses to get moving? I rounded the corner and was about ready to chew their asses when I saw all 10 men still standing there.
"What the fuck is going on?" I bellowed, my voice echoing in the expansive hall.
"Beta, she hasn't knocked yet. We are waiting for her to knock like the Alpha told us to," Jared, her main guard, spoke.
I sighed, remembering how much she'd wanted to pack before leaving Wolf Moon, and opened my link to her, it had been plenty of time.
'Luna, I know this was sudden, but now is not the time to try and grab up anything. The safe house is fully stocked. We need to leave.'
I tapped my foot, anxiously awaiting a reply, but when I got nothing in return I tried again.
'Luna, we must leave.. now.'
Nothing .
I huffed, beginning to feel anxious, and walked over to bang loudly on the door. The room being sound proof would make it difficult for her to hear me if not for a specific portion of the panel that allowed for the faint sound of someone knocking to be heard, and I knocked as hard as I could to make my presence known before barging in.
I gave it a few seconds after knocking before busting the door down, not expecting what was waiting for me behind it.
My blood ran cold, my wolf bristling for a fight. A war.
'Alpha.. you need to get down here...now.'
Brent's POV:
I had left my office in a fury. Flying down the stairs at record speed. There was no way an elevator would've been faster. I finally reached the hall and stalked around the corner, seething with panic. I had been searching the bond, attempting to link with her the entire trip down to the room, but the bond to my mate had been cut off. I couldn't get through to her, I could barely feel her at all...
Anderson, who was pale and solemn, approached me just before I got to her door.
"Alpha, they're gone," I attempted to step around him, but he put his palm to my chest, "we've searched the entire room.. they're gone." He said again, just above a whisper.
I said nothing and once more attempted to go around him, needing to see for myself.
He stepped over to block me, "Alpha, she's not here, do not go in there," he urged and again I wordlessly stepped around him, but he grabbed my arm and yanked me back, "you do not need to go in there," over enunciating every word to try one last time to get my attention.
I growled, yanking my arm from his grip. I shoved him to the side and walked through the entrance of the room.
Her sweet scent was everywhere, constricting my throat with emotion, and taunting me with hope.
I stopped quickly, a mere foot inside the door. My heart froze at the site in front of me, but I continued walking in slowly, the condition of the room was gut wrenching to say the least. Signs of a struggle expanded from corner to corner. The bed in complete disarray, lamps broken and the couch overturned. The bathroom door had been busted down, and the patio door had been completely shattered. She had fought, and she had fought hard... my eyes misting at the thought of what she had to endure.
My wolf bristled, ready to shift as my eyes locked on to something on the floor. I willed myself forward. Not wanting confirmation of what I was seeing. Not wanting any of this to be real. I bent down, extending my hand to touch the burgundy puddle on the floor. Blood. I brought my hand toward my nose, confirming my fears. The blood of my mate and daughter intertwined. Both had been injured..or worse..
'Let. Me. The Fuck. Out.'
I let out a roar that shook the entire room, giving into the shift and landing on all fours.
'Get. Micah,' I growled at Anderson .
'Gladly. Where to?' He linked back.
'Interrogation room,' I growled and took off down the hall.
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Anderson's POV:
"Are you seriously not going to tell me what this is about, man?" He nervously exclaimed.
"It's Beta, and you will see soon enough," I growled at him, my eyes never diverting from the path we were on.
"Since when do you make me call you, Beta? I barely call Brent, Alpha unless it's a formal event? What the hell is going on?" He attempted to stop me by grabbing my shoulder but I shrugged him off, my wolf had an incredible intuition and he had already deemed he had helped this along in some way.
We continued toward our destination. The man I'd called a friend for most of my life was now seen as guilty by my wolf. It was a tough thing to wrap my head around, but I was in interrogation mode which meant my wolf was doing most of the talking.
"The fucking interrogation room?!" He exclaimed once we made it. "Dude, I don't know what you think you know, but this is not the way to handle this. We can literally just talk! This isn't necessary." Micah, who had begun walking backwards in an attempt to leave, exclaimed.
"I'll be the judge of that," Brent spoke as he stepped into the hall. I shoved Micah through the door and rummaged in the bin for some shorts. We had clothing bins all over the pack house for this exact reason. There was almost always one within a 10 foot reach.
"Here, put these on. I'm so tired of seeing your dick. I think I've seen it more than my own at this point," I sarcastically scoffed as I tossed him the shorts.
"Shut the fuck up," he mumbled as he pulled the shorts on and turned his attention to Micah who was now seated at the table .
Brent grabbed the chair and turned it around so he was sitting in it backwards.
"So, Micah.." he said as he scooted the chair forward, "I have a huge problem, and I think you can solve it for me."
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Alyssa's POV:
I awoke in a strange room, catching my bearings and immediately patting around and finding Tenley was warm and next to me. I pulled her to me, she was asleep, or at least I begged that she was asleep and not drugged as I was, the memory making me clutch my bump. I sobbed quietly into the pillow as the gravity of the situation washed over me like a wave, praying my little boy was okay. I had tried so many times to link Brent, but was unsuccessful. I was pulled from my sorrow as I heard voices and immediately tried to be as quiet as possible.
"I have to go back! I have to provide an alibi in all of this or our plan will not work!" I heard the female voice just above a whisper, her words urgent.
"I don't know what fucking plan you're talking about, but the one I remember discussing involved us killing the bitch and making it look like a rogue attack and then taking the girl to Reign Moon where I would explain that I was the rightful Alpha and since my first mate had died, you, my second chance mate, is now the Luna? Does any of that ring a damn bell?" He shouted back sarcastically.
"Keep your voice down!" she forcefully whispered back, "that was before she became pregnant with the Alpha's heir. The plan has changed and I will explain all of it to you when I get back, but right now I must go and create this alibi," the sound of a kiss met my ears.
"Oh, and one more thing don't touch her, if she regains even a sliver of her wolf he will feel her pain and this whole thing is shut down. We're lucky that she was so blinded by fear earlier that she had shut the block herself, but that may not happen again." I winced at hearing how my emotions had been used against me.
He sighed, "fine, I didn't want anything to do with her anyway." He laughed as the sound of a smack rang out.
"Ow! You don't have to slap my ass so hard!" She hissed.
"Oh whatever you love it," he responded.
"Not near as much as you think I do," she shot back, "now, I really need to go. Keep this locked and spray this every 30 minutes."
The sound of a shutting door had me on alert, my nerves flaring, wondering if he would listen to her previous command...
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Brent's POV:
"A story?" The man echoed.
"Mmhm, " I hummed in response, "Maci made it onto my pack land undetected and I think you might know something about that." I glared at him but remained silent, they'll always talk.
My wolf was struggling somewhat, but I could feel something. I wasn't sure what it was, but it gave me the faintest shred of hope and I clung to it for dear life, knowing that I had the entire pack on lock down and every able bodied person was searching for the Luna allowed me to surge forward in the questioning.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he stuttered.
Anderson stepped forward, his wolf surging through, "oh, I think you do," he snapped.
Micah, knowing Anderson's wolf was an impeccable interrogator, dropped his head. He knew he was no match, "she said she just wanted to talk to you and that if I alerted you ahead of time you wouldn't be willing to hear her out...so," he sighed, "so I let her in a few weeks ago..."
I closed my eyes, letting the truth wash over me as I willed myself to breathe, never imagining she'd been here under my nose for so long, "how long has she been here?" I grumbled.
His eyes widened with fear, but he didn't speak.
"Answer me," I growled and began to push myself up from the chair.
He raised his hands in defense, "okay, okay, she came just days before you and Luna arrived," he slowly let out a breath.
I stood and threw the chair across the room, flipping the table between us and had him by the throat in seconds. Anderson didn't stop me, his wolf knowing he deserved it and this was my pack and my rules, "that is far more than a few fucking weeks! Is this why you attacked my mate?" I spat into his face.
He stared at me, his silence answering my question as his gaze turned to a glare and I threw him across the room.
He slowly stood, and dared to speak, "Maci told me all about Luna's plan," he paused for a moment, spitting blood from his mouth, "Alyssa made you fall in love with her using magic, and that you've been seeing her for years, and that the girl is actually your daughter from the betrayal. All of this ruined yours and the true Luna's mateship and so she rejected you. She told me all of it! I did this to protect you and the pack from her sinister lies! This is why I should've been your Beta, but you blindly chose based on the current bloodline! Fucking bullshit, we were friends first, before Anderson came along. He is three fucking years younger than me, he had no business being your Beta! Shit, he could've been your Gamma!" He roared and continued,"she promised to make it right and make me your Beta once she released you from Alyssa's spell, but then the plan was messed up when you two announced your pregnancy," he grumbled in frustration.
I walked slowly to the man who had been a constant in my life. A friend I thought I could always count on. He was from an unranked family, but I saw courage and strength in him and named him my top warrior, despite my father telling me it was not smart to place an unranked wolf in that position. It was possible they could become blinded by the power, not growing up with the instinct of station. I was enraged to see that he had been right. The pain of a friend having sinister ideals for my mate was tough, but not near as blinding as the rage I felt against him.
I narrowed my gaze at him, "Micah, a Beta is someone who is unconditionally loyal to his Alpha, Luna, and their pack. A Beta is someone that can take the pack on his back in the event I am unable to fulfill my duties. Anderson is my Beta because he is the kind of man that if I were to have named him top warrior of the entire pack, instead of Beta, he would've held that title with just as much honor and loyalty. You were not made Beta because I did not see those qualities in you. I saw you as my warrior, but you decided that was far too beneath you, which is comical since you moved into the ranked housing because of me," I chuckled darkly, walking closer to him, "you are no longer in the ranked housing by the way, and before you say anything, your mate and child will be well taken care of while you spend the next 11 years in the cells..." I walked toward the door, remembering one final thing, "oh, and your mate will have the chance for a peaceful rejection due to your actions, but that will not be extended to you. Whatever pain you end up feeling is not our problem. Furthermore, you're going to the cells based on a lie. None of what Maci told you is true. No matter how much I wish Tenley was biologically mine, she is not. Maci used you."
His protests of apologies and pleas rang out, but were muffled by the shutting of the doors as the guards had entered to detain him as Anderson and I headed back up to my office. I was satisfied with what I'd been told and I was ready to shift and jump in on the search for my mate and children... my throat constricting again at the thought of how helpless I felt.. I just needed to find them, I had to find them and I now had a giant piece to the puzzle, I just needed one more - My thought was cut off with the urgent link from my Gamma,
'Alpha, I have sights on Maci.'