CHAPTER 4
“Would you sit? You’re starting to make me dizzy.” The growl in Dean’s voice spoke of a frustration that crawled over Mark’s skin.
His brother had arrived in less than an hour, but the three brothers remained locked in Mark’s room. Mark tried to find the words to explain his new predicament to the Prime Alpha, but stumbled on every word, unsure anything he said would make this any better.
Dean ran a hand through his disheveled black hair, his alpha’s growl apparent to Mark even though it remained hidden behind his formidable human form.
“Perhaps you should just try, you know… go in there and see if he’s still…” Mark squeezed his eyes tight. His wolf had gone too far behind the barrier, there was no inkling of his presence. Any attempts to coax him back to the present were met by a few whines and further retreat.
Dean was on his feet before Mark could attempt to reach his wolf again.
He placed his hands on Mark’s shoulders, and the familiar presence of Dean’s Alpha in his mind drew a sigh from the depths of his soul.
Unlike Zeke’s influence, the new Zeke, Dean’s Alpha, didn’t terrify him or his wolf.
He opened his eyes and was trapped in his brother’s blue gaze.
He gasped when Dean’s Alpha reached past his broken mind to coax his animal closer. This time, the stream of healing hormones did not make his skin crawl. Instead, his skin tingled with the renewed power, the strength of his animal flowing past the barrier separating them with ease.
Dean’s smile was indulgent, lacking the reassuring brilliance that often lit up his blue eyes. “He’s a little scared.” His voice dropped to a whisper. “It’s OK. I’m here.” He glanced at Mikey, who reached for Mark’s hand. “We’re here. You won’t go through this alone again. You’ll never be alone.”
Similar words in Caster’s voice floated through his mind, and he sighed, accepting his brother’s vow.
Dean released his hold, his Alpha influence in his mind dissipating. Mark was on the verge of panic as the Prime Alpha retreated, but his wolf didn’t crawl back into his hiding space, and he breathed his relief, relaxing for the first time since he’d woken from that nightmarish place.
“OK. Now, does anyone know how this happened?” Dean was in full Prime Alpha mode.
Mark was relaxed with his brothers here, but not relaxed enough to sit. “It can only be the witch.”
Dean nodded. “We need to figure this out before the vampires do.”
“You think it might reignite the war?” Mark didn’t even want to consider it, but they’d be foolish not to make the connection.
Dean frowned, took a breath, and closed his eyes, rubbing his left temple with the back of his hand. “I’m going to ask you something, and I need your honest answer.”
Mark braced himself for a question he’d expected would come since Zeke’s return.
Dean opened his eyes and held his gaze. “Did Zeke ever tell you his thoughts on the treaty?”
Even having expected it, Mark had to search his memory for any discussion about the treaty.
At the time, he’d heeded his father’s advice to stay away from all matters war- and treaty-related.
He’d read the treaty before it was signed, his meticulous attention to detail finding a few ambiguous clauses that had needed clarification.
But he didn’t remember discussing it with Zeke except in passing.
“Other than the usual…” He shook his head.
“You sure?”
Mark nodded. “You think that he started working with the witch before all of this?”
Dean’s answer was apparent in his expression, the worry he’d displayed earlier growing to exponential proportions.
“James says he’s been against the treaty from the beginning.”
He turned away from Mark’s gasp and walked to the sitting area, dropping his large body into the largest of the couches.
“He thinks council members may have switched sides.”
This time, the chorus of gasps from him and Mikey filled the spacious room. Mark sat across from Dean, the consequence of the new information weighing heavier than anything, even his desire to retreat into Caster’s arms and never let go.
“Goddess! Dean, what do we do?” Mikey sounded so small that Mark forgot his impending battle with his emotions to zero in on his need to protect his younger brother.
“First, you need to stay here. Close to Ben and Riley. It’s the safest you’ll be.” Mikey started to shake his head, but Dean would not be deterred. “This is not up for discussion. You are not going anywhere near any other wolf until I find and root out all traitors. Is that clear?”
Mikey’s nod was small.
Dean pointed at him. “And you…” His voice followed his Alpha influence, flowing past his mind to reach his wolf. “You will go find Caster and tell him everything.”
Mark shot to his feet. “I can’t…” He shook his head, trying to get his brother to understand something he still had a hard time coming to terms with. “He won’t get it. Not until…”
“We will need him before this is over, and he would do anything for you.” Dean smiled. “Even I can see that.”
Mark resigned all arguments, except one. “I wanted Edie to help me figure out how he could be alive.”
Dean’s face contorted with a frown.
“I can’t explain it. Can you?” He waited for the Prime Alpha’s acquiescing sigh. “Whatever we do after this, we need more information, and I figured since magic brought him back, perhaps we need magic.”
Dean stood, his energy crackling in the space containing Mark’s wolf. “You… both of you stay within these walls.”
“Where are you going?” Mikey started to follow him, but stopped mid-stride.
“To see James. Find out which members of the Council I can trust.” He glanced at Mark. “Get your answers and then find Caster. He’s the only person I can trust with your safety right now.”
Dean’s confidence in Caster echoed through him like a truth he couldn’t ignore. With his wolf’s senses much closer than before, Mark tried to find the unique scent that was his soulmate. His heightened senses found many different, foreign scents, and he closed his eyes to focus on the one he needed.
Like before, it floated past the door Dean had neglected to close to infiltrate his mind, further energizing his wolf.
But it was faint, like Caster was not in the house.
He tried to hide from the profound disappointment the new information brought as he held on to the tiniest hint of the only person who made him feel whole.
There was only one way to get back to Caster.
He needed to ensure Zeke would not get between them, and that meant understanding why he was back and what his return meant for all of them.
Above all, he needed to know how Zeke’s Alpha had reached his wolf with relative ease.
He couldn’t belong to Caster, body, mind, and soul, if a vital part of himself was under Zeke’s control.
He’d spent a scant few minutes with the resurrected Zeke, but every ounce of him knew he wasn’t the same. Had he ever known him?