by Jade Royal
Chapter Ten
“Welcome back,” Kellan greeted as Dell awoke from his healing sleep. He immediately pushed forth his alpha vibes, but Kellan showed no reaction. Dell was indeed an alpha, but his dominance was no match for Kellan. Kellan simply waved his vibes at the man and Dell was placated. He stood from the bed alert.
“You’re an alpha,” he said.
“Yes. I brought you and your pack here to my territory to heal up. The wolf that attacked you is a wolf that attacked my pack as well. We’re making plans of attack.”
“Let me and my pack help you,” Dell offered.
“That wolf was confident in his attack. Means he studied my pack before he attacked.”
“He’s been attacking packs and trying to take their females,” Kellan said. “He captured one of our she-wolves in fact.” Dell looked around the room.
“Mira, where is she?” he asked worriedly. Kellan nodded towards the door then turned and walked out of the room, leading Dell to the kitchen where both their packs were having dinner.
“You’re awake!” Mira burst out. She got up from the table to hug her alpha tightly. The rest of his pack gathered around him and hugged him as well. Kellan noticed that Mira was the only female in the pack.
“Is there others in your pack?” Kellan asked. Dell shook his head.
“It’s only us. We were part of a larger pack, but they were mostly elders. Our last elder passed not too long ago leaving just us.” Kellan nodded feeling sorry for the wolf. That’s why being an alpha was more than just implementing rules. Being alpha meant that you were responsible for keeping your pack thriving and alive. No matter how many pack members Kellan did have he knew he and Bliss had to have pups. Having pups first not only ensured his bloodline of alphas but allowed for his pack to continue to grow. Kellan didn’t know if Dell realized, but he needed to increase his pack numbers, or he would be in constant defense of other wolves who might deem him weak.
“Meet my pack,” Kellan said. Everyone stood and introduced themselves. Jaxson came into the dining area out of breath. He’d been doing research the whole time in preparation for them to launch their attack.
“This is one of my enforcers, Jaxson.” Jaxson shook the hand of the other alpha. Then he turned to Kellan and gave him the rundown of all he found. Jaxson looked at Mira and smiled. He knew the presence of other wolves were inside the cave, but he hadn’t met any of them. Now seeing Mira, he was captivated by her beauty. But the way she was standing next to the alpha proved that she was off limits.
“Dell is going to come with us,” Kellan said.
“He and his pack want to help.”
“Good. Great to have allies. I think we should get moving as soon as the sun sets which is in an hour.”
“Let’s get ready then. Everyone to the meeting room so we can set the plans.”
After a half hour of talking about modes of attack, the Phoenix Pack was ready. Jayce was on edge which was completely normal. But Kellan needed to be sure his beta wasn’t going to lose control in any fight.
“I know you want to find Rita as much as we do,” Kellan said.
“But you have to know that we can’t afford you losing control.”
“I know,” Jayce replied. “I can’t guarantee anything though. But if I start losing control knock me out. Do what you have to do.” Kellan nodded.
“Who will stay here with the she-wolves?” Jaxson asked. “I want in on this one.”
“No one has to stay and watch us,” Kyra spoke up.
“We have a badass alpha female. She’ll look out for us.” Kellan looked at his mate who was nodding in agreement. He wanted her to trust him in anything he did which included letting him leave her behind. So in return, he had to trust her that she could protect herself and their pack if need be.
“I agree with Kyra,” Kellan said. “The females can hold down the fort here. And I doubt that anything or anyone can even get in.”
“Mira you can stay with the females,” Dell said.
“I don’t want to risk you out there in any fight.” Mira just gave a nod instead of answering.
When the wolves were ready to leave; the pack traded hugs. Who knew what would happen out there. Kellan hugged Bliss for a long time unable to even let her go.
“Please be safe,” she begged. Kellan kissed her deeply. Tristan saw his alpha kissing his mate and couldn’t forget how Gemma’s lips tasted. He hadn’t tried to kiss her again. But if he was going out for a fight, he knew he should at least acknowledge her.
“If anything goes wrong Gemma, make sure to tear shit up,” Tristan told her. Even if she was young and cute his mate was feisty.
“If I go down, it’ll be with a fight,” she said. Tristan smiled at her. Gemma looked as if she wanted to kiss him again, and he knew he should have just kissed her lips and settled her nerves, but he didn’t. He kissed her forehead like she was some child and left it at that. And when he walked away, he felt like a complete idiot.
“Hey you,” Kyra said to Jaxson. He looked at her.
“What’s up?” He asked already smiling goofily.
“Just don’t die bozo,” she grinned. Jaxson plucked her nose before kissing her on the cheek. Even though he was close with all the she-wolves and respected them, he and Kyra connected on another level when they realized they were the only ones in the pack without mates. It allowed for them to have someone to be around when everyone else were busy worrying about their mates.
“Let’s move,” Kellan called out ready to go. The females followed them through the tunnels all the way to the opening of the cave. The waterfall was roaring in front of them keeping their scents masked from anyone who may come wandering. Dell seemed impressed by the cave itself seen as he didn’t see it on his way in.
Leaving the cave, the Phoenix pack moved as a unit with Kellan in front, and Jayce to his right and Jaxson and Tristan walking behind them. They moved in this way for almost all their lives and now that they were officially in their own pack and had to protect it, things were much more real. Their plan was to head into town straight to Maverick’s businesses, but they decided to follow the same direction of where Dell’s pack was attacked. Since they were going into town, they hadn’t decided to shift since they wanted appear as normal humans. But they were all healthy wolves capable of moving quickly without tiring easily.
“Wait,” Jayce urged stopping immediately. They’d come by the clearing where Maverick had escaped after attacking Dell and his pack. Everyone halted and looked at Jayce. His amber wolf eyes shone back at them as his nose turned up to the sky. Kellan did the same thing.
“I smell her,” Jayce said. “But her scent is different. Something’s off.”
“This way,” Kellan pointing noticing Rita’s scent as well. He led the way through the bushes towards the scent. The closer they got to Rita’s scent was the more a mixture of scents began to hit them. Bursting out of the bushes they came upon three young female wolves who were trying to catch their breaths. They screamed in fright before whipping out their claws and standing defensively. One of them looked at Jayce.
“Jayce?” she asked.
“How the hell you know my name?” he questioned. The three wolves breathed a sigh of relief. They ran to Jayce, hugging him tightly and sobbing. Everyone just stared at them not sure what was going on.
“You must think we’re crazy,” one of the girls said. They backed off and dragged the other girls off Jayce.
“I’m Brandy,” she said. “And this is Maya and Amber.”
“And you know me how?” Jayce asked.
“Rita told us all about you. Told us that we might be able to find you out here if we kept moving. She gave us a piece of her hair. I think so if her pack was around they could scent her.” Brandy showed him the lock that Rita had cut off.
“Maverick was holding you captive?” Kellan asked. The three girls looked at him and immediately lowered their heads to show him respect as an alpha. He could sense how submissi
ve they were and also how young. They probably only just hit puberty.
“Yes. He attacked our pack and took us with him. Rita managed to get us out, but she’s still stuck back at the house.”
“House?” Kellan asked.
“That’s where he’s been keeping you?” The three of them nodded.
“Where is it?” They looked behind them and all around, but Kellan could tell they couldn’t retrace their steps.
“We don’t know,” Brandy sighed.
“It’s fine,” Kellan told them. He turned and looked back at his pack. Jayce was mesmerized by the three wolves because they knew him because Rita told them about him, and the fact that she had helped them to get free despite her own captivity.
“What’s the plan now?” Tristan asked.
“We’ve got to get them to safety. And figure out what house they’re talking about,” Kellan said.
“Then we’re back out. Maverick might try to move Rita because they were able to escape. So we need to move fast.”
“They’re too weak to keep up,” Jaxson noted. He went up to them and touched their wrists.
“They’ve been wearing silver cuffs. If it was taken off not too long ago, their strength is far from recovery. Even if they shift, the wolf would be weak.”
“Easy fix. We carry them,” Kellan said.
“Come on girls.” Jaxson, Jayce, and Kellan each took one of the girls onto their backs. They were all thin and weighed very little.
“Wait, someone else is coming,” Tristan said. They all got in defensive stances keeping the girls on their backs. Tristan and Dell stood in front of them since they weren’t carrying one of the young wolves. But instead of something dangerous coming towards them, who emerged was another wounded she-wolf.
“Hera?!” Kellan gasped. She fell to the ground with purple smoke emanating from a wound on her shoulder.
“He shot me, but I got away,” Hera breathed.
“Don’t trust her,” Brandy whispered in Kellan’s ear. Going from the weary feelings rolling off his pack, Kellan knew they didn’t trust Hera either. All Kellan knew was the woman always had something against his mother and father.
“You wanted to go with him,” Jayce accused.
“You chose him despite what he was doing to the pack. Aren’t you his so-called alpha female?”
“Not anymore,” she said.
“He chose another alpha female and kicked me to the curb.” The way she looked at Jayce sent a jolt through Jayce. She couldn’t possibly mean that Maverick had taken Rita as his alpha female. No way.
“Kellan we need to move the fuck on,” Jayce snapped. “I need my mate back.”
“I can take you to him,” Hera offered. “Right now!”
“It’ll be a trap,” Amber spoke in Kellan’s mind. Kellan observed Hera. Unlike the young wolves, aside from the obvious wolfsbane wound, she didn’t seem weak at all. There were no bruises from wearing silver, so truthfully being with Maverick was her choice. And he wasn’t going to bring her back to their home where his mate and the rest of the she-wolves were.
“Tristan, you and Dell, and his wolves stay here with Hera. Make a fire and burn out the wolfsbane. Me, Jaxson and Jayce will bring the girls to safety.” No one objected. Kellan turned and began running back towards their home. They moved so swiftly it was like they were gliding through the forest. The young wolves on their backs did little to slow them down. They reached the cave in no time.
Baby come to the front of the cave, Kellan spoke to Bliss through her mind. By the time they went under the waterfall, Bliss and the other she-wolves were waiting by the large door to enter the tunnels.
“Oh my god, I thought someone was hurt,” Bliss sighed in relief. The young wolves jumped off their backs and huddled together as if they were shy. Gemma was probably the only one close to them in age. She was the one who stepped up to greet the young wolves to ease their nervousness.
“Hi, I’m Gemma,” she greeted. The young wolves looked at her. They eyed her hard as if trying to recognize her.
“You look like two of our elders,” Amber spoke up.
“Gina and Gabe. They came to our pack not long ago.”
“Those are my parents,” Gemma said.
“They told me the pack was attacked.”
“Maverick captured Amber, Brandy, and Maya just like he captured Rita. They managed to escape with Rita’s help, but she’s still back there. We brought them here to be safe while we go back and get Rita.”
“Go back where?” Gemma asked.
“This big house,” Amber replied. Bliss gasped out loud and slapped her forehead.
“Oh my god! How could I have been so fucking stupid! His mansion Kellan! He’s probably living there still!”
“Fuck,” Kellan grunted. He looked at the young wolves.
“These are the females of my pack,” he said.
“And Bliss is my mate. They will all keep you safe until the rest of us get back. You have nothing to fear now.”
“She’s counting on you to save her,” Brandy said to Jayce.
“Please get to her before he does anything crazier.” Jayce nodded. He was indeed going to get his girl. Kellan kissed Bliss one last time before they were leaving the cave and hurrying back to where they left the others.
Chapter Eleven
“We need to get out of here,” Levi snapped at Maverick. He and Rory were recovering from the poison and appeared very shaken up.
“Calm down,” Maverick said waving him off. They were back in the kitchen where Maverick was making Rita sit in his lap and still with the silver cuffs on.
“We’re not safe here anymore. Hera, plus the other wolves got loose. Our location will be compromised.” Maverick was worried about Rita’s pack being out there in the first place. If he didn’t know they were so close, he wouldn’t care at all about their location being compromised. Hera had no one, and those three wolves didn’t have the experience or the strength to retrace their steps and bring anyone here. But if Kellan and his pack were close like they were earlier anything was possible.
“They won’t be able to find us,” Maverick said.
“I wonder if this was the place you lived with Bliss,” Rita spoke up.
“Because if they are out there like you scented them earlier they could be closing in on here because Bliss would be telling them about this place.” Maverick slapped his forehead. He stood abruptly sending Rita flying out of his lap.
“This isn’t the house I lived in with Bliss, but it’s close enough. Shit.” He began pacing. If they got close enough, there would be no trouble catching his scent or Rita’s.
“So what are we going to do?” Levi asked.
“After the way we attacked them and kidnapped one of their she-wolves who just happens to be the Beta’s mate they ain’t going to come here looking to talk.”
“What we need is time,” Maverick said.
“And we don’t have that right now.”
“So why aren’t we hightailing it out of here right now?” Rory asked.
“Fine, let’s-” An emphatic howl ripped through the silence of the night time. Maverick was frozen. That wasn’t just any howling wolf. It was the howl of an alpha.
“Kellan,” Maverick gritted.
“How the hell are we gonna get out of this now?” Rory gasped.
“Shut up and stop being a bitch.”
“Oh hell,” Levi sighed as he sniffed the air.
“It ain’t just Kellan. It’s a whole bunch of them. And it’s only three of us, and a weakened she-wolf. What the hell do you expect us to do?”
“Well we have wolfs bane, they don’t,” Maverick said.
“That’s how we beat them the first time. So get the guns and let's go.” He came towards Rita and grabbed her by the arm leading her towards the room where he kept his weapons. He grabbed hold of one of the guns before dragging her out of the room and towards the back door.
“What’s the plan?” Rita asked.
“Fight out way out.”
“You surely don’t expect me to fight with these cuffs on do you?”
“I don’t want you to fight at all.” With Rory and Levi next to him, Maverick nodded towards the door. With guns in hand, Rory and Levi burst through the back door. Rita only got a glimpse of Kellan before Maverick shut the door keeping them inside.
Kellan knew he was going to be up against wolfs bane when dealing with Maverick from now on, but this time he was prepared. The moment Levi and Rory came charging out of the back door two of Dell’s wolves attacked promptly. They had shifted while Kellan and his pack kept themselves in human form. Because Levi and Rory was so fixated on attacking Kellan, they weren’t prepared for the attack that befell them. Kellan jumped into action when their guns fell to the ground. He grabbed the weapons and pointed them at Rory and Levi as they were being held down by the wolves from Dell’s pack.
“I should pump both your asses full of this shit,” Kellan gritted aiming the guns in their faces as they were being held down.
You do that, and your she-wolf dies, Maverick spoke into his head. Kellan jerked his head up and looked for the bastard. Sniffing the air, he could smell both Rita and Maverick inside the house on this side of the mansion. That was exactly why they had surrounded the back door in the first place.
Back away from the door, Maverick ordered. Failure to do so and she’s a goner. Don’t fuck with me Kellan. Let my wolves up. I will tell them not to attack. Kellan didn’t want to listen to anything Maverick had to say, but he had to suck up his pride for Rita’s life.
“Let them go,” Kellan ordered.
“What?” Jayce screeched. “I don-”
“LET THEM GO,” Kellan roared to the wolves. Even if he wasn’t their alpha, his dominant vibes easily won them over. They let go of Rory and Levi, snarling as they backed away. Kellan also backed up from the front door to stand next to Jayce who was seething with anger.
