by Maggie Walsh
“But, I thought he and all the others like him didn’t believe in the Reckoning and the Purge? I thought that’s one of the things they are fighting against?” Caleb questioned.
Julius looked to Caleb. “Very true, but we’ve found out that those in charge, the two higher ups and the ones directly below them, like Delchev, actually do believe and are using it to their advantage. They are the ones who are convincing the others that it is a lie from the Council trying to control us, so that these people will join them and do their dirty work. The more paranormals they can control at the time of the Reckoning, the better. As it states, whatever form a paranormal is in at the time of the Reckoning, that will be the form they are trapped in forever.”
Fane heard the small gasp from Jude, but when he looked to the man all he saw was the same emotionless mask on his face. Fane knew Jude had no knowledge of the Reckoning or the Purge, and felt bad for the guy finding out this way. It had been a huge shock to Fane, but at least Ridge had told him personally in a private meeting.
“So how would they control them?” Ridge asked.
“If a paranormal is in shifted form, then they don’t have to worry about them anymore. They will be beasts. It’s one of the reasons why they have been stockpiling all the guns and ammunition. Those around them that are trapped in human form will be killed immediately, and those stuck in their shifted forms they will use. They’ll chain the beasts and train them as guard animals, or kill them if they can’t. The humans will also be affected by the Reckoning and the Purge, they just don’t know about it. Their religious scholars talk about the ‘End of days’, and some say it will be upon them soon. The day of Reckoning is what they call it,” Councilman Darby explained, and chuckled at his last words. “They don’t know how right they are. As you know from reading the histories, there will only be a small percentage of creatures, human and paranormal alike after the Purge that will remain. These rebels are trying to use that to their advantage, to put their plan into action that it is time for paranormals to rise up and rule the earth.”
Councilman Vane stood and began pacing, as he continued the story, “They know they can’t do it now with the numbers the humans have and all the weapons available to them, but they can use the Reckoning to take over. Once the human numbers drop, and the ones left behind are scared and running around like chickens without heads looking for someone to lead them or save them, that will be the time for these men to strike. We suspect that the two men in charge may have found their true mates, and know they will be spared in the end and plan on being the rulers of this new world. We’re sure that they are lying to the leaders of those who have joined them. Like you, all leaders have been given the histories and scrolls explaining what is to come, but those who don’t believe are the ones these men have gone after first to join them, encouraging their disbelief, but they have also gained some who do believe in the Reckoning and the Purge, and have promised them positions when the time comes.”
Dell sat back in his seat and sighed. He closed his eyes and ran a hand down his face, then looked back to the Councilmen. “But if these paranormals are in their beast forms when the Reckoning comes, then they will be trapped in that form forever. Don’t they realize that? So how can they be placed in one of these top positions?”
“They’re not shifting,” Julius replied.
Ridge sat forward, his brow furrowed. “They’re not shifting? So, they’re staying in their human forms to ensure they stay human afterward and gain that power?”
Councilman Darby looked to Ridge, and nodded. “Exactly. Those who have been recruited by these men and who have found their true mates—which is not many—are thrilled because they will be spared after the Purge and have been promised leadership positions, so they will do whatever these men ask of them now. That is why we are having such a hard time in this war. Greed and power are very intoxicating and make men do many vile and unspeakable acts.”
Dell nodded his agreement, then looked back to Julius. “So, you…” Dell shook his head, then tried again. “Explain to me about Silvan and this fake mating.”
“I agreed with Elvir. The histories tell us that once a paranormal group begins to find their true mates that more of them from that group will as well. It is for the survival of that group and a blessing from the Gods. I promised Elvir that I would do everything I could to help his son find his true mate, which appeased him. In doing so, he set up a meeting for me with one of his top suppliers dealing with drugs. We’re still working on a plan to take them out, and for it not to lead back to me. A few days after that call to Elvir, Abigail came to see me,” Julius said, and looked to the witch.
She smiled softly, and looked to Dell and Ridge. “My seer’s visions changed after that. By Julius making that promise and gaining the information he did, his future changed. Anyway, to make a long story short, it was at that time that I learned of all of you for the first time,” Lady Salle announced, dropping her own bomb.
“What?” Dell, Ridge, Jude, Caleb, and Fane all said as one.
“How long ago was this?” Dell demanded.
She looked at Dell sheepishly, and replied, “Two years ago.”
“Two... you’ve known about us for two years, and we are only just being invited into this situation and being warned of what is happening?” Ridge growled.
“That is our doing, Alpha Heart,” Councilman Darby interrupted. “The council has been keeping as much of this under wraps as we can. Most of our kind have no idea what is really going on. Once Abigail came to us with the new information, we knew there would come a time that we would have to approach you both and others like you, but at the time, your father was still alpha, Dell, but because of the vision, we knew you would be the one leading this pack when it became necessary for us to come to you. There was also the fact that the York and Heart packs were in talks of joining, purchasing land together, and becoming official sister packs at the time. We wanted that to happen and didn’t want anything to get in the way of your alliance. One, because it would make you stronger when the Purge did come, and two, because of what the vision told us.”
“And what is that?” Dell asked between clenched teeth.
The Councilman looked to him, and replied, “That we would need your help in this war. Both of you.”
Dell stared at the Councilman for a moment, then pushed back from the table and stood. He ran his hands over his head as he paced, then turned back and looked to the others. “You want my people, don’t you? You know my men are some of the best warriors in the paranormal world, and you want me to send some of them off to fight this war, and maybe lose their lives.”
“Would that be so bad?” Julius asked, as he sat back and crossed his arms over his chest. “I mean, I know the loss of life is always a bad thing, but there are so many of us who have been fighting this for so long and have sacrificed a lot, including their lives, so why not you and yours?”
There was something in Julius’s voice that told him that his former leader wasn’t trying to insult Dell or Ridge, but was testing them.
Dell walked back to the table and placed his hands on it as he leaned forward and met Julius’s gaze. “As a paranormal it is up to all of us to fight for our survival. For all of our survival, no matter the breed. I have no problem with helping in this war and doing whatever is necessary to save as many as we can. My men would gladly follow my orders and do as I ask and they would fight to the death for this cause. My issue is only now being informed of what is happening in our world, and so quickly being expected to send my people off to join this war. A little more warning would have been nice, so that I could inform my people of what’s happening, and what we can do to aid the cause. I know my men, and once I tell them what is going on, I know they will want to fight, but I also know the struggles we have here that we deal with every day. Whether you all are aware of it or not, the York and Heart packs have been fighting our own war for many years. It is one of the reasons why we have joined together and formed
this alliance. Sending our people off to do our part in this war will weaken our defenses and leave our lands open for a takeover. There will be a lot of bloodshed and death here if that happens, and we are already weakened because our protection spells have been destroyed.”
“If you want our help in this, then you need to give Dell and I time to plan. We are obligated to protect our people. They trust us with their lives, and leaving them open for attack is not an option. I agree with Dell. We do have an obligation to help the paranormal world as a whole, but we need to protect the home front first,” Ridge insisted.
Julius stared at the two Alphas for a moment, then the side of his mouth raised in a smile as his eyes filled with approval. “That’s all I needed to know.”
“And what is that?” Dell growled.
“That even faced with such a monumental decision, you not only stand together, but think of your people first. The seer’s visions were correct and you two are the ones who will help us win this war.”
Dell pulled back quickly and stood, his eyes open wide. At the same time Ridge straightened in his chair, eyes widened and he, Caleb, and Jude all gasped.
CHAPTER 11
Dell
A subtle wind could have come across in that moment and blown Dell over. Everything they had been told so far sickened him, and had Dell wanting to know how they could help, but to think about sending his men off at a moment’s notice, to fight in a war they had no idea was even happening, didn’t sit well with him. If he had been given time to prepare them, train them harder, then he would send a group of his people, but Dell had never expected to hear what Julius had just announced to them. They were the ones that would help win this war that they had only just learned about? How was that possible?
A thousand questions were swirling around in his head like a tornado, but he couldn’t find a way to string the thoughts together to form the questions. All he could manage to get out in the moment was, “Explain.”
Abigail sat forward in her chair and folded her hands together on the table. “When Julius made that promise to Elvir, it changed his future, which also changed the future for everyone. My seer saw me performing the spell on Cyrian, his and Silvan’s mating, Silvan’s big mouth in announcing that he would be saved during the Reckoning and the Purge, and all the events that followed, right up to this meeting and then some. It was destined for Fane and Oberon to come here. Not to Ridge’s pack, but yours. It is where Fane would find his mate, who turns out to be the assistant to the alpha, and someone the alpha thinks of as a brother. Which brought Silvan here to come after him and Oberon, and so on. Because you now have Silvan under your lock and key, because of crimes he committed against you and your people, and Cyrian is here because of Silvan, that has brought me here to come for my son, and has also brought the Council. A bit ahead of their schedule as they said, but because of that, more visions have shifted and changed. Now, before you ask, no, the visions don’t explain everything, but they do tell us enough. Like, they didn’t tell me how I would find my son when I got here, and they didn’t tell me how these talks would go, only that we would have them. I suspect other visions will come to my seer after we’re done here, and I hope they are in our favor, although, now that I have met you both, I have hope for our future, even without knowing the visions the seer will receive. You’re both honorable men and I know that no matter what, you will both do whatever you think is right.”
They all sat around silently, just lost in their own thoughts. After a few minutes, Jude broke the silence, and Dell was grateful. There was so much they still needed to hear.
“You said that you used a spell against your son so that Silvan would think Cyrian was his mate. May I ask how that was possible?” Jude asked.
Abigail looked to Jude and gave him a pleasant smile, but Dell could see some sadness in her eyes. “To use the spell, I had to cast it on someone of my blood. Seeing as Silvan likes men, that left me with only once choice with Cyrian being gay. I wasn't thrilled about it either, but to get the advantage that Julius was working toward, I had to concede that it was a good plan. As I said, I spoke with Cyrian and explained everything, and even though he was a bit nervous, my wonderful son agreed to the plan and his part in it. A vampire, unless they are an old vampire like Julius, doesn’t know their mate by scent like shifters do. Vampires need to bite and taste their mate’s blood to know. To do the spell, I needed some of Silvan’s blood which Julius helped get for me. Using Silvan’s blood, it aided the spell in matching Cyrian’s blood to his, which would make my son's blood appealing. Silvan and his mind would be tricked into thinking that Cyrian was his mate.”
“But what about Cyrian?” Caleb asked. “I mean he would have to... well... you know... have sex with Silvan, wouldn’t he?” His brother’s face was twisted in disgust as he asked the last question, and Dell couldn’t agree more. The thought of the sweet witch having to fuck that pig, Silvan, was very disturbing.
Abigail covered her mouth with her hand as she chuckled, then dropped it, and replied, “No, actually. With Cyrian being who he is and the magic that he can perform, all I had to do was teach him a spell that he would need to cast weekly. Every time Silvan got frisky and wanted to have sex, the spell would kick in and make Silvan think that they had sex, when in reality it put him to sleep, then he would wake up in the morning feeling sated and refreshed. They have never actually had sex of any kind.”
Caleb let out a bark of laughter, but covered his mouth with his hands and quickly controlled himself, but when Dell turned to look at him, he could see Caleb was struggling to hold back his laughter. Dell smiled as he shook his head, then looked to Ridge to see his reaction, and saw the amusement written all over his face as he smiled at Caleb too. Dell looked back to Abigail, chuckling as he asked, “So this spell you’ve cast to make Silvan believe Cyrian is his mate needs to be cast weekly as well?”
Abigail was smiling at Caleb, but shook her head, then turned back to Dell. “No, just the once. Because it is a blood spell, which is the strongest kind there is, it only needed to be done the one time and it will stay with him until either he dies, Cyrian dies, or I remove it. Well, me or Cyrian. I have taught him the counter spell just in case.”
“So, if I have this straight, with this Delchev guy thinking his son is mated and safe from the Purge, and that Julius was the one who helped him achieve that, he is now trusting you, and you will be able to get more information on these two top men,” Jude surmised.
“Exactly,” both Councilmen answered together.
“And you came here to not only tell us this so that Fane wouldn’t kill Silvan, which would endanger your plans, but to ask us for help?” Jude asked,
“Yes,” Councilman Darby said. “But, not in the way you all suspect.” He held up his hand, cutting off anything they had to say, and continued, “I know it sounded as if we were asking that you send some of your people to help in the fight, but that’s not what the Council wants from you. What we would like is for you to keep all your men here and keep training them as fiercely as you always have, and to bring Alpha Heart’s pack up to the same standards. We know your warriors and enforcers have been trained well, but even you must know they are not at the same level as Alpha York’s men.”
Ridge nodded. “I agree. Don’t get me wrong, my people are pretty good fighters themselves and will do whatever is necessary to protect our pack. Dell’s men are much more skilled, but with the help of my mate and my second’s mate, who were both born and raised as well as trained in the York pack, my men are getting better every day.”
“Yes, our men having been training hard, and I know that they will be up to the same level as this pack by the end of the year. After that, it will be a matter of keeping them training and conditioned, then they will be able to help me train any new members we may take in, or some of our pack now who would like to get better. Right now, we have been focusing on the warriors and enforcers to get them up to speed, especially with our defenses down as t
hey are, but Bo, Jag, and I will be starting to expand our training to all members, just as the York pack has,” Caleb reported proudly.
The Councilmen seemed impressed by what Caleb said, and both smiled, relief showing in their eyes. “That’s wonderful to hear, and brings us to our next order of business. Dell informed the Council of the events that led up to the spell being lifted that was cast over this region a very long time ago, protecting you all against the humans stumbling upon you, or spotting you on their satellites, and he asked for assistance in finding a witch. I am happy to say that Lady Salle and her coven have volunteered to cast new, stronger spells around your lands,” Councilman Vane announced.
Dell, Jude, Caleb, and Ridge all looked to Abigail and thanked her for her help and generosity. Once that was done Councilman Darby picked up where Councilman Vane left off. “What the Council would like from you, Alpha Heart, Alpha York, is to make your joint packs a safe haven. As we said before, there are many that have been rescued and have nowhere to go. We’ve been housing them at a special home we had built many years ago just for the purpose of helping them get back on their feet and moving on from the horrors they had to endure. But now we have more coming in, which is a good thing, because it means we are saving more of our people, but they need the facilities more than the ones who have been there for five, ten, even fifteen years. Of course, we can’t just send them on their way and wish them luck. It is our responsibility to make sure they are settled and have found a life again.”
“And because of our location it would be a great place for them to start afresh while at the same time hopefully feel safe,” Dell said.
The Councilmen nodded as he smiled at him. “Yes, Alpha. We know that for a lot of breeds this location will take most time to get used to, but we believe between the new spell Abigail will cast, how well trained your people are, and your commitment to each other and your alliance, that all of that combined will help ease their fears. I would also like to ask you, Alpha Heart, if you would be willing to take two who need help right now. Well, within the next few weeks,” Councilman Darby replied, and looked to Ridge with pleading eyes as he asked for the two men.
