Keeping My Pack

by Lane Whitt

  Maksim is currently out in the SUV with Finn sending a message to the guy, whose name is Albert Rosen. I was unsure about trusting him since he now works for Marcus, but Maksim was quick to reassure us that he only does so because Marcus threatens to kill off his family.

  “How did it go?” Reed asks nervously as Maksim and Finn step back into the room.

  “Perfectly. I was able to confirm with Albert that there are a few men in the house that can be trusted to know about Kitten’s real status. Now that they know we’re coming, they’ll look out for her. He told us to hurry. From what Albert told me, he doesn’t plan on keeping her alive much longer.” Maksim says as he rushes past us and into a bedroom. I follow after him.

  “What do you mean, her real status?” I question him.

  Maksim pauses in his mad rush to throw clothing and other items into a suitcase. His back straightens, and he gives me an unreadable look. “You really don’t know, do you?”

  “Know what?” I bark at him. Shit just got real, and he wants to play fucking mind games?

  “Marcus isn’t holding Kitten just because she is his brother’s daughter, a brother he hated and probably murdered in cold blood. He has her because she threatens his reign as Alpha, something he’s always wanted. Wolf law states that Alpha will always follow direct descendants, Father to son, son to grandson. Marcus only became Alpha because his brother died without any heirs and he was my son. I refused to make any more heirs without my mate, who I lost during The Suffering.”

  “But she’s a female! Females can’t be named Alpha, of any pack.” I shake my head at him. Even I know that about the born wolves. It still doesn’t make sense.

  “Look, son, I don’t have time to explain how wolf society works right now, but the short and sweet of it is, Kitten herself can’t be named Alpha, but her mate can be until she gives birth to an Alpha son. Even if she never has a son, the title stays with her until she dies. Now get your men ready to leave. That girl isn’t only my granddaughter, but also the key to ending Marcus’ reign of terror on my pack and the potential collapse of wolf society as a whole.”

  I watch, stunned, as he uses a knee to get the over-stuffed suitcase to close. In the back of my mind, I suppose I knew Kitten was important if she was Maksim’s granddaughter but…this? This is a lot to take in. It also means she’s in even more danger than we could have predicted. That thought snaps me out of my shock and gets me moving toward the others. I hear Maksim begin a phone call behind me to one of his contacts as I stomp my way over to Ash in the living room.

  “Time to get our girl, brother,” I tell him as I clasp his broad shoulder in my hand. I see the swirl of emotion in his eyes, my own probably reflecting the same. I hold back a chuckle as Ash rushes Logan and Tristan and throws them both over his shoulders running for the door.

  Kitten

  I hear shouting from the other side of the door. I try to sigh at the interruption but end up coughing dryly instead. I wish they would just leave me be. I’ve been lying here, exactly like this for a long time now. I haven’t spoken to anyone in what feels like weeks, though maybe it’s only been days or even hours. Time is an elusive thing when you can’t see the sun. I don’t try to escape anymore, and I don’t go to their stupid dinners. It all seems pointless. Everything is pointless. I won’t get to eat; I can’t escape. Talking to them is pointless too. They don’t say anything I want to hear, and there’s nothing I can say to make them let me go. I’ve found that laying in one spot and not moving is what makes me the happiest now. Uncle beats me no matter what I do, but if I don’t move, I can barely feel it anymore. I’ve become numb to the pain. I like closing my eyes and pretending I’m with the boys. In my mind, we are living out a peaceful life where I feel cared for, cherished and even loved.

  My dry, cracked lips sting as I smile at the thought.

  The shouting gets louder and even though I don’t want to, I can’t help but hear them.

  “I just need more time!” Adam shouts, sounding panicked.

  “You couldn’t get that girl under control if I gave you a hundred years to do it! I told you, the agreement is off, Vanderson! She’d rather lay there and die than let you put one finger on her; it’s not going to work. I gave it a shot; now it’s time to move on.” Uncle shouts back at him.

  “But…but you can’t do this! You promised I’d be Alpha! You promised she’d be mine! I can get her under control. Just look at her, I already got her to stop fighting us, we can still breed her and sell the pups to the highest bidders. I just need more time!”

  “Oh, we’re still doing that. I’ve just found another way to go about it. One where we don’t have to put up with the defiant little shit and I can finally be rid of her. The humans have been doing this for decades; it should be fine.” Uncle says dismissively.

  “But this could kill her! She’s supposed to be mine damn it! I can’t very well go making my own pack without a mate and heirs.” Adam’s voice gets high pitched and whiny, making my ears hurt.

  “Remember who you’re speaking to, boy. If the little bitch lives, I’ll let you have her. Deal?” Uncle asks.

  “Fine.” Adam huffs.

  The metal door creaks open, and I hear what I think is squeaky wheels. I don’t care to turn my head and look. I’m not sure what they’re up to but it sounds like whatever it may be will be the end of my time here, one way or another. A part of me wants to fight them, to try and stop them from doing anything to me. I won’t though. If nothing else, all this time alone has given me a chance to think about my life. How insignificant I was from the very beginning. My entire life has meant nothing; I have done nothing of any worth. I’ve been surviving not living, and I’m tired now. The best thing I have ever done was to meet the boys and because of me, two of them are dead. I ruined their family by trying to be a part of it. Even if I lived forever, I’d never forgive myself for that, so I might as well die today.

  Cold hands grip my ankles the same time warm ones go under my arms, and I’m lifted up off my spot on the floor. I almost protest this but decide to close my eyes and picture the guys in their wolf forms again. I wish I could have had more time with them. I didn’t know the right words to say or the right things to do to let them know how much I care about them. I never told them how special they were, never told them that all out of all of the people I’ve ever met, they were my favorites. I didn’t to tell the others how sorry I am for killing Remy and Tristan.

  “You should give her your blood again before we do this. Make sure she’s in perfect condition so we’ll have more time if this goes badly. I’ve never done this procedure myself.” A voice I’ve never heard before speaks from above me.

  A hand grips my face and puts pressure on my jaw, causing my mouth to open reflexively. Moments later I taste the coppery tang of blood as it hits my tongue. Uncle presses his wrist harder on my mouth, forcing me to swallow and my lips to bleed as they crack. The new man begins to speak again, but I can’t hear him as blood rushes through my ears, and the healing process begins. Somehow it hurts more to heal than it does to be broken in the first place. A searing heat starts up on every cut and bruise, and I can feel in great detail as my skin, muscles, and veins knit themselves back together. The bones are the worst, though. With them, not only do I feel the heat but also an incredible pressure that makes me think I just might shatter before it ends.

  By the time the blood had done its job, I’m panting heavily, and a new coat of sweat covers my body. I hate being fully healed most of all. When I’m already broken, there’s only so much he can do, with being healed, I know I’m going to be broken all over again.

  Before I can relax for even one moment, a new pain shoots through my tummy. It’s so painful that my brain can’t even process what’s happening. My mouth opens to scream, but nothing comes out. The pain makes my vision spotty and steals my breath from me. I slam my head back on the table or whatever I’ve been put on, and arch my back until I hear, more than feel something break. I
feel my fingernails rip off as I claw at whatever is hurting me. I have never felt such pain. Smoke fills my nose as soon as I’m able to get a short breath and with is such a sickening smell that I instantly want to retch.

  I turn my head to do just that, and I see a guy ambling toward me through my blurry vision. As I try to focus on him, I see him lift a hand to his face, a finger going over his lips. There’s a loud boom, and everything around me shakes. Or I do, it’s hard to tell.

  “Wha…” Adam starts before he howls in pain.

  “Shit. No, please don’t! H-he made me do it!” I hear someone shout.

  Before I can turn my head to see what happened, I feel a new pain in my chest. My eyes snap down to see Uncle standing over me. Something big and shiny is in his hands, holding onto something…in my chest. The polished surface of the blade reflects my confused and panicked eyes back at me before thick, dark red blood bubbles to the surface and covers the rest of the knife that is not inside of me. Inside of me. Covered in blood. My blood. I had thought that I was ready to die, but as I know I only have moments left, I can’t but wish that I would have lived.

  My eyes shoot to my uncle’s, to the only member of my family I ever knew. My eyes ask the question my mouth cannot. The same question I’ve been asking myself since the day of the accident. “Why?”

  Logan

  I bounce on the balls of my feet as I crack my neck from side to side, getting myself pumped up. This is it. Through those woods is Kitten. I just gotta get there. And fuck me, am I gonna get there. Ten weeks. Ten weeks she has been kept from me. Ten weeks we have searched for her. Kitten is mine. She’s ours, and today we take her home, where she belongs. Not one of these motherfuckers is gonna stop me. They can’t catch me; they can’t touch me.

  “Logan!” Remy shouts, breaking my concentration.

  “Huh?” I answer.

  “Remember the plan. Wait for my signal before you take off.” He gives me a stern look.

  “I know, I know.” I wave him off.

  Remy gets distracted by Maksim as they start talking about details and all that shit. I continue bouncing as I take a look around, trying to picture how this plan will work. For the past four days, Maksim has been building up a force strong enough to take on the guards the jackass Alpha has stationed here. His hope is that once the guards see it’s pack members against pack members, that they’ll give in without a fight. While that sounds all hunky-fucking-dory and all, I’m happy Remy insisted they be prepared to fight. While my brothers and I may be stronger than all these bitches put together, we’ll never reach the house if we have to fight them on our own.

  Ash steps next to me, putting his giant paw on my shoulder and stopping my bouncing. He keeps his eyes trained on Remy and Maksim as he leans close to speak in my ear. “Whatever happens, Logan, get there. Get to Kitten. We’ll make sure you get back out. You’re going in first.”

  My head rears back a bit at his words. This wasn’t the plan we went over on the plane; the plan Maksim created, and Remy said we’d follow. I meet Ash’s dark eyes and tilt my head to Rem.

  Ash nods once. “He’s on board,” He says before walking over to Tristan, probably giving him new orders as well.

  Huh, so we’ve got our own plan it seems. My faith in Remy is once again restored. Maksim is a good guy and all, but his priority appears to be causing the least amount of collateral damage. Our goal is simple. Get Kitten and go home, fuck the rest. I like this plan more.

  I see some of the reinforcements shifting into their wolves and getting into position. The plan is for them to run ahead and distract the guards patrolling at the gate and the front of the house. Behind them are a few men with grenade launchers, designed to send the house into chaos and send their fighters out to meet us in the yard rather than the house. Wolves are better at fighting when we have room. While the first line of wolves corrals their fighters, the rest of our wolves and those in human form will enter the house and secure it room by room, locking the whole place down. That’s when I was supposed to enter and search for Kitten, who is supposedly in the basement.

  Thank god I don’t have to wait for all that shit to go down first. I assume my brothers are getting their own instructions before we set off, but Ash said to focus on my job, so that’s what I do.

  Ages later, Maksim gives the order and wolves take off in the direction of the house. I glance at Rem, and he holds up three fingers, my signal. I count to three…okay two, before I take off after them. Adrenaline zips through my veins as my toes dig into the hard packed ground, shooting me forward. I hear Remy’s half-assed shout for me to come back, but there’s no command in it. I pump my arms higher to go faster as I effortlessly glide through the trees and brush. In no time at all, I’m through the woods and entering a clearing with the gate straight ahead.

  I must’ve passed those other wolves because these shithead guards are sure surprised to see me. I smirk at them as they open fire, their slow as fuck bullets no match for my speed. I sense a few of them shifting but could care less. An oak tree sits fairly close to the gates, and I throw myself into it, feet first. I kick off the trunk of the tree, using my momentum to propel myself over the gate. I tuck and roll and am up on my feet faster than they can redirect their weapons at me. I let out a laugh and start singing breathlessly. “Can’t catch me, I’m the Gingerbre…ohmph!”

  A gray and black wolf manages to tackle me, but I’m able to flip him over and get the upper hand. “Don’t you know better than to interrupt a man when he’s gloating?!” Each word is accompanied with a fist to his face His head flops to the side, but he’s still alive. That should please Maksim. The grenade rockets fire in the distance and I’m out of time with this douche. I shift to make myself a smaller target.

  Humans, wolves and…is that a hooker?...stream from the house as a fire starts up on the left side. I fight the flow of desperate people trying to escape, biting at anyone stupid enough to get in my way. My paws scrabble for purchase on the hardwood flooring, and I try first to sniff Kitten out. I catch a snippet of her scent coming from a room on this floor and enter an empty dining room that seriously needs a makeover. I let out an irritated growl and exit the room at full speed thanks to the ugly carpet.

  Too late I realize someone else is running down the hall, and my paws don’t have brakes. I take out Tristan’s legs right from under him, and he does a flip before landing on his back. I snicker for about two seconds before a huge black wolf appears, and my eyes widen. Oh…fuck. Ash’s fat ass slams into me, and I get to know the wall intimately as I become one with it. I grumble at him as I get back on my feet, and he nudges a dazed Tristan to stand.

  The three of us continue down the hall to a door with a padlock. I’d bet my left nut that it leads to the basement. I bark at the door, and Tristan yanks the lock hard enough to tear a hole clean through the door. He runs down the stairs first, and I try my damnedest not to trip down them. Ash…the ass…throws himself down the steps, and we have to untangle ourselves at the bottom. I nip at his leg, but he doesn’t return it. Instead, he sniffs deeply and runs full force into a closed door straight ahead. The air down here smells of Kitten, but the scent is off, like something has been added to it.

  The steel door flies off the hinges as Ash uses the full force of his weight to crash through it. I enter behind him, and my heart sinks at what I see.

  “NO. No, no, nonononononono, no!” Tristan cries as he falls to his knees behind me.

  Ash lets out the loudest howl I’ve ever heard. It’s full of anger, grief and pain so sharp it rattles me to my bones. I let out a whimper as I lie down and have to cover my ears with my paws.

  My eyes close for just a moment, and I pray to any God willing to listen, that the scene before me is just a figment of my imagination, and everything will be okay when I open them again. An image that will haunt me for the rest of my days. Kitten, so pale and dirty spread out on an operating table, a knife plunged into her chest.

  Ash’s furious lo
w growling snaps me out of my stupor, and I’m just in time to catch that Vanderson prick trying to back out of the doorway as Ash stalks him like the totally fucked prey he is. I leap in front of the opening, crouching and baring my teeth at the fucker. His eyes go wide with fear, and he retreats to the corner where he begins to hyperventilate.

  I keep him in my peripheral vision as I take in the rest of the scene around me. A man lay dead on the ground near Kitten’s body, while another man struggles with some dude in a white coat. A slightly younger version of Maksim has backed up against the wall and has an amused smirk on his lips. Tristan has made his way to Kitten, and I hear him cooing to her, but I can’t concentrate on what he’s saying.

  I turn my attention back to the smirking bastard and growl, snapping my teeth in his direction. He’s the one that was standing over Kitten, his hand gripping the knife embedded in her chest. I take a step forward, but Ash barks at me, his eyes telling me he wants him to himself.

  Before I can protest, I hear several pairs of footsteps echo down the hall, and I know it’ll be my brothers responding to Ash’s howl. Growls, shouts, and snarling fill the air as the rest of my family comes to a stop behind me. I step out of the way so they can enter the room, Maksim following in behind them.