by Lola Gabriel
“Hey, Kodiak.”
“Moss, Ferren, and I are coming back from Seattle, and we should be there within about thirty minutes. Get the pack together, get Jett to help you. We need to have a meeting,” Kodiak ordered.
Ferren watched him quietly as he gave Moss a few more instructions, and even though she shouldn't have been, she was wildly turned on by the way he changed into a fierce leader who demanded respect and obedience at the drop of a hat.
“The whole pack?”
“The whole pack,” Kodiak confirmed.
“That might take a while, but Jett and I will get right on it. Are you and Ferren okay?”
“Yeah, we’re fine. We just came from her house.”
“Did she remember anything?” Moss asked.
“Little bits, but we think there was someone else in the house when she was outside running through the forest, or when she was asleep afterward. Ferren recalls seeing blood on the carpet, which the police had removed from the scene,” Kodiak confirmed.
“It could be hers.”
“I didn't go back in through the front door, Moss,” Ferren stated.
“Oh, hey. I didn't know I was on speaker.” Moss sounded uncomfortable.
“Sorry, I should have warned you,” Kodiak said and shrugged at Ferren. “He hates being put on speaker.”
“I really do,” Moss muttered.
“Anyway, I found claw marks under my windowsill and remembered climbing in through the window, not the front door,” Ferren explained.
“So, whoever was in the house was bleeding, and it had to have been the person whose blood you had on your clothes and hands.”
“Yes. That’s right. That person was in my house, while I may or may not have been inside,” Ferren answered.
“We figured that if the wolf who attacked her was in her house, even in his human form, he would have killed her while he had the chance,” Kodiak said.
“Right. Those Crescents are a bunch of bastards,” Moss muttered.
“Have you found out anything about their Zetas, like I asked?” Kodiak asked.
“No, I’ve been a bit preoccupied with Levi,” Moss apologized.
Kodiak was about to answer when Ferren decided it was more appropriate for her to say something. Kodiak might just scold Moss, and she didn't want that. Moss had been dealing with Levi’s attack in a way that needed to be handled with care, and judging by the look on Kodiak’s face, it was not the way he was going to handle it.
“That’s okay, Moss. You’ve been dealing with a traumatic event, so we understand,” she interjected and when Kodiak glanced at her with a perplexed look on his face, she gave him a look to encourage him to be a little more compassionate.
“Yeah, Moss. It’s okay,” he muttered and rolled his eyes at Ferren who gave him a thumbs up. “We’ll see you in a bit.”
The call disconnected and Ferren glanced over at Kodiak. His one arm rested on the windowsill while he rubbed his temple, and on the other hand was on the steering wheel, tapping along to the beat inside his head. His expression was brooding and he bit his lower lip in what she could only assume was annoyance.
“Did I overstep a boundary?” she asked with a cringe.
“No, why would you ask that?”
“Because you wanted to say something, but I just felt that we, I mean you might want to cut Moss a bit of slack. His little brother almost died.”
“Is that who you think I am?” he asked. “Because if it is, you’re wrong. I am not a complete asshole.”
“I don’t think you’re an asshole. I just know that as the Alpha you’re expected to behave in a certain way, and I saw that when you spoke to him,” she answered, hoping that she wasn't saying the wrong thing. She didn't want to upset him or get thrown out of the pack for insubordination or something like that. She just wanted him to understand that Moss was going through an ordeal with what had happened to Levi.
“I’m new to this whole ‘being emotional thing’ but you’re right. I am the Alpha, and I have to be strong and brave for my pack.”
“But you can be kind and just as well.”
“Emotions make us weak,” he muttered.
She shook her head in disapproval. “Who told you that?”
Kodiak hesitated for a few seconds and bit his bottom lip.
“Was it your brother, Cole? The one who you rarely speak of because you hate his guts? Or was it your father who made you feel like nothing you did was ever good enough for him?” she asked, knowing she had overstepped a boundary.
Kodiak’s jaw clenched tightly, but he didn't answer her.
Ferren took a deep breath and placed her hand on his thigh. “You’re not like him. You’ll never be like him, and that’s why you’re the best Alpha I have ever known.”
“I’m the only Alpha you’ve ever known,” he countered.
“Whatever,” she scoffed. “You’re nothing like him, and you definitely do not need his approval right now. You should do what you think is best, and not what he would expect you to do.”
“Thank you,” he said after a few seconds of silence. “No one has ever had the balls to say something like that to me. Not even Jett.”
“Wow, that’s surprising. She seems like the type to say whatever she wants,” Ferren pointed out.
“She’s really not as bad as you think she—”
“Kodiak, look out!” Ferren exclaimed as she noticed something in the middle of the dark road in front of them and grabbed onto the armrest.
Kodiak slammed on the brakes and turned the steering wheel, causing the car to turn away from the animal in the road and swerve instead downhill through the snow. Ferren let out a terrified scream as the car flipped over due to the incline and landed on its roof. Snow flew everywhere as the car skidded straight into a tree and the impact was deafening.
A sharp pain erupted in her skull and she winced painfully, trying to focus her eyes. Kodiak lay beside her on the roof of the car, not moving.
“Kodiak, are you okay?” she whispered, her voice strained as pain ripped through her body. She reached her hand out to him and grabbed his hand. “Kodiak...”
Everything started to blur around her and the darkness she had hoped would never return welcomed her back with open and menacing arms.
10
To Kodiak it felt like he was underwater, swimming in the lake close to their house in Massachusetts about a decade after they arrived there from Venice. He was still young, but wise to the ways of the world, already carrying the scars of a tormented life. The water was warm, but somehow it didn't feel the same. Something was missing, and the emptiness consumed him. It started to become colder around him, causing him to shiver.
A familiar but faint sound filled the air around him, and as he gently slipped back into consciousness, he smelled his own blood, along with tree bark, gasoline and Ferren’s blood. His eyes opened and he was back on the roof of the overturned Mustang. A deep and painful groan escaped his throat as he rolled over onto his side and watched as his phone lit up repeatedly. He simply stared at it as his vision went blurry and he momentarily closed his eyes. The world spun around him vigorously and it was clearly a mistake to close his eyes. He glanced to his side and he froze for a moment.
“Ferren...”
He looked around him and didn't see her at all in the car. Crawling out of the car and onto the snow, he hoisted himself up into a standing position and looked up at the sky. It was already light out, several hours after he swerved off the road and down the slope.
She was gone.
“Ferren!” he called out, trying to see if there were any tracks in the snow, or blood or anything.
There was nothing.
“Ferren, can you hear me?” he called out again, his voice strained and panicked. He limped around the car, calling out to her in all directions.
His breathing quickened but he knew that now was not the time to panic. He had to get help. He needed to get out of there. A sharp pain in his leg reminded
him that even though he was a wolf who had been alive for more than five centuries, he was still mortal—in a way—and he needed to get help.
The familiar sound of his ringtone pierced the open air and he rushed back to the car, retrieving his phone.
“Hello...”
“Kodiak, where are you?” It was Moss.
“I don’t know. I swerved out of the way for an animal or something and...” He groaned and a wave of nausea washed over him.
“Are you okay? Are you injured?”
“Yes.”
“And Ferren, is she okay?” Moss asked.
“She’s not here.” His words sounded unbelievable, even to him.
“What do you mean she’s not there?” Moss asked.
“I think she was taken. Possibly by whoever attacked her.” Kodiak rolled his shoulders, feeling like he had been hit by a train, and in his defense, he actually knew what that felt like. It happened a long time ago, but he still couldn't comfortably walk across a railway track to this day.
“Could you just come here, please?” he grumbled impatiently. “The tracker on my car should lead you to where I am.”
“You’re in the Mustang?”
Kodiak looked at his car and gritted his teeth in annoyance. “What’s left of it, anyway,” he muttered.
“Okay, we’ll be right there,” Moss said and the call ended.
Kodiak looked around him again, but the only tracks in the snow were his. With the cold wind blowing, any trace of tracks or movement was already lost anyway. He couldn't even pick up her scent at all, and he knew that she was much further away than he would have hoped.
He felt defeated as his knees gave way and he landed on the snow-covered ground. There was an emptiness that started to claw up inside him, a feeling he knew very well. The feeling he felt when he and his brothers watched their home ablaze in Minnesota. The feeling he felt as he watched his brothers scatter to the wind after they could once again not agree on anything. The feeling he felt when he had nothing and no one except the memories that had been haunting him ever since that night.
The emptiness filled him up and he felt helpless, and hopeless, as he sat in the snow, bleeding from the wounds of his shredded heart. The sadness was overwhelming, and as quickly as it appeared, it disappeared and was replaced by an even more powerful emotion.
Determination to get her back.
He wasn't going to lose her. He had lost enough in his life and was definitely not going to allow anyone to take Ferren from him.
Not even the Crescents.
His eyes flashed viciously as he felt Moss and Jett’s presence close in on him, but he stayed seated, trying to figure out what to do exactly. There was only one way to do that, but he needed help.
For once, he was not afraid to ask for help, and he knew that Moss and Jett would never think any less of him for doing so.
Something inside him finally snapped when Moss and Jett appeared at the top of the incline and Kodiak glanced up at them. Moss was the first to reach him, while Jett struggled through the sand with her thigh-high boots.
To Kodiak’s surprise, as well as Moss and Jett’s, Kodiak put his arms around Moss’s shoulder and embraced him. He didn't care what they thought, even though he knew it wouldn't make them think any less of him.
“Are you okay?” Moss asked, and Kodiak held on to him for another second before stepping back.
“Yeah, just a bit beat up, but I’ll live,” Kodiak mumbled and saw Jett approaching him with open arms.
“Hey,” she whispered and hugged him tightly before letting him go. “Are you sure? You’re bleeding.”
“I’ll be fine.”
“Can I just make a tourniquet for you?” Jett asked.
“There’s no time,” Kodiak muttered as he made his way up the slope, limping profusely.
The stinging pain in his leg only grew worse with every step he took, but he pushed through. Moss and Jett, while protesting behind him, followed him up the slope, occasionally offering assistance, which he declined every time. Kodiak knew he was being stubborn and impossible, but he needed to do this.
When they eventually reached Moss’s van, Moss opened up the door for him and Kodiak climbed in the back, which seemed to surprise both Moss and Jett. Jett climbed in the back with him while Moss got into the driver’s seat and drove off.
Despite Kodiak not wanting a tourniquet for his leg, Jett proceeded to make one for him out of the sleeve of a shirt that was in the back of the van.
As Jett tied it a little too tight for his liking, he growled out in pain and shot her an annoyed look.
“Sorry,” she apologized, holding her hands up in defense. “It was either this or you bleed all over Moss’s interior.”
“As morbid as this may sound, I’ve seen so much blood these days, it doesn't even bother me anymore,” Moss pointed out from the front.
“What happened exactly?” Jett asked.
“Ferren and I were coming home from Seattle right after Moss called us and we were driving on this dark road. I took my eyes off the road for a second and Ferren yelled out at me, pointing to the middle of the road. There was an animal, or something right in the middle, and I swerved out of the way. The car went down the slope, flipped over on the way down from a boulder or something, and it struck a tree. Everything just went black after that, and when I woke up, she was gone. No tracks or anything,” Kodiak explained, reliving those memories as he told them.
“Shit, that’s terrible,” Jett glowered and leaned in closer to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Kodi. We’ll find her, and we’ll kill those sons of bitches who have her.”
There were a few moments of silence in the van and Kodiak took a deep breath. “I know it hasn't been easy for you since she came around, Jett.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she muttered nonchalantly.
“I know for the most part it’s just been me and you, and there are no words to express how grateful I am to you for everything. You saved me from a lot of things, including myself, and I hope you know how much it all means to me.”
“I get it, Kodi. She’s your mate, and she’s your top priority right now. You couldn't have stopped yourself from imprinting on her. You didn't get to choose her, even though she is pretty much perfect for you.”
“It was never my intention to make you feel like you didn't have a place in my life anymore, and I’m sorry for making you feel that way,” he tried to assure her.
For the first time in his life, he saw Jett’s eyes fill up with tears and she nodded. “Thank you, Kodi. That means a lot to me,” she whispered.
A smile formed on his lips and he leaned his head back against the headrest. Jett wiped the tears that threatened to run down her cheeks from under her eyes and exhaled through her mouth. “It’s been a while since this happened,” she muttered and motioned to her face.
“I was wrong, Jett,” Moss said from the front of the van. “You actually do have feelings.”
“Shut up, you,” Jett exclaimed. “Seriously, though, I’m really sorry too, for everything. This whole thing with the Crescents and Ferren is just an emotional mess, and I shouldn't have been thinking about myself. I was selfish and rude to her. I just feel horrible. She’s your mate, and I should accept that.”
Kodiak pursed his lips and nodded.
“Besides, I can’t have you all to myself forever now, can I? Who’d want to be stuck with you for all eternity?” Jett complained mockingly.
“Ferren would,” Moss pointed out.
Jett smiled and nodded at Kodiak. “Then let’s go get her back.”
“First, do you still want to have that meeting?”
“Absolutely. I need a tracker, and some muscle,” Kodiak said with a nod and glanced at Jett. “And a master interrogator, if you’re not doing anything else.”
A slow smile formed on Jett’s lips, her eyes flickering with excitement. “Let’s do it.”
A short whi
le later, Kodiak was addressing his entire pack, who Moss had assembled near the underground dungeon. Kodiak had explained the entire situation to them and two wolves came forward to help them track Ferren.
Blaze, who was a master tracker, and Rogue, who was one of the strongest wolves in the pack, stood in front of Kodiak as he explained in more detail what was expected of them.
Moss gave Blaze a few items of Ferren’s clothing to him, and much to Kodiak’s relief, Blaze picked up her scent immediately, as well as a strong scent that Blaze was convinced was the stench of the Crescents.
Kodiak ordered Moss to stay put while he, Jett, Blaze and Rogue went to get Ferren back and take out the Crescents who kidnapped her. Moss wasn't too happy about it, but ultimately it wasn't up to him to decide. He did, however, tell them to take his van, as it was the most inconspicuous vehicle. As it was still light outside, and the risk of being seen was greater, Kodiak decided that they were to start the rescue as soon as the sun went down. Without Blaze and Rogue’s help. He was convinced that their group would attract unwanted attention. They’d also take Kodiak’s SUV instead of Moss’s van, much to Moss’s relief.
Waiting for sunset was like waiting for an eternity to pass for Kodiak and he paced his living room quietly, with a pensive expression on his face.
Jett sat at the dining room table with Blaze as he drew the path to where Ferren was on the map of the state, or at least that was what Kodiak had told them to do.
Kodiak had to admit, he was more worried than he probably should have been. Ferren was a new-blood and she was incredibly strong and aggressive until the full moon passed, and he firmly believed that she could definitely take on one or two Crescents on her own. The trouble was that Kodiak wasn't sure how many of them there were. He also realized that being a healer was a rare ability, and the Crescents probably wanted her because of this. With a healer, the Crescents would be unstoppable, as they’d have someone to prevent them from feeling physical pain, and they’d be able to instantly heal. Kodiak was also worried that Ferren’s inability to keep her mouth shut would land her in all sorts of trouble with them, as they did not tolerate defiance in any form. Either someone cooperated with them, or they were executed immediately.
