SHADOW
“I’m so sorry for your loss. Your loss is mine, as well.” I squeezed the hands of John’s parents.
“Thank you, Alpha. Make sure my son gets the justice he deserves.” The mother had been sobbing since the funeral service.
“He will. We will not stop until we find who did this.”
We all gathered at the cliff with our candles lit up under the moon. Califf shifted to wolf form and howled to express our losses.
I felt his pain. I knew he felt responsible. He always did. This pack meant everything to him. This was family. Anything happened to everyone, and it was all his responsibility.
I assisted him in putting his robe on as he shifted back, and he said, “May you rest in peace, John.” He looked at everyone. “I know we still are going through trying times. We just lost a good kid. Let this be a lesson for all of us that the enemy could attack us anytime. Be vigilant. And I swear to Moon Goddess, whoever did this, I will make him or them pay. That was their biggest mistake, and I won’t let that happen again.”
Once everyone was done putting the candle on the rock, they held back to the compound, and those families went back to their houses.
“Alpha, how can I help?”
We turned to Jonas.
“Are those mines ready?”
“Yes, Alpha. Marcus and I just planted the last mine.”
“Good. I know how they think. Their enforcers won’t come from the gate. They will use the back where it has less line of defense.”
“They’re rigged by trigger or manual.”
“That’s even better. We need those now. Our enemies are getting closer, and their next target is the compound. That will be a good fortress for them.”
“Agreed.”
“We should head back.”
On our way back, Lyon met us. “Enforcers, scouts, and hunters are informed. What do you want me to do, Alpha?”
“Just lead them.”
“How about you?”
“We’ll be fine.” I put my arm around Shadow. I hadn’t told everyone about my idea, and I couldn’t risk the leak of my plans that someone might tell Keane.
“Take Zack and Tor with you.”
“Don’t worry about us, Lyon,” Shadow said. “We’re not taking our best enforcers. They need to guard our perimeters. If we need them, we’ll inform you through the pack link.”
“What’s up?” Duke joined us.
“Same plans. Be careful and make sure no one will go or sneak at the back.”
“I informed everyone already that the enemy can potentially use that as their entry,” Duke said.
“Is the alarm at the tunnel working? Make sure it works.”
“Yes, Alpha,” Lyon said. “Lorcan tested it while you were in town.”
“Good. How was the drill?” I informed Lorcan to do a drill while we were away.
“Not perfect, but I watched the whole video Lorcan showed me. We’re going to save lives,” Lyon said.
“I wanna save everyone, Lyon. I can’t let what happened to John happen again.”
“We will, Alpha. Those assholes may have underestimated us, but because John was alone. This time, we are ready.”
We reached the pack house. Shadow suddenly went silent.
“What’s in your head, Shadow?”
“These things happened because of me.”
“No offense, Luna,” Lyon said, “but Keane has always planned to conquer or slaughter every pack that refuses to join him. This will happen anyway. It’s only a matter of time before he comes to us.”
Suddenly, my phone rang. I answered, “Yes?”
“Alpha Califf Stone.” My heart hammered. Shadow’s gaze locked on mine, and she had already read my thoughts.
“Who’s this?” This would offend him even though he didn’t have to tell me. That tone alone, I knew he was the motherfucker who almost took Shadow from me.
He chuckled. I could feel his smirk through his tone. “I know you know me.”
“Excuse me?” Shadow, Lyon, and Duke shared the same look as they stared at me. I put the speaker on.
“Don’t pretend you don’t know me. Is my mate with you?”
I mocked. “And who she might be or he? I don’t judge.”
“Shadow. She was mine before you took her away from me. And I heard you marked her.”
“Well, you’re slow, man,” I smirked. “What can I say? She’s hot. So, who could resist her? But what’s this about? I heard of you mating Mason’s daughter.”
“I won’t mate with her. I want a strong-willed woman like Shadow.”
“Too bad. She’s already mine. And alone, because you know Alpha like us, we don’t share.”
He growled. I put a silent sign when Shadow was about to speak.
“I swear to the Moon Goddess. She will be mine within this week. I will mark her and fuck her to complete the mating bond. She will forget who you are. Oh, you’re probably dead by that time, and you won’t be able to watch me as I fuck her.”
I growled. “I will fucking kill you myself before you can lay your filthy hands on my mate.”
“You may have a lot of pack members, but they’re useless. They are not combat-ready. If you don’t give me what I want, I will rip every pack member apart until no one’s left but you and I will let her watch as my men rip you to shred. Do you fucking understand me?”
My eyes glowed. My wolf growled. Shadow’s eyes were also glowing, but I would not give this son of a bitch the satisfaction he longed for.
“You know where to find her. Come and get her with your bunch of savages.”
“Like your father?”
My nose flared.
“How bad, right? It’s so complicated that you can’t even take revenge for what your so-called mate wanted. Why is that? Because you’re not even an Alpha. An Alpha should be ruthless and could protect his pack. You, on the other hand, are weak, Califf. I watched your weak little pup get ripped open by a pup who is stronger than, what’s his name, oh, John.”
“You shouldn’t have called. If you are so ruthless and fear no one as you claimed to be, let me challenge you.”
“Oh, no. I don’t get my hands dirty. Otherwise, what’s the purpose of having an army if I have to fight.”
“You are a coward, Keane, hiding behind your army’s skirts.”
He roared in anger. “I am not a coward!”
“You also force women. Who does that? A real alpha doesn’t have to force women, but you can’t even make a woman kneel before you. You’re not so powerful, are you, Keane?” I saw the smile break out from them. “You’re more of a bark than bite. You didn’t even get to taste my mate. If you want to kill me, come and get me, and you know where to find me. And you may have a chance to kill birds with one stone.” I hung up the call.
I let my anger out as I growled and wanted to punch something hard.
“Save your strength, Alpha. If it weren’t for how many werewolves he killed, he wouldn’t be worth the time. He’s clearly arrogant and underestimated you,” Duke said.
“Careful if he asks to fight with you in human form. He has an underground fight club, and from what I’ve heard, he never loses.”
“I fought a Lycan, all right,” I smirked at Lyon.
“Yeah. That was dope.” Lyon grinned.
“Let’s go get some rest. It’s been a long day. Spend as much time with your mate or date, Lyon, because we might not have enough time.”
“Good night, Alpha, Luna.” Lyon left. Duke was about to say something but held it.
“Just say it, Duke,” Shadow said.
“Are we gonna have a backup plan or expect support?”
“Our allies, except for Midnight Storm, remain loyal to us. And who knows, maybe we have Lycans and witches at our disposal.”
Nodding, he smiled. “Night, guys.”
“Night.”
We headed upstairs to our room.
Shadow threw herself in bed with a groan as she saw something on her phone screen. “Is it what I think it is?”
“What is it?” I joined her in bed, pulling her into my arms. “I miss you.”
“No fucking.”
“Too bad.” I blew a breath as I kneaded her ass. “You could call your father.”
“That’s what I’ve been telling you.” She showed me the message from her father.
“Is this for real? Twenty?”
“I’m sure there’s a catch.”
“Call him then. I will be calling Zarah if she has our backs.”
“She will.” She dialed the number that sent her a text.
“Sebastien.” She put it on speaker.
“Daughter.”
“What’s the catch?”
“Your mate has my word. If he wins, I will not interfere with your personal affair unless it could put you at risk. And he showed me more courage than any werewolf. He indeed cares for you, risking his life to prove worthy of you.”
“Screw you. You almost got him killed.”
“Well, he won. My enforcers are in your command. And this is more than just an alliance. You are my daughter, Shadow. I’m only asking one thing in return.”
“Of course.” She rolled her eyes. “I know you have a motive. Why am I even surprised that you always want something?”
“Just hear me out first.”
“What is it?”
“Come and visit us from time to time. Father would like to spend some time with you. You can bring Alpha Califf or your friends, the witches or werewolves. It’s up to you. That’s all I’m asking.”
“Why now?”
“I know I should have done it long ago, but when you reached out, I couldn’t take that chance for granted.”
“That might have to be postponed for a while. A ruthless Alpha who slaughtered a pack that refused to join him just killed one of our pack. He called Califf and threatened to kill everyone if I didn’t go willingly. He will take me by force and mark me.”
“That’s not going to happen, Shadow. Clearly, he hasn’t met me, and he doesn’t know who he threatened.”