Alex’s pov:
Jade and I were walking idly, side by side, on our way to the nearby beach, when an incoming mind-link, frenetic and desperate came in.
“We’re under attack!”
I stiffened at once. The words were far too specific for me to not pick on them. There was no mention of rogues, nor vampires, much less witches… Ergo, chances were we were being attacked by a nearby pack.
The attack didn’t come as a surprise, but the timing did. It was awfully fortunate that it came when I was away from the pack… A coincidence? I would be foolish to believe in that, especially considering the circumstances.
I grabbed my mate’s hand and told her softly, as I placed the key to the jeep in her palm, “Mind taking the wheel for me?”
“Sure,” she beamed at me, her eyes sparkling with mirth and joy.
I was sad that I needed to drive said mirth and joy away from her expression, but there was no helping it.
“Drive as if the devil is on our tail,” I went on grimly.
Her expression turned into a grimace of confusion, and I soon explained the situation to her, “We are under attack, love. I need to start giving orders, and I can’t do that while driving.”
She nodded at me, her expression grave, and before long we were speeding on the way back to the pack house.
Via mindlink, I gave both Luc and Trevor orders, and got a “yes alpha” to each.
One of the orders I had given Trevor was the following, “I need you to meet me and Jade at the village’s entrance. You’ll take the wheel and get her to safety.”
“Yes, alpha,” he said at once.
By the time we reached the village, twenty minutes after the first call for help, it was utter chaos, as to be expected. Wolves were fighting nearby, and I recognized two of them as the head warrior and his mate.
“Park the car,” I told Jade in a firm tone of voice, just as I saw a big brown wolf approaching us, blood on his fangs.
I wasn’t frightened in the least, for this was my long trusted friend.
“A change is in the trunk,” I told him before I jumped out of the jeep.
Trevor moved to the back of the car where he shifted, and before long, he was fully clothed.
“Luna Jade, will you please let me take the wheel?” He said at once, his tone albeit as courteous as ever, lacked its usual mirth and friendliness.
“Sure,” she said, opening the car door, ready to jump out of the jeep, it would seem.
I gave him a shake of the head and he was quick to block her.
“Please move to the passenger seat,” he let out matter-of-factly.
Jade pursed her lips and said, “So, it truly has come to this. I don’t get to fight?”
“Protect her, Trevor,” I said via mindlink.
“With my life,” he assured me.
I then shifted into my wolf and sprang out of there, but not before hearing Trevor’s response to her words, “Orders of the alpha, luna Jade.”
** ** ** ** **
Jade’s pov:
Trevor had been driving for well over ten minutes, and it seemed like he went straight past the training grounds, where there was mayhem, and into the forest. He hit a wolf he didn’t recognize without blinking an eye. Admittedly, the wolf had dared to block our path, and had been all growly and aggressive.
I could only keep quiet for so long, and ended up asking him, “Who’s attacking us?”
“Another pack, luna,” he said without beating around the bush.
“And where are we going?” I asked on a sigh.
“I am taking you to safety, luna,” he said immediately.
“Yes, but where?” I insisted, my eyebrows shooting into my hairline.
Trevor sighed, and then soon told me, “To Alpha Kade’s pack.”
“What?” I cried out, unable to believe my own ears.
How could Alex send me away? Wasn’t he telling me just earlier how he couldn’t imagine life without me?
But then again, that had probably always been the plan. After all, Trevor did tell me a few weeks back that it was not necessary for me to train, and even went as far as to assure me that I would not be fighting.
“You know, Luna Jade,” he began in a firm albeit sweet tone of voice, “For such a young Luna, you sure know how to take care of everyone.”
“Are you mocking me?” I growled, on the verge of tears.
“Heavens forbid!” He let out ina heated tone. “I am not joking. I would never joke about such matters. I truly believe you’re the bravest and possibly the smartest one of us. You didn’t hesitate to go inside the alpha’s office earlier, and faced the witch alone, despite the alpha’s confusion which could have been deadly. You were quick to put 2 and 2 together, and acted accordingly.”
I hung my head low in shame, feeling like I wasn’t doing enough nonetheless.
“And now, even though every fiber of your being is dying to go back to pack lands and fight off the invaders, you’re sitting next to me without making a fuss. You know what’s best for the pack, and you don’t shy away from your duties.”
“You really think my running away is the best for the pack?” I scoffed in disbelief, shaking my head as I did so, doubt still gnawing at my insides.
“You’re not running away, luna Jade,” he assured me in a soft tone of voice, “With how powerful your resonance is, and considering you’re pregnant too every emotion is therefore heightened the wisest move for you, for alpha Xander, and for the entire pack, is to have you elsewhere, safe and sound.”
“Are you implying that I fail at keeping my emotions in check?” I raised an eyebrow at him, even though I knew he was absolutely correct.
“I am saying that with how little training you received, and considering how little time you had with your wolf, you’re doing amazing, no matter what anyone else might think,” his praise sounded sincere.
Instead of the anger that had been blinding me earlier, came a sense of relief.
I was doing what I could, everything considered. And given the circumstances, I knew I wouldn’t be of any help to anyone, much less my precious mate, if I were to stubbornly decide to stay.
“Do you think the pack will be okay?” I asked in a soft tone of voice. “Do you think everyone will be okay?”
“There is no war without casualties, Luna Jade,” he told me in a grim tone of voice. “I trust that with the alpha’s guidance, we can push back the attack quickly. And in no time, you’ll be back to the pack, back to the alpha’s side, where you belong.”
The words that most stuck with me most were that there was no war without casualties… and I found myself praying the rest of the way to Alpha Kade’s pack, praying for my friends’ safety, for my mate’s, for my pack’s.