Book 1: Chapter 16

*** Silas POV ***



*'ALPHA!'*

I startled awake, my cheek stuck to some of the paperwork I’d fallen asleep working on in the office. Looking over, the clock showed just after four a.m.

*'This better be good, Dean.'*

*'SORRY ALPHA! IT’S NOT REALLY GOOD BUT WE HAVE A SITUATION ON THE SOUTHERN BORDER!'*

Rubbing my eyes, I pinched the bridge of my nose.* 'You don’t need to yell. '*

*'SORRY ALPHA! CAN’T REALLY HEAR OURSELVES THINK OUT HERE, LET ALONE TALK!'*

I groaned and got up, hearing at least five cracks as I did. *'Which part of the southern border?'*

*'ALL OF IT, ALPHA! Sorry. All of it.'* Dean finally adjusted the his mind link volume. '*The patrol last night came in saying they were hearing something high pitched but they thought maybe it was just something weird. We got out this morning and it’s real bad for us. Josh had to head North a ways, it was giving him such a headache he started to throw up.'*

My eyes narrowed as I walked out of the pack house, stripping down and shifting. *'What the hell are you talking about? How can it go from just a little to where you are shouting over mind link?'*

*'Gale seems to think it’s in the wind. We found some shit in the ground about 300 yards from the border. We think that’s it but we aren’t sure considering there are only a handful on the ground.'*

*'What is it? I’m running to you now.'*

Dean chuckled. *'It’s better you see it in person. I’m not sure you would believe me if I tried to explain it.'*

I howled as I ran South. I heard Dean howl back a few minutes later. As I got closer though, I started picking up the high pitched sound. At first, it was only a slight annoyance in the back of my head but as I got closer to Dean and the patrol, the sound started to overpower all my hearing. As I ran up on him, Gale, and Ray, I knew there was no way I could even speak for them to hear me. Both Gale and Ray had their hands clamped over their ears but Dean was walking around the area. Quickly, I shifted, brows furrowed.

“Alpha!” I could barely hear Dean’s voice.

The wind picked up and suddenly the sound got louder. I covered my ears, as did Dean.

*'I think Gale is right. It’s with the wind. It wasn’t this windy last night but a storm is blowing by us today.'* Dean mind linked instead.

He walked over to me and put some arrows into my hands. I held them up and inspected them. They looked like normal arrows but at the end of each one was tied a metal piece. My eyes narrowed, confused at what I was looking at.

*'It’s…a dog whistle, Alpha.'* Gale pipped up and I looked at her. *'If you blow on it, it…'*

*'I know what a dog whistle is, Gale. But what I’m confused about is how these are literally impeding how anyone can even think'.* I turned to Dean. *'How many did you find on the ground?'*

*'About six, Alpha, but just in this area. The sound runs all the way from east to west. These were just stuck in the ground, the wind still blowing through them.'*

My eyes narrowed and I looked around. *'These weren’t enough to cause this much damage.'* Looking up, I looked through the trees but it was dark still and I couldn’t see anything.

*'Gale, can you do me a favor? Can you climb up this tree and see if you can find one of these in it?'*

She stood up from her lean and nodded. She clamored up the tree closest to me. We waited and looked up, seeing her go pretty high up in the tree.

*'ALPHA!'* Her shout made me wince.

*'Try not to shout, Gale.'*

*'Sorry! There isn’t one in this tree but I can see arrows in the surrounding trees. Some of them are too high to reach though. But…'*

*'But what?'*

*'Alpha, there are so many of them. Almost every tree is pegged. I can see the shiny metal hanging down. They are just picking up the wind. If it’s this many here and the sound doesn’t get softer as we walk the border…'*

*'It means they are all over the south border. Fuck! Alright! I need you guys to work on seeing if you can get as many down as possible. I’m sending a least two more patrols down to you plus the morning training team. Were you able to get ahold of Nate?'*

*'No, Alpha. But Beta is notorious for sleeping through mind links.'* Gale chuckled as she dropped down out of the tree. *'We tried him first before you.'*

I sighed. *'Alright. As the pack starts waking up, I’ll ask for volunteers as well. See if we can’t get most, if not all of the arrows cleaned up by the end of the day.'*

*'Yes, Alpha!'*

Taking the six arrows he gave me, I shifted and carried them in my mouth to the pack house. I mind linked the entire group of guys who were going to the morning training plus patrols 5 and 7 along the east and west borders to head down. Out of the sound finally, I could still hear it buzzing in my head and I mind linked patrol 7 to grab a giant bag of earplugs on the way down. I shifted and threw on the clothes I had discarded.

The pack house was quiet but I quickly broke it by slamming the back door shut. I also slammed the arrows on the kitchen counter before grabbing a water bottle and three ibuprofen. Nate walked down the stairs, rubbing his eyes.

“What gives, Silas? It’s like…five in the morning.”

“Yeah, except when patrol mind links and you don’t wake up! Even when they are shouting. So they have to call me in.”

Nate rolled his eyes and grabbed the coffee, turning the coffee pot on. “It’s obviously not an emergency if you’re back here. We aren’t getting attacked. So I don’t know what’s got your panties in a bunch this morning.”

“This!” I grabbed the arrows and shoved them in his chest. “These are all hanging from trees on the entire southern border.”

“Arrows, Silas?”

I groaned. “Arrows, with dog fucking whistles attached to each of them.”

Nate chuckled, inspecting them further. “Wait, so these are stuck in trees? Is it emitting that high pitched sound?”

“So much so you can’t even think down there.”

This turned his chuckle into a full blow laugh. “Goddess, this is ingenious! Humans wouldn’t hear it but we would! Damn! How many?”

I shook my head at him. “A lot. I’m sending the morning training group down there, as well as patrol 5 and 7. Gale climbed some of the trees. Said she could get some of them but some she could see were too high. I’m going to ask the pack for volunteers but I’ll wait till about seven when people are awake.”

Nate nodded, pouring a cup of coffee. “It’s Sam’s weekend off to go to his parents. So he won’t be around until Sunday.”

The headache that had formed was slowly ebbing away and I poured myself a cup of coffee.

“Yet somehow, you still fall asleep at your desk. He isn’t even here to tell you that you’re not doing your paperwork. Sleep in your bed. You’re going to turn into a crooked old man. Rather than just a grouchy one.” Nate gave me a poignant look but I shook my head.

“Sometimes I regret making my brother my Beta.”

He snorted. “Please. I’m the only reason you’re not feral.” Nate slapped my chest. “You’re stuck with me.”

“And you with me, you lazy asshole. You’re coming with me down to the police station today.”

Nate quirked an eyebrow up. “And why would be go there?”

“File a fucking report, Nate. Goddess, you think these arrows just magically appeared? It’s that damn rogue and her two side kicks. This is their retaliation.”

“Seems a little late for retaliation against making her submit the paperwork that she didn’t allow minors in. That was weeks ago.”

I tapped my finger on the kitchen counter and took a sip of my coffee.

“Silas, you didn’t do anything else did you? Because if she’s not retaliating for that…then you did something to cause this.”

“I may have…let loose some…bugs into the bar.”

Nate’s eyes widened and he slammed his mug down on the counter. “Are you kidding me? Silas Tiberius Penn, you mother fucker. I told you to leave them the hell alone. I told you and this is what you get. Honestly, I should call off everyone and make you pull every single one of those arrows out of the trees! Goddess, Silas! We aren’t in fucking grade school! Putting bugs in a girls desk? You put bugs in a business place and someone’s home!”

I growled. “I know what I did, Nate. I don’t need a lecture!”

“Apparently you do! Have some damn decency! I get you don’t like rogues but for fucks sake! Not all damn rogues are the ones who took Aelia. You take this too far and you are going to regret it.”

“You’re going too far, Beta.”

Nate threw up his hands and scoffed. “Too far? Too far was calling the police when you knew they were innocent! Now you’re putting bugs in their home? What’s next? How low are you going to fall to try and rid yourself of them, Silas? How far are you willing to become like your fucking father just because you can’t get over the fact you’re barking up the wrong tree!”

Snarling, I slammed the mug in my hand down, shattering it across the kitchen counter. Striding over to him, I grabbed Nate by the collar of his shirt and pulled him up.

“Watch it, Nathaniel. You may be my brother but I have my limits of your insolence as Alpha. You don’t get to say whatever the fuck you want to me without consequences.”

Nate shoved me, hard enough to make me stumble back and let go of his shirt, dropping him to his feet. “And just because you’re Alpha, doesn’t give you the right to do anything you want. There’s a reason your father was banished to that corner of the territory. Go to the damn station on your own. I want no part of this.”

Turning, he headed up the stairs and slammed the door. I ran my hands through my hair and growled. Walking to my office, I slammed the door shut so hard that a couple of my books fell off the shelves. Not even bothering with them, I just fell into my chair and closed my eyes.