In The Beginning, Chapter 73
“I can remove it; you don’t have to kill him.” Charlie blurted before I could take her off speaker and I felt the shift in the mood around me as every wolf heard it.
“Charlie!” I snapped before I could stop myself, my mind still wasn’t totally clear, and I was starting to get a headache. “Do you understand, that asking me not to kill him, is the same as asking every Eta guarding the prison to risk his life? That it is the same as asking every member of this pack to give more, to feed and keep him in our cells? Why would we ask that of our people?” I asked her, hoping the pack would understand when this got out.
“I wasn’t asking for any of that, I was asking for mercy. For a being that is essentially a slave, and desperate for a way out, they took the only option available to them. I didn’t ask that you imprison them Daniel, I’m asking you to let them go...” Fuck, this was worse. I could feel the eyes on me, the prickle of whispers.
“You are too kind-hearted, Luna. But you understand we cannot do that, one of our pack was attacked, unprovoked. An omega, heading to the celebration after his shift ended.” Ben informed us both.
“His shift where?” Charlie asked.
“The prison.” Ben replied, and Charlie sucked in a sharp breath.
“Did he have any interaction with the female? Or her cell?” Charlie asked, and Ben shifted uncomfortably.
“He cleaned it while she was being interrogated.” Ben replied, his eyes on the floor.
“So, the minotaur could have scented the female on the omega’s clothes? Would you have done any less for me?” She asked, nothing could have prepared me for that.
“FUCK!” I snapped, frustrated and painted into a fucking corner no matter what I did. “You wanna save him? Fine.” I threw Ben the phone. “Get her here now, with an escort.” I bit. “And get me some fucking clothes!” I stomped off into the cover of the bushes, needing a minute to calm down. I was pacing in an eight-foot line, trying to think of a way out of the shit storm Charlie had created when Theia appeared in front of me, shocking me a little.
“I... heard what Charlie said... about letting them go...” She began but was looking at me and then away oddly. Between the drugs and the situation Charlie put me in I had forgotten I was naked. I hurriedly covered myself with my hands, my cheeks burning beneath my beard.
“SHIT! I forgot, I got hit in the head, and the doc gave me something... Guess I’m still a little loopy.” I shook my head but couldn’t clear the fog completely.
“Yes, well... anyway, I understand my niece’s attraction now I suppose. But the prisoners, if you do not wish to keep them here. I can take them to Athena’s realm, they will have the chance to make a life, but will never be able to feed again.” Theia explained, her eyes running over my muscles with interest, but not as a woman, she looked at me like I was a specimen to examine, it unnerved me.
Ben watched Daniel stalk off, any wolf in a five-mile radius would feel his aura telling them all to back away slowly. The remaining wolves’ whispers started as soon as he was out of sight.
“What does that mean?”
“What do we do now, just wait?”
“I dunno, she kinda had a point... if they didn’t have a choice...”
“We are at war, and we don’t have the resources for prisoners, or men to guard them when we have no idea how many more fights there will be...”
“Which is better? The leader that kills the entire village of their enemy? Or the one that only kills their enemy?”
“He should die.”
“Maybe we should let them live?” No matter where he turned people disagreed with their neighbours, some with their own families.
“Charlie? I have to go after Daniel, you have no idea the shit storm you just created.” Ben whispered into the phone as he moved away from the patrolling Etas.
“Aren’t I the only one who can question him in public?” She asked, and Ben stopped dead where he was.
“His Luna can as an equal leader, but you aren’t his Luna yet, officially. And, you kinda announced it in front of the Etas, who had fought to bring the minotaur down after he knocked Daniel out, and Alex, who would’ve died protecting the omega from the beast. In other words, the very people likely to be against your proposal. There’s a time and place, I get that you feel for them, but Daniel has to do what is right for the pack.” Ben tried to explain to Charlie.
“I’m not going to pretend to support something I believe is wrong.” She replied a little defensively.
“We don’t expect you to, but had you asked for a moment of privacy to talk to Daniel we would have had options. Now, unless you allow Daniel to convince you to do what is right for the pack, in front of them, they will all know he had to choose between his pack and his mate. Which means he can’t let them go, not now.” Ben sighed, exhausted and pissed he had to be the one to break Charlie’s heart, but in his mind at least, he owed both of them for his previous behaviour. “Give us time, I’ll have someone pick you and Maria up.”
“Okay, thank you, bye.” Her tone was so flat and dejected, Ben didn’t want to hang up on her in such a state, but Maria was there, and he had to find a way to fix the mess he was waist deep in. He hung up and rushed after Daniel, while throwing out orders both orally and via the link, the sooner the men had something to focus on, the less chance of this debate tearing through the pack. Ben thought to himself as he followed his brother.
Theia laid out her plan for me, and how to sell it to Charlie and the pack, we were just discussing the final details when I heard Ben cursing at the foliage as he approached us.
“Daniel?” Ben called, questioningly, no doubt he could sense Theia, but couldn’t understand what he was sensing. She had a scent, but it was much more subtle than most creatures, her heartbeat was slower and quieter too. I wasn’t sure if she needed to breathe, but she did at the same rate as most humans, or Lycans, but it too seemed to require less noise than anyone else. One of the reasons she made me uncomfortable was because everything about her screamed predator, and neither my wolf, nor myself doubted for a moment that she could annihilate us in a fight.
“Yeah?” I called back, trying to put him at ease.
“Charlie is on her way here, she’s bringing clothes. Everything... okay?” He asked from behind a particularly dense group of bushes I had stormed through without paying attention. I looked down and saw various scratches over my arms, legs and stomach, crossing over each other, and creating thin pink stripes on either side of my body. Combined with the bruises on my ribs, a few cuts and scrapes that hadn’t fully healed, I looked like I had been dragged all over the forest by the minotaur.
“Would it not be more prudent to go to the female? I can teleport the beast, you and myself?” I felt a little nauseous at the thought of travelling that way ever again, once was enough for me.
“Who is that with you?” Ben called, and I could feel his apprehension.
“Theia, we have a plan for both prisoners.” I closed my eyes, and probably out of habit, prayed that I made the right choice. “Have Charlie meet us at the prison, get everyone else packed up and ready to leave in five minutes.”
“Yes Alpha.” He replied, and I heard him head back to the clearing.
“He’s on a drip, do you know what that means?” I asked Theia, unsure how much she had picked up when it came to modern terms and technologies.
“Yes, it is for treatment, but what are you treating that...” She wrinkled her nose like just saying the name offended her. “Beast for?”
“It is feeding him a steady dose of sedatives, but we don’t know how long it will last, or how long we can keep giving it to him. As such, our doctor needs to travel with him at all times. I have questions I want answered, and... it is not a dignified death for a warrior. I will not poison him like a coward, if he refuses your offer, he will die on his feet.” I tried to explain, but it was difficult with the way she was examining me.
“Fine, the beast, your doctor, you and me, I can teleport us all to the prison, just tell me where, like last time.” She smiled, and I felt like I was eye to eye with a shark who was ready to take a bite.
“Okay, let’s get back to the clearing.” I said, holding my hand out to indicate the way, instead I heard her tinkling laugh, before I saw nothing but black. It was so much more violent than Charlie’s had been, I felt like I had been spun in a cold cycle, complete with a sheen of water over my body. It took me a moment to realise it was sweat, my legs were unable to compensate for the rough landing on the snowy ground. I went down hard on my left side, the pain from my bruises made me curse.
“Mother fucker!” I hissed as I tried to stand. Ben who was only just getting back, shot us a look, while the rest of the wolves just stared at Theia.
“I thought you had teleported before Alpha?” Theia questioned, her face the picture of amusement.
“I thought I had too, but that was like being shoved through a laundry cycle. I have a feeling your niece was more concerned with my safety and wellbeing than you are.” I quipped while trying not to vomit in front of the pack.
“That does seem logical.” Theia agreed, and I managed a weak chuckle in response.
“Might I suggest you take more care with us on the next trip? The doc is hardly gonna be able to treat the creature if he is too busy recovering from being teleported, is he?” I groaned, between the drugs, which finally seemed to be wearing off if the pain in my body was anything to go on, and the dizziness from Theia’s help I was dangerously close to throwing up. Ethan retrieved a bottle of water from somewhere, and handed it to me, I downed about a third, and placed the smooth, cold container on the back on my neck.
“I need to check your vitals Alpha, you look pale.” Ethan murmured, placing bits of plastic on me while I kept my eye closed and prayed for relief. “You’re a little dehydrated. The nausea is from the blood loss, you haven’t healed fully, you need to rest.” He insisted as I felt the scratch of a needle in my arm. “I am placing you on a saline drip, you will wait for the bag to empty before you take it out, or I will tell Luna what a terrible patient you are.” He chastised, and I couldn’t help but laugh, he had been threatening to tell on me to my mother since I was sixteen.
“I think my mother knows by now, don’t you?” I asked, flashing him my cheekiest smile.
“I was talking about our future Luna, and from what I’ve heard, you won’t get out of that one with just a cocky smile and empty promises like you did with your parents.” He smiled back as mine died.
“You wouldn’t!” I threatened, a slight growl to my voice.
“Wouldn’t I?” He grinned as he put the equipment back in his bag with one hand, the other held my saline bag above my head as I sat on the ground. I almost ordered him not to say anything until I realised how childish I was being
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