Chapter 108
(Demetri’s POV)
Patrick’s link was disturbing to say the least. All he had time to do was open the link and shout ‘Lucas is attacking Cole.’ I was in the middle of a phone call so I couldn’t confirm his message but I definitely hurried along the conversation that I was having with the alpha of an incoming pack.
He discovered that a warrior he felt wasn’t ready for the program ended up on the bus and was headed my way. In the end I managed to convince the alpha that my program was different from the others and to let him stay until he was ready to head back or he screws up. That I understood his nervousness because a lot of packs in the program can be physically and mentally grueling to the point of abusing the prospects. Mine is challenging but not abusive making it a great first step for the younger warriors going out for the first time.
I rise from my chair before I’m even off the phone. My stomach started doing flips twenty minutes ago and has simply gotten worse over time. The cramping and nausea becoming even more prominent seconds before Patrick’s message bellowed through.
I hang up the phone in a hurry and take off in a jog, down the hall to the main staircase in front of the door. My timing is perfect as Cole comes crashing through the front door into my arms.
I was prepared for him to be in a panic but not the uncontrollable yelping, screaming, and fighting he goes into as soon as he feels me. I wrap my arms around him and Madilyn as he uses his body and one hand to attempt to keep going. I use my sheer size and strength to gently guide him to the wall at the foot of the stairs but his fight intensifies the closer I get to him.
“I’m sorry alpha. I thought it was okay to be with her. I’m so, so sorry I took her out of the pack house.”
I can barely hear him above his worsening wheeze but it’s there. The apology that isn’t his to have. I read between the lines and back off of him as my anger with my son intensifies.
“I’m backing off Cole. I’m not going to touch you but I need you to stay where you are. Do not run away from me. You need help.”
I wait for a response but see and hear none.
“Cole, I need you to confirm that you understand my directive. I know my aura is angry and it scares you but I can’t back off of you if I believe you’re going to run off.”
His back is pressed to the wall, his eyes are closed but that doesn’t prevent me from seeing the outside of his left eye starting to swell. His nose is red and swollen and the left side of his mouth is in even worse shape. Both injuries are still weeping blood. I can tell by the trails that he hasn’t bothered to wipe anything away, to include the tears I know fell involuntarily from his eyes.
“Yes.” I hear through a deepening wheeze.
“Yes.” He tries again.
“Daddy please. He’s hurt. He can’t breathe. Lucas hurt him because of me.”
I hear my daughter shriek hysterically, still clinging to Cole’s neck. I feel Cole stiffen and move slightly away as I place my hand on the back of Madilyn’s head, calming her frantic screams into whimpers as she cries into his neck.
“You have done nothing wrong, Cole.”
I speak calmly, trying to reassure him. I wanted to say more as the yelling and screaming took over the front entrance of the house but I step away from him, ready to intercept the chaos charging through the door.
Lucas appears first. Cursing loudly as he tries to get past me. While Lucas is strong and agile, he’s a new shifter, making him still relatively out of touch with his wolf. With my arms crossed and my aura heavy, I block all his attempts to get to Cole with silent precision.
“What the hell dad. Why haven’t you snatched her away yet? The longer that pervert has her the more danger she is going to be in. You can’t let her trust him.”
He spits his venom towards Cole in my face in frustration of my actions.
“And what makes you think that the adults in charge of Madilyn’s safety didn’t know where she was. You have got to be kidding me if you think I’m stupid enough to rely on you for vigilante justice in this pack. Who the hell are you to rely on the word of a wolf who has been reported by multiple packs to the council for assault, rape and offensive touching.”
Just as I finish, Damian, Patrick and Parker come bursting through the door.
“I knew it!”
Lucas screams as he lunges at Cole. My aura flares hot as he passes me but in an instant I’m on his neck.
“Down! Hard! Now!”
I bark my orders as I bare down on the back of his neck making certain he understands who’s in charge of the situation.
“You have allowed your own opinion to be formed by a rapist. The only reason Dallas has never been prosecuted by the council is because the ten packs he’s been to before mine didn’t have cameras in the dorm rooms. It was a he said she said situation but the packs still reported the accusations and banished him from their territories. Cole’s record is completely clean. Of the three packs he’s been to, they sent him back early because they were too cheap to properly care for him and now you have added injuries to an already significantly injured wolf.”
His anger is seething and while I do have control of him, he hasn’t submitted to my authority. I look at Lilly as she enters the room.
“I’m sorry. I came…..”
“Don’t!” I spit harsher than I intended.
“Angela should be right behind you. I need him and Madilyn taken to the med wing. Did any of you see what happened?”
“Yes.” They all respond in unison.
“Start talking.”
I command as I see Angela come out of the med wing hallway with a bed.
“I need you to concentrate on injuries. I will take individual statements once he’s out of the room.”
“First hit was to his left temple.” Damian immediately gets into it.
“When he tried to get up, he took a foot to the gut. Once on the ground he just pounded his foot into his face and ribs. All three of us tackled Lucas at the same time. As soon as one of us relaxed he took off after Cole. Fortunately, we were able to give Cole a decent head start.”
I nod my head thinking deeply about my next steps as Lucas finally calms enough that I believe he’ll stay in the hard submit that I’ve put him in.
I listen to Lilly behind me. I can tell from her aura that she’s proceeding with caution uncertain as to the aura that’s currently blazing from Cole.
“Don’t be afraid of him, Lilly.” I fail miserably at my attempt to gentle my voice. “I understand it feels harsh but what you’re feeling is ……”
“a protection aura.” Angela gasps in shock. ”Lilly I do feel you are still the best one to interact with him but we need to change our plans.”
“What do you recommend?”
“Stay with what I told you about reassuring and calming him but Madilyn needs to stay with him. This protection aura is keeping his adrenaline high which means there’s a much higher chance that he’s lucid over psychotic.”
I listen as Lilly starts working with Cole. Trying to get him to step away from the wall and start towards the bed.
“Angela, what do you know about protection auras?”
“There’s a lot more known about them than protection markings. They are very strong. It is believed that those who enter the protective field with ill intentions will become disoriented and confused, calming them down and allowing the wolf under attack to flee. But it’s extremely rare for an unmated, unmarked male without children to have such an aura.”
“What’s the most common situation for any wolf to have this aura?”
I ask as it has become obvious that Lucas is reacting to the aura that we feel from Cole.
“Protection auras tend to be a war time phenomenon amongst mated males and females in an effort to protect their pups from being kidnapped or killed by rogues or another invading pack.”
I make a mental note to do additional research into this protective aura that Cole is capable of producing.
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