Forty Two

When Ian had decided to bargain with the alpha of the Hellhound pack, he had believed he wouldn't get anywhere. To his surprise though, Alpha Daniel had taken the safety of his pack seriously and held it above the pride of having his beta and mate shot.

So here he was, in the back of a truck, wedged between two giant bikers as they took him somewhere safe as agreed. Ian didn't know much, just that there was some old farmhouse on pack territory where they felt he would be safe. In return, he simply had to tell them what he knew. What happened after that remained to be seen but Ian didn't care. He had bought himself time which was more than he would have had if he stayed where they had been keeping him.

He wondered how the alpha would react when he learned that the person behind all of this was right under his nose the whole time. Ian fancied he would feel embarrassed for not realising it himself, which Ian was silently smug about. Alpha Daniel was just like all other alphas Ian had met; arrogant and self-entitled. Ian couldn't stand the lot of them so he didn't feel the slightest bit of remorse for shooting Daniel's mate or for stringing him along a little bit.

They had been on the road for several hours when the driver finally took an exit towards some roadside cafe that offered all day breakfasts and free tea or coffee with any meal. Ian wasn't sure when he last had something to eat that was some cheap packaged sandwich from a newsagents or from a homeless charity. Hot food was a luxury when transient and Ian was imagining all the delicious food he could fill himself up on at the expense of an alpha.

*I wonder if they do steak.* He thought, mouth watering at the idea.

The cafe wasn't anything special on the outside. The car park had a few cars in it with lorries parked further away so as not to clog up the exit. The benefit was the cafe was warm and had a menu so big that it ran over five pages. Cream walls with nondescript landscape paintings and a couple of newspaper clippings in thin wood frames littered the wall. The smell of hot oil and salty bacon hit them like a hot wall the moment they stepped in. The driver, who appeared to be the leader of the group, led the way to a booth that could handle all five men including the prisoner.

"Don't get any ideas." One of the men snarled as they sat at the table, Ian yet again wedged between two of the giants.

One of the men went to check the toilets just in case Ian had been able to signal for help and someone was lying in wait. It all seemed a bit much as far as Ian was concerned but then again, if they knew what he knew they'd see why he was not going to try and escape. His odds weren't great in the presence of these men but his odds were better than being so close to the centre of the pack.

The man who went to scope out any possible escape routes returned seeming satisfied and they all fell into a silence as they either perused the menu or kept a watchful eye on what was going on around them.

"I need to take a leak." Ian finally spoke up once their orders had been taken.

The driver rolled his eyes and nodded at one of the men sat next to Ian to let him out.

"Thank you!" Ian replied with mock cheeriness, making a beeline for the toilets.

He was surprised that none of them followed him; however that notion was quickly extinguished when he saw that there was no exit out of the building this way. Even the windows in the men's bathroom were too small to squeeze out of. Sighing, he went about doing his business, mouth still watering as he thought of the food currently being prepared for him in the kitchen. It wasn't a steak sadly but it has been one of the most expensive things on the menu which had naturally irritated the guards watching over him.

Just as he was washing his hands, the bathroom door opened as someone else walked in. Ian paid them no attention. It was probably another patron or one of the guards but still found himself glancing up to look at the mirror.

What he saw made his blood run cold.

"You?" He gasped, fingers already trembling as he stared into familiar sadistic eyes. "How the fuck did you find me?"

"Oh don't sound so surprised, Ian." The intruder chuckled cruelly. "You knew I was watching your every move. How smart of you to barter with the Alpha to try and get away."

"I haven't told them anything!" Ian stuttered, whipping around to face the man head on.

It occurred to Ian at that moment that the man standing before him looked almost like the spitting image of the Mad Alpha. It was the reptilian smile and cold brown eyes that did it. He certainly inherited them from his father.

"Oh I know you haven't." His ex-employer replied. "Much like you failed to deal with the beta like I told you to."

"We tried. That fucking bitch got me before I could take the shot!"

A feral growl rumbled through the room, dangerous and a clear warning to Ian that he was overstepping the mark.

"I-I'm sorry Alpha. I didn't mean to speak out of turn." Ian whimpered, looking down as a sign of submission.

"I know but now we have a problem." Ian shuddered at the mocking tone in the cruel voice. "How can I be sure you won't tell anyone about my plans?"

Ian's eyes widened, looking up. "I won't tell a soul." He vowed, shaking his head frantically. "I'll lie and pin it on another Alpha!"

"Hm, that does seem like a good option." The mad alpha's son mused. "But I think your silence is preferable."

Ian didn't have time to register the deadly weight of that statement. At first he simply stared dumbly at the intruder, not registering the wicked glint of the blade as it slashed across his throat. It was when blood filled his mouth and nose and forced its way into his lungs that he realised what had happened and what the man before him had meant. He opened his mouth, trying to call for help but any words or sounds were drowned by his blood that gushed from him like a waterfall leaving him gaping like a fish.

By the time his killer had finished meticulously cleaning his blade in the sink, Ian was sprawled out on the floor dead and his secrets gone with him.

---

"I have been waiting for this for nine long months." Leah groaned in bliss as she looked at her glass of wine, the deep red liquid moving in the glass like a merry-go-round.

"Does that mean you're done with creating an army?" Eva teased.

"I would like to say I am but Joe is already talking about what he wants to call the next one." Leah groaned making the women around her laugh.

Night had settled in bringing with it a chilly wind that bounced softly against the windows and made the trees sway like graceful dancers. They had taken over the living room which was rarely used by pack members except for the alpha family. Inky black sky pressed in against the windows, held at bay by the warm and gentle light of dimmed lights. Despite the house being busy, the tucked away haven gave them privacy and respite from the chaos that reigned supreme currently.

"It must be nice having a full house though." Maria mused, smiling dreamily.

"I think having children would be lovely." Bethan spoke up, her voice quiet and light and yet there was something warm about her eyes as she fondly thought of being a mother. "I want a boy and a girl."

"You can have a couple of mine." Leah teased. "But the big question is, when can we expect the pitter-patter of little Alpha feet?"

There was always something dangerous about talking about children. Eva hadn't felt the soft pang of grief whenever the subject of children came up. She hadn't learnt the gender of her unborn child before they were taken from her. Noah had wanted a boy and had talked endlessly about teaching them to become a hunter just as Noah was. Eva hadn't really had a preference. She had been content knowing that her and Noah would be parents to a beautiful child. Sadly, that didn't happen. She didn't like to dwell on it for too long, especially since there was nothing she could do but the heartache was still there.

"At the moment it's going to be a long time before I even consider children." Eva grumbled. "If Daniel keeps on as he is then there will be no chance."

"A little birdie had told me you were giving him the cold shoulder." Simone raised an eyebrow in intrigue. "Is this to do with you being shot?"

"Wait, you were shot?" Bethan spoke up.

"It was a clean wound " Eva sighed, trying to play down the issue. "I am fine. But yes, our esteemed Alpha feels that I am far too delicate to handle any duties."

There was a chorus of unimpressed sounds followed by bemused chuckles.

Eva was glad to be able to spend time with the women around them. She was even surprised that Bethan had made an appearance even if she seemed to be struggling with whether to take a sip of the wine Leah had poured her or stick to the diet cola she had actually requested. Ah Eva expected, Maria and Leah got on well and it was nice to see Simone relax given what she had to deal with over the last few weeks. Eva could feel herself relaxing as well even if she was angry with Daniel and the pack was under attack.

"Hey, I think someone's left something in the oven." Maria suddenly broke the peaceful silence, sitting up.

"No one has used the oven today." Eva frowned, looking towards the kitchen.

"Weird. I can smell smoke though." Maria frowned.

"Same." Simone frowned, nostrils flaring as she sniffed the air. "Something is definitely burning."

"I'll go check the kitchen to be safe." Eva agreed, pushing herself off of the couch.

As she suspected, the kitchen was free of any turned on appliances and had been cleaned down. Regardless, she checked the oven anyway to make sure it was clear and found it not only empty but stone cold. She assumed it was nothing important until she flicked the light off. The room plunged into darkness save for the flickering orange hue that poured in from the kitchen window.

Alarm bells instantly started ringing in Eva's head. While it could perhaps be explained away in a normal situation, Eva knew the street lights around the pack were not orange but a sterile white that in reality didn't do much to keep the night away. Being wolves meant that this wasn't an issue really but regardless, the street lights were white and the light pouring in was not white.

Pushing back towards the window, Eva froze in horror as her eyes registered the inferno raging not that far away from the pack house. It took a moment to register that it was the garage, where most of the Pack's vehicles and weapons were stored, that was burning before Eva sprinted for the door.