‘*What the hell*?’ Enyo exclaims, stunned.
‘*What should we do*?’ I ask her, unable to move from the shock of what has just happened.
‘*We need to get to the asshole doctor. That’s what we need to do.*’
*‘I don’t think we should do this alone. We need to tell the others*.’
‘*We’re going to have to mind-link. There are too many people that can hear us*.’
“Shit,” I curse out loud.
“Athena?” I hear Uncle Alex in the hall. He opens the door and sees me in the dark room on my own. “What are you doing in here?” He asks, looking around, confused.
I hear Alpha Peter come out of the conference room and start talking to an Elder in the hall. “The banishments will start at 8pm, and as promised, I will hand Doctor Shields over to you first thing in the morning,” he says as they walk in the opposite direction.
I walk closer to Uncle Alex and give him a hug. “We need to talk,” I whisper in his ear as quietly as I can manage.
“Why are we whispering?” he asks, whispering back.
“It’s important.” I pull back and look him in the eyes, showing him I’m serious. ‘We need a place where we can mind-link with no one knowing what we’re doing,’ I mind-link him.
He takes my hand and leads me through the pack house and upstairs. We stop outside of the room Ry and Gino are staying in and knock on the door, and when Ry answers the door, I grab his hand and motion for him to follow us. He nods and steps back inside the room to get Gino and Mom. We all then follow Uncle Alex to his room. He shuts the door behind us and then motions for us to go into his room’s ensuite. Once we’re inside and the door is shut, he pulls his phone from his back pocket and begins blasting heavy metal music at full volume.
“This is the best I can do, Athena,” he whispers.
“What’s going on?” Mom asks.
‘*We need to mind-link so that no one can hear this conversation*,’ I mind-link everyone. ‘E*lder Laskaris just approached me. He told me we have to get to Doctor Shields before the council does*.’
‘*What? Why?*’ Ry asks.
I quickly tell them everything Elder Laskaris told me.
‘*I have never heard of any prophecy*,’ Uncle Alex says.
‘*I don’t know about a prophecy, but I think I know what he’s talking about with the war that happened*,’ Gino says. ‘*When I was researching what you told Ryna, I came across a war that happened over 100 years ago in an old history book at the library. There was no mention of chosen lycans, but it’s the same war we were taught about in pack school. As I read through it, though, I got the impression that not all the truth was being told. It didn’t really go into how the war ended, just that the lycan leaders vanished and, with the help of the council, peace treaties were established between the lycans and other supernatural beings. But as I said, it appeared that a significant portion of the story was missing,’ Gino elaborates.
‘I wonder if the council back then covered up what really happened*,’ I say.
‘*It would explain why we’ve never heard about the chosen before*,’ Gino adds.
‘*And if there’s some kind of prophecy, why they’d want to keep it all a secret*,’ Uncle Alex says.
‘*So, what do we do then*?’ I ask.
‘*We need to get you in to see this doctor, but we have to do it with no one knowing. I don’t think the council will let us near him. And if we tell Alpha Peter, he will have to tell them what we’re up to*,’ Uncle Alex says.
‘*You and Mrs. Argos are supposed to be heading home tomorrow. So why don’t we break him out and you just leave tonight and take the doctor with you*?’ Ryna suggests.
‘*Kidnap him? No, they’ll know it was us*,’ Uncle Alex says.
I sit on the side of the bath and think for a few minutes, trying to come up with an idea. Then it dawns on me. ‘*Andreas*,’ I say to Uncle Alex. He raises an eyebrow in question. ‘*We need to get Doctor Shields into our territory. That is the only way we will get the answers we need. We can use the banishment tonight as a distraction*.’
‘*I still don’t see what Andreas has to do with this*?’
‘*Who’s Andreas*?’ Mom asks.
‘*My mat*e,’ I tell her.
Ryna gasps, ‘*What?! When did you meet him? And why haven’t you told me*?’ he asks.
*‘It’s not important right now. I’ll explain all of that later*,’ I say. ‘*I think we should tell Alpha Peter that we’ve decided to all go back home tomorrow. Tonight, we will make ourselves seen as much as possible. We will go to the pack dinner, the banishment ceremony, etcetera. In the meantime, Andreas kidnaps Doctor Shields after he’s been banished. We look innocent, and the doctor can’t mind-link anyone for help because he’s no longer a part of the pack*,’ I explain.
‘*It’s risky. If they suspect we had anything to do with it, they could lock us up in the cells, too. What if he’s caught*?’ Uncle Alex asks.
‘*He’s been living out in that cave for who knows how long without anyone finding him. And he broke into the doctor’s office without being caught. So, if anyone can do it, he can. Plus, nobody knows who he is or why he’s here*.’
‘*If the council finds out, we could be in deep shit*,’ Gino warns.
‘*Fuck the council*,’ Enyo growls. ‘*They’re hiding something, and we need to know what it is and why. If the doctor is the only way we can find out, then we have to do this*.’
‘*Can you contact him, Athena*?’ Uncle Alex asks.
I nod, walk over to the shower, and turn it on for extra noise. Then I get my phone out of my pocket and call Andreas.
“Athena,” he answers the phone with a low growl that sends shivers up my spine.
“Hey,” I whisper. “I need your help.”
“Are you okay?” He asks, panic filling his voice.
“I’m fine,” I say, and quickly tell him what Elder Laskaris told me.
“Fucking hell, Athena. What are you going to do?”
“We have a plan, but it’s risky.”
“If it means we get answers, I’m in,” he says.
I give him a quick rundown of the plan before adding, “I’ll create a distraction for you at the banishment. Do you think you can get the doctor out without being seen?”
“It shouldn’t be a problem, as long as the pack isn’t too close to the building. What then?”
“We need you to get him out of here and meet up with us tomorrow. We need to get him back to our pack without the council knowing.”
“I’ll get him to the motel you stayed at in town. How do you plan on getting him back to your territory?”
“Well, Uncle Alex and Mom should fly back like they planned, so it doesn’t look suspicious,” I say to Mom and Alex, and they nod in agreement. “I’ve got my truck here, so I will tell them that Ryna and Gino are going to road trip it back with me. So, we can meet you at the motel and go from there,” I say.
“I’m not sure travelling together is safe. What if we’re followed?” Ryna asks.
“That’s a good point,” I admit and stop to think for a minute. “Do you think you’d be able to get him out of the state on your own?” I ask Andreas. “We can organize to meet up later when we know it’s safe.”
“I have a trusted friend that I can ask for help,” he says.
“You’re sure you can trust them?” Uncle Alex asks.
“I grew up with him, and he’s saved my life on more than one occasion. I can trust him,” Andreas says.
Uncle Alex nods in approval.
“OK, it appears we have a plan,” I say. “The banishment ceremony is scheduled for 8 p.m. I’ll make as much noise as I can for you, so you can get in and out safely.”
“I’ll call you when I’m out safe. Be careful, Athena.”
“You too,” I say, and we hang up.
‘*I don’t know if I like this, Athena*,’ Ry says, worried.
‘*I don’t see how we have any other choice*.’