Chapter 154: The Strategic Meeting
Adrian's POV
My hands shook as I stood up staring at the Alpha’s before me. Sierra sat beside me with her belly round and full.
She held my hand and whispered “You can do this”. I took a deep breath and pressed play on the laptop. The screen lit up with photos Ben had taken last night. Photos of the compound. The walls, weapons, supplies stacked like mountains.
"This is what we're facing," I said. My voice came out stronger than I felt. "Marcus has built an army. Not just rogues anymore. He's recruiting from established packs. He has enough supplies to last months. Maybe a year. And he's planning to take my son the moment he's born."
The room went silent. You could hear people breathing. Shifting in their chairs. Alpha Raymond who helped us during Dominic’s attack leaned forward. His eyes were hard. "How do you know this?"
"We have someone on the inside," Ben said from the corner. "He's been feeding us information. Everything you see here is verified. Real."
Alpha Rachel crossed her arms. She was young and tough. She'd taken over her pack two years ago when her father died. "So you want us to go to war for you? Risk our people for your family?"
The words stung but I kept my face calm. "This isn't just about my family. Marcus is offering territory to rogue groups from other states. He's building an empire. Once he takes my pack he won't stop. He'll come for yours next. And the next. Until he controls everything."
"That's speculation," Alpha David said. He was older. Gray hair. Tired eyes. "You're asking us to commit our fighters based on what might happen."
"I'm asking you to stop a threat before it destroys us all," I said. My voice rose. I couldn't help it. "Marcus has over fifty fighters. Maybe more. They're armed. Trained. Ready. If we don't act now…"
"Then what?" Alpha Rachel interrupted. "We storm his compound? Start a war that could kill dozens of our people? For what? To protect a baby that isn't even born yet?"
Sierra stood up. Her chair scraped against the floor. Every eye turned to her. She put both hands on her belly and looked around the room. "This baby is innocent. He didn't ask to be born into this but Marcus wants to use him. Hurt him. Turn him into a weapon against his own father. If you can sit here and say that's okay then you're no better than Marcus himself."
The room shifted. I could feel it. Some faces softened. Others got harder. Alpha Raymond cleared his throat. "How many fighters would you need from each pack?"
Hope flared in my chest. "Ten from each territory. That would give us about sixty total. Enough to match Marcus's numbers."
"And when would this operation happen?" Alpha Rachel asked. Her voice was still sharp but something had changed in her eyes.
"After the baby is born," I said. "We can't risk Sierra or our son in this. Once they're safe we move fast. Hit Marcus before he expects it."
Alpha David shook his head. "That could be weeks. A month. What's to stop Marcus from attacking first?"
"He won't," Sierra said quietly. "He wants the baby. He'll wait until he's born because that's when we're most vulnerable. When I'm recovering. When Adrian is distracted. That's when he'll strike."
The old coastal Alpha spoke for the first time. His voice was like gravel. "I've seen wars. Fought in them. Lost people I loved. War always costs more than you think it will. More blood, pain, grief. Are you prepared for that?"
I looked at Sierra. At her belly where our son kicked and moved and at the future we were trying to protect. "Yes," I said. "Because the cost of doing nothing is worse."
Alpha Raymond stood. "I'll pledge ten fighters. My best. But I want tactical command of my people. I won't send them to die because of bad leadership."
"Agreed," I said immediately.
Alpha Rachel sighed. She looked at Sierra for a long time. Then she nodded. "Five fighters. That's all I can spare. My pack is small."
"Five is enough," I said. Relief flooded through me.
Alpha David stayed seated. "I won't commit my people to this. I'm sorry Adrian but my responsibility is to my own pack. Not yours."
Two other Alphas agreed with him. They stood and walked out. Just like that. The door closed behind them and I felt the weight of their refusal in my bones. We'd lost three potential allies. Three packs that could have made the difference.
But the coastal Alpha stood. "I'm old. My fighting days are mostly behind me. But I have twenty young fighters who need to learn what real combat looks like. They're yours. All twenty."
My throat went tight. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me yet," he said. "Thank me when this is over and we're all still breathing."
The meeting broke up. Alphas shook my hand and promised support. We made plans to coordinate. But underneath it all I felt fear. Theirs and mine. We were committing to real war. People would die. Maybe people in this room.
Sierra and I walked back to our quarters. The hallway felt too long. When we got inside she sat on the bed and started crying. Not loud. Just silent tears running down her face. I sat beside her and pulled her close.
"We're going to survive this," I said.
"How do you know?" Her voice was so small.
"Because we have to. For him." I put my hand on her belly. "He needs us both. So we don't get to give up, lose or die. We fight and we win. That's the only option."
She pressed her forehead against mine. "I'm so tired of being scared."
"Me too."
A knock on the door made us both jump. Ben walked in without waiting for an answer. His face was pale. "We have a problem."
My stomach dropped. "What now?"
"Daemon missed his midnight check-in and the one before that. He's been silent for twelve hours."
The room spun. Twelve hours. That meant something had gone wrong. Marcus had found him out, killed him or tortured him until he gave up everything he knew about us.
"Could his phone have died?" Sierra asked. But even she didn't believe it.
Ben shook his head. "He had a backup. Two actually. If he missed two check-ins it means he's either captured or dead."
I stood up. My mind raced. "Does Marcus know about our meeting today? Could Daemon have told him?"
"I don't know," Ben said. "But we have to assume the worst. Assume Marcus knows we're building an alliance. Knows we're planning to attack. Which means…"
"He might move up his timeline," I finished. The words tasted like ash.
“I'm not due for a few more weeks." Sierra said.
"Marcus doesn't care about due dates," I said. "If he thinks we're coming for him he might come for us first. Tonight. Tomorrow. Any time."
Ben pulled out his phone. "I'm doubling the guards. Putting the pack on high alert. No one in or out without clearance."
"Do it," I said.
He left. The door closed. Sierra and I stood there looking at each other. War had been coming. Now it was here. Right outside our door. Waiting to break through and take everything we loved.
"What do we do?" Sierra whispered.
Before I could answer, the lights went out. All of them. The whole pack house went black. Emergency lights should have kicked on but they didn't. Someone had cut the power deliberately.
Then I heard it. The sound that made my blood freeze. Gunfire. Coming from the south border. Close. Too close.
Sierra grabbed my arm. "Adrian…"
The window exploded.