Chapter 71
Alpha Jaxon.
"Scarlett," I whispered, locked up inside my wolf, who had taken over the minute we couldn’t find her. Following word from the guards at the gate, we had traced Thiery’s car at the mall, but he and Scar were nowhere to be seen. I had gone berserk; my wolf had broken within seconds inside the mall, and shit hit the fan.
It took a dozen men to stop my wolf from hurting more people as he looked for his mate. The metal door creaked from afar before Astra’s scent hit my wolf’s nose. He stood on all fours, snarling at the woman as she stood before us. It had taken her magic to incapacitate me, giving warriors enough time to lock me inside a cell in the dungeons.
"Alpha." She bowed, a roar from the deepest part of my wolf sent the bars almost rattling.
"I can’t talk to you in your wolf form; you need to shift." My wolf wouldn’t listen; he was set on sinking his teeth into anyone to get his mate back. I pleaded with him to allow me to shift into our human form, but he only snarled. Astra’s mouth was set in a thin line as she glared fire at my beast.
“Scarlett is out there, no doubt in the hands of Silas and a warlock. The same people who murdered your mother; are you just dumb with anger, or do you want to find her bleeding out like you found your mother?" My wolf pushed forward, snapping his jaw at her, saliva dripping. I could feel his fur almost burning, his teeth itching, and his eyes burning.
"I suggest you fucking shift, behave, and lead the search for your mate and our Luna. She is waiting for you, and the pack is looking up to you. If you let anger and craze rule you, she will be gone forever, you will die, and this pack will disintegrate. Fucking shift alpha and prove to Scarlett that you are an alpha male." As she talked, my wolf began to slowly let me in, recoiling in shame. She threw me a shawl, pointing at it as she turned to give me privacy.
Ire began ebbing, replaced by a feeling that had our hearts constricting. I shifted back into my human form, thanking my beast for complying. “Jasper is not the mole like we thought." Astra didn’t even give me time to cover myself; she opened the cell door and walked away without looking back.
"What are you saying?" I followed, my hands clenched into fists, trying to compound the heaviness in my heart. My vision was blurry as we took the stairs leading to the outside. My thoughts were hazy, and the bond felt hefty, like Scarlett was no longer holding it together. I stifled a cry as a stabbing pain spread across my chest, leaving me heaving.
"I talked to him and used magic on his wolf. Jasper only hates Scarlett because she was a rogue. He didn’t trust her, and he couldn’t comprehend how you so easily gave in to the bond. The disrespect is because of your genuine love for her. Plus, he’s also envious of you two; he is not getting any younger, he desires a mate,” she explained, making my hazy thoughts jumble up further.
“That is what I told Scarlett." Mentioning her name had my hand flying to my chest, trying to rid of the ache.
"Alpha." A series of alphas rang out on the outside of the dungeons when I stepped out. Rows of warriors knelt down on one knee, bowing their heads to me. Their loyalty threatened to bring me down to my knees with emotions.
"We are waiting for your word, Alpha. We are ready to storm into Crane Power and burn it down. We will leave no stone unturned until we find our Luna,” Jasper spoke with authority, giving me a nod when I let out a loud growl.
"We leave in 10 minutes," I roared the words, the sound spreading on the open ground and toward the edge of the trees.
"Wait!" Astra shouted.
“Their protection barrier, how do you plan on going through it?" She raised her head, nodding when I sighed.
"Okay, you are coming with us," I stated with finality.
"Meet me at the back entrance; keep time,” I ordered my warriors before shifting into my wolf. My father wanted to see me before our departure with the rest of the elders. As my wolf ran over the foliage-covered ground, jumping over protruding roots, it was Scarlett’s face that pushed me to go harder and faster.
It didn’t take long to get to my office, where my father and the rest were. They didn’t dare meet my eyes when I entered, nude after shifting. I picked up my spare clothes from the drawer of my desk and cleared my throat.
"I don’t have time," I spat, trying not to lash out at them.
"While Astra came to get you out of the dungeons, your father received a call from Silas." I growled yet again, the sound reverberating throughout the entire office. His name alone had my gums itching and the canines threatening to extend. The back of my neck tingled, with fur sprouting. The call of revenge to my wolf proved hefty and uncontrollable.
"And..." My father trailed off, making me snarl at him to get over with it.
“The mole, the one that we’ve been looking for all this time,” Mr. Weller ground out his words, swallowing loudly.
“That son of a bitch was happy to inform us who it was. Seems he’s trying to get you as angry as you can. He needs you to get broken by this on top of Scarlett’s kidnapping, so he can take advantage of that,” Weller continued, making my eyes look at the wall clock.
I gave them all a once-over before turning to leave, heading to the back gate. My mouth tingled, imagining Silas’s blood dripping on its side. Thiery,” my father muttered, making me stop right at the door. I didn’t turn to look at them as Mrs. Hudson dropped the bombshell.
“Thiery is the one who has been working with Silas. He was on the phone with him, and he was the one who made demands. Thiery is the mole." My entire body sizzled with a feeling I couldn’t even describe. I shook, Thiery’s name sounding in the back of my head over and over again. The same Thiery, with whom I trusted my mate, assigned him to protect her.
I had given my own mate to the enemy without any single clue or doubt whatsoever. I couldn’t stop my wolf from pushing out or from shifting. Bones broke and rearranged themselves as the beast took charge again. Betrayal plus the loss of his mate altered him into a monster that would do anything to get his mate back and to teach Thiery a lesson.
“That’s not all alpha, they want the ring in exchange for Scarlett. In the next 120 minutes exactly, at the neutral grounds. Oh and you are to go with Astra only."