Chapter 6 Chapter 6
Kael’s Perspective
"Kael, the informant is here," my second-in-command, Garrick, whispered in my ear.
I leaned against the wall of the abandoned warehouse and lit a cigarette.
Footsteps approached. One person, nervous, breathing heavily.
"Kael." The voice trembled. "I brought news."
"Speak."
"Alpha Derek of the Stillwater Pack is looking for someone. His former Luna." The informant paused. "Rumor is, she ran away with a child. It's been over three years. Derek has been searching for her this whole time."
I didn't speak.
"Her description is... tall and slender, very thin from long-term malnutrition. Brown hair, green eyes. With a daughter, about three years old."
My fingers paused on the cigarette.
"Kael!" Alec's voice exploded in my mind. "It's her! It has to be her!"
"Ten years ago, we kept heading south!" Alec continued. "We collapsed by that lake. She saved us! The Stillwater Pack is to the south!"
"She’s that girl!"
I took a drag from the cigarette.
Ten years ago, after I was exiled, I didn't know where to go. I just walked south. Walked until I couldn't walk anymore, and collapsed by that lake.
And then that girl appeared.
Brown hair. Green eyes.
"I smelled her scent. Daisies and rain. Last night in the alley, that was her," Alec said.
"I know."
The informant was still talking. "The border conflict between Stillwater and Ashlands is getting worse. Derek is trying to stabilize the border while also sending out a lot of people to find this girl."
I flicked the ash.
Stillwater and Ashlands. Those two packs were always at each other's throats. And the Alpha of Ashlands was Dorian.
The same bastard who colluded with my brother, Damon. They were allies now.
"What does Derek want with her?" I asked.
"It's unclear. But I heard Derek's new Luna can't bear children. People in the pack are talking."
I let out a cold laugh.
So Derek needed his ex-Luna back. Maybe for the child. Maybe for something else.
But it didn't matter.
What mattered was, she was a debt I had to repay, and also a very good card to play.
Stillwater and Ashlands were fighting. If I had Derek's ex-Luna in my hands, I could negotiate with Stillwater. Get them to help me deal with Ashlands, so I could get past Dorian and take my revenge on Damon.
"Where is she?" I asked.
"In a bar downtown. Called the Red Moon. She's a waitress there."
"Good." I threw the cigarette on the ground and crushed it with my boot. "Your money will be wired to your account. Get out."
The informant scrambled away.
"Kael, are we going to grab her?" Garrick asked.
"We're going to confirm her identity," I said. "If it's her, bring her back."
"Understood."
We drove to the bar. The Red Moon. A flashing neon sign, cheap decor.
I pushed the door open. The smell of music, alcohol, and human sweat.
"Kael, over there," Garrick said in my ear. "Behind the bar. The woman with brown hair."
I "looked" in that direction.
Sounds bounced back, forming a picture. A woman stood behind the bar, mixing a drink. Slender, moving quickly.
And then I smelled it.
Daisies and rain.
"It's her," Alec said.
I walked forward. Glasses clinked. Then I heard another voice.
A man's voice.
"Luna, where's your child? You should know, an Alpha's child, even a rejected one, is very valuable, isn't it?"
I stopped.
That scent. I knew that scent.
One of Dorian's men.
"Shit," I cursed.
I had Garrick step forward. The man, annoyed, turned and saw me.
"She's mine."
My voice carried across the entire bar. The music stopped. All conversation ceased.
The man whipped around. I heard him suck in a breath.
"Rogue King..." His voice was trembling. "I... I didn't know she was yours..."
"Now you do." I walked up to the bar. The temperature in the room seemed to drop. "Get out. Tell Dorian that the people of Exile's Rest are not his to touch."
"Get out."
The man and his enforcers scrambled to leave. I heard their footsteps, smelled their fear.
The other patrons in the bar sensed something was wrong. They quickly paid their bills and left.
Soon, the bar was empty.
"Kael," Elena said in my mind, through the mind link. "Identity confirmed. She is Derek's former Luna, Sabrina Gentry."
"Good."
I heard the sound of glass clinking from behind the bar. She was trembling.
"Why did you..." she began.
"You've been marked," I interrupted her. "Derek's former Luna, wolfless, with a child, living alone in a human city. You're practically suicidal."
"This has nothing to do with you," she gritted.
I sneered.
"It didn't. But Alec won't shut up in my ear about how we owe you. So I'm warning you. Leave this city immediately. Go as far as you can. Those men won't let you go."
"I have nowhere to go!" she finally exploded. "I don't have a pack, no family, nowhere to protect my daughter! Do you think I want to live in this dump? I have no choice!"
Her voice was trembling, but furious.
I was silent.
Dorian's men had found her. If I walked away now, Dorian would have her within twenty-four hours. And then Derek would know where she was.
By then, this card would no longer be in my hand.
"You have two choices," I said coldly. "One, leave this city now and fend for yourself. Two, come with me, to Exile's Rest."
"Why would you help me?" she questioned.
"I'm not helping you." My voice was devoid of warmth. "You saw me last night. That could expose my movements. Rather than let you get captured and interrogated, I'd prefer to keep you under my watch."
"So I'm your prisoner?"
"Call it whatever you want." I turned to leave. "You have ten seconds to decide. After ten seconds, whatever you choose, you are no longer my problem."
I began to count.
One.
Two.
Three.
I heard her breathing, heard her heartbeat.
Four.
Five.
Six.
She was thinking. Weighing her options.
Seven.
Eight.
"I'll go with you." She ground out the words. "But I have conditions. My daughter must be safe, and I won't be your attack dog!"
I stopped. A cold smile touched my lips.
"Woman, you are in no position to bargain with me."
"In Exile's Rest, there is only one rule. Obey me. You will work, you will have food and shelter, and your daughter will be safe. But if you betray me, or become a burden..."
I didn't finish.
I turned back. Though I couldn't see her, I knew she was watching me.
"You know what the consequences will be."