Different From Before
I wake up on a large couch in Ossory library. The sun is streaming in through the windows, and Will shifts slightly beside me. I don’t know what time it was when we finally went to sleep last night– or, rather, this morning. Once the meeting with the Alphas was through, Will and I focused our efforts on regrouping the Argent Pack. Just as discussed, we take the necessary time to tend to our wounded and bury our dead.
By the time we’re through, Will and I quietly slip away from everyone else to rest by the fireplace in the library. It’s strange to be here again after everything. The last time I woke up in this place, I’d cried myself to sleep in Will’s arms. Neither one of us really understood who we were at the time, but even then, we felt what we were to each other.
I turn over on the couch, sliding my hand out from under the thick blanket. I trace the shape of his brow with my fingertips, brushing against the angular features of his face until reaching his lips. Then, I move to pull away and get up, but then his hand is around my writs, holding me in place. His long, black lashes flutter open, and the edge of his lips curls into a smile.
“Good morning, little wolf,” he says, his voice still heavy with sleep.
He tugs on my hand, and I flop back onto the couch, curling up against his chest as he pulls me in tight.
“Good afternoon,” I correct him, kissing his neck softly as I rest my head on his shoulder. “We slept through most of the morning.”
His muscles tense slightly beneath me, and I look up to see a faint frown on his face.
“The scouts and warriors should be returning soon,” he says.
With a long sigh, I drag myself away from him, resigning myself to get out of bed. Or actually, to get off the couch.
Later, I tell myself. We’ll have time to lie together and lounge around later.
My phone is on the floor beside the couch, and worry creeps up within me when I see the screen. No new messages. No missed calls.
No news from Ash.
The team of scouts and warriors led by the other two Alphas left hours ago. We should know something by now.
“Something is wrong, Will. I don’t know how or what, but I have this feeling that there’s something we’ve missed. It’s been too long since we heard anything from Silver Manor.”
Will props himself up on his forearm, examining my expression. He’s wearing a pair of black pants and no shirt, and as he shifts around, the blanket drops below his waist. My gaze is drawn to the scar on his muscled abdomen, right beneath his ribs.
I bite my lower lip as an unpleasant thought begins to form in my mind as I stare at Will’s bullet wound. He straightens up when he senses my alarm through the bond, sitting up.
“What is it?” he asks.
“Kade talked about his mercenaries being well-armed. Several soldiers stationed here to guard the Alphas had guns, but… shouldn’t there have been more?”
The Blackthorn family was the richest in the city. With those resources, Kade would have spared no expense buying weapons. So where did all those silver bullets go?
“You want to go to the Manor, don’t you?” Will asks, but he already knows the answer. I have to see it for myself. I have to make sure our friends are safe, and Kade has been defeated.
“I trust the other Alphas, but something feels off, Will. You don’t have to go with me if you don’t want to-”
He arches a brow as though offended I would even suggest it.
“Where you go, I go. Let me get dressed, and we’ll go. Jackson can look after the pack and work with the remaining two Alphas while we’re gone.”
“Are you going to make him your Beta?” I ask as I put my shoes on. Will considers my question for a moment before answering.
“I thought about it. I also thought about having Marcus as Beta.”
“But?”
“Jackson is a loyal Delta and a good fighter. But he’s too quiet and stoic. I’m new to all these politics, and I want a Beta that isn’t afraid to speak up. And Marcus has his detective work to keep him busy,” he looks at me suddenly, pausing for a moment. “I want the pack’s Beta to be Ash. She’s a loudmouth and a smartass, but I think we can trust her. She’s always done what she thinks is best for the pack.”
When I first arrived at Ossory, Ash was a spy. But so much has changed since then. Ash was the first member of the Argent Pack to respect me as a leader. She’s not just my friend; she’s my sister. Combat boots and all.
“I think it’s perfect. Ash will be a wonderful Beta, just like you are a wonderful Alpha.”
Although between Will, Ash, and I, I’m not sure the Argent Pack is ready to handle that amount of snark. It’s going to be an interesting leadership, to say the least.
I smile at the thought as Will goes off to get ready and borrow a car from one of the other pack members. As I walk through the campus, many of the wolves nod their heads respectfully as I pass. It’s going to take some getting used to.
Will pulls up ahead of me in a white van, and we drive out of the university after leaving everything sorted with Jackson and the others. The drive feels shorter than I remember it, and that uneasy feeling in my gut seems to get worse as we get closer and closer to the manor.
When we finally arrive, the large iron gates are dented and hanging loosely off the hinges, almost like someone drove into them with a truck. Will and I exchange an anxious look before driving through them toward the main path that cuts across the estate.
We’re about half a mile away from the mansion when I see the first body and start to hear the screams.
Oh fuck.
It’s time for round two.