01

Max

They are crowding round me laughing whilst kicking all over my body it seemed to go on for hours it probably did, I looked up at the silhouette of him standing there on the stairs with the light coming in from the hallway watching pleading with my eyes to please stop this but like all the other times he smirks and turns around and walks up the stairs closing the door bringing the darkness with it. They are going to kill me, this time they are definitely going to kill me, I curled further into a ball, trying not to scream that would egg them on to do it more, but the pain was everywhere, at some point they left laughing and joking as if they had been to the pub or to a ball game not trying to beat someone to death, telling me they would be back, i stayed on the floor listening to the foot steps disappearing,I uncurled myself and winced at the pain going through my whole body I tired to slow down my heartbeat and get my breathing under control before I hyperventilate, I don’t heal like I use to, to much to heal to little time and not enough food, I slowly crawled over to the sports bag in the corner and looked inside, it’s ok he is asleep, I needed to get out of here tonight,.

I slowly and painfully got up looked around the room that was my so called bedroom making sure I hadn’t left anything that I might need later on, my whole life was in this sports bag, I was looking for something that would open the door or window, I have been locked down here for so long, I found what I think is a knife maybe not but it’s dark and my eyesight is awful for a wolf that is. I slowly walked up stairs wincing every time I put weight on my leg, it was late everyone is asleep hopefully they won’t hear anything, I get to the top and turn the knob and to my surprise it’s open. Has it always been unlocked this whole time, no definitely not, they always made a point of locking it loudly, maybe they were so drunk this time they forgot, oh who cares I need to get out.

I tip toed through the hallway through the kitchen stocked full of food that I wasn’t allowed to touch and out the back door, I had learnt the patrol schedule years ago and the Alpha was predictable and I knew there was a switch over shortly I needed to slip through then, I was completely naked, so I shifted into my wolf which amazed me that I could, which hurt a lot but nothing compared to the beating I just had and picked up my bag in my mouth and headed through the forest as silent as possible, if they caught me we were both dead, I knew I was bleeding I’m not sure how I’m still conscious let alone walking but I’m doing this for the baby in my bag, he needs a better life than this and I will die trying.

I got to the edge of the woods and crossed the river, it had taken me over 2 hours, if I was healthy it should have taken an hour tops, I was slow and I know I had left a blood trail, I followed the rivers edge for another hour when I heard the howls of my pack I knew at that moment I was dead so I took off running breaking my link with the pack and more howls were heard, I ran as fast as my broken body would let me through trees and bushes tripping over logs and roots not being the silent wolf I should have been, I slowed down every so often but never stopped, I needed to get through the rogue territory, I knew where I was heading I just wasn’t sure they would take me, Alpha Kingsley was known to be scary, act on impulse and kill everything that steps onto his territory if threatened or so I was told but for some reason my brain was telling me to go there so that’s what I’m doing I don’t have anything else to live for apart from my baby and I need help.

I know I need to stop, my eyesight is getting worse, my steps are starting to faulter, but I will keep going I have to. I have no idea where I am, I’m just heading west, just west, keep going west. The sun has started to come up and is hurting my eyes so much, when I hear growls around me and I am surrounded by 6 wolves they come closer, I have no chance against them even if I has at 100% let alone a dead wolf walking, I put the bag down and collapse, I hear someone come closer to me but I can’t open my eyes, I feel them shift, I nudge the bag forward « Save him for me ».

Leighton

Alpha Kingsley has been drilling everyone this morning, training was always hard but we are the best for a reason and that 7 foot beast is the reason we are the best and will stay the best, the warriors hate and respect him for it. I was standing to the side of the training ground watching as I had a couple of things to do so I wasn’t drill sergeant today.

« Alright that’s it, hit the showers » he walked over to me, he hardly looked out of breath how does he do it. He looked at me with a frown.

« How did you know it went that badly ? » he tilted his head « ok ok it did go that badly, they want an alliance but on their terms and it doesn’t help us at all,obliviously I turned them down and sent them packing » he slapped me on my back and walked past me into the packhouse and up the stairs. I jogged after him and shouted « I need you to sign all the stuff that’s on your desk » he put his hand In the air with a thumbs up. Most wolfs were scared of him, and because he didn’t talk much just grunts most are intimidated by him and run a mile.

I have known him 5 years and I think I know him and how he ticks, we were both rogues when we met and decided to set up our pack, it was hard work getting a pack together especially when most of them were rogues but we trained them all and now we are the best at what we do. Everyone of us has a past, a past that is horrible and will give you nightmares some of us are here due to other people and some are due to their own faults but we all have to learn to live with our past and move on.

I went to grab a snack and headed to my office which is next to Kingsley’s, sometimes I feel like his PA not his Beta, everyone is to scared to speak to him so they come through me. I see his walls all around him, he is waiting for his mate, people have told him to just pick someone but he won’t and I understand that, I only found Margo last year at the age of 28 most people would have given up but I didn’t and I’m so glad.

I get up from my desk and walk over to Kingsleys’s door and knock, he grunts knowing it’s me, I walk in and plop myself down in the spare seat. He looks up from his desk and hands me back the files I left him earlier to sign. « Can’t believe we are getting more cub bears, do you think we should set up a squadron of just bears rather than have them mixed with the warriors ? » Wow a whole sentence, I think I took to long to reply because now he is staring at me « well I can see the pro’s and con’s, we don’t have enough bears of age yet so maybe leave that on the back burner for the moment but it could be a good idea to make sure we have bears in each squadron and to make sure the whole team works well with their strengths » he nods his head « we have 75 warriors including bears basically I’m having a shake up, I want to change somethings…… » we spent the afternoon going through his idea and it was really good, he is going to let everyone know to night at the BBQ.

Alpha Kingsley didn’t do public speaking often and when he did everyone knew it had to be important, he stood on the stage and everyone was silent

« Good evening, I have an announcement to make that will effect our whole pack as of tomorrow morning our warriors will be split into squadron’s that will each include at least one bear shifter and one cat shifter, each squadron will learn to work as a team using everyone’s strengths, our numbers have been increasing and I feel this is the best way forward if any one was to attack us. Leighton will tell you which team you will be in, there will be 7 teams of 10 and 1 team of 5 however we have some pups that will be coming of age and they will be added to the team of 5. Thank you », I was then swamped with warriors, « right ok, I will call out everyone’s name for team 1….. » and that is how my evening went.

I had the 5am patrol so I wasn’t training today, it had been too quiet recently, it didn’t sit well with me. We were just heading towards the lake and I felt something shift in the air,

« Something is around here, everyone stay alert » I mindlinked the guys with me, we got in formation and I headed in the direction my wolf was telling me to go.

« Leighton, be careful with this, don’t hurt them straight away » Jewel my wolf said

« What do you mean ? »

« Don’t hurt them ! »

I could smell the intruder, it was a wolf but I could also smell the blood, I ran through the bushes with my 5 warriors behind me, and circled the wolf, he didn’t look good, I understood what Jewel meant now, the wolf couldn’t even keep his eyes open and then it collapsed, I shifted back into a human and walked forward, the wolf pushed the bag he had in his mouth forward « Save him for me » I didn’t think we could speak through our wolves that confused me, I bent down and slowly opened the bag and in it was a brand new baby cub « crap » I put the bag in Lex’s mouth « there is a baby in that bag, do not touch the baby, get this bag back to the clinic, I will follow » I grabbed the wolf, he weighed nothing and ran as fast as possible mind linking the pack doctor to get to the Clinic ASAP.