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"There you are." She scowled and pulled on my arm. "Come on. Alpha Pierce wants us in his office now."
I let her drag me all the way to Pierce's office, not sure what was happening. When we got there, Mordred was inside along with Pierce and someone I recognized as Kellan. He was a beta I hadn't seen around since before the full moon catastrophe. I wondered what happened to him, though seeing him now, it looked as if he'd been in a fight. He was naked, which showed off all the injuries and blood splatters across his skin.
"What happened?" I asked, going to Kellan and looking him over. He seemed okay for the most part. The wounds were shallow enough to heal on their own.
"It appears that someone found the location where I was hiding Sonya Mendoza and broke her out," Pierce said in his usual neutral tone. "Kellan and three others were supposed to guard her and failed."
"I told you, Alpha Pierce, we were attacked," Kellan expressed. "There was this giant werewolf that stormed in like a wild animal and killed the others. I barely managed to make it out alive to warn you."
A werewolf? That made no sense, werewolves didn't exist. Not in the half-man, half-wolf sort of way. We shifters were more classified as Skinwalkers. We never turned into a giant wolfman.
Mordred seemed to understand what Kellan was saying. "It sounds like one of the Wolf Moon's chosen. The Wolf Moon's gift that Rosie Mendoza possesses grants her chosen shifters the ability to awaken a third shift. A werewolf form, to put it eloquently."
Whitney gasped. "You mean, we'd be able to turn into werewolves?"
"Precisely, my dear." Mordred nodded. "This third shift increases a wolf shifter's capabilities, along with overpowering all forms of influence except for the Wolf Moon's chosen."
I never thought in my wildest dream that I'd hear we could possibly turn into werewolves. What other myths existed are proven true?
"I'm sorry, Alpha," Kellan said, still shaking. I didn't know if it was from the chill or fear.
Pierce regarded him in the longest ten seconds of my life. I wasn't sure what was going to happen until he turned to Whitney, and said, "Kill him."
Kellan stilled in my hold. My eyes widened in shock.
"Gladly," Whitney sing-songed as he yanked Kellan out of my hold. Kellan begged for his life while I was glued in place. His life ended in an instant with a snap to his neck. His body dropped to the floor with a thud. Pierce just ordered one of our betas to be killed. One of our own. How could Pierce make such a cruel order?
"We no longer can wait for the girl to return," Mordred said casually. "One of the rogue wolves who serves under me reported that he saw Rosie and a group of others gathered in a forest outside of Oregon. They found something that'll be of great use to us."
"Then we'll act now," Pierce declared. "Whitney, take half of our remaining betas and retrieve my missing mate. Bring her by force if you must. Mordred will give you the coordinates, and where to meet up when you have her. It's time for the next phase of our plan."
"What plan is that?" I asked, pretending not to be shaken up.
"Once we have the Wolf Moon's gift at our disposal, Mordred will unleash his army of rogue wolves on the people of Kingsrose. All humans and those of our pack that are too weak will all die. Then we'll have our remaining forces join Mordred's rogues and form an army of wolves powered by the Wolf Moon."
I couldn't hide how wide my eyes were. He was going to kill everyone in Kingsrose? I couldn't just stand by and not say something. "But Alpha Pierce, please think this through. You're talking about murdering innocent lives. Humans. Our own brethren! Surely you can't be considering genocide as a means for the greater good of the pack."
"But I am," Pierce replied nonchalantly. He was insane, absolutely insane.
"We have no use for the weak and vulnerable," Mordred stated. "With both of us working together, we'll have an army of hundreds of wolves at our disposal. We have no need to hide amongst the humans anymore."
"We can't rely on the weak to protect our territory," Pierce added. "It's best to get rid of them now while we can and make room for wolves better suited to protect our home."
I wanted to protest some more. I wanted to shout at how villainous it all sounded. This wasn't what it meant to be a pack. We didn't go around killing innocent lives for being too weak. Pack meant family, not tools for war. I felt like I was going to be sick. I pledged my loyalty to a malevolent tyrant.
"Byron." I looked up to Pierce as he stood from his seat and walked over to me. I gulped, holding myself still as he pressed a hand against my racing heart. "I can count on you to stay by my side, right?"
That was tough to answer. What could I say that made it sound believable? "I pledged myself to always follow you, had I not?" I asked, proud that my voice didn't crack under pressure.
Pierce seemed content with that. "Good. Keep standing at my side, and I'll see to it that you'll be the first to receive the Wolf Moon's gift once I've obtained the power from Rosie. For now, you are to remain here with the rest of the betas. Keep watch in case Rosie returns before Whitney catches her, or if she fails. Chances are, if she kills Whitney, she'll come here seeking answers. If she does, I’ll leave it in your hands to apprehend her."
"Yes, Alpha," I said with a bow of my head.
"Pierce, we must go round up the rest of our army," Mordred said.
"Of course. I'd also like to investigate the damages at the safe house," Pierce said.
With that, everyone went their separate ways. I waited a few minutes after everyone left to make sure they were really gone. When I was sure, I sprang into action. I couldn't wait a second longer, not when all of Kingsrose was in danger. I needed to break out Joaquin and find a way to get to Rosie before Whitney got to her first. I wasn't sure how we'd be able to do that, but I'd have to figure it out as I went along. I froze mid-stride down the hall as the sound of a gun's safety clicking came from behind me.
