SERENA
As luna, my job is to keep peopleâs feelings in check, especially my dear alpha mate. But today is proving to be a tougher nut to crack.
I watch him and Max mull over the recent happenings at my old pack. Iâve been in touch with my brother Elijah, whoâs now the beta, and things arenât looking up.
Amara, the luna and my ex-best friend, is a wreck. She wonât let Charity out of her sight, and honestly, I canât fault her.
But itâs gotten to a point where itâs unhealthy. Even Charity, whoâs now scared of her own shadow, has asked her mom to stop tailing her everywhere.
And when I say everywhere, I mean even to the bathroom in their own house.
âSebastian, can I chime in?â I decide to voice my thoughts.
Sebastian stops his pacing and looks at me, nodding. âOf course, my love, you can speak anytime you want.â
âGood.â I get up from my seat and walk over to my mate, placing a hand on his arm as I guide him to sit down on the couch.
I settle myself in his lap, knowing that my touch and presence will soothe him and make him calmer.
âI think we might be tackling this rogue situation all wrong,â I tell them. âSomeone must have let them slip past the patrol or even tipped them off that Charity was in the woods.
We canât be too cautious. There are always those who would betray their pack and alpha if they saw a chance to gain something they desire.â
Sebastian is deep in thought, his hand absentmindedly moving up and down my thigh. I glance over at Max and notice that heâs shaking his head at our display of affection but smiling nonetheless.
Weâve always shown our children the importance of being there for your mate, so I hope my son is learning from us. Iâd hate for him to turn out like Alpha Damien.
Even after he and Amara mated, there were rumors of an affair, but nothing was ever proven.
âOk, you might be onto something. I suppose I can talk to Damien and see if he has used his alpha aura to compel his pack to tell the truth.
He may have to sit with all of them individually or even in small groups. It would be hard to weed out the liar in a large group.
We canât have eyes on everyone all at once.â Sebastian caught on to exactly my thoughts, as I knew he would.
âBut how do we gather his entire pack without leaving his borders unprotected? It seems like you would need to get them all at once, to prevent anyone from slipping away,â Max suggested.
âYes, well thatâs where we come in,â I said as I rose from Sebastianâs lap. He growled and pulled me back down.
Sighing, I continued. âWe send our warriors again and they can patrol the borders for them while Damien and Elijah round up everyone.
I think it would be safe to bring all the children to the school while the adults are interrogated.â
âItâs a good idea. I like it.â Sebastian stood, lifting me with him and then placing my feet on the floor.
He still hadnât gotten tired of carrying me around bridal style, even after all these years. It was nothing for him to just pick me up at random and run to our room while holding me tightly in his arms.
âLetâs call Damien. Max, why donât you give Derek a call, check in on him. You two seemed to have become friends, letâs try to keep him from going off on his own.â
Sebastian rattled off the plan as he went to his desk and picked up the phone. Max grabbed his cell phone off the side table and walked out of the office, presumably to call Derek.
It was time to put things in motion. What happened to Charity should never happen to any she-wolf.
MAX
I had planned to spend my summer with my family, but it seemed I would still be working. Never a dull moment, as they say.
Our plan was in motion and no one from Half Moon Pack was any the wiser. We arranged for our warriors to enter their pack silently in the dead of night, with Alpha Damien meeting us at the gate to ensure we werenât spotted.
I was accompanying them primarily to help Derek out of his funk. I must admit, though, I was curious to see how this would all unfold.
I hoped it would work.
I keep thinking about the fact that I turn twenty-one in just a few days, and here I am heading off to another pack to help a friend avoid falling apart.
The council wonât take his failure lightly and could possibly deem him unfit to be alpha of the pack.
I felt that was a bit harsh, considering who his father was and the things the council had excused for him, but it wasnât my place to make those decisions.
It was nearly midnight when our group parked our vans on a side road, so they would be hidden from random passersby.
Unloading from the vans, we grabbed our bags and slung them on our backs as we continued down the road we had been on.
We were about a mile out from the edge of the Half Moon Pack lands and Alpha Damien was there at the gate waiting for us.
My father and Gamma Connor had decided to send over eighty warriors. Half Moon was a small pack but the lands were vast and would need to be covered as much as possible.
The extra bodies would help in the event things didnât go exactly as planned.
We walked quietly in the dark, our wolf eyesight allowing us to see even though the moon was covered by clouds and there was virtually no ambient light on the road.
No one spoke, as the whole point was so that Alpha Damienâs patrols didnât notice us.
As we filed in and his patrols went off duty, we would be replacing them. Alpha Damien had already secured his own patrols that were on the next shift.
They were safely locked below ground so that they couldnât mind link with the other patrols and give them warning.
As we approached the gate, I stepped forward from the group to identify myself. I watched as Alpha Damien and Derek opened the gates and came to stand in the center of the road.
I approached them and shook hands with both. In hushed voices so no one could hear us, we discussed the plan and then I walked back to let my warriors know what was to be done.
Twenty of the warriors will remain just inside the gate until the patrols change shifts at two in the morning.
Theyâd be hanging out for about forty-five minutes and then would slowly spread out around the pack land borders.
Alpha Damien had supplied maps for them, this way they would know where they should be posted and where exactly the pack lands began and ended.
The remaining warriors and us, we tread back in silence to the visitor barracks near the training field.
The place is deserted, only Alpha Damien and Derek are in on our arrival.
We tiptoe into the building, and with a press of a button from Alpha Damien, steel shutters descend over the windows, blocking out any betraying light.
Once the shutters are down, he flicks on the lights.
We find ourselves in their dining hall. Snacks and drinks are spread out for us, a feat Iâm sure was difficult to pull off given our secret presence.
Damien shares that he had let the beta in on the secret, and he and his mate had ensured the barracks were clean and food was ready for us.
Huddled in the dining hall, we go over the remaining plans. Once the patrols have switched, Alpha Damien plans to call them all to his prison for a âdebriefâ.
Theyâre used to this routine, especially after a rogue attack.
When they arrive, theyâll be placed underground with the other warriors. Theyâll be briefed on the situation and made as comfortable as possible.
After all, Damien isnât out to punish them for crimes they didnât commit.
Alpha Damien takes his leave to catch some sleep after securing the patrols.
He plans to call all pack members to the training field at eight in the morning.
This will ensure everyone is up and about. Those who would usually be asleep at this hour are safely tucked away underground.
Derek stays with us. Once the entire pack has gathered on the field, Alpha Damien will mind-link Derek and weâll all get the signal to leave the barracks and encircle the pack members.
We have a two-hour window before we need to relieve the nighttime patrols, giving the alpha ample time to sift through those on the field.
Derek assigns everyone their sleeping quarters, then grabs my arm and leads me elsewhere. âWeâre sleeping down this hall. Single rooms with private bathrooms,â he says.
I feel a pang of guilt for my warriors, but being an alpha has its perks, and this is one of them.
Besides, Derek and I have spent the better part of a year sleeping on the ground, in tents, on cots, in drafty outbuildings, and countless other places that donât hold a candle to home.
As we walk down the hall, I steal a glance at Derek. He seems to be holding up, save for the tense twitch in his jaw.
I decide to check in on him. âHow are you holding up, man?â
Derek falls silent for a moment before answering. âI wonât lie, Iâm pretty pissed off. I talked to Jarodâmy best friend.
He swears he told his sister to let Charity know he couldnât meet her. He chickened out, scared of getting caught sneaking around.
But his sister never relayed the message to Charity, claiming she couldnât find her. We checked the security footage from outside the pack house, and his sister was a no-show that day.
All we saw was Charity slipping out the back door and darting into the woods while the guard was distracted. I donât know what to make of it.
Itâs not like I can go rough up a fifteen-year-old girl for answers.â
I nod, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder. âWeâll figure this out, Derek, I promise. Whatever you need, Iâm here for you.
Just do me a favor and donât backslide. Youâve come a long way.â
Derek lets out a tired sigh as he stops in front of a door. âThis is your room. Thanks, Max. I really do appreciate it.
Iâm doing my best and Iâm glad youâre here.â He crosses the hallway to another door and swings it open.
âGood night, Max.â He shuts the door before I can even respond.
This whole situation is going to be tough, and I find myself wishing none of this had happenedâthat I was back home, soaking up the summer.