The Fangs He Gave Me

Chapter 8: Stray

Alpha Dario's POV

Three years ago, I buried my parents, the former Alpha and Luna of the Bloodstone Pack, and learned that the world doesn't warn you before it takes something from you.

It just takes it.

It's why I don't get surprised easily anymore.

So when Beta Marco stepped in and said Alpha Castillo was here, I wasn't surprised.

But every instinct in me knew something was coming.

***

Alpha Castillo stood like he owned the place. To be fair, he does.

Bloodstone Pack, my pack, had been in trouble when Castillo came to us three years ago and offered an alliance. I had taken it because I was smart enough to know the difference between pride and survival.

And he made sure I never forgot it.

Not with words. With actions.

"Castillo," I said.

"Dario." He smiled, halfhearted. "You look well."

"You didn't drive here to tell me that." I gestured toward the seats by the window.

He laughed softly. "No. I didn't."

"I'll get straight to it," he said as we sat. "I'm looking for a wolf."

"You'll need to be more specific."

"A stray." Casual. Like it was nothing. "Newly turned and I have reasons to believe she crossed into your territory."

A newly turned stray that escaped Castillo's men?

Anyone who had spent enough time around the Ironfist Pack knew that is practically impossible.

"Newly turned, you say?" I asked, with a puzzled look on my face.

"Yes." His eyes focused on mine. "I'm only trying to help her."

"Of course. A wolf that new," I nodded slowly, "wandering alone… can be dangerous. For her and for everyone around her."

There's more to this. Castillo wouldn't drive here for a stray.

"Did any of your scouts report her crossing your border?" he asked, smiling like he was being generous.

"No," I answered. "Nothing of the sort."

"Are you sure?" He pressed.

The thing about Castillo was that he didn't need to threaten you. The alliance did that for him. We both understood it without ever saying it out loud.

"Yes," I responded. "Only got a report of an accident. Not far from my border. Last night."

Something moved in his eyes. Just barely. But I caught it.

"Is that so?" he asked like he wasn't interested.

"Yes," I answered calmly.

I couldn't draw a straight line between the two. But I knew this stray had to be Ella.

I didn't know how I know.

I just do.

And whatever his reasons were, they were reason enough for me to keep her exactly where she was.

"I'll keep my eyes open," I said. "If anything crosses my border, you'll be the first to know."

He stood and extended his hand with that easy smile. "I know you will."

I shook it.

"It's always good to see you, Dario."

"Safe drive, Castillo."

I walked him out and stood at the door until his car disappeared down the road.

The street was empty. The night was quiet.

And then Beta Marco's voice cut through the silence inside my head.

Through our mind link.

She's dangerous, Alpha.

I stayed as I was. Didn't move. I just listened.

I checked the gun while you escorted Alpha Castillo. The silver bullets are the same calibre as the ones we pulled out of your parents three years ago. Same markings on the casings.

I felt something cold rush through me.

The way I see it we have two options. Marco continued, we put her down before she brings whatever she's running from through our borders. Or we hand her over to Castillo and let him deal with it. Either way we get rid of her.

I stood there for a moment longer. The cold weight of what Marco's discovery settling over me.

No, there must be a third option, I said through the link.

Alpha, Those bullets...

I know what the bullets mean, Marco.

Understood.

A man like Castillo had scouts. Lieutenants. Men he could send for anything that didn't require his personal attention.

Yet he came himself for a stray?

I'm sure of it now. Ella is the wolf Castillo was looking for, and the only thing standing between her and Castillo is me.

But wait, does Castillo know of the silver bullets?

I reached the door at the end of the corridor and pushed it open. Ella was exactly where I had left her.

Marco was standing in the corner with his arms crossed and his jaw tight, watching her the way he watched everything he had already decided was a threat.

I looked at him and he looked at me.

The mind link between an Alpha and his Beta didn't need words most of the time. Six years of standing beside each other had made the language simpler than that.

His expression said: You saw what I found. You know what it means. I'm asking you to be careful.

Mine said: I heard you. Step back.

He held my gaze for one more moment. Then he set the gun down on the table, and walked out without a word.

The door clicked shut behind him.

I pulled the chair from the corner, turned it around, and sat down in front of her.

"A newly turned wolf. No pack. No Alpha." I said quietly. "You know what we call that out here?"

She didn't answer. Her jaw remained tight.

Then I picked up the gun and pressed the barrel to her forehead.

Her whole body trembled, her breathing became quicker and I can see she was trying her best to hold herself together.

But she didn't look away.

I almost respected that.

Almost.

"A stray," I said. "And strays don't last long. Not in this world. Not with whatever you're running from already sniffing around my door."

I pressed the barrel slightly firmer against her forehead. Her hands were trembling visibly now, but her eyes didn't drop.

"So here is where we are, Ella." I kept my voice low, "I can pull this trigger right now and end whatever this is before it becomes my problem. No loose ends." I paused. "Or you can give me a reason not to and prove yourself."

The room was completely still except for the sound of her breathing.

She looked at me for a long moment. Then something shifted in her face.

"I accept you as my Alpha," she said it like it costing her everything and she can not take it back. "Please, let me prove myself."

I held the gun against her forehead for a moment longer.

Then I lowered it slowly.

She is too smart for a girl who had only been a wolf for two days.

I stood up.

"Understand something," I said, turning my gaze from her. "From this moment, your life is not your own."

I said without the courtesy of letting it land gently.

"You stay because I allow it. You breathe because I permit it. You live and exist within these walls at my discretion." I paused. "And if I tell you to die…,"

I finally looked at her. "… then die you must."