The Golden Millionaire

Rogues

As I drove out of the city, I placed a call to the shop that was about half an hour away from the cabin, placing an order for the things I would need to have for the week; telling the owner that I was in a hurry, so I would let him know when I was close, if one of his employees would come out and load the stuff into the truck. I would be able to pick it all up and leave the small ‘town’, for lack of a better word, behind quickly. I didn't know whether any wolves lived there, so the sooner I left there the better it would be for me. I usually planned ahead and had them drop everything off at the cabin in the summer kitchen, for which they had a key, but as this was a spur of the moment trip, I had to do it this way so that I would have supplies for tonight.

It was a three-and-a-half-hour drive and already it was after two p.m.

I turned on the radio and changed the channel, so country music played. I enjoyed the beat of country music, it calmed me, and the words had meaning. It wasn't like the nonsense most bands played these days, with their screaming, or repeating of useless words. I hummed along to the music and thought of the relaxing runs that I would have when I was in the cabin.

I was looking forward to making a deluxe meat pizza for this evening. I had ordered their meat pizza, but also asked for extra ham, sausages, and crumbed steak bits to be put in separate packets so that I could add them as I felt like it, or simply eat them as a treat. I would start the fire as soon as I got to the cabin and then I could unpack the supplies and put them away. I had ingredients for my favourite hazelnut-coffee milkshake as well, which I would definitely be using this evening.

As I neared the shop, I could feel myself smiling and was excited to realize that I had left my frustration of the morning behind. There were two employees that came to the truck with a whole trolley filled with my supplies, and one that held the large pizza, extra mozzarella cheese. She went around the side of the truck to put the pizza on the seat next to me. As I opened the door, I could smell that she was a shifter. Keeping my eyes down, I thanked her and turned my attention to the other two packing the bags into the back of the truck. I took a slow deep sniff and could smell that the guy was also a shifter, but the other girl wasn't.

“Thanks guys,” I said to them as the shifter girl came up to the window for payment. I kept my eyes focused on the machine as I swiped my card, not even daring to look at the human girl, yet wondering whether she knew that she was working with two wolves. Generally, I knew that wolves who worked with humans didn't harm them necessarily, but I didn't know what kind of pack they were part of. If any, they might be rogues, for all I know. Simply trying to make a living in this world where rogues are condemned by their own kind.

I was careful to keep my scent masked, one of my gifts of being the Golden-eyed legend, which didn't mean that they were unaware that I was a shifter, they simply didn't know that I was next in line to be an Alpha, one that could possibly lead a very dangerous pack. I had enough strength, as a future alpha, and the Golden-eyed legend, to kill them with one swipe, but I detested violence in any way, form or manner.

The girl looked at me, “You moving in near here, sir?” she asked casually.

“Nah, just going out to my cabin in the woods to get away from the hustle of the city for a week of vacation,” I replied with a nonchalant tone, knowing that they would come and check out the cabin sometime tonight, as I spied a look of fear across her face fleetingly.

Something was wrong, “Have you heard of the cabin out there?”

Her eyes shifting to the male shifter, told me that something was definitely up. “I've run up there a couple of times,” he said with a shrug, “I thought it was abandoned, or maybe that a bum was living there,” he ended, not quite meeting my eyes.

“No-one should be there, but I’ll have a quick look,” I assured them with a sincere smile. “Thanks again, guys,” I ended, turning my attention to my phone.

I saw the girl shooting the guy another look out the corner of my eye. “Hey Tina, we’re outta here, we stayed later than we normally would have to help you out, so we'll see you in the a.m,” I heard the guy say.

They let Tina get ahead of them, and then I heard the guy whisper, “I'll run ahead and clear our stuff out, you go to the cave,” giving her a kiss on the cheek, he added louder, “I’ll go get the stuff at the shops, you go rest so long, and I will help you with dinner later.”

They parted ways and the guy lifted his hand in greeting as he passed, but I ignored him, so he would think that I hadn't listened to their conversation.

I let him get to the other side of the street before I started up my truck and drove to the gravel road about a hundred metres up the road. I stopped the truck to the side and got out, shucking my clothing and locking the truck, I hid the key in a panel that could only be opened with my fingerprint, it was good to be rich.

I walked into the trees and shifted, feeling great for the first time in a long while. I started running towards the cabin, I would not make it there before him, but I would catch him in the act of clearing out everything.

As I ran, I felt elation at being free course through my body, I hadn't been this happy in such a long time, and I was on a mission. As I neared the cabin, I slowed down and sniffed the air to make sure that the male shifter was alone in the cabin, or for that fact, that it was just the two of us, and there wasn't a whole pack that had moved into my cabin. Fortunately, it seemed as though it was just the two of us. Creeping closer, I could hear frenzied movements in the cabin, and I knew that he would think I was still making my way up in the truck, none the wiser.

I waited just inside the line of the trees for him to exit the cabin, seeing him walk outside naked, ready to shift, put down two large duffels. As soon as he had shifted, I was on him, my jaws open wide at his throat, my large paws pinning him to the ground. Letting him feel my power, I growled deep in my throat, and he whined submissively.

We both shifted back into human form so that we would be able to talk.

“What's your name, and why are you living in my cabin?” I ordered, sitting down on the thick grass, wanting him to understand that I didn't wish him harm, but did want answers.

He sat down near me, “My name is Maddox, Seira is my mate, we are rogues,” he said almost defeated. “We have been living here for almost six months, we really did think that it was abandoned, and as we didn't tell anyone where we were living, they couldn't inform us,” he explained, the look on his face letting me know he was telling the truth.

“Why are you rogues? What happened?” I asked gently, seeing that they were simply desperate.

“That damn Alpha Jerome from the Golden Moon Pack kicked us out. Seira was an orphan because her parents were both killed in battle, the same battle that took my father, and because my mother was from another pack before she was mated, he kicked us out when she died from a rogue attack while she was patrolling the border,” he said with a tear running down his cheek.

Alpha Jerome, I could see that he was doing what he was famed for, instead of building his pack with young warriors, he would kick them out, simply because one of the parents had not come from the pack.

“Do you have anywhere to go, besides the cave?” I asked him, lifting one eyebrow.

“No, we don't,” he said, looking me in the eye.

“Maddox, I had wanted to have a relaxing week away from work, but now I can see that I will be quite busy,” I said with a smile.