The Warrior King's Mate

Chapter 18

Fallon pov

I crouched low behind the thinning row of bushes. Holding my fist firm in the air, I felt more than heard the soldiers behind me freeze. The moon was very high in the sky now, and our shadows were beginning to be an issue. We kept as close to the forest line as possible, downwind from the small, breeze-blocked building on the outskirts of town.

I tilted my head subtly to the left, and knew Dax and three of his guys had begun to move that way. We didn't even need the mindlink - the small group was hand chosen for their covert experience and their highly skilled fighting style. For two weeks, we'd been closing in on this building, this meeting. Moving from pack to pack along our border, we evacuated each one, uncovering all sorts of little parasites in the process. Weapons, drugs, teenage girls and dangerous potions were leaking across from Crimson Kingdom in the West, and so we went to plug every damn hole we could find. If they could smuggle in wolfsbane, they might as well smuggle in an assassin.

This was the last pack, if you could call it that. It was a small, dust bowl of a town, with one gas station, a small convenience store and around eighty red-bricked houses, all with cracked driveways and overgrown gardens. The place seemed empty, even in the middle of the day, which didn't surprise me - I'd take the first opportunity to run from a place like this. The packhouse was just another run-down looking townhouse, the Alpha and Luna there well into their seventies, something highly unusual for a pack, even one this size. This building stood about a mile outside of the town centre, on a dirt road barely discernable from the surrounding red, dried clay. No matter what pack we had evacuated in the last month, specifically the last couple of weeks, the rumor mill had led us here.

Giovanni, the fat little Alpha boy of the just-as-small pack closest to this one, told us that every full moon, well-dressed visitors came through his territory on their way to Skinwalker Pack. The pack and this little concrete building were the last sign of civilization before you hit the desert separating Lunar Kingdom from Rowan's land. We needed this town filled with our warriors, and we needed to find who Giovanni called The Rich Man. No one rich belonged here, that much was clear. So where did this man make his fortune?

The sickly pale fluorescent lights inside the building blinked to life. Taking advantage of the sudden change in lighting, I signaled my team to move away from the dry bushes, moving with ballerina precision to keep the dusty ground settled, advancing towards the building. Keeping in the shadows as much as possible, I silently moved with them, just reaching the darkened corner of the building. I threw my fist up again, signaling for silence as the unmistakable sound of tyres crunching over dry earth reached my ears. Sure enough, a few minutes later the blue-white light of headlights swept over the trees as an SUV turned to park beside the battered front doors. We couldn't risk giving away our position so I mind linked Dax.

How many?

Four men, two with visible weapons - sig sauers. Could be lanced, came his reply. The fact that they brought guns made me seethe. It was plebeian.

The Rich Man? I bristled. I found it harder and harder to keep my temper in check right now and high-stakes missions such as this set my teeth on edge. I found myself thinking that if the leak wasn't here then I was going to have to kill someone anyway, just to scratch the itch. Beside me, I felt the warm breath of Ava, one of Dax's soldiers. She had moved out of position, more than likely sensing my rising agitation, keen to make herself amenable. Ava had been very keen to make herself amendable this past month, but even the sight of her splayed out and coated in sweat beneath me was nothing to my wolf - we craved violence the way only a wolf close to unhinging does. It's unusual for wolves of a high rank to have reached my age without finding their mate, and as Ava was the only female around for miles, she had to make do. For now. But moving out of formation during an operation showed me, more than anything, that she had become too comfortable both in my bed and on my team. Something Dax had mentioned, more than once.

Unsure, Dax replied, matching my dispassionate tone.

Okay. Wait until they're inside. You know what to do.

And he did. Dax, constantly joking, constantly partying, constantly landing between some females legs - Dax was one of the most vicious bastards I'd ever met. Calculating, organised, precise and deadly, he had a skill set that was more deadly than anything any other species could boast. Without a sound, without asking permission, without raising his heartbeat, he would subdue everyone inside the building, allowing my team to scope out the area, looking for their security. I flattened my hand and the wolves beside me crouched low, gathering around to await my silent instructions. I sent Ava, her lip nearly pouting, away with Jenson to the left, Hawthorne and I taking the right as we silently swept through the dried brush of the forest floor, the trees peeling and desperate in the midnight heat. All the time, my ears were attuned to the sound of the night, my eyes perfectly adjusted to the darkness. I listed my nose silently in to the air as a dank smell of sweat, moss and whiskey reached me, carried gently through the trees to where Hawthorne and I stood.

Guards, he nodded at me.

Looking up, I saw a single, solitary patch of cloud move predatorily over the moon, removing the only light from the woods.

Now, I mindlinked back, and together, we silently sprung forwards, light as cats, closing in on the scent of a tall man keeping guard over the dirt road, his back to the trees. I let my wolf move towards the surface, felt his claws extending noiselessly from my hands. Within seconds we were upon him, Hawthorne swiftly kicking the back of his knee, my claw silently slitting his throat as his legs folded, Hawthorne catching him before his falling body could thump to the ground. As the cloud left the moon, it was reflected in the man's panicked eyes, his hand clutching his throat, his heartbeat stilling in his chest. We lifted him and placed his now completely still corpse just beyond the tree line. I watched, disinterested, as a bubble formed in the blood still gurgling from his neck wound, waiting for Jenson and Ava to check in.

I wonder, Kane purred in my mind, whether father's last expression remained on his face, too.

I thought back to my father's head as it rolled grotesquely across my desk. The image seemed doomed to repeat on me like a loop for all time, invading my dreams, my work, and even bringing an abrupt and unsatisfying end to a few nights with Ava. I looked down at the dead man at my feet, comparing him to my father's blue lips pulled taut over his teeth, his eyes wide and pupils black.

This man was suprised. Father was scared, I replied.

Of death? Or of Rowan? Kane pondered. Before I could answer, Jenson linked in

Your Majesty, one guard was dispatched. Moving towards the entrance now to await Officer Dax's signal.

He is efficient, Kane grumbled in approval, as I signaled for Hawthorne to follow me back to the building. Kane disliked Ava as much as Dax did, his eyes rolling incessantly whenever she approached him. Being constantly irritated, I had let it slide when Ava, clearly feeling bold, had touched my arm one evening, calling me Fallon. Dax was immediately on his feet, shock and anger evident on his face, mirrored Kane's anger at not being approached using our title. In a petulant attempt to annoy them both, I had moved my arm around her shoulders and asked what she needed. She had beamed too eagerly at me, further incensing Dax. It was satisfying to spread my bad mood around. Kane didn't speak to me for the entire day afterwards, and even now, he remained slightly frosty with me. Kane craved his mate, and no other female was welcome. I had no time for a mate. I needed my itch scratched and Ava was a willing convenience.

My impatience had even reached Milo back at home, where he was - I knew - buried in far too much work. I had lost my temper when he explained one of my own Alpha's had threatened a coup, to steal MY warriors from reaching Selinis Castle to go to war with his sister-in-law over what? Some idiotic omega drama? I'd stripped said alpha of his title and had him immediately imprisoned until I could return home to torture him myself.

Clear for entry. We have some interesting little chats ahead of us, everybody, Dax's voice boomed into my head. Guess who came to the party tonight?

The Rich Man? I asked.

Oh ho, he's a rich man all right. Really, really f*****g rich, Dax all but sang down the mindlink.

Without hesitation, Hawthorne stepped inside the small building ahead of me, sweeping the area, just in case. Jenson and Ava remained outside, positioned at either end of the building. Nodding the all clear, Hawthorne left and began inspecting the cars parked out front while I made my way along a concrete corridor towards the source of the flickering fluorescent light. There, behind a peeling painted red door, lay what looked like a small living room. A brown, mercilessly stained carpet ran the length of the floor, with cracked leather sofas and old TV guides shoved unceremoniously against the walls. A small formica table sat directly below the flickering lights. The table was surrounded by mismatched plastic chairs that looked to me like ancient garden furniture. In each of the chairs, sat several unconscious men, their heads all flopping on their chests. Four of the men, presumably the ones who had exited the SUV out front, were very clearly dead, their blood dripping lazily from their necks like the young man in the forest. The other two, one young enough to be ages with Dax and I, were already bound in silver handcuffs, the tell-tale bulging veins in their necks telling me Dax and his team had injected them with wolfsbane to keep them unconscious. Dax was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed casually across his chest, looking smug.

"Well?" I asked, indicating our two prisoners. Dax, annoyingly, began to smile.

"You don't recognise them, cuz?" He was loving winding me up. I growled lowly in warning of my short fuse.

Sighing, Dax pushed himself from the wall and practically skipped to the two men he had captured.

"THIS," he said, lifting the head of the younger man by his wavy blonde hair, "is Owen Galloway, brother to a certain Mr Hunter Galloway, currently MIA after the little disappearing act Milo caught on camera over a week ago. And this," Milo said, dropping Galloway's hair and grabbing a fistful of greased, black hair that looked as though it had previously been slicked back. Dax pulled the man's head around to face me, and a hiss escaped my mouth as I recognized the sallow-faced elder who had accompanied Evenard to Selinis Castle to deliver my father's severed head. "This is Elder James, brother to our own Elder John, and trusted council member to the King of Onyx Kingdom, and wouldn't you just love to see what's in his hand, Fall?" Dax was giddy with anger as he all but threw Elder James' head away from him, handing me a crushed envelop, which I could see had been sealed with blood red wax bearing the sunset crest of Crimson Kingdom.

My heart plummeted in my chest as I opened the envelope. Inside was a substantial amount of money, more than enough to fund several small businesses and a handwritten note, which I unfolded with impatient fingers.

"November 5th, midnight, both heirs. -R"

I looked from the note to Dax, once again leaning smugly against the wall.

"Call Milo - get us to the nearest airport," I commanded him, angry that he's still leaning lazily, watching me with a grim smile on his face.

"Done, your Royal Haughtiness," he sighed. "We're wheels up in twenty minutes. The helicopter is coming for us. Jenson, Matthews, Hawthorne and Ava are following in the SUV. We're taking Tweedle-Dum and Tweedle-Dee. Imagine, tomorrow night poor Milo was going to have to step away from his spreadsheets to tidy up quite the triple assassination!"

Milo POV

Dax called me less than an hour ago. I knew by now they'd be airborne. The man hunt for Galloway had yet to yield any results, with Elder John leading the inquiry himself. John, Nessa and Vito had both been given extra clearances to allow them to change the security passwords and programs in order to lock Hunter and any of his possible associates out of our systems for the time being, while I had Verity circulate updated security protocols to all the castle staff. Vito had taken ownership of the warriors assigned to protect the castle and Moon Lake in Dax's absence and a detain on sight order had been issued on Galloway. For the past week, the castle was scanned by infra-red monitors every hour to make sure only the correct members of staff were inside the castle at all times, alongside any visitors. This, of course, now extended to Alpha John, currently residing in our cells, and Nova, who was being housed in the west wing of the residential half of the castle. I made sure she was placed in our nicest room, with large floor to ceiling windows, French doors leading out on to an impressive balcony overlooking the lake, facing towards the cliffs of Moon Lake on one side and the dense forest that hid both Selinis Castle, and Moon Lake from the view of the human world. The room was our largest guest suite, with a separate living room, generously sized walk-in wardrobe and a large quartz and marble bathroom. I felt it only right to ensure the girl was well provisioned for after I'd read Rhona's report and read the statements that Malcolm, River Moon's new Alpha, had already collected from the girl. Having been updated from Alpha Malcolm the day Nova arrived here that the witch, Flora Bell, had escaped River Moon's prison, Elder Jennifer had instead made her way to Silver Shore, to await further instructions. Fallon had made the final call, over a very tense phone discussion, to detain Alpha John here until he could be charged with planning a coup. I didn't like it. But with Galloway still missing, I decided to postpone my argument. John was escorted to see his niece twice a day by two warriors hand picked by Vito, and the girl was being well looked after by our best doctors - but she was still to wake up. It was baffling to the medical staff, but Fallon had ordered her full statement to be recorded before his return so that the matter with Silver Shore could be settled without too much fuss. He had been most annoyed to be updated that the girl remained in some sort of mysterious coma.

Evenard had been an even more troubling house guest; as soon as he had been informed of Galloway breaking into the residence his family HAD been using, the man all but threatened to burn the castle down looking for him. His paranoia had reached new levels, and he insisted on being moved to a different suite every day, the staff being told to prepare several meals per day to be sent to several suites so that no one would know for sure where he and his family were. Rumours had reached my ears from omegas that the King had been force feeding his daughter a bite of each of his and his son's meals to check for poisons before he would eat or drink anything - something that, if true, would not be tolerated. He refused to let his security detail out of his sight, even forcing them to relieve themselves in front of him so that he knew there was no threat of them communicating with anyone outside of their rooms. The man needed to be pulled back in line, and I found myself almost wistfully grateful that Fallon was in such a thunderous mood this past month. He'd set Evanard straight - if, as Dax so helpfully goaded me - I could keep the Onyx Royal family alive until then.

As it was, I myself had stayed up all night again tonight, my back curling like a prawn as I slumped in my chair, staring at the security footage of the castle, keeping my eyes trained on even the slightest hint of movement. The infrared scans had been tripled and we had yet to catch anyone out of place, but something was keeping the tiredness from seeping in to my brain. Some sixth sense kept me awake and aware. My eyes kept moving from the screen to look at the locked server door to the left of the room Nessa and I sat in. She dozed in her chair a few times but otherwise commented that she, too, felt uneasy. Skinwalker Pack was a four-hour plane ride from here. Fallon and Dax would be here in less than two. The sun wouldn't be up for hours, we had twenty-one and a half hours until the time written in the note Dax told me about, but I couldn't help shake the feeling that something was somehow wrong.

A small beep announced the second infrared scan of the hour, starting with the suite Evanard and his family, so Nessa and I turned our attention to the screen unblinkingly.

Then, we heard it.

A small pop and then a gentle fizz came from the other side of the server door. Drawing our attention for just a second. Snapping my head back to the screen, I saw that it was blank. Then, a loud whistle and several loud bangs were emitted from the server room. A garbled yell of panic left my mouth as I jumped up, throwing open the server door. Inside, the room was filling with white smoke and smelling of gun powder, bright white and red sparks flying in all directions. A f*****g firework was going off in the room, triggering the system to automatically power down as the cooling system triggered, replacing the fiery sparks with dense clouds of freezing clouds of vapour. The system would reset in less than three minutes once cooled and the screens would be back, but three minutes was dangerously long. Mind linking to the guards assigned to Evanard, demanding an instant update, I was met with stony silence.

Vito, all men to the King's suite, the system is down, we're blind

Vito responded to my mindlink by showing me through the link that he and his team were already moving towards the third floor suite, running along the long corridor where we had lost Galloway.

I sent a badly spelled text to both Fallon and Dax, updating them, before reaching back out to Vito for an update.

Yes sir, we're approaching now and - oh my goddess. Send medical teams to the third floor. Kano and Jace are down, there's a lot of blood. Sir the King is, he's gone, there's no one here...how the f**k -

I pushed the mind link to the back of my brain as I called the medical staff and turned my attention frantically back to the screen, flickering back to life. There, running down the corridor, past Vito and his team, were two large warm bodies, each dragging two warm shapes behind them. Vito was there. Why hadn't he stopped them?

Vito, who is in the corridor with you, who is dragging something behind them, they're moving fast!

Sir? Sir, I can confirm we're alone at the entrance to the king's suite. Kano and Jace as inside, there is no sign of the King or his family.

Nessa, who could hear the entire exchange as part of the security detail, looked at me alarmed. There, on the screen were two very obviously warm bodies running upright, with two warm, large items each being clearly dragged behind them.

"Grab that tablet and follow me, keep the infrared scanner running everywhere in that corridor and beyond," I instructed, and together we ran as fast as we could to the grand hall, where the corridor would reach the fortified castle area. We watched the shapes on the screen to make sure they were definitely heading this way, moving quickly despite them both having such large cargo. Keeping back to the shadows, the corridor was brightly lit and we should have seen whoever was charging towards us, despite the connecting corridor being well over a mile long. Before long, the figures on the infrared were less than 10 feet from us, and we couldn't see, smell or hear them coming. Nessa, throwing the tablet into my arms, waited until the last second before throwing herself into the path of the largest of the white-hot shapes on the screen. Transfixed, I watched the hot red blur of Nessa leap in the path of the large shape on the tablet, which seemed to pass effortlessly through her and carry on its path without so much as slowing down. Nessa, on the other hand, screamed as if she had been burned and fell to the floor, panting and shivering. Rushing to her side, I could see her tanned and freckled skin turning purple and tight as it burned in front of my eyes. She groaned as sweat began to bead on her brow, her eyes rolling as if she was on the cusp of passing out. Calling for emergency help, I explained as best as I could to our emergency doctors over the mind link what was wrong and where to find her as I scrambled to pick up the tablet again. The figures were still moving, this time right through the ancient castle towards the front courtyard. The ground they had covered in just a few seconds was astounding; even for a werewolf the speed would have been unusual. Tucking the tablet under my arm, I took off at a sprint, calling out instructions to Vito via the mindlink to get him and his men to the courtyard by any means necessary. The warriors usually positioned at every few entrances were all told to meet there too, and warned that whatever was happening here, Nessa had been badly burned, trying to get ahold of the moving creatures, so to be cautious.

Minutes later, I reached the courtyard, my breath a knife in my throat. I scanned the tablet screen for any sign of the creatures, but it was now beyond the range of the infrared scanners which had yet to be applied to the grounds. My heart beating thunderously in my chest, I dropped the laptop with a crunch to the ground, scanning the corners and dark shadows of the shrubbery for any sign of movement, my ears blocking the pleasant sound of the waterfalls as I listened for the slightest hint of noise. Behind me, I heard the approach of one of our warriors, recognizing the scent of our own guards.

"Spread out," I muttered. "Be careful, they're dangerous."

Moving as slowly as I could over the moonlit gravel, I slowly made my way to the largest fountain, hoping to see the white hot shapes reflected in the pool. I moved on, my eyes staring in the gloom towards the distant driveway, the road out of the castle and into the forest so dark not even the moon's rays could break through. My stomach twisted horrified. Four people were standing there, at the furthest end of the drive, their silhouettes eerily still and black.

"THERE!" I called to the men around me. "Bring them to me!"

Fifteen or so guards shifted and ran, frighteningly fast, hurtling themselves towards the creatures. I braced myself for the black masses to react and fight, burn the warriors as they had Nessa, but they didn't so much as flinch when the pack of wolves came upon them. After a hesitant silence, Vito's voice was the one that found me first.

Officer Milo, Sir. You need to see this.

I was fast even in my human form, so once again I took off at a sprint, reaching the congregation of whining wolves in less than two minutes, despite the expansive driveway. As I slowed to a jog, my eyes trained on what I now realized weren't people, but scarecrows at the end of the driveway, facing out towards the road and the forest. Vito approached me, once again in his human form. His face was tense, green and he looked thoroughly shaken.

"Sir, I..." his voice fell away as he turned to look back at the scarecrows. A gentle breeze lifted and rustled the trees in the forest ahead, sweeping over the grounds of the castle, carrying with it the nauseating scent of fresh blood. My eyes, hyper vigilant after giving chase, caught the unmistakable drip of thick liquid from the scarecrow nearest Vito and I.

I walked slowly around the figures, so that I could face them.

Bile rose dangerously into my throat, an ugly snarl leaving my mouth as I refused to vomit in front of my men. There, mounted on sharp spikes above stuffed effigies made of old clothes, twigs and sticks, were the heads of King Evenard, Prince Kendrink, Prince Kamal and tiny Princess Sophie. As with Harrold, a metal spike had been driven into Evenard's forehead, pinning a note to the King of Onyx Kingdom. Even from the ground, even in the moonlight, I could read perfectly well what was written on the bloody paper, the angry red sunset of Crimson Kingdom like a signature at the bottom of the page.

"The second house was made of sticks. The Big Bad Wolf said "I'll huff, and I'll puff, and I'll blow your house down."