Rogue Rage

Chapter 6

“Maddock, the Alpha is requesting your presence. Who’s your friend?” He asked Maddock but was giving me a hard stare. Maddock pulled me somewhat behind him, breaking the contact between Sam and me.

“Just a friend. You can tell the Alpha, I’m making my way there now. I’m just going to escort my friend to the gathering area.” I couldn’t tell if he was being protective of me or untrustful of Samuel.

“You shouldn’t keep Alpha Gabriel waiting, Maddock. Your sister is waiting with him. I’ll escort…” He glanced at me over Maddock’s shoulder for a name.

“Mable,” I mumbled.

“Ms. Mabel to the gathering area. You’ll be faster if you go ahead.” Maddock wasn’t moving but he seemed to be contemplating what to do. His grip didn’t loosen on me though.

“Okay,” I finally said. “I just need to pick some mushrooms, if you don’t mind waiting.” Samuel made a sound in the back of his throat in agreement. Maddock stared daggers at me over his shoulder and again I was at a loss for what he was thinking. Regardless, he released me and shifted, tearing up the mountain alone.

Samuel waited for Maddock to be completely gone before grabbing my entire jaw in one hand. “How f*****g dare you come to the pack, I now call home!”

“Samuel.” I whimpered at his grip. Samuel was probably one of the few people that I had both respected and feared.

“Damian should have taken the loss when Marcus failed. He shouldn’t have looked twice here.” I was breathing rapidly through my nose. Of all the people to catch me, Samuel was the one I feared most.

Samuel had created a new life here in this pack. He found his daughters, that he was forced to leave behind, otherwise subjected to the unknowns of banishment and isolation. He was a good father. But even I know that, leaving his daughters with the pack that all but abandoned them, nearly destroyed him. Now, he had them back, along with a new home, and respect from pack members here. He was a hero here. He had everything to lose and while that might make a normal wolf more cautious, it only made him more dangerous.

“Marcus used to talk about Damian’s many eyes. Even though I never met him, you knew me during your time observing Marcus’s pack. You knew I would kill you if I found you here.”

I kicked him with all my strength between his legs. He released me and stumbled a bit but didn’t fall. I didn’t run; there was no point. He’d caught me before I made it a few feet.

He stared at me, and my hands flew out to resist, “Wait. Wait. Wait. I had nothing to do with that raid. You know Marcus was power crazed and moved without permission.”

“And what are you doing here, now!” He roared. He shifted and I knew it was unintentional. He wasn’t angry, he was livid. He began circling and snapping his jaw at me.

“Stop, Sam, please!” I yelled with my hands still up to block an attack that I had no realistic way to block. He growled and I knew if I didn’t start talking, he’d pounce and tear me to pieces. “It’s my job, Sam! You know I have no choice!”

He huffed out a growl like it was a sorry excuse. I couldn’t blame him. He snapped his teeth in my direction again and I couldn’t help the tears that began to fall. If I died by anyone, Samuel would be the ideal way to go. He’d make it quick and as painless as possible. He’d also feel remorse afterwards. He’d hate that he couldn’t let me live and couldn’t let me run.

“I never gave them any useful information, Samuel. I swear.” That only seemed to antagonize him. It didn’t matter what I said, I knew this was the end for me. Keith would inform Damian of my death tomorrow and in a few days, my replacement would be here. At the very least, I could warn him, to warn his pack.

Unlike Keith’s wife, I didn’t hate traditional packs. I had just never been a part of one. I had only ever been able to look in from afar. They weren’t the terrible elitists Damian made them out to be. They were just trying to live their lives and protect their families. I couldn’t fault them for it. They had their bad apples, of course, but one bad person didn’t define an entire pack. Samuel was proof of that.

“Before you kill me, you should know…” He began pacing counterclockwise. “It’s not just me. Once you kill me, he’ll send a replacement.” He snarled and I couldn’t help but shake in fear. “Tell your Alpha not to allow a guard change unless it’s directly on the post.” I straightened as much as my body would allow in my state of fear, and closed my eyes.

I prepared myself for pain. I knew even he couldn’t kill me completely painlessly in his wolf form. I heard his growling get closer and closer until I could smell him. Then the noise and scent completely dissipated.

He stood in front of me, still vividly angry. “I see you still can’t shift. I don’t smell a wolf on you either.” I exhaled. My knees caved beneath me, and I fell forward, gasping for air. The fear immobilized me. “It’s not just a lack of wolf spirit. What is wrong with you?” He was still pacing as he spoke.

I let out quiet sobs. My voice was shaky at best when I began to speak. “I never got my wolf.”

He stopped pacing and stared down at me. “Everyone gets a wolf, even the late bloomers.”

I shook my head, “Not everyone. Da-Damian thought it was because I wasn’t loyal to him. He said it was because I didn’t recognize him as my Alpha.” I wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

He kneeled in front of me and lifted my chin gently. He didn’t just look into my eyes, he seared my soul for the truth. He released me and stood. “And where exactly does your loyalty lie, Amara?”

That was the question. In front of Damian, I’d say Damian. In front of Maddock, I’d say Alpha Gabriel. But in front of Samuel, who knew both and me, I could only say the truth. “I don’t have loyalties. All I can do is survive. So, that’s what I’m doing.”

He thought carefully for a long moment. He had the same look in his eyes that my father had before he lost his wolf spirit. It was the look he got when he was having an internal conversation with his wolf. I had always envied that about pack members. With the rogues, I never had to see it because their spirits had abandoned them when they were exiled. Damian only kept the worst around him, so there were never any wrongfully exiled people around him or me.

“Who is with you, Amara?” I hesitated. I didn’t love Keith but I also didn’t hate him. He was manipulated by Damian because of his love for Jace. The only person he truly cared for. It wasn’t entirely his fault that she was loyal to Damian. “If you won’t speak then you do have loyalties elsewhere.” A deep scowl appeared and his dark face hardened.

“I just…He’s not like Damian. He just jumped into the rabbit hole without thinking.”

“That’s his problem.”

“He has a pregnant wife waiting for him.” I looked away somewhat surprised that I was turning them over to save my own skin.

Samuel looked away, muttered a curse under his breath, and scrubbed a hand over his face. “Is she a member of Damian’s pack?” I nodded. “By choice?” I swallowed but nodded again. “Then they chose to destroy families here while starting their own. They deserve no sympathy from me.” I stayed quiet.

I could only imagine what would happen to Jace if Keith didn’t return. Her hatred would fester and take root in her baby. She’d be here the moment she heard the news.

“Give me the name and description, now,” he demanded.

I dawdled in guilt and apprehension. “When you find him—” I knew Samuel would find Keith in no time. He wouldn’t risk his family or his pack. “Can you promise to give him a choice, an option for him and his wife to leave Damian?”

He shook his head slightly, “That’s not up to me, Amara. And you know that. My Alpha and Luna will decide what to do with you both.”

I looked up in surprise, “You’re not going to kill me?”

“If I believed that you stood firm with Damian, you’d already be dead. Give me the name.”

I hung my head. “Keith. I don’t know his exact location inside.”

“Is he a warrior?” I shook my head. Keith used to be a cook in his old pack. Jace used to say that it was his meals that made her fall in love with him. A wave of guilt enveloped me at the memory.

“Please—” I didn’t even know what I was asking for. I knew he couldn’t promise me anything. I couldn’t ask for Keith to be spared. “He’s—”

“He’s an infiltrator in my pack. Near my family. Watching my people and plotting against us. It’s time you worried about your own skin, Amara.” He lifted me and slung me over his shoulder. Before he started climbing, I noticed the ledge and realized it was probably him who had saved me. But then why had he seemed so taken off guard when he saw me?

“Sam?” He didn’t answer but I knew he was listening. “Did you climb to that ledge behind the falls?” He looked over to the ledge.

“No, you saw when I came down.” It wasn’t him. He began the climb up the mountain, and even in human form, with me over his shoulder, it was no sweat for him. He had been a lesser warrior when he was with Marcus. He didn’t train or spar. He simply obeyed dully. I could tell, though, that he was a new man—one who had earned warrior status by right after living a rogue life. Samuel was innocent, but I was different.