A Matter of Convenience

Forty-Four

~Isis~

I pick up a small rock and throw it at his back. He still hasn’t woken up, and I’m trying not to make him bleed. I sigh and reach for another rock. This one hits the mark, and he starts to groan. I sit back and watch him.

We are in some abandoned building with a dirt floor. It’s clear this place hasn’t been used in a long time. I just can’t believe that my situation has gotten this much worse. Okay, I know that I willingly walked into a trap, but what’s his excuse?

The groaning gets louder, along with the shuffling of dirt and dust along the building’s floor. I silently watch as he pushes himself to a sitting position and holds his head. “Goddess. What the hell happened?” I throw another rock at him, this time aimed at his head. “Owww, f***k!” He looks at me, and I hope he can see all of the venom that I have for him.

“What the f***k, Ericson?! WHAT THE f***k ARE YOU DOING HERE?!” He rubs his head with a pout on his face.

“What do you mean? Obviously, I came here to save you.” I throw my head back and laugh.

“Save me? SAVE ME?!” I lean forward. “How the f***k are you supposed to save me when you’ve landed in the exact same spot as I am and both of us without our wolves?!” I sit back and cross my arms in anticipation of his ridiculous response, which I know is on the way.

“We are both Alpha wolves. We don’t need our wolves to get over on a few rogues. I figured I’d come to you to help you come up with a plan. We can get out of this together and get home.” I look at Ericson, waiting for the laugh or whatever will let me know that he’s being funny. Nothing happens, and I’m at a loss.

“You are so damn dumb!” I close my eyes and shake my head.

“Hey don’t fuss at me. It’s was Blade that came charging in here without a smart plan. If he had left it up to me-”

“If he had left it up to you, you would have just had a ceremony for your lost chosen mate, right?”

“f***k, Isis. Don’t be such a bi.tch.” I swear I could claw his eyes out right now and would still be unsatisfied. There isn’t enough ass-whuppin’ I could give him that would satisfy me right now.

A door flies open, and the stench is overwhelming. “We didn’t bring you here to have a party. You both need to shut the f***k up!” I roll my eyes behind my lids but keep my mouth shut. I can feel the anger radiating off of Ericson, but he knows not to say anything. It takes a bit, but the rogue finally leaves us alone again.

“I thought I’d kill the big one first, but I’ve just changed my mind. He’s definitely going to die first.” I grunt in response, my way of agreeing with him. That one is a jackass, and I’ve dreamed of killing him myself.

The silence washes over us, and I welcome it. I guess there’s no point in dwelling over Ericson’s stupidity. We are both here now and need to work together to get out of here. “Isis?” I don’t answer, hoping he will go to sleep or something. “Isis?” I internally sigh.

“Hmm?” I hear the shuffling of dirt on the floor. The heat that emanates from him is getting closer.

“We should probably take this opportunity to talk.” I open my eyes and look at Ericson. What in the world would we have to talk about?

“Talk? About what?” The seconds tick by as if there was a clock on the wall. I’m anxious to hear what he means.

“Why do you hate me so much?”

~Miles~

My paws hit the ground with a force that can’t be described. I’ve lost two Alphas now, and I have no idea how to fix the mess we are in now. I don’t understand how things got too out of control.

I feel the weight of getting the Alphas back strictly on my shoulders. I should have followed behind Isis and not allowed her to walk into that trap. I should have stepped out from behind the tree when Blade was being confronted.

This was one of the reasons why I turned Isis down when she offered me the Beta position. I'm just not that guy when it comes to high-stakes situations and making those crucial decisions. Tell me exactly what you want me to do and where you need me to be. That’s who I am, and I refuse to pull down this pack simply because my bestie is the Alpha. I’m not good enough to be more than a warrior, and I know that about myself.

I run up to the gates of our pack, and what I see there sends my anger through the roof. Alpha Felix is there with his Beta and Jovanni. This is all because of him; I’m ready to end him.

I shift into my human form as I run up on the men. It’s clear that they were denied entry into the pack. We never lifted Alpha Emmet’s orders; we only suspended them for the day that Isis had that meeting with them.

As I walk up to the men, I pull my fist back and let it fly. It makes contact, and he falls to the ground. Strong arms hold me back from doing any more damage, and growls fly all around. “Get a hold of your man! He should be dead, attacking my Alpha!” His Beta looks enraged, but I don’t care.

“I doubt that’s going to happen since we know that it was your Alpha that put this entire thing in play anyway.” The growling quiets, and his Beta actually has the decency to look a bit guilty.

Thanks, Beta Lionel.

Relax. They may still demand your head. They help Alpha Felix up, and the venom shooting from his eyes makes me want to laugh. Jovanni steps forward and clears his throat.

“I know where they are being held.”