Challenge the Alpha

Rollo; Being called out into the middle of nowhere was not how I planned to spend my evening. I had a whole thing set up, steak resting, bath waiting, even Josie coming over after drinks with the girls to scratch my itch. Sometimes being the Alpha really wasn’t all that glorious, I spend most of my life clearing up after the omegas with no respect. I need to look at mandatory training to get the pack into shape, teach them all some discipline, it’s been the same ever since I took over. 8 months of battling against the tyrant of a leader to “liberate“ the people, then 4 years later I’m still dealing with his loyal dogs that just want to cause havoc for me and their own pack. There are over 700 members, we span over a third of the country and for once, I want a week where the handful of butthurt fleabags just chill the hell out. Clay huffed in my mind, pacing back and forth; “ How long does this dirt track go on for? “ Clay’s actions were making me impatient and my Beta was about to get the brunt of my sour mood. “ Richard said the house was on the left about 6 miles in from the main road, we got another bit to go but I expect to see the turning within 10 minutes, ” Marcus explained, “ you okay, Alpha? You look more agitated than normal? ” I let out a low sigh and Clay whined, “ I just had better ideas in mind for my night, if it was anyone other than Richard, I might not have bothered. There’s no one here Marcus, there’s no need for the Alpha formality. “ I stared out the window, looking deep into the darkness between the trees, checking for anything suspicious. Richard was a pack elder, he had been for nearly 20 years, and was the first to offer his full support in my removal of his past Alpha. I appreciated his aid and if it wasn’t for him, I knew the takeover may have never been successful, I owed him greatly and I valued his counsel. It’s a shame his son had been close with the prick I dethroned and had caused headache after headache since. “ I’d like to stay professional for this expedition Alpha, the team is on high alert, we don’t know what we’re walking into. “ “ I don’t know why we didn’t just send Jax & Maddox and be done with it, I highly doubt there’s anyone left who would be dumb enough to follow Matty and he wouldn’t last 2 minutes in a fight with your Grandma let alone them. “ Marcus let out a genuine hearty roar of a laugh, “ hey, you leave me Grandma the hell outta this ! That poor old ladies out of your league, man, “ “ can’t blame a wolf for trying. “ We laughed together, Marcus’ Grandma had treated me well my whole life, when I had no family and only Marcus for a friend, she took me in and fed me biscuits and tea until I would burst. Just as we were reminiscing the beating she gave us one morning after coming home steaming the night before and eating all her fresh apple strudel, we spotted the opening in the trees. If it hadn’t been for our increased wolf senses, we probably would have missed it. Clay had finally stopped pacing but was restless, he was anxious for some reason. Marcus slowed the car to wait for the rest following. Clay growled low in my head as we stopped, ‘ We need to get to the house. ‘ ‘ That isn’t how it works and you know it Clay, the Stalkers go in first. ‘ ‘ We need to go now kid, just trust me. ‘ ‘ I do, with my life, but you know I can’t just run in guns blazing first, Leeroy Jenkins isn’t an effective leadership style. ‘ I felt him try to push forward and dominate me. I had to fight him for control, we had always worked harmoniously together, this was not the time for a show of who had the bigger d**k. “ Clay wants me to go in first and like, right now. “ I told Marcus what was going on and his gaze shot to me, concern etched on his face. “ Jax and Maddox always go fir... “ “ If I don’t go soon, Clay is taking me anyway. “ “ f**k, really ? Okay. “ He picked up his cell and dialed Zek, my Gamma in the other car with the Stalkers, “Zek, change of plan, Alpha’s going in first.” “ WHAT? That’s ludacris” The Gamma is the one who plans our moves, strategy is what Zek does and we were about to throw it all out the window, “ the Stalkers are going.” I could hear Jax and Maddox growl and whine about the suggested change, they were the best two fighters we had, their skill was undeniable and they loved their job. They could track like no other, they were stealthy and if it wasn’t for the Alpha aura, I might not even take them in a fight. I was lucky they were tried and true to me. I grabbed the phone from Marcus, “ We go together, me and Marcus through the front door, Jax and Maddox round the back ? “ Their complaints ceased and for a moment Zek thought it through, “ Okay, I’m happy with that. Where am I ? “ “ You stay at the front in case anyone comes out the door after we’re in. “ Marcus nodded his approval at my well formed idea, “ Sounds like y’all get all the fun but I guess I’ll get over it. “ Zek was on board. Just then they pulled up behind us, I ended the call and jumped out the passenger door. I felt the cool autumn breeze on my face, being a Were’ I was never cold but it was always refreshing. I paused for a moment to listen to my surroundings, the sun had set hours ago so nothing but the rustling of the leaves and the occasional tree groan was apparent. I caught something out of place and Clay kicked into life again, “ Do you smell that? “ I looked over at Marcus, he lifted his head and inhaled, “ Bark, dirt, moss, nothing I wouldn’t expect? “ I shook it off, it might have been a passing of my imagination. “ Alpha? “ I turned to see Jax taking quick strides towards me, “ Alpha, what did you smell? “ “ I thought I smelt something sweet but it might have been nothing, “ Marcus’ eyebrows raised and he gave me an odd look, “ I need us to move closer to confirm it isn’t from another direction, Alpha, but I’m picking up a rusty copper scent. “ Clay nearly burst out of my chest, “ f**k, let’s go. '' Jax was the best nose we had, the snout on him was undisputed, we could only pray a fox had dragged a rabbit off nearby but if he smelt blood, I didn’t doubt something was dead or dying. We moved swiftly and silently in the direction of the hidden cabin Richard had told us he owned and suspected his son was hiding out in. “ Alpha, I can smell it too now .. “ we were definitely moving in the direction of something sinister, I could sense all our wolves on edge and none of us were happy with the situation. Clay was tearing around like a stampede in my head, I was still noticing that sweet, cinnamon smell mixed in with the growing scent of bleeding and each time Clay became more stressed. ‘ You need to calm down or we won’t be any use! ‘ Clay bared his teeth at me and released a raging growl, his emotion burned through every fibre. I lost the feeling in my legs as he forced me out, taking all the power. We took off, sprinting along in the chilly air, my feet kicking up dust and loose stones as we moved. I could hear the others trailing behind me, following the example I was setting, no one daring to argue. We barely ran for 40 seconds and I could already see the devils lair. Clay stopped dead, giving me some breathing room and a chance to control my limbs again. That beautiful intoxicating smell was drowning me, but it itself was overpowered by the stench of death. The Stalkers moved without waiting for the order, they knew time was of the essence and they each circled either side of the dark hut. “ You and Clay wanted to be first in, I’ll follow when you’re ready, Alpha. “ I looked at Marcus, he would follow me to the final circle of hell and still call me Alpha every 5 minutes, I grunted for us to go and crept up the worn steps to the door. I tried the handle, surprised when it clicked and the door groaned, slowly slinging open. Of course, Matty hadn’t expected company out here. I heard a low crack and knew Jax and Maddox had found their own way into the house. I assessed my surroundings, a dusty shack, a low hum from a rundown refrigerator and a dim light round the corner leading away from the open plan living-kitchen area. I could hear grunting from the thin corridor and began venturing towards the sound. A door sat slightly ajar, making it easy to identify the source. Marcus right beside me, I pushed the door and froze at the disgusting sight before me. The most beautiful creature I had ever laid eyes on lay on a broken, stained bed. Her arms, wrapped in cables that had been thread through the metal frame on either side to keep her held down. Her once perfect skin had been soiled, littered in red, black and green bruises, marks and filth. Her hair had been matted with blood but I could not tell who it belonged to. Her face was being forced to the side and pushed down into the mattress painfully so she was facing us. She gritted her teeth to not cry out but her pain weighed heavily in the room, overwhelming every cell in my body. Her eyes were screwed shut, as she tried so desperately to block out what was happening to her. That pig, Matty, had a knee jabbed into her stomach just below her sternum and was furiously jacking his meat above her. Marcus let out a deafening growl and her green eyes snapped open. Thousands of emotions seemed to swirl in those deep eyes all at once and my heart jumped in my throat. Clay tore out of me in an instance and I shifted into my stronger half. Matty all but pissed himself and fell to the floor in pure horror, his instantly flaccid c**k still hanging out. He scrambled to escape, dragging his bare ass across the floor beside the bed he had used to hold the one made for me. Clay brought a heavy paw down hard on his chest and we both revelled in the fright emanating from him. Clay licked his lips, ready to squeeze the miserable life out of this scumbag but two strong grips pulled me back. “ He needs a trial Alpha, it’s the way, “ Maddox and Jax needed to let me the f**k go, I thrashed and fought but they held me firm, even when I got a few good knocks in. “ You have no idea what we witnessed ! “ Marcus roared at them, he pointed towards the girl whose arms he had freed and was now curled up sobbing quietly to herself, “ Look at her ! You think he’s treated her with a single law or way of doing in mind. “ He began to pace and the Stalkers relaxed their hold on me, Zek casually leaning against the door frame, eyeing the human in the room. He looked almost bored with us all. “ She’s seen a shift now, the ways dictate she should be handled.” Clay lunged and snapped mere inches in front of my Gammas face. He stumbled back, completely caught off guard by the action. ‘ NO ONE TOUCHES HER ‘ I roared at them all through the mindlink, my glare landing on the r****t still petrified on the floor. ‘ Get him up and covered. He goes in the boot. ‘ The stalkers jumped to action, dragging Matty and his jeans up. I turned away from them just in time to see my fragile kitten leap forward from the bed, knocking him back to the ground even with the support of my best warriors. She grabbed his head by his greasy blonde hair, pulling back to reveal more of his neck as she let out a primal scream. Then she buried her face into the front of his throat and a gush of red surrounded them as his eyes were overcome with panic. She ripped her head back and Matty spluttered, his hands went to his neck instinctively but there was nothing that could have been done. She watched as his meaningless life slowly drained out all over the floor and only when she was sure it was over, did she start to sob. I shifted back, “ Can someone give me their joggers and all just leave me and Marcus please? “ A chorus of “ yes, Alpha. “ rang through the room as Zek dropped his covers and tossed them in my direction. The human had slumped off Mattys chest and was weeping into her bloodsoaked hands. “ Leave a shirt for the girl, “ Marcus called out as the others left the room, Zeks top came flying through the door frame seconds later. It was only then I registered she was in nothing but a raggedy looking pair of pants. ‘ We need to not freak her out anymore, look at this place, he’s been f*****g torturing her. ‘ Marcus mindlinked as he strolled to a rickety table boasting an array of knives, tools and instruments only used in medieval dungeons, even in our pack chambers we use more updated techniques. He slid his own top from his toned body. I gave him a quizzical and slightly irritated look. ‘ My top to wear, Zeks to clear the blood off ‘ he shrugged at me. I grimaced, she already had Matty tainting her delicious cinnamon scent, the last thing I wanted was another males on her. ‘ You f*****g tore through all my s**t, Clay, she should have been in my gear. ‘ ‘ Not sorry, I was gonna kill a parasite, it happened. Marcus is fine. ‘