Page 24 of Bullied By the Alpha Wolf

He looked shaken, his skin a paler color behind the deep tan, and his long dark hair was slipping free of the long braid he kept it in.

“Kaiden, it was…” He released a shaky exhale, and I could see the man’s eyes go glassy.

Lupe wasn’t one to cry easily. He was a proud, compassionate wolf. I’d chosen him as beta easily thanks to his natural ability to both lead and follow and the empathetic way he looked at a situation. Lupe was also intelligent and down to earth. He wasn’t prone to rash decisions or fleets of fantasy.

He was an excellent beta, and the fact that he was so affected was not a good sign.

“Apologies.” Lupe cleared his throat. “The two wolves smelled the same as the others, the trace of that astringent chemical smell to their blood. Both of them had shifted, so Marigold had thought they might have been actual wolves at first.”

“Jesus,” I interjected, “Mari found them? Is she—”

“Her dad has her now. They’re resting.”

Marigold was a younger wolf, a teenager herself, and in so many ways, she reminded me of Kenzie growing up. She’d yet to have her first shift, and I knew word was starting up about her potentially being another V?lva shifter—magic but no wolf.

I hadn’t written it off entirely, but Marigold was still young, only eighteen. And we all knew that a first shift could take as long as twenty-one years to happen. She was also incredibly sweet, training to be a healer for the pack, and I hated to think that the kind soul had seen something so violent.

“Good. Good.” I sighed, raking a hand through my hair. “All right, sorry. Go on.”

“According to her and what I saw when I went to the scene myself, for all intents and purposes, it looks like they literally tore into each other until they both bled out. The area was stained with so much red, it…it was nauseating, even for a wolf. Their fangs had been covered in the stuff, claws. Hell, I found a chunk of each of them in their mouths.”

My jaw dropped open, and I pulled into myself, the horrid nature of their deaths lancing through me as deftly as a heated blade.

“Wolves don’t…we don’t eat each other, Lupe. What the hell is this stuff doing to them?”

He shook his head, clearing his throat again. “I don’t know, Alpha. I can’t say anything about actually consuming the other wolf, but this level of aggression is…I’ve only ever heard of it being the case for rabid wolves. Shifters who’d gone mad or been affected by a brain disease. This is supposed to be a recreational drug? I cannot understand it.”

I nodded, turning toward the living room off to the side and walking through the open expanse to collapse down onto the couch. My entire body felt weighed down, something pulling me down into the floor—hell, all the way past it into the center of the earth.

“I’ve only heard a little about drugs that humans use from Jet, but he’s mentioned that several can induce a type of psychosis if abused. I can only imagine that that’s what’s happening here.”

Lupe followed me into the living area, standing in front of me with his arms crossed. When I looked up at him, his brows were raised, an expectant expression on his chiseled face.

“What’s your plan, Alpha?”

My head fell between my arms as I leaned my elbows on my knees. Fucking hell. This shit can’t possibly get worse.

“Plan for what?”

I shot my attention to the door. Kit stood at the back of the room where the entrance from the kitchen was, and my heart sank. I’d forgotten to lock the door when I tore out of there in a shift. And I’m sure the entire pack was here when Lupe came in to announce the terrible news, so no one had been keeping an eye on her.

Goddammit.

Meeting her overly cheery gaze, I frowned, rage and sorrow and exhaustion burning behind my eyes.

“Two more dead wolves, Kit. Teenagers. So if you know anything else, anything you’ve been keeping in, now is the time to fucking tell me.”

Her eyes flared wide, and I felt the wave of intrigue and confusion waft off Lupe. I had to ignore it for now, settling into the feeling of anger that grew stronger by the minute.

“I…oh God, Kaiden. I’m so sorry. I really don’t. I swear.”

I had to believe her. I could smell nothing to suggest that she was lying. I didn’t see it on her face, and everything inside told me she was being honest. You were supposed to appreciate honesty, but all I wanted to do right now was scream until my lungs gave out. But something had to be done.

Which, of course, left me with just one option.

I looked between Kit and Lupe. “Looks like we’ll be attacking the Williams pack.”

Chapter 12 - Kit

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