Page 85 of The Alpha's Fated Destiny

Alex grimaces. “Let’s hope not.”

***

It would have been easier if Marlene had given us a portal to travel but the shield she had built around the coven to keep us safe from Cyrus would have been broken if she used magic that would transport us outside.

Logan wasn’t lying when he said he must have traveled these paths quite frequently. He manages to get us out of the Central Alliance within a few days. We use caves to bypass the creepy forest. In another week or so, and we will be back home.

I feel relieved at the idea of seeing my mother. Alex told me what Marlene mentioned something about my father possibly being alive. That is what fuels my urgency now. I don’t have any particular emotion toward my father, since I have only just heard him mentioned in passing. I don’t even know his name. But if he is alive, then that means my mother can survive. She has some chance.

As soon as we cross the border into the South Alliance, I am finally able to breathe. Alex is the same way. We stop for the night while Logan goes to catch some food, we’re set up the campsite. Alex suddenly looks up sharply. Before I can ask himwhat he is doing, he lifts his finger, and a dove comes to land on it.

“Alex?” I gape at him.“What is that?”

“A messenger dove,” he replies grimly, reaching for a tiny piece of paper attached to the dove’s leg. He reads it before tossing it into the fire I just made.

“What’s going on?”

He doesn’t respond immediately, his brows knitted together.

“I have spies all over the North Alliance.” Alex has a dark expression on his face. “They were watching the last remaining witch coven in the North. Last night, the entire coven vanished.”

“Someone kidnapped them?” I ask, alarmed.

He shakes his head. “I don’t know. They were watching the place and a strange fog rolled in around midnight. When the fog lifted in the morning, the entire village was empty. They’ve also sent word that Karina is preparing an army and marching in the direction of the human towns nearby.”

“An army for what?” I ask slowly. “What is she planning?”

However, I fear I already have the answer to that.

Alex stares into the fire. “I already knew about the army. At first, I thought it was meant to attack the other alliances. But I think what she’s intending is worse. She means to go after the humans.”

I feel alarmed. “Why the humans?”

“More land, more resources. I’ve had my suspicions for a few years. I believe she’s trying to accumulate the power of the witches. If she controls the entirety of the North Alliance, including the human-run territories, she might be able to weed out those witches who don’t live within covens. There are some powerful witches out there who don’t require covens to survive. She will become a force to be reckoned with. And with the Central Alliance too arrogant to intervene, it would be her against the South Alliance. We will not stand a chance, not if she gets what she wants.”

My heart is beating fast at his every word. “That means if she can control the South and the North alliance, she can crush the Central Alliance.”

“With the help of the witches and so many packs and soldiers under her command, she will have no problem sacrificing as many of them as she needs to in order to get through to the Central Alliance.” Alex presses his lips into a thin line.

“This isn’t something new, is it?” I ask him.

“Brian is already aware of my findings. He is mobilizing forces in the South as we speak. We will be ready for an attack. However, the message I received has confirmed what I already feared. She’s not going to come to the South first. She’s going to wipe out the humans, or at least capture them and enslave them. Even though I am also not above using human artillery, the military in the North Alliance is incredibly strong. I fear my limited number of soldiers will be nothing against such a powerful attack. We have to stop her before she captures the entire North.”

“What should we do then?”

Alex tosses a stick into the fire to keep it going before answering me. “We will have to move fast. How far along are you on your portal magic?”

I give a slight shake of the head. “The farthest I can take you is a few feet. Not very useful right now.”

“So be it then,” Alex says grimly. “I’ll send word to Brian and tell him to have a meeting with the other Alphas. By the time we get back, we should be able to create one team to start the search for your father. We will have to march to the North. Even if it means forcibly dethroning Karina, it will have to be done.”

He takes out the map from his pocket and the small pen he had used to mark it. Fortunately, the clothes the witches make for shifters allows anything concealed in the clothes to disappear and reappear during our shift. Alex tears off a corner of the map.

I watch him scribble a message and as he does, I recall what Brian told me about a war approaching. I hadn’t paid much attention to it then, but now it all seems so real. A war is the last thing we need. I know Alex is trying to take measures to prevent it from happening. If the humans decide to go against us as a result of Karina’s actions, it will be even more catastrophic.

When Alex just stares moodily into the fire. I press him for more information. “Is something else bothering you?”

He hesitates, then says, “I did make sure that the security around your pack will be tight, but I’m just worried about information leaking out.”

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