Page 56 of Fated
I sighed and rubbed my forehead as I tried to think of another way to approach him.
“I can’t guarantee something bad isn’t about to happen.”
“I’ll take the risk because there is no way I’m leaving you,” he said with finality in his voice that told me there was no point in arguing.
“What if I lose more members to Richard? I don’t know how many are going to swap sides, and if I don’t have enough pack members it’s going to be a slaughter,” I explained, trying to keep my emotions in check.
“I don’t care. You’re my friend and I won’t leave you. We’re in this together,” he said and he turned to face Curtis. There was a look of respect that passed from Curtis to Kyle.
I felt the added weight to my shoulders. I cared about Kyle and I didn’t want anything to happen to him but, as he’d stated, he was going to stay even if it meant certain death.
“You’re wasting time. I won’t change my mind,” Kyle told me, and I let out a frustrated sigh. I turned to face Curtis. We didn’t have a lot of time to try and figure out a way to keep everyone safe.
“Any suggestions?” I asked Curtis, trying to rack my brain for a solution.
He seemed to be deep in thought as he rubbed his chin.
“Start getting the fighters together,” Kyle instructed, revealing his leadership skills.
Get the fighters prepared,I informed my lead fighter, David, through the mind-link.
“Goddammit!” Curtis swore as he stood up and began to pace. I stood back, trying not to lose my cool even though with every second that passed my stress level increased.
I was the leader and it was my responsibility to keep my pack safe, and here I was just standing there, contemplating how on earth I was going to be able to do that.
“There’s no way to know how many traitors we have. We run the risk of not having enough members to fight off the attack by Richard and the rogues,” he said, and I heard some exasperation start to creep into his voice.
I began to pace, trying to figure out a way to find out who was going to stand by me and who was going to cross over to join Richard. Somewhere in the back of my mind I couldn’t help thinking of Blake and I was glad that he wasn’t here. I didn’t know if I’d be able to keep my cool if he were stuck in this mess with us. I pushed the thought from my mind. Thinking about him would distract me.
Kyle watched as Curtis and I paced. Then it struck me. I couldn’t guarantee it would work, but I was out of options.
“I know what I need to do,” I said, turning to face Kyle.
“What?” he asked.
“I’m going to talk to my pack.”
“And what are you going to say?” Curtis asked, looking at me with a questioning look.
“I’m not sure,” I said while I began to formulate the words in my head that I was going to say.
“Get everyone together in front of the gates,” I instructed Curtis as I walked out of the office with Kyle following closely behind.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” Kyle offered while he tried to keep up with me, and I shook my head.
It was up to me to pull my pack together. I’d always been trained in the strategic and tactical part of being an alpha but I’d never fully embraced the fact that I had to be the leader that the members of my pack needed me to be.
Being an alpha wasn’t just a title and a job that I needed to do. It was engrained in my DNA, in the blood that ran through my veins. From the time I’d taken over the pack, I’d been so distracted with everything else going on that Richard had managed to weasel his way into the minds of some of my pack members. I needed to let my pack know that I was their alpha and I was up to the job.
By the time I got to the main gates, a crowd had formed and I waited patiently while more of them gathered. Curtis joined us and stood beside Kyle. I could see them looking at each other nervously, wondering what the hell I was doing.
We didn’t have a lot of time and if this didn’t work we were going to be in big trouble. That was a slight understatement because if I failed, we would be facing certain death. A hum of excitement and nervousness settled over the crowd as I watched them, trying to keep my nervousness under wraps.
Once the crowd settled and silence descended, I looked to my pack. I tried to look each and every one of them in the eye. I couldn’t help wondering which ones would betray me.
“There has been a lot going on lately. Since I took over the pack, I haven’t been concentrating on my alpha role as much as I should have.”
There were a few blank looks from a few of the members and some looks of sympathy from others. It was hard to decipher what that meant.
