Page 29 of Claim Me
Chapter 21
Rafe
Was I ever going to get it right as an Alpha? It seemed like every single move I made was the wrong one and finally, when I felt like I was making a good decision… it backfired on me. Tracey watched over her shoulder while she escorted Jade into my home. Ford was already there. He had been brought in by Axel when the shit had hit the fan.
As I drove around the Pack Lands my stomach knotted even further. It became harder to breathe as I passed by each property. It looked like a tornado had come through here. Houses had been picked up and crushed a few feet away from their pads. People’s entire lives destroyed right in front of them. Insurance wouldn’t be hard to get out to take care of it all but it would be a very massive headache. All we had to do was report a tornado. I wondered what the security footage on the property had picked up. Knox and Gabriel flanked my sides as we walked through the devastation.
“What do we do now? We can’t let him continue to attack like this.” Knox growled.
I tore my hands through my hair. “I don’t know what to do this time, Knox. I don’t have the answers all the time and especially not now.”
Gabriel patted my shoulder. “We will figure it out.”
Knox shook his head. “No, we can’t let him continue to do this!” A tired sound escaped my lips. “What do you suggest?”
Knox folded his arms over his chest and a blood-thirsty look crossed over his face. “I say we attack. No more of this back and forth.”
“You think we should retaliate?” Gabriel rolled his eyes. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“And why not?” Knox reared his head back like he had been slapped.
“Because they are wanting that. They’re trying to drag us out of our protective bubble. Good thing they didn’t know we had left.” Gabriel shook his head. “I am all about getting some good revenge. But this will only make things worse for us. We don’t have an army like they do. We have a shit ton of witches at our disposal. We need to figure out how to use them to our advantage.”
I scratched my chin. “We need a barrier or maybe,” I stopped. “We need to fake them out.”
Knox’s jaw ticks as he unclenched it. “War room?”
I nodded. That was the only place we could talk about this safely.
The only two people that weren’t sitting at the round table in the war room when we got there were Jade and Tracey. Axel watched me from across the table. His face was grim. “What can we do?”
“We have to get them to come to us,” I looked into the faces of my men and felt strength radiate from them. “They are trying to draw us out and make us angry but we need to play the long game. This isn’t something that is going to go away anytime soon. We need to be patient. The Pack Lands are our home, we grew up running through these trees. We know the land like no other. We will fight on this land.”
Axel stroked his chin thoughtfully. “How are we going to do that?”
I smiled. “The witches are going to help. We will need a lot of magic.”
Knox shook his head. “I don’t like getting the witches involved.”
Axel sneered like he was offended. “They are powerful, they will help us win. Even if they are children. Most of those children are wiser than any of you. They have seen far more death and destruction. You know killing, it’s not the same.”
Knox scratched his eyebrow. “No, that’s not what I mean. I know they are powerful. I am not being racist or whatever. What I’m being is careful. Those children don’t know war. They don’t know strategy. The last thing I want to do is put kids on the front line.”
Lucas took a step forward from the corner. He had asked to join but wanted to remain hidden. He had used his magic to cloak him and his scent from the rest of us. “The children aren’t the only witches around here.”
Pride took over Axel’s face. It took me back to when we were kids and he had been hard on his son. He didn’t know how to love Lucas and it was obvious, especially when Lucas returned with Jade. But seeing him proud of his son made my heart swell.
“I am a witch and a wolf, so is my sister. Granny is a powerful witch as well. Even if Tracey hasn’t mastered her magic, we are a powerful force that will lead the children.”
Knox shook his head. “Tracey can’t be used on the frontline of witches. She has never trained as one. It’s different for you. You were a witch before a wolf. She was a wolf before a witch.” His eyebrows pinched together. “This is too dangerous.”
Lucas stalked toward my Guardian. Lightning lit up in his eyes. “You do not get to control what Tracey does. You are nothing to her.”
The hurt in Knox’s eyes was there and gone within a flash. Anyone else would have missed it except me and Axel. Axel’s brow dipped as he looked at me. I shook my head. Now wasn’t the time. We could talk about those things at a later date, especially once Tracey’s family found out about the vampire bite.
“I don’t want to control her, I want to lo-” He snarled. “It doesn’t matter what I want. I don’t think it’s a good idea. She hasn’t known her magic long enough. She needs to stay with Jade.”
Lucas looked conflicted over that statement. “You’re right, I would love to have her with Jade. She can protect her well but her emotions will get in the way. We can’t have her in another situation like before.” Everyone looked at each other. Lucas rolled his eyes. “You have a bunch of stay-at-home moms around here that sit around and gossip while their kids are in school or playing on the playground. Don’t act like everything is a big secret.”
