Page 106 of Sapphire Flame
Did they come to greet you?
Yes. By now, the entire pack will be assembling and lining the halls or waiting in the arena. See the stairs up ahead?
I do,she said.
We’ll be descending through there. You’d better walk behind me but stick close. Good, here’s Ryan. You’ll want to go with him.
Grant shifted gears and spoke telepathically to his beta.Natalie is with me but invisible. She’ll follow directly behind you. Is the net in place?
Yes, Boss.
Switching back, he spoke to Natalie.Go with Ryan but stay behind him. He’ll offer guidance as needed. I have to change. And Natalie?
Yes?
Stay alive.
I’ll do my best. You do the same.
With that, he greeted several of the wolves who had helped guard Natalie’s house and headed with them to the locker room.
~ ~ ~
Natalie fell in behind Ryan and spoke to him telepathically letting him know where she was. They headed the opposite direction as Grant.
It’s strange to be talking to you while you’re invisible.
Your telepathy is perfect. Do your wolves have the net?
Yes, it’s ready to go. Kryder will be an angry bear in a cage when he realizes what we’ve done. I sure as hell hope this works.
It will.Natalie spoke with a confidence she didn’t feel. There were a ton of holes in this plan, like whether or not the pack would even allow Grant to take over in this way. She’d heard tales of the extent packs were bound to their alphas, the level of loyalty each wolf felt compelled to show no matter what.
Right now, what worked for them was the torturous deaths of the two young female wolves. Everyone had a breaking point. Maybe this would be enough to carry the entire pack out from under Kryder’s heinous control.
When they reached the third belowground hallway, it curved leading her to believe they were walking along the outside of the sandpit seats.
Ryan headed toward a door at the far end. When he reached it, he opened it wide and held it until she’d told him she was inside.
He gestured to the metal stairs.These lead to the maintenance entrance of the sandpit.He headed swiftly down the stairs. She followed on his heels as he continued,The team is waiting for us. I want us on the sand before Kryder gets here so that we can be motionless. We’ll levitate once Grant gives us the signal to bring in the net.
What’s the signal?Natalie asked.
He’s going to shout, ‘Bring it’. We figure Kryder will think those words were meant for him.
She had to admit it was a clever choice.
There was another door at the bottom of the stairs. She was greeted with the sight of five wolves, each looking somber and strained. She didn’t blame them. No matter the outcome, their conduct tonight was akin to an act of war. The pack would never be the same regardless of the winner.
The men were grouped around a metal net.
Ryan explained,We can add electricity if we need to. But the sheer weight of it should give Grant the advantage he’ll need to end Kryder’s reign.
A long cord with a switch near an outlet spoke its painful potential.
Ryan addressed the group quietly. “Natalie is with us. She’s going to take us inside her invisibility spell, the net included.”
Natalie spoke the word, ‘End’, and she became visible to the men. They remained silent, however, though a few pairs of eyes went wide. “I’ll levitate around the perimeter of the entire team, including the net, invoking the spell as I move. You’ll know you’re invisible when the outer world looks covered in a soft glow. Ready?”
