The Hidden Luna

Chapter 26: Vengeance

"Alpha, all the scouts have returned but one."

I clean the blood off my hands and hand the dirty rag to the dungeon guard next to me, "and?"

My beta clears his throat and looks away, I can feel his uneasiness, "um, the crescent moon pack."

I smile to myself as I watch the dungeon guard drag the small, shrunken body I'd been torturing all morning to his cell and slammed the door shut with a bang before locking it, "of course. Alpha Thomas isn't it? He thought I would forget him but, I forget nothing. Any sign of Casey and the girl?"

"Nothing on the girl, sir, but I think we may have a location on the woman."

"Well, spit it out."

I turn to look at my beta expectantly, to find him fidgeting with his hands, "well, sir, it seems she's been visiting packs in the area."

I narrow my eyes and walk a step closer to the, now, shaking man in front of me, "what is she doing?"

"I-It appears she is trying to rally them against you."

I smirk mischievously and push the man out of my way and walk up the stone stair of the dungeon before stopping at the top step and turning towards him, "if it's a war she wants, it's a war she'll get. Start preparing the troops. I want everyone training every day as hard as possible. My men need to be ready to fight. They say there is strength in numbers but we will take the extra precaution."

My beta nods quickly and I open the door and walk out into the forest, still grinning to myself. It seems my dear mate isn't traveling with my precious Annabel, how odd. If they aren't together then something must have happened and I intend to find out what that is. I need to speak with my scouts and find out what news they've heard while they were looking for Casey.

I journey to the pack house where I find the group of scouts fighting over food like animals, I clear my throat and they all immediately stop arguing and stand straight to look at their alpha, "gentlemen. It appears you've returned without reporting to your leader. No one eats a crumb until I get a mission report from each of you."

I turn and walk to my office, the shuffling feet of my subordinates echo through the stair well behind me. I open the dark wood door to my office and take a seat behind my desk while the scouts file into the large room. Each man stands next to his peers standing at attention silently waiting for his Alpha to speak.

"Jameson, you first. Where did you scout and what have you heard?"

"Alpha, I searched the area around the Nightfall pack and found no trace of the bounty."

I nod and look at the second scout and motion for him to speak, "I searched the area around the High moon pack, sir, and I heard of your mate. A pack member told me a woman matching her description demanded to speak to the alpha and she proposed the pack join her in an effort to over throw the Blood Alpha."

I grin slightly and stand from my chair and walk to the scout, "good work Timothy. You've done your pack proud. Did you learn of anything else, such as where Casey plans to go next?"

"No alpha, just that she is looking for her daughter."

I growl and grab the scout by the neck, making an example out of him, "and you didn't think to mention this when you previously spoke?"

The other scouts' fear wafted through the room as they all stared ahead in attention while I choked their peer, "A-Alpha I-I'm sorry I thought it wasn't important."

I drop the weasel at my feet and straighten my leather jacket before addressing the rest of the scouts, "anyone else have something relevant?"

Timothy gasps for breath as he coughs in the floor and one of the scouts down the line steps forward, "yes alpha. I searched the woods near the Crescent moon pack with Daniel. We heard from a small group of rogues that set up about a mile from the pack territory that the Crescent moon pack got a new Luna. A girl who'd been attacked by another rogue who was killed by the pack's beta. I heard this girl used to be human, and when Daniel went to get a description of the girl he was taken. I assume he has been killed, alpha."

A sick smile spreads across my face and I walk to the scout and pat his shoulder, "well done. You may leave first and eat as much as you'd like. The rest will wait until you leave before they are to eat."

The scout smiles proudly after bowing to me and leaves the room quickly, the growling stomachs of his peers echoing through the room, "anyone else?"

After a few minutes of silence I dismiss my men and sit down at my desk once again, "ah, dear Casey. You don't even know where the girl is. How sad" I slyly smile to myself, marveling over the new information that has presented itself to me, "and you thought treating my daughter as a human would hide her abilities. Sad, even for you."

I pour myself a glass of brandy before standing and walking to the window across the room, my rugged reflection drinks from the glass in his hand and the burn of the brandy makes me sigh, "my daughter, a Luna. I knew she was destined for greatness. Less work for me when I take her to run one of the largest packs in the country."

My low, scratchy voice echoes off the glass of the window and I take another burning sip of brandy, Daniel was an idiot but at least he's done something useful with his life. His capture tells me all I need to know about the Crescent moon pack and its alpha. Alpha Thomas Warner. I chuckle lowly, as if he thought he could hide from me just because I killed his parents. I knew he was hiding like a weak child with the other weak pack members, I wanted him alive. His pack, just like all the others, will become mine but this time I won't be leaving survivors.

Now that I know where Annabel is, I can finally take what's mine. If I have to rip her from her mate's cold, dead arms, I will. I can't allow Casey to get any one else involved, though. Before I can take the girl I must find my mate and teach her a lesson for keeping my daughter from me for so long. She won't live to regret the mistakes she's made when I get my hands on her. I finish my glass of brandy before walking over to my desk and setting it down, my mind mulling over plans.

I walk out of my office and search the pack house for my beta. As I near the back door I can hear his voice ring out, instructing my men to push themselves hard for their alpha, and I smile. I open the back door and find my beta standing in front of a large group of fighters, their backs covered in sweat as they did push ups in sync. He turns to nod at me, his green eyes recognizing my authority, before turning back to face the group.

"Beta, I've decided our next plan of action. Send a group of one fighter, one scout, and a tracker. I want this group to hunt down Casey and when they find her, they have my permission to strike. I want her in my cells within seventy-two hours."

He says nothing, but nods in affirmation as he watches my men train, "also I need a recruitment team to go out and get me more men. Start with the group that was found outside the Crescent moon pack and instruct the team to gather as many rogues as possible to fight for me. We need to increase our numbers, the Crescent moon pack is strong. If the pack outside of Crescent moon is willing to fight then they will be our recognizance team. They will be instructed to keep us informed of the pack's every move. If they refuse then just kill them and station another team in their place."

"Yes, Alpha. It will be done." he replies and turns to bow before me.

I turn to face my men and I stand with my arms behind my back and my legs squared with the group before raising my voice, "men, we will be going to war. The Crescent moon pack has long sought to send us to extinction and soon we will send them to hell in our place."

The men yell, voicing their anger for the Crescent moon pack, and I grin, "soon they will know why I am called the Blood Alpha, and they will regret the day they went to war with the most blood thirsty pack in the world!"

I shift into my large brown wolf and howl loudly, my men shifting with me and their howls join mine echoing through the night as the sun sets and the sky darkens. I lead my men on a run as my beta walks inside the pack house to direct my wrath and fulfill my orders.