Beasts of The North

Chapter Fourteen

I woke the next morning, the next several mornings, still shaky and fearful of the nightmare I'd had. I'd only had the dream once, but it was burned into my mind. I never called out to her, not after that first night, but each morning I woke drenched in sweat and fear. I wanted to hurry home, but didn't have the option just yet. There was a group of over one hundred warriors. A rushed trip just wasn't plausible for a group of that size. Our trip was going as smoothly as possible, however. We'd been traveling for about two weeks now, and had covered decent ground. Everything had remained fairly quiet and uneventful as time passed, and for that we were all thankful. James and I had recounted our tale of the irate bear many times over to the point where it was often joked about around the fire. We had certainly received a fair amount of praise, sure, we'd been gravely injured but we still took him down. This was not a feat accomplished by many. While we graciously accepted the attention, in truth we were just glad not to pass by any other angry grizzlies.

Overall the trip was a success, and was also slowly coming to a close. We were only a few days away from my pack, where the integration between my members and Christian's warriors would begin. The trip had been successful in forming a bond between myself and them, however. This would help with their ability to dedicate themselves to my cause. They still needed that bond with my own members, though. They needed to know who they were fighting with and for. I imagined there might even be a few warriors who would find their mates within my pack. Tyrra had even experienced the benefits of traveling alongside us all. She had solidified herself as the Luna in the eyes of the pack warriors. These men would return home and tell of the trust and loyalty that they had for her. Any opposition to her position would die out after their words, as they were some of the most respected people within packs outside of the leaders. She would have nothing to fear from any members in the future and the weight lifted from her shoulders was visible.

While this trip had been beneficial and successful to all involved, I can't help but become increasingly uneasy as we got closer and closer to my home. I can't quite place the feeling, but it was trying to guide me. The only problem was the direction it wanted me to go wasn't towards home, but a little deeper into the mountains of my lands. I don't know where the fuel for this fire originated, but I do know that I won't be able to withstand the urge much longer. My instincts were screaming at me to head deeper into the mountains, and as an Alpha it would be almost unheard of to ignore this feeling. An Alpha's instincts were decidedly more developed than other wolves and while I didn't know what was out there I knew that there had to be something. I put the discussion off for awhile, but it was time for me to bring it up to Christian and James. I imagine Tyrra would have some good insight as well. I waited until everyone settled in for the night and then pulled them all aside to talk.

"Are you finally going to talk about whatever's got you all jumpy lately?" Well, I definitely wasn't wrong about Tyrra having some decent insight. Clearly, I hadn't been hiding my emotions on the matter quite as well as I thought.

"I'm not really sure. It started with a nightmare that I had just before we left your pack. It was about Giselle. I don't know if she's really involved or not, but there's a feeling that I just can't shake. The closer we get to home, the worse it gets."

"It may not be that Giselle is directly involved at all, but the best way to catch the attention of anyone is with their mate. If your instincts were trying to guide you somewhere, then your mate would be the most enticing way to do so." She was right again, definitely a good inclusion on this particular subject.

"While my mate is right, the same could be said for your enemies. You mentioned Alpha Lowell using threats in dreams? What if this is a page taken from that same book? This could be a trap."

"It could, but the chance that it's not a trap is just as high. I've already decided to branch off from the group in the morning. Whatever it is, it's calling me to the mountains. I can't return home before I check it out."