The Alpha's Daydream ✔️

Chapter 25

"Have you seen how high it is? Who on earth would be able to climb up there?" one of the girls shakes her head like I just proposed we build a rocket to the moon.

"I can climb trees," I mumble and begin to reach for the first branch.

"Wait!" Hendrik leaps up and I stifle a sigh of frustration. What does he want now? Is it his job to sabotage our expedition? "Not without ropes, you can't climb it."

"Ropes? For what? It's just a tree—"

"For safety. The Alpha's rules. He didn't want anyone getting hurt."

I can't argue with that, so I dig in the backpack and pull out a rope and the carabiners. Thankfully, one of the guys helps me in anchoring the rope to a sturdy branch and looping it together. Once I've strapped it around my waist, I leap up to the first branch and pull myself up. I waste no time in climbing to the flashlight and untying it, then dropping it down to the others who stash it in the backpack.

When I reach the ground again I unfold the other item I found in the tree. "Coordinates. I'll hand this step of the expedition to you," I tell them and give them the map. They take it and hastily start plotting our position relative to the end point, their shoulders once more turned to exclude me.

I wasn't sure what I was expecting. Maybe a thanks for getting the flashlight? Maybe a 'Hey, we were wrong. Thanks for leading us down the right track.' But I cover the slight disappointment, and pray that these mangoheads actually know what they're doing with the map and are taking us in the right direction. I pick up my bag, noticing how heavy it now is with the addition of the flashlight.

We seem to be orienteering correctly, as Hendrik makes no comment when we begin ascending a ridge. Soon the trees thin out, and the shrubs and ferns grow thicker and bushy under the increased sunlight. The path opens up to a rocky outcropping, and we see two other teams milling about around the place.

"Yes! Alright!" My team collectively cheers and the guys race up the rest of the ridge, throwing themselves over the edge.

"What on earth?!" I gasp and run up to see why they just jumped off a cliff to their presumed death. My heart slams in my chest as terror invades my senses with adrenaline, but I feel a massive relief when I reach the edge of the rocks and look down.

About sixty feet below is the sparkling blue water of a rock pool, the depths a sapphire hue. I see the two young guys swimming to the edge before climbing out and back up the hill.

Their excited whoops of enjoyment reach me from the top of the cliff, and are soon joined by more laughter as a few others jump off beside me. Clearly they've done this many times before.

"Alright, let's gather around and see who won."

Beta Hamilton's baritone voice calls all the young wolves to order. I sit on a boulder and dump the heavy bag beside me. My shoulders and back are aching from carrying it for so long.

"Baxter, captain of Team Gamma, you arrived here last in a time of two hours, forty-three minutes. What's your report?" He asks a blond haired, blue eyed man with serpentine tattoos crawling up both muscular arms.

"We found the pair of shoes alright, in only half an hour." One of his team members holds the shoes high like a trophy. "But then my team got a bit lost with the coordinates, down by the east valley. But we made it here eventually," he finishes off, looking with disappointment at his moping team.

"And Noah of Team Epsilon, you made it in one hour, fifty-six."

Another young trainer with a shock of black hair that stands at all angles leaps off a boulder and puffs out his chest. "We had no problems. My team worked like a well-oiled machine."