Joey's pov
I can't do this. . . my body is so heavy and in so much pain, but I don't want the threat of my pup being hurt hanging over my head . . . she's all I have left and the only way to save her is to get as far away from here as I can. With that thought in my head, I carefully slip out from under Mark's arm that's wrapped around my waist and climb from the bed, falling onto my knees, a muffled whimper escaping my throat before I could stop it. My eyes widen in for fear when Mark turned over and mumbled something in his sleep, but he quickly settled down and I let out a quiet sigh of relief. Forcing myself to my feet, I slowly, painfully crept out of the room and down the stairs looking back every few seconds to make sure no one was following me and after a nerve wracking hour I was finally outside. Of course as soon as I was on my way through the woods heading towards the packhouse, I started to have second thoughts . . . I've already caused Joel more trouble than I had any right to and I deserve whatever punishment Kyle gives me . . . if my pup was safely away from him, I could deal with whatever he put me through. I started to open a link with my brother so I could ask, no beg him to find a way to convince his mate to take Zoe with them, when something slammed into the back of my head hard enough to knock me to the ground and someone stood over me, smiling maliciously. It took several seconds for the world to stop spinning so I could recognize them, but when I did, my blood ran cold.
"Did you think I would let you be happy? Did you think I'd just stay in the shadows while you and your mutt of a daughter rode off into the sunset, especially after you betrayed me?"
"J-Jason what are you doing here . . . leave now before I sound the alarm!"
"You'd like that, wouldn't you? I go slinking off to where I came from while you make it to your brother just in time to have a happily ever after with your precious little baby, well there's one problem with your little plan."
Jason snapped his fingers and several wolves surrounded him, each looking just as crazy as him and one of them was holding a small blanket wrapped bundle that whined and wiggled in his arms.
"You see, my friends and I have been watching everything that's been going on since the day I left . . . this pack needs to be crushed and I believe I've discovered a way to do just that."
I kept my eyes focused on the squirming bundle in the wolf's arms, my mind racing as panic consumed me.
"Jason is . . . is that my pup?"
Jason continued as if I hadn't spoken, but his lips turned into a smirk as he stared down at me.
"I've decided to make everyone hate you even more, Joey. I'm going to get you thrown into the dungeon as you await the execution that Kyle plans for you and while you're down there, I want you to find out a little something for me."
"You're insane."
"Am I? You and this pathetic pack are more psychotic than I am, after all it takes a special kind of crazy to follow an Alpha who would brand his own Luna a whore, doesn't it?"
I flinched at the reminder of the prostitute's brand on my back and curled in on myself when I saw the looks of surprise and lust pass across the faces of the wolves surrounding me.
"What do you want Jason, Joel has a mate whose going to take him away from this place."
"I already have plans in place. I'll go after him when the time is right, but for now the one I came for is you."
All of the weakness, pain, guilt, desperation and hopelessness I've been feeling overwhelmed me in that moment and I couldn't find the energy to fight anymore.
"When you're finished with us, send our dead bodies to Kyle so he'll know he can't hurt us anymore."
"Sorry Joey, but in order for my plan to work you have to be alive and_________."
Jason nodded to someone behind him and I felt a sharp pain in the back of my neck.
"Unable to shift."
"W-What did you do?!"
"It'll kick in soon."
I gasped in fear as everything started to swirl around me, making me dizzy.
"Wha . . . I . . . I don't . . . I can't__________!"
"It's a liquid form of a drug we discovered, something that the humans call PCP. Enjoy."
I cried out in surprise, I could see what Jason was saying, I mean I could see each letter connecting together to form words and each would connecting to form sentences! It was beautiful, but at the same time terrifying. Turning away from him, I looked at the world around me, the colors were so bright and vivid that I could almost taste . . . no I could taste them, the browns tasted like spices and almonds, the green tasted like herbs, bitter and slightly spicy and for some reason the color blue tasted like honey. I kept my eyes focusing on that color sticking my tongue out to catch more of it on my tongue, ignoring the voices surrounding me. I growled when a hand landed on my shoulder, distracting me and turned my head to snap at it and it immediately shoved me to the ground. I growled quietly as shapeless blobs moved closer to me, high pitched chittering reaching my ears as they came closer. Ignoring the shapes, I focused my attention back on the blue of the sky, eagerly pulling more of the honey taste into my mouth. One of the shapes grabbed me by my hair, jerking my head back and my mind cleared enough that I could understand what he was saying.
"You are going to behave, Joey. You're going to do what my men and I tell you to do and when I send you back you're going to let them lock you up. As soon as those cell doors close behind you, you're going to find out where he's hiding the Luna of the Silver Moon Pack . . . do you understand?"
I stared up at the shape of Jason in confusion and he the slapped me across the face, the pain clearing my head even more.
"Do. You. Understand?!"
"W-Why would the Silver Moon Pack's Luna be here?"
"That's not your concern, yet . . . now nod your head if you understand what I want you to do."
I quickly nodded and he released me, letting me collapse to the ground.
"If I . . . If I find the Luna, what do you want me to do?"
"Don't worry, you'll know when the time comes, I'll make sure of that."
I was lifted by my arms and as they started through the woods in a direction far away from the pack lands, when a sudden desperation caused me to dig my heels into the leaf covered earth.
"I'll do whatever you say, Jason, but I want you to leave my brother alone . . . let him find happiness with his mate."
"Are you stupid or something . . . you dissapeared from the packhouse and you're covered in not only my scent, but the scent of several strange wolves and you think you have enough leverage to bargain with me?"
"Please let him go. He deserves happiness."
"You still don't get it, do you? I don't care about his happiness! I don't care if he's miserable as long as he completely submits himself to me!"
"If I'm going to die anyway then I'll tell Kyle where you're hiding so he can track you down and crush you!"
Jason laughed maniacally and a shiver went down my spine.
"By the time we get finished with you, you won't remember your own name, let alone be able to tell anyone what I'm up to."
I heard him move away from me and in a voice just loud enough for me to hear, he announced to someone directly behind me:
"Give him the rest of it . . . let him enjoy himself while he can."
Another sharp pain went through the back of my neck and soon I was laughing uncontrollably as they carried me away through the strange and dizzying world of the drug's making, forgetting the important reasons I needed to stay.
Joel's pov
I shot up in bed, the feeling that something was wrong causing my heart to pound against my chest. A hand wrapped around my waist, pulling me against a strong chest that immediately brought me comfort.
"What's wrong mate?"
"I don't know . . . I feel like something bad has happened, like someone I care about has been hurt . . . I can't explain it."
"Do you want to stay and make sure everything's alright?"
"No, if I stay now, I'll never bring myself to leave."
"I could send someone to take you to our new home and meet you there after I make sure things are alright."
"I don't want that either. They only reason I'm able to do this is because you're with me . . . l need you by my side, Devlin."
"Then what do you want to do?"
"Dillon's brother . . . Jefferson, do you think he'll be willing to help us? Maybe he could find someone to keep an eye on things for us."
"I'll talk to him before we leave and when we arrive at our pack, we'll go to the Elders and convince them to investigate."
I nodded my head, a part of me feeling guilty, but I know there was nothing I could do; it was time for me to live for myself, my mate and my pups. Closing my eyes, I cuddled into Devlin's chest, letting the beating of his heart sooth me back to sleep.
Kyle's pov
'Goodbye Kyle.'
Joel's last words to me wouldn't stop echoing in my head. Even when he rejected me in the hospital, there was no finality in his voice and it gave me hope that I could win him back, but this time I could tell by his tone that he was ready to walk away from me without looking back and even the clear threat I posed to his brother wouldn't change his mind this time. A whimper slipped from my lips as my heart clenched with pain . . . my mate, the man I loved with everything that I am was lost to me forever because I let the whore I was forced to mark tricked me into believing that Joel would ever be unfaithful to me . . . the whimper was replaced with a growl when I remembered my whore of a mate's smug face as I denied my pups the day Joel tried to kill himself . . .why didn't I realize the truth then? But I already knew the answer, I did know that he wouldn't cheat on me, I was just looking for an easy way to regain my freedom and those pictures provided me with a perfect escape and even when I learned the truth I refused to go to Joel and beg him to take me back, instead I went to the one that destroyed everything and slid between his eagerly spread legs . . . and then I killed my own pup because Joel wouldn't take me back after everything I'd put him through . . . I killed my own child in a selfish fit of rage! Do I even deserve Joel? My head says no, that I need to let him go before I destroy him, but my heart tells me to hold on to him and to get rid of anyone in my way until I'm all he has left. A knock on my office door pulls me out of my desperate thoughts and I yell at whoever's on the other side to come in. Mark burst through the door, his eyes wide with disbelief and fear.
"Alpha Kyle, the Luna's missing we've already gathered the pack hunters and they're waiting for your orders."
I slowly stood, my calm outer appearance masking my inner anger.
"So, you're telling me that my Luna who's been beaten and starved to the point that he couldn't barely move managed to escape from my Beta and my Delta, my best trained warriors . . . is that what I'm hearing right now?"
Mark swallowed, lowering his head.
"We failed you, Alpha. Please forgive us."
I ignored Mark's plea, I could sense he was hiding something from me and it caught my attention.
"Is there something more you need to tell me?"
"When we were searching the woods for the Luna, we came across Jason's sent."
"Did you find him?"
"No, Alpha, but I believe the Luna is with him . . . what should we do?"
"Nothing."
"Alpha?"
"Jason wants to bring us down with his own hands, we'll let him think he has the upper hand and then when he finally shows himself in front of me, I'll obliterate him."
"And the Luna?"
"He's a whore now, right? Let him entertain our guests for a while . . . they'll send him back soon enough and you'll continue his training."
"And if he's turned traitor?"
"He won't, after all he knows who'll suffer if he even thinks about going against me."
Mark nodded his head, looking away from me.
"What's wrong with you?"
"I just . . . don't you think harming a pup might be going too far?"
I let a smile cross my lips, though I'm positive it didn't reach my eyes, walking over to Mark who stiffened at my approach.
"Are you questioning my abilities as Alpha?"
"O-Of course not."
"I think you are. After you stood by and allowed me the beat and rape your Luna, after you raped him yourself you've stupidity decided to let yourself grow a conscience all of a sudden?"
"A-Alpha?"
I snaked a hand out, wrapping it around his throat and he flinched in my hold.
"You're weak Mark and I don't need weakness surrounding me. I expected great things of you . . . you disappointed me."
Twisting my hands, I heard the satisfying snap as the bones in Mark's neck shattered, dropping him to the ground. A smile crossed my face and I let out a shuddering breath at the strength of the power I felt taking a life. I think I'm going to really love being Alpha.
Sorry for the slow update and yeah Kyle is getting worse, but don't give up on me, it's not over yet!