I sat dazed on the seat, I couldn't remember how I got here, nor did I care. Benson sat as close to me as possible, feeling his warmth was the only thing keeping me from breaking down.
My left side felt cold, I was half lost without having David's familiar touch. Benson refused to speak to anyone but me, but I couldn't bring myself to talk back. I was sure if I opened my mouth I would snap. A small rush of wind brought my attention back to the real world, Kneller's hooves were clicking on the ground as he walked around the room thinking his little head off.
Mitch, Fifi, and Alexandria had all gone home for the holidays leaving Crow the only one of my closest friends here. Mrs. Roxe was talking hushed with Patrick, Johns, Nicolas, and a very uncertain looking Seth.
"His mate is missing what the hell do you expect him to look like?!" Seth slapped Nicolas on the back of his head "Will you shut up, he is in the room you know." My eyes turned to Seth, his voice sounding unnaturally tender. As if he were trying not to upset Benson and I.
"Why would that bother you?" My voice came out as a croak, scratching after holding back the wave of tears for the last 6 hours. Seth turned his eyes on me and I saw something I wouldn't expect from him, sympathy. He walked over to me and patted my shoulder "I know what its like to loose a mate, especially when you have two."
I looked up at him as he stared at a wall "I had two mates. They were twins, Jane and Jake. It was Jake that died first, he was... killed... by a daemon. Jane died two years after during a rogue attack, she wasn't strong enough to fight them off." I felt my throat thicken and forced back that lump "How did you deal with it?"
I whispered shakily, he glanced down at me "Jane gave me a child before she died. Looks just like her mother... who looked just like her brother."
He took a deep breath before turning to leave the room we were in, I took notice of the gold trimmed fire place that told me we were in Mrs. Roxe's office. As he opened the door he paused "Todd, this is a lot to handle for a 17 year old. I'm sorry... for being such an ass to you. To behonest I was jealous, you have both of your mates, I don't." He shook his head softly "Before you break remember that you still have one mate, and it is possible to get your second one back. Fight, before you give up..." I could hear the double meaning behind his words, telling me exactly what he wanted me to know.
He gave up before she died and he regrets it because he could have saved her.
I heard someone sigh as Benson's arm wrapped around my waist, I leaned into his chest but stared at the door where Seth had vanished "That's the Seth I remember..." Nicolas mumbled quietly, I felt the cold drop of water on the back of my hand followed by another.
I sniffed and turned to bury my face in Benson's chest, my shoulder shook with the effort of holding in the sobs that wanted out.
His arms wrapped around me and he pulled me into his lap and tightened his hold until we were crushed together. I felt him begin to rock back and forth as his shallow breathing rushed in my ear when he hushed me, "I want him back." My words were muffled in his chest, his hand curled into a fist around my shirt "I know. Me too."
The door to the office slammed open and I was ripped away from Benson and slammed into the bookshelf. A cold, scale covered tail wrapped around my body and constricted painfully, my wing being bent in an unnatural position making me whimper "Where. Is. He?!"
I opened my watering eyes and found Zetzu with his lips pulled back showing his fangs, eyes narrowed dangerously.
I gasped "W-who?!" His tail tightened and he slammed me on the ground before sliding until he was over me, saliva dripped onto my cheek. He hissed at me and I realized it wasn't saliva, it was venom. My eyes widened "Your brother! Where is he?!" I struggled to get out of his hold but failed miserably, "I thought he was with you!"
Zetzu paused and stared at me "He was gone when I woke up this morning." His voice accusing but less harsh, his tail tightened and my eyes widened as I could feel the bones in my wing struggling to withstand the strain.
I gritted my teeth "My wing, let go you're going to break my wing!" He glared at me "Tell me where Vince would have gone." I shook my head quickly "I don't know where he is!"
I closed my eyes thinking frantically about what to do, my mind was a jumbled mess, I was still in shock after loosing David.
Papa get cold, snake hates cold.
Nyx's voice filled my head, it took me a second to register what she said because I was distracted with the way she sounded. She didn't sound like a small child anymore, but rather a young woman. I opened my eyes and listened to her letting the water in my body rapidly drop in temperature. I felt my heart beat slow as my skin iced over.
Zetzu hissed and let go of me sliding closer to the fire in the fire place, I re-heated my body and rolled onto my stomach and slowly stretched my hurting wing out. I heard the bones popping until it felt a little better.
Benson helped pick me up eyeing Zetzu warily, the snake then seemed to notice the shortage of people in the room. He looked at Benson then at me, then around the room "Where is the other brother?"
I flinched and looked at the ground feeling the adrenalin leave my body, Benson growled at him "We are in the same situation as you are. Don't touch my mate again." I looked up at Benson, his normally calm and collected voice was strained and dripping with anger. Zetzu frowned and lifted his body looking at Mrs. Roxe who was looking at him "Vince is not here?"
Zetzu shook his head "No. I thought maybe he was just getting food or something so I waited but after 3 hours I asked Tate and he said that some man came by and Vince left with him. I figured he was family until I got a phone call, he didn't call me intentionally so I probably heard something I wasn't suppose to but Todd's name came up. So I thought he has something to do with it."
Benson stepped closer to Zetzu "What did you hear?" His demand sounded harsh, and strong, his voice throwing out a vibe that made me want to submit to him.
Patrick's eyes widened along with the other alphas' in the room, "He used his Alpha Voice... without learning it..." Johns looked at Patrick "You didn't teach them the Alpha voice yet?" Patrick shook his head, Benson ignored them and Zetzu's body slide away from him slowly "I don't remember the conversation. I was too focused on finding Vince."
Benson growled loudly "You better fucking remember!" Zetzu leaned away from Benson and glanced at me "S-something about putting a chain of events into action... The voice that I heard was deep and sounded a lot like Todd only older."
I frowned and rubbed my face thinking over what he just said, "How long ago did Vince leave?" Johns's voice rumbled threw the room as the wind outside the window picked up to a loud howling.
"About 6 1/2 hours ago." I felt Benson pick me up off the floor and set me in his lap as he sat down on the couch again "That's half an hour before David was taken..." I looked up slowly at Nicolas, a glare forming on my face "My brother wouldn't have anything to do with this if that's what you're suggesting."
He put his hands up and shook his head "No, no that's not what I ment. Its just, what if whoever Vince left with is the one who has David? We find Vince, we find David."
I leaned back in Benson's chest and closed my eyes "The only person I could thing Vince would have left with was our father, but I don't see why he would want to kidnap my mate." I heard the click of hooves stop and opened one eye, Kneller was in front of me his face twisted as he thought, "Your right, without a reason he would have no need to take David... Unless he was after you."
Benson's arms tightened on me, I gave Kneller a look and opened my mouth to argue with him but he cut me off "Think! You guys are looking at each little piece and crossing them off one by one, but when you look at them as one big plan.. you are all right." He paused and looked at me then at Mrs. Roxe, then at Benson.
"It goes like this, Vince gets picked up by his dad who is responsible for creating Todd's clone, but why would he need a clone of Todd? He wants to use Todd's powers. You can't just find someone with your abilities around the corner, its hard enough to find someone who can control not only 1 but all 4 elements and you do that and so much more! However, your dad realized something when he made your clone. It can't use all of your powers without a larger DNA sample, so he has to get his hands on you. The best why to do that is have you go to him, but how does he get you to go to him? He takes something he knows for a fact will you go after."
I blinked in shock at him, "How do you know this?" Kneller looked at the ground, "The day Vince showed up I over heard you father say something to him. Vince was responsible for convincing you to go with him and your father, but he didn't count on Vince falling in love with Zetzu and that ruined his plan. So he had to come up with another way to get his hands on you."
I shook my head "That's just so... out there, Kneller..." Looking in his wide eyes I could tell he wasn't lying, and he truly believed what he was saying was true. I sighed and rubbed David's mark on my shoulder "If that's true, how would we find him? Even then how would we get David back? If my dad is really after me then he'd be prepared for all of my attacks. There's no way we could get in without giving him what he wants."
Kneller held up his hand and pointed at Benson "I got that part figured out as well, when your dad grabbed David he wasn't aware of who he was grabbing. He doesn't know that David is an alpha of THE Sivilian pack, he just thinks he grabbed a normal wolf."
I opened my mouth, closed it then shook my head and stood up "No, no way will I ask my pack to do something so dangerous that could possibly not even be true."
Benson grabbed my shoulder so I'd look up at him, his eyes were locked on his father's "Todd, even if Kneller is wrong. This pack will raid every square inch of this world until we find David, he's an alpha, he is a former alpha's son, he is an alpha's brother, and he is our Luna's mate. Nothing can stop a pack that's had its fur rubbed the wrong way a few too many times."
I stared at Benson for a moment before looking at my feet, just realizing I was barefoot, "Where would we even start to look?"
Patrick's voice reached me for the first time "You're bonded." I grab my shoulder as Benson's fingers played with the feathers on the ridge of my wings "We haven't taught him how to feel through the bond yet dad, and with David not here..." Patrick stepped closer to me "Now is as good a time as any to learn, its the only way to find him. The scent trail was cut off with magic and scattered over the whole area, we've been sniffing in circles since it happened."
Benson nodded slowly and sat me down on the couch, he crouched down in front of me a slightly pained expression on his face "Todd with David not being here trying to feel him threw the bond will hurt. Its harder to learn when your mate isn't in contact with you."
I smiled slightly and leaned forward to kiss him, he paused as our lips touched. He carefully kissed me back but I could tell he was feeling the same thing I was, it didn't feel right. Like something was missing. Like someone was missing.
He placed his forehead on mine and just stared at me for a moment, his eyes locked on mine. His lips twitched as he took a deep breath "Close your eyes and think about David, find the strongest feeling you have toward him and focus on it." I listened to him letting my eyes close and thinking about David. His smell, the color of his eyes, he way his voice rumbled when he was upset about something, the way the left side of his mouth twitched after he kissed me, his smile, and the way he touched me.
I shifted on the couch trying to find the strongest feeling I had for him, I would have thought that'd be easy. I love him and Benson more than anything but it was so much more that, when I think about how deeply I feel for both boys I realize its much deeper than love. Something stronger, without a name. It was there and it was strong, it bonded my very soul to them and without it I would be nothing more that a lifeless shell.
"Now focus on feeling him, but be careful. This is where it'll hurt." I did as I was told focusing myself on feeling David, I wanted him back so that part wasn't hard. The more I thought about him the harder it got to breath, my chest grew tight, Nyx's tail wrapped around my arm as I stopped breathing and focused harder.
My heart leaping into my throat and beating at an irregular pace, it was faster than my normal heart be but it matched Benson's. A slight pain blossomed in my chest spreading out ward but it was bearable.
Benson's body locked up under my hold "That's odd..." I clenched my jaw and tried harder to feel my missing mate, gradually I could feel Benson with me. It wasn't physical, it was just a sense I had, a feeling. I knew he was there physically but I also knew he was there in a different way, he felt more animal-like.
My eyebrows went up when I made the connection that I was feeling his wolf, the ground under my feet pulsed to life and a slight breeze ruffled my hair as I felt something leave my body. A part of me and it rushed threw the floor going deep into the ground before I felt it burst into an open cavern and David's presence suddenly became known.
I let out a soft cry and stood up at the shock, everything came slamming back down on me and I clutched onto Benson as I lost my balance.
"You felt him." I nodded at Patrick's words even thought they din't require an answer, "Where is he?" I swallowed thickly closing my eyes, my mouth was dry as a bone.
"Down." The word came out scratchy so I cleared my throat, Nicolas and Johns made similar noises of confusion at me, "Down? How could he be down?" I shook my head "He's under us. In some kind of cave"
Crow spoke for the first time "He must be in the tunnels under the school, I was just reading about them in the History book of this school. They're ancient tunnels Witches built to get to the magic source that was located there. The school was built on top of them by chance but once found that magic source is what was keeping the school's protective barrier up. You're father must be using that magic."
Benson stood up straight and looked at his father "Gather the pack and call me when they are ready." Patrick nodded and turned sharply running out of the room, Johns and Nicolas looked at each other before running after Patrick.
Kneller jumped out of Benson's way when he grabbed my hand and pulled me after him, "Where are we going?" He didn't look at me as he pulled me through the halls, Nyx trotting to keep up, Crow holding the three babies as she followed and Kneller at her side. Benson slammed a door open and dragged me up some stairs.
They spiraled up, and up, and up until we stopped in was looked like a bell room for a tower minus the bell. He glanced at me before walking into the middle of the large room and stepping on a pressure plate in the floor "We're evacuating the school, in case things go badly."
I watched mesmerized as the patterns on the floor shifted, moving and the sound of gears filled the room. From the center of the room rose a huge post with large mega phones at the top.
"Wow." Crow echoed my thoughts as we stared up at the huge thing, David started pressing buttons that were on the pole "This is will give off a mass teleportation spell, it'll move all the students and teachers in this school to the safety spot located 49 miles to the west of here. Those in this room will not be effected by the spell so Kneller and Crow you better leave this room if you don't want to get mixed up in this."
Crow made a face at him "We're already mixed up in this. You arn't getting rid of us." I smiled at her and pulled her into a hug causing a tornado of wind to rush around us "Thanks Crow." She smiled back at me "That's what friends are for."
A new voice made me jump "Yeah, friends stick together." I looked around Crow and found Alexandria, Mitch, Fifi, Zetzu, and surprisingly Laurence. Looked at them in shock "How did you... You guys were with your families weren't you? What are you doing here?"
Mitch snorted at me and rolled her eyes "Please, as if we'd pass up the chance to do something totally dangerous with just because of a holiday." Fifi giggled and skipped up to Kneller to hug him "Kneller called Fifi and said what was happening when David went missing. Its took a while but Fifi found everyone and brought them here."
Alexandria nodded and looked at me seriously "We're your friends, and we like to see you happy. We're in this together."
Benson's arm wrapped around my waist when the loud howl of a wolf rain int he air, "Let's go. The pack is here."