April 8, 2018 (1:23 PM)
Sorry I've been gone for a few months.
Dedicated to JuliSmylie for her comment on the last chapter. Thank you for your support and I'm thrilled that you like this book.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Clarity
My brother, husband, son, and a few trusted pack members stood before me in my office. They were prepared to do whatever I asked of them. Though Nick and Alex looked worried, I knew they would follow my plans. This was for the safety and the future of the SunDust pack. I would not let anyone threaten that. Not even my daughter's mate.
It was just before six in the morning. We would be leaving soon. Everyone was ready and we were discussing last minute details. Normally, I would have Garrett in here as well. He was a strong warrior and a great leader for the other fighters in this pack. Seeing him so close to Felicity told me I could no longer trust him.
Nick was going to stay behind with a small portion of fighters in order to protect the pack if anything happened. We would have the element of surprise on our side so I was hoping that they wouldn't be needed.
"We will be leaving in ten minutes," I said to the people that surrounded me. "There is a clearing not far from the house they are staying in. We will draw them out there. If they surrender, capture them alive. If not... you know what to do."
Normally, I wouldn't allow the opportunity for surrender, but I would give him a chance to come out of this alive for Felicity's sake. If he fought me, then I wouldn't feel guilty for killing him. He was choosing this path. He was choosing to threaten my pack. If I let him get away with that, what message would I be sending to everyone else who wanted to hurt us?
Alex stepped forward and spoke up. "With the number of people we are bringing with us, do you think they'll still try to fight?" he asked, glancing at my mate out of the corner of his eye.
"I think that Cole Morrison would not have assembled this group of rebels unless he intended to fight me," I said.
"But Felicity," he said softly.
My gaze hardened. "She won't know until it's happened."
His eyebrows knit together. "This could kill her."
"Would you rather he kills someone in this pack? Who is your allegiance with, Alexander?" I snapped at my son. I understood that I would be sacrificing any relationship I might possible be able to rebuild with my daughter. I was going to make this sacrifice like any alpha should for his or her pack. Alex needed to understand that.
He bowed his head and said nothing else. My eyes found Nick's and I saw uncertainty in them. I did not need my own family questioning my decisions. They had never questioned me before, but now I felt a stab of betrayal at the fact they were. I wasn't doing this to hurt Felicity. I was doing this to protect the pack and everything I've built.
Nick lowered his gaze and shook his head. I frowned and looked around the room at the other men. "Give my mate and I the room please," I said as I crossed my arms over my chest. They filed out wordlessly and I turned to Nick. "Why don't you say whatever's on your mind."
He ran a hand through his hair and shook his head again. "What are you doing, Claire?" he asked with a sigh. He moved across the room to take a seat on one of the couches.
"I'm keeping my family and my pack safe," I said with determination. "Which is hard to do when my family questions my every move!"
"This isn't the way."
"This is the only way!"
Nick stood up and came to stand in front of me. "It's not. You think it is because it's how you solved things in the past, but it's different this time. You're fighting our daughter's mate. If you kill him, it will hurt her."
"She'll be fine," I said through clenched teeth.
"Yeah?" he asked sarcastically. "Were you fine when I almost died?"
I froze and closed my eyes. When I thought back to then, I could still feel the pain felt as I watched Nick lay in that hospital bed. Nothing was worse than seeing your mate like that, but it was different for us. Nick never tried to hurt people I loved.
"You can't compare the two," I said softly as I opened my eyes to look at him. "You were everything to me. You changed me and showed me compassion. I needed you."
Nick took my hands in his. "It's the same for her. He's unlocked a part of her that no one else could. She's found an inner strength that she never believed she had. She is finally becoming who she was meant to be, but you don't see that because you're so angry at who her mate is."
I took my hands from his grasp. "He wants to destroy us."
"You don't know that."
"He said it less than a week ago!" I practically shouted.
"Because you goaded him into it," Nick argued back.
"He sent a goddamn ransom letter!"
"That was over a month ago. Things have changed since then," he said, desperately trying to make me see his reasoning in this. "We don't know what his intentions are anymore, but I don't think he'd want to do anything to hurt Felicity. Maybe we should just try setting up a meeting-"
"-and jeopardize the safety of our people?" I asked. "No. Words don't solve problems. Actions do."
I turned to leave the room. I felt as if everyone was against me. They didn't understand the pressure I was under. Every pack in our world watched my every move. Everyone was looking for some sign of weakness to prove that I wasn't capable of leading a pack.
Men rarely supported the decisions I made in the beginning. When I reached out to enemy packs in the past, they turned their nose up at me and said they wouldn't be an ally to a female alpha. When I put up the wall, other alphas said it was unnecessary. I was being overly cautious and fearful.
Now the men in my own family were doubting me. It hurt more than other male werewolves, but it fueled me even more to prove them wrong. The world had already been against me once. If I was on my own once again, then so be it. I wasn't afraid of the consequences. In time, they would understand just as they did before.
Before I made it out of the room, Nick spoke up again. "This isn't you, Clarity. You're making a mistake."
I ignored every word and every instinct telling me to go back and fix things with my mate. This needed to be done. Maybe one day, they would understand. This was bigger than just Felicity and her mate. If I didn't prove that a female alpha could stand up to males and hold her own, then I would be letting archaic traditions take over our world. I worked too hard for that to happen.
_______________
As the sun rose higher into the sky, I ran towards the clearing where I planned to have this battle take place. My son and brother flanked me on either side while the rest of the men I brought with me ran behind us. While I ran, I sent up a silent prayer to the spirits that I was making the right decision and asked for a sign if I wasn't. With my conscience as clear as it would be, I set my eyes forward.
Paws thundered across the ground as we ran towards the clearing. Before Garrett decided to team up with Felicity, he'd given me some useful information on the lay of the land these rebels resided on. Knowing that there was a clearing ahead would give us the advantage of choosing the battle ground.
When we broke through the tree line of the clearing, I was relieved to find it empty. However, I did see a set of eyes across the clearing disappear through the trees. Good. That wolf would run back and fetch Cole Morrison so I wouldn't have to send one of my own to do so.
We waited for what seemed like an hour. In that time, I didn't move a muscle, but I could feel my pack behind me getting antsy. They were worried that these men had somehow known about this attack and were planning on surrounding us. Yet if they had been, I would be able to hear it.
Finally, they emerged.
A group of thirty wolves stepped out of the trees. Most of them were mangy looking with either fear or anger in their eyes. Almost all of them had their hackles raised with their teeth bared. They didn't concern me. Typically, none of these wolves concern me.
But when I looked upon my daughter's mate, my confidence wavered. I had never doubted my ability to win a fight. Then again, I've never faced another white wolf.
He stood taller than everyone else and his snarl was nearly deafening. I could see his muscles bunched under the snowy fur as he waited to strike. His dark eyes were fixated on mine and I could see pure fury coursing through them.
I understood his anger. I've felt that anger. As much as I didn't want to think it, Cole Morrison and I were very similar in that aspect. We were both fighting for something we believed in. We both thought that we could make the world a better place by ridding it of the other. One of us would die today. I just couldn't let that be me.
As the sun rose behind the trees, I lifted my head to the sky and let out a long, low howl. Today, all the fighting would stop. One way or another, we would put an end to this everlasting war.
At my command, my wolves rushed forward to meet the charging rebels. It didn't take long for the sound of teeth clashing and fur ripping to meet my ears. As I lowered my head, my gaze fell towards the white wolf across the clearing.
None of my wolves had gone after him. I told them not to. He was mine to fight and to kill. This battle was between us and I wanted to prove that I was still strong enough to take him down even in his prime.
After a moment, his eyes met mine and the real battle began.
___________________
Felicity
I woke up to a pounding on my door. I had that groggy feeling that you felt when getting woken up from a deep, dreamless sleep. After last night, I felt hope. My mother would have no reason to fight if Cole was no longer in the picture. We could be free and have our family. I'd be sacrificing a lot, but it'd be worth it to me.
"Damn it, Felicity! Wake up!"
My blood ran cold at the sound of Garrett's voice on the other side of my door. I hastily got out of bed, put on my zip-up hoodie, and wrenched open my door. Garrett stood with wide eyes and a disheveled appearance. My father stood behind him.
"What's happening," I asked hesitantly. I was scared to death of the answer I'd receive.
"Clarity's attacking now. Right now," he said grabbing my arm and tugging me out of the room. I felt sick upon hearing his words, but let him pull me along. "She kept me in the dark about this. She must've known we were working together. Your dad came to find me."
I glanced over my shoulder at my father as he hurried behind us. "I don't agree with this, Felicity. She's just scared. We can stop it, but we have to hurry."
As we made it outside, I was very aware of my appearance. My bare feet hit the cold ground and it was as it my toes instantly froze. The cold, morning air bit through my flannel pajama pants and my thin hoodie. All I could think was that I wasn't ready for this. I didn't fall asleep last night thinking that I'd need to physically stop a war in the morning. Even now as we rushed to stop it, I had absolutely no idea what I could possibly do to make my mother see reason.
When we approached the wall, I could see that there were more guards than usual. There was no doubt in my mind that my mom wanted to take any precautions possible. Yet, I wondered if they were here to keep Cole out or to keep me in.
The guards straightened when we came near them. When we were close enough, one of them spoke up. "We have strict orders from the alpha that no one is allowed to enter or leave the gates.
My father stepped forward. "I'm telling you to let us through."
The guards exchanged a look and that was when everything dawned on me. The balance of power between men and women in a leadership position within a pack was still skewed. My mother hadn't gotten equality. She only reversed the balance of power in packs that had a female leader. Now it was my father, the alpha male of the SunDust Pack, that had little to no power in this world.
"Sir-" one of the guards started.
My anger flared. These guys were only wasting my time while my mother was about to slaughter my mate and my friends. "Look. We don't have time for this. Clarity wants her family at her side during this battle. I slept in because I wasn't feeling well yesterday so we're a bit late getting out there. What are your names so I can tell her who kept us away even longer?"
My voice was calm and almost light as if we were discussing the weather. I didn't show my anger, apprehension, or panic. Instead, I fed off of their fear and used my words to make the guards visibly pale. They stepped aside and bowed their head. It was clear that they feared my mother and displeasing her more than anything.
Without a glance backward, I walked through the gates. I didn't know when or if I'd be back. All I knew was that I was finally making my choice. In order to be with my mate, I had to leave this life behind.
Garrett and my father followed behind me and when we could no longer see the wall behind us, we phased. Once on four legs, we ran. It would take about forty minutes in this form to get to where I assumed the fight would take place. I could only pray to the spirits that we wouldn't be too late.
My dad and Garrett were speaking through a link. I blocked them out as best I could and tried to focus on preparing myself for what I might find. Though after a few moments, I felt them trying to push through. Knowing I needed them on my side, I opened my link to them.
My father spoke up. "Felicity, we're going to do everything we can to stop this fight, but I just want you prepare you for what we might see."
Based on his cautious tone, I knew that he was talking about my mate and not his. He was trying to tell me that I would find Cole dead and defeated. It made me angry that they were underestimating him. Cole was a strong wolf and he was probably my mother's biggest adversary yet.
My response was hinted with malice. Now isn't a great time to pick a fight, but I'm tired of everyone thinking both Cole and I were less capable than we were. It made sense for me, but not for Cole. They couldn't claim he was this dangerous threat and then assume my mother would take him down within the first ten minutes of the battle.
"I know. The world has never seen two white wolves face off against each other," I said, knowing I was blindsiding him.
"What?" My father faltered and Garrett nudged him to keep pace while shooting me a warning glare. He clearly thought my father wasn't to blame for this and I shouldn't through jabs at him like this. In reality, everyone and no one shared the blame for the situation we found ourselves in.
Still, I clarified. "Cole's a white wolf."
My dad's pace increased, now fearing his own mate's life as well. "How could you not tell us that?"
I looked at him in bewilderment. "Why would I tell you something that would give her and advantage over my mate? She's trying to kill him right now. I wasn't about to help he do that!"
"She is a part of your family. Now her life is in danger!"
I snapped my jaws at him in a mixture of rage and annoyance. How could he pin this on me? "The people she's attacking right now are also part of my family. She's the one who put herself in this position. She's the one who is going after them."
My father growled at me. Garrett pushed between us as we ran. He was clearly worried things might escalate and get physical between my dad and me. So much for having both of them on my side. I'd be lucky if I could still count on Garrett. "Enough!" he barked at both of us.
I let out a huff of irritation and turned my head forward. I didn't need to deal with this right now. I had so much to worry about. "Our mates are most likely trying to rip out each other's throats right now. Let's just get there so we can keep that from happening."
My father didn't say anything, but kept running by Garrett's side in silence.
After another five minutes, a howl broke out in the distance. My mind blanked and I could feel my legs stiffen. It took everything I had in me to keep them moving and not break down. I've heard that howl once before.
~I was nine. I remember playing outside with two of my cousins. We had our tea set out on the picnic table and were dressed up in our princess gowns. All of the sudden, Nana and Auntie Heather burst out of the house and ushered us inside. Glancing behind me as Nana tugged my hand, I saw our pink teacups overturned and abandoned.
As we entered the house, I could see people scrambling around and shouting. My body was paralyzed in fear as I clung to Nana. Among all the chaos and noise, I could make out one word. Attack.
Right as I was about to ask Nana what was going on, a loud howl ripped through the village. I later found out that howl was my mother's battle cry.~
We were still about seven minutes away and every step I ran only felt like an endless eternity. Every second that passed, I fought that paralyzing fear I felt from that howl. A lot could happen in seven minutes. Too many people could get hurt or killed. Not only did I fear for Cole, but I was afraid for my friends and family as well.
Faces kept appearing in my mind.
Zach.
Declan.
Alex.
Oliver.
Dustin.
Even my mom.
Clarity may be behind this attack, but she was still my mother. Before that attack on the village when I was nine, she was a better, kinder person.
Time passed dreadfully slow. Seconds felt like hours. As we drew closer, the growls of pain and fury grew louder and louder. Soon enough, the scent of blood started reaching the air. I tried to ready myself for what I'd see, but my nerves were in jumbles and my mind kept picturing the worst possible scenarios.
After what felt like centuries, we came up to the clearing where Cole had sent me back to my family just days before. Only this time, it was stained crimson and I was horrified by the scene before me.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I know, I did it again. I suck, but life happens. And update on my situation?
1. I graduated college.
2. I got a big girl job.
3. I'm tired ALL the time.
I'm making a push to get this done though. Thanks to those who still support this book and keep up with its progress.