Love & Mate

Chapter Three

Alpha Annie’s POV 

“Alpha Annie, thanks again for coming so soon. I wouldn’t have bothered you unless it was necessary.” Alpha Liam says as I shake his hand firmly. 

“Honestly, I’m happy to lend support. Can you tell me more about the attack?” 

“Sure follow me to my office. Your warriors are welcome to take lunch in the hall.” 

I follow behind him through the large pack house and notice instantly the sad, solemn atmosphere that seems to hang over the place. It’s a far cry from the joyous and fun mood that filled the halls on the night of the ceremony. We pass more than one weeping person on the way to Liam’s office and I can’t help but feel sorry for him. Yeah he may have acted like an i***t but to deal with all of this on your first week of being an Alpha must be pretty rough. 

Finally we arrive at the office and Liam offers me a seat. I sit down and watch as he slumps into the chair behind his desk. 

His blue eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep. 

“Liam before we start I just want to say I’m sorry for the loss of your warriors. I truly am.” I say sympathetically. 

He nods and swings his chair around to look out of the window. 

“I’m just kicking myself that I didn’t see it coming. I was so wrapped up in all the Alpha ceremony bullshit. Caught up in my own self importance then BAM. This happens. It’s my fault.” he answers, rubbing his forehead with his fingers. 

“No Liam it’s not your fault, sometimes we can’t prevent these things from happening but it doesn’t mean we can’t learn from them. We will get to the bottom of this.” I nod in reassurance. 

“Thanks Annie, I knew straight away that I had to call you. I’m not too proud to say that we need help and your pack are the strongest for miles.” 

“I’m happy to lend a hand. We need to get the girls home safely.” I answer matter of factly. 

“Now tell me more about the attack.” 

Liam huffs out a loud breath before he delves into the story. Starting with the details of how he was alerted to the attack as the last guests left the ceremony. He goes on to talk about how a large number of rogue wolves attacked the boundary, overpowering the guard detail quickly. 

“By the time we were able to push back their attack, we had lost 30 warriors, including my Beta.” he finishes, his voice breaking a little with his last sentence. 

I instinctively reach over the table and grasp his hand with mine. Seeing him like this, vulnerable and unsure of where to go next makes me change my opinion about him on the spot. 

“When did you notice there were girls missing?” I ask carefully. 

“There were reports of rogues targeting certain houses. Their families reported them missing. All 10 are in their late teens or early twenties.” he answers, as we both look at each other knowingly. 

“You know why they have taken them don’t you?” I question, and he nods in response. 

“It doesn’t take a genius to figure it out. They have taken them to mate. To reproduce. To build their numbers.” he answers, his voice laced with disgust. 

I nod along with his assessment which I know in my heart is the truth. 

“Then we have to get started straight away. I’ve brought my top trackers with me. They can leave immediately.” I say authoritatively, pushing away the sickening feeling that is resting in the pit of my stomach. 

“We will find them Liam.” I reassure him as we stand up, ready to plan our course of action. 

*** 

“You will divide into four units and move through the forest on the routes that Liam and I have laid out for you. That is unless you catch the scent of any rogue or the missing females. The families have provided a range of belongings for you to familiarise yourself with the various scents we are hoping to track. Please be cautious. These rogues are well organised, prepared and have a decent level of combat ability. We can not underestimate them. Are we clear?” 

“Yes Alpha.” my warriors nod in response before getting ready to leave on their mission at hand. 

“ANNIE, ANNIE!! Come quickly.” Liam calls out to me hurriedly from his office window. I look at Nate in confusion and we run inside, racing up the pack house stairs quickly as I try to navigate us back to Liam’s office. 

“Liam what’s wrong?” I ask as we burst into the room. 

“I’ve just had a phone call. Two other packs were hit with attacks during the night. They have just managed to control the situation now.” he responds, looking at his notepad in front of him. 

“Goldclaw pack - 12 missing females. Their Alpha reports the exact same kind of attack that happened here.” 

“s**t, and the other pack?” I ask impatiently. 

He looks at me for a moment, his eyes flicking to Nate before returning to mine. 

“Crescent Moon pack- 8 missing females.” 

“Goddess no! I need to call Josh. s**t!” I call out frantically as Liam moves away from the desk to allow me better access. 

As the phone rings on the other side of the line my mind races with anxious thoughts. I spent a lot of my childhood at Crescent Moon visiting my grandparents. Perhaps I might even know some of the missing girls. 

My phone call goes unanswered, clearly Josh is too busy to be answering the phone right now. I pull out my cellphone and call my grandma who answers within the first ring. 

*

*

“Annie, Goddess I’m sorry honey it’s chaos here.” 

“Gran what’s going on?” I ask as I listen carefully to her response. 

“We were attacked last night by rogues. I’m at the hospital now. Thankfully we managed to fight most of them off but they have taken 8 she-wolves with them.” 

“I heard. Where is Josh? What can I do to help?” 

“He’s here. I’ll put him on.” she answers before the phone is handed to Josh. 

“Annie, I’ve sent a team out after the rogues. My Beta has gone with them.” 

“I’m with Alpha Liam right now. His pack suffered a similar attack two nights ago. We need to come up with a plan of action together. We can meet at Blackstone tomorrow. We must alert the Werewolf Council of this too. They will want to be involved.” 

“Understood. I’ll see you tomorrow. Annie make sure your pack is prepared for an oncoming attack. Something tells me the bastards are only getting started.” 

*

*

I hang up the phone and place it back in my pocket. 

“Okay Liam… show me to the pack hospital.” I instruct, while he looks at me in confusion. 

“Why?” he asks curiously as he heads for the door. 

Nate smirks and raises his eyebrows. 

“Because she’s about to do something majorly badass.” 

We follow Liam to the pack hospital which is busy with pack doctors and nurses tending to the wounded warriors and their families. 

The doctor in charge approaches Liam and begins to give him an update on all of the patients receiving treatment. 

“Doctor can you show me to your patients who have been worst affected?” I ask. 

He looks at Liam who nods his approval and sets off down the long corridor of individual rooms, stopping at one abruptly. 

“Are you a doctor?” he asks, eyeing me with interest. 

“No I’m a healer.” I answer matter of factly as I brush past him and push open the door. 

As we enter the room, a nervous looking woman and a teenage boy almost jump out of their skin as they stand to attention for their Alpha. 

“Nora, Jamie… this is Alpha Annie. She can help. Would you mind if she takes a look at him?” Liam asks gently. 

The woman who I assume is the wife, nods slowly, tears pooling in her eyes as she clutches onto her son. 

I give them both a sympathetic smile and step towards the man laid before me in the hospital bed. His head is heavily bandaged, his body littered with cuts and bruises. 

I pull a flip knife from my pocket and slice my palm before moving to make a small cut in the warriors chest. 

I hear the wife gasp in shock but I’m too focused to explain to her. 

“Don’t worry… this is part of the process.” Nate reassures everyone as they look on skeptically. 

I close my eyes and hold my dripping palm over the warriors chest, ensuring droplets of my blood mix with his. 

Over the years I have pretty much perfected my healing powers. My mom tried to teach me what she knew but she never really tapped into them the way I have. 

After a few more seconds I withdraw my hand which is already beginning to heal. 

“Peter? Oh my Goddess he’s moving!” his wife cries out in relief throwing herself down by his side. 

Without delay the doctors dash into action and the groggy warrior begins to wake up from his trauma. 

“He will heal. I’d say he will be back on his feet within the next two days.” I comment as everyone but Nate looks at me through stunned eyes. 

“Now shall we move on to the next?” I ask Liam who nods, a faint smile appearing on his weary face. 

I repeat the process over and over again for each individual while Nate keeps in constant contact with our trackers. 

Eventually after tending to the last warrior, I am engulfed in a tight hug by Liam. 

“Goddess thank you, I don’t know how I am going to repay you for this.” he mutters, leaning back to look at my face. 

I smile and shake my head, my body and mind too tired to formulate a response. 

I feel my body begin to slump a little in his arms as the effects of healing so many begins to kick in. 

“Annie! Annie are you alright?” he asks worriedly, holding me steady with his hands. 

“She’ll be fine she just needs some rest.” Nate answers for me, coming over to swoop me up in his arms. 

Goddess I hate looking so weak in front of anyone but it’s a necessary evil in this case. 

“She can rest here. I’ll have a room made up for her.” Liam states protectively, opening the door for us. 

“No she will want to get home. If we are hosting a meeting tomorrow there will be preparations that must to be made.” Nate replies, his answer reflecting the exact words that I would say. 

I let myself relax as he carries me to the car and sets me down gently in the passenger seat. 

“Annie I’ll see you tomorrow!” Liam calls out as Nate prepares to drive away. 

I nod my head softly and wave as we drive off back towards Blackstone. 

***

“Good afternoon Alpha. How are you feeling?” Nate asks as I decent the stairs to join Tom, Charlotte and him in the lobby. 

“Fine now thanks, I just needed some sleep that’s all.” I answer in return. 

“How many warriors did you heal Annie?” Charlotte asks with slight worry in her expression. 

“Goddess I don’t know I lost count.” I answer, looking to Nate for help. 

“I’d say around twenty odds. It was awesome to watch.” he replies, giving me a wide smile. “I think Alpha Liam’s little crush on you is only going to grow after that display.” 

“Oh shut up.” I reply as Charlotte giggles at Nate’s teasing. 

“So are we prepared for this? How many Alpha’s are we expecting?” I turn to ask Tom who has taken the lead on organising everything for today. 

“There are 15 coming so far. Some are bringing their Betas while others are leaving them behind incase of an attack.” 

I nod my head in response and look around at my team. 

“We have a responsibility to get to the bottom of this. Our pack is the strongest on this side of the country. Others will be looking to us for guidance. Let’s show them what we can do.” I finish as they nod in agreement. 

We walk out onto the driveway as cars begin to stream in. I greet each Alpha in turn, some I have met previously, some I have never met before in my life. 

Finally, the last Alpha to arrive is Josh. He hops out of his car and walks over to me with a serious expression on his face. I’ve never known Josh’s serious side. I’ve only ever witnessed his sweet and caring nature. 

“I’m glad you could make it. Have you had any word yet from your trackers or Beta?” I ask him hopefully. 

He shakes his head in disappointment and looks away from my gaze. 

“No Annie nothing yet. What about your units?” 

“Nothing either… but that’s why we are here. Quick let’s get inside and get started.” 

I direct everyone towards the large conference room on the second floor of the pack house and allow everyone time to take a seat around the large table. 

Being the only woman in the room may cause me to stand out like a sore thumb but I don’t care. I stride over to the front of the table and stand authoritatively with my head held high. I spot Liam from the corner of my eye smiling at me softly, while Josh watches him with interest from across the table.  

“Good afternoon to you all and thank you for making the journey to Blackstone today. As you are aware, we are here to discuss attacks which have been happening across various territories. It is imperative that we come up with a rescue plan today, we must pull our resources in order to track down our missing pack members. Are we in agreement?” I am met with the gentle murmur of approval from the Alphas around the room. 

“Good now lets-“ 

My words are interrupted suddenly by the door in the corner of the room which opens unexpectedly. My senses are immediately hit with the overwhelming scent of pine and musk and my wolf Thea comes roaring to the forefront of my mind. 

I grip the table edge tightly in an attempt to steady myself, as I try desperately to keep my face passive and neutral.  

I watch on in surprise as a man strides into the room, followed by two brutish looking warriors. He stops for a moment to look at me, a scowl painted across his handsome face. He is dressed in a casual black T-shirt that hugs his muscled torso tightly. My eyes drift involuntarily over the tattoos on his strong arms and flick up to his black hair which is styled messily on his head. His grey eyes look back at me scornfully, his brows furrowed as we stare at each other. 

“Mate!! He’s our mate!” Thea calls out in my head impatiently, her instincts trying to influence my body. 

I stay rooted to the spot, unable to move or to back down from the challenging look he is giving me. 

“And who might you be?” I ask eventually, breaking the tension in the room. 

He ignores my question and instead walks over to stand in front of me, folding his arms over his chest. His eyes run over me from head to toe and his lingering gaze leaves me squirming inside. 

“So you are the famous Annie Blackwood.” he mutters, his face contorting in a smirk. 

“Can’t say I have the faintest idea who you are.” I snap back, my anger beginning to rise with each passing second. 

The corner of his mouth twitches in a slight smile before he sits down on an empty chair across from my own. 

“I demand that you identify yourself at once.” I warn, as my warriors stationed around the room stand to attention, ready to fight if need be. 

“Oh you demand it do you?” he chuckles, clasping his hands and looking back at me with amusement. 

“You do not want to test my patience.” I grit out calmly, as everyone watches our exchange silently. 

He watches me for a moment and nods his head. 

“Alright… my name is Kade Knight, Alpha of Moonstone pack. But I guess you could just call me Mate.” he answers, rubbing his stubbled chin with his fingers.