The Heart Of The Alpha

Drew “What’s taking so long?” “Frank, calm down.” I clasp my brother on the shoulder. “I know you’re anxious, but you must be patient.” “That’s easy for you to say,” Frank grumbles. I drop my hand from his shoulder and sigh. “That was a shitty thing to say, Frank!” Damian snaps. “I should break your neck for that!” Jai growls. Jai is two years younger than me, Damian is a year younger than Jai, and we’re the eldest of eight. Plus, we’re the only boys; Mom and Dad ended up with five daughters after us, poor bastards. “I’m sorry, Drew, I didn’t mean that.” “It’s fine,” I brush off his comment because I’m not going there again. I’ve spent the past year and a half trying to find my mate after she left me, and I don’t need a damned reminder that she’s nowhere to be found. But I heard her voice in my head today. When we pulled up near this awful place, I heard Emery call my name and ask me to help her. She has to be here somewhere. Once the women we’ve found here are safe, I’ll find Emery. I can’t return home until she’s back in my arms. How could I when Emery is everything to me? I’ve never given up searching for Emery, but it fuckin.g hurts like hell that I couldn’t find her. No matter where I have been, Emery wasn’t there. I spent a long time wondering if my mate wanted to disappear, to get away from me, but I didn’t believe that deep down. Emery and I loved each other too much for one of us to leave the other. A straightforward shopping trip led to an argument between us. I didn’t want Emery to go alone, yet she went anyway, and I never saw her again. All these months, wondering if she left because I upset her was stupid to think. Emery was a spitfire and would never run off because of something so ridiculous. She would have waited for me to return home from pack business and give me what for. Goddess, I miss her sassy ways. “It’s not fine, Drew. This situation might be different, but you still lost your mate, and Frank should. . .” “Enough,” I growl. “We’re here for Chloe, nothing more right now.” I should tell my brothers that I heard Emery’s voice in my head. I should prepare them for not returning home with everyone else. I need Jai and Damian with me when I search this area for Emery. But there isn’t time yet. I know they’ll come with me; I just hope I’m successful this time around. “Alpha,” Rico, my head warrior, bows slightly. I recently became the Alpha of Crimson Moon Pack, which some would say was crazy. Before we mated, my mate belonged to Crimson Moon, and anybody would think I’d leave well enough alone. I’d say they were the crazy ones to believe a man wouldn’t want to be near his mate. Okay, Emery isn’t there physically, but her spirit still lingers there. Fine, it wasn’t easy at first, and I would have given anything not to be at Crimson Moon, but there was no choice. I didn’t ask to take over the pack, but the previous Alpha said things he should not have said. I had to silence him, but in doing so, I became the Alpha. I could have handed the pack over to someone else, but my father and grandfather wouldn’t allow me to. Dad said that I’d taken it upon myself to kill, so I needed to be responsible for the pack. Being there at the packhouse reminded me of my lost mate. I thought it would be so good for me to be in a place Emery was raised, but it just hurt. Everywhere I looked, I saw her, and it was worse than being at Gray Shadows. We’d shared our lives at Gray Shadows, and it was killing me to be there without her. But being at Crimson Moon was no better. I was fucke.d, but what could I do? I didn’t want to change anything about the packhouse, but I did so anyway. The place reeked of the previous Alpha, and I couldn't stand it. The second I laid eyes on the place, I knew I couldn’t be there until every tiny thing about the house and pack lands had been changed. Having Emery’s family part of the pack hasn’t been easy. I can’t even escape them because her sister works in the packhouse as part of the staff. Kelly begged me not to fire her or throw her out of the pack, which confused me to all hell. Why would I have fired her just because she’s Emery’s sister? Emery left me, but that didn’t mean I had to take it out on her family. However, Kelly proceeded to bang on about finding Emery, that she wouldn’t have left me just like that when she loved me. I’d heard it all from Melissa, Jai’s mate when she first arrived at Gray Shadows. My brother’s mate snapped me out of my self-inflicted misery and helped me realize that I couldn’t give up on Emery or myself. I haven't given up and will never give up on Emery. I searched for months, only taking a break when I almost lost myself to grief. But I must admit that I’m finding it increasingly hard not to give up on myself. When Chloe, Frank’s mate, was kidnapped, he went postal. His Wolf lost control a couple of times, which wasn’t good. But Jai took charge. Even with a pregnant mate at home, Jai has been with me one hundred percent through all of this. It has been so hard for me not to crumble or succumb to that hopeless feeling that sets in my gut. When Jai held me while I cried, I knew having my brother as my Beta was the best decision I had ever made. Jai took charge of our operation today, and all I could do was stand back and watch in awe. Coming across a human trafficking ring was the last thing anyone expected. That’s the kind of stuff that happens in movies until it happens to you. I am so scared that that’s what happened to Emery. If it did, I’ll never get her back. If I do, she won’t be the woman I once knew. There are so many Alphas from all walks of life working on this trafficking case with us. Hundreds of people are fighting to bring this shi.t show to an end. I pray to the Moon Goddess that Chloe is somewhere inside the warehouse we’re standing outside of. All of this effort cannot have been for nothing. Does it bother me that we could have found Chloe in less than a week, while I haven’t found Emery after a year and a half? You bet it fuckin.g does. But if I can help bring my Gammas mate home, then at least I did something right. We don’t have the names of the men who took Chloe yet, but we do know who’s running this trafficking operation. Hopefully, we’ll be able to locate the cun.t sooner rather than later. Only then can we shut this shi.t down for good. “What is it, Rico?” “Frank!” “Chloe!” My Gamma takes off towards his mate, now walking out the front door. She looks a little bruised and dirty, but I can’t sense any real damage. Thank the Goddess for that. I close my eyes in relief because seeing Chloe alive was the best outcome. Frank wraps Chloe in his arms as she sobs into his neck. I can’t even begin to imagine what she’s been through, and after the life she had before meeting Frank, this is just another thing to add to the long list. But I’m sure she’ll get through it with Frank’s help. “Alpha,” I look at Rico. “There’s something you really ought to see,” “How many women are in there?” Rico sighs. “Six. Paul and Benji are bringing the other four out now. There were three men, but I put them down. I know you said to take them alive, but I didn’t have any choice. The bastards transformed, and they were black bears, Alpha.” Interesting. Black bears are the Bear King's guards, so what the fuc.k is going on? The Lycan King won’t be happy we didn’t bring one in alive. But there’s nothing I can do about that now. What’s done is done. “Don’t worry, Rico, you did the right thing.” It would have been easier if the men had been brought to me alive. You can’t question a dead man, but it is what it is. Jai may still yet be able to read their minds using his vampiric gift. It should work as long as they haven’t been dead for more than ten minutes. If he can’t, we’ll have to keep fighting until we get answers from someone else.