‘Til We Meet Again

Chapter 15: Sapphire Rock

"I want what was promised to me, Marjorie! There is nothing else to be discussed. We made an agreement and you will follow through with your end of the bargain. Am I making myself clear?"

"Yes. You have made yourself very clear. However, I am telling you that my son has found his mate and they have marked one another. I do not intend to interfere with Selene's plans."

"You already have." Alpha Braden gritted his teeth and glared at Luna Marjorie.

"What a terrible mistake I made." Luna Marjorie kept her cool under the furious gaze of the brute.

"Christian belongs to this pack."

Luna Marjorie narrowed her eyes at the arrogant Alpha of Sapphire Rock before turning on her heels and exiting his office.

She heard the angered growl from the end of the hallway.

Alpha Braden slammed his fist on his desk. It cracked and splintered from the impact. His wolf was often the voice of reason, but Nolan remained silent. Alpha Braden paced quickly across his office floor.

"We're back."

His Beta's son, Jack, interrupted through mindlink.

"Take him out back. His mother is here."

"Got it."

He exhaled and unclenched his jaw. Whether Marjorie liked it or not, Christian was going to marry his daughter. She had no idea what kind of trouble she was bringing to her little pack.

After a few minutes, Alpha Braden left his office and headed toward the back of the packhouse. The Beta-to-be was standing there with the twins and a couple of their friends. On the ground was an unconscious wolf. He looked beat up pretty badly, but he would live.

"Good work, guys. Now carry him to the guest cottage. Everything is set up already. Armor should be there waiting. He's going to keep an eye on the young Alpha. Meet me in my office."

They all nodded and lifted the wolf, heading in the direction of the guest cottage. Alpha Braden made his way back inside. There was no way he would allow Marjorie to stiff him. She needed to be taught a lesson. Alpha Braden knew just what to do. But his plan had to be executed correctly or it wouldn't work. After a debrief with the boys, Alpha Braden kept Jack behind.

"I have a proposition for you. It involves the daughter of that worm, Marjorie. What I need you to do is court her. That's all."

Jack was quite the ladies' man and he never missed an opportunity of pursuit.

"What's her name? Is she hot?"

"Her name is Paige. She's 15-years old. I don't know what she looks like, but that doesn't matter. Just get her to like you, gain her trust, and bring her here."

"What do you have--" Jack started to question.

"Just do it."

"Yes, Alpha."

"For now, get some rest. Plan ahead. The plan will be put into motion tomorrow." Alpha Braden waved his hand to dismiss Jack.

The 16-year old trotted down to the Beta floor to wash up and catch up on his homework. He wondered where his parents were. He hadn't seen them since just before his early morning training. He hurried through math and completed science with ease. Once he was finished, he went down the hall to see if his mother had made it to her room yet. He knocked and waited.

"Come in, Jack."

He opened the door and leaned against the frame.

"How did you know it was me?"

"I know my pup's scent." She smiled warmly and patted the soace beside her. Jack closed the door behind him and sat next to his mom.

"What's going on, JJ?" She watched him, waiting for his response.

"The Alpha is sending me on a mission tomorrow."

"Oh?"

"I'll have to miss school. Could you talk to my teachers?"

"Of course. What is he sending you to do?"

"Nothing life-threatening, mom." They both chuckled.

"Well, you should get some rest then. Is your homework finished?" Her brown eyes showed concern, although she wouldn't say it out loud. She understood her son would one day be the Beta of their pack, but she wished he didn't have to prove his loyalty through random missions and dangerous situations.

"My homework is finished." Jack smiled and stood. His mom did as well, giving him a playful nudge before walking him to the door.

"My growing Beta child, you should be off to bed then. I'll see you in the morning." She gave him a kiss on the forehead.

"Night, mom." Jack headed back down the hall to his room. He knew he had a long day ahead of him and he was pretty tired from earlier. He couldn't get the scene out of his head. The wolf they bought back to the pack was supposed to be some special wolf. Alpha Braden didn't provide any details, but it seemed serious enough to abduct him in the middle of the night. It was just their luck he had left the packhouse. They were prepared to go in, but his nighttime play made it much easier. It had been a long journey to and from, so Jack was glad to be back home. He climbed into bed and sighed as his eyes began to close. Back at it tomorrow.

Trinity

It happened so quickly. My heart was pounding as I shifted back upon reaching the packhouse. I hurriedly dressed myself and rushed to the Alpha's room. I knocked loudly, hoping I was able to jar him from his sleep. The lock clicked and Alpha Chris stood half-asleep, staring at me in confusion.

"They took him. Christian is gone! Some guys from the Northern territory ..." I could barely speak through the tears. I was so scared for my mate. I didn't know what to do. Apparently, Alpha Chris did. I could only assume he was mindlinking. I heard footsteps on the stairs moments later. A voice belonging to a man carried down the hallway.

"Which way did they go?" I turned to see a tall, brown-skinned man with dark straight hair that was pulled up into a bun. He was shirtless and had on a pair of sweats. I hadn't ever seen him around before.

"Trinity?" Alpha Chris caught my attention again.

"Uh, they took him East."

"I thought they were from the Northern territory." The man frowned and glanced at Alpha Chris.

"They, uh, they had tattoos that are unique to that region."

"Are you sure they went East?"

"I'm positive." I was shaking and nervous.

"Show us." The man turned and walked down the hall. Alpha Chris and I followed. I finally noticed the Beta couple had been at the end of the hall. We all shifted once we made it outside. Carmen raced through the trees, feeling much better. Once we were back in the area, Carmen turned to see the most radiant black wolf. He was huge. He inhaled the air around us and turned to the Alpha. I saw the Alpha wolf nod at him. The Beta female nudged Carmen and motioned for her to follow. I was frustrated because we couldn't even mindlink anyone, but Carmen reluctantly followed her back. We both shifted.

"Go to your room and stay there. The Alpha will come and get you in a moment."

"But--"

Sam raised her hand to cut me off and folded her arms across her chest.

"I can always take you there myself." She tilted her head to the side and watched me walk into the packhouse. I sulked all the way to my room. I was living a new nightmare. There was no way this was happening. I thought things were finally getting better for me. Not only was my mate abducted, but I couldn't help him. Everyone must be thinking exactly what they did when they found out I was Christian's mate. I'm not fit to be a Luna. Christian deserves someone of equal power. Maybe I can't give him that.