Bite Me

Chapter 7

Aliyah

“What’s the situation?” Ryder asks without greeting as we enter the boardroom.

“There have been a series of attacks to outlying packs over the last few months with some serious losses,” Blaze advises, “Some are seeking refuge in allied packs, others have requested an alliance for protection.”

I looked at Ryder to gage his reaction. His hand slipped down to clasp mine, giving it a little squeeze for reassurance.

“How far out are they?” Ryder asked and I could see he was already formulating micro plans depending on the answer.

“At present, they’re 600 kilometres away,” Blaze answered.

Rogan began slowly shaking his head, “The destruction… its unlike anything I’ve seen before, it’s…”

“Exactly as I’ve seen before,” the boardroom doors slammed open, and Carter stood tall in the doorway. “Sorry to intrude, but this little meeting is missing some key information.”

Ryder’s low warning growl as Carter walked into the room set me on edge and I could see Blaze and Rogan were ready to pounce into action with a single word from Ryder.

“Oh, come on mate,” Carter smirked as he continued to walk over to flop into a chair at the table, “You’re not still mad about that are you?”

“What are you doing here, Carter?” Ryder snarled defensively, pulling me in closer.

“Lia, you might want to bring your mate a bone to calm him down,” Carter teased making Ryder stand abruptly; his chair thrown to the ground behind him from the sudden movement.

“You don’t speak to her,” Ryder snapped, his eyes switching from brown to black.

“Oh, I’d be happy to communicate in other ways again,” Carter winked at me and I could feel the blush burning my cheeks.

At Ryder’s booming growl, I moved between them with one hand raised against Ryder’s chest and the other out in front of Carter signalling him to stop.

“Stop. Now.” I warned, looking between them both, “I think we need to hear what Carter has to say.” As he opened his mouth with a smirk, I cut him off as a reminder, “In regards to the attacks only, Carter.”

Flicking his hand, he returned Ryder’s chair behind him and gestured for him to sit down.

With narrowed eyes, Ryder sat waiting for Carter to speak.

“These attacks have been happening for quite some time,” Carter advised as he turned a coin over in his hand while he spoke, “In fact, according to my sources, they stopped for approximately 9 months about 12 years ago from what my sources tell me.”

Frowning, I wondered what he was getting at, “If they’ve been happening for so long, why are we only just hearing about this now?”

“Because it started with the witches, then the Fae’s, the vampires and now, they’re coming for the wolves,” Carter said pointedly.

“That doesn’t explain why you’ve kept this in the dark for so long,” Ryder snapped, “You should have-”

“You may be Alpha of this pack, but you have no jurisdiction in the magic community,” Carter glared back, “I have been busy cleaning up and trying to protect those who could not protect themselves.”

There was a long pause as they both stared at each other before Ryder finally nodded in understanding.

“So why are you here then?” he pressed trying to understand the point of Carter’s sudden arrival.

“Now, isn’t that the question at hand,” Carter smirked before slouching back in his chair again. “Does the name Marama mean anything to you, Lia?”

Frowning, I shake my head cautiously, wondering where he’s going with this question.

“As in the Polynesian and Maori mythology, Marama?” Blaze interjects and Carter’s eyes alight with excitement.

“Ah, perfect, someone does know what I’m talking about,” Carter smiles at Blaze before turning to Ryder and I, “While visiting one of the affected covens, one of the elders showed me the visions of the attack.”

Standing, he closed his eyes summoning his powers and with a flourish of his hands, he projected the vision before us.

Flames licked at buildings as families ran to escape the devastation. I watched as dogs were running into buildings, but then I realised, they weren’t just dogs, they were wolves and they weren’t there to help. Brushing that away like fast forwarding a film, we looked out from the elders eyes in her crouched position, back towards their village coven. I could feel the racing of her heartbeat as if it were my own.

A group of three wolves padded towards us between burning buildings, the smoke making it difficult to get a clear image, before they shifted. The body of a woman front and centre with two men behind her. The man on her left, seemed to wrap his arms around her, drawing her near as he kissed the place her mates mark would exist before murmuring, “Excellent work, Marama.”

The smokey vision cleared and suddenly we were back in the boardroom, each of us unsure of what to say next.

“So, we need to find out who this Marama is, then.” Ryder stated, “Find her and interrogate her.”

Carter looked at me with a crooked smile, “I was able to collect a sample from the village,” clicking his fingers, what appeared to be a test tube appeared before me.

Reaching out to grab it, I squinted my eyes, looking at the single strand of fur inside the vile. “Do you want us to do lab testing on it?” I asked uncertain of what he was getting at.

“No need, I already know whose fur that belongs to,” Carter stated making me look back up from the vile, “Just wondered if you could connect the dots.”

“Stop beating around the bush, Carter,” Ryder growled.

“That there is a piece of white fur, Aliyah,” Carter starred at me and I didn’t dare to breathe, silently praying he would tell me the words I wanted to hear, “Belonging to the only known white wolf – Your mother.”

Gasps sounded in the room, but I barely heard them. I didn’t realise I was crying until I tasted their saltiness on my lips. Lifting the vile up to look at the fur again, I whispered to myself, “You’re alive.” I couldn’t help the soft smile that danced on my lips knowing she was still out there, and we were one step closer to finding her after all this time.

“We have to find her,” I stated to the group, my face suddenly serious. “We have to find her and protect her.”

No one in the room spoke. Looking at each person, they avoided my eyes, “What? We have to find her and-”

“Aliyah,” Ryder sharply cut me off, “If we bring your mother back here, we will put our entire pack at risk. She has killed not just wolves, but witches, fae and who knows what else in cold blood.”

“It will definitely put a target on your back,” Carter agreed making my blood pressure rise.

“That’s my mum,” I stood, glaring at them all, “I can’t just leave her out there.”

“No one said we weren’t going to find her, Luna,” Blaze finally commented, “She’s my family too. But we need to know what we will do with her and what we are willing to sacrifice.”

Tears welled in my eyes as the reality finally began to break upon me, ‘I’ll be forced to chose between my family and my pack.’