Arise

A couple hour later, I found myself staring at a concrete door. The door to the basement. Not just any door, but the door to the cells. The door that led to the rogue and Logan.

The basement wasn’t what I thought it was. The basement was not even in the Pack House. The Basement was a building in a remote location underground. Only Alpha, Beta, and Delta knew of its location. Since I was unanimously chosen as the new Beta, Caleb gave the okay to bring me here.

It was cold. Colder than I expected. It was dark and dreary, as any basement to a prison should be. Guards were at every level. The lower we got, the colder it became. I had been smart to bring a hoodie.

Caleb stopped in front of a door. “He’s in there.”

I looked at the door contemplating if this was even a good idea.

“You don’t have to do this, you know. I promised to watch you’re back, so just say the word and we will leave.”

Everything came at a price. It was a give and take. A constant push and pull between contrasting things. That was what it was between Logan and me. There was no other way to explain it. Logan was hiding something, and it was up to me to get it out of him. The moment I would open that door, he would pick up on my scent. He’d know exactly why I was here.

I shook my head. “I need answers.” Not just for the pack’s safety, but for my own sanity.

The guard entered a code, and the latch shifted. He pushed it open for me.

My heart betrayed me. It beat wildly against my chest. I stepped pass the threshold. I paused when his voice spoke.

“I figured they’d bring you here eventually. Interrogation is unbecoming of you.”

I closed my eyes. His voice was the sound of home. But it was a voice that lied and betrayed. A voice that would soon answer a million questions.

“You don’t know me anymore.” I closed the door behind me. Caleb had cleared it with the guards that this would be private. No one could hear through the door.

I hadn’t properly seen him until I stepped closer. His eyes were cast down as he leaned against the glass cell.

He sniffed the air before growling. He could smell that the hoodie wasn’t mine. That it was Sebastian’s hoodie. “Isn’t he married?”

His hair had grown down his neck. His beard was thick and full. Dark circles marred his under eyes. Food left uneaten on a tray was pushed to the side. He had a plastic cup in his hand.

Ignoring his question, my voice was low but firm as I said, “You watched as a stranger grabbed me with full intent to kill. You just stood there.”

“You got out of his hold just fine.”

“I got out because you put that knife in my pocket when you grabbed me.”

He looked away.

I wanted to hate him, but seeing him like this. . . It had taken a lot out of me to even be standing here. I could not falter. I came here for answers and I would get them, regardless of my stupid feelings.

“You walked away from the pack weeks ago. You walked away from me. And yet you slipped the knife into my pocket.” My voice stuttered. “I know you, Logan. More than you think I do. You would not have done any of that if they didn’t have some kind of leverage over you.”

He stilled.

“Those rogues have something against you. What is it?” He kept silent. I fisted my hands so tight my knuckles turned white. “Even after everything, you’re still not going to tell me?” He turned away, leaning his head back against the cold glass.

“Maybe the male, whose hoodie that belongs to, can help you.”

I scoffed. Absolutely pathetic.

“You care about this pack. I know you do. You wouldn’t have slipped that knife to me if you didn’t.”

“I don’t care about the pack.”

My eyes burned. “And what about me?”

There was a glimpse of exhaustion. He wanted to tell me everything. “They have my parents. Had them for years.”

I faltered. That wasn’t possible. His parents were dead.

“How?”

He didn’t respond.

I had more questions, but this was a start. Turning away, I made it towards the door. But not before stopping to say softly, “I told you I wasn’t going to be here when you came back. And unlike you, I don’t lie.” With those parting words I made my way straight to Caleb.

My mind was set. No one could stop me, not even Caleb.

I had told him my idea right after talking to Logan. He agreed except he would rather have it be done by an actual interrogator. After a small argument, he led me to a separate room.

It was further down the basement where the hallway was much narrower. The air was cold and stale. The walls were concrete. Nothing could be heard. There were two guards stationed in front of the door. They bowed before leading us through. Caleb punched in four numbers for the padlock and with a noise of release, the door opened. I eyed him quickly and gulped. The plan was for me to go in alone and ask all the questions I needed answered.

The inside resembled the cell Logan was in. A clear four-walled cell with one bench. He was sitting on the bench, limp with his head down. Only when I sat down did he look up.

Caleb told me to appear unamused. Uninterested. The rogue meant nothing to me. He would die in a matter of hours with the silver in him.

He stared back. For one minute that’s how it was, until he cackled.

I jumped.

He cackled boisterously.

They gave him enough antibiotics to keep the silver from killing him, but that didn’t stop the hallucinations. Silver was a poison to werewolves.

I cleared my throat and pulled on my sleeves. “They said your name is Barry.”

He let out a low laugh. “I don’t respond to that name.” His voice was raspy and cold.

“What would you prefer?”

He hacked and spit to the side. “The rogues call me Bandit.”

His putrid scent filled my nostrils. I held in my gag. “Bandit?”

“Yes,” he hissed.

I sniffled. “Why did you attack the pack?”

A hint of a smile sounded in his words. “I was trying to have fun.”

I scoffed and crossed my arms over my chest. “That’s your definition of fun?”

He cracked his neck side to side and leaned back on the bench, almost tipping it over. He was a bit too comfortable for my liking. “I like to surprise packs before taking over.”

“Do you work for the Blood Moon pack’s previous Alpha?”

He inspected the dirt under his nails. “That prick can’t do shit.”

The trackers said his hallucinations came frequently every hour. I had to act fast before they kicked in.

I folded my arms over the table and leaned forward. “Who’s Clara?” I asked, referring to the tattoo he had. When I had stabbed him earlier, he keeled over. That was when I noticed the faint tattoo of a woman’s name right beneath the hairline on the back of his head.

His face morphed into unpleasantness. “None of your concern.”

“Clara Barton was a woman from the Civil War. She helped soldiers get back on their feet. She started the American Red Cross.” I tilted my head to the side. “You’re going to be dead by nightfall. If you won’t answer the questions I need, then let me at least get to know you.”

“She was my mate. She was a nurse.”

I smiled. “Like Clara Barton.”

“She died ten years ago. She looked up to Clara Barton. Knew every little detail about her. Did you know she was called Angel of the Battlefield?”

I leaned back into the chair and asked softly, “What happened?”

“Stampede.” The look of confusion on my face made him continue. “The pack she was in didn’t approve of her becoming the mate of a rogue. The stampede was to kill me and my wolves, but—” he swallowed, unable to finish the sentence.

“You loved her.” I was saying more to myself than to him.

“No shit.” Then followed a moment of silence. He was losing focus. The hallucinations would start soon.

“Why target this pack? Why take Logan’s parents.”

“Whose pack do you think killed my mate,” he spat angrily.

“Where are they?”

“Like I’d tell you. The only way you’ll find them is through me. Logan doesn’t have the slightest clue either.” He laughed at the end. Longer than necessary. I was running out of time. He was already thinking about his mate. I just needed to find a connection.

I kept the conversation light. “Did you live on the outskirts of the territory with your mate?”

“In a small house. Undetectable by trackers. I made sure to cover up our scents.”

“Did you know that some women would dress as men to fight in the Civil War? Did Clara use that idea?”

“They thought she was going to college, but she stayed with me for a whole year without their knowledge,” he said smugly.

“It took them a year before they found you two?”

He smirked. “They never checked the mountains.” He blinked slowly and looked at his hands.

I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him. This pack had hurt badly enough to cause repercussions. He had lost his mate. He was acting on heartbreak.

With my whole heart I said, “I’m sorry for what the pack did. I’m sorry for what it did to you. I’m sorry you’re hurting, Barry.” Because I was. It wasn’t fair what was done to him and his mate. They didn’t deserve it, rogue or not.

He slammed his fists against the cell walls and growl. “Do not give me your pity.” He continued slamming the cell, trying to break free. The handcuffs on his wrists dug deeper into his skin, leaving burn marks.

He started foaming at the mouth in hysterics, screaming then laughing.

Caleb opened the door, seeing the rogue, dragged me out by my arm. His eyes roamed my face before assessing the rest of me, scanning for injuries.

“I’m fine, Alpha.”

His eyes remained concerned.

“But first, do you have any historical papers about the pack? Any articles dating back ten years?”

He nodded. “My office.” He grabbed my hand before I could leave. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

My shoulders slouched. I deeply sighed and closed my eyes, reminiscing on easier days. “No, but I will be after we find his parents.”

“His parents?”

“They’re alive,” I spoke quietly. “They’re being held hostage for whatever happened ten years ago.”

He remained stoic. “Let’s go.”

I grabbed his arm. “Are you okay?”

“We can talk later.” He walked ahead of me, robotically. I frowned. Logan was doing more damage to us than we thought.

Barry had mentioned that his mate died ten years ago because of a stampede. But, Caleb’s father had no recollection of a stampede here ten years ago. He didn’t even have the slightest clue about Barry and Alice. Barry was just a rogue with a motive to kill.

Caleb called every pack in the state. No one had any memory or evidence of a stampede taking place. We had checked the books. Nothing could be found.

“Why is this so hard to figure out. No packs in the entire state have ever even heard of this stampede.” Valerie was flipping through the pages of a book.

Caleb’s eyes widened in recognition and he shook his head with a laugh. He turned to look at us. “No other packs have heard of this because the stampede happened with a pack that doesn’t even exist anymore.” He moved over to the map on the wall and stuck pins around one area, smaller than the territory. “Ten years ago, there was another pack, but my father took it in. Their Alpha died, and no one could take his place.”

Shaw nodded as it dawned on him. “The stampede. The ceremony of accepting an Alpha. The wolves run to the new borders.”

Barry had been mistaken.

I crossed my arms over my chest. “We need to talk to him.”

Alpha nodded and mind-linked the guards. His faced blanched and he groaned. His rubbed his face with hands. Val, worried, put a hand on his arm. “What’s wrong?”

“He’s dead. Seized and choked on his own foam.” He closed his eyes, groaning.

The floor beneath me shattered. Any information we had that could save Logan’s parents was gone.

Shaw swore, popping his neck to the right. “Rosetta, there has to be something—some hint that he gave you when you talked to him. Anything is better than nothing.”

It was a long shot, but he was right. Anything was better than nothing. “Are there any mountains here?”

Barry said that him and Clara had lived in the mountains. I wasn’t even sure if it was a possible location, but it was a start.

Shaw crossed his arms over his chest. “At the very end of the territory, near CeCe’s farmhouse, why?”

The image was becoming clearer now. It all made sense why the rogues where at the farm. Why the rogues were finding way to rob the town. Why Logan was able to meet with them without causing suspicion. They lived just along the territory borderlines. It was the center of their destruction.

“He mentioned that he used to live there. It was undetectable by the Trackers, so no one would know that his mate lived with him.”

Caleb rose up from the couch. “The rogues will soon realize that their leader is dead. It’s going to be a frenzy of people leaving or people trying to gain power. We need to get there during the dissent. There will be too much upheaval, they’ll never see us coming.”

A smirk formed on his lips. “We have less than twenty-four hours. Let’s find our wolves and make it count.”