Behind The Alpha Book 5 Deacon

DEACON

The helicopter blades pounded out its rotation in my ears, but it was no match for my heart slamming my ribs as I get information from Alex. They’re losing.

‘Upton. 5 minutes.’

The pilot announces over the headphones. I stand up and look out the window. “Oh my God.”

What I see makes my eyes heat. I’m joined by Sawyer and Peter. I swallow at the sight on the ground.

Alex wasn’t kidding. It is a fucking army.

From the air, it’s a sea of sick rogues. Organized as a massive pack and crashing against the walls of my fighters to get in and destroy everyone, including Jenny.

The rising dust clouds are thick as the dogs run from the desert. I can almost smell them. Their dark figures are like a stampeding herd through the dirt. I look to Sawyer with worry. There’s hundreds.

He places a hand on my shoulder. “We can do this.”

I nod and look back out the window.

The army of broken, infected wolves stretches all around my town. They definitely know what they’re doing, but we hold one advantage. If a rogue is fed their own, they will kill it, so that’s the plan. Feed as many rogues to each other and let them help by killing themselves.

“We need the leader! We need Michael! You spot him, announce his arrival as soon as he’s made!” Sawyer yells to us over the noise of the chopper. “And unit 1. We need him alive.”

The rest of the Phoenix Alphas nod in agreement.

I look out to the skies on the other side. “Who’s that?” I yell and point to the black dots coming our way.

Sawyer looks out and smirks. “Back up.” He says. “It’s Falcon.”

I look to see the black dots change to helicopters and a wave of relief comes over me. We have a good chance of winning this thing.

‘One minute to deployment.'

“GET READY! WE JUMP AND SHIFT MIDAIR!” Sawyer barks.

I quickly undress and put my wolf pack on as the helicopters turns into position along side the six others with us. Quick glance shows Falcon doing the same.

Sawyer opens the side door and we are hit with wind, sand and the stench of death. I squint my eyes and shield my eyes from it. The death growls from the ground fill our chests and ignite a rage I never knew I could possess.

Sawyer looks at me. “Good luck.”

“You, too.” I give a two finger salute. I step back to the other side of the deck and run. Once I hit the door, I jump out into the sky with arms and legs out. Wind whips my hair and makes my ears pop as gravity pulls my body to the ground in a short 20 foot drop. I call the wind and my body rearranges in the fall, over the blood being spilled beneath me.

A quick look shows the open sky above the fight turn dark as fighters, shifting to wolves, begin falling from the surrounding helicopters of the two security units.

The ground comes quick and my wolf tucks. He rolls a bit and gets to his paws quick. He immediately looks for something to kill.

He rushes a rogue running toward my town. Bowling him over into a few others, he scraps and bites at anything he can. The taste of the sick wolf in my mouth made me feel sick, but I used that to fuel my strength and anger. They dare defile my town with their disgusting existence. I will have zero remorse for the wolves I kill today.

My wolf shakes vigorously at the throat I have in my jaws. The rogue screams in pain as his friends run by us to the town line. They apparently have tunnel vision.

‘Feed these assholes to their friends!’ I link out.

I rip out the throat I have and jump another one. My wolf lifts him up and throws him into a small cluster of his pack mates. I stand and watch the result, ready for his friends attention to be redirected to him and tear him apart for the hit. Instead, what I see makes my wolfs eyes widen.

The rogues get up and shake. Then they help the one I threw to his feet and check him out. What the fuck?! That is NOT normal!

Even in all the noise of the growls, yelps and barks, I heard their growls turn on me. Their lips curl into a snarls as they bare their teeth.

‘Uh…guys? Plan A isn’t going to work!’ I link as my wolf turns tail and the cluster runs after me.

‘SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!’ I repeat in my head as I push my wolf faster over fights and scrambles. ‘I NEED HELP!’

I jump past William and River, who kill the one they have. They look up as I turn and join them. River looks to us. ‘Let’s do this.’

William seeming doubles in size and we all lunge for the group.

They jump at us and we clash. The ball of six wolves rolls across the sand and coats it in blood as we rip them open and spill their guts.

Once dead, I reassess. I see a group of three heading to where Alex is and take off.

I grab the one in the middle by the tail and he curls around, snapping his jaws at my head. I let go and pile on him. He tries to push me off but I go for the throat. He screams as his jugular explodes in my teeth and his blood soaks into the soil.

I stand, spit out his flesh and run toward Alex who’s fighting off two that are trying to break through his defense. I jump, plant my paws on the back of another fighter and jump again. My wolf flies through the air with open, angry jaws. He lands on a rogue that had Alex in his bite. Side by side, Alpha and Beta tear the wolves apart.

‘You ok?’ I link.

‘Yeah. Just extremely pissed!’ He replies.

‘Kill them all.’ I growl.

We rush the army and pick out our next victims. Enforcers are all around me, fighting off the rabid dogs with everything they have. No one is getting past this line.

A loud dark growl erupts from the pack war.

Alex and I stop and turn to it.

A midnight black lycan is thrashing his way through the fight to get to us.

‘IT’S MICHAEL! ISABELLA!’ River yells through the link.

‘QUINN!!’ Sawyer orders.

From the right a black, shining lycan with blue gold eyes rises out of the wolf fur. From the left a blonde lycan with gold eyes.

My head flicks between them all. Michael swells and looks even more demonic with his yellow/green glowing eyes. “Bring it!!” He growls darkly.

Quinn and Bella run at him at the same time.

I’m jumped from the side and bowled over. My wolf bites a limb and crushes it. The rogue goes down, kicking and screaming. I put him out of his misery. Before I kill another, I look to Quinn and Bella. Bella is trying to lock Michael down as Michael backhands Quinn, sending him flying across the fight.

‘They need help!’

‘On it!’ Gideon responds. ‘I’m coming, doll!’ Gideon’s black wolf explodes out of the ocean of violence and grabs Michael’s arm. Michael grabs his scruff and throws him away. He punches Bella in the head, sending her to the ground. Quinn attacks from behind, his massive Lycan arms wrapping around Michael’s chest in a hold. Michael jumps high into the air, taking Quinn with him and lining up. He falls and Quinn’s back slams into the hard desert earth. His lycan screams and he let’s go. Michael stands, grabs Quinn by the throat and proceeds to deliver several punches to his head.

I look to Alex. ‘Go. We got this.’

I nod and take off. I need answers and Michael’s the only one with them.

The Alphas surround him. RyCal tears at his back as Grey stands with me, holding his thighs. As much as we want to, we can’t kill him. Not yet. Gideon, William and Darcy grab his arm and shoulder on one side while Brody, Peter and Luke have him on the other. He’s still fucking fighting. I can’t believe this.

He screams out a loud growl as he lifts his one arm, throwing Darcy and William into the battle. He tossed them like they were nothing. Gideon was hanging on for dear life, locking his jaw.

RyCal uses his weight to bring Michael to his knees. Quinn grabs his head and brings him to his back as the Alphas crowd him.

‘IRONS!’

As soon as Sawyer barked the order, we were all jumped. Every rogue surrounding us, jumped our backs and we were forced to let Michael go. It’s like they all of a sudden clued in. Like control. Is someone controlling them?

I shift and pull off my pack. I quickly scramble for my gun with iron in it. I stand, whip my arm straight out in front of me, aim and fire a single shot. The bullet flies through the fight and finds its target. I watch as he stands and his eyes meet mine. The bullet penetrates and sinks into Michael’s brain between his eyes.

Like the shot was deafening, all the rogues stopped. Froze. We all looked around at the eerie sight of it all. They looked confused. Like they were searching for answers. Their heads turning to one another. They didn’t seem to even recognize that our fighters were still around them.

My brow furrows as I lower my weapon and I turn to Michael, who falls to his knees, his eyes lock with mine and he falls on his face.

River pushes through the growing crowd of Alliance fighters. “Mike?! Mike!” He drops to his knees next to his friend to inspect him. “YOU WEREN’T SUPPOSED TO KILL HIM!” His face twists into ugly anger and his tear filled eyes flare at me. In his mind, he’s tearing me to pieces. I can see it.

I open my mouth to defend myself and the area fills with pants, whines and paws. I look out to the battlefield and the rogues, or what’s left of them, all run back out into the desert, barking and crying like I just saved them or they’re scared shitless. I’m so fucking confused.

“MIKE!!” River screams as he shakes his friend and lowers his head to his. I know this is a shitty outcome, but he was rabid. What are we supposed to do?

“RIVER!” Quinn drops to Michaels other side and grabs Rivers head to gets his attention. “He’s not dead. Just subdued. Iron doesn’t affect him like it does us. Once we remove the bullet, he’ll be fine, but we need him locked up.”

Rivers cheeks are wet and his face full of pain as he nods in acknowledgment. He looks to me.

“I…I’m sorry. It’s all I could do. He…” I try to explain.

River puts up a hand and turns. He stands and walks away. Jayson puts an arm around his shoulder and talks with him as they walk back to the helicopters.

I feel like shit, but I had to do something. I believe he was directing the rogues. I take out his brain and the communication link would be broken. I didn’t want to kill him, but the fact that the rogues are gone, tells me I was right to do what I did. Besides, he was a threat to my pack and I have a right to defend it any which way I need to. River can be pissed all he wants. My people are safe. Jenny is safe and that’s all I’ll ever care about.

Speaking of which.

I throw my gun back in my pack and shift. Like my paws were on fire, I book it back into Upton.

“DEACON!” Alex yells as I zoom passed him. I’m not stopping until I get to my girl. She’s probably so scared.

I run through the empty streets to the east side of town. My wolf pants heavy with exhaustion, fear and anger still left in me. His paws skid on the road as I turn down Jenny’s street.

I jump, shift and land my bare feet on the sidewalk where her front door is. I slam into the door. Pulling on the handle, it’s locked. I bang, in a panic, on the glass. “JENNY! JENN, OPEN THE DOOR!!”

I search the glass for any sign of her. “Come on. Where are you?” I say to myself as I bang on the door again.

“Deacon?” I hear muffled inside.

I smile huge and excitement overflows. “Yeah! Baby, it’s me!!” I bang the glass quickly.

She runs to the door and I grab the handle at the ready. She unlocks it and I pull it open the second she does.

“Deacon!” Her voice is shaken and scared. I crush her in a hug. “Deacon.” She cries.

I hold her so goddamn tight and kiss her face as her fear is felt all the way to my wolf, who is increasingly raging because my baby’s scared. “It’s OK. I’m here. I’m here.” I pant as I hold her cheek and kiss her relentlessly.

“Are you ok?” I ask as I lock with her eyes.

She nods. “I was so scared.” She squeaks as she fights her tears.

“I know. I’m so fucking sorry I wasn’t here. It’s over. They’re gone now.” I kiss her multiple times. “Um…strip down and shift. I’ll escort you to the pack house.”

She nods and takes off her clothes. She shifts to the prettiest blonde wolf I’ve ever seen.

I pack her clothes into my wolf pack. “Can you see?”

Her wolf barks and nods.

“Good girl. Follow me.” I shift and take her through the streets to the pack house.

‘Alex. Debrief in five minutes. I have Jenny and we’re headed to the pack house.’ I link.

‘There’s something you need to see, Dea. You need to come back here. The Alliance is gone with Michael and I don’t know what to make of it.’

I stop and turn to Jenny. ‘OK. Be there in five.’ I motion to Jenny’s wolf to follow.

We run back to where the battle was. I see Alex in the field, standing over a pile of dead wolves. I shift and walk to him. Jenny’s wolf whines as she eyes all the bodies.

I stop her and squat down. “You don’t have to follow. Go stand over there. You don’t need to be in this.” I gently pet her wolfs soft fur and kiss her forehead as she whines again. She presses her head to mine as I stroke her ear in a hug. I stand and watch her turn back to sit outside of the blood and death.

I sigh and push down the hatred I have for making me have to bring her into this. If Michael isn’t “sick", I’m fucking killing him myself. I turn back to Alex and walk to his side. “What did you find?”

“Besides the weird behavior? I found these.” He holds up two chain necklaces. I take them from him. My brows stitch together as I hold them up in front of my eyes.

“They were around the neck of those two.” He points to the ground and I follow his direction. The dead rogues sat on the edge of the pile which stunk even worse than live ones. I turn my attention back to the chains.

At the bottom of each is a vial that hangs on them. I lift one up and tip it sideways. Each is about two inches long, cylindrical and capped with a black cap. Inside is a dark red liquid. It’s real, I watch it flow from one end to the other.

“What is it?” I ask.

Alex shrugs. “I don’t know. I hoping you knew.”

I slowly shake my head. “I’ve never seen this…” I roll a vial in my finger tips as I stare into the translucent liquid. “Or maybe I have…” I say to myself quietly.

“Well…” Alex waits for an answer.

I analyze for a second more then palm the vials. “I’m not completely sure, but I know people who will know. I need to see the council asap. If this is what I think it is, we’re all in serious trouble.”

He looks at me with concern. “OK. I’ll call the chopper.” We both shift, collect Jenny and run back to the pack house.

The discovery of this is deeply worrying considering what happened the last time we saw this. It was supposed to be taken care of years ago, but if my suspicions are correct, it’s out now and no one is safe from its affects.