SWNOVELS Chapter Chapter Seven
A few hours later I was sitting on a log in front of a campfire. It seemed Jonah, after hearing the fact there were more survivors from the past waiting to be rescued, had somehow called a halt to our journey. I do not know how, as he had not said anything aloud, but we had quickly stopped moving.
When I stepped out of the buggy with Jonah’s help, because it seems he is very protective of me no matter the circumstance, I saw men appearing around us in the dark.
Some of Jonah’s men got busy starting the campfire and carrying over a fallen log for me to sit on. No one spoke to me and no one came to sit near me once I sat down. Some seemed to stand guard around us and some were sitting on the ground on the other side of the fire.
As for Jonah, he was standing a few feet away from me talking quietly to a man who was just as tall as him but slightly leaner. The man he was speaking to suddenly noticed I was watching them and met my eyes. A small, gentle smile graced his lips and said something to Jonah while still looking at me.
Suddenly Jonah turned towards me and came my way, with the man following.
Kneeling on the ground in front of me, Jonah took my hands in his. He smiled and said, “Emilia, this is Marcus. He is my Beta. This means he is like my second-in-command.”
Marcus stepped forward and bowed a little, “Nice to meet you, Emilia. I’d shake your hand but it seems my Alpha here has a bit of a possessive streak and is claiming you anyway he can.” He laughed loudly and shook his head, “Don’t worry, he’s still an alright guy and knows he has nothing to worry about from me.”
I stared at him with a slight smile, glancing from him to Jonah and back. Marcus seemed much more approachable than Jonah, and even though he was attractive- he still was not as attractive as Jonah.
Licking my lips, since my throat was dry, I smiled at him and said, “It’s nice to meet you too... um.. but if you don’t mind me asking, what can I do for you?”
Both Marcus’s and Jonah’s eyebrows rose and a smile graced their lips, but Marcus was the one that laughed once again. Marcus knelt also and responded, “What makes you think you can do anything for me?”
Feeling a bit more comfortable and confident around someone who seemed so normal, I laughed.
“No one here has spoken to me other than Jonah and now you. So you must need something from me. And seeing as you were speaking to Jonah right after I told him about my plane crash, I would bet it has something to do with that.”
Marcus looked at me with wide eyes and then chuckled and glanced at Jonah, “You have a very smart mate, Jonah. You are lucky.”
Jonah grunted but smiled as he stared at me happily.
Marcus continued, ” Well, Em- May I call you Em? It doesn’t matter. I’ll still do it, now. You told Jonah that almost all the survivors are still there waiting to be rescued. I am wondering what you can tell us about them?”
At first, I was slightly irritated. He already found a nickname for me without caring whether I was okay with it or not. But a part of it was so normal and comforting that I realized I did not really care.
My brows furrowed and I pulled my hands from Jonah’s to cross my arms, “Well, if I remember correctly there are 48 people still there. Five of us went for help- three of us are female. I know another girl was caught with me a-and auctioned off. And- wait, wait, what does this have to do with anything? Are we going to help them?”
Marcus glanced at Jonah and this time Jonah spoke to me, “Emilia, mine. Of course, we will help them. But we must know what we are walking into and how many people we may need to help. And, you must understand, though we will still help them, this is a world where there are way too many men compared to women. Many men have never even seen a woman, and it will be easier to find more men to help if they know there may be something in it for them.”
He must have seen my eyes widen in horror as I was about to respond because he quickly shook his head and continued speaking.
“No-no, not like that. I have told you how you are my mate. You were quite literally made for me. There was no other woman I could be with, no other to compliment and be with me as you are. My kind, shifters, all have a true mate. But, in this world we live in, with so few females, many of us have gone without finding our mate. Lines have died off and some are even left to wonder if somewhere else around the world their mate is with another or has been kidnapped and auctioned off like at The Gathering.”
He reached for my cheek, staring into my eyes as his eyes turned golden and he began to breathe heavily. I was not sure why or why I knew touching him would make it better, but I did. So, I reached up and placed my hand on the one of his that was on my cheek.
As he calmed down, Marcus decided to continue Jonah’s speech. “Em, we only ever know our mate by being near her. It’s all a mix of smelling her scent, looking into her eyes, touching her, and even simply being in her presence. So, we only ever find our mate when we basically meet her. But in this world, we may never find her, or we may and she could already be married with a family. Or she may have been through something terrible, like way too many females do these days, and cannot stand the idea of being with another. And none of us would force her. At least not here. So the idea that, like you, there may be more women who have come from the past that could be any one of our mates...”
Marcus seemed to close his eyes and take a deep breath. When he opened them, I could see something like longing fill his eyes, “Any one of us would fight to help another if it meant just one more of us would find happiness and be able to have a family.”
My eyes softened at seeing his reaction. I glanced from him to Jonah once more and then finally nodded, “I understand. Well, I’m sorry that I don’t know ages or anything. Or how many are single or not. But, I am pretty sure I was told that 28 were female and 20 were male.”
I heard gasps and glanced up to see all of the men staring at us from different areas of the camp they had set up.
I had not been paying attention but apparently, they had all been listening in to our conversation and agreed. But I was wondering why they all suddenly had such a reaction where they all drew my attention.
I glanced back at Jonah and Marcus, seeing them also staring at me with wide eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Shaking his head Marcus just fell back on his haunches as Jonah finally moved to sit next to me on the log.
As I turned towards Jonah, he wrapped his arms around me and smiled, “The second I smelled you, I knew my life was about to change. For the better. But I didn’t realize just how much and that you would also help to change the lives of my men.”
I frowned looking up at him as much as I could, while in his arms. “But... I don’t understand, I told you they may not even be available or young enough.”
Jonah shook his head and laughed quietly, “Emilia, you are mine. And you have given us so much hope simply because you said there are 28 females. That is such a large number that even if we find only one more of our mates there, it will be wonderful.”
I blushed and looked down then suddenly looked back up, “There are also two children, by the way. We need to help them, soon. I don’t know how long I’ve been gone and how far away we are. But there were significant injuries to many people. By the time we get to them, there may not be as many people alive.”
Jonah nodded and stood up, forcing me to stand up also because I was still in his arms.
Looking over I saw Marcus had quickly left and was talking to some men before they left, blending into the darkness and disappearing.
As Marcus started talking to more men, I saw some more men leave in a different direction and then I saw others start to gather everything. I looked over at Jonah and asked, “Where is everyone going? What’s going on?”
Looking down, he told me, “I am Alpha of this pack. But we are not the only pack. We are not even near our own territory. Our territory isn’t even in Texas. So, some of my men were sent to the nearest pack of the location where you thought the plane was- based on the description you gave us. Some others were sent to the pack nearest to us to ask for some help and to send a message to our pack. We are beginning to get ready because once the pack members get back with some help, we will begin heading that way.”
I was excited we would soon be going to help those who needed it but I was still both confused and a little wary.
“I don’t know much about shifters... but I have read some books- enough to know that I would think it weird for other packs to offer their help.”
Jonah nodded, “Normally that would be true, but they also have mates out there and they will be likely to help because they may find theirs.”
I tilted my head a little as another thought occurred to me, “Jonah, I doubt all of your men are here and I’m sure there are more that are unmated based on what you told me. So, what if one of their mates is at the crash and they aren’t there to tell?”
He didn’t respond immediately and when I looked up at him I saw him looking at me with something that looked like love and pride in his eyes. He also had a big smile on his face and I could not help but think to myself about how nice his smile was.
“You are already sounding like a Luna. You are perfect,” he said while staring into my eyes.
“Luna?”
He chuckled and shook his head, “Luna is like the Alpha Female. It is what you are. Anyway, my men won’t get here in time to help. But that is part of the reason why some of the men will be sending the pack a message. I hope, when we find your plane survivors, that we will be able to have all my unmated males look for their mate. Obviously, not everyone will find their mate. And the other packs we have spoken to will probably be doing the same thing. Soon, word will spread to other packs long and far, for them to also come to look- hopefully before the human men hear.”
At his last statement, I felt my eyebrow raise in a silent question and he answered with a humorless chuckle, “It is one thing if a female chooses to be with a human male. But many human males, at least around here, have taken to having a more ruthless approach- such as The Gathering.”
I nodded, remembering just hours ago having been tied up as men fought for me and one even bought me.
I opened my mouth to ask him something but a howl cut through the darkness that was beginning to lighten as it approached morning. Suddenly, more howls followed.
Jonah stood in front of me, suddenly very tense.
I looked up, confused, as Marcus appeared next to us, standing slightly past Jonah but before me. Weren’t they the good guys?
Noticing my confusion, Marcus grinned at me and gave a quick wink before saying, “Alpha males, mates, and other packs don’t make the best mix, Em.”
My eyes widened in understanding as I blushed. I slowly reached forward and laid a hand on Jonah’s back and he relaxed a little- a real little.
Suddenly, I saw many wolves approach and appear in the dark. There seemed to be many that were tan-colored, unlike the black I recalled Jonah being. One man suddenly walked from behind them. He must have stopped to change further back because I remembered, with a blush, that Jonah had been naked when he had shifted earlier. I had just been too shaken to notice until later.
The new man stopped a few feet from us, seeming to stare right at me as I was peeking from behind Jonah. Quickly he looked at Jonah with a placating smile, as a growl tore through Jonah when he had looked at me.
The man held up his hands, “Alpha Jonah, I mean no disrespect. I just was amazed at how you have found your Luna and how she came to be here. Forgive me. I am Alpha Tyler. I am one of my pack’s many mateless wolves. So, three-quarters of my mateless wolves and I will be traveling with you. But you do not need to worry about your Luna or her safety, from us or anyone else, as we are together. The rest of my mateless wolves will join us once my men here have a chance to see if they will be graced by the fortunate accident with their mate. If they have not, they will go to watch my pack and replace the others. As I am sure you are doing as well.”
Jonah gave a terse nod, “Yes I am, Alpha Tyler. I hope you are blessed as I am.” He turned slightly so I could be more visible but didn’t move, “This is my mate and Luna, Emilia. As you can probably understand, my wolf will not allow you to meet her any more than that.”
The other Alpha, Tyler, seemed to have a slight smirk but nodded, “Of course. Now, if you are all ready. We should be going before the sun comes up. It will be getting hot soon and we will want to be there before the sun is at its peak.”
Jonah nodded and looked at Marcus. They didn’t say anything for a few seconds but then Marcus nodded and left, which I thought was weird. But I shrugged it off as Jonah grabbed my hand and brought me back to the buggy.
We climbed in and Jonah, once more, grabbed me and brought me to his side. This time he was tense, though.
Then we began to move and I could not help but smile. I was not sure what the future had in store for me or whether I could trust Jonah fully. I did not know if I would be able to get over how we had met- though if I was being honest I was already starting to slow. But I knew I was making progress because we were going back to help the others.
I just hoped everyone at the plane crash site, and the others who had been sent out to find help- especially Clarisse and the girl who had also been auctioned off- were okay. Once I finished this mission, I would make sure everyone was okay. Even if I had to search for them. Even if I had to enlist the help of the man holding me to his body protectively.
But first, I needed to save everyone I could- everyone who had waited at the plane for five people they did not know to help them- and I would. Finally.