Intuition

Elijah walked passed his son and into the house without another word. Flint reluctantly followed him in the living room. His father took in the blood on the carpet and the evidence on the coffee table. The smell of StarLight blood hung in the air around them. Elijah eventually turned to meet Flint’s gaze.

“Shift. I will not be having this discussion with your wolf.” He ordered stiffly.

The Alpha growled and paced for a few moments before his bones began snapping and his human skin took shape.

“What?” Flint barked as he stood.

“What the hell have you done, boy?” Elijah retorted.

He snarled angrily and stalked up the stairs. His father sighed heavily and shook his head before following him. Flint was exiting the bedroom. He had pulled on a pair of gym shorts and grabbed his cell phone.

“Go away. I’m busy right now.” Flint grunted as he passed his father to go back down the steps.

Elijah’s temper flared as he again followed his son. He limped down the stairs and into the living room. When he saw Flint again, he was already on the phone.

“I know the alert is out. I fucking put it out.” He stated hastily.

“What else should I do?” Blair replied in a nervous voice.

“I have a powder I need to identify. I think it played a role in what happened to Eve. Come get it and take it to Elkin.” Flint ordered.

“Yes, Alpha.” She answered quickly.

He hung up and opened his contacts to call someone else. Elijah approached and suddenly took the device from him. Flint spun angrily toward him.

“Stop!” Elijah growled in a deep, booming voice.

The memory of this tone had been engrained in him since his youth. Flint automatically paused. He examined his father with rage in his gaze, but he had unconsciously stopped aggressing toward him.

“You need to think about what you’re doing, right now.” He stated. “The pack is doubting you. Strongly. I know you can feel that.”

“I don’t care about the pack! He took Eve!” Flint roared.

His temper flared. He turned and grabbed the broken photo from in front of the book case. He held it tightly as he thrust it forward, showing Elijah.

“Bastian fucking Anderson took Eve! My Eve! My pregnant mate! And those warriors were right fucking here! They-” Flint cut himself off, it felt like he couldn’t breathe.

Elijah’s gaze softened. He remembered the hours after Selena had been taken all those years ago. They were a blur of pain and anxiety.

“He took her, dad.” When Flint spoke again his voice was quiet, broken. “I left her behind and he took her. Again. This time, he got away with her.”

The Alpha threw the photo at his father’s feet and sat on the ground behind him. Elijah took a deep breath and lowered himself to be at Flint’s eye level. He moved closer to his son, drawing his gaze.

“I know.” Elijah’s tone had changed, it was deep and soothing.

“She’s sick. The pup is too strong for her. She’s weak now. Like the power is raging but her body...” Flint pushed his hair back. “She needs me and I left her to be taken by a psychopath.”

“You didn’t leave her. You just brought her home. She was guarded.” He reasoned.

“She’s still gone.” He scoffed.

“So you mauled your warriors?” Elijah sat back and put his cane beside him.

“They were on the porch when she was taken. Right here.” Flint pointed to the spot where he’d found the towel. “Not upstairs in the bedrooms. Not when she was in the shower. Here! They were on the other side of that door!”

“She closed her mindlink. I felt it. You felt it. So did they. You know that means they couldn’t know what her situation was.” His father replied.

“I-”

“You lost control.” Elijah interrupted him.

Flint grunted and nodded stiffly.

“I’ve spoken to their doctors. They are all expected to recover fully.” His father informed him. “Still, the feelings of the pack are turning on you.”

“I already told you, I don’t-”

“And I allowed you to tell me. Once. It will not happen again.” Elijah’s tone became strict. “This pack is yours. Your people. If they lose faith in you, if you lose faith in StarLight, that’s it. Everything we’ve built, it goes down the drain.”

Flint paused. The Dolan legacy had weighed on him for the entirety of his life. As he grew up, it seemed like he was always failing to uphold this heavy weight. It momentarily occurred to him that he had once again done just that.

“I can’t deal with the pack now. I have to find her.” Flint rose to his feet.

“They can help you. They’re a resource to you, not a hindrance.” Elijah braced himself on the coffee table to stand up.

“No one can help me. I have to do this, myself.” He replied.

“You think I found Selena without any help?” Elijah probed.

Flint looked at him curiously.

“I had warriors combing the territory. I had trackers chasing random scents. I had Joshua in the athenaeum trying to locate our enemies.” He explained. “You feel like you have to do this alone? Fine. But you’re risking Eve’s life to do it.”

“What do you suggest?” He sighed and rubbed his face.

“Tell me what you know.” Elijah stated.

Flint told his father everything he’d discovered about Eve’s kidnapping. Blair arrived a few minutes later. She took the baggie of powder and left to get it tested. Flint and Elijah were now talking calmly from their seats on the sofa.

“The pack won’t follow you, if they think doing so will put them in harm’s way. You made them think that very thing when you attacked your own warriors.” His father stated.

“It’s too late to do anything about it now.” Flint replied.

“Graham is coordinating with Duncan on how best to secure the territory and protect our people. You need to get it together and show up at the summit, knowing what you’re going to say for yourself.” Elijah spoke stiffly.

“I’m being pulled in too many directions. I can’t look for Eve, settle things with the other Alphas, get the legend from Noah, fix things with the warriors, lead the pack... It’s too much. I can’t do everything at once.” He exhaled heavily.

“Haven’t you been listening to me, boy? You don’t have to everything alone. We’ll help you.” He sat up and rested his elbows on his knees.

Flint took a deep breath through his nose before nodding tiredly.

“I’ll help you.” Elijah caught his gaze and held it.