The Shadow Alpha

At 5pm the twenty of us made our way to the meadow on the North Border, we made sure that the patrol would make their rounds away from this area and that the entire area would be surrounded by warriors.

I heard from the patrol that the former Alpha and Luna of the Full Moon pack ran along the border on a daily basis, starting with the South border they ran the full perimeter in alternate directions every day, today they were expected to approach from the East. We had Hunter and Jacob follow them along the border to keep an eye on them and make sure that if they strayed from the path we would know immediately.

Everyone took their positions after masking their scents using the potion of alpha blood and wolfsbane and waited for the signal.

“Ears up everyone, we're coming in hot.’ Jacob said through mind link, everyone immediately took a defensive stance and concentrated in the direction we were expecting them to emerge from.

I had caught their scents approaching from miles away and the moment they were in position Devin, Oliver, Amanda, and Zoe pounced on them, catching them off guard. They crashed down causing the ground beneath us to shake and the rest of us surrounded them.

Austin and April both struggled and thrashed violently, they snapped viciously grabbing onto any piece of flesh they could get between their teeth, Hunter and Jacob both in wolf form had to pounce on Austin who was slipping from Oliver and Devin's grip, the moment he was restrained four cuff chains were attached to his and April's legs- who had been firmly pinned to the ground with Zoe's teeth round her neck. Dad and Papa Jamie injected both wolves with a large dose of Wolfsbane and Mercury and in a matter of minutes they were both out like a light.

Mercury acted as a catalyst for the wolfsbane and also prolonged its effect. In a matter of seconds the both of them stopped struggling and their bodies shut down, the dosage that they had been given was enough to keep them down for thirty minutes, any more would have killed their wolves instantly.

Wolfsbane was such that it blocked the bond between a werewolf's human and wolf side, if a wolf is overdosed on wolfsbane they can die from panic when they wake up and are unable to shift back to human form.

We were not interested in killing them, so when they woke up they would be able to shift back and by the time that happens they will have to be in the maximum security dungeons underground already.

By the time we got back to the pack house it was already dinner time, the two unconscious wolves were safely locked away beneath the pack house, both of them had shifted shortly after being placed in the cell, but there was still a large amount of wolfsbane in their systems making them unable to fight and escape.

A device was inserted beneath the skin on both of their chests that would release wolfsbane into their blood streams at regular intervals and if the device is removed it will immediately send a signal to the alarm system as a security breach, we use it on all of our prisoners and it has proved to be a trusty device. It lasts five to seven days and the last dose is big enough to knock the prisoner out, giving us enough time to remove and replace it. Another one of Jimmy's genius inventions that has made the pack a ton of money.

Just as Dad, Papa Jamie, Devin and I were about to step into the dining hall Devin's hand wrapped around my forearm and pulled us to a halt, the two men were deep in conversation and failed to notice us stopping prematurely. We walked a little further from the dining hall and Devin turned to face me, As soon as my eyes landed on his face, I knew that something was wrong.

I chided myself for not being considerate. How could I expect him to just be okay, he had handled it all well till now even though I could see the underlying misery and hope that they weren't the people we knew them to be. Today made it all real, the people he looked up to as his parents were actually frauds and despite the truth I knew it hurt him a lot more than he was willing to say.

Before he could say a word I wrapped my arms around him and hugged him tight, he froze for a second, but quickly hugged me back with just as much ferocity , “I know you're hurting Dev and it's okay, just please don't shut me or the pack out.” He sighed deeply after hearing my words and unwound his arms from around me.

“I'm not pushing you away Allie, I just... I don’t know. It all feels too surreal. Who would have thought that the man I looked up to as a dad and as an Alpha is actually working against everything he taught me, who knew that the woman who tucked me in at night after I had a nightmare isn't actually my mother. My entire life has been a lie Allie and I just feel so lost.”

“We weren't ever close and for many years I tolerated him, but never in my wildest dreams would I have predicted that something like this was the realty.” I knew that he needed to get it all out, but this was not the place to be doing it.

I took his face between my palms effectively shutting him up, his eyes softened as they stared into mine.

"Come out for a run with me.” I said and he nodded mechanically. I mind linked Papa Jamie letting him know that Devin and I had something to attend to and that they should excuse us for tonight. We walked in silence to the edge of the forest where we shifted and took off running immediately. Our senses were heightened, the feeling of the wind through my fur had a calming effect on me and by the look of content in his eyes I knew he felt it too.

He needed this, he needed to escape the confines of his mind and what better place to do that, than the forest?

Werewolves become one with nature the day they are born, even in years before our first shift we are in touch with our love for nature. It's familiar and comforting to be out in the open, in seemingly the most vulnerable state yet actually the strongest.

Soon enough his playful nature came out and I knew he was loosening up, we raced and play wrestled for what seemed like hours before we decided to trot back to the pack house. The whole time my mental wall was up, not strong enough to keep everyone out but enough to let them know not to disturb me unless it was urgent.

Despite being with my mate and focussed on him, my senses were heightened and my subconscious wary of the ever present danger that loomed beyond my pack borders. We couldn't allow any room for error or it could cause our destruction and ultimately the demise of all pack life. No pressure...

Once we were dressed I took his hand in mine and we walked to the pack house which was now a lot quieter than when we left, a tell-a-tale sign that most of the pack had retired for the night. We walked up to our rooms to have a shower and agreed to meet in mine once we were both done.