Freefall-Book One

Chapter Seven

               Chapter Seven

             Her words hit me like a ton of bricks.  They’re after her?  Who are they offering as a trade?  My thoughts reel as I try to picture anyone missing from my pack.  Matt.  Matt’s the only one who didn’t go on the run last night.  He rarely does.  He doesn’t like shifting, even though he’s comfortable with his body, as most ten year old little boys are.  Matt.

                “Find Matt,” I choke out, running a hand through my hair.  I turn on my heel, leaving my Sofia sitting so forlorn on the large bed.  I can’ think about her right now.  My duty is to the pack, even if I can feel her hurt and her pain.  She warned me, though.  She told me when this first began that if I followed through on what my wolf wanted to do, there would be no going back.  That they would come for her, and we would all die.  I didn’t want to see my pack in ruins because of my mate.  But I couldn’t just trade her for Matt.  And I couldn’t leave him to face this on his own.  Growling, I flung my fist at a wall, my ears ringing at the sound of the plaster breaking beneath it.

                “I want Peter, Zachary, and William at my side tonight.  Tell them we will meet to discuss the issue at seven. Go, Danny!”  I spit out the last words, my desperation hidden by the anger in my voice.  Groaning, I turn and head down the hallway towards the meeting room.  Pushing the door open, I turn and lay my eyes on each ranked member of my pack.  The men are pushing against one another in the large, circular room, and I sit on the burgundy couch to wait for their notice.

                “Kris.”  This one word is pleading, and I turn to look at the man who had said this.  The other’s quiet, turning towards me as they find places to stand or lean against the walls.  As the room turns silent, I listen for the turmoil I know is running through their veins.  At first, it’s only a soft murmur, and then the real pain begins.  Gripping my head, I listen to the cries and the voices that fill my mind.

                “He shouldn’t have to deal with this right now.”

                “Matthew is missing!”

                “Have they found him?”

                “What are we going to do?”

                “Is he strong enough for this?”

                “It’s his mate’s fault!  All her fault!”  At this last thought, I growl into the quiet and turn towards Morgan, who has his head in his hands and is looking at the floor.  He knows that I’ve heard this, and he kneels, offering his neck to me.

                “She did nothing in the past that could have brought this to us except to run from a cruel Alpha who abused his rights.  Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?” I ask.  I know that my voice is dripping with my hatred of their feelings, but it can’t be helped.  The murmur dies down and I stare straight ahead, moving from the couch to stand in the circle of the ranked men of our pack.  The decision has been made.

                “We will meet with them at seven to discuss the terms of the exchange.  I do not intend to exchange my mate for my brother.  We will fight them before that happens.  This pack needs to be destroyed,” I say quietly.  I hear their agreement, and feel the relief pass throughout the room.  Standing in front of these men, I know that it will not be an easy fight.  That some will not come home, and their blood will be on my hands for this decision.  But there is no other way, and I feel the weight of being an Alpha pushing down on my heart.  I can change nothing but the outcome, and so I walk from the room, moving through the hallways towards the comfort of my mate.  I leave Peter to make preparations for the attack.  He has always been the most ingenious with his ideas.  We have stayed safe and in this territory for many generations because of men like Peter.  He understood.

                “Sofia…” I moan her name as if I am dying, and stumble towards our bed.  I can smell her in the room, but she is not here.  The window, once again, is open.  No.  Sofia has once again put herself in harm’s way to protect the others.  She’s gone to make the trade.  By herself.

               

                Running and I can’t smell her.  I can’t taste her in the air.  She is gone, and she has hidden from me.  I can feel the tug of her call, but I can’t sense where she is.  I am running, and I feel nothing but pain.  A heartbreaking pain, and it is not only my own.  I feel a physical ache in my arm, as if something has gone terribly wrong with it.  This is Sofia, my Sofia.  I groan, shifting midstride to become faster.  I need her safe.  I need her home, away from this pack that has caused her so much pain.  I need her.  She has become my life, my soul, my being.  And I can’t stand to feel the pain I feel now, knowing that it comes from her.  I can’t stand the ache that fills my heart, or the now dull throb in my stomach that seems to take over for just a moment.  I slow, putting my nose to the ground. She’s here.  I come to the clearing, and she is lying on the ground, her body crumpled against the ground.  It’s as if she’s trying to push her body into the ground.

                “Sofia, oh Sofia!  What have they done?”

                “You didn’t come with your pack.  That will make this easier.  We’ve come for her, but now, she’s useless.   She’s mated, and our Alpha has no use for a bitch that has already mated.  We want the territory now.  We’ll return the boy for the territory.  Tonight, at seven.  If you care for the boy, you’ll surrender,” the man says as he exits the woods.  Sofia’s blood coats his hands and ragged jeans.  He growls a warning at me, and I stand beside my mate, watching with cautious eyes.  His arms are bent, the muscles bunching as he holds them out in a gesture of peace.  She was just a message of what they can do.  What they will do.  I growl at him as he approaches, placing my body over top of Sofia’s as he comes closer.  Without warning, my wolf takes over, and he lies on the ground, clutching at the stump that was once his arm.  How dare he touch her?  I growl again, bending as I keep my eyes on him to pick up my Sofia.  Slowly, her body limp in my arms, I take a step backwards, watching as another man, his blonde hair gleaming in the sun, steps from the woods to look down on the man in front of him.  He bends over his body, and I hear a snap, and the screaming is gone.  There is only the shallow breathing of my mate, and the hard gleam of the man’s blue eyes.