The Culling

CHAPTER FIVE

                 

Major Green heard Phoebe stirring long before her alarm went off. From what he had seen, she had a steady work ethic. And it was his opinion that she was a perfect addition to their ranks. He knew that everyone else thought so as well. When four thirty struck, I silently opened my door and slipped out into the hallway. Giving a smile to the major, I hurried down the stairs to the kitchen.

It wasn't long before the smell of breakfast began to drift up the stairs and one by one, the pack members began to wake up. At five thirty, I was standing before Major Green. "I'll relieve you sir." I said as I handed him a plate filled with a hot breakfast. "Thank you Phoebe." I just dipped my head and took his place as he slowly entered his room.

Exactly at six, Prince Stone emerged from his room and quickly headed down the stairs. And like a silent ghost, I followed him back down. Once they were in the dining room, I chose a point where I could easily get to him if anything happened, and where I could see everyone and everything. Everyone noticed her, mainly because there was no place where she could hide, but the main thing they noticed about her was how focused and intimidating she appeared to be.

Twice I had growled at two of the female pack members and they quickly took a step backwards. While my human side knew that they most likely didn't mean any harm, my wolf side had been the most dominate part of her, and she saw them as a possible threat.

I mentally laughed at my wolf when she growled at how close the females were getting. She had been a little off since yesterday, but I trusted my wolf to quickly straighten it out. I also knew that she wouldn't jeopardize our job, the job that we had worked so hard in achieving. The rest of the day flew by uneventful. By the time that the bonfire arrived, both Phoebe and her wolf were on edge. But she kept it hidden from the others.

As more and more unmated females showed up, the more anxious and upset my wolf grew. Making sure that my wolf was well under wraps, I blended into the background while staying just within distance of my charge. Nothing would befall him while I was on watch.  The party had lasted well into the night. When everyone finally broke apart and started to head to bed, it was almost two.

I told Major Green to go ahead and get some sleep; I'd take the night shift seeing as how we would be leaving in the morning. When morning came, the five of us left alone much to the disappointment of the females in the pack; many of them had hoped and prayed that they were Prince Stone's mate. But none of the females were in luck. Pack after pack, it was the same. The prince's mate wasn't in any of them so far.

I found myself becoming disgusted with the female wolf population as a whole. From what I had seen, most females used and flaunted their body to get what they wanted. The women in First Death were not that way, I could clearly remember. They worked just as hard as the men for what they wanted. If they didn't earn it, they didn't want it.

"Phoebe, what exactly can you tell with us about First Death?" Major Green asked me as his eyes briefly met mine in the rearview mirror. I could feel the prince's eyes on me as well. "Well, as you know, second only to the king's pack, First Death is the strongest pack in the world. In our past, our numbers reached well into the thousands. But currently, there's only about six or eight hundred members.

"My father was Beta, and he was one of the few people in my life who believed that I could become a guard. He was killed when I was eleven. For the most part, my ex-pack is very kind to new comers, unless you are seen as a threat to the pack's stability. First Death members swear their loyalty first to our king and then to their alpha. And they are willing to die for both if need be." For the next several hours, I told them of the pack that I had grown up in. I entertained them of stories that my pack had passed down from generations. By the time that I noticed familiar surroundings, I realized that I had spoken for the entire car ride.