Cruel Moons

Chapter 1

Liam holds me down to the floor while I punch him in the neck. He loosens his hold which allows me to jump on top and kick him in the stomach.

"Say that I win!" I demand
"Alright Rylee you win. Just get off of me" he says while coughing from the lack of air.

I jump off of Liam with a lot of excitement that I was able to win a fight with him. Our werewolves are the most competitive with each other so this feels great.

Eventually I help Liam up because he is still a good friend of mine.
"Don't get used to that. I'm going to win next time"
"Rematch tomorrow?"
"Absolutely. Do you want to grab some dinner"
"Sorry I can't. Have to check up on Scarlett"
"Can I join?", he asks playfully.
I know Lucas and about everyone else in this pack has a crush on Scarlett. She is blessed with beautiful strawberry blonde hair and blue eyes. Plus she is a extremely nice and innocent which also makes her a target.

"Only if you get the Alpha's permission" I say jokingly why running to the Alpha's house. I see Scarlett reading a book on the couch which is typically. I see today is another book studying about mate bond.

"Scarlett, are you still dreaming about your mate", I tease her. She is 18 years old now, 4 years younger than me, and already talking about how all she wants is to meet her mate.

"Rylee! I missed you" she comes up to give me a hug.

"Sorry I was training with Liam"
"Oh I wish I could train with you and Liam!", she wines which is typical for her. I do feel bad with how many restrictions she has.
"Come on, lets go get dinner with the pack".

The alpha let's me take her to the pack house to mingle with others as long as I promise to watch her every step. I know there are many threats against her so I understand his rules.

Liam's joins us at the dinner table and we start talking about random stuff like usual.  Scarlett gives me a little kick under the table when he comes by. I may have told her I thought he was sexy and now she thinks we have something going on. If only she knew, he and all the young males were all attracted to her.

With my auburn hair and brown eyes, I barley stand out next to her. However, I am very proud of my warrior status and how much training I have been through which I know she always dreams of.

While we continue to mingle with all the pack members, the warning sirens go off.  I immediately go into warrior mode and grab onto Scarlett to protect. I see Alpha Sam running into the pack house sending out orders to the top ranks.   He then comes up to us as Scarlett runs up to him to give him a hug.

"Rylee you know the plan. Protect my daughter"
I nod my head and drag Scarlett out of the house. I have been studying all the plans Alpha Sam has created for his daughter. He even create back up plans for all possible scenarios that could happen.

I grab Scarlett and run out of the house. I then start sprinting to the southeast side of the forest.
"Rylee where are we going? This isn't the safe house"
"Scarlett listen carefully. You need to do exactly what I say. This is what your dad planned for you. There is a real threat after you and my life is on the line if the plan goes wrong."

Thankfully Scarlett nods her head and follows me through the forest. When we get about two thirds in I see the marked tree with the crescent moon.

"Liam?" I whisper out. He has always been assigned as my partner for these missions so I know is he trustworthy.

"Rylee" , he whispers back and then comes in front of me to give me a hug.
"Do you think this is a real threat?", he asks me.
"Yes I do. I saw Alpha's face before I left. He was very serious. We can't fail" , I whisper to him very quietly so Scarlett can't hear. I know she is easily frightened.

All three of us continue to travel through the forest. Our mission is to get to Silver Heart Pack. Alpha Sam formed an alliance with Alpha Zac to protect his daughter. The only details I know about the threat is that it involves Alpha Jax from the Blood Shadow Pack. Part of my training is learning everything about every pack. I learned that knowledge is power. We know their strengths and weaknesses.

Alpha Jax is an very aggressive and ruthless. He has never found his mate but he always speaks of needing a strong alpha line to keep his pack strong. While Alpha Zac is a very thoughtful leader who also hasn't found his mate. He uses logic and respect to lead his pack which is similar to Alpha Sam.

Liam continues to lead us through another forest pass our pick boundaries. I estimate at this pace we can get to Silver Heart by the morning. Liam stops in his tracks and turns to me. I grab Scarlett's hand as a precaution and give her a hand motion to stay silent.

I hear footsteps coming from our right side. Liam transforms into his wolf and attack's the first wolf that approaches us. I motion to Scarlett to clim a nearby tree and stay on the lowest hanging branch. I see another wolf approach us so I grab my silver knife from my shoe and stab it. I found a liking to fighting with silver weapons because it allows me to stay in human form.

See Liam going after a 2nd wolf that appears, I see a man walk up to us. I sense he is a beta.

"Where's the girl?", he asks. I don't respond. I've also learned staying silent irritates your opponent which could turn into a weakness for them.

I grab my other knife from the inside of my jacket ready to attack but then I feel a hard object hit my head. My body falls to the floor but I manage to look back and see Liam also lying on the floor helplessly. I also see Scarlett still sitting on the branch staring at me.

I tab my hand on the floor twice and make sure she sees me. She nods her head in understanding. When I would train lightly with Scarlett I always taught her tapping twice is a sign of giving up. In this case I needed her to go with them peacefully and make sure they drag us with them too so we can still stay close.

Since they are ruthless it is better if she goes willingly so she is able to observe her surroundings. I give her a small smile to reassure her our fight is not over while I let the darkness take over and crash to the ground.