Forgotten Wolf

47 War

Chris POV

Dawn's early light wakes me from my peaceful slumber. Jess is sleeping soundly wrapped around me, her head on my chest, arm around my waist, and our legs entwined. I lay there, memorizing every detail of this moment.

This isn't my first battle. I've trained all my life for moments like this, but this is the first time I've ever had something so precious to lose. I hate to admit how the thought of never seeing Jess again scares the shit out of me.

My mate is my world and I would lay down my life for hers in a heartbeat, but I'd rather live a long life with her surrounded by our kids as we grow old.

'We're ready,' Jace links.

'I'll be there in a few,' I reply with a sigh.

'Are you sure about this, Chris?' He asks hesitantly.

'Yeah, we need to push early to get the drop on them. I'll suffer her wrath when we get home. She's already upset enough...'

Carefully, I slide out and away from her. My heart aches to leave her like this. I pen a quick note and tape it to the door, where she'll see it when she gets up. With a final kiss, I slip out before she wakes. Everyone is formed up in the training field and ready to go.

"Ready?" Jace asks.

"Yeah, let's get this over with. The sooner we get rid of them, the sooner we can get back," I reply in a tone that is all business.

"Did you forget my invite, brother?" Derek asks as he walks over.

I raise a brow, thinking that he left when the other Guardians were recalled. "I thought you left?"

"You heard Dex, I'm still listed as AWOL. They had to follow orders. I have a score to settle," he says with a dangerous edge.

Truth be told, there's no one I'd rather have in the field with me. This next part is going to be tricky, and not likely to be well received.

"Sara," I call my head warrior over. When they took Jess, her change was drastic. The work she put into finding her Luna didn't go without my notice. She pulled double shifts on patrol to keep fresh warriors out looking for Jess, and she pushed through the main fight and found her first.

"I need you here," I say, preparing for her anger. Immediately, she bristles at the thought of being left behind and is about to protest when I cut her off.

"I need to know that my Luna is taken care of. If something goes wrong today, she needs someone to take care of things and keep her safe. There is no one else I'd trust her more to than you." I lock my eyes on her, willing her to understand.

I can see she's torn between her position and my request. "Please, Sara, keep her safe for me. I'm taking the bulk of the force with us. If we were wrong about Jude..."

"I'll keep her safe, but when this is over you need to settle this Gamma shit," she snaps, but her tone doesn't match her words. Disappointment at being left behind is there, but so is her resolve at her new task.

"Thank you," I say with the utmost sincerity.

With that, we turn and head off. The rendezvous point is less than two hours away, but there's a sense of urgency everyone shares.

'I'm sorry Sara, but she's probably gonna be pissed when she wakes up,' I warn.

'This isn't the first time I've dealt with a pissed off Jess and it's not likely the last time,' she replies with a laugh.

'We should be back around midnight. Make sure the hospital-'

'Alpha, I've got it. You worry about the field. I'll prepare and defend here,' she cuts in.