Chasms of Copper

Chapter 9

[Edited]

{A/N: This is a slight flashback to right before and during the last chapter, but is centered around Roy.}

Roy

"He can't possibly be serious." Roy groaned and leant on the side of the car door.

Jason shrugged his shoulders but kept his grip on the wheel steady. 

"I mean," the Alpha said in response. "With Chase, you never really know if he is or not. He jokes way too much for his own good."

The two friends sat in silence for the rest of the drive. Twenty minutes previous, Chase had mind-linked to Roy and Jason to meet him at the bookstore, "The Reader's Nook." Sure, the Gamma was annoyed at his schedule being interrupted, but he was more nervous and wary than anything.

Chase's job as the Fortem Lupus Pack's Beta was self-explanatory. He managed the pack when Jason was unable to or was away. The safety of the pack was his top priority. It was also his job to help take care of pack business and safety strategies. And the final requirement of his position was to keep an ear out for other packs in peril---more commonly known as Packs in Distress (PIDs). This was the reason that Roy was nervous. If Chase called both the Alpha and the Gamma, then it must have been something big. Roy couldn't help but hope that the blonde Beta had called them there for a game of ping-pong or something stupid. It would definitely be a waste of time, but at least it wouldn't be something life-threatening. 

Roy sincerely hoped that that was the case. He was worried that their pack would have to fight others. Sure, his werewolf warriors were exceptionally trained--he'd trained them himself. He knew they could fight. It was the nearby pack village that he worried about, though. Elders, mothers, and young children; they couldn't defend themselves or their loved ones. And so the Gamma prayed that Chase just wanted to brag about his new shoes, or something stupid. Because, if it was something stupid and wasted his time, Roy would feel no remorse in dragging the Beta to the training grounds and having a spar fight. In fact, it would be beneficial for two reasons; to teach his friend not to do that again and to give his warriors a visual lesson on how to perfectly execute a roundhouse kick to the chest.

At last, they pulled up at the address that Chase had given them. Jason shifted the car into 'park' and they observed the building from the outside. It was a small bookstore---probably a community one. The building had gray walls and green accents and was a single story tall. An appealing green sign hung in front of the door. Elegant white lettering proclaimed the small bookstore to be 'The Reader's Nook.'

"How quaint." Roy drawled. The statement got him an elbow in the ribs from his friend. "Ow!" he rubbed his side. "What was that for?"

"Why are you so moody?" Jason asked. "All you seem to do is snap at people and make offensive remarks! You never used to do that, so why are you doing it now?"