ROMAN's POV
''Fuck!'' My hand tightened around my phone as I cursed under my breath.
The metal groaned under my tightened fist, the sound a mere whisper to the growls of the wolves in front of us.
Three massive wolves with red eyes and hunched backs blocked our paths, their claws digging into the sand with an intense strength.
'I'll be back in no time, baby' The lies I had said through gritted teeth echoed in my head.
We had officially crossed into the territory of Silver wolf pack.
Nothing was certain.
''Stand down.'' I murmured under my breath, an underlying command that had the whole pack on halt.
Except Mark.
His soft growl still echoed in the silence, his brow furrowed and eyes laced on the wolves. ''We can't stand down.. they'll attack.''
As the beta, Mark was trained to do more than just comply to orders.
He was trained to protect.
''I said stand down!'' My voice was tight and riddled with command though my hand instinctively rested on the hilt of the silver-veined hunting knife at my thigh. "We knew what we were walking into. Alpha Gideon isn't a man who welcomes guests, even those bearing peace treaties."
He stopped growling, his hand dropping to his side in defeat.
I turned away from him and stepped forward. ''We're not here to fight!'' I barked, loud enough for the wolves to hear me.
One of them, the one with the darkest fur stepped forward.
In a blink of an eye, he morphed back to his human form, standing completely naked—skin, scars and all.
The other two behind him followed suite and three naked men stood in front of us, their eyes flaring.
''The knife.'' The one in front, probably their leader gestured to my thighs, his voice cold.
A low chuckle escaped my lips. ''Why? This is a mere needle to the people of Silver wolf, isn't it?''
''Let's get this over with.'' He murmured under his breath, his voice riddled with hostility.
The two grumpy wolves behind him surged forward, changing forms mid-air.
They morphed back into their wolf form and jumped at me with enough force to have my back crash against the floor, the granites pricking into the flesh of my skin.
They held me down with their claws digging into both my shoulders, their drools rolling down their chins as they bared their fangs.
''How dare you—''
I cut him off with a loud growl, one strong enough to have the wolves almost sprinting backwards. ''I said stand down!'' My voice was cold, my eyes blaring red as I stared at Mark through hooded vision.
He nodded and stepped back slowly while the other pack warriors followed suits.
''Well well well…''
The sound of footsteps along with the sound of hand jamming against each other echoed before the leader of the wolves came into sight, towering above me.
He crouched down to my level, where I was being held and sniffed the air.
''Hmm…'' He closed his eyes, his head falling back like he was relieving the moment.
Then his eyes snapped open and fell on me. '' an Alpha, uh?''
He signaled to the other wolves and they let go of their hold on me, the stinging pain of their claws on my skin coursed through my veins.
I didn't flinch.
Didn't even bat an eye.
His grin widened and he reached forward, jerking me upward with a grip to the collar.
''What pack?!'' His voice was hard, the grin on his lips dying down.
I stared at me for a tad bit long, letting the silence eat him up.
He looked dandy with a scary scar to the face that would have any one fleeing.
But not me.
I could see right through him.
He didn't hold any substantial position in the pack. If he did, he would've known what the Alpha of Crescent moon pack looked like and exactly what I was capable of.
My hand came up and swapped his away from my collar. ''You don't look so tough in your birthday suit.''
His face fell and I couldn't help the laughter that escaped my lips.
The other two wolves came from behind and draped a robe around him, their lips tightened like they were stifling a laughter even though they were also in their birthday suit.
''I came here for a peace treaty with your Alpha. Get out of the way and we can all walk out of here unscathed.''
Gideon, Alpha of silver moon pack was a tyrant, plain and simple.
His reputation for cruelty was known across the continent, his pack built on blood, fear, and absolute subjugation.
If I had any other choice, I would have never set foot on his land.
But the rogues pressing against my borders were growing bolder and more organized by the day.
I needed his soldiers to help us turn the tide and I was willing to swallow my pride to negotiate a treaty to get them.
''Peace treaty?'' A low, guttural laughter escaped his lips then he placed his thumb and index finger in his mouth and whistled loudly.
My breath caught, my eyes narrowing into the bushes.
My ears strained, my claws digging into the bare ground as I listened to the footsteps.
Not one, not two, not three..
"Ambush!" I roared, jumping to my feet.
The word had barely left my mouth when the shadows erupted around us.
Massive, battle-scarred wolves launched themselves from the thick bush, their jaws snapping, their eyes wild with an unnatural, frenzied bloodlust.
These weren't Gideon's pack executioners, they were rogues.
Dozens of them!
Far too many to be a random patrolling party.
"Form a perimeter!" Mark yelled, already shifting mid-air as a massive black rogue lunged for his throat. The sound of tearing flesh and feral snarls filled the clearing instantly.
I didn't stop him.
Instead I turned to the leader and he had a menacing smile curled across his lips.
''You—''
My words caught in my throat as a heavy, grey rogues slammed into my chest, the impact knocking me backward into the dirt.
My chest burned, the sheer force of the blow rattling my ribs.
I gritted my teeth and sucked in a strained breath before lunging for him with my knife.
I didn't even give my body the time to fully shift, I drove my knife straight up through the wolf's jaw, twisting the blade until he went limp, his black blood spilling over my hands.
I threw the carcass off me and scrambled to my feet, my bones cracking and popping as my wolf pushed forward, fur tearing through my skin as I partially shifted to fight.
The chaos around me was blinding.
My warriors were fighting viciously, but we were outnumbered.
This was more than just a warning, it was a death sentence.
"'Alpha!'' Mark's frantic voice cut through the thoughts in my head through mind link, but it was severed a second later as a rogue tore into his shoulder, dragging him into the bush.
My chest heaved heavily, my claws digging into the ground as my eyes blared red.
I bared my fangs, a deafening alpha roar ripping from my throat that made the very ground tremble.
I lunged into the fray, tearing through throats, breaking spines, the primal instinct to survive and get back to Vivienne driving every strike.
As I dug into the forest in search of my beta, my eyes burned with rage as I sighted a rogue sinking his fang into the base of his leg.
A large cry tore out from mark and he sank his claw into the rogue throat, ending his miserable life.
But immediately after, he morphed into his human form, covered in blood.
My heart skipped a beat, my breath hanging in my throat as I flew to him, panic surging through my being.
''Mark! Are you—Are you okay?'' My lips quivered and my voice shook.
He nodded. ''I'm fine. I just—'' He stopped, his eyes widening.
I followed his line of sight and turned but it was too late.
The leader of the rogue was standing in front of me on human form with a needle in his hand.
My eyes followed the needle and it was already sinking into the flesh underneath my fur.
I growled, baring my teeth, trying to move forward.
But my legs were wobbly and pain surged from my inserted spot to my whole body.
Wolfs bane!
My wolf howled, struggling to stay afloat.
The rogue chuckled and stuck two more needles in my skin, earning a warning growl that sounded more softer than I'd have expected.
''Not enough to kill them.'' A voice muttered in the distance.
I froze, my ears straining despite my strength weakening.
That voice…
Gideon!
What was an alpha doing talking to rogues?!
And what did he mean by that?!
''Drag them over once they pass out. We have guests in a few minutes and would need some entertainment.'' His cruel voice broke through my hazy thoughts.
I gritted my teeth hard, trying to fight the wolfs bane in my system.
But my vision began to tunnel, the silver rapidly weakening my wolf, dragging me down into darkness.
The last thing I wished to see was Vivienne with that sweet smile always plastered across her face. Her look of seduction and her ever so persistent method in getting whatever she wanted.
Instead, the last thing I saw was Gideon's hearty smile as he patted the leader of the rogues on the back and handed him a few bills.
It was now clear as day.
He wasn't harboring soldiers or pack members.
He was harboring rogues.