Page 317 of Alpha Mates

I don’t like showing my hand, especially when I don’t have a clear view of the board, but we don’t have time to be bobbing and weaving around the truth. We’re dealing with an unfamiliar force here, and I would put my pride aside to find out more about it if that meant saving even one of the lives destined to be lost out there.

“Someone isfixingthem,” she says carefully, but without preamble. “I don’t know how or why. All I know is, when I first got in this area, they were normal, rabid rogues. Then these other rogues started showing up, and they weren’t feral. Not even close. They spoke the ones they could down, gave them something, and got them to follow them.”

“Follow them where?” Aiden asks while a chill races down my spine at the picture she’s painting.

“I couldn’t point it out on a map,” she replies honestly. “I didn’t care about all of that at first. I just needed power, and there were enough left to give me just that. But the new ones noticed and came to speak to me.”

“You spoke to one of them?” Aiden grinds out, and I can feel his rage rising—along with a panic that Katerina could never understand.

Confused, she eyes him until I step in front of him to draw her attention to me. “What did they say?” I ask, remaining calm for all of us, so we don’t find ourselves with a new enemy.

Katerina is not so quick to speak this time. She looks between us, only now seeming to realise that what she planned to share in passing was information we desperately need.

“It was an invitation,” she says, while her gaze cautiously shifts to Aiden before returning to me. “They said there were more of them, and I could draw from all of them if they could use my power after.”

“That’s how you got so strong,” Aiden accuses as he tries to step forward.

“Aiden,” I warn, pressing a hand to his chest.

“I never said I took it,” Katerina snaps back, purple flashing in her eyes. “I didn’t need to. I could draw from them, whether theyallowedit or not. I sent them away and told them any other visits would cost them their heads.”

Well, that explained the magical scythes.

Aiden calms a little, his breathing slowing, but the tension in his muscles keeps him stiff. It doesn’t help that with each word Katerina speaks, a sense of foreboding keeps rising, promising to swallow us whole at any second.

“They stayed away, but those clusters started growing. Five instead of three, then nine instead of five. Before I knew it, they all weren’t so rabid, and the woods out there were getting quieter,” she continues as her frown returns. “Then they were gone, hardly any left. All heading in the same direction.”

Aiden and I share a look.

I don’t doubt for a second that if we showed Katerina the map with all the reported rogue sightings, it would match the path she noticed on her own.

“I thought I should let you know,” she says when neither of us speaks. I look at her, and she’s solemn again. “Especially because if they made that offer to me, chances are they have to other lone witches—and I wouldn’t be surprised if some accepted it.”

“Fuck,” Aiden curses, stepping away, pacing for a moment before he faces me. “How does this keep getting worse? What the fuck are we walking into here?”

“You guys have more wolves,” Katerina offers, frowning slightly.

“Numbers won’t mean a thing if there are witches there,” Aiden snaps, then curses again. “Iknewsomething was going on.” His fingers delve into his hair as he groans. “I should’ve dealt with it sooner—I should’ve killed them all before they had the chance to group up. I should’ve—”

“Hey,” I grab his elbow before he can turn away again, easing it towards me, then seize his hands next and hold on tight as those raging eyes find mine. They flash with a flurry of red, but I don’t look away. “There’s nothing you could’ve done. This is bigger than us—bigger than you. You couldn’t stop it all on your own, even if you did every impossible thing you’re thinking of right now.”

Aiden stares at me, struggling to keep his attention honed with the million other thoughts racing through his mind, likely ones that are darker than I know.

“You’re not alone,” I remind him, rubbing my thumb over his skin. “You have me, this pack, and when we face them, it won’t be our pack alone. We can do this.”

I don’t know how. I can hardly start putting togetherhow—but we always do.

Aiden calms. The red in his eyes fades, almost returning to their dusky black—until he looks at Katerina. In a mere moment, they ignite all over again, but this time, with anticipation.

“You could take us there,” he whispers, the idea taking root almost immediately.

“Aiden,” I warn, dread returning, not for the lives that might be lost, but for something else. “Think clearly.”

“I am,” he replies, but he’s still staring at Katerina like she’s his ticket out of this. “A few of us can go to scout what we’re heading into. We’ll get a sense of their numbers and exactly where they’re holing up. We won’t engage. They won’t even know we were there.”

“It’s too risky,” I say, trying to regain his attention. “Leaving the pack right now would be extremely irresponsible. We need to stay here, where we at least know it’s safe, before we put anyone in danger.”

“But we will be putting people in danger—ourpeople,” he argues, jaw tight. “I’d rather know what that looks like so we can have a chance at bringing them all home.”