Page 114 of Claimed By the Rival Alpha

NIGHT

By the time Bryn and I finished assessing the areas that had suffered the most damage after the feral attack, the painkillers finally started to kick in.

Every inch of my body had pulsed with aches; now the pain was just a numb memory.

But my mind still raced with worry, frustration, and impatience.

Our disagreement about what to do if—when—we found Troy hadn’t helped with things.

Bryn’s decision to keep him alive would never make sense to me.

I would have thought that killing him would be a no-brainer after everything he had done to her.

I’d heard what she had to say and tried to understand what she wanted for the future of the Kings, but I just didn’t get it.

It irked me that we couldn’t see eye to eye about this, considering how important it was, but Bryn was stubborn and determined.

I couldn’t just ask her to go along with what I wanted to do.

I spotted Dom talking with a smaller group of Kings. After sending out the search party, I had him patrol the territory on his own. Given the unusually messy state of his blond hair, he must have just gotten back.

“I’m going to catch up with Dom,” I said to Bryn.

“That’s fine.” She didn’t look at me, keeping her eyes on her list of facilities that had suffered the worst damage. “I’m going to find Tavi and discuss the damage. Maybe we’ll reconnect later.”

I watched her for a bit longer, but she didn’t return my gaze.

My chest tightened when I remembered the tears swimming in her eyes during our argument and the moment she’d handed me the painkillers.

Bryn didn’t use her emotions as a weapon when she was distressed.

And even though she was angry with me, she still worried about me. Still cared.

That caring side of her persevered even when she felt low—it was part of what made her so amazing. As frustrated as I was with her, I still loved her deeply, which made this situation suck even more.

My wolf whined as I turned away from her.

He didn’t like that we were on opposite sides of the Troy issue any more than I did.

I wasn’t planning on changing my mind about Redwolf, though.

I planned on living long enough to see that line die out, but if Bryn had her way, that wouldn’t happen as quickly as I wanted.

Dom nodded at me as I approached, but his attention was trained on the men in front of him.

They were Kings, and from their quick, decisive gestures, it was obvious to me that they were either pissed, stressed out, or some combination of the two.

Those conditions didn’t bode well for wolf shifters, but at least they were still in their human forms, which made them easier to reason with.

“I’m telling you that we’re handling this,” Dom said to the group. “We’ve got Wargs and Kings working for this.”

“What can we do?” one of the Kings demanded, stepping toward Dom.

“Hold on,” I said, moving between the two. “What’s going on?”

“We heard that Troy escaped,” the same man responded. He had a decade on Dom and me, and he, like the men behind him, had the bulky physique of a fighter. “We heard he’s the reason we were attacked. That true?”

I shared a look with Dom. “Might as well tell them,” his voice entered my mind. “If there are already rumors, it won’t be long before the entire pack finds out who was behind the attack.”

Good point. “From what we’ve discovered, yes. Troy sent the ferals to attack so he could escape.”

The King turned his head and spat on the ground. “Fuck that. Fuck him. I’ve gathered up some men, and we’re going to hunt him down.”

I arched a brow. “On whose authority?”

He raised his chin and met my gaze. “Our own.”

I narrowed my eyes, and after a few moments, the pressure of staring down an alpha got to him.

He looked away. These men were serious about going out there and finding Troy.

I really, really couldn’t blame them, but we couldn’t afford to have rogue groups of wolves running through the forest, covering up tracks and scents with their footsteps.

“We’ve already got people on that,” I said, looking from him to the other wolves behind him. “I know you’re all concerned, but your alpha is handling it.” Maybe not the way I would want her to, but…

“No.” He shook his head. “I can’t just sit around waiting for that. I need to do something. My mate, my pups…” His eyes flashed as he thought of his family. “They need to know I’m out here helping and making sure this doesn’t happen to us again.”

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Donald.”

“Donald. Are you and everyone else fighters? Hunters?”

He puffed up his chest. “We’re fighters.”

“Yeah, I figured as much. You all look like you could take Troy down easily.” A bit of flattery went a long way to calm wolves, and I hoped it would work here.

“But Donald, I can’t let you do what you want.

There’s something else you could be doing, something more effective than going blind into the forest.”

He stared at me, waiting.

“I want you and your men to gather every able-bodied wolf you can find to stand at the border. If any of you see a feral wolf, catch it before it reaches the compound.”

“You want us to just stand around and wait for something to happen?”

“No, I want you to protect your pack. That’s what you all really want to do, right? You want to make it so that your families can sleep easily?”

The Kings glanced at each other. They had to concede my point.

“What better way to ease the worst of their fears than to watch over the territory?” I asked. “Your pack needs you and your men out there doing that.”

They were coming around, but Donald still looked uncertain. “What about Troy?”

“It’s like Dom said. We’re on it. We’ll find him.”

He looked behind him to his men, and they all nodded reluctantly. “Alright. We’ll watch the borders.”

I nodded. “Do it in shifts. Everyone at the border needs to be as alert and aware as possible.”

He nodded before he and the wolves with him went to do as I said.

I released a long sigh and turned to Dom.

“I didn’t think you’d be able to calm him down,” he said. “A couple of times while speaking to him, I thought he might shift and make a mad dash into the forest.”

“Luckily, we avoided that.” I ran my hands through my hair. “But I can’t say I don’t get where he’s coming from.”

“Yeah, I know exactly how he feels.” Telepathically, he added, “Are you sure a search party is what we want? I think everyone would feel better if they were ordered to kill Troy on sight.”

I appreciated my beta’s discretion. “Believe me, there’s nothing I’d like more than to send hunters out there, but Bryn doesn’t want to order his death.”

Dom frowned. “She just wants to put him back in a cell?”

“That’s right.”

“She won’t be alpha forever. When her term ends, Troy will either be killed by the next alpha or let out.”

I sighed, the irritation from my argument with Bryn returning. “That’s what I tried to tell her, but she won’t budge. She reminded me that she’ll still be on the council as den mother, but we don’t know how influential that position will be.”

Dom scratched the stubble on his chin. He hadn’t had the chance to shave with all the chaos going on. Come to think of it, neither had I. There was nothing I would have loved more than taking a dip in the hot springs to release some of the tension between my shoulders.

“I guess we’ll just have to find him and see what happens.”

“If we’re lucky, he’ll try to fight one of our men and end up being killed.

I think even Bryn would be okay with that.

” Out loud, I said, “For now, let’s help get everything organized for repairs.

While you’re doing that, I’ll head back to Warg territory to make sure everything is protected in case of a feral attack. ”

Dom eyed me, one eyebrow raised. “Night, did you forget that you can’t shift? How are you going to get to our compound?”

“Shit.” Those painkillers had made me forget I was still recovering.

I needed to shift, but according to Dr. Stan, I wouldn’t be able to do that for another few days at most. I was itching to see my pack, but that wouldn’t be possible for a little longer.

“I guess there’s no other option. I’ll have to send you. ”

Dom gave my shoulder a sympathetic pat. “I’ll be back as soon as possible.”

“I know you will.” Despite my bad mood, I felt some comfort knowing my beta was on top of things. “I want a detailed report of everything.”

“Of course.” He grinned. “When have I ever let you down?”

Five days after Troy’s escape, which marked twelve days into Bryn’s rule as alpha, I was washing the dishes from the rabbit stew I’d made for dinner. I heard Bryn walking around deeper in the house. Since our argument, we hadn’t really connected with each other.

While I was recovering, Bryn, Tavi, and I corralled the Kings and put together a solid organizational plan for rebuilding.

It would be best to start from the perimeter and work our way in, prioritizing the homes and places necessary for the pack to function, like the wood storage and emergency rations buildings.

While the Kings set to work restoring their pack to tip-top shape, Bryn and I shied away from the Redwolf issue.

And as the days passed, and the search party had few updates for us on Troy’s location, it seemed like things would never get better between us.

This was the first huge fight we’d had since the claiming ceremony, and we’d both walked away with wounds.

I was still licking mine, and given the sad shift of Bryn’s mouth whenever we made eye contact, she wasn’t doing any better.

It was tough feeling so distant from my soulmate, but what made it even tougher was being unable to shift.

Running had always been the best way for me to let off some steam, but when I tried to push myself even a little, the pain in my side flared up so badly, it left me gasping and sweating on the floor.