Page 33 of Rejected and Pregnant by the Alpha (Forbidden Alpha Kings #52)
Julian
Taking down the last rogue trying to cross the Haven Trail border, I watch as Hannah’s wolves quickly force the five remaining rogues to shift before cuffing them.
Every last one of them is malnourished, but a few warriors made it a hard fight, especially when it was sixteen rogues against our group of eight.
Something seems off, Fabian states, his black wolf observing the rogues as they are grouped together once cuffed.
I know, but I can’t tell what, I agree, watching Mikos sniff a rogue before his eyes widen.
Alpha, we have a problem! he snaps into the link, trotting over to the next rogue and sniffing them.
What is it? I ask, anxiety building inside me as I trot over to join him.
These aren’t normal rogues. They have a mark on them, he states, nudging the arm of a scared teenage girl who shivers with fear at my presence.
“King Julian, we need to go now!” someone calls out, and I turn to find a very naked and very angry Theta Aidan jogging over to me, his eyes darting to look at Mikos as he sniffs each rogue before returning to me.
Realizing this conversation can’t happen until I shift, I return to my human form and quickly follow Theta Aidan as he motions for me to join him.
“Hunters have sneaked onto the land. These rogues were running from them!” he continues to explain.
I curse, realizing what the mark on these rogues means as we rush away from the west border and deeper into pack lands. They were going to be sold to the highest bidder, and something must have happened for these rogues to escape their captors.
“Hannah needs your help.”
“What happened for her to need me?” I ask, unable to feel happy at this news as the anxiety inside me grows. Something happened. Something that is making my blood boil, and an unexplained fear starts to join the anxiety.
“The wolves in charge of Saben were attacked by the hunters. They took Saben.” A snarl of rage rips through me as Theta Aidan says this, and I shift without thinking.
Now I know why the anxiety was growing. It was because I was sensing my pup in danger and my mate’s fear through the broken mate bond.
Theta Aidan takes this as his cue and shifts as well, yipping at me before taking off.
I follow him, the scent of flowers growing stronger until we reach a flower patch where I find Hannah waiting with two wolves—Mavric and Jiya—who are holding a sweater in their hands that smells like my son.
“Julian, if you really want to prove to me that you deserve my forgiveness, help me find our son,” Hannah demands as soon as I reach her, taking the sweater from Jiya and holding it out to me.
Without needing to be told twice, I press my nose into the sweater, inhaling the mango custard scent that belongs to my pup. I take a few deep breaths before backing away and closing my eyes. The wind blows, and for a moment I smell nothing; then it hits me.
Saben’s scent is carried on the wind, and judging by the sound of shifting beside me, Hannah must have smelled it too. Opening my eyes, Hannah nods at me, and we take off, her white wolf a blur as she races toward the scent of Saben, the trail leading us closer to the edge of the border.
Fabian, go find Theta Aidan and have him communicate with Hannah through us, I order my beta.
Got it, Julian, Fabian replies right away.
Happy to know I will soon be able to communicate with Hannah, even if it is through our respective men, I continue racing toward Saben’s scent with Hannah keeping pace beside me.
Unfortunately for us, the scent carries over the pack border and into the conservation forest connected to Hannah’s land.
For a moment, I hesitate, my steps slowing down, but Hannah races forward, crossing Haven Trail’s border and heading into the forest ahead of us. Steeling my resolve, I pick up the pace and catch up to her, keeping my senses alert for any enemies lying in wait.
Did you really just hesitate to cross the border? Fabian asks, his disbelief making me roll my eyes.
Let me guess, Hannah told her theta, who told you, and now you are yelling at me?
I ask, jumping over a fallen log but coming to a complete stop when the scent of mango custard vanishes in a small clearing with two footpaths on either side.
Hannah looks around, sniffing the air, trees, and anything on the right side of the small clearing we are in, and I take the initiative to sniff the left side.
With a yip, Hannah catches my attention before taking off down the path on the left, and after rushing after her, I notice the very faint trace of Saben’s scent.
The hunters must be masking it somehow, but with Saben having royal blood flowing through his veins, whatever they are using is barely working.
Yes, she did say she was impressed that you are following her obediently, Fabian says, and the praise makes me wag my tail briefly before I focus on the task at hand. My pup needs me, and I can’t let the slight praise from my mate get to my head.