Chapter 12 - Kit

My heartbeat slammed into overdrive when Kaiden dropped the bomb, so to speak. And that was the first one about the dead wolves. The second bomb that "we" were apparently going to be attacking the Williams pack, well, that detonated what remained of my calm, and my entire body began to tremble.

Kaiden wanted to go after Eli and his ilk. It was ludicrous. I'd only been here for a day, but I could tell he didn't have the numbers, and what people he did have were certainly not fighters. He'd get them all killed.

Worse, he'd get the unfortunate female wolves committed to the same fate Eli had subjected his previous omegas to.

Some odd tradition had been established in the Williams pack before Eli took over. As much as his wolves were terrified of him, they couldn't help him when it came to his desire to abolish the "omega statute," so the wolf had thought of more…sinister means of fulfilling the requirement to have a mate as alpha.

His "mates" had been basically abducted, and he'd been responsible for at least three deaths as a result of his trying and failing to breed them. Others had gone mad—like the one he currently held locked up in a hidden room at the top of the compound.

I'd been tasked with bringing food up to her, and to say that she was living was a gross overuse of the word. A kinder fate would have been to put her out of her misery, but the alpha needed his mate.

He just didn't need her mentally or physically well.

Fear for others subjected to the same fate as a result of Kaiden's plot choked me, making my stomach pinch down hard as I stumbled into a seat on the stairs.

Still, the drug appeared to be just another way to whittle down Kaiden's pack, working its way through the wolves like a disease. And the fact that it was affecting the young ones so much more…

Sickness pooled in my gut, and I remembered how dumb and vulnerable I'd been as a teenager.

My hands trembled as I looked down at them, and when I made the move to look up at Kaiden and finally speak some of these thoughts, he shot up off the couch he'd been sitting on and began to pace in front of it.

"We need to set up a plan of attack. I won't let another young wolf die because of Eli's fucking concoction."

The other wolf who'd brought me in stood near Kaiden, stepping forward with his arms crossed. I couldn't remember the guy's name, but he held Kaiden's gaze with an unwavering focus that suggested he was the beta.

"We'll need to plan for a surprise attack, then. You know we don't have the numbers to compete with Eli in a full-frontal assault. We can plan for the cover of night. Maybe…sneak in?"

I glanced back at Kaiden just as he nodded. Part of me stilled, knowing that the alpha was well aware of his poor numbers. However, it didn't do anything to dissuade the part of me that still knew this was basically suicide.

"Night is definitely our only option. You're right there, Lupe." Kaiden spun and faced the other wolf, meeting the man's brown eyes with his nearly black ones. "And I don't want anyone who's not willing and able to fight anywhere near this. We'll… fuck, we'll need this to be as covert as possible. Not an attack. An assassination."

My blood chilled as I listened to Kaiden's words. He had something there, trying to sneak into the compound and just kill Eli without waking the others. But it was still such a risk. Eli wasn't one to trifle with. If you underestimated him, it would undoubtedly end poorly for you.

Just because the fucker looked young—his somehow pretty face and lighter, shaggy hair over pale blue eyes—did not mean he wasn't as merciless and bloodthirsty as someone twice his size.

Hell, it was like he had small dog syndrome, always dressing in stupid, not-nearly-as-nice-as-he-thought-they-were suits. It was always so important to him to look "rich," and I'd been tasked with ironing his shirts more than once.

"We can form a small unit then. I can ask for volunteers. We'll need to check the old supply of gear though. I'm not sure what we still have."

Kaiden nodded back at the other wolf—Lupe, apparently. "Do that. We need this taken care of. If we see any books or means to end the production of that fucking drug, do it. I won't have it out there killing other wolves, either."

My presence, it seemed, had been largely forgotten, but as I sat there on the stairs, my body pulled in on itself. Kaiden was going to go into Eli's house and try to kill him. He'd…there was no way a small team was going to be successful.

And I knew Kaiden enough to know he'd want the honor of ending Eli for himself.

He'd be right in the asshole's face when it went down, trying to match skills with another alpha who'd been doing this for a lot longer.

Kaiden would die in there.

He can't…Kaiden can't just be…

My heart rate accelerated, and I felt a chill run down my spine as sweat prickled at my brow. I was panicking. It was familiar enough to know the signs. I wanted to tell myself it was because Eli and my past were breathing down my neck. And sure, that was part of it.

The other part was…

I don't want Kaiden to die. I don't want him gone. I want…I want what he said to be true. I want him to have changed, to be different so that we could maybe…

There was no use denying it. Even after all these years, after all the bullying and hurtful bullshit Kaiden pulled, that pull toward him was still there.

My hands shook, my palms clammy, as the urge to speak up—to do something for him—pulled at my seams. The wood of the stairs bit into my ass, and despite not having eaten anything, I was pretty damn sure that I was going to throw up all over the damn floor.

Kaiden couldn't go in there blind. He'd never navigate the maze of halls in the estate. I knew where Eli's room was. I knew where the others slept, and I'd snuck into and out of the house for walks nearly every day.

"I…"

The two men strategizing just a few feet away looked up at me, Kaiden's brow low over his eyes.

Kaiden's beta cocked a brow before moving toward him to continue his rundown of options. They weren't going to wait for me. If I was going to do this, I needed to do it now.

Shakily, I stood up from the stairs and walked toward Kaiden. It stopped Lupe in his tracks again, and he protectively stood at Kaiden's side. My heart screamed in my ears as I swallowed hard, stopping right in front of Kaiden and looking up into those night sky eyes.

"I…um…"

Kaiden raised his brows. "What, Kit?"

"I can get you in."

He cocked his head, not breaking eye contact with me as he folded his arms over his chest. Tension billowed in the room, circling and squeezing down on me like a constrictor snake readying its meal.

"I'm sorry, what?" His tone was already annoyed, and I couldn't tell if he was just pissed that I thought I had any value here or if Kaiden was getting all "humans can't do what wolves can" about it.

I met his eyes, resolve strengthening within me as I considered how many wolves I could be saving.

"I can get you inside Eli's compound. You won't have to go in blind. It'll save you time and ensure you don't just go in on a wild goose chase, and it's just me. It won't be like you're risking a member of your own pack."

Kaiden's brows furrowed even harder, pinching together as he glared down at me. I watched as his nostrils flared, his chest expanding as he sucked in a hard breath. It was when his jaw worked, the muscles straining as he bit down on his molars, that I knew Kaiden was building up to release his usual verbal assault.

"Kit," he exhaled, "it's not safe for a human to go into a wolf's pack during an assault. It would be irresponsible of me to allow that."

The words were so measured and calm, but I could still see the tension gripping Kaiden like a vice. Why wasn't he snapping at me? Not that it really mattered now, did it? He needed my help, and he was going to take it.

"It would be irresponsible of you to neglect at resource when it's at your disposal." I raised my brows, emphasizing my point. "In fact, you should be accepting all the help you can get. Have you let Jet know about the situation?"

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Lupe's jaw drop open. He could catch flies with the damn thing, but I didn't care. I wasn't backing down when the safety of young wolves and Kaiden himself was at stake.

Sure, I wasn't ready to examine that for what it was, but I still wasn't about to let anything happen to him.

Lupe scoffed as Kaiden glared at him, clearing his throat. "Sorry, Alpha. Still…the human has a point. Jet has offered help, and we could use a bit more than just his information if we'll be going into the Williams' compound."

With a huff, Kaiden turned around and started pacing again. He raked a hand through his hair, and even a few feet away from him, it was like I could smell that char aroma hit his familiar fallen leaf scent.

That was ludicrous, of course. I wasn't a wolf. I couldn't smell shit, but I'd been around them long enough to know what happened when they were upset.

"Kit, I…"

But Kaiden's words drifted away before I could snap at him about being reasonable. From here, from these few feet away, what I could notice—what anyone could, really—was the way Kaiden's shoulders slumped.

I'd been around the guy a fair amount when I was younger. Hell, we "hung out" nearly as much as Grayson and I, and that was saying something since Gray was my adoptive brother.

Between all the teasing, I'd actually gotten to know Kaiden, and right now, well, it was the first time I'd ever seen him looking so defeated.

When he spun around, he met my eyes, that resolute stoicism back in place.

"Fine. But we will do this right. Lupe," he turned to his beta, "call Jet. He's got the cell I gave him. Tell him to send someone for the mission. I know he can't spare more than that with the twins being so vulnerable."

Lupe nodded and took off, clearly eager to get this show on the road.

Before I could say anything, Kaiden walked straight up to me, parking himself right before me and leering over me with those dark eyes.

"I don't like this, Kit. You could get killed. But," he sighed, raking his hand through his hair again, "I'm going to listen to you. Trust you. It's the least I can do, right?"