15. Chapter Fifteen

The warehouse was completely nondescript. Boring, plain, it blended in with several other warehouses. Heath walked in the front of our group with Stacy next to him. I wish I could say it was a place of respect, but I knew it wasn't. It was a place of safety. He was showing the pack that Stacy mattered and he would die for even their future wolves, probably because the future was important, or something idealistic like that. Shamus was behind him, a few feet back. Casually protecting his Alpha's back without crowding or being overprotective. A sign that he trusted his Alpha to protect his still-human daughter.

I was tailing the entire group, just behind Shamus, who smartly kept me more to his back right and not directly behind him. A sign that he knew I could make trouble and wasn't going to let me get the drop on him. Smart wolf. Not that I was planning on trying, but I had nowhere else to walk. They didn't really leave me any other options.

There were no werewolves outside the warehouse, giving even more of a normal, ‘nothing weird going on here' look, but I could smell them. There were so many that the scents blended together until it just smelled like werewolf and I couldn't pull them apart.

It was disconcerting, and I was about to walk into the middle of them. The idea made me feel fidgety and anxious, something that must have become obvious as Shamus looked back at me when we got close to the building, frowning.

"We're not bringing you back here to eat you," he said quietly.

"Sure," I replied, crossing my arms to cover the important bits, like my lungs and heart.

"I thought werecats were supposed to be a werewolf's boogie man." There was something light about Heath's tone from the front.

I hissed. In the presence of other animals, I knew I could relax on one thing, and that was showing the more animalistic parts of my personality. Any humans in this building would probably know about the werewolves, and that meant there was a chance they knew about me or my kind.

"What big eyes you have," Shamus teased, a toothy grin appearing on his face. "We've got her right where we want her, boss."

I snarled, snapping at the closer wolf. He jumped away, laughing.

"Kidding. We've got more important things to do than trying to kill you."

"He's right," Heath said loudly, looking back at us now. "Killing you only gets rid of one more layer of protection my daughter could use. I'm not going to do that. And I'll swear it here: no wolves of mine will attempt to hurt you while you're here or in our territory, as long as you prove to be dedicated to the task of rescuing my daughter from those that would do her harm."

I inclined my head as my anxiety eased. If any of his wolves broke that, he would be required to step in on my behalf if he wanted to keep his honor, and for Alpha werewolves, honor was everything. "Thank you."

He nodded back and continued walking. Stacy ran off ahead. We didn't enter through either of the large shipping bay doors, but rather a small side door for employees. I was, of course, last to enter.

I felt paralyzed for just a second as the scent of wolf covered me, filling my nose until I could smell nothing else. I was also in front of five wolves I hadn't met yet, which didn't help anything. A couple of them snarled, baring their teeth. Their eye colors shifted from their human colors to their wolves', much like my hazel turned gold.

"She's here by my will and in my good graces," Heath snapped, staring down the wolves. "Meet Jacky Leon, a werecat that lives a couple hours southeast of us near Jacksonville. She's oath-sworn to my daughter, a werecat called to Duty. You'll treat her with respect."

"And where's Carey?" one asked, his anger fading quickly, replaced with worry.

My heart clenched. Carey was a human princess among wolves. They would all probably die for her, I realized.

"A hunting party incapacitated our feline cousin here and took her. Jacky is here to help us get her back. Or we're going to help her."

"We're going to work together as equals in the effort to get Carey out of their hands," I said, fixing the problem Heath had walked into. On principle, a werecat would never bow and take orders from a werewolf Alpha, and he couldn't let me be above him, since it would jeopardize his position of power. Equals, however tentative, was the only solution.

"That works," he replied, nodding. He turned back to his wolves and waved. "I need everyone for a pack meeting so we can discuss our next move."

"Yes sir," the speaker said, jumping up and running out of the room. The others followed, slower, but no less purposeful.

"Is that one a youngin'?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I threw on a bit of a southern accent to soften the question into something humorous.

"He is, but he's got a good head on his shoulders and a decently dominant streak. He'll climb into someone's inner circle one day, if he's trained right and has the chance to grow. Right now he's all about pleasing and doing his part." Heath gestured for me to keep following him. As I did, he said something else. "Shamus, I want you there as well, but I think it's time for Stacy to help with the kids."

"Of course, Heath."

As I left the office with him, I heard Stacy whining about being put back on babysitting duty, something that made me smirk.

The warehouse before me was full of werewolves, many lying on cots, talking to their neighbors. Some were sitting on boxes, probably taken from the warehouse. Some were lying on large crates, others were playing on computers.

"Nice war camp," I said, trying to be polite and probably failing at it.

"Yeah. It was the best we could do with the short amount of time we had when this all started. We have a couple of injured, but nothing too bad." He gave me a sideways look.

I ignored it, opting to instead meet the eyes of the wolves now watching me intently. My comment had drawn their attention, and now probably two dozen or more wolves were looking at me, expressions ranging from shocked to confused to downright angry.

"Hi." I waved. "Do I look funny?"

Heath snorted. More than a few of the wolves snarled, while others had the opposite reaction and laughed.

"They're all here. Time to get this out of the way and move the pack to open discussion on what to do," he said softly to me. "Everyone, meet Jacky Leon. If you don't recognize her scent, she's a werecat, and one oath-sworn to my daughter, Carey, who has been taken by the traitors. She's our ally, but we must attempt to let her maintain an air of impartiality. She's already lost her life once in service to my daughter, and let's try not to let that happen again. I don't want the other werecats thinking we callously throw away their kind as if they're chattel. Two minutes, was it? How long you were dead?"

"Yeah, so I was told," I answered, shrugging. He really knew how to put the spotlight on a girl.

"Now, she's not here to help us defeat the traitors, so don't expect her to. However, all efforts about saving my daughter? She's going to be a part of those. You'll respect that, am I clear?"

"Yes sir!"

"Good. Now I want two teams. A small team will be on the mission of reclaiming my daughter so she can be returned to safety. You'll work with Jacky, so put whatever problems you have with werecats aside. My daughter is more important. The second team, a larger force, will continue to flush out the traitors and bring their numbers down. However, I want some captured and brought in alive for interrogation now. They must be feeling their losses, and that will weaken their resolve to continue down the path they're on."

I stood uncomfortably next to him, listening to the orders being handed down. After a few more lines of similar rhetoric, I tuned him out. There was still a lot I didn't know, but now wasn't the time to find out.

When Heath was done, everyone started talking amongst themselves of their own accord. He leaned closer to me, and spoke quietly. "I'm going to stick close to you. I love and trust my wolves, but you're an unknown factor. I have two who were alive during the war. One's a Beta, and not very aggressive, but he might hold a grudge. Lost his parents and a sibling back in those days. He also loves Carey, so he's going to join the team with you. The other will hopefully avoid you, but he's…he's got a few screws loose, which is why he isn't in my inner circle, no matter how powerful he is. I don't want you alone where he can find you. Understand?"

"I don't need your protection," I said softly, narrowing my eyes on him. "Not from two wolves, anyway."

"You're also working to get my daughter back. I'm never going to be far just because of that."

"Fair point," I conceded. "You should keep a line of communication open. Your traitors might call."

"I've already considered that. It'll be your team's job to manage the phone I'm going to have you set up."

"My team?" I said that probably louder than I should have. I laughed, shaking my head. "Oh no. I'll work with a team. I haven't been a werecat long enough to give up that bit of humanity, but I'm not a leader. I don't do in charge very well. Please tell me that's not your intention."

He smirked. "Not fully, no. I want you working with whatever leader they're going to put up on the pedestal."

"Thank God," I mumbled, shaking my head. I caught a glance at a group already walking up to us. "Looks like we have our team." I nodded to the four wolves headed our way.

"Looks like it," he agreed, turning away as well. "Teagan, Laurent, Chrissy, and Sheila. Some of my smarter wolves. They're good. Teagan is the one I was mentioning. The Beta wolf." He pointed out each respectively, giving me a chance to know their faces and names before the work truly began. He nodded to the one in the front, but I didn't need him to.

Years with Hasan and the few times I had met with Lani in person taught me to see the walk of one of the older supernaturals. For werewolves and werecats, age meant power, a slow, steady growth in strength as the world continued to knock us down. Teagan had the air of being powerful, much like Heath next to me.

"What makes a Beta wolf?" I asked.

"Slower growth in strength. A calmer disposition that lends them less power in the pack. They aren't the bottom of the pack, still able to fight for a place that suits them, but they make others protective, and they're less likely to resort to violence."

"You know, since we're on this topic. Why do you wolves use Alpha and Beta and that nonsense? Wasn't it disproved that wolves do it?"

Heath chuckled. "You say that like we should care. The scientist knew werewolves and thought the same rules applied to real wolves, so he saw what he wanted to see while doing his research. No, real wolves don't have such a strict rank structure as we do, but then, they aren't part human. Humans need leaders and control in their lives. Routine. The Alpha and pack structure is to appease that need, but remain as wild as we're able to be."

"Interesting," I murmured, nodding. "Like all things in our lives, a blend of animal and man."

"Exactly," he agreed.

We waited for a few more moments while the group made their way through the large warehouse. They had started a fair distance away and now they were nearly upon us.

Teagan was stiffer with each step closer, and was the first one to speak. "A werecat, Heath? Really?"

"Hm. An oath-sworn werecat, but yes, a werecat." Heath didn't seem perturbed by Teagan's obvious aggression, and therefore, I didn't let it bother me. "Teagan, she's not old enough to have been a part of the war. She's innocent in all of it."

Teagan looked me over, calculating and severe. I wasn't sure what he saw, but after several heartbeats, he visibly relaxed. "You are a young thing, aren't you? What are you doing in this mess?"

I gestured to his Alpha. "Someone here thought it was a good idea to send Carey to a werecat for protection without telling the werecat it was part of his plan. I was called to Duty before I even knew how bad things really were here."

"Huh. Heath, that's a bit rude of you, don't you think?" Teagan frowned. "I was there when the Laws were signed. If Hasan was still walking around in the world, he'd have your head for not giving the cat fair warning."

"It's not against the Law to keep my security plans a secret," Heath replied, shrugging.

"You know Hasan?" I perked up slightly. A wolf that knows my…father? I never thought I would see the day.

"Not really. I was just there, and so was he. Big, powerful son of a bitch, even back then. I swear, I think he's the first of your kind because of how old he is." Teagan smirked. "From my understanding, you werecats still worship the ground he walks on."

"Kind of," I said, shrugging. "It's just rare to hear anyone outside our own kind mention him."

"Are we going to get to work?" Sheila asked, tapping her foot, her hands on her hips. "I'm sure after this is all said and done, we can play friends with the werecat, but Carey is more important than this."

"Yes." The Alpha nodded, gesturing to the Beta wolf. "Teagan, I'm going to need someone in charge of this group—"

"We're all going to vote for Fenris," he answered. "You've brought a werecat in. You can't expect him to take it as well as I might." The Beta wolf eyed me again. "He's going to make her life hard, you know that, right? He's not going to let her out of his sight."

Oh, well that's pleasant. The angry, crazy one is going to join in on the fun, is he?

"No. I'm not going to accept that. Either you or me. I'm not letting Fenris lead the team to save my daughter just because he's going to want a piece of the werecat. It's not going to happen."

"You might have to fight him on it. He's not here right now, but when he gets back and finds out about this?" Teagan snorted. "Alpha…"

Heath growled, a sound that made my bones vibrate thanks to how close he was. I stepped away slowly, trying not to draw the eye. I didn't want pack fights over me, so I cleared my throat until the Alpha looked in my direction.

"What?" he snapped.

"I'll be fine," I promised.

"Teagan, you're going to be in charge of this team. You might not be a violent wolf, but I trust you to keep the others directed in the right ways. Chrissy, Laurent, Sheila? Any problem with that?"

"No sir," they answered back in unison.

He never took his eyes off me, searching my face for something. "You're a foolhardy feline if you think Fenris is someone you can handle. My daughter's life is in your hands right now, along with these wolves beside me, and that means you're an honored guest of my house. I would protect any of my wolves from each other if I felt the reason for their pain was unjust. I don't let my wolves get bullied for circumstances beyond their control. I'm not going to let a guest of my house be treated that way either."

I raised my hands in mock defeat. "Then hover, but don't fight my battles for me. Some of your wolves might need a hard lesson in what it means to pick a fight with a werecat. You should let them learn that lesson."

"Foolhardy," he repeated.

Probably, but I couldn't risk the reputation of the werecats as a species by hiding behind the coattails of an Alpha werewolf. I had to take his word that he would protect me, but I also had to stand up for myself. As long as I wasn't jumped by a group too large for me to handle, I was going to be fine.

Hopefully.

He exhaled a long breath in exasperation and looked back to the werewolves I was going to be working with. "I'm going to check on the others. Keep an eye on her, and god damn it, if Fenris shows up, come get me."

"Yes sir," they responded, once again in unison like dutiful little soldiers.