CHAPTER 26
VENUS
Our message did not deter them. They came back.
For the two full moons we had in the month of August—a super moon and then a blue moon—they came back.
The rare occurrence meant two chances of turning people with a frustratingly quick turnaround that kept us on our toes.
There was no stopping the rogues on the super moon.
Amelia was in the early stages of being a rogue field agent, or whatever they wanted to call it, and was still finding her footing. She was being supervised, making it harder for her to get information out to us while she was training.
Meaning we did not have the intel we were hoping we'd have on who their targets were. We had to wing it again, spreading our forces out as wide as possible.
It didn't stop them from breaching our borders. They tailed back and forth between the lines of the Saint Claire and Bluestone territories—Alpha Luca's region.
To make matters worse, the proximity of the super moon to the earth gave the already fast and superior rogues even more power. An advantage that did not bode well for us.
The formula Carter was working on, for some unknown reason, did not seem to work either. It was still in its early stages, and we had been forced to use it earlier than planned when the rogues succeeded in finding a target on their path.
We'd tried it on the transitioning human—who we managed to snatch from the hands of our enemies after knocking the wild wolves out.
Well … knocking one out.
To my utter dismay, the other two weren't so lucky.
When Bear caught their scent and hunted them, they fled, hoping to deter us from their fellow shifter who was left with their newly turned victim: a male in his mid-twenties, who was passed out by the time we got to him.
The rogues attacked Dalton and Koda along the way, and luckily neither of the boys sustained serious injuries. The brothers kept the rogues occupied—at least until Dalton was clawed across his maw, a laceration that wasn't deadly, but with the supermoon strength, it left him with a permanent scar bisecting his lip.
Of course, the older brother embraced the extra level of ‘badass' it added to his appearance, claiming it gave him a dangerous edge. Koda, on the other hand, was grateful it didn't happen to his own ‘pretty face'.
Despite Dalton being okay, the chaos and uncertainty in that moment gave the rogues enough time to once again flee.
But Bear and Riv didn't let them get far, chasing them all the way to the border where they were intercepted by our ally pack.
When the rogues hit the border of the neighbouring territory, the two Alphas did not hesitate. Luckily, the power of the super moon also enhanced our wolves, giving the Alphas an extra edge. River and Alpha Luca took them out instantly. Like out, out.
Another two deaths. Another end to a human life. But the beginning of a supernatural one.
Danny was initiated into Riv's pack after he'd awoken as a wolf when the formula failed to undo what was already done. Since then, he'd been working closely with Tanner, who had returned from his recruitment duty in favour of looking after the newly transitioned wolf and helping him acclimatize to his new life.
If we couldn't stop the death and couldn"t stop them from turning with our new formula just yet, then we sure as hell weren't letting the rogues have them.
Alpha Cara's pack were not so lucky, finding a dead female at the far end of their lands. The poor human did not survive the bite, her corpse discarded at the ‘failure' with absolutely no regard.
It was a grim reminder of what we were dealing with. Of what would continue to happen if we didn't find a way to put a stop to the rogue army. In the best-case scenario, those innocent people would find themselves as wolf shifters against their will—their life forever changed before their eyes. In the worst-case scenario … they would find themselves stripped of a life all together.
By the approach of the blue moon, we were all disheartened and frustrated, everyone feeling a bit on edge after the previous mission. That, combined with our close quarters and constantly being in each other"s faces, started to make things a bit heated at the pack house.
We were simultaneously getting closer and more tight-knit as a unit, yet also bickering more than ever over the stupidest, trivial things: like using Zander's boxing gloves, or touching Griffin's sword, or someone eating someone else's snacks.
With Amelia's intel by the second moon in August, we were able to stop the rogues with much less hassle, localising our forces when the day approached.
The way everything came together felt like our biggest accomplishment since we started this treaty.
The rogues didn't bother targeting pack territory during their bonus opportunity, forgoing the hassle of our armed forces for the unclaimed campsite in No Man"s Land instead.
We were prepared.And we succeeded.
Billie, Santi and their wolf escort, Blaze, intercepted the attack before it took place, while the rest of us held down the fort.
All in all, the night gave us all a glimmer of hope that we desperately needed.
And a few days later, we were still riding that high.
Our success helped bring up morale. And I was utterly grateful for it. Especially after witnessing the light seem to slowly leave River's honey gaze day by day. It was replaced by burdened eyes, weighed down by guilt and pressure as we failed to get answers.
I didn't dare add to it, choosing to keep both boys at a reasonable distance while we dealt with the hectic few weeks. Particularly after the close call Riv and I had on the couch that Griff walked in on.
I wasn't sure if I would have impulsively let things get further with the Alpha that night. But I hadn't made my choice yet and was fearful of what a mistake like that might do in such a precarious situation. Especially when I'd been careful up until now.
I didn't want to give mix signals until I knew what I was doing with my life. Even though I was probably already unintentionally doing that. But I didn't want to make things worse.
It was just an intense, emotionally driven moment between two people who'd been each other's comfort in the past. And that was fine. That was allowed.
But kissing was not.
I had to keep that rule in place if I was to remain sane. Because the guilt surely would kill me.
Thankfully, River's mood and that strain seemed to lift ever so slightly by the end of August, and he seemed to regain a bit of himself.
The upcoming Harvest Moon at the end of September gave us almost a full month to recuperate and plan.