34. Chapter 34

Chapter 34

L ayla pulled a pair of sneakers on and made her way out of the bedroom. Her stomach growled again. It was so loud she was sure everyone in the house could hear it. Jax didn't bring her any breakfast as he promised. He hadn't come back at all.

Why was it taking so long to see the next group off?

The lobby was as busy as she expected. The last group of people was supposed to head out at the end of the day, and then only the warrior would be left to defend the territory and try to get the missing wolves back.

Things felt like they were heading back on track with Jackson. They could sit down and talk things through when he returned from his duties. She didn't like that the bond made him feel as if they had to stay together even after she hit him. She didn't like that he kept acting like she was in his way, making decisions for her and telling her her job was to look after Hope. But after that morning, she was sure they could talk things out. He had to have his reasons for being that way. After what Jax said about his dad, she was convinced he had a significant part to play in it.

They both needed to go a little easier on themselves. Take things one day at a time. If they came out of it all alive, then that vacation Jax mentioned would be the perfect place to reconnect.

But first, they needed to survive. They had to get Faith back. And to do that, she had to trust herself as Diedre told her to.

She knew her wolf could potentially be as strong as Rebecca's. Her mother calmed and protected everyone who took refuge in the packhouse the night Hailey attacked them. Faith said it felt like being in a bubble, confident that nothing could penetrate it and hurt them.

She wanted to do that for everyone. She wanted to feel as if their faith in her wasn't misplaced.

She looked at the door as a group of warriors walked in with some boxes. That was odd. Were they not supposed to be going to the plane with them? More warriors came in, and then Dylan with a group of women. Max's mother, Marjorie, was among them, her eyes puffy and swollen. Had she been crying for her children all night as well?

She was lucky that she and Jax had each other to lean on, even if feeling all of Jax's pain was heartbreaking.

"We have to do as he says. It was an order, Marjorie," Dylan said as he walked across the lobby. He didn't sound pleased with whatever order he was following.

"But I promised them that I would come," Marjorie said. Her voice was raspy and desperate. "I'm all they have, Beta. I can't leave them alone again."

She frowned as she came down the last step and followed them. What did she mean? What the hell was going on?

"I will announce it to everyone when I hear back from Jackson. It's just a precaution," Dylan said. "If the Hunters track the air, they will know where we are the second the planes land. Just give me time; we might have to get everyone here first so you can all go the moment we give the pilots the all-clear to come back."

She could see Dylan was just trying to hold it together. He couldn't entirely hide the worry he was projecting.

"But you haven't heard from him in hours. What if—"

"Alpha Jackson is fine. You can feel that as well as I can," Dylan said as he reached the conference room door.

Her heart stopped.

What... Where was Jax?

"I can feel that he's not dead, but that doesn't mean he's fine," Marjorie said.

"What would you have me do? Break a direct order and put everyone else in danger?" Dylan asked. "Just be ready to do whatever our Alpha commands when he returns. I have more calls to make; I promise I'll do everything possible to get everyone out of here. But you know how it was last time. We won't stand a chance without Alpha and Diedre. We're safer here with Diedre's wards."

Her limbs weakened. She placed her hand on the wall to support herself as Dylan entered the conference room and closed the door.

The Hunters arrived in town, just as his informant said.

The Hunters who'd taken Faith and possibly her mother.

And Jackson was out there alone.

A harsh breath escaped her lips as she looked at the women crying for their children and the closed door. Knowing that she would also suffer the same consequences, Jackson would never have put himself in danger. He would never have gone to town alone if he'd known the Hunters were there. He had all those getaway cars and superior senses; he would never have gone anywhere near them.

But what if he had?

She turned away from the group of women and slowly walked to the door. Fear she hadn't felt since she'd discovered Jackson's curse reared up inside her. She could feel her bond with Jackson, but because of the distance between them, she didn't know if he was okay.

She walked out of the door and paused when she saw the tents being set up, just as they did the other times they were attacked. People gathered in groups, whispering.

"...captured by Hunters..."

"...we can't do anything..."

"...he would have been back by now..."

"....leave before the Circle comes to wipe us all out..."

Her head swum. Were they thinking of abandoning their Alpha? The man who risked himself all the time to save them?

The whispers quietened down as she walked down the front steps. She didn't look at any of them, concentrating instead on putting one foot in front of the other.

"Are you okay, Luna?"

She looked up at the sound of the voice and saw Kelly, the young girl she had rescued from a wolf in the woods during one of the attacks. And her heart broke. Kelly hadn't had a wolf back then but recently shifted. Which meant she was part of the able-bodied wolves who were supposed to leave last or stay behind to defend the territory. But she was just a kid herself.

Any resentment she'd felt when she heard the whispers disappeared as she took Kelly's hand.

"I'm okay. Go and help the others. You have to be ready to move the moment they tell you to," she said with a little smile, and then on impulse, she pulled the girl into a hug.

"I'm scared," Kelly whispered.

It took Kelly a lot of work to deal with the fact that she was almost sexually assaulted. It took both of them a lot of work. But they had come a long way.

"So am I. But we can still be brave," she whispered back.

She released Kelly and smiled again as she turned away. She wasn't going to make promises that she couldn't keep. She wouldn't say everything would be alright when no one knew the outcome.

"Where are you going?" Kelly asked.

She kept her expression the same as she turned back.

"I'm going to see if anyone needs help. It's better if we're all together," she lied.

Kelly nodded, and when she turned away from the young girl again, her fake smile slipped.

The gate was wide open as more residents filed onto the packhouse grounds. The guard was too distracted to ask her where she was going. He was too distracted to see her slip into the woods and start running. But the guards at the main gate were on high alert. There were more of them than usual, and they were visibly uneasy. They turned around to face her before she even walked out of the woods.

"Miss Layla, you can't be here."

She looked up and met Gavin's gaze. As the man who took over from Micah, it was his responsibility to make sure the warriors knew their duties. And one of their duties was ensuring she remained safe so she wouldn't jeopardise their Alpha.

But she needed to go to him. She needed to find him.

"Open the gate, Gavin," she whispered.

"It's too dangerous. The Hunters are in the city, and we don't know yet if they will attack us. Please—"

"I said open the gates!" she said louder.

All the guards tensed, and two immediately started unlocking the gates. They seemed to be doing it against their will like the Circle did when she'd told them to leave. Did she command them?

Whatever it was, she was grateful when the gates opened and she ran through them.

"Don't follow me. Stay here and keep everyone safe."

"But Luna, we can't—"

"Do as I say," she shouted back. "Lock the gates."

As she ran up the dusty road, she looked back and saw them doing as she asked. She hated that. Who was she to tell anyone else what to do? They were only doing their jobs, and they were right to try to keep her inside. She had no plan and no backup. Even if she fought, she didn't know how strong the Hunters would be. All she knew for sure was that Jax was out there alone.

Everything inside her was in turmoil. Everything was building up, ready to explode. How could she just sit still when her mate wasn't home? When the danger was all around him?

Her emotions jumbled up until she felt the unfamiliar ones. The calmness. The sense of control when everything else was spiralling. She knew then that it was her wolf.

Her steps quickened as if the wolf boosted her. She opened up her senses, seeking Jackson in the direction of the city. Though she was moving fast, her steps were light. It felt like running in the air.

Her fists clenched at her side as she fought to hold in the emotions threatening to break her apart. Jax was okay; thinking otherwise wasn't an option. So she shoved those thoughts and feelings to the back of her mind until only the wolf drove her. The anger. The confidence that she was doing the right thing.

She zoomed past trees and jumped over bushes and shrubs. The forest around her was quiet, like everything in it also sensed evil in the air. It was overbearing. Flashbacks of her run-in with the Hunters came back to her mind and Amber's face as the light dimmed from her eyes. They were monsters. She couldn't let Jax face them alone.

She was almost in the city when something snatched her feet and lifted her off the ground. And then a net of silver wrapped around her as she hung upside down.

What the...

She would have screamed, but the wolf's emotions were still driving her. No fear. And that was stupid. She should have been terrified.

"See what I mean? Sometimes, the old ways are the best."

The sound of that voice had her twisting in her silver prison, and a frisson of fear finally slipped through.

She was upside down but she would never forget that face. He came forward, still as cold and dark as she remembered from her nightmares.

"Hello, Catrina Smith," he said with a smirk. "Or shall I say, Layla Carlisle?"