36. Ryan

Istood still, the forest around me a cacophony of nature's whispers, but I only focused on the soft padding of Derek, Mason, Ivan, Due-Lah, and a select few others from the Bridgetown Pack. All of them were in wolf form, muscles taut, eyes alert, noses sniffing the earth and the wind. Only the ones we really trusted were with us. Tristan had spies in the Bridgetown Pack, eyes that were tracking every move Michael and Camille made, ready to inform him of their movements and actions.

We had to be careful, so damn careful. Michael and Camille had been forced to playact their normal routine, putting on a show as if everything was fine, hiding the truth that we knew what Tristan was planning. Now, it was our turn. We were hunting Tristan and his men, and I was hoping to get to him before he could attack. Michael had asked me to be in charge of this operation. I knew he was worried that there were still people in his Pack who were working with Tristan. He was putting the lives of himself, his mate, and his daughter in my hands, and I wasn't going to let him down.

A sudden halt in movement from Derek caught my eye. His wolf form, massive and alert, was frozen like a statue, ears forward. Mason, too, stopped in his tracks, his body a tense line of anticipation.

I crept ahead, and then, through the veil of leaves and shadows, I saw it. Tristan's ambush. His men were stationed beside the road, hidden by the thick underbrush. A truck was parked on the road, and a tree had been felled so it landed across the truck. The convoy from Bridgetown would have to stop to remove the tree and the truck before they could go on, and while they did so, Tristan and his men could attack.

I signaled to the others, telling them to stop, my gestures conveying the need for caution and precision.

I inched closer. We were upwind; they wouldn't be able to smell us coming just yet. We were ready for this. Eager for the fight. I couldn't see Tristan, and most of his team were pretty well hidden from a first glance. If you looked closer, though, you could see the telltale signs. A piece of clothing to the left, the tip of a boot poking out from under leaves. I counted six on the other side of the road and five on our side.

I crept back to the others, but a rustle in the foliage behind them caught my attention. My body tensed, my senses sharpening as I turned.

Tucker.

He stepped out from behind a tree, his human form looking out of place among the stealthy wolf forms of Derek, Mason, Ivan, and the others.

He crossed his arms and glared at me. "I'm not leaving!"

"What are you doing here?" I hissed, my voice a mix of disbelief and anger. This was no place for Tucker; his presence could jeopardize everything.

"I came to protect my family," Tucker asserted, his voice resolute but with a slight tremble to it. "I couldn't just stay at home and wait for them to be attacked. It's my parents, my sister. I had to do something."

I opened my mouth, but before I could respond, another figure arrived. Henry, also in human form, and he was about as mad as I was.

"Tucker, you're in deep shit! You're supposed to be back at the Alpha House!" Henry snapped, his eyes locked on his brother.

I turned to Henry. "What happened?"

"We're supposed to lie low at home. They're ready for an attack on the Alpha House, just in case this is a trick. I know you talked to my dad about this. But bright spark over here snuck out. I saw him escape from the top-floor window. I knew the others wouldn't be able to track him. Only my parents, Shya, and I have been able to catch him since he was four. I followed him here, and I intend to drag his sorry ass back home."

The situation was spiraling, the appearance of Tucker and Henry complicating our mission, adding a layer of risk that we didn't need. My mind raced, weighing the options, calculating the best course of action.

I glared at Tucker, my voice cutting like a knife. "You've put us all at risk. What if you were caught by Tristan? He would kill you without a second thought. You led your brother here. Henry could have been taken instead of you, Tucker. I get that you want to help, but you'll help by keeping yourself and your brother safe and making sure the rest of us don't have to worry about you. Henry, take him back to the Alpha House. Now. Derek, go with them. Make sure they get back okay."

I could see the protest in Tucker's eyes, the desire to argue, to fight for his place here. Then he hung his head low. "I just wanted to help."

"I don—"

I stopped talking. A sound at the edge of my hearing stopped me. A distant rumble, growing louder, the unmistakable sound of the convoy approaching.

Fuck!

The plan changed in an instant. There was no time for Tucker and Henry to leave, no time for anything but action.

"Henry, protect Tucker. Do not let him out of your sight. Tucker, you will stay here, right here, you understand? You will not move, you will not twitch a tail until I come back, no matter what happens, no matter what you hear."

Tucker looked up at me, his eyes wide.

"I'll look after him," promised Henry as he grabbed his brother and forced him to sit down. Fuck, Henry was barely more than a child himself.

There was nothing for it. If we wanted to save Michael, Camille, and Shya, we had to act now.