24. Ronyn

24

RONYN

Everyone shut up and get in groupthink. Now, I snarled.

An eerie silence fell over the forest. Hell, over the entire fucking compound. I rushed out of the woods with Dom on my back as I booked it toward the bath house. Merida cried out for her healers, causing me to wince with that shrill fucking voice she always used. Men and women draped in flowing robes went dashing for the bath house as I bounded over in my wolfish form. I skidded to a stop before I shifted back, the clothes spinning themselves around me as I cradled Dom in my arms.

Before a group of healers ripped him away from me.

Keep me updated every step of the way, I said as I stared Merida down.

She looked at me with a sympathetic look. I’ll keep you updated. Let us do what we do best now.

And after they disappeared into the bath house with him, I turned toward the rest of the compound as smoke rose all around us.

Everyone, listen up! Voss has gone after Alpha Bexley. I need all troops gathered in the meadow for further instructions and I need everyone else in their homes until further notice.

The entirety of the two packs stared at me with wide, relentless, fearful eyes. I knew how they felt, too. I had no idea if Bexley was all right. I had no idea where the hell that bitch took my mate. But, it wasn’t as if I was in any sort of position to show it.

I had two packs that needed my attention more than the capable woman that fate brought into my life.

Let’s go! I bellowed out in groupthink.

Everyone scurried to where they needed to be. My troops lined themselves up in perfect formation in the meadow next to the brunt of the fire we took. Women scooped children up into their arms and dashed with them back into the houses. The celebration was long forgotten about. The food, riddled with flies and insects as it sat there, untouched. Wispy smoke rose into the sky from the barely cooked buck that had now gone to waste on the spit. And as I raced for my troops, I reached out to Voss.

Anything? I asked.

But his radio silence was the only thing that met my ears.

All right, troops, I said in groupthink as I stood tall and proud with my hands clasped behind my back. We’ve been attacked twice in this new home over the span of the last few weeks, and it’s two attacks too many. Now the plan is reinforcement.

Shock wafted over everyone’s faces, but it was Lieutenant Reggie that spoke next. Commander general, won’t that signal to the vampires that watch us that we’re preparing for battle?

I pinned him with a look. You think we’re not?

That silenced everyone, and I drew in a deep breath before I gave my commands. Troops A and B, you’re on scout. I want you guys to fan out and search for twenty miles in every single direction. Don’t take on any vampire you come across by yourself.

But are we killing them? Lieutenant Rhonda asked.

I pinned her with the same look. If your life depends on it, yes. But until we can get ourselves set up here and ready for a fight, we don’t draw it to us.

Lieutenant Mac spoke up next. Are you going to be in charge of the reinforcements to the compound?

I nodded. Yes, along with Troops C and D. While A and B are out there patrolling, C and D need to be inside this compound helping us to set traps. I’m sure Dom will have some advice and opinions on the matter once he’s well, but for now, we stick to what we can do tonight. We create reinforced walls of juniper, we have the healers get a head start on their potions, and we wait for Alpha’s return.

I looked out over my troops and waited for more questions. When none came, I nodded my head and silently dismissed everyone.

I walked to the middle of the meadow and stood.

I drew in a deep breath, despite the smoke and the absolute stench of those powdered donut carcass casings. I slowly lifted my hands into the air, feeling the ground shiver softly beneath me. I closed my eyes and felt my wolf come alive. My talons sharpened and my teeth protruded as I flattened my palms and slowly moved them around in the air. To any unsuspecting person, it looked like I was doing some form of weird-ass yoga. But as the perimeter of the compound creaked, a hedge slowly appeared seemingly from out of the ground.

It rose higher and higher as I encouraged it with my hands. I closed my eyes and dreamed of what I needed around the compound. A hedge wall, at least thirty feet into the air, close to the canopy of the forest around us. I pictured the juniper leaves and berries that covered the hedge, growing out of control as the ground hummed and churned beneath my feet. The ground split, ripping and tearing like the fabric of my clothes whenever I shifted. And as I opened my eyes, I slowly spun myself around in a circle, guiding the hedge that sprang from the ground at the beckoning of my hand.

I smelled the juniper as it grew all the way to the tops of the hedges around us.

See, wolf shifters like us have powers outside of everything the pack shares. Yeah, we can heal ourselves. Yeah, we’ve got groupthink. But once shifterhood is hit around eleven or twelve, two things happen: one, a fated mate is picked for the shifter; and two, their given powers start to emerge. For Voss, his super strength knows no bounds. For Dom, it’s his charisma. He can charm the hell out of anyone and get them to do anything at the drop of a hat. And me?

Well, nature yielded to me.

It’s what made me such a good commander general.

After the hedge was completed, towering over us and shrouding us in thick darkness, I started in on the vines. I paid attention to the juniper vines as sweat dribbled down my brow. My body shook with my efforts, but I didn’t care. Any vampire that wanted to get to us again would have to struggle with their goddamn lives. I sharpened my eyesight, staring at the juniper leaves on the vines from all the way across the compound. I used my hands to manipulate them, growing them into massive leaves that draped over the top of the hedges and expanded out over the compound’s houses. If those vampires wanted to get into our homes, they’d have to slide down a massive waxy leaf with a substance that paralyzed them from head to toe.

I blanketed the houses in those juniper leaves dangling from the hedge wall and finally heard him. I heard Voss bound over the wall that towered over us before he skidded to a grinding halt. I watched as he shifted back into his human form, his wisps of magic quickly piecing his clothing back together. His stare matched mine when he stalked toward me. His hands were balled up at his sides. And no matter where I fucking looked, I didn’t see Bexley anywhere with him.

“Ronyn,” Voss snarled.

I shook my head and placed a finger to my mouth before I pointed to my temple. Emergency mode. Groupthink only. Remember?

Voss blinked before he drew in a deep breath. We need to pack up and head out.

I paused my efforts on the wall and turned to face my Alpha. Are you sure that’s smart? They expect us to pack up and move.

Voss tilted his head. You know, I’m getting really tired of you challenging me with every step we take.

Because you’re only thinking about the immediate, I quip back. You know you’ve never been good with long-term plans. It’s why I do them.

Well, right now? I’m invoking all Alpha rights. We start with the homes and get them to a safe place, and then we ? —.

I cut him off. You’re not even considering Bexley in all of this. What if she ? —?

Then, as if a fucking miracle had finally decided to grace us with its presence, Dom’s weakened voice entered our minds.

Ronyn’s right. Leaving’s only going to put more distance between us and Bexley, anyway. What if she gets away and comes back to us, only for us to not be here?

Groupthink came alive with every voice known to our pack. The uproar was so jarring that I had to temporarily block all of their thoughts out. Voss winced as he bowed his head, and I could only imagine the fucking craziness going on inside of his head. But, eventually, Voss lifted his head and nodded toward me.

So I waltzed my ass back into groupthink. Dom?

Yep?

I grinned. Good to hear your voice.

Likewise, Voss said.

Dom spoke again, his voice getting stronger with every word. I’m assuming you didn’t come back with her, Voss?

The anger on his face twisted his expression into one I’d only ever seen one other time. And it was the moment he came across his parent’s dead bodies.

No, is all he said, I lost track of their scent. They were moving too quickly.

How far did you get out? I asked.

The mere fact that he hesitated before he spoke told me the answer wasn’t going to be good. Fifty miles.

Fifty miles!? Dom exclaimed.

I reached out to my troops. Troops A and B, expand your search radius ? —.

Lieutenant Mac reached out. Expand to something more than 50 miles. You got it, commander.

Report back to me with anything, I said, pinning Voss with a look.

What? he snarled.

You know what she’s capable of, I said. She’s going to be fine.

His nostrils flared. Do you really believe that?

I have to.

Dom sighed. You know we need to stay here and wait this out. Especially if she escapes and tracks her way back.

But Voss simply shook his head. She’s never going to get away from Delilah, and you know it.

I scoffed. Christ, if you can’t see how capable she is after everything we’ve been through together already with her, then you’re never going to see it.

I didn’t think my comment would get under his skin so badly. But when he darted his hand out and wrapped it around my goddamn neck, I snapped.

That’s it, I growled as I tackled him.

His back hit the ground before he rolled me over, and I dodged every punch. But then again, he dodged mine as well. My mind fell blank as I struggled against my Alpha. My own fucking Alpha. Never in my life had Voss and I ever fought, until that moment. Until his fist finally connected with my jaw and my vision went blank. I don’t know what the hell happened after that. I felt his skin against my nails. I heard Voss growling at me to stop. I felt him toss me before I scrambled back to my feet and charged him.

But it was Dom who finally made an appearance and stepped in between the two of us.

“Cut it out!” he exclaimed.

His voice echoed over the silent compound, and him breaking emergency mode was enough to pull both of us out of our heated trances. I panted at him as Voss stood there, crooked, with blood dripping from his nose. I brought the back of my hand to my lip and when I pulled it away, I saw my own blood as I felt the gash in my lip healing. I looked up and saw Voss’s blood pulling back into his nose before he snapped into place. And as he growled, I snickered.

Suits you right for trying to abandon her, I snarled.

Voss threw his hands into the air. I’m not trying to abandon her! I’m trying to protect these packs, like you know she’d want!

That stopped me in my tracks long enough for Dom to join in on the conversation. You know, the two of you may not give a flying fuck about what we’ve built here and what we’re trying to build with Bexley, but I do. I’ve poured my blood, sweat, and fucking tears into this place. Into keeping this pack together. And Bexley is now part of this pack. I’m not leaving this compound without her. I don’t care about the reasoning. If we leave, she’s with us. End of story.

And if we have to leave anyway? Voss asked.

I gnashed my teeth at him as Dom spoke. Then, you’ll do it without me.

That pulled my gaze slowly over to him. What?

Voss scoffed. You’d abandon this pack. After that kind of spiel. Seriously?

Dom was serious when he nodded. I’d do anything for my mate, especially if it meant sacrificing myself for her greater good.

And when Voss didn’t have a rebuttal, I went back to reinforcing the compound. After I finished with the juniper leaves covering the compound’s houses, I started in on the vines that laced together above our heads. I didn’t want to completely block out the sunlight, but I sure as hell wanted to make things hard for vampires to drop down on top of us. The vines grew thicker as I encouraged them to blend together. They weaved a pattern above our heads that I quickly laced once more with juniper. Berries and leaves exploded into numbers above our heads, dangling down from the vines and giving off their scent. I kept an eye on mothers as they came out of their homes, rubbing down their entryways and porches with as much garlic as they could muster. Healers rushed in and out of the bath house with armfuls of supplies. Merida barked orders in groupthink about things they needed to leave the compound to find so that they could stock up.

Much to my shock, Voss joined the group as he walked over to the northwestern side of the compound.

We need water diverting underneath this hedge so we can still grow things, he said, dropping to his knees and digging handfuls of dirt out from beneath the hedge.

Make sure whatever path you carve out is inlaid with some stones, Dom said as he walked around and used his charismatic powers to help settle the pups back into bed. Bubbling over those stones will help filter the water a bit. You know these pups are gonna jump right into that shit in the morning.

Voss continued to dig, moving armfuls of dirt without ever breaking a sweat. Yep, I got it.

I watched him snake beneath the hedge as I finished up with the vines.

Ronyn, give me a bit of headroom with those vines. I’m about to start tossing river rocks over, Voss said.

I grinned as I turned toward where he was digging. A trench that was at least four feet deep ran into the compound, cutting through the meadow toward the other side. The man worked like a damn dog, hefting dirt everywhere like it was nothing before he disappeared through the hedge once more. I turned my attention toward the bath house and grew stores of garlic for the healers and members of the pack to harvest at will. I even went so far as to use the last of my energy stores to help grow some of our crops. I tended to them, watching the squash and pumpkins grow right before my eyes. Broccoli sprouted and cauliflower ripened. Half of our garden would be ripe for the picking come morning.

I smirked at my handiwork before the ground thundered with a boom.

Incoming! Voss exclaimed.

I looked over toward where the sound came from and saw a massive river rock dropping down seemingly from the sky. Then another one got launched over the hedge.

Incoming! Voss exclaimed again.

I watched yet another one come over the hedge fence.

Incoming! he yelled again.

I blinked. You’re supposed to say incoming before you launch it over.

As if he was still trying to stick it to me, I watched a rock heave its way over the hedge and drop down right into the trench.

Incoming! Voss bellowed.

I rolled my eyes and groaned, but the sound of giggling, yawning children helped me to relax. I looked over as rocks thundered against the ground rhythmically, and I saw Dom running around with a few of the kids that weren’t ready to be tucked in. They laughed and giggled as if nothing happened, and I saw by the way Dom soaked his shirt with sweat that he was in the middle of using his powers to help them settle down and decompress.

I wanted to go over there and tell him to use his powers to get those pups in bed so that he can rest. But I watched Merida storm over to him and I knew she’d deal with it.

Then my troops started checking back in with me.

Commander? Lieutenant Mac asked.

Loud and clear, whatcha got? I asked.

Rocks continued to slam into the ground like meteorites before Voss came wiggling back through the hole in the hedge he dug beneath it with his bare hands.

We got the all clear seventy miles out on both the north and east of the compound, he said.

My stomach dropped. You mean to tell me Bexley was more than seventy fucking miles away from us. Where the hell did they go? Where the fuck did they take her?

Lieutenant Rhonda, reporting in, she said breathlessly.

Do you need backup? I immediately asked.

I watched Voss clamor back beneath the hedge before he scooped up those massive rocks, two at a time, beneath his fucking arms like they were wiggling children. He dropped them into the trench before stomping on them, embedding them into the fresh mud beneath the dirt he dug up.

No, no, Lieutenant Rhonda said as she pulled my attention away from Voss. We ended up going eighty miles out. South and west. No sign of anything. No scent. No trace. No fire. No smoke. Nothing.

“Fuck!” I barked across the compound.

Everyone whipped around and looked at me, Voss included. He pinned me with a look I absolutely deserved after that outburst, especially when I heard a couple of children sniffling again in the distance. I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath. It was my fault for having any sort of expectation of finding Bexley with the patrols. But, god-fucking-damn-it, where the hell did Delilah take Bexley?

Where the hell was my mate?

Commander? Lieutenant Riley asked. You need a moment?

Her question snapped me out of my trance. I need my trained stealth operatives in the meeting house, now. Finish your patrols, get back here safely, and those of you who I’ve trained to stick to the shadows, get your ass to the meeting house.

I turned toward the house on stilts that we had in the dark corner of the compound.

It was time for us to finally be on the offensive end of whooping ass.