Alpha Gray by C.J. Primer
CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN
Gray
I called the council together on Sunday evening to discuss my trip to Denver. The council for the six-pack consists of twelve members: the alphas from each pack and our betas. Reid and I are the young bucks, heading up the Goldenleaf and Stillwater packs. Theo’s dad, Alpha Anders, runs the Summervale pack, and Alpha Damian, Jax’s father, runs the Westfield pack. Brock will be taking over the Riverton pack at the end of the summer for his old man, Alpha Rowe. I’m looking forward to the day when all five of us are the alphas of our packs, running the council. Not that I mind the current alphas, but some of them are older, stuck in their ways, and resistant to change.
The only outlier will be Alpha Vaughn from the Norbury pack. He’s got a son, Chase, but he’s still in high school so it’ll be a while before he takes over. I’m hoping that Chase will come join us at the squad complex after he graduates high school so we can get to know him better, assimilate him into our little brotherhood of young alphas.
At the council meeting, we all debate the pros and cons of forming an alliance with the Denver pack. In the end, we unanimously decide that we should at least go hear them out, and because Reid and I are unattached, without mates or families, we volunteer to make the trip. I’d planned on going either way, since I’ve been the one laying the groundwork with the Denver alpha over the last few months.
The whole ride to Denver, it’s like I can physically feel the distance between Fallon and myself growing, almost like there’s some invisible string between us that’s stretching thinner and thinner as the miles increase. I know how absolutely insane that sounds, especially since I’ve only known the girl for a few weeks, but I can’t get her out of my head. I’m not even there yet and I’m already aching to get back to her.
Reid and I arrive in Denver late on Monday afternoon, rolling up to a gated community on the outskirts where most of the pack resides. I throw my Jeep in park at the gate, hitting the intercom button and telling the person on the other end who we are and who we’re here to see. After a few seconds, the gate slides open and we drive through, winding through the residential streets until we reach the large packhouse situated at the top of a hill.
They must’ve really tightened up their security recently, because we’re barely out of the Jeep when we’re greeted by two bulky guys coming down the driveway in our direction.
“Alpha Gray, Alpha Reid?” one of them asks, and I just give a curt nod.
“Alpha Cole has been expecting you,” the other guy says. He gestures for us to follow, and Reid and I trail behind them up the driveway and into the packhouse.
The packhouse here is sleek and modern, with clean lines and lots of windows. Once inside, we’re led down a long hallway- which I know from my previous visits ends at Cole’s office. We reach the closed door of the office and the larger of the two goons escorting us knocks on it twice, announcing our arrival.
“Send them in,” comes a deep voice from inside, and the guy turns the knob and pushes the door open, stepping out of the way so that Reid and I can enter.
Cole is seated behind a large oak desk that’s partially covered with scattered paperwork. He’s a young guy- I’d put him at about thirty- and he’s got short black hair, dark eyes, a square jaw, and a no-nonsense attitude. He rises to his feet when we enter, his expression stoic.
“Alpha Gray, nice to see you again,” he greets, moving around his desk to approach me as one of his goons closes the door behind us. He extends a hand to shake mine with a firm grip.
“Alpha Cole,” I reply, tipping my head. “Likewise.”
“And you must be Alpha Reid,” he says, moving to Reid beside me and offering his hand.
Reid shakes it, nodding. “Nice to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“All good things, I hope.”
The corner of Reid’s mouth tips up into a half-smile. “Of course.”
Cole circles back around to his side of the desk, gesturing to the two overstuffed leather chairs situated in front of it. “Please, have a seat.”
Reid and I acquiesce, sinking down as Cole takes his seat opposite us.
“I’m sure you’re wondering why I called you up here for a meeting.” Cole leans forward, setting his elbows on the desk and lacing his fingers together in front of him.
I just nod, leaning back in my chair and crossing an ankle over my knee, waiting for him to go on. I don’t want to make any assumptions about an alliance, so I’ll let him take the lead.
“You called me last week about your rogue problem, asked if we’d come across the guy down here.”
“Yeah,” I mumble. “He was eliminated, but we still don’t know why he was hanging around. Haven’t had any issues since.”
Cole pauses, drawing a breath. “Some new information on that front has come to light,” he says. “We have reason to believe that Alpha Xavier and the shadow pack have been using rogues to locate the shifter packs in our state.”
My blood runs cold. My pulse races, and I can feel my frantic heartbeat in my ears.
“Are you sure?” My voice is raspy, and it sounds so far away, like it isn’t even mine. Suddenly I’m that frightened eighteen-year-old boy again, watching the shadow pack tear through mine, screaming out as my parents fall, fighting against Deke as he pulls me out of the packhouse to safety.
Cole speaks again, bringing me back to the present. “We captured a rogue that was sniffing around our border, got some information out of him.”
Fuck. I let myself start to feel safe, comfortable in the remote six-pack territory. I let myself get involved with Fallon, consider a future with her. If the shadow pack finds the six-pack, there may not be a future for any of us.
I scrub a hand over my face, leaning forward. “Are you sure? Where is he now? Do you still have him?”
Cole nods solemnly. “He’s in a cell in the basement.”
“Can I question him?”
Cole shrugs. “I’m not sure what else you’ll get out of him. It took a while for us to even get what little information we did.” He pushes back his chair, rising to his feet. “But yeah, I figured you’d want to.”
My mind is absolutely fucking spinning right now. We’ve got the squad in place and we’ve been theoretically preparing our defense for years, but are we really ready for the largest threat to land on our doorstep?
Reid and I rise to our feet, following Cole out of his office silently. He leads us down another corridor to a long set of stairs descending into the darkness. Once we reach the bottom and he flicks on a light, I glance around at the clean, empty, well-lit space. Not the dungeon I was expecting.
We follow Cole as he crosses the room to a door on the far side with a keypad affixed next to the handle. He types in a series of numbers and I hear the locking mechanism disengage.
He pulls open the door, leading Reid and I into a small room lit with overhead florescent lights. When I cross the threshold, the rogue’s foul scent assaults my nose before I even lay eyes on him.
He’s seated in the center of the room, bound to a metal chair. As we enter the room, the rogue jerks his head up to look at us, his eyes wide, wild. His stringy dark hair clings to dried blood on his dirty face and one of his eyes is completely swollen shut- evidence of how Cole’s pack coaxed information out of him.
“He’s all yours,” Cole says, gesturing to the rogue. He steps aside, moving to the wall beside the door, reclining back on it and folding his arms across his chest.
I stalk toward the rogue, a low growl starting in my chest. My wolf is frenzied, ready to tear through and attack. Although this isn’t Alpha Xavier sitting in front of me, this man apparently shares a connection with him, which makes him my enemy. My wolf wants to tear his throat out; he claws at my insides as I shove him back, trying to steady myself, remain calm, focus on the task at hand. I need information.
The rogue tips his head back to look up at me as I stand over him, his mouth spreading into a taunting grin. “I’m not telling you shit,” he sneers.
I narrow my eyes, peering down at him. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” I growl.
“Either way, I’m not sayin’ nothin’.” He spits at me, but his aim is terrible as he writhes against the bindings on his chest. His arms are tied behind his back. “Alpha filth.”
Most rogues hate alphas. After all, they typically become rogues because they were exiled by one. Makes me wonder why any of them would agree to do Alpha Xavier’s bidding. The pieces of this puzzle aren’t really fitting, which is why I’m desperate to fill in the gaps.
I place my hands on the cold metal arms of the chair, leaning down over him. “There was a rogue in my territory with a scar on his face,” I say calmly. “Do you know him? Is he working with you?”
The rogue cackles, shaking his head, swishing his filthy hair around. “I’m not tellin’ you shit.”
I dart out a hand, wrapping it around the guy’s throat. I tighten my grip, restricting his air as I lean my face close to his. “You’d better start talking,” I say through gritted teeth.
The rogue’s smile fades as I continue to tighten my grip around his neck, his eyes bulging. He sputters a little, gasping, and I let go, withdrawing my hand and allowing him to take a breath.
“Well?” I ask, folding my arms across my chest as I stand over him.
He just looks up at me, his eyes feral, gives another indignant shake of his head.
I’m trying to stay calm, but my wolf’s starting to get the better of me. I cock my fist back and punch the rogue squarely in the jaw, the room echoing with the loud crack of my knuckles against his face. His head droops to the side, but I grab him by the throat again, forcing him to look at me.
“Tell me!” I roar, staring daggers through him.
“I…” he starts, but it’s too late for me- I see red.
While I know the rogue that was on my territory is dead and gone, in this moment, the rogue in front of me becomes the embodiment of him. In this moment, the rogue in front of me is the threat against my pack, against our very existence. He’s Fallon’s attacker, and I’m finally getting retribution against the beast that deigned to harm my sweet little she-wolf.
That last thought pours gasoline on the fire raging inside of me and I completely lose control, landing punches on the guy’s face, one after the other. I feel the crack of his cheekbone against my fist, but I don’t care, it’s not enough. My wolf nearly takes over as my vision blurs and my fists fly, connecting with his face over and over.
“Gray!”
My wolf’s so close to the surface that I almost don’t hear Reid, almost don’t feel his hands on my arms pulling me back. I snap back to reality, the room coming into focus again. My knuckles are sticky with blood, and I don’t know if it’s the rogue’s or my own.
I steady myself, drawing ragged breaths, shrugging out of Reid’s grip on my arms.
“We won’t get anything out of him if you beat him to death,” Reid mutters.
He’s right- but the tether I have on my control right now is so fucking thin.
I lean down again in front of the rogue, lifting his chin so his bloody face is inches from mine. I cock my other fist back again and the guy flinches, a whimper escaping his lips.
“I don’t know any rogue with a scar,” he whines, his voice small and pitiful.
I slowly lower my fist, staring into his one visible eye. Blood drips down his face onto my other hand as I hold his chin.
“Why are rogues working for the shadow pack?” I growl.
The guy doesn’t answer right away, and I lift my other fist again threateningly. He flinches again, then says something, but his voice is barely audible.
“What was that?” I ask, my fist still cocked back.
“I’m not.” His voice is quiet, coming out like a squeak.
I drop his face and his head bobs downwards.
Cole has been hanging on the periphery for this entire exchange, but at the rogue’s admission, he steps forward beside me.
“Then why did you tell my guys that you were?” he demands.
The rogue spits blood onto the floor, lifting his head with what appears to be a great deal of effort.
“To scare you. To fuck with you. Alpha trash.” His face spreads into a sickening grin. “Guess it worked.”
This time, it’s Cole’s temper that flares. He punches the guy in the head, once, twice, three times. The rogue’s body sags back in the chair as he’s knocked unconscious by the final blow.
The three of us just stand there in silence for a moment, staring at the rogue’s limp body passed out on the chair he’s tied to.
“Let’s go,” Cole grumbles, turning back to Reid and me as he wipes his knuckles on his jeans. “It fucking stinks in here.”
He walks past us through the doorway of the room, and Reid and I are quick to follow. I feel like it’s going to take multiple showers to get that rogue’s stench off of me.
“I guess I wasted your time calling you down here,” Cole mutters as he closes the door after us, punching the number sequence into the keypad again. He spins back around as the lock engages, scowling.
“There’s no telling which story’s the truth,” Reid sighs, shoving his hands in his pockets. “That asshole isn’t exactly a reliable source of information.”
Cole grunts in agreement.
I’m at a loss here. My gut tells me that the rogue made the whole thing up in an effort to save his own skin. Maybe he thought he could strike some sort of deal if he fronted as a liaison to the shadow pack instead of a lone wolf. Still, every potential threat has to be taken seriously. Ignoring something like this could have dire consequences if proven otherwise.
“Either way, we appreciate the call,” I say. “We’d do the same for you. And we’ll look into it, see if there’s any truth there.”
Another long pause settles between the three of us.
“Listen, I know we’ve been talking about an alliance on and off,” Cole murmurs. “I’m not ready to make a formal agreement, but that doesn’t mean we can’t work together, look out for one another. If you can stay through the week, I’ll let you in on our current security measures and the intel we’ve gathered thus far, you can share yours, and we can strategize as to how we could potentially align for an attack.”
I nod. “Absolutely.”
Cole extends a hand to me and I take it, shaking firmly. While it may not be a formal alliance, it’s a start. The more manpower we can build against the shadow pack, the better.
