Alpha Gray by C.J. Primer
CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
Fallon
“You know what time it is!” Jax shouts, grinning from ear to ear as he drops the crates of mesh scrimmage tanks in front of him on the practice field.
The excitement among the recruits is palpable. War games are always on Wednesdays, and since we’ve been working in teams all week, we’re doubly stoked for this round. We’ve learned a lot about one another over the past few days while running drills as a unit and we’ve already got a solid strategy for war games on lock.
“Come and get em!”
We practically trip over one another as we rush to the crate to grab our scrimmage vests, slipping them on over our clothing. I check my shoulder patches, make sure they’re securely fastened.
“Gold team with us!” Theo calls out, and I turn to see him and Gray standing together. Heck yeah, war games and Gray as one of my team’s captains? Could this day get any better?
Reid and Jax are captaining the other team, and Brock’s going to act as a referee of sorts. Once we’ve all donned our vests and have gathered with our teams again, we head for the gate and down the forest path to the war games area.
My team takes the first wooden bunker and the black team continues on to gather by theirs. We circle up to go over our strategy, but I’ve already got it down and I spend most of the time eye-fucking Gray instead. He’s so damn sexy when he’s in command. After a few minutes, we’re turned loose to get into position.
As always, I’m on offense. I’m arguably our fastest runner, so it makes sense to utilize my speed. Boyd and Judd are on offense too, and- much to my chagrin- Hannah. I know she won’t actively work with me, but I hope she’ll stay out of my fucking way.
That flag is mine. With training camp winding down, this could be our last shot at war games, and I’ve been dying to get that flag and claim victory since the first week. I need it now more than ever and this is my time to shine, baby!
I’m perched to take off when Jax whistles loudly to signal the start of the drill. I spring forward, sprinting as fast as my feet will carry me to a grove of trees across the boundary line. My strategy is always the same for these games- lie in wait, take down my opponents, and rush the bunker. It has gotten me close several times and it’s bound to pan out at some point.
Judd and I have a two-man approach this time. We’re going to travel to the black team’s bunker together, on opposite sides to cover one another. I’m glad he’s got my back when I see the first black team member approaching- Davis.
Not that I don’t think I could take him down on my own, but Judd’s the only one who matches Davis for size. When he draws closer, taking his time, I choose my moment carefully before springing out from the cover of the trees to attack.
I’m planning to come up behind him, jump on his back, but Davis wheels around at the last second like he was expecting me, throwing me off my game. I duck and try to go for a sweep instead, but he moves with me, lunging forward and taking me to the ground on my back. The momentum sends us sliding across the dirt, Davis on top of me, grabbing for the patch on my right shoulder.
I’m digging my fingernails into his arm, trying to fend him off when Judd comes through with the save. He launches himself at us from the side, tackling Davis off of me. They hit the dirt hard, which gives me enough time to find my footing and hop back up. Davis is writhing underneath Judd, kicking and flailing and trying to fend him off. I lunge toward them, sticking an arm in the tangle of their limbs to go for Davis’ patch.
I hear the sound of tearing Velcro as I remove it from the shoulder of his vest, putting him on a one-minute pause. Davis stops fighting and Judd climbs off of him. Then Davis whips his head around to look at me and I just stick out my tongue, waving his patch in the air.
“Time out, princess,” I taunt, tucking the patch into my pocket.
Judd and I lock eyes and take off again. Time for us to find new hiding places, catch our breath, and prepare for our next ambush.
I find another thick clump of trees, disguising myself among their trunks and leaves. Bex is the next black vested player to approach, and Maxwell is close on her heels. It’ll be trickier to take down two, but I’m ready.
So is Judd, because he’s the first to pop out from hiding this time, heading straight for Maxwell. I guess he’s leaving Bex for me. I launch myself out of the brush, tearing toward Bex. She’s wily- she tries to juke right, left, right, thinking she’s going to trip me up and then outrun me. I’m fast on my feet, though- I match her movements, then lunge at her, delivering a slick right hook that catches her so off guard that she almost goes down.
We both grab for each other’s patches at the same time and I let out a shriek as she gets a fistful of my hair instead, pulling it so hard that it tugs my ponytail loose. I’m not getting anywhere with my arms, so I use my legs instead, stomping on one of her feet and kneeing her hard in the abdomen. As Bex doubles over from the impact, I snatch one of her patches off of the shoulder of her scrimmage tank.
“Thank you!” I chirp, spinning around to see where Judd and Maxwell ended up. Max is jogging off in the direction of the gold team bunker, while Judd sits on his butt in the dirt, scowling. Looks like he lost one of his patches.
“Go on, I’ll catch up,” he grumbles, folding his arms across his chest.
No need to tell me twice. I sprint forward, scanning my surroundings for another grove of trees I can use to take cover. I don’t see any more black team members coming my way before Judd reappears, free from his pause for losing a patch. As he draws closer, I whistle softly to clue him in as to my location and he finds his own spot to hide.
This strategy is totally paying off. Judd and I continue to make our way deeper into the black team’s territory, picking off their players one by one. I’m practically giddy by the time the bunker is in view- I’ve still got both patches and that flag is as good as mine.
It’s now or never. Judd and I exchange glances from our hiding places, communicating our next moves with our eyes. We’re gonna make a run for it, cover one another, and hopefully one of us will make it to the flag. They may as well have left it unguarded, because only Mara’s standing on their platform and she’s a total layup. All brute strength, zero finesse. I could run circles around her.
Judd ticks his head in the direction of the bunker, then pushes himself off of a tree trunk, launching into a sprint. I’m right with him on the opposite side, bounding out into the open, my feet pounding the dirt as I sprint toward the bunker. Judd and I draw closer, running side by side, and as Mara sees us, her eyes widen, her mouth slightly agape.
For a second, we think we have her- but we didn’t account for their defense. Two black team members hurl themselves out of the brush in our direction, then two more. Too many to fight off- we’ve just gotta be faster.
“I’ll cover you!” Judd shouts as we near the platform, and I grab onto one of the wooden beams, kicking my legs up and swinging onto it. I land on my feet on the platform and the only thing between me and the flag is Mara.
She draws up her fists, poised to attack. When they start to fly, I bob and weave, dodging her blows until she lands one right on my cheek. It fucking burns- like I said, the girl is all brute strength- but I don’t let it knock me off kilter. Instead, I try to outmaneuver her with my new favorite takedown- right, left, sweep.
It works like a damn charm and I snatch Mara’s shoulder patch right as her body drops to the wooden platform.
Flag time, baby! I step over Mara, reaching for the black team’s flag. I grab it from its post, tucking it into my sports bra before I turn around to plan my escape.
Incredibly, Judd is still holding his own, fighting off three of the four defensive players. One of them is sitting on the ground in time-out for having a patch pulled. We lock eyes, and he whispers ‘flag!’ to his teammates- which shouldn’t be legal play since he’s on his minute suspension, but referee Brock is nowhere to be seen.
Another black vested player’s eyes fly up to me and I know it’s now or never. I grab the beam of the platform again, swinging myself down. I come down clumsily, nearly twisting an ankle, but I’m able to regain my footing right before the other player is on me, darting out of the way. Judd’s still keeping the other two at bay, for now, but I have to make a run for it.
I take off in a dead sprint, leaving Judd and the others behind, grabbing the black team’s flag back out of my bra and waving it as I run.
Holy shit. I did it! I put more and more distance between myself and the black team’s player giving chase as I run. My thigh and calf muscles burn, but I’m feeling positively euphoric as I make my way closer to the boundary line with the opposing team’s flag. Finally!
In my peripheral vision, I can see someone coming at me, but it hardly registers. It isn’t until my foot collides with something that I realize I’m being tripped- my body hurtles forward and I barely have time to catch myself with my hands before my chin slams against a rock and my chest collides with the ground, knocking the wind out of me.
Ouch. My ears are ringing as I gasp for air, tasting dirt. My senses return to me as I wiggle my fingers and toes. I went down so fucking hard that every inch of my body hurts like hell. Slowly, I move my palms underneath me, sliding my knees forward and rising from the ground on all fours. My palms are skinned, my knees are skinned, and dragging them through the dirt burns like hell.
Gray
Fallon sprints into my view, waving the other team’s flag, and my face splits into a wide grin. I’m so fucking proud of her- I always knew she had it in her. I feel like I share in her victory, and not just because I’m her team’s captain.
She’s almost to the boundary when I see someone launch themselves toward her- someone in a gold vest?! It’s her own fucking teammate- Hannah.
I’m not close enough to get to her before Hannah trips Fallon, sending her flying face-first into the dirt. Everything inside of me screams when she makes impact and I sprint in her direction as fast as I can.
By the time I reach Fallon, she’s trying to pull herself up, crouched on all fours. I’m still running when I drop, sliding to a stop on my knees beside her crumpled form. I’m going to have wicked road rash on my knees and shins, but I don’t give a fuck. All I care about is whether she’s hurt. I tuck an arm under her belly, help pull the top half of her body up so she’s resting on her knees.
She whips her head around to look at me, her ponytail hanging loose and blood dripping down from her chin along the curve of her neck. The impact of her fall split both her lip and her chin and the gashes are caked with dirt from the forest floor.
“Are you okay?” I ask, my eyes thrown wide. The sight of her injured and bleeding sends my wolf into a frenzy.
Fallon drags her palms up in front of her, brushing them together in an effort to remove the dirt, though it only scrubs it farther into the skinned flesh.
“Babe.” I reach out, tipping her chin up with a finger, tilting her face to look at me.
Her breathing is starting to even out, the shock of the impact waning. Her blue eyes are wide, filled with pain when they connect with mine. She just nods, and I slide an arm around her back, helping her to her feet as she winces.
Fucking Hannah. I whip around, seeing red as my anger surges within me, my wolf egging me on to seek retribution. Hannah’s sporting a cruel smirk when my eyes land on her, but it quickly fades when I begin stalking in her direction, ready to tear her apart.
“What the fuck?!” I bellow, snatching her by the arm and twisting it behind her back. I bring my other hand to her throat, forcing her to look up at me. “She’s your fucking teammate! What the fuck was that?!”
Tears start to well in Hannah’s eyes as I spew venom down on her and I immediately loosen my grip on the girl, catching myself before I go too far. This whole spectacle must be drawing attention, because some of the other recruits are starting to wander in our direction to see what’s going on.
Hannah’s not saying anything and my temper flares. “Answer me, recruit!”
“It was an accident!” Hannah chokes, then bursts into tears.
I let go of her, taking a step back. I’m so fucking mad, but the girl looks pitiful. I’m not going to rough someone up while they’re crying.
“I’m sorry, Alpha, I didn’t mean to,” Hannah sobs, wiping the tears from her cheeks with her hands.
That’s a fucking lie. I saw the whole thing- there’s no way Hannah didn’t take Fallon down on purpose. What I can’t understand though, for the life of me, is why. They’re on the same team! Fallon’s victory would be Hannah’s, too. Is a personal grudge really worth her whole team losing war games?
I shake my head. “I don’t believe you,” I growl.
“But…” she sputters, eyes wide.
“I saw you, Hannah.”
Her mouth snaps closed, like she knows she’s caught.
“What’s going on?” Jax asks, approaching with Reid.
I shake my head, turning away from Hannah, trying to tamp down my anger. I look to Fallon again and Boyd’s standing with her, trying to help her pick little flecks of rock out of her quickly healing wounds. I hate that he’s the one helping her instead of me.
“Hannah, you’re out,” I say through clenched teeth, spinning back around. “Go back to the dorms, no more training for you today.”
She takes a shaky step toward me. “But…” she mutters in protest, and I just raise a hand to silence her.
I remain calm, stoic. “This is your final warning. Another incident like this, and you’re out of training camp.”
Her shoulders slump in defeat and another tear slips down her cheek.
“Go.” I put alpha command behind my voice and Hannah hangs her head.
“Yes sir,” she whispers, turning tail and slinking away.
I return my attention to Fallon, return to her side. The skinned flesh on her knees and palms is already knitting itself back together and the gash on her chin is beginning to shrink. Gotta love shifter healing.
“Are you okay?” I ask, my voice raspy. I want to take her in my arms, tend to her wounds, make sure she’s really alright- but we’ve got a crowd of spectators at this point and I know I can’t.
“Yeah,” she breathes, looking up at me through her eyelashes. “I’m fine. And I totally would’ve crossed the boundary line if I wasn’t tripped.”
I chuckle, shaking my head. Of course Fallon would be more worried about her victory in war games than her own physical condition.
“I know,” I say, glancing around at the other recruits and alphas gathered.
I locate Brock in the crowd, leaving Fallon’s side to make my way over to him.
“What happened?” he asks as Jax, Theo, and Reid approach, too. We take a few steps farther away from the recruits, huddling close so we can speak privately.
I scrub a hand over my face, sighing. “Fallon had a clear shot for the boundary line with the flag and Hannah tripped her,” I grumble.
“Oh shit,” Jax comments, eyes wide.
Brock squints, considering. “Did you see it?”
I nod solemnly.
He blows out a breath, folding his arms. “Reset, or call it for gold?”
“Well if her own teammate tripped her, that’s illegal interference,” Reid offers. “I’d say call it for gold.”
Theo nods in affirmation. Of course he would- he wants the victory as one of the gold team’s captains. If things were the other way around, he’d throw a damn fit.
“We all in agreement?” Brock asks, looking at Jax and me.
We both nod and Brock strides forward, waving to beckon the recruits closer. They circle up, waiting for his announcement.
Brock clears his throat to speak. “Listen up, recruits. We’ve determined that Fallon had a clear path to the boundary line and would’ve crossed it with the other team’s flag but for illegal interference from one of her own teammates. As a result, we’re calling the match. Gold team wins.”
I see Fallon’s face light up, the gold vested players breaking out in whoops and cheers, clapping her on her shoulders and back. Her eyes meet mine for a moment and I just grin, watching her proudly as she soaks in her victory. I wish it didn’t have to happen this way but a win’s a win, right?
“Alright,” Jax chuckles. “Head on back, we’ll do a little endurance training before we call it a day.”
A collective groan rises up among the recruits at the mention of endurance training, but our good little soldiers start to break away, jogging in the direction of the complex.
Brock walks back over to me and I suck in a breath. “Thanks man,” I say, blowing it out.
He just gives a little shake of his head. “No need. Your girl earned it.”
He’s right, she did. And though I usually do, when he calls her my girl- for the first time, I don’t correct him.
