Chapter Two: The Ghosts of Yesterday
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NICOLE
~Present Day~
“Two more wolves are dead, Nicole. We can’t just sit back anymore hoping it‘ 11 go away. We have to do something.”
I looked up from the papers in front of me meeting Gerald, my Beta‘ s eyes filled with worry and feeling the tension in the air that had spiked up the moment he walked in, and the words he spoke hit me like a punch to the gut.
More deaths.
I kept my back to him, staring out the window of my office, trying to collect my thoughts. The Hastings Faction had been reeling since the first wolf had gone
missing nearly a month ago and was found dead. No signs of a struggle, no tracks to follow, nothing.
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And then it started. More wolves started going missing, meeting the same fate.
I took a deep breath before turning to face him, “I know, Gerald. I’m not blind to what’s going on.” My voice was tight, controlled, but the truth weighed heavy on me. The more time passed, the more helpless I felt. We had pooled resources with the other Alphas in the faction, tried everything from tracking to gathering intel, but every lead we‘ d followed had amounted to nothing. It was like we were chasing ghosts, our efforts evaporating into thin air.
Gerald didn’t wait for me to finish processing, “You know as well as I do that. it’s time to stop hoping. We have to act. We’ve been at this for weeks now. And it’s only getting worse. It’s time we looked to the Kaldor packs. They are larger and have more resources to help us stop this before it consumes us all.”
The mention of the Kaldor packs felt like a
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cold chill rushing over me. All of it tied back to Nathan because he was the Alpha of the strongest pack in their faction.
“Not them. You know it will all tie back to Nathan. I will find another way,”
Even saying his name out loud sent a ripple of irritation through my wolf.
Gerald’s voice softened, the edges of his words careful, as if trying not to push me too far. “I understand your past with him, Nicole. But this is bigger than you, bigger than me. Wolves are dying. If we don‘ t do something–soon–it won’t matter where the attack is coming from. We’ll all end up dead, and I hate to say this but your son included.”
His words hit hard, and I felt my stomach churn. I had worked too damn hard to protect him, to keep him safe. And if the
truth came out, if Nathan found out about him… I shuddered at the thought. No.
That couldn’t happen.
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But Gerald wasn‘ t wrong. The Kaldor packs had the resources and the influence to help. Nathan, despite everything, was still one of the most powerful Alphas in the region. If I could swallow my pride and reach out, we might finally get the answers we needed.
But the idea of doing that made my blood
boil.
Gerald spoke again, recognizing the battle playing out behind my eyes. “I’m not asking you to go to him, he might be the most powerful but there are other powerful packs in the faction. But if you don’t, this will only get worse.
I stared at him, torn between the anger I felt at being put in this position and the responsibility I had to the pack.
One way or another, I had to act.
I shook my head, clearing the fog in my mind. “Fine. I’ll look into it, but I won’t ask Nathan for help. I won’t go crawling
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back to him. I’ve spent too long fighting for my place here, for my son’s future. I’m not going to ruin everything no
matter
what.”
Gerald lowered his head, clearly understanding the weight of my words, but he didn’t push it further. “I understand, Alpha. Just… just don’t wait too long. This can’t wait forever.”
With that, he bowed slightly and left the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
The reason I had fought so hard to become Alpha after my father’s death was to ensure that I could protect him. Nathan could never know the truth about him-
that he existed.
And yet, here I was, on the brink of being forced to go back to the very source of my pain. To ask for help from the one person I’d promised myself I’d never go back
- to.
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I leaned back in my chair, letting the
weight of it all settle on my shoulders. I’d find another way. I had to.
But the question was:
What could I do before we all ended up
dead?