by Reese Morgan
Hayden sensed a great deal of shadows and ghosts around Troy. Whatever he planned to say did not sit well, even with him.
“He came up with an idea to transfer a disease through bite. They’d infect as many rogues as they could with this… this serum we invented. With the sudden rise of rogue numbers, Xavier and Logan wanted to eliminate the threat permanently. If they perfected this serum, we would have kept the rogue situation under control, while keeping the humans oblivious.
“Only, they killed many test subjects before they contacted me for help. They found it difficult to keep the rogue carrier alive long enough to spread the disease. After many failed attempts myself, I was finally able to isolate the disease. In the end, we were successful. Any rogue infected with the serum would kill any human it bit instantly. The increase of rogues would finally come to a stop.”
Hayden frowned, trying to absorb as much as she could.
It was like a backwards theory to Celeste’s ideas. Instead of her three Carriers, who bit humans to create an obedient army, Logan and Xavier had intended their carriers to feed innocents with deadly toxins.
Those deadly toxins would instantly kill the prey and decrease the rogue population.
“Celeste argued fiercely with Logan. She didn’t think they had a right to play god.” Troy took another swig of his moonshine. “She thought it was time for the humans to know of our existence, and for us to take an active place as the superior creature. She didn’t think innocent humans, bit by rogues, should die just because of consequence. So she killed Xavier by proxy, took the formula, and ran to create her own twist.”
“She has three Carriers, only two now, who infect humans through bite,” Hayden started. “These humans turn into obedient and mindless soldiers. They are… extremely superior to traditional wolves in terms of strength an ability.”
“So she succeeded,” Troy muttered into his glass. “I’m sure she feels rather accomplished now that she’s saved those innocent humans and created a superior creature.”
“But it’s the same thing!” Hayden argued fiercely, a flush rising to her cheeks. “What Xavier and Logan were experimenting with wasn’t right, but neither is Celeste. You haven’t seen these… puppets. They are unconscious to everything but their loyalty. They have no personality. They have no freedom. They are completely under Celeste’s control and just as good as dead.”
Troy turned his dark eyes on to her. “You try telling that to Celeste, child. She will not see your reasons, just as Logan did not see hers.”
She inhaled deeply, her mind trying to grasp at something important, but unable to connect the dots. Celeste was in the same position not too long ago. She’d witnessed Xavier, Logan, and Troy create something she did not agree with.
But she’d been able to outsmart them and turn it into something she could support. It didn’t matter what others thought of her work. Celeste possessed the unsupported belief that what she was doing was right.
But it wasn’t. It was exactly the same thing, but far more destructive.
“She kept you alive for a reason,” Cole intervened. “Can you imagine why that is? Were you friendly to her? Did you support her beliefs?”
“No, no and no,” Troy snarled. “She came to me with her concerns and I turned her away. It wasn’t my place to question Xavier and Logan. They paid a pretty penny for my assistance and I tried my damnest to assist them.”
“So it was all about money?” Nicolas drawled in question.
“In the beginning? You’re damn right it was. I needed the money.” Troy fiddled with the bottle of moonshine, no longer enthusiastically drinking. “But I ended up respecting them and supporting their cause. I didn’t want humans finding out about us. I didn’t think rogues should repopulate as quickly as they were… I understood.”
“She kept you alive, because you were the brains behind it all,” Hayden surmised. “If she ever ran into any problems of her own, she could come to you.”
“No, I…” Troy started, but trailed off. He sighed and lowered his eyes. “Yes, I suppose I was the brains behind most of the theory. They were the ones with the visions and I made it happen.”
Nicolas smiled grimly and took a few steps closer to Troy. “Are you sure that’s not all?” he inquired softly. His eyes flashed dangerously as he stopped inches before the man. “I am… unconvinced that a man such as yourself did not find Celeste the least bit tempting.”
Hayden grimaced at Nicolas’ insinuating and looked at Troy for any sort of denial. What she found there disappointed her. Just like all others, Celeste had gotten under his skin and hooked him.
“I don’t know what you want me to tell you.”
“You were infatuated with her.” Nicolas looked entirely serpentine as he preened in his discovery. “And she was infatuated with you… or perhaps…” he trailed off, eyeing Troy’s unkempt appearance. “Perhaps your intelligence tickled her. You are still useful to her alive as opposed to dead.”
Troy growled. “I don’t deny that’s what happened way back when. A passing infatuation. But that doesn’t mean I supported her twisted and delusional plans like you did. I am loyal to Logan!”
Nicolas chuckled without humor, glancing at Hayden before turning back to Troy. “If my assumptions haven’t deceived me, I believe I know who informed Celeste of Logan’s second life and the identity of his daughter.”
“You have a way to ruin everything, don’t you?” Hayden hissed at Nicolas’ turned back. “Does it really matter anymore how Celeste found out?”
“You’re too trusting and too naïve,” Nicolas countered acidly. “We will not always be with you to open your eyes. Of course it matters.”
Troy slipped off the counter and pushed past Nicolas. He threw the bottle of moonshine back underneath the sink, slamming the cabinet shut. “I have past regrets, just as you should, boy.”
He turned back around, unable to look Hayden in the eye.
She frowned, pressing a hand to her face in a moment of weakness.
There was too much to take in, too many surprises. Despite all the unanticipated revelations, and the endless deceit, there was only one thought she turned over repeatedly in her head.
Her father was alive.
Was that supposed to bring her excitement? Relief? Disappointment? She didn’t necessarily know what to feel, yet she felt everything. Logan might have been a devoted husband and father, but that didn’t change the fact that he had lived a double life.
It didn’t change the fact that she currently stood on top a mass burial, a burial her father had a direct hand in creating. He was no better than Celeste. Either was Xavier. They had all possessed radical beliefs and the means to achieve those radical aspirations.
Cole cupped her shoulders and pressed his chin on top her head. “Everything will be alright, Hayden.” He nuzzled her endearingly. “We will prosper.”
She dropped her hand and looked at Troy.
He was wrong to betray Logan’s secrets, but looking at him now, she saw true regret and remorse in his eyes. Like many before and after him, he’d just been Celeste’s pawn.
“I don’t blame you for anything.” At Hayden’s admission, Troy’s shoulders loosened and he looked away, hiding his initial reaction. “But I’d like you to come with us. If anyone knows where Logan is, you would.”
“I can’t.”
She stiffened. “Why not?”
He shook his head mournfully. “I have no idea where Logan is. The places I thought she’d keep him turned up empty. I cannot help any further. And this has always been my home. I can continue conducting research.”
Hayden grimaced, wanting to argue, but unable to look away from his imploring gaze. He wasn’t an Alpha male, but only a scientific mind. He wouldn’t last long on the run, surrounded by countless of other werewolves who were fighting to survive.
Nicolas issued a short, sinister chuckle.
Her eyes narrowed on him. “You have no right to judge,” she whispered. �
�Not too long ago, you told us you weren’t going to participate in the war. You had just as much hand in Celeste’s regime as Troy.”
Distant blue eyes suddenly sharpened as they landed on her. “He’s the hand behind the serum. If anyone can break Celeste’s hold over those puppets, it’s this pathetic worm.”
Troy snarled at the insult, but oddly enough, as soon as Nicolas turned in his direction, the man quieted. Clearly against his better judgement, Troy inclined his head, the only sign of his submission to Nicolas.
“You can stay here,” Cole intervened, releasing Hayden’s shoulders. “You can conduct your research here, can’t you? Perhaps you can find a way to reverse Celeste’s serum.”
Raw humor creased Troy’s expression. “There is no way—” He cut himself off abruptly, looking at Hayden’s hopeful expression before sighing. “I need a few samples, or…” he cleared his throat. “I will need to collect a few of Celeste’s men to examine. It’s the least I can do. But your best bet will be to find Logan.”
“And that may be impossible,” Cole spoke calmly. “We will be relying on you to reverse what you’ve done many years ago.”
Cole was the honey to Nicolas’ vinegar.
He spoke softly, yet with authority. Unsurprisingly, Troy took better to Cole than he did with Nicolas’ outright hostility. Anyone would obey Nicolas, but Cole won their favor.
While the brothers were both Alpha men, Nicolas especially, Cole was the true pack leader. She found it difficult to imagine Nicolas leading a pack with his cruel impatience. Cole had said it earlier, and Hayden agreed. Nicolas was a warrior. He was an assassin.
He did not delegate.
Troy bowed his head lower. “I will try my best, and I wish you luck on your own endeavors.” His eyes looked fondly at Cole. “You are very much your father’s son.”
Cole nodded once in gratitude before steering Hayden towards the front door. She looked back at Troy from over her shoulder. As it was with Julian, she still had questions for him, questions on a more personal level.
But they were pressed for time and needed to get back to the others.
“Hayden?” Troy called, holding her attention for just a moment. “I truly apologize.”
“Touching,” Nicolas murmured as he swept by her. “However, the longer we stay here, the higher the chance we draw Celeste’s attention.”
She was only able to offer Troy a grateful nod before Nicolas yanked her out the front door. Her mind was in a whirlwind as they stepped into the night air. She could barely absorb what she’d learned or even accept what she was feeling on the matter.
Everything was so heavy with anguish.
Nicolas’ smooth saunter suddenly came to an unnatural stop. His lithe figure seemed to swell and become larger as he flexed. She’d only seen Cole’s body inflate before, and that was usually when confronted with a threat.
His smooth face angled sideways, as if cocking to listen to something off in the distance. “Run back inside, Hayden,” he ordered quietly.
She furrowed her brow, not detecting the danger.
Suddenly, movement from the corner of her eyes caught her attention. She turned, watching as a large form emerged stealthily from the trees.
Her breathing quickened when she noticed several other figures all step out from the surrounding forest, perfectly in tune with the first she’d seen. They surrounded them from every direction, slowly enclosing around them. From their glazed eyes and their robotic movement, she knew them to be Celeste’s puppets.
True fear struck Hayden cold.
14. Chapter Fourteen
It had been a trap. That much was obvious.
Hayden wondered if Celeste had orchestrated their movements from the very beginning. But then again, why did she allow them to get this far? Celeste wouldn’t have risked the chance of their survival after meeting Troy and learning her secrets.
The woman was levelheaded. She would have killed them before they spoke to Troy. She must have learned of their whereabouts at the last second. But the only person who knew of their whereabouts was…
Marcus. Julian’s beta.
The man had given them Troy Arnold’s name in order to lure them here. Hayden remembered observing Julian’s frustration and anger towards Marcus before they’d left his territory. It suddenly dawned on her that her brother hadn’t been angry at Marcus’ insistence to tell them more, but that he hadn’t told them more.
Julian was supposed to give them Troy’s name. He hadn’t. Instead, he gave them a truck and a subtle warning to get back to the pack as soon as possible.
They hadn’t heeded his warning.
Panic coursed through her body and she found herself clutching Cole. “Cole,” she chanted over and over again. “Cole!”
He grabbed her face and kissed her fiercely, trying to convey his reassurance. But the desperate kiss didn’t last long, as Nicolas quickly took hold of her shirt collar and hoisted her off her feet.
“I said get back inside,” he snarled, throwing her towards the house.
As soon as she landed on her feet, she sprinted back towards Cole. Only, Nicolas intercepted her again, tearing her away from her life mate. She struggled against him, clawing at him and screaming hoarsely.
“I can fight,” she insisted deliriously, her pulse racing. “Cole! Please! No!”
Over Nicolas’ broad shoulder, Hayden saw the puppets close in and Cole readying himself. He looked to her and nodded once with encouragement. “We will follow close behind, Hayden. Please just do as you’re told.”
She was good enough to be claimed a good fighter, but when it came down to it, they just wanted to stuff her in a closet until the danger was gone. Yet, even she knew this was different. There were too many of Celeste’s weapons this time.
They were stone giants that did not go down easily.
“Is that them? Her creations?”
Troy stood in the doorway, peering intensely at the puppets. His expression did not convey fear, but utter intrigue. He studied them as if they were impressive specimen, not the killing machines they were.
“I have a tunnel in the basement,” Troy proclaimed, shaking himself out of his analysis. He looked between Nicolas and Hayden. “It leads to… well it’s an underground tunnel that ends up further in the woods.”
“We can all go—”
“There are too many. They would simply follow us. We need to take down a few,” Nicolas reasoned. “Take her. Make sure she sees to the tunnel safely.”
Troy had a surprisingly firm grip as he took her from Nicolas. Hayden floundered and found herself desperately gripping Nicolas’ hand. The rogue Alpha clutched her fingers, drawing Hayden’s attention away from Cole and on to imploring, blue eyes.
She stopped struggling, feeling her breath catch in her throat. “Please.”
Nicolas squeezed her fingers before releasing them. “I promise to find you.”
Hayden was pulled from the front stoop and inside the house. Through the open door, she witnessed Cole take a strike at one of the surrounding puppets, unable to gain much of an advantage.
Nicolas wasted no time racing towards him.
She’d seen it before. She’d heard it before. But the sheer protectiveness Nicolas displayed for his brother was as evident as ever as he stood at Cole’s back, cloaking him with a blanket of support and fortification.
They fought better together than they did apart. Nicolas remained conscious of his younger brother, and his sheer determination to see Cole safe shined brightly through that cold mask of his.
Hayden didn’t see eye to eye with Nicolas often, but she could never dispute his love for his brother. It was apparent that he’d sacrifice anything for Cole.
Despite their infamous skill, the brothers were soon outnumbered. She trembled when several puppets blocked her view of Cole. Something did not sit right with her. This wasn’t like other fights.
This was…
Troy suddenly shoved her further into the house.
Hurriedly, he ran towards the entryway and slammed the front door on three lunging puppets. Their fists easily tore through the door, splintering the wood as if it were paper.
Hayden stumbled back, her hands instinctively going for her knives. But as her fingers brushed over the cold silver, she realized it would be an insignificant weapon. Nicolas still had her sword. Desperation turned her cold, but relief quickly took its place.
Nicolas needed the weapon far more than she did.
“Quickly, down the stairs!”
Heart heavy, she allowed him to pull her down the narrow steps. The further she traveled from the brothers, the more her anxiety grew. She should be out there with them, risking her life alongside them.
But there were too many of Celeste’s soldiers. If Cole and Nicolas could hardly deter them with their strikes, she found it unlikely she could do much of anything but be a distraction. It was Cole’s and Nicolas’ instinct to protect her foremost.
She’d just get in the way.
“Hurry,” Troy urged breathlessly.
He dragged her through a cold and musty basement, past lines of vials and various lab equipment. Water dripped rhythmically from the stone ceiling and onto the dirt foundation.
Above them, thunderous feet of their unstoppable pursuers sounded.
Troy’s clammy hand released her wrist and he hurried over towards a door in the floor. He flung it open, releasing a plume of toxic odors and pungent, rotting flesh.
“Oh god,” Hayden whimpered, clutching her nose.
“You have to tolerate it.” Troy motioned towards the rope ladder descending into the pit. “You need to go down there. Keep heading north until you reach the stairs leading above ground.”
She hesitated, not wanting to embrace herself with death. Her body shook furiously, wired with adrenaline, hopeless despair, and distress.
“You’re coming with me!” she exclaimed fiercely.
He shook his head mournfully, trying to detangle her clutching fingers. “I can’t. I’ll stay back for the others. If there is one thing I excel at, it’s running. Now go.”