by Hawke Oakley
I shook out my fur, feeling the power ripple beneath my muscles. A new strength flowed inside me, and it was even more noticeable as my wolf. My claws dug deep into the dirt; I was ready to hunt for my family.
Wordlessly, the hunting party turned loose into the forest. Besides the telepathic communication we had as wolves, we also experienced a shared goal. We all knew what we had to do; we had all been hunting together for years, and tracking prey had become second nature to us all. We worked as a team. The hunting guild was like a family of its own right. On either side of me was a massively powerful wolf who I trusted with my life - like a brother.
A few feet ahead of us Tyson stopped. He lifted his head and sniffed the air.
“Have you caught a scent?” David asked gruffly.
“Yes,” Tyson replied. “But it’s only a grouse.”
David chuffed and walked in a different direction, leaving Tyson. “A bird won’t feed the pack. Try again.”
Dejected, Tyson stalked back to his side. Out of all of us, he was the youngest alpha at twenty-two. Although he was an adult in every sense of the word, the hunting guild sometimes treated him like a kid. David did it the most - since he was the oldest at forty - but even I was guilty of it as well. But since meeting Casey, a paternal feeling awoke in me. I didn’t want to see Tyson look so sad - I would rather encourage him than put him down.
I padded up to him.
“Don’t take David’s words to heart,” I said. “He’s just grumpy because we haven’t found anything yet.”
Tyson nodded. “Thanks, Flint.”
Jericho joined in with a shrug. “Hell, I’m so hungry right now even I’d eat a grouse. Don’t sweat it.”
We spread out a bit to search the area. Indigo Mountain was surrounded by thick, dense woodlands. It provided a natural barrier against the other packs. In the past it served as a defense to slow down would-be attackers, but nowadays it was just a hunting ground. Pack wars were a thing of the past - there hadn’t been one since before I was born. Only David was old enough to recall the last war thirty years ago.
Good riddance, I thought. Wars were a waste of time and energy, and a source of needless bloodshed. I was glad Indigo Mountain was a peaceful pack.
“Heads up,” Jericho announced through the party’s telepathic connection. “I smell buck.”
That perked us all up. A big buck was exactly what we needed right now, especially with winter coming up soon. That would feed quite a few families. The more meat in the pack, the better.
Especially with Charlie’s new baby on the way, I thought with a spark of excitement.
Although Jericho could be a wily trickster, he was the best tracker in the hunting guild. We all followed his lead. He told us the scent came from the river at the base of the mountain.
The ground sloped down underneath my paws as I followed Jericho through the trees. The forest floor was littered with dead leaves. Autumn had gripped the forest. Above my head, cold leafless branches stretched through the canopy like dark fingers. It was almost spooky.
Jericho’s tail shot up, signalling us to stop. He scented the air again and I saw his hackles raise.
“There it is ahead,” he told us.
We followed his gaze to where the huge buck stood twenty feet below us. His head was lowered to drink from the river. He wasn’t paying attention; he had no clue we were here.
“Fan out,” I told them.
As quietly as possible all of the hunting party spread out, weaving through the trees like a threaded needle. We took our positions, head lowered and muscles ready to spring. Jericho was leading, since he was the one to find the prey. We all awaited his signal.
He slowly inched forward. Then his eyes flashed.
“Now!” he called.
Instantly we all exploded from our hiding places. The buck’s head shot up. His eyes were wide in bewilderment. He sprang up from the river, panicked, and made a break for it. But the wolves were too fast. Jericho was there first - he launched into the air and landed on the buck, pushing it off balance. As the deer flailed on the ground, the rest of us moved in.
I delivered a swift, decisive bite to its neck. The buck died instantly.
I sighed and momentarily leaned back from the buck’s body. “I thank the Moon for this prey and its sacrifice.”
Everyone was in higher spirits now that we’d made our first kill. I helped haul it onto Ken’s back. He was a big, strong wolf and could carry the enormous buck with ease.
“Good work everyone,” I said. “And good find, Jericho.”
He grinned a big toothy grin. “Gee, thanks, dad,” he said playfully.
I rolled my eyes and muttered, “Just because I might become a dad soon doesn’t mean you can call me that.”
Everyone gasped and turned to me. Tyson was apparently so surprised that he instantly shifted back to human form.
“What?” he cried, his face shocked and awed. “You’re gonna be a dad?”
I shifted to human form as well, just for the ease of conversation and gesture. “Well, if all goes well, then yes,” I said.
“So I was right. You and Charlie did hook up,” Jericho said, still wearing his snarky grin.
“Yes, you were right, even though you were an ass about it,” I muttered. “Charlie and I mated during his heat, so hopefully he’ll be expecting a baby soon.”
All my friends rushed up to me. Everyone who was in wolf form wagged their tails excitedly and licked my face in celebration. Tyson gave me a half-hug around the shoulders and clapped me on the back.
“That’s awesome, Flint!” he said. “You must be so excited!”
“I am. That’s why this hunt today is so important,” I told them. “It’s not gonna be the three of us anymore. I’m gonna have to feed a family of four.”
“I’m so glad you took over as Casey’s other father,” Ken said with a gentle smile. “She seems so happy around you.”
“Alright, alright,” David grumbled. “Enough of this little baby shower. We still have work to do. A single buck isn’t gonna feed the pack.”
David turned around and left in search of the next scent trail.
“What’s up his ass?” Jericho asked.
“I don’t know,” I mumbled. “But in any case, he’s right. We should try to get a few more kills before the sun goes down.”
Tyson and I shifted back to wolf form to join with the rest of the party, and we set out on the hunt again.
I was in high spirits. The hunt went excellently. By the time the sun began to descend behind the trees, we’d bagged four big bucks and a couple wild turkeys. It was a huge success. The meat would feed any needy families in the families and we’d have enough leftover for our own cut of the meat.
Exhausted from a long day’s hunt, we trudged back up the mountainside. We all carried the prey carcasses on our backs, which made the journey even longer, but we were all in such a good mood that nobody complained.
“That was such an awesome hunt,” Jericho said. “And by the way, you’re all welcome for all the scent trails I tracked.”
We all groaned.
“Hey!” Jericho complained.
“We appreciate your hard work, just not your gloating,” I told him with a smirk.
“Fair enough.”
Suddenly Jericho stopped. He glanced over his shoulder and narrowed his eyes. I watched him in confusion. Why had he stopped? He wasn’t carrying prey on his back, so he couldn’t be taking a break from that.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him.
When he didn’t reply right away, I passed the buck on my back over to Ken for a moment and caught up with Jericho. The fur on the nape of his neck slowly stood up.
I followed his gaze, but saw nothing this time. Instead of using my eyes, I used my nose. I scented the air deeply, and that was when it hit me. I knew why Jericho had stopped.
Somewhere in the forest was the scent of a Scarlet Ridge wolf.
“You smell it, too, huh?”
Jericho asked.
“Yeah,” I growled. “I don’t like it. I’m going to find out what it is.”
“I’m coming with you.”
I didn’t bother telling Jericho not to come; he was stubborn as an ass and I knew he would do it regardless of what I said. Besides, as our best tracker, he would be useful in finding whatever Scarlet Ridge scum was trespassing on our lands.
“That’s weird,” Jericho mumbled. “The trail zigzags through the woods, like whoever it was didn’t want to be easily found.”
My hackles raised. I didn’t like hearing that.
Jericho followed the scent with fierce determination. I appreciated his keen senses right about now; I smelled the trail as well, but not with the same clarity he did. He led us through the trees, up the slope and finally stopped at the base of an old felled log.
“The scent pools here, like whoever it was stayed here for a while,” Jericho said. “Do you recognize it?”
I leaned in to take a whiff and instantly recoiled. Anger flooded my veins. I knew exactly who it was.
“Hector,” I snarled.
“That Scarlet Ridge guy you were telling me about?” Jericho asked.
“Yes,” I growled. “I specifically told him not to come back here.”
Jericho paced around the log. “What would he be doing here, at this spot? What’s so special about it that he sat here for a while?”
My pelt itched with fury. I was so angry that I couldn’t think. Hector’s smug snake-like expression burned in my mind. I wanted to claw his face off.
“Wait a second,” Jericho said, pulling me from my thoughts. “Isn’t this the hill that overlooks your house?”
I stopped in my tracks. With wide eyes, I looked around. These surroundings were too familiar. With a burst of energy, I sprinted forward until I reached the end of the tree-line. There, just below, was a log cabin - my home.
I saw red. Hector had been here - not just on Indigo Mountain pack lands, but in my woods. Overlooking my home.
Hector had been spying on us and I had no idea until now.
Had I failed my family?
Jericho caught up with me and gasped. He was realizing the same thing I did a moment ago.
“Oh, man,” he muttered. “This is not good. We should tell the others.”
I was too caught up in anger and shame to reply. I should’ve known Hector would have come back. He was right under my nose the entire time and I had no clue. I was ashamed of myself.
Jericho had one paw in the direction of the hunting party. “Flint?” he called. “You okay?”
“I’ll be fine,” I growled. “Let’s go let the pack know there’s a rat in our midst.”
We caught up with the rest of the hunting party, who had reached town and were unloading the prey carcasses into the kitchen to be prepared for distribution. I was so angry that I forgot to shift back to human form, and trudged into the building with all my fur on end.
“Whoa, what’s up, Flint?” Tyson asked. “You look pissed off.”
“Yeah, your fur is so sharp it’s practically shooting through the ceiling,” Ken added.
I growled and forced myself to shift to human form. I got dressed, shoving my legs through my jeans and punching my way through my shirt.
“He’s been here,” I growled.
“Who?” Tyson asked.
Jericho was getting changed next to me. “Remember that guy I told y’all about? The Scarlet Ridge wolf that’s been skulking around our territory?”
Tyson’s eyes widened. “He’s here?”
“Not just here,” I snarled. “He’s been spying on my home. On my family.”
“How do you know?” David asked, narrowing his eyes.
I wasn’t in the mood for his suspicious streak. I whirled around and growled at him. “Because we tracked his scent, idiot.”
He stood up and bared his teeth. The situation with Hector had me seeing red and I was this close to starting a fight with David, but Jericho pulled me back while Tyson and Ken tried to soothe David.
I wrenched my arm out of Jericho’s grip and turned my back on David. “If you don’t want to help, just say so. But this isn’t about me. It’s about my family - my omega, my daughter, and my unborn child. If you have a problem with me, I don’t give a shit. But don’t take it out on them.”
David let out a frustrated grunt. “I’m not taking it out on you. I was just asking.”
“Okay, okay,” Ken said, holding out his hands in an attempt to calm us down. “Let’s all chill for a second.” He turned to me. “Flint, Jericho told us about this alpha, but maybe you should give us more information. That’ll help us figure out how to help you.”
I slumped down on one of the tables. My packmates gathered around me, listening intently. Even David had one ear turned towards me, even if he was sitting by himself with crossed arms.
“Okay. He’s a Scarlet Ridge alpha named Hector,” I explained. “He was sent by the top alpha to try and bring Charlie back to Scarlet Ridge.”
“But Charlie left on his own, didn’t he?” Tyson asked.
“That doesn’t matter to them,” David growled from the other table. “They think of omegas as property.”
“That’s stupid,” Ken muttered. “They’re living, breathing individuals.”
“We all know that,” I said. “But Scarlet Ridge doesn’t care. Charlie told me omegas are treated like dirt there.”
“But why do they want Charlie so badly? Don’t they know that he’s mated to you now?” Tyson asked.
“They probably didn’t know that until now,” Jericho muttered with a grimace. “After all, Flint only just told all of us that they mated. This guy - Hector - probably thought we were just harboring Charlie in the meantime. But now they have bigger problems.”
We fell silent.
Jericho stood up. “Anyway, I’m not gonna stand around and let some Scarlet Ridge rat keep trespassing on our territory, especially if it's to spy on Flint and his family.”
“Me, too,” Ken growled. “I’ll talk to the alphas I know outside of the hunting guild. This isn’t just Flint’s problem anymore. Our security is literally being breached.”
“I’ll talk to my friends, too,” Tyson added. “I’ll spread the word throughout the pack as much as I can.”
David slowly stood, slapping his hands on his knees. “I’ll rally the old forces. They might have disbanded, but they’ll never let Scarlet Ridge worm their way past our defenses and into our pack.”
“Thanks, guys,” I murmured, looking around the room. “You’re the best friends an alpha could ask for.”
We called in the kitchen workers to help package and distribute the meat from the hunt, then we all shared a quick drink to wind down from the day’s stress. After downing a couple beers, I felt less stressed about the whole Hector situation than I did in the beginning. Now all my friends, and soon every member of the pack, would know that Scarlet Ridge wasn’t the harmless, far-away pack they all thought it was.
I wasn’t going to let Hector or Gunner or anyone put their hands on Charlie. He was my omega and I would fight until my last breath to protect him.
7
Charlie
Today was finally the day. A week and a few days had passed, and it was finally time to take the pregnancy test. I waited until Flint was home, since he was out all day yesterday on the hunt. This morning he ran to the store and bought a few tests. Fast-forward to now, where we stood awkwardly in the bathroom.
“So I guess I just read the instructions?” I said.
Flint shrugged. “Guess so. I’ve never taken a pregnancy test before.”
I rolled my eyes playfully. “Alphas.”
“So, do you want me to leave the room, or…?”
“I think that’d be best for now.”
Flint nodded and made his way out, although he was just on the other side of the door. I followed the instructions on the little paper packed with the test and followed them. Then all
we could do was wait.
I bit my lip. This felt like the longest moment of my life. When I had Casey, there was little chance of failure, due to the way the insemination was performed. But this was different. There was room for error. What if I wasn’t pregnant at all? A somber feeling gripped my chest at that thought. Flint would be so disappointed. I would be disappointed. Ever since that night we confessed our love to each other, I wanted desperately to be bound to him in the way that only a child could provide.
I let out a shaky sigh. I knew that if it failed, we could always try again - but that night we mated for the very first time felt special. I would have loved for our child to be born of that magical evening.
When I was sure enough time had passed, I steeled myself and inhaled a deep breath.
I looked down at the stick.
A big blue plus sign.
My heart leapt into my throat. I shrieked in happiness and shot up, throwing the door open. Flint’s eyes were wide with bewilderment.
“What? What is it?” he exclaimed.
“I’m pregnant,” I whispered.
The look of shock on his face erupted into a smile as bright as the sun. He instantly scooped me up in his arms and buried his face in my neck, smothering my skin with kisses. The happiness in me escaped my lips as a laugh. I don’t know how long we stayed like that, basking in our joy, but we finally pulled apart and stared into each other’s eyes.
“You’re pregnant,” Flint murmured.
“I am.”
“You’re really pregnant,” he repeated. His gaze flitted down to my stomach, which was still its regular size - but now we knew for sure it contained a new life. Flint gently lowered a hand to run over my tummy. “The baby’s really in there.”
I chuckled. “Look at you, Flint. You’re a dad.”
His eyes sparkled. “Wait until I tell the guys. They’re gonna be so jealous.”
“Speaking of telling people,” I said. “We should let Casey know.”