The Pack's Secret

by Casey Morgan

  Pax

  I couldn't get Anson's attention while he ordered Mini to be tied and locked up in the basement. There was nothing I could do. I’m not even sure what I could do. The whole pack was out to watch Flint condemn her.

  I saw as she was dragged away, kicking and screaming. It took every fiber of my being not to shift and start tearing through my pack to get to her. I never would have made it, and, in the end, it would hurt more than help her.

  Now that she's gone, I'm able to approach Anson as everyone disperses. My alpha looks annoyed and angry. Not a good combination. That looks often means he's out for blood. And he almost always gets what he wants.

  “Thank you for the warning, Flint. I won't allow your traveling companion's actions to color my view of you. Tomorrow we will talk about the next steps.”

  The two of them say goodbye, and Flint goes back inside. I know he is the Mastermind behind all of this. He doesn't deserve to be walking around free while Mini is thrown into the basement.

  “Anson!” I yell.

  He finally hears me this time and turns my way. “I don't have time for you, Pax. The elders and I have important business to discuss.” He tries to shoo me away, but I am here to argue my piece and won't be so easily dismissed. Not this time.

  “I have to talk to you about Mini. She's innocent.”

  Anson sighs, and Tamir looks like he wants to kill me. I'm sure my brother is cursing, not keeping more of an eye on me. Not that he could have stopped the inevitable.

  “She was way too surprised when I shifted to know about werewolves,” I explain. “If she didn't know we existed, how can she be guilty? None of this makes sense.”

  “Did you not just see the same thing we did, son?” Ershin asks me. “She had the stolen map in her hands. Why would she be trying to leave with it if to do nothing but betray our secret to another pack?”

  “Plus,” Tamir adds, “the Mathis pack knew about our secret. They said so themselves. So, the same night we come across them and have to run them off our land, Mini tries to steal the map. That is too much of a coincidence. Even you have to admit it.”

  “But it doesn't make sense. The way she's acted the entire time she's been here doesn't add up to someone who knew about us or our secrets. We need to find out what's really going on before things get worse.”

  “She's working with the rival pack, Pax,” Konrad chimes in. “You need to stop lying to yourself.” Why can't they see reason? If they'd only take the time to critically think about the facts, they'd see everything isn't adding up. “Or,” Konrad continues, “was the honey so sweet that you cannot see the truth? Is there something that we are missing?”

  “It's not like that. Even if Mini and I hadn't -”

  “Maybe we all need to find out for ourselves what makes her so special,” he interrupts, not even acknowledging what I'm trying to say “She had Flint under her spell, and now you. Those 'ways' Flint mentioned must be out of this world to cloud the judgment of two men so thoroughly.”

  “What did you say?” I walk up on Konrad, ready to fight him. This time he has taken it too far. If he's saying what I think he's saying, I will hurt him. I don't care if he's higher ranking in the pack. Wanting to protect Mini has made me bolder than I’ve ever been.

  “Enough!” Anson shouts. He looks at Konrad. “That joke was in poor taste, and I will not allow such talk in my pack. She may be a thief, but we will not debase ourselves. You know this, Konrad. And you,” Anson points at me, “stop letting this girl muddle your thoughts. She has betrayed our pack, and she has betrayed you. Go to your room and find a way to get over this. If you do not, I will make sure you are thoroughly punished.”

  “But Anson –”

  “We are done talking.” He walks off without looking back.

  There's nothing I can do to convince them of how wrong they are. If they don't realize what's actually going on, our pack will be in real danger. I'll need to prove it then - with cold, hard facts.

  I head to my room and decide, tonight, I'm breaking Mini out of the basement. She doesn't deserve to be locked up in there. And, with her help, I'll be able to prove she's innocent a lot faster. I'm not going to back down this time. Not until they all understand.

  ****

  I wait until I'm sure everyone is asleep before sneaking out of my room to free Mini. This is directly going against what my alpha wants, which means I cannot get caught or else. I've never done anything so rebellious, so I'm not exactly sure what would happen. I just know there would be hell to pay, and I'd be the one writing the check.

  I change into my wolf form and sneak downstairs. As I'm leaving, I hear someone else walking around. My nose tells me that it's Flint, and he hasn't shifted, which means his smell won't be as attuned. I should be able to follow him and not be detected.

  But I'm up and out to get Mini. If I follow Flint, she will be stuck down there even longer. I'm sure she is absolutely miserable down there. I want her free as soon as possible. She still has no clue what is going on or why everyone has turned so vicious so suddenly. But I also know that something is up with this slimy salesman.

  I need proof to convince Anson and the elders that Mini hasn't done anything wrong, so it makes sense to follow Flint and see what he's up to. Maybe then they'll just let her go. I decide to follow him, staying back, so he doesn't catch my scent. Even if he is in human form, I have to be careful.

  He walks the driveway a little bit before shifting, which makes things a little more dangerous for me, but I stay on course, nonetheless. The wind is also on my side tonight.

  We run, Flint in front of me not knowing that I am following, for a while before getting to a nearby town, staying in the shadows, so no one sees us.

  Flint stops by an all-night diner and shifts before walking in. I change back, pulling up my hoodie, so he doesn't see me. The harsh smells of the diner should help to cover my scent, but I choose a seat close enough to hear, but far enough, so he doesn't catch a whiff or sight of me. I'm not about to make a stupid mistake. I have a feeling he wouldn’t hesitate to harm me.

  Flint slides into a booth where someone is already seated. I'm too far away to get their scent, a downside to not wanting to be detected myself. I can see them, though. My gut is telling me they are another werewolf. That's suspicious because Flint has been touting himself as a lone wolf. Not that having another wolf friend is weird. Sneaking out to meet him in the middle of the night is suspect, however.

  “Were you followed?”

  “No,” Flint scoffs. “Unlike you, I don't make messes. I heard about the scuffle. You guys were supposed to be hidden.”

  His companion makes a face. “It wasn't a big deal. We got away.”

  “You may have got away, but now Anson is suspicious and on edge. You need to tell Lycaon to stop being so god damn reckless. I can’t always clean up after you guys. I had to throw the sweet piece of ass I was traveling with under the bus to get his attention away from me. He doesn't think I'm involved, but now, I have no one to keep me company. You owe me a bitch.”

  I almost jump out of my seat, hearing him talk about Mini like that. How the fuck dare he? But I manage to keep my cool and stay right where I am.

  “Whatever, did you get the map?”

  “No, but I'm closer. Anson has it in his possession now, and I'm sure he's going to keep it close, so a small distraction should give me the window I need. Once we have it, we can start mining operations. That is after we kick the Stayman pack off. They're getting much too comfortable, and it's going to be their downfall. Literally ripe for the picking.”

  I don't need to hear anymore. It's clear that Flint knew about the silver mine the entire time. It's the whole reason he came to our orchard. He's not a real estate developer. He's a snively man. Not only that, but he's the sole reason Mini is in the trouble she's in.

  The bastard!

  I leave the diner, not needing to hear anymore. I now know exactly what’s going on. It’s time to go back to my
original mission of breaking Mini out of the basement. She's my main priority.

  I know I should probably tell Anson about what I heard, but it'll be useless. I'm sure. He's never listened to me before. He thinks the only reason why I'm fighting so hard for Mini is that I find her attractive, which I do, but Flint is also about to royally fuck us all over.

  I always knew Anson to be stubborn. I mean, I got it from somewhere, but I've never seen him miss the mark like this. As our alpha, he’s gotten us through a lot as a pack, but we’ve never faced a significant threat like this before. The Staymans have managed to survive for centuries. I know now is not our time. But what Anson believes to be true is so far from the actual truth. It’s like he’s fully blind to what seems obvious to me. I’m going to have to do more if I want to convince him.

  I need to find a way to stop all of this before it is too late. I don't know what I'll do if my pack is destroyed.

  Chapter Twelve

  Mini

  I've been sitting down here for too long. One minute is too long to be locked away in a basement, but I know, by now, it’s been a few hours. I started off screaming, hoping they'd let me go just because I was being far too annoying. I knew it was in vain, but that didn't stop me. I just want to go home so badly.

  And I would have gone home, back to my Momma’s house. If it meant not being stuck in this dark basement by myself anymore. I don’t care about my stupid pride or proving myself anymore. I was too reckless all in a pursuit to do what? Be a big city girl? It doesn’t even matter anymore.

  I'm sitting down, my back resting on the wall behind me. After screaming to be let out for like an hour, and having no one respond in any way, I tired myself out. I'm exhausted but unable to sleep because I’m too scared. This has been one of the most stressful days of my life. I'm much too anxious to close my eyes. I’m worried that when I close my eyes and fall asleep, that is when they’ll come for me. And I won’t have a chance to fight.

  Plus, my sleep will probably just be full of nightmares anyway.

  I actually considered escaping for a little bit. There are two exits: the basement door that will open back to the hallway that will lead me upstairs and a tiny window. The door is not only locked but guarded, so unless my tiny ass can kick those of a couple of werewolves, that's a no go. And the window is too small for me to fit through. So, those don't look like good options.

  And to top it all off, there's a whole bunch of shit locked up in here with me, but I can't reach any of the good stuff because they tied me to the wall. And I've tried. There's a sword just out of reach. I could use it to cut myself free, but my arms are just too short.

  So, anyway I slice it; there's no way in hell I'm getting out of this basement of doom. The only thing to do is wait for the werewolves to come and rip me apart. If they weren't going to do it before, they sure are now. All because Flint told them I'm some kind of mastermind or whatever. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to be the mastermind behind. I told them that, but they don’t believe me.

  Maybe they plan to let me starve or die of thirst. I’m not sure how long either one would take, but it sounds painful for either option. I also don't know which sounds worse, but they both suck.

  “It's my time, I guess,” I mumble to myself.

  I take a deep breath and wait for my inevitable end when I hear a noise. I look up and see that the small window is opening.

  “What the hell?”

  A wolf starts to shimmy through the open window. It’s a tight fit, but somehow it is making it work.

  Oh shit! It's happening a lot sooner than I expected. I thought I was ready for the end, but I'm not. I don't want to die! And I lied about not wanting to be a big city girl. I still want to travel and see more of the world and change my life.

  I look at what's in a nearby pile of junk and see a book. It won't do much, but I've got to try and defend myself. I guess I could hit whoever this is over the head. Maybe if I do it hard enough and in the right spot, then they'll leave me alone.

  The people who tied me up left me one hand free, so I grab the book and ready myself. The wolf drops to the floor. It looks at me, and the book I am clutching in one hand. One glimpse of its long fangs, and I freak the fuck out, clinging to the wall — forgetting all about the book. I fall into a heap on the floor, grabbing onto my body.

  “Please don't hurt me,” I beg, repeating the phrase over and over. Tears start to prick my eyes; I can barely control myself.

  The wolf transforms, and it's Pax. I start gasping. Of course, they'd send him to do the job. He approaches me, and I flinch, pushing myself further into the wall.

  “I'm not going to hurt you,” he says, holding up his hands in surrender.

  I don't believe him. When we were talking earlier, he went on and on about how loyal he is to his family. I'm sure if they've all condemned me, so has he.

  “Get away from me!” I hold up the book, ready to strike.

  Pax grabs my wrist. He's so much stronger than me. If I fight back, he'll just incapacitate me. “Shh! Don't be too loud, or Hans and Marc will hear you.”

  “I don't care. If you guys are going to kill me, why should I care?”

  “I’m not going to kill you, Mini. Jesus Christ. Why would you think that I would want to kill you?”

  “Because you all think I stole your family’s map, but it was Flint! He lied!”

  I can't hold it in any longer, and I start to cry. Pax wraps his arms around me, and, this time, I don't turn away. I let his warm and strong embrace take me over. I'm not just crying because I'm locked in this basement. These are all my tears for everything. Being locked in here gave me time, and I just reevaluated my entire life. I felt like I wasted it, and it looks like my wasted life is going to come to a pitiful end. This is just way too much emotion in such a short amount of time.

  I cry on Pax's shoulder as he comforts me, rubbing my back. His palm on my back does more to make me feel better than anything else has managed to in years. I grip the top of his shirt with my free hand, taking deep breaths. My cries die down until my tears have basically dried up.

  I pick my head up and wipe away the moisture that has built up on my face. “I'm sorry,” I sniffle. “I didn't mean to do that.”

  “Do you feel better?” Pax asks me, wiping some of the remaining tears from my cheeks.

  “A little bit. I mean, I still have no idea what's going on or why I've been locked up in this cold, dark basement. Apparently, werewolves exist, which has totally shattered my world. Nothing feels right anymore.”

  I move my body off of him, putting some space between us. While he did manage to calm me down, I can't just ignore the fact that Pax is a werewolf. I'm not even sure what that means, not really. What does that mean for the two of us? Is there an us? Is that possible for people like him?

  “You probably have a lot of questions.”

  “Well, yeah. I have like a hundred already queued up, and three times that are half-formed. Werewolves have only ever existed in storybooks for me so far. Now that I know they're real, I feel so scared and confused.”

  “I don't know if we have time for a thousand questions.” Pax looks anxiously towards the door. “I have to get you out of here.”

  I twist my mouth up because I know he's right.

  “But I'll answer just a couple of them,” he says, looking back at me. “Just so that you feel like you can trust me.”

  I pause to think of the ones I really need to know about. “Were you always a werewolf, or did they like bite you or something?”

  “I was born this way. The general term is shifters. Not everyone changes into a wolf, but, usually, you live with a pack, and you all shift into the same type of animal.”

  “What other animals are there?” I hadn't even considered any other type of 'shifting.' That's totally crazy.

  “Well, I've heard of bear, fox, big cat shifters. There are probably a bunch I don't know about, but we're not all scary or dangerous. We're like other
people except for this one thing.”

  I wrap my arms tighter around myself. In all the movies and books, werewolves, when they're in their wolf form, can't control their urges. They just rip apart whoever gets in their way. Even people who don't. They are literally wild animals.

  And the one thing that Pax is calling small is pretty significant to someone like me who never knew shifters were real until a couple of hours ago.

  “What do you guys eat?”

  “What do you mean? We eat the stuff we fed you. I mean, it's not always fish and green beans and potatoes, but, you know, we eat food.” He does not understand what I'm asking.

  “No, I mean, do you guys ever eat like people?” I whisper.

  Pax's face screws up weirdly before he starts to chuckle. He covers his mouth to smother the sounds, but I know he's laughing at me.

  “It's not funny,” I pout.

  “Is that what has had you so worried? That we were going to eat you? We don't eat humans, Mini. We eat the same food you guys eat. Sometimes, we'll eat in our wolf forms, but we still don't eat people. I can't believe you thought we ate people.”

  He starts to laugh again, and, now, it's getting on my nerves.

  “Stop! You would think the same thing if you saw a random skull in a weird room in the basement!”

  “That skull is hundreds of years old. No one alive actually knows where it came from, and since we never clean out the basement, stuff just collects.”

  “So, even when you’re a wolf, you’re still Pax. Like you’d recognize me?”

  “Yeah, we don’t lose our humanity when we shift. Our animal side is released, but we always remember who we are.”

  “Oh,” I sigh.

  “I'm sorry you had to have those thoughts. No wonder you’ve been so terrified.”

  “It's fine. Thanks for not being a cannibal. I'm sorry I caused so much trouble for you.”

  He smiles at me, reaches out, and brushes a hand through my hair. “I don't mind. It's all worth it because you are worth it.”

  “Sure…”