Walking Headaches

"There is a new smell in here," Rolando comments when I step into the foyer. I wince, remembering I forgot to clear out the human's scent earlier. Dammit. "Yes, we had a human girl stumble upon us today," I admit. He looks at me, shock written across his face. "You're just having all sorts of fun lately aren't you," Siobhan teases. Goddess I wish I was having fun. "Surely you killed her," Leo demands. I growl warningly at him. "No, Leo, as a matter of fact I haven't yet. She is, however, secured." Rolando's eyebrows stitch together.

"Dawn, I would have thought you of all people would have executed the human. You're not known to take such risks with your pack." I narrow my eyes at him, fighting another growl. "As I said, she is secured. Regardless, the human is not why I called you all here. Some rather disturbing information has been relayed to me." I open the conference hall doors, motioning for them all to go in.

When Venus enters last, I close the doors, locking them and shutting off the lights. "What I say does not leave this room," I order. It's risky, ordering this many alphas, but they all agree. "Where is Ismael," Leo asks. "I left him a voicemail, but have not heard back." Whispers ripple through the alphas, causing me to roll my eyes. "Goddess above, if it bothers you so much, I'll try again," I snap, pulling my phone from my back pocket.

I dial the number again, listening to it ring. "What," a voice growls out. I growl back. "Watch it. Where is Ismael," I demand. "Who the hell wants to know?" My lip pulls back in a snarl. "Alpha Dawn. Now where the hell is he," I snap. "He's out." The other party hangs up before I can reply. Eric growls on my left. "I hate dealing with his Beta. He's almost as belligerent as Ismael himself." I nod my agreement, meeting Leo's eyes. "Happy? Now may I move on with important things?" His jaw flutters but he doesn't answer.

I turn on the projector I had set up on the table, casting images taken by the guard tower cameras. "Since our monthly meeting, I have learned that Ferals are becoming more aware. A wolf outside of my pack has informed me he was hunted by a group of three just last week. My patrols since have been spotting Ferals at various time intervals. The Ferals notice them, but they walk away. This would be no concern if they were Rogues." Rolando's eyes widen as he looks at the pictures of the beasts on the screen.

"What wolf gave you this information," Devon asks. "I'm not at liberty to share that information. Who I got it from is inconsequential. The fact is these Ferals are evolving. What is happening I don't know. And I don't know if it's all of them or not. But Wynter and I get the feeling this is not a good thing. That this is the calm before a very violent storm," I say. "When wolves become Feral, they fight more. And they don't care who they fight. As a result, their wolves become mangled and nearly impossible to recognize," Mikael adds, standing up.

"They rely on their base instinct. But natural wolves are pack animals, lead by the strongest one. It appears almost as if they have a pack. One wolf has already been hunted by a group of three. This suggests organization we have never seen in Ferals before. These animals, these creatures, look like Ferals, but behave like pack wolves. I get the feeling this is tied into the vanishing alphas," he continues. "What can we do about it," Orion, Alpha of the Sunburst pack, asks. I rub my face, agitation getting to me.

"We have no clue who or what the hell we're up against here. We need to be prepared for any and all situations," I reply. I can feel the discontentment in the room and I have to push Wynter down. "How the hell do we do that," Holly's mate, Birch, demands. I sigh, exhausted mentally already. "Our packs need to be trained. Most of us are fine with taking on one Feral at a time. But we need to find a way to take down multiple. Especially if they're beginning to travel in groups." He growls, still not satisfied. "And if one of us is ambushed," he demands.

"Nobody should be out alone. That is not a new rule. It's been common knowledge we all stay to our pack territories. But most of your lands are open with an imaginary border around it." Birch glares at Bear when he finally speaks up. "What would you have us do, oh mighty Bear?" I stiffen at Birch's disrespectful mocking tone, growling softly. "Would you have us hide our packs away like your mate? Build a wall and pretend the big bad world can't get to us if we do? What happens when reality crashes through it? Or when a Feral finds a weak point?"

"You leave no weak points," I snap, slamming my hands down on the table. "So we're supposed to wall our pack in and tell them not to leave? Do you think your pack is happy living like this? Walled in like animals? What about all of the security? Do you think it was that necessary," Birch demands. I bristle at the accusations and challenge, my nails growing into claws. I squeeze my eyes shut, silently counting, as my claws leave grooves carved into the wood. I open my eyes, forcing a smile. "If you'll recall, as Ismael loves to remind us, my pack was attacked and burned to the ground. Hundreds of innocent lives were lost. I took over at nineteen. I wasn't supposed to until my twenty first birthday. Two years early. The security measures I have implemented have kept my pack safe. What have you done to ensure the same can be said of your pack," I demand. He growls, bolting from his chair and knocking it back.

"Are you questioning my ability as an alpha?" I snarl. "Are you," I retort. I see his muscles tense as he fights his wolf. "Until recently, there have been no attacks on my pack. But lately, Ferals are getting bolder. Getting closer to the walls and pushing boundaries. Something is changing out there for better or for worse. Now you can either keep fighting me or you can accept it and help be a part of the solution." He glowers at me, his eyes narrowed and flashing. I snarl back, Wynter bristling at the blatant disrespect in our own home.

Rolando slamming his palm onto the table snaps us out of our state down, drawing the attention to him. "Enough, Leo. Dawn is right. We need to all tighten security and implement new measures to ensure our packs are safe." He looks at me. "What do you propose, Dawn?" And so the arguing begins. Me offering ideas, and someone else shooting them down. Us arguing when I demand to know why my plan isn't enough and the others demanding to know why they should follow me when Rolando is head alpha in our area.

We go on like this for roughly six hours, my skull feeling ready to split by the time we finish at nine o'clock at night. "Look, we can finish this at a later date and time. If you'd like to continue this tomorrow, we have prepared rooms for those that decide to stay." A few agree, most actually. The ones that don't are offered an escort through the outskirts of the territory. When everyone is finally either settled or gone, i finally make my way to the room Ash settled the girl into. Opening the door, I dodge when a lamp is catapulted in my direction. I shut the door behind me calmly, turning to meet her hateful eyes.

"Let's start with the basics. What's your name," I ask flatly. Wynter groans, exhausted from the meeting. "My name is Vanessa. Don't bother asking my last name. I won't give it." I roll my eyes, running a hand down my face. "Who sent you?" She shrugs wordlessly, a thoughtful look on her face. "I'm not paid to ask questions. I'm paid to get results." I nod, contemplating. "You are like me," I say carefully. She sneers at me. "Except I don't turn into a man killing monster." I narrow my eyes, Wynter taking offense to that jab.

"I assume if you're a hunter, you're familiar with alphas. I'd watch your tone because this alpha, won't be nice if you continue to insult her." She blanches, her eyes widening marginally. I pull up the desk chair, sitting on it and resting my elbows on my knees casually. "Pretending we know who hired you, did he or she say why they hired you?" She purses her lips and I can practically see the gears turning. "Let me assure you, lying to me will not end well for you in the long run, if that has any impact on your decision."

She glares at me. "I was only supposed to watch your pack." I growl softly. So someone hired her for the same reason I'm hired by other alphas. Her answer is vague, but I assume it's the same thing. Stake out and learn. Gather information. My leg begins bouncing as anxiety starts to spike. The need to protect my pack and the fear of failure mocking me. "And did you," I ask, maintaining my calm façade as long as possible. She rolls her eyes and leans back on the bed. "No. You're surprisingly vigilant and careful with your patrol." Pride swells in my chest, no doubt egged on by Wynter. "What else," I ask. She rolls her eyes, a habit of hers that's becoming increasingly more annoying by the second.  But then she looks away, her hands fidgeting in her lap.

"There is one more thing. I'm not really human so much as really good at hiding my scent." I stitch my eyebrows together in confusion before an all too familiar scent slams into me. I bolt up, glaring at her. "Nope. Out. Now." I rip the door open, nearly taking it off the hinges. She spins around, all trace of her tough façade gone as she looks at me pleadingly. "Please, I know you hate him and have no reason to spend time with me or even our brother," I cut her off with a low growl. "Okay, my  brother," she amends. I roll my eyes, crossing my arms.

"Your name isn't Vanessa then if you are who you smell like." A blush colors her face as she looks down, shaking her head. "My name is Meadow." I scoff, rolling my eyes. "Of course it is," I mutter. Ashton appears seemingly put of nowhere. "Dawn? What's going on," he asks. Inhaling deeply, I see his eyes flash when he catches her new scent. "Ash, meet my darling half sister, Meadow," I say with a dramatic wave. His eyes widen before he smiles falsely. "Would you excuse us a moment," he says before grabbing my upper arm and dragging me aside. "How in the hell did you not know your own sister," he demands in a harsh whisper. I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose and squeezing my eyes shut. "If you'll kindly recall, Scott ditched me when I was four. Beyond that, the only communication with him has been via phone call after I turned nineteen. I've never met my two half siblings from him before or even spoken to them. All I know is I have another sister and brother."

He hisses, not pleased with being caught off guard. I run a hand through my hair, massaging my scalp lightly. The speaker on my office phone blares. "Hey, D," Misty's voice crackles. "Not now, Misty," I say as nicely as possible. She mutters an unsure okay before the phone clicks. "Does he know you're here," I ask Meadow finally. She shakes her head, her light brown hair flying. "He never would have let me come. I came because I want to know why you quit talking to him." I sigh, taking my seat behind my desk again as Ashton stands in the doorway. "What did he tell you," I ask. I get the feeling denying her and sending her home will only egg her on.

"That you and mom had a disagreement." I scoff, rolling my eyes at the simplicity. "That's one way to put it, yes." I look up when Ashton clears his throat, his hand pulling away from the receiver in his ear. "Hey, D, the patrols called in. Scott and Ravyn are at the gates demanding entrance to talk to you." I raise an eyebrow, looking up at him. "Tell the guards to say or do whatever they need to or want to in order to make them leave. If he asks about his daughter, let them know she is safe and will be sent home in one piece. If former Alpha Hazelwood has something he'd like to say, he can or his master can call and schedule a meeting like every other alpha." He nods, turning on his heel and walking out. I shake my head, returning my attention to the teenager in front of me. Look at her closesly, I can see the resemblance I missed before. She shares the same dark blonde hair as me. But that's where our particular similarities end. But she certainly looks like Scott. I growl when my phone rings. Answering it, I resist the urge to crush the little piece of technology. "What," I snap.

"Dawn Elizabeth Blackwood, you let us onto your territory this instant." I cringe at her whiny bitchy voice. Goddess above someone put the animal out of its misery, Wynter grumbles. I growl in agreement. "You may have my darling sperm donor trailing after you like a good little lap dog, Ravyn, but I assure you, if i have to come down there, he will be going home mateless if at all." I hear a defensive snarl in the background and can't help the mocking snicker. "Now, Scott, you know I'm not threatened by you or your master. So run along home little doggies." I end the call, ignoring it when it rings again.

I focus back on Meadow, watching her as she fidgets, looking anywhere but my eyes. The phone rings another four times before I have enough. I stand up, knocking my chair back. "Let's go. Clearly they won't let up." I storm out of my office, Meadow and Ashton trailing close behind me. People whisper amongst themselves as I go through the town towards the gates. I growl softly but nod, letting the patrols know to open the gate enough for them to come in. Scott and Ravyn come in, escorted by guards of course, glowering when they see their daughter at my side. "How fucking dare you take my daughter," Scott snarls.

My eye twitches as a pang jab my heart at the vehemence he speaks about Meadow with. "She came to me. Spinning quite a tale I might add." He growls, stopping when Ravyn waves a hand. I roll my eyes, scoffing. "Take her if you want her. Then get the hell off my territory." I turn to walk away, pausing. "Oh and, former alpha Hazelwood, I'd be careful in those woods. We've had quite the Feral issue as of late," I throw over my shoulder.

"I want to talk to you, Dawn. Now." I halt when Ravyn's nasally whine assaults my ears. In a flash I have her by the throat against a nearby wall. "You do not command me, bitch. I am a true alpha, not a weak link like your pet," I spit venemously. "If you disrespect me again, I will remind you of your true rank." I drop her, turning away as she gasps for air and Scott runs to her side. "Antonio, take out the trash," I order, brushing past the guards. He fists his hand over his heart with a bow before snapping his fingers, four men following him towards Scott.

I watch as they are escorted out my gates, but not further. I refuse to risk my pack members for a disrespectful alpha has been and his mistake of a mate. "I'll be at the café should anybody need me. Please refrain from needing me though," I bite out. The guards, including Ashton, all bow as i pass them, before going back to whatever they were doing. It takes me at least fifteen minutes to get to the café  in the small village type town we have. Taking a seat at my favorite booth after ordering, I breath deeply, fighting the tightness i feel in my chest.

The bell above the door jingles and I can smell Bear as he approaches me. I look up, smiling faintly when he brushes his lips across mine gently. He sits beside me, guiding my head onto his shoulder gently. "Where have you been," I tease. He chuckles softly, pressing a kiss to the crown of my head. "I've been around," he replies vaguely. I chuckle, but don't have time to truly revel in the moment of peace before Wynter gets restless. Something is coming, she says. Alarm laces her tone, setting me on alert right as the alarms start blaring around us. Goddess forbid I relax with my mate.