The men started to mutter, and Scorch continued on.
“Providing he doesn’t make skin to skin contact the wolf will not come out. He is free to hurt them, and according to my mate his choice of weapon is a f**king silver chain. I say we’ve got our f**king proof. This man is going to try to kill an alpha, and once that happens he will be more powerful than all of us combined. There will be no stopping him once he achieves his goal.” Scorch stopped, looking at all the alphas in turn. They were finally understanding the gravity of what he was saying. “I’m not here to cause waves with you. This man is dangerous. An entire pack along with all of our kind is at risk. I’m asking, no I’m begging, you all to realize the severity of the situation.”
David reached out, touching his arm. “They know what you’re saying, alpha. Let them all think about what you’ve got to say before you do anything radical.”
Nodding, he took a step back. His heart was racing. He needed to know what they were all thinking and feeling. Turning away, he ran fingers through his hair in order to do something with his hands.
“I hate this,” he said, talking to David.
“I know. You’re doing what you can. Give them a breather. Allow them to make a decision.”
The time passed slowly, painfully slowly. He looked up at the sky wishing there was something more he could be doing. Instead, he stood waiting for their input.
After what felt like an eternity but was only a few minutes, they called him back. Heading inside, David at his side, he faced the other alphas.
“Over a hundred years ago there was a man like you talk about. He, erm, he didn’t like being at the mercy of his wolf, and so he killed a fellow alpha taking the mate of the deceased, control of the pack, and also breaking the bond with his wolf,” Edward said. Scorch saw Edward was troubled by what he was saying.
“Why are you telling me this?” Scorch asked.
“No alpha could kill him. If we take out a fellow alpha then we break our bond with our wolf.” Edward sighed. “The problem was this man went mad. The power inside him was too much for him to handle. No alpha can stop anyone who breaks that bond.”
“We can’t leave Chain like this. He will kill an alpha, and then you’ve got the same problem.” Scorch rubbed his eyes, feeling more tired than he ever had throughout his life. “What other suggestion do you have?” he asked. “How did you defeat this other man?”
“With no end in sight to his torment, this alpha, this abomination, started killing men, women, and children of his surrounding pack. There was no stopping him at all.”
“This is not a great story,” David said.
“Like all bad men, an end was in sight, but the true alpha of the pack had been born. This boy grew up in a good pack that was slowly brought to its knees by this abomination. Then, the alpha attacked his mother, and this young boy rose up above all the others. He killed the alpha with a strike of his steel blade, taking the pack and creating a new alpha with fresh blood,” Edward said.
“What are you saying? We’ve got to find the true alpha of The Clan pack? Chain is the true alpha,” Scorch said, getting angrier.
“You’re too young, Scorch. You and your friend are too young to understand these details. That is not the entire story. For the last hundred years I’ve been studying this strange occurrence that happens within some alphas.” Edward looked at the other alphas. “When one alpha starts this battle of becoming evil, hurting the pack and trying to kill other alphas, there is someone within the same pack who has the power to take the pack from him,” Edward said.
“You’re saying the answer to our problems is actually living in The Clan pack right this instant?” Scorch asked.
“Yes, we couldn’t act accordingly the last time something like this occurred on our soil.” Edward took a deep breath. “That is no longer the case anymore. We can go, contain Chain, and the true alpha will rise up, show himself and be able to kill Chain, rising up to the alpha status. The loophole for the new alpha to kill Chain is the wolf’s true passion is protection. Chain is no longer protecting his people. He’s hunting and killing them. The new alpha is taking out a threat, which is why the bond will not break. The true intentions are within the heart and soul.”
Scorch looked at all of them. The satisfaction was clear to see on all of their faces.
“If that’s the case then we need to do it sooner rather than later,” Scorch said, thinking about Victoria. He couldn’t leave her alone with that maniac waiting to hurt her.
“We will.”
Edward and Alfred along with the other alphas agreed on a date five days from then. Scorch and David agreed to be with them when they took control of Chain. They decided on the best course of action to get Chain vulnerable.
With every second that passed with a strategy in place, Scorch felt happier. Chain shouldn’t be allowed the chance to hurt people. He would see to it that Victoria was not harmed.
Once they had concluded business, they all shook hands. Scorch and David headed out catching up with the other members of their pack who waited on the outskirts of the forest, protecting them. None of them spoke as they headed toward their homes. They stayed in wolf form on the run for the next three days only stopping when it was absolutely necessary.
They fed on the wildlife in wolf form, resting, drinking from lakes and rivers. All the time Scorch thought about his woman. When he saw home in sight, he picked up his speed. He was tired, but he’d rest over the coming days. The only thing he could think about was getting to his woman. At the back door he turned back into his human form, entering the house. He found Mandy sat at the table, crying.
“We’re back,” he said, frowning at her state. “What’s going on?”
“It’s Victoria.”
Scorch ignored whatever else she had to say. Running up the stairs, he charged into her bedroom. She wasn’t there. Going into his own bedroom, he found her curled up by the window, cupping her neck. Startled eyes met his. He hated seeing that look shining back at him.
“What the hell is going on?” he asked, approaching her.
She dropped her hand, and he saw the bruises on her flesh. Going to his knees, he looked at the marks, knowing without her saying a word who they were from. “I’m going to f**king kill him.”
“You can’t. It’s what he wants.” Her voice was croaky.
“How long ago did this happen?” he asked. His wolf was clawing to get out and take out the man who’d tried to hurt his woman.