"Easy, Liam," my father counselled, placing a hand on my shoulder. "We'll find her. But first, we need to gather our allies and plan our next move."
"Every second we waste is another moment she suffers," I ground out, clenching my fists.
"Patience, Liam. Rash decisions will only lead to more pain," he replied, his voice steady despite the turmoil I knew he must be feeling. My heart raced, torn between the need to act and the knowledge that my father was right. But it didn't make the waiting any easier.
"Let's get inside and start planning," I said, my voice sounding more like a growl than human speech. My father nodded, and together we entered the pack house.
We headed straight up to the offices on the first floor, where my father told me that was the base of operations for the rescue. The moment my father pushed open the door to the office, a cacophony of noise and chaos greeted us. It was as if life had been sucked out of the pack house only to be concentrated in this one room. Desperation clung to every movement, every clipped word exchanged between pack members.
"I never thought I'd miss the quiet," I murmured, rubbing the back of my neck as tension coiled around me like a snake.
"Focus, Liam," my father said, his voice firm but not unkind. "We have work to do." I took a deep breath and followed him into the fray, feeling the weight of curious eyes on me, sympathy, fear, and perhaps even blame. I gritted my teeth and ignored them. They didn't matter, not when Erica's life hung in the balance.
In the conference room, I spotted Frankie and Gen locked in a heated argument with Amaury, Gen's father. The lines of strain etched on their faces made my heart ache for the family they had lost. Gideon, my father's gamma, hunched over maps scattered across the table while barking into a phone, and Gregg, my father's beta, spoke with Beta Hayes from the Moon Key pack, Erica’s former pack.
"Ah, Hayes," I said, nodding at the man. My father explained that he and another pack member rushed here as soon as they heard about Erica's abduction. I appreciated their loyalty, but it did little to quell the storm raging in my chest.
"Son, I need to update you on what's happening," my father said, his voice grave. He motioned for me to step away from the others, a hint of concern in his eyes. "We have Wesley Hall and a small recon team at the border of the Shadow Night pack."
"Any news on Erica?" My heart raced, fear wrapping its tendrils around me. He hesitated before speaking.
"Wesley has an inside man feeding him information. From what we've gathered, Erica's locked up in their cells." His face darkened with anger. "There have been incidents involving Grant and other warriors. The Alpha isn't happy with Grant hurting his men."
"Grant?!" I couldn't believe it, my fists clenching in rage. "How did he get out?"
"Looks like Heidi and some others broke him out, along with Grayson Thompson and other traitors. We believe Grant took down Erica's guards and kidnapped her." My father's voice was heavy with regret.
"Damn it!" I slammed my fist against the wall, cursing myself. "I should've exiled that bastard when I had the chance!"
"Listen, Liam," my father said calmly, placing a hand on my shoulder. "As much as I hate to admit it, Grant seems to be providing some protection for Erica against the Shadow Night warriors. He has some sway there. Wesley's contact says Grant is actually Jasper Blackwood's Gamma now."
"Protection?" I scoffed. "If it weren't for him, she wouldn't be in this mess in the first place!"
"Focus, son. We need to concentrate on getting her back, not on our anger toward Grant." My father's words were like ice water on my boiling fury, reminding me of the task at hand.
"Son, we have another problem," my father's voice held a deep concern that only added to the weight on my chest. "Our pack has lost almost half its numbers."
"What?" I couldn't believe what I was hearing. "How?"
"Between suspected traitors and those who are afraid of what's going on, we've taken a massive hit." My father's face was etched with pain as he spoke, and I knew it wasn't just the physical wounds I'd given him that were causing his suffering.
"Is this why you're taking so long to heal?" I asked quietly, guilt gnawing at me.
"Each time a pack member breaks their connection, I feel it, like part of my soul has been torn away," he admitted, confirming my suspicions.
"Damn it." I cursed under my breath, feeling like I had failed not only Erica, but my entire pack.
"Come," my father steered me towards a large board on the other side of the room. "You need to see this." The board was covered in a list of names, hundreds of them. "What is this?" I asked, my curiosity piqued.
"Confirmed spies for the Shadow Night pack. Some have been working against us for years." His voice was heavy with betrayal, and my heart sank as I scanned the names. One stood out immediately:
"Verity Thompson."
"Are you sure about Verity?" I questioned, my world spinning as I noticed Gen and Frankie stopping their work to look over sadly. Verity had been a close friend to all of us, especially Erica. My father nodded solemnly. Gideon stepped forward, anger boiling beneath his usually calm demeanour.
"It looks like the whole family was involved. Kylan and Kayden -" He spat their names like venom. "-They've been on numerous trips with both you and your father, Liam. I wanna wring their necks, little bastards." I clenched my fists, anger and betrayal making my blood boil. How could they have been working against us, infiltrating our pack for so long? I swore to myself that we would make them pay for their treachery, but first and foremost, my priority was Erica.
"Alright," I breathed, trying to maintain control over the whirlwind of emotions raging inside me. "Let's focus on bringing Erica back. Then we'll deal with everything else."
