Heath knew how resistant to change Wolf shifters were, especially if the change involved a new Alpha. His father, who was head of the English and Welsh Wolves, had been called on repeatedly to settle grievances pack members had against their Alphas. In fact, it had gotten so out of hand that he finally had to rule that no one could bring a complaint against an Alpha who had led a pack for less than three years.
When Heath asked him why three years and not less, his father told him it took that long for a new Alpha to earn the loyalty of his pack. Obviously, Tristan was an exception; he’d done it in just a matter of days. But that wasn’t all. The willingness of pack members to fight by their Alpha’s side when they weren’t ordered to, made his mate an Alpha’s Alpha. And Heath couldn’t wait to introduce Tristan to his father.
Entering the conference room, Tristan greeted Reeve before turning his attention to the many maps on the table. Going through them, he picked certain ones and discarded the rest. Spreading the ones he selected out on the table, he pointed to the largest one that outlined the borders of his pack land. “There’s the main road, but are there other ways Rudy can get access to us?”
“That’s the only road,” Reeve replied, “but there are several trails he could use if he came on foot…but they’re overgrown and it would slow him down.”
“The road would be faster,” Heath agreed. “But considering how poorly Josiah maintained it, I’m not sure it would necessarily be that much faster than the trails.”
“Would the trails be quicker if Rudy shifted?” asked Tristan.
Shrugging, Reeve said, “They might be for Rudy’s wolf.”
“Do you have a list of the other escapees yet?” asked Tristan.
“Not yet,” Reeve growled, pissed off that the High Council had not yet responded to his request.
“So all we know is Rudy and those who’ve been associated with the Silver Point pack are wolf shifters, is that correct?” asked Tristan.
“That’s right.”
Glancing at the map again, Tristan murmured, “About fifty prisoners broke out, so we have to assume there may be other kinds of shifters with him, and since we don’t have the numbers to guard all the trails and the road…”
“What if there were small groups of enforcers guarding each trail?” asked Heath. “That way you’d know which one Rudy was using.”
“Too risky,” Tristan said. “Normally I’d agree with you, but I bet Rudy knows them like the back of his hand…and my men haven’t been here long enough to learn them that well, giving his bunch a distinct advantage.”
“The only option left is to wait for Rudy here,” Reeve said, drawing a circle around a building with his finger.
“That won’t give us any advantage,” Heath muttered.
“You got a better idea?” growled Reeve, glaring at his friend.
“Well, I do,” Tristan replied, using his Alpha Power to end the disagreement between his mate and Reeve. After they both tilted their heads in respect, he continued, “Without knowing what types of shifters we’re facing, I don’t want to give Rudy and his cohorts the opportunity to sneak up and corner us…whether we are inside or outside. Given that, this is what we’re going to do…”
~/~/~/~/~
“I need you to find Dad!” Dylon snapped, after entering Zane’s lair without bothering to knock.
Looking up from his computer screen, Zane surveyed the wild-eyed man before saying, “Dude, that’s what I’m trying to do.”
“No…”
“You’re wrong, man…I’m doing exactly what you and Jackson told me to do.”
“What Dylon means,” Jackson explained as he and Lizzie entered the room, “is we just found out Frank has a tracking device implanted in him, and we need you to use it to find out where he is.”
“A tracker? Really? Wow…why didn’t you tell me that to begin with? Does the High Council know about it? Duh! Of course they do…but wait, if they do, why haven’t they told you? Or Lizzie? By the way, hi Miss L…good to see you again,” Zane said, flashing a smile at her before continuing. “Did you check to see if they’ve rescued Frank yet? Maybe that’s why they didn’t tell you or Miss L because they were in the process of doing it.”
“Whoa…slow down,” Dylon replied. “First, according to the note, no one knows he has a tracker, and second, Dad hasn’t been rescued. I have the frequency for the tracker in Dad and I need you to use it to locate where Rudy is holding him.”
“Gotcha.” Turning back to his computer, Zane opened a program and said, “Gimme the frequency.”
Grabbing a notepad, Dylon scribbled down the numbers his father had given him and, after handing it to Zane, said, “Here…the tracker is twenty years old so it might not be working anymore.”
Jackson watched as Zane entered the numbers but when his brother’s computer screen remained blank, he murmured, “Time for option two.”
“What’s that?” asked Lizzie.
