Chapter 12

Phoenix

My sides heaved in effort as I came to a stop in front of the shadowy figure. His distorted figures seemed to be smiling as I approached him. My lips curled back revealing bloody fangs; my fur was coated in blood from the hunt.

Through the mind link I felt the terror of my mate and my human side wanted to run toward her and embrace her, protect her from everything, but I knew I had to fight.

"It is good to see you again, Phoenix. I'm here because it seems as though you didn't take our warning seriously about the fact we will obliterate you. I'm giving you three moons before I come back. You have two options; you either join us or die. That simple."

*What do you want.* He laughed quietly. "What I've always wanted, to see you, the powerful Alpha werewolf to fall from power. To see you destroyed." A growl slipped through my throat, and I lunged at him. My jaws bit nothing but air. I whirled around finding he had reappeared behind me.

"Now now now, that wasn't very nice, but because I'm a very generous person, I won't kill you right here. You have 3 moons, Alpha." He spat on the ground and vanished yet again.

*Everyone get in the house.* Was all I thought before turning and sprinting away from the black smoke shifting as I went. My feet carried me upstairs where I threw open the secret door behind the white wolf painting in my room. Quickly, I found everyone had stayed safe. I breathed a sigh of relief.

Lauren looked at me, and as our eyes locked all of my muscles relaxed. Earlier when I had felt the fear from her mind, I thought it had been of me. Fear of the monster I truly was. But looking at her now, I could see it hadn't been of me.

"Thank god." She threw herself into my arms, burring her head into my shoulder. I looked to Cennady silently mouthing the words 'Thank you'. She nodded putting her arms around the children walking out of the secret room.

"We're safe, come on out and join us in the meeting room." I turned to Lauren. "I want you to stay by Quincy if I am not at the house, it's time to talk to everyone about this situation."

The entire pack sat in the living room - even the pups. They needed to know what was going on too.

"Three Months, that's all?" Quincy expelled a long breath.

"Yeah, and it doesn't help we know nothing about this...thing or what he wants or why we wants us." Landon was clearly worried not only for his children but for the entire town. It must be a burden, knowing what's going on but not being able to protect the humans from it. Carson pulled the pups closer to her, all three looked terrified. I knew they would shift soon, both Belle and Jason were nearly old enough and they had been born from a powerful mind-reader.

It was different, the way we aged. It only took the better part of a year and a half for our pups to reach maturity. They grew quickly to help protect the pack as well as defend themselves. It was one of the Wolf traits we had inherited. Able to fend for and shift themselves. Of course that time was made up with the long lives we were given.

"Ezekiel will be here tomorrow at the latest. We will consult him before we make any decisions. For now, everyone will stay in the house. Watch will be run only at the moons highest, and guards will stay inside." I turned to the pups beckoning them close to me.

"Because this is a pack house no one can enter unless they are our pack or invited in by one of it's members. This means you can invite people in. You may not under any circumstances do so. Even if it means not letting someone you know in. Do you understand?" They nodded all understanding the severity of the situation.

"Good. Let's all get some Rest."

~~~~~

The morning began with a loud knock on the door, and I answered knowing it was Ezekiel on the other side.

"Ezekiel, I'm glad you could make it." The young man standing in front of me took his hat off as he stood on our deck.

"I came as soon as I could. May I come in?" He asked motioning to the barrier around the house. I almost let him in before caution took over

"Not until you answer my question." He dipped his head in acknowledgement. "When we were young you said something to me, you know it. It's always stuck with me."

"I said you and I were going to change the world into the best. That we were going to be the greatest."

"Come in my friend." I said as I embraced him. We had been friends for centuries and grown up together in our old pack. He wasn't a wolf though, he was a prophet, one of the rarest mythical species in existence. They were only known to be born every few centuries.

"It has been a long day, Alpha, can we speak tomorrow?" Ezekiel's eyes looked worn whether from glimpsing the future or from the journey I did not know. Quincy came around the corner to greet him and led him down the hall to our spare rooms. He called over his shoulder,

"Lauren is in you room." Nodding I headed up. She was curled up on the bed smack in the middle I stared for a bit seeing how perfect the moonlight caressed her face. I went to change into a large shirt and some shorts and crawled into bed with her. I could feel the pack around me and knew we'd be okay for the night. That was until a blood curling scream ripped through the night.