Kieran POV
Somehow, I manage to talk Kai off the front porch of the pack house and into his room. I watch from the doorway as he collapses on his bed and immediately falls asleep. He is caked with mud and dirt, but he doesn't seem to care. I quietly shut his door and find myself face-to-face with Luna Scarlett.
She is standing so close to me that I almost knock her over. "Luna," I sigh. "What can I do for you?"
"I was coming to check on my son," she replies, but her eyes are glued to mine.
"He is sleeping," I tell her. "But feel free to check on your little baby."
I gently move her to the side and walk around her. I am halfway down the stairs when she calls after me. "You don't understand how we run things here. You should go home."
I tilt my head to the side, letting her know that I heard her, but I refuse to respond. I expect that to be the end of things, but I hear her footsteps behind me.
"Is this what you are taught at the North Pack? To ignore your elders?" She shouts at me. "I knew you were disrespectful, but this is unreasonable."
I scoff loudly. "I think you and I have very different ideas about what is disrespectful."
As I reach the bottom of the stairs, she taps me on the shoulder. I turn to look at her, and she punches me right in the nose. My head snaps backward, and I am shocked by how hard she can punch. Blood is pouring from my nose, and she has a proud smirk on her face.
Alpha Fred comes out of his office and sees his mate and me having a stare-down, and he definitely doesn't miss the blood all over my face and shirt.
"What did you do?" He snaps at Luna Scarlett.
"Teaching this young Alpha his place," Luna Scarlett tells Fred. "If he is going to be a guest in this pack, he needs to respect how we run things."
Alpha Fred is left speechless, and I get the idea that he doesn't wear the pants in this relationship. Luna Scarlett smooths back her hair and begins to walk away, but I grab her by the arm. She scoffs loudly at my touch, but she doesn't jerk away.
"Let's get a few things straight," I warn her. "I came here to save you ass. Your sons have made a mess of things, and I was called in to clean it up. Now, we have two options. You can let me do my thing and sort this shit out. Or I can call my sister, and she will come in and take over the investigation."
"You wouldn't dare," Luna Scarlett growls.
"Oh," I laugh. "I would, and I know firsthand that you don't want my sister sifting through your mind. It can be rather unpleasant when she discovers something you are trying to keep hidden."
"You can't threaten us," she screams at me. "We have done nothing wrong."
"Alpha Fred," I turn my attention to him. "How many rogues do allow to roam freely within your pack's borders?"
"Don't answer that, Fred," Luna Scarlett warns him. "That is none of his business."
"Have it your way," I reply. I wipe the remaining blood off my face with my hand and wipe it down the front of Luna Scarlett's shirt. "I will be talking to the prisoner."
As I walk away, I hear Luna Scarlett shrieking at Fred. "Are you going to let him treat me like that?"
"He is the brother of the Luna Queen," Alpha Fred whispers. "What would you have me do?"
I shake my head in amusement as I walk out the front door. I am glad they aren't my parents. As I round the corner of the pack house, I see Kaden smoking a cigarette beside the dungeons. He looks stressed.
"What's up?" I say as I enter the code I was given.
The dungeon door swings open, and Kaden follows me inside. "Have you ever lost your mate?" Kaden asks as we walk through the darkened hallways.
"Yep," I reply. "Most stressful time of my life, and I have been shot with a silver bullet."
"How did you make it through it?" Kaden asks.
"Angrily," I reply honestly. "I took a lot of that anger out on Tish. I probably owe her an apology once we find her."
Kaden lowers his voice as we approach Cedric's cell. "Do you think we will find her?"
"Yep," I say curtly.
"One more question," Kaden says. "What happened to your nose?"
"Your mother," I growl.
"Yikes," he laughs.
I turn my attention to the cell. Cedric is curled up in the corner. Tears are streaming down his face, and I instantly know he doesn't know what happened to Tish. I pull up a chair and sit close to the bars. I can feel the heat of the silver in the air, and it makes me feel uncomfortable.
"I know you don't know where she is," I call out to him. "But what do you know?"
Cedric looks up from the ground, and his hazel eyes shine through the darkness. "You believe me?"
"Yeah," I say. "I've never seen a guilty werewolf cry this much."
"I loved her like a daughter," Cedric begins. "I just wanted to protect her. She was scared of you, and I didn't want to send her away with you."
"That makes sense," I shrug. "I was rude to her."
"You locked her in dungeons and in the trunk of a car," Cedric shouts at me. "That's a little more than rude."
"To be fair," I reply. "To be fair, she was working with the recusants. What do you know about their resurgence?"
"Nothing," Cedric lies.
"Cedric," I chastise him. "This would go a lot faster if you would tell me the truth."
"I have only heard rumors," he responds.
"Let's start with the rumors and go from there," I ask kindly.
"If I tell you what I know, my life will be in danger. I will lose my livelihood. Rogues will stop coming into my bar," he whines.
"If you don't tell me what you know, it is likely Tish will die," I remind him.
"What if I can't tell you?" Cedric sighs.
"Why couldn't you tell me?' I counter.
Sweat begins to form on Cedric's brow, and I growl loudly. He is fighting against an Alpha Command.
"Fuck!" I shout, getting up from the chair. "Which Alpha?"
Cedric is still unable to answer. Whoever put him under this command was thorough.
"Did you know you were putting Tish in danger?" I ask him one final question.
"No," he shouts. "I thought I was saving her."
Kaden is growling behind me. "Whatever he knows, he can't tell us," I tell Kaden. "He's under an Alpha Command."
"What do we do now?" Kaden groans.
"The only thing we can do," I grumble. "Call my sister."