Williams POV
This was known as the city that never sleeps. Crescent City is where many supernatural species are called home, all living in peace within the territory of Alpha Oliver to the Crescent Pack.
This old man was a complete idiot; he should have passed the alpha title down years ago, but as he only had daughters, he refused to give the title to one of their husbands. His pack was one of the weakest this side of the Mississippi.
I had taken Carl with me to seek out this coven of witches, who were good at cloaking themselves, so I needed his skills to find them. Witches had never been friends with wolves, but that didn't mean they couldn't be hired. It took us all bloody day to find them; sure, there are other covens, but this one, the Geminis, is said to be the most powerful. I had passed a message containing a time and a location along to the woman they called the regent. The regent is a powerful witch that essentially rules over the covens in the area.
"If it isn't the long meant-to-be-dead Alpha King William Hartley." A rough voice came from behind us.
"You must be Henrik. I'm glad you got my message. We are looking for answers ab...."
"About your daughter, I know." He replied, rudely interrupting me.
"What do you know of our situation? No details were passed along to your regent." Carl asked the man, clearly as confused as I was.
"The spirits talk; you would be astonished by the things we know, Carl Jessop." Henrik just smirked at us. "My coven is willing to help you, but for a price."
"What is it you ask for?"
"Your daughter's powers."
"Not a chance, but if you can accomplish what you say you can, then I will give you mine!"
"Alpha King, you cannot give these witches access to your gifts. What could they possibly need more power for?" Carl was right, but little did he know I didn't intend to hold up my end of the deal. I'm stronger than them, and they know it.
Once we were back at the hotel, I called Jake to tell him the coven would help us. Jake was pissed that I wouldn't tell him the price they asked; the more people that knew meant there was a greater chance of the Gemini coven finding out I wouldn't pay up. After freshening up, I mind-linked Carl to meet me at the bar on bourbon street. I arrived first, so I got us both a beer and grabbed a table in the far corner. The place wasn't overly big, but its vibes were impressive.
They had a local jazz band playing, and although it wasn't my kind of music, I enjoyed it. Carl arrived maybe fifteen minutes after taking a seat at the table across from me. We both just sat there in silence, waiting for the crowd dancing next to us to move on. Out of nowhere, three wolves stood before our table and demanded we leave.
"I really think you ought to turn around and go." Carl spoke with amusement written all over his face.
"I'm under orders by my Alpha to escort you off his territory. So unless you wish this to get nasty, I suggest you do as I say." The unknown man could clearly sense my aura, his body shaking as his fear of me overwhelmed him, but he didn't back down.
That's the problem when given an alphas order; the wolf couldn't disobey it even if they wanted to. I never gave an alpha order myself unless there wasn't another way. It was a guaranteed way of disrespecting your pack members.
"Well, if your alpha wants us to leave, I suggest he come and remove us himself" I replied whilst standing from the table.
The wolf stepped back but kept his eyes locked on me. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him scrunch his hands into tight fists, but before he could get in a punch, I grabbed his neck, throwing him into the wall. As the scene unravelled, people scattered from the bar into the streets, leaving me, Carl, and these idiots behind.
Jakes POV
After discovering Jason had escaped, I mind-linked every warrior in my pack to find him. He couldn't have gotten far in the state he was in. Jason may not be wearing the silver cuffs anymore, but that didn't mean he could heal. He still had silver flowing through his bloodstream. I had Benson constantly whip him with silver and then inject it. Me and my wolf wanted him in constant pain for what he had done to Angel.
Nick had asked me why he wasn't dead yet, and I told him I needed him for now. The truth is I was keeping him just barely alive until Angel could physically tell me what he had done to her because then and only then would I end him, and it would be a lot more painful than what he had already endured. I had a reputation for being cruel; he would discover how I came by it.
'Alpha, we picked up his scent in the centre of the territory, but it just stopped. We can't find him.' I could hear the fear in his voice, almost as if he was trembling.
'How the fuck can his scent just stop. Where are you?' I growled, becoming angry.
'We are on cottage row.'
'Fine, wait there; I'm on my way.'
'Yes, Alpha.'
I shifted into my wolf, and Hunter sprinted as fast as he could to get to where Jason's scent was lost. It must have only taken us 5 minutes to get there. On arrival, I suddenly realised where we were; this was Crystal's home. I shifted back and put on a pair of shorts one of my warriors had handed me. Entering the cottage, we were hit with a rotten smell, one that could only be described as the smell of death. In the lounge was Crystal's father, his throat ripped out, and his body draped over an armchair. The blood was dry, so he had been dead for a while. The most frustrating thing was that there was no sign of Crystal anywhere. But hers and Jason's scents were all over the place.
After her father's had been removed, I and a few of my trackers searched the cottage from top to bottom, finding a trap door under the kitchen floor. I remember my dad telling me there were tunnels under the land used yonks ago by pack members, helping them get to safety if they were ever attacked. But how did Jason know about them?
'He must have taken Crystal and threatened her into telling him of the tunnels. Most wolves in the pack know about them. It's something they learn as pups.'
Hunter could be right. He could have threatened her, but then she could have overpowered him in his weakened state. Whoever damaged the door to Jason's cell must have taken her. As much as I detested Crystal, she was still a member of my pack, which meant I had a duty to help her. I sent a team of trackers into the tunnel, praying to the goddess that we could find them and this time, I would end Jason's life for good.