CALIFF
“It’s been a while, Knight. How have you been?”
“Alpha Califf, thanks for the call. And I’m great. Business is good, and the pack is good. How is married life treating you or threatening you?” he asked with a laugh.
I laughed as I watched Shadow shoot a glare at me. Of course, she heard every word Knight said. “You just take the word out of my mouth. Shadow heard what you said. Life is good. You should find your mate, Knight. You’re at the right age to have a mate. And trust me, life and pack would be better with a Luna by your side.”
“I wish it was that easy. I’m handling the winery business and the pack together. My hands are full right now. I don’t think I have time for a relationship.”
“You will, and you will find the time. Things will fall in the right places. I wasn’t ready either when I met my mate. There were threats, my pack was in danger, and my mate was a rogue and, apparently, a Lycan, but we helped each other stop the threats. If I can do it, so can you.”
“Hmm. Well, where is she? Where is my mate, Alpha?” He laughed from the other line.
“Somewhere out there waiting for you,” Shadow said, enough for Knight to hear it.
“Luna, you’re there.”
“I am. You will meet her in the least expected way, Alpha Knight. Moon Goddess moves in mysterious ways. Prepare for the strong force you can’t control.”
“Thanks for the heads up, Luna. By the way, I’m sure this is not a social call, Alpha Califf.”
“Yeah. I want to ask you about someone.”
“Go ahead.”
“Do you know Carter Wade?”
“Wade? Yeah. He’s one good fella,” he said excitedly. “Don’t tell me you’ve met him. I warned him not to cross you if he ends up in your territory.”
“Yes. I just met him two days ago. It was shocking that he knew about us.”
“Yeah. Imagine a human saw one of my pack members shift. It was a rough day for us. A young man involuntarily shifted when he couldn’t control his emotions. And I didn’t want him to go crazy telling people that he saw someone can turn into a wolf. I had no choice but to show him how it worked and helped him get through it, and he got used to seeing us. So far, he has protected our secrets. He trusts us that we won’t harm anyone. Since he moved out, it’s not the same without him. He’s a good man, Califf.”
“Good to know. I was worried our secrets would be out there, but since you vouch for him, I will trust him, too.”
“You can. He’s done me favors. He’s there because his mother is sick, and he’s the only single in the family who can move from one place to another.”
“Thanks for the info, Knight. I owe you one.”
“I actually owe you big time. Thanks for trusting me with your investments.” I felt the gratitude in his voice.
“No problem. That’s what friends are for.”
“Have a great day, Alpha, Luna.”
When the call ended, my Luna came to my desk and cradled my face. She had me trapped in her eyes but did not kiss me. Her nose touched mine, and the anticipation was killing me. “You’re awesome.”
“That’s all?”
Her eyes glimmered. “Expecting something more? A compliment, maybe?”
I grinned. “Yeah. And more.”
She leaned in and kissed me on the lips. “I’ll make it up to you, but we will have a meeting to attend.”
“Yeah.” I sighed. “We will be busy, and you will have to start training with Zarah tomorrow.”
A few minutes later, Duke with Kindra, Lyon, my father, Elder Aciano, and Zack came in. Elder Alastair was in another state for an important meeting. He couldn’t make it today.
“Thank you for coming on such short notice,” I started.
“This is an emergency meeting, Alpha Califf, Luna Shadow,” said Elder Aciano. He was calm this time. The last time I assembled a meeting with the elders, he was enraged against my decision.
“I’d like to know if you heard of murders of alphas. Not only in the states but everywhere?”
Elder Aciano sighed as he nodded. “Yes. Three weeks ago. I heard a rumor from a council member, Darius. I don’t believe it was a burglary. Alpha Alden was an old British Alpha from the countryside. I believe it’s an organized attack targeting a high-ranking pack member.”
“Did you reach out to the council?”
“I asked Darius if he could arrange an open discussion, but the council declined.”
I breathed deeply. “What is their plan before they take this as a serious matter? When half of our kind is dead?”
“Now that we talk about this, we will just handle it as our pack concern. They’d rather dine and wine, so if these killers target them, let them die without help.” He shrugged off. “Don’t say I didn’t warn them.”
“What did you find out?” My father asked.
“Alpha Sebastien and The West Coven witches will help us figure out these hunters.”
“Did you just say hunters?” Elder Aciano asked, alarmed and more confused.
“Yes. I believe it’s the work of hunters. Have you seen the symbol of an arrow and moon crescent?”
He shook his head. “No, but I will check the archives.”
“Thank you, Elder Aciano,” Shadow said, “And maybe you can ask Darius discreetly if he can provide us with the meaning of the symbol. That would be very helpful. I’m sure they have records of it in the council.”
“I’ll make sure to do some research.”
“Thank you. The symbol was found in the victims’ bodies.”
“So this is confirmed, a doing of hunters?” Duke asked.
“The probability is high, according to Alpha King and the witch.”
“I thought Keane Locke was the worst enemy,” Duke said, frowning.
“That dead human, was there a mark on the corpse?”
I tore my gaze from Duke to Zack. “No. That one was not a hunter’s victim. Probably, just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
“This is alarming, Alpha Califf.” Aciano stiffened in terror. “Humans and werewolves are dying, and the council does not seem to care what is going on around us. We have to do something.”
I instantly felt the tension in the room. I stared at them in silence until Shadow cleared her throat.
“We’re doing something, Elder Aciano,” Shadow said calmly, “we’re still gathering information. According to Zarah and my father, no one has claimed responsibility for this attack. It seems they just want to kill but not send a message to our world.”
“Killing and branding are not terrorizing enough? What do they want, then? Just to get rid of all werewolves until no one’s left. Spread fear and dominate us?” Dad grunted, sighing heavily.
“I don’t know, Dad.” I shook my head. I was also frustrated that I couldn’t find anything about these hunters, even a name.
“They are humans. That’s for sure,” Shadow said, “They could have military service because they seem well-trained, meticulous, and organized, and they left without a trail to follow, just a brand on their victims.”
“How are the victims killed?” Zack asked.
“Silver bullets, burning, beheading—”
Everyone gasped.
“They also use crossbows but took arrows with them,” I added.
“Goddess. It’s classic hunter acts,” Kindra reacted, hugging herself.
“So what’s the plan, Alpha?” Lyon asked.
“I don’t want to alarm our pack. You train your enforcers and keep them vigilant. We still have advantages. They can’t smell us unless they have trained dogs. Use your senses when you go outside. Beware of being too friendly. Be cynical until we find something concrete about them. If you go for patrol, report if you smell human scents.”
“I’ll ask Zarah if there’s anything she can help, but we are up against humans, and it’s against their coven and the treaty we signed,” Shadow said calmly, despite the tension and fear in the air.
“But if humans are killing us, we can’t just stand there and watch until the last one of us is dead,” Zack replied, unequivocally unimpressed.
She softened her eyes as she gazed at Zack. “Let me bring this to the High Priestess, Zack. Then I will share her opinion about this.”
“Thank you, Luna.”
“I’m sure there’s no way to make them talk if we catch them, right? Given that they’re highly trained to kill.” Kindra had a point, but the question was, how would we catch them?
“I know what’s a human’s weakness.”
Her head snapped at me. “Califf, no. We’re better than them.”
I turned to Shadow. I couldn’t believe I would take her father’s words. After a tense moment, I spoke, “If they cross the line and harm our pack, I won’t hesitate. I will find their family and use it against him.”