Chapter 4

Andrei As soon as Donnie takes full control of my body, we follow in her footsteps, letting her intoxicating scent lead us closer to our frightened little wolf. Donnie focuses on our surroundings, looking for any sign of the she-wolf. She might be light on her feet and quick, but that isn’t enough to get away from us. We're pros at hunting. After all, she witnessed us gutting a rogue right in front of her. That should be enough to understand that we don’t mess around. I’m positive she would have been hard to find, except for the clink of the chain that is still attached to her neck, hitting the ground as she runs from us. We make our way around the mountain, passing every tree, giving it a sniff to ensure we don’t lose her scent around here. She is heading in the direction of home, but when we finally reach the river, all noise she makes is drowned out by the damn waterfall. Smart. No, she is brilliant. She knows her scent won’t be hard to follow, yet now that we have reached such a noisy place, I can't hear the chain anymore. She’s using the advantages the forest and water can give her. "Maybe she stopped," Donnie whines, sniffing the ground and following the river. His heart desperately pounds against his ribcage as he refuses to give up. If she is what I think she might be, I can’t let her go that easily. And Donnie wouldn’t forgive me if I tried. My eyes scan the surroundings again. What would I do if I were in her place? Where would I go, and where would I hide to get away from someone who clearly could overpower and outrun me? "She might have jumped in to be washed downstream," I suggest to my wolf. "Get the pack out here," Donnie suggests, still sniffing the ground and trying to find any trace she might have left behind. I agree with his idea, the search will go more successfully if we have more eyes on the task. Opening the mind link, I feel for what is left of my pack. I hate feeling their sadness, fear, and how tired they are. I’m well aware that I have done nothing to make things better either. Too lost in my own grief, and as much as I wish I can make it better, I can’t. That’s why I barely use the pack mindlink these days. I am the Alpha of the pack, the leader and protector, but I fail at every task that should be a part of my nature. I have failed to protect them and ensure their safety. Just like I failed her. "There is a gray she-wolf along the border somewhere. I need help to find her. The more men, the better. All you have to do is to track her down. No one, I repeat, no one is to touch her.” I command my pack. As soon as the link settles and everyone has heard the order, I receive a chorus of ‘Yes Alpha.’ and cut off the link. "What if she steps into one of the traps?" Donnie asks. He is worried about her safety and so am I. She’s scared and lost, there’s no saying how far she might go to escape. A moment later, Donnie’s words finally sink in, and my heart stops for a second. "Shit, I didn't think of that!" I blurt, shifting back. My pack knows where the bear traps are. They know where the ground will swallow them, but she wouldn't have a clue. I wade through the river before climbing out. I can hear my men running through the forest. "No one touches her," I remind them as they near me. "Exactly how do you expect them to catch her if they can't touch her?" Donnie asks. "They don't need to touch her to catch her," I scoff. Donnie growls as I pick up a stick. "We can check the motion sensors at home, and at least then, we will know if she has crossed the river." As we head back home, Donnie keeps whining and complaining about every little thing that invades his mind. I try to ignore him as I focus on the traps on our way home. I hit any bear trap I notice, setting them off on the way. Then, I uncover one of the holes that are placed to catch anyone not watching their step. A loud, frustrated sigh leaves me as I ponder the aftermath. All these traps and holes are here for a reason, and once I get the gray she-wolf, resetting the traps will be an absolute pain in my ass. When I finally approach the house, a massive weight falls off my shoulders as I rush towards the main door and enter the building, greeting some of the pack members in my way as I bolt upstairs. I unlock the door before I walk into my surveillance room to check the wildlife cameras. Sitting in the massive chair in front of the screens, I scan all the scenes before me. I can see my men surveying the area, searching for my little lost gray wolf. My eyebrows furrow as I notice something. "Colten, set off the traps near you in case she stumbles across them," I mindlink him the moment I see his frame appearing on one of the various screens. "Alpha, is there a reason we are searching for this wolf?" He asks while shifting his weight from one leg to another, and staring up at the camera. I watch as he grabs a stick, setting some traps off. "I will explain later when I know for sure," I offer him a brief excuse. "Know for sure? I didn't imagine it. Andrei, she is our mate! Do you understand what this means? We have a second chance, mate! The Moon Goddess actually took pity on our misery and is doing this for us!" Donnie cheers in my head. I can practically feel him wiggling his tail in excitement. Second-chance mates are unheard of. A fairytale that has never happened before. It makes me wonder if I have truly lost my mind. Perhaps all that pain, the sleepless nights, and the things I have done to rogues are backfiring on my insanity? Hours of me staring at the screen and camera footage passes by. I almost give up on finding her until I catch sight of something coming into focus. I quickly glance at the other cameras to see my men have also picked up something. I can barely make her out stepping into some foliage. The chain drags behind her as she crouches down low. She can sense them too. Even from the glow of the screen, I can make out the intense panic and fear in her eyes. Her body looks like she’s shaking, and all of a sudden, I can’t understand if I’m angrier at my men for scaring her or the possibility that she might be cold. "Got her," one of my men mindlinks me right when she takes off, heading back toward the river. This has to be the moment she realizes she has stepped on claimed territory. "No one touches her." I remind them. "Yep, we know," someone agrees, and I hurry into my room to grab some shorts. Now that they have an idea where the gray beauty is hiding, they don’t need me at the cameras and I can take a quick breather. Not for too long, though, because as soon as I grab the shorts, I get another update via mindlink. "She has gone into a cave behind the waterfall," Colten tells me. "Stand guard; I will be there soon," I order, pulling on the shorts. I lock the house up and head toward the trees. "The cave doesn't lead anywhere, does it?" I ask, making sure she can't escape. I might lose my shit to tromp all the way down there just to find out that she found a way to escape me again. That would not be in her best interest, it is hard enough to swallow the fact she is a rogue, let alone have her send me on a wild goose chase. "No, it is a small dead-end cave. She won't get past us, Alpha, " he replies, and I pick up my pace. I blame it on Donnie and his foolish eagerness to get to her, making me move faster. I am eager too, but for other reasons. I need to make sure it isn't a trick my mind is playing on me. Make sure she is real and not some figment of my imagination. I follow the river to their location toward the base of the mountain. As soon as I reach the place, I look at my men and nod. "You can go," I tell the seven pack members staring at the cave entrance. Water obscures the cave as it rolls down the mountain. I take in the almost fairytale-like view until the realization hits me harder than a wall of bricks. This must be where she had been hiding, and we walked straight past her. My men leave, and I step into the water, gripping the rocks, so I don’t lose balance and slip, forcing myself through the waterfall. The weight of the pressure forces me under before I come out to a hollow in the mountain. I step inside the small cave. The air smells damp and moldy. It is dark, and if I were human, it would be impossible to see anything inside. Her alluring, irresistible scent instantly invades my senses. A growl erupts from her even before I notice her hiding. I walk about halfway in, and finally, I spot where she is cowering at the back. Her head is cast down as she bares her teeth and a low growl tears out of her. Her eyes are crazed with her fear, fight or flight has kicked in, and I can tell she is willing to try to fight her way out. Instead of provoking any immediate reaction, I sit down. She is quiet, not taking her eyes off me, patiently waiting to see what I will do next. "I have no intentions of hurting you," I tell her, but she doesn't relax. She is acting as any caged animal would act. I have no doubt she will attack me if I try getting closer. "Just wait her out. She will settle when she realizes we mean no harm," Donnie suggests. He sounds sad, defeated even. He isn’t just excited about this, Donnie is desperate to have her. He peers at her through my eyes, yet it’s clear that he doesn't want to scare her, hence why he’s holding himself back so much. Hours pass, and she doesn’t move closer, just stands there, watching us like a statue. Her eyes never dart away from us, as if she is afraid that if she looks away, even for a second, we will attack her. I wonder what her life has been like before we happened to stumble upon her in that camp. Obviously, she was a prisoner to those vile fucking monsters. But before that, who was she? The men who got away, have signed their death warrants for hurting her. I’ll ensure they die slowly and more painfully than any of my rogue victims have before. I shake my head to get rid of the thoughts and focus. "Can you speak to her wolf or her human counterpart?" I ask Donnie. "Tried. She doesn't reply, just growls at me," Donnie sighs in defeat. "Colten, bring me a shirt, some food, and water," I mind-link. "Yes, Alpha," he replies, and I focus my gaze back on her. My eyebrows furrow once I notice she has finally moved. Not much, but at least there are some signs of actual life. She lies with her head on her paws, yet her eyes are still alert. "What's your name?" I ask her. My voice echoes in the small cave, and I hate it because it does nothing but make me sound louder, I can feel a headache coming on from all this stress. No answer. "Well, my name is Andrei, little mate. You can shift back. There is no need to stay in your wolf form. I won't harm you. I just want to talk," I tell her.