I will be back

Miliano’s POV

We still have no idea what to do about the whole Aleida situation. She must be alive; otherwise, either us or our boys would feel her life force disappear. Kian has talked with the elders, and according to them, the whole werewolf population will notice if she dies. No one has felt a thing, which means that she’s all right... At least for the time being. The turmoil is there, like damned. We’re all afraid of the day when her death will cause eternal destruction. Aleida’s grandmother is helping us a lot. However, we don’t understand much of what she says, given that she only speaks Spanish. She understands if we talk in English with her, she just can’t answer us in the same language. Luckily for us, there are several Spanish-speaking members in the pack that translates for us. We’ve come up with so far that she isn’t worried at all; everything that has happened and will happen is predetermined. No matter how we feel about it, we have no choice but to accept what the elders have anticipated. Aleida’s grandma is one of the most powerful among them. None of them can say straight out what will happen in the future because it can change the outcome for the worse. That knowledge is what’s driving us all crazy. Not only me and Kian but also her brothers. All members not only in our pack but also in Aleida’s as well. Most often, when we talk about Aleida and our progress in finding her, many whimpers about the little we manage to come up with. Her life affects us all, and this may sound like a power play to you, but it’s not. We all love Aleida and want her with us safe. Alexander and Elias miss her very much; even though they feel good here, they also need their mother. It’s that knowledge that hurts the most in Kian and me. Our boys may never see their mother again. We may never be able to caress her velvety skin anymore and kiss her plump lips. Never hear the beautiful melody that is her laugh and never again gets to wake up next to her. That’s what stings in our hearts every single day, and that pain doesn’t go away. We’ll go down without her here with us! I can’t imagine a life that doesn’t include my beautiful queen. Honestly, I don’t know how I could ever live my life without her. I can’t even remember what it was like before.

“Alpha Miliano, you’ve got a letter,” one of the omegas says and puts it down on the office table before me.

I open it slowly and feel a substantial discomfort long before I start reading it. My eyes fly over the letters, and I growl loudly at the contents. With determined and angry steps, I stomp my way down to the dining room. Along the way, I send a mindlink to every single member to share what my eyes are getting harassed by. When I get there, almost everyone is already in the room. They know better than to play with my temper. I’m usually the calm and collected one, but I’m like the monster from “Godzilla” when someone walks over my limits. I can’t even begin to explain the wrath inside of me right now.

“I got a letter today that I think that all of you have the right to know the contents off. You aren’t going to like it...

Good day alphas,

I’m very sorry to inform you about what’s going to happen now. Aleida denies me in my advances, and since I have a debt to pay, I now have to make a decision I don’t want to take. Come to the forest glade in precisely one week from today and say goodbye to your queen before she slips into eternal sleep.

Best regards,

King.”

Several growls spread in the room, and every wolf in here looks like they’re ready to tear someone to pieces. None of us can just stand and watch as our queen dies before our eyes. Something needs to be done; the question is just what...

“We can’t let this happen!” Jason exclaims with horror, which is understandable considering it’s his sister we’re talking about.

“Of course, we can’t let this happen, but we also can’t just start to attack them. We have something to lose here; we need to think about a strategy,” Kian says while looking gloomily.

I’m usually an excellent strategist, but right now, when my heart is aching, and my brain tries to understand everything, I have no idea what to do. Our angel is in danger, and King is planning to kill her. Now we must be strong, if not for ourselves, at least for our sons. All I want to do is lie down in the fetal position and cry until everything becomes okay again. But I can’t do that; my woman needs me.

“Does anyone have any ideas about how we’re going to tackle this problem?” Killian asks.

“The first step should be to contact other alphas to see if they also got the same letter. Vampires are hostile and evil creatures; they like to create a show. I guess they will make this a big event for all the werewolves to see her before she dies a slow and painful death. It’s what they do, after all,” I answer.

Henry and Killian walk out of the room with their phones to their ears, probably calling other alphas. That’s the important part right now, to see if it’s only us or everyone this is regarding. Our people will suffer under the rules of another species. It would be different if they’re doing this in their community, but this is our werewolf community. They have no right to barge in here and claim the lands to themselves. Vampires will never rule over werewolves; mark my words. Besides, vampires hate us as much as we hate them. So why are they interested in this? I fear that we’ll never find out. Because if Aleida dies, we all will. Okay, not quite as literally as it sounds. At least not for the others, but for Kian and me, it’ll be like a part of us dying, which it does. It’s rare as a werewolf survives his mate’s death; one must either have a powerful psyche or be an alpha-born wolf to cope with it. Both me and Kian are born alphas, so we’ll probably make it, but nothing will ever be the same within us again. My life isn’t complete without Aleida; it’s as simple as that. Just as my lungs need air for me to survive, I need her in my life. Kian walks up to me and sits down. I thought I looked like I just climbed out of a sewer earlier when I looked myself in the mirror, but he looks like he’s fought with the devil himself. Of the two of us, I’m the more “emotional” while Kian is the “strong” of us, but when tragedies happen, it’s always he who takes it the hardest. He probably feels as much hopelessness about the situation as I do. His hands are burying his head from viewing, and his breaths are shaky. I want to be able to say and convince him that everything will be okay again, even though I’m not sure it will be. He’ll see through the pathetic attempt to make him feel better anyway.

“What do we do if we can’t save her?” he asks in such a low voice that it’s almost a whisper.

Yes, what will we do if it’s too late? How are we going to cope with the loss? Will the boys be able to grow up without their mother? So many questions and very few answers... I have no idea what to do now or what to do if she doesn’t survive; I simply don’t know. And it scares me. That’s the meaning of a life like mine; as an alpha—I need to think strategically and recreate to ensure others’ safety and look how well it’s going... A disgusting hybrid is abducting my mate and will probably kill her. I’m a useless alpha.

“I have no idea what we’re going to do, brother. The only thing I know is that we have to trust Aleida and her abilities to create the best possible outcome. I know she will. If not for herself, for us, her family.”

Aleida’s POV

“Did you seriously go through all this trouble just to kill me in the end? Wow, such a waste of time,” I say, baffled, and take a big sip from my wine glass.

Victor looks me over with furrowed brows, concern written over his usually smirking features. I guess that he’s confused about my reaction to it all. Most people would probably scream bloody murder and run for their life. But I’m not most people, I’m Aleida Mendez, werewolf queen, and I don’t take orders from anyone. If I’m going to die, he’s going down with me. He just doesn’t know it yet. I have a plan, and I will make sure that what I say goes. The moon goddess obviously thinks that I have potential; it would be rather wasteful not to use it now when it, in the end, won’t matter anyway. Victor may be nicer to me, but he still just told me to my face that he’s going to kill me. I don’t owe him any courtesy or to keep my attitude at bay.

“Why do you accept your fate so easily?” King asks worriedly.

“Because I do this for my people and my family. I would die to keep them safe, and now when I’m going to do just that. You can at least spare me the pity and let me be cynical in peace. Cheers!” I say sarcastically and gulp down the rest of my wine.

The vampire with the wine from earlier fills the glass up immediately when it touches the table. Victor is still looking extremely concerned, but I seriously can’t care less right now. If this fucker thinks that I’m just going to sit here like a lady and take whatever he throws at me, he’s wrong. I’m not wicked by nature, but I can be a real bitch if I have to. All of the things he just has told me to make me flip my bitch switch. I glare at him the whole time, not breaking eye contact. The vampires around are taking a few steps back in caution, and I don’t blame them. My alpha aura is practically glowing from the rage inside me.

“You are pissed,” he concludes.

“No shit, Sherlock. What did you expect? That I would be happy and oblige to your every command? Bring it, bub. You already told me that there’s only one creature as powerful as me, and he’s not here, is he?” I say with an evil grin.

He’s gulping loudly, and sweat pearls are starting to show on his forehead. I can smell the nervousness on him. He’s scared, and he should be. Given how much he seems to know about me, he also knows what I can do. We both know that there would be a very even fight between us, but I would win in the end. This is pathetic and ridiculous; the giant robust hybrid is afraid of a girl who’s half his size in human form. However, I can’t blame him at all; Lisa is a significant and influential wolf. Not to mention beautiful. Besides, she fights like a God and is quick in her movements. I wish you could see it; it’s hypnotizing to see how she progresses.

“I guess I deserve it... This is nothing I want to do,” King says with a sigh.

“You know something? My mother always told me that there’s something good in all living beings; I’ve always believed in it wholeheartedly. Until now, you’ve just broken that belief like a dry twig,” I snort before rising from the table and don’t spare him so much as a glance when I walk back inside my prison because he’s simply not worth it.