Chapter 8-Help From a Gamma

I get up from sitting on the bed when there’s a knock on the door. I open it slowly and see Uncle Alex, so I open the door further to let him in. He rushes past me and tells me to lock the door.

“What’s this all about, Uncle Alex?”

“Why are you asking about the Moonstone pack?” He asks, agitated.

“Well, first I need to tell you about what happened today,” I say, motioning for him to sit at the small, round dining table. “Derek called me this morning and told me he had a lead. He said that he had found an old hunter living close by who might know why we were attacked. So, I went to see him…”

“YOU WHAT?! You went and saw a hunter ALONE?” He shouts.

“If you can’t keep your temper under control, then I’m not going to tell you…” I say, crossing my arms.

Uncle Alex takes a deep breath and tries to calm down, motioning for me to continue.

“He told me he was ‘part of one of the greatest operations to occur in over a century’.”

“What the hell does that mean? What operation?”

“I don’t know. But he knew about me, and about Daddy. He said that they studied us for nearly three years before the attack.”

“Who’s they?” He asks, his face turning red in anger. “And why were they watching us for so long?”

“He said that they needed to make sure they were ready. But he said that it was a pack made up of rogues,” I explain.

“What? That’s impossible. First, rogues don’t form packs. They refuse to follow anyone but themselves,” he says adamantly. “That’s why they’re rogues.”

“I know, but…”

“And second, we would have been able to smell if they were rogues,” he says, cutting me off.

“I don’t know why we couldn’t smell they were rogues. But if it’s true, it gets worse. He told me it was a mix of both lycans and werewolves.”

“There’s no way, Athena.” Uncle Alex interrupts me again. “We might have peace, but there’s no way werewolf, and lycan rogues would work together. Not to mention the fact that werewolves can’t turn if it isn’t a full moon, and it was the middle of the day. No, it was lycans that attacked us.”

“Maybe the werewolves weren’t involved in the attack on our pack. But, if werewolves and lycans are working together, someone went to a lot of trouble to get them to trust each other. But that’s not even the worst part, Uncle Alex. The hunter also told me that the pack was working alongside hunters as well… He told me he was there that day.” 

“I’m sorry, what?” Uncle Alex asks, perplexed, then shakes his head. “This hunter has fed you lies, Athena. There’s absolutely no way. How can you possibly believe anything he said?” 

“Think about it, Uncle Alex. Daddy wasn’t the only one shot that day. So, it makes sense that hunters were involved somehow.”

“This is crazy, Athena. Even if it is true, why would they work together?”

“The hunter spoke of a threat that was too great for them to ignore.”

“What threat?”

“I don’t know. But he said that everything was set up by a third party and that we should ask Derek about it.”

“Derek? What would Derek know about any of this? He’s human.”

“I don’t know, but Enyo thinks he sent us into a trap today. And now it looks like he’s missing.”

“Missing? are you sure?”

“That’s what it looks like. His office is a mess, and all his files are gone, except for a few that were probably dropped,” I explain, getting up from the table and getting the papers off the bed to show him.

“And this is why you asked about the Moonstone pack?” He asks, looking over the information I found. 

“Yes. What can you tell me about them?” 

He sighs and stands from the table and starts pacing the room slowly. “Around five years ago, there were five packs attacked all around the same time down south. Moonstone was one of the last before the attacks stopped.”

“Were the attacks connected?”

“We thought it was a pack in the area trying to start a war. A few northern packs went down there to intervene after the Rock River pack was slaughtered, and there were no survivors. But by the time they got down there, whoever was behind the attacks had disappeared. They couldn’t find them, and we never found out who was responsible,” he sighs and sits back down.

“So, it is possible that what the hunter said is true. And these attacks could even be connected to the attack on us.”

“I guess so, but none of it makes sense, Athena. Why wait three years between attacks? Even if they thought they weren’t ready to take us on, they could have attacked us at any time. And again, why would Derek be involved? He knows about us, but he’s never been involved in anything to do with the packs, except for when we’ve asked him to do work for us involving humans,” he states.

“I don’t know. But right now, I don’t know where he is, and the only leads I have are these other packs.”

“You’re not thinking about going down there…”

“That’s exactly what I’m thinking. Derek had these files for a reason, Uncle Alex. So, they must be important.”

“This seems like it’s getting dangerous, Athena. Maybe I should send some warriors with you for protection.”

“I need to do this alone, Uncle. I appreciate the support, though,” I smile at him, placing my hand on his forearm. 

He sighs and places his hand on mine. “Please be careful, Athena,” he says and stands from the table. “Your father was my best friend, and I’ve always thought of you as my daughter, too. If anything was to happen to you…” he trails off.

“I promise that if I get into any trouble, I will call you. But nothing is going to happen to me,” I tell him and give him a big hug. 

He returns the hug and then pulls back, his hands on my shoulder as he looks down at me. “I’m proud of you, Athena,” he says with a smile. 

“Thanks, Uncle Alex,” I say, returning his smile. 

“But now I need to ask… Why in the hell I can smell blood?” he asks, his smile fading.

“Well… That involves the hunter…” I say nervously.

“What happened with the hunter, Athena?” 

“I… Well…” I stutter.

“How did you get out of there alive?” He asks, his eyebrow raised. 

My face pales, and I wring my hands nervously. “I can’t tell you,” I whisper. 

“Athena, you can tell me anything,” he says, concern now filling his voice.

“Not this. I need to protect you.” 

He sighs and nods. “I see. I just have two questions. Was it you or Enyo?”

“Enyo,” I say, not able to look him in the eye. 

“Will it pass as an animal attack?”

I nod. “I think so.”

“Give me the address. I’ll get some warriors to go out and make sure.”

I nod again and write the address for him on a piece of paper.

I then go to my backpack and unzip it. “You should probably take this too. He stabbed me with it,” I say, taking out the blade still wrapped in the towel and hand it to him.

He takes the towel and gives me another hug and says, “delete anything and everything regarding the hunter. I’ll make sure this is taken care of.” He then kisses my temple and leaves. 

I close the door behind him and sit back on the bed and start massaging my temples, trying to stop a headache forming from all the day’s emotions. 

‘So… Road trip?’ Enyo asks.

‘I think it’s our best bet. We need to find out why Derek had this information, and if the attacks on these other packs are connected to ours.’

‘Okay, let’s do it.’