C67

It all happened quickly. Indianna was waiting outside of the pack house with Greyson, Ace, and Kal. Indianna watched as the car came to a stop a few meters away from them and Harry and Oscar hurried out of the car, dragging out a screaming man with them.

He looked wild. He was yelling, spitting and biting at Harry who was holding him. His face was red and his eyes were wide. Indianna could see blood streaking down his arms where he had been pulling at the rope binding his wrists together.

"He's going to kill you!" The man cried and thrashed around manically. His eyes locked onto Indianna and he paused for a single second before yelling and launching himself in her direction. "You're a traitor, you bitch!"

Greyson, who was watching the man with a blank expression, stepped forward, blocking Indianna from the man's view. Indianna saw Greyson's muscles tense, his jaw tightened and she was sure that his eyes had darkened. "Get him out of my sight," Greyson said stiffly.

"You're going to regret this!" The man cried, his voice cracking. "He's going to make you suffer, even if you are his family!"

Indianna couldn't help the shiver that ran down her spine. Her heart rate picked up slightly and she reached forward, grabbing Greyson's arm. His touch calmed her and she was also able to hold him back so he wouldn't attack the man who was screaming like a lunatic as he was dragged towards the stairs that led to the cells underground.

Indianna tried to drown out his yells, but even as they descended lower underground, her heightened hearing still picked up his screams. Were all of Rogue's men this devoted to him?

"It's the control he has over them," Greyson said. "I need to remind myself of that or I'm going to be killing someone today."

"He was crazy," Indianna whispered.

"You can say that again," Kal scoffed. Indianna looked back at him. "He was bloody insane."

"Rogue is the one that's crazy," Ace said. "That man down there is innocent. If you're correct about the brand, Greyson, then that man needs our help. He's being controlled by Rogue and we need to stop it."

Greyson sighed and looked down at Indianna. "He better not call you a bitch again," he murmured and took her hand. "Let's do this, sugar."

They made their way down to the cells, the yelling slowly got louder. Harry and Oscar had secured the man to a table and exposed his side where Rogue's brand was on show. In the corner of the cell, the branding rod was heating over a flame. The sight of it made Indianna feel queasy. She thought back to the Branding Ceremony and remembered the pain that the brand inflicted.

Greyson paid the man no attention as he stepped away from Indiana and picked up the branding iron. The man was still screaming, hurling profanities at everyone, but Greyson didn't bat an eyelid. "Hold him down," Greyson instructed. Harry and Oscar forced the man still. Even though he was tied to the table, he was still putting up a fight.

"This better work," Harry growled, glaring at the man who spat in his direction.

"Let's find out," Greyson said and pressed the burning hot iron rod into the man's side, covering Rogue's brand.

A piercing scream filled the air and Indianna stumbled back in fright. She gripped Ace's arm and winced. The man's scream felt like a thousand knives scraping at her eardrums and she was grateful when it came to an abrupt end. Greyson removed the rod and the screaming stopped immediately. The man's eyes went wide and a strangled gasp left his lips. He was panting, his skin was slick with sweat and Indianna could hear the thumping of his heart.

"You..." Everyone watched intently as the man tried to speak. He was still gasping. "You... You..."

There was a silence, an echoing silence, and dread suddenly filled Indianna. What if it hadn't worked? What if-

"Thank you." The man spoke again and then his eyes rolled backwards and he went limp. He was unconscious.

Greyson coughed and placed the branding rod on the ground. "Well. I think that went well." He looked at Indianna and smirked. His eyes were glittering with confidence. "That's one down, sugar."

Indianna felt butterflies in her stomach. She thought of her friends, of Greyson, and of her unborn children, and she felt excited. This was the first step towards a good future with them. She stood up straight, pushed her shoulders back and looked around the room. "So," she said, "who's next?"

*

The re-branding worked.

Over the next four days, they got to six more of Rogue's men.

The men seemed like completely different people once Rogue's brand was replaced. They described it as not being in control of their own body. They could see everything they were doing, but it was like their brain wasn't there's. Their brain was wired to serve Rogue and protect him, but now, their minds were free, and they were indebted to Greyson.

They told Greyson and Indianna everything they knew. They explained how Rogue had taken them from their homes and branded them, taking control over them before they even knew who he was or what was going on. They were forced into submission and they had no choice once they were branded. Every fibre in their body wanted to please Rogue once he had control over them, even if they were screaming not to on the inside. They couldn't fight back no matter how much they wanted to.

Greyson and Indianna learned that Rogue's control had spread even further than they knew. He had taken over packs all across the country. He was spreading fear, violence, and death, and there was no one to stop him.

One man, Gareth, belonged to a pack a few hours away. He said how his pack was aware of Rogue and they had tried reaching the Elders to try and help packs that had been taken down, and just like when Mark, Greyson's father, had tried getting in touch, they were ignored. The Elders ignored their pleas for help and guidance. The Elders, who were responsible for the law and order and peace of the werewolf world, had abandoned everyone.

Greyson and Indianna and their pack truly was the last hope. If they couldn't stop Rogue then the whole werewolf world would be destroyed.

Once the men had been rebranded they went back to 'normal'. Pretending that nothing had changed, but now they were part of Greyson's pack, and they were hidden amongst the enemy. Now connected by mind-link they could tell the pack of any information they heard, immediately. Rogue would be none the wiser. His brands gave him control over his men, but they didn't create a mind-link.

Finally, they were one step ahead of Rogue.

Alec was helpful. He had been working with Harry, Oscar, Ace, and Raiden. They were locating Rogue's men and planning who was next. Alec, who knew some of the men, gave details about their common whereabouts and helped to plan how to get to them. Indianna could tell that he was slowly gaining Greyson and Harry's trust. When he wasn't helping with Rogue he was with Alice. He spent every moment he could getting to know her and Kal didn't scowl and trip him up every time they walked past each other anymore. He could see that his sister was happy with Alec so he had decided to give him a chance.

Raiden still seemed broken. He was trying to help. He was better when he was distracted, but he was aching inside. He felt betrayed by Brandon. Much to Harry's annoyance, he was spending time with Brooke. He felt guilty because of what Brandon had done and wanted to make up for Brandon's wrongdoings, but he also felt safe around her. As much as he was disgusted at Brandon, they were still mates and his heart still wanted him. Every part of his body wanted Brandon and it was worse every day. Brooke was Brandon's family and it soothed Raiden to be around her. He knew he could trust her.

Tai was helping Doc. When she wasn't with Ace, slowly becoming more and more comfortable with him, she was with Doc, assisting him with daily tasks and anything he needed. Ace was helping her with her shifts, trying to help her gain control of her wolf. Tai hadn't made much progress so far, she lost control so easily, but she was trying.

Brooke and Harry, finally, could relax slightly. She was home and safe, and when she wasn't with Raiden, Harry made sure that she never left his sight. Somehow, Harry had become even more protective. He was not letting anything happen to Brooke or their unborn child. They spent hours talking about it. They wanted to make sure they were prepared. They weren't previously, but Brooke wanted everything to be perfect now they had a second chance to get things right. She did not want to risk her child. She knew that she needed to start being more careful, she wasn't just looking after herself now. The baby was her number one priority.

Harry had been focused entirely on Brooke. He hadn't seen Lily in a while and was grateful that she wasn't there to remind him of his parents. He had yet to talk to them. He didn't know what to say. He had been without a family for so long he didn't know what it was like to have one. He was relieved that his family were alive and he didn't want them disappearing again, but he also didn't want to face them. Seeing Lily was difficult enough, he didn't know how to cope with his parents. Every day he was pushing them out of his mind and cutting Brooke off whenever she tried to mention them. She had been talking to them on the phone, updating them and getting to know them. She was growing very fond of them just over their phone calls and they already loved her bubbly and kind personality, but Brooke tried and tried and she couldn't get Harry to talk to them.

Indianna was now seventeen weeks pregnant. Her bump was growing and she was back and forth to the toilet multiple times an hour, but she was happy. Things were finally looking up. She had woken up early. Her bump was starting to make it uncomfortable to sleep. She rolled over and looked up at the ceiling, gently rubbing her stomach when she felt small kicks.

"Hey." Greyson was watching Indianna, his eyes sleepy. "Morning, sugar."

Indianna smiled. "Morning."

He rolled over and propped himself up onto his elbows. His hair was a mess onto of his head and he smiled lazily at Indianna. "Merry Christmas."

Indianna sighed. "Christmas? I didn't even realise."

Greyson gently rubbed Indianna's stomach. "I know we've not got much to celebrate right now, but we will."

Indianna nodded. "I know."

Greyson reached over the bed and picked something up from the floor. "I did get you something though."

"Greyson, I thought we agreed not to do anything this year-"

"Open the damn present, sugar," Greyson said and rolled his eyes. He passed Indianna a present and she couldn't help but smile.

"Thank you," she said softly and opened the present. She laughed. "A children's book?"

"I will not let my children's heads be filled up with that nonsense from the book my mother gave you," Greyson said.

Indianna looked at the colourful book and smiled. She pictured herself in the future, sat down with her children, reading with them. She pictured them laughing. She pictured them learning words. She pictured them reading the books to her and not the other way round and feeling so proud. "I love it," she whispered and leaned over and kissed Greyson softly. "Thank you."

Greyson held Indianna close and pressed his lips to her. "I'll go and make breakfast," he said against her lips. "And then we get back to work."

"How many men are you getting today?" Indianna asked as Greyson stood up and got dressed.

"Three," he said. "We need to pick up the pace, there's a lot of them to get through."

"How many?"

Greyson pulled a t-shirt over his head, hiding the scars and marks that still littered his chest. They were going to be there forever. A constant reminder of Rogue and what he had done. "Of the list that Lily gave me there's over 50. We don't need to turn all of them, just enough so we outnumber them and not the other way around."

Indianna let out a long breath and pulled herself out of bed. "You better hurry up and cook breakfast then so you can get started," she said. "I'm going to shower, I'll meet you downstairs."

Greyson groaned quietly. "I'm sure I can spare the time so I can join you, sugar."

Indianna laughed and walked over to the bathroom. She looked over her shoulder and smiled at Greyson. "You wish. Go and cook me breakfast."

Greyson rolled his eyes and left the room. Indianna took her time in the shower. She was feeling sore today. Her back was aching and she could feel where her stomach was stretching. By the time she was dry and dressed, Greyson had prepared breakfast. Indianna joined him in the kitchen that was busy, full of pack members getting ready for the day. Everyone greeted her and wished her a merry Christmas, but it was hard to believe that it actually was Christmas. It felt like any other day. They didn't get the luxury of a day off.

Greyson and Indianna sat down at the table and ate their breakfast. Indianna finished quickly and felt as if she could devour three more plates. Greyson chuckled and pushed his plate towards her. "Have mine. You need it more than I do, sugar."

Shortly after, Greyson left to meet Harry and Oscar. Indianna made her way through the packhouse to the library where she found Laura and Mark. They spent all day in the library, occasionally helped by Mac and Kirstie, looking for anything that could help. So far, they had found nothing. Indianna knocked on the door and entered. "Merry Christmas," she called.

Laura, who was stood on a stool, searching through a bookcase, grinned brightly and rushed over to Indianna. "Merry Christmas, dear," she said and embraced Indianna. "How are you?"

"I'm good, thank you."

Mark walked over to them and hugged Indianna, wishing her a merry Christmas. "This isn't the way I expected to spend my Christmas Day," he said with a sigh, holding up a book.

"How is it going?"