Abandoned Treasure
Aftermath

Warrior Trainee Nathan Storm’s POV

Fargo, North Dakota

Our bus only stopped for fuel overnight, and I only got off the bus once. Beta Miller sent me and two other junior warriors to McDonald’s to pick up breakfast for everyone. I carried four big bags of breakfast sandwiches and burritos as we walked across the pavement of the truck stop. It was easier than the stacked trays of coffee and Cokes that the other two guys balanced.

The bags got passed back as we got back on the road, meaning the junior wolves got whatever was left. I looked at the sausage and egg biscuits in the bottom of the bag, frustrated the bacon ones didn’t make it. I pulled one out and forced myself to eat.

I managed to choke one down before my stomach rolled. Thank Luna the bathroom was open, though it was fucking disgusting to have my face so close to the bowl as it came back up.

I wiped my face clean and collapsed back into my seat. Darryl looked back at me over the seat. “You all right, Nathan?”

“Rough night,” I told him. Darryl was five years older than me, and was thrilled when I joined the men so he wouldn’t be the junior woodchuck anymore. Of course, the next male who would come of age in Bitterroot was a weak Omega. I wouldn’t get off the bottom for ten more years. “I’ll be fine. I’ll save these for later,” I said as I washed the taste out of my mouth with a swig of Coke.

“At least you got in the shit last night. By the time my group reached the compound, the fighting was over.”

“I wish I’d been with you,” I said honestly.

“That bitch killed Jacobs and Conway. There might be more wolves on ice right now if you hadn’t gotten to that shotgun from behind.”

I closed my eyes, pushing down the nausea until it passed. I could almost taste Luna Joanna’s blood. I took a deep breath, swallowed more Coke, and leaned against the headrest. “Armed or not, there’s no honor in killing a pregnant female.” I was doing my job and protecting the Pack and the Alpha when I took out the gun. My wolf and I were good with that. Tossing the match? That was the cause of my nightmares.

Darryl couldn’t argue the point, so he sat down. He or someone who overheard our talk must have linked the Beta. A few minutes later, Miller was sitting next to me. He looked into my eyes and opened a private mind link. “Nothing prepares a man for his first kill,” he started. “Mine was a rogue female. We’d picked up a trail south of Lewistown and tracked the male to a campsite in the woods. I was maybe a year older than you, full of piss and vinegar. The senior warrior wanted my teeth bloodied, so he and the others surrounded us and watched after the male was dead. She fought like a mad woman to protect her daughter.”

“You won the fight, obviously.”

“It didn’t feel like a win. I outweighed that wolf by fifty pounds and was a trained warrior. I got a shoulder into her side, knocked her on her back, and got my jaws on her neck. She shifted to human form and submitted. She knew she would have no rank or privileges if we let her live, but she’d still have her child.”

“You said she was your first kill.”

“The larger group had killed one of our trackers, so the Alpha wanted them to be an example. The senior warrior ordered me to rip her throat out, and I did. We brought the baby home, and a mated pair adopted her.” He put his hand on my knee. “We buried the woman and skinned the male. Parts of his pelt were hung from trees and fences in the area, and the other rogues moved on.”

“How did you deal with it?”

Beta Miller let out a breath. “It took a few weeks before I realized the Alpha was right. As distasteful as it was, I followed my orders, and my actions helped end a rogue threat. I learned that I was a warrior, not an Alpha. I was a weapon to unleash on the enemy my leaders designated. I didn’t have the luxury of picking my targets.”

“Yeah.” Even though it was over a hundred years ago, I could see the emotions in his eyes as he told the story. “Why me, Beta? Why did he make me kill the Luna? She was helpless before him.”

“Every warrior’s loyalty and obedience is tested someday, Nathan. The Alpha wanted to know, and now he does. You did well back there.” He swiped one of my sandwiches from the bag and moved to his seat by the driver, leaving me to my thoughts.

I was able to eat my breakfast an hour later, then napped until lunch. We finally caught up to the Alpha in Bozeman; he’d flown on a private jet out of Duluth with two bodyguards this morning. Now that we were within range of his link, Alpha Todd gave us our orders. “No one is to speak of what happened in the last few days with anyone who did not participate in the raid. If asked, we were following up on reports of a group of rogues in the Gallatin Mountains. Our dead warriors perished as we wiped out the camp.” I could feel the Alpha command settle into my mind. You couldn’t violate it without breaking the Pack bond. A wolf capable of breaking Alpha command was a danger to everyone. They were hunted down and killed without mercy.

“Sir, what about the Council and the other Packs? Someone is bound to ask what happened in Arrowhead.”

“I’ve taken care of that. Keep your mouths shut, and we will be fine.”

Another wolf asked the obvious question. “Alpha, we didn’t replace the Blessed One. What do we do next?”

“We wait,” the Alpha replied. “She might be with another Pack, perhaps Adirondack or Oxbow Lake. The Council and Alphas will be on edge after losing a Pack. Whoever has the child will keep her hidden. We bide our time, keep our ears open, and take advantage of the next opportunity. This raid was not in vain; the child must come of age before I can mate with her. With the Blessed One in Bitterroot, we will build the most powerful Pack in the world.”

I forced myself to smile as our ‘victorious’ rogue hunting party returned to Pack lands. I joined the men who shifted and took the trail over the mountain to stretch their legs instead of riding the bus for another hour. I ran off my guilt, fear, and doubt on the steep trail.

The Bitterroot Pack turned out to welcome us back, and a feast awaited us in the dining hall. I was surprised to see Alpha William Nygaard at the head table with Alpha Todd. The two addressed the Pack, praising the Warriors for their successful rogue hunt. Honoring the dead would wait. “The services for our fallen warriors will be at moonrise tomorrow,” Alpha Todd said. “Tonight, we celebrate!”

The Omegas and Pack slaves worked hard to keep the food and drink coming. Most of the mated pairs left the party around midnight, leaving the room before the party would rev up. “You’re going to love this,” Darryl told me from our table near the back. “You get sloppy seconds or thirds, but it’s still a turn.”

“Turn at what?”

“Watch.”

The Omegas cleared the tables from the room, and the unmated ones and slaves returned naked with a dozen mattresses. After placing them around the room, the nervous women lined up before the two Alphas. Alpha Todd led Alpha Will down the line, allowing him the honor of first choice. He picked one of the younger slaves and pushed her onto the bed. Alpha Todd chose another, placing her on the other side. The women removed their clothes, sucked their big cocks, and screamed as the Alphas sheathed themselves in their unprepared sexes.

The rest of the Pack members in the room chose their partners by rank. Darryl watched for an opening while I shifted my weight nervously between my feet. “You a virgin?”

“Yes.”

“Not after tonight.” One of the Betas finished with his girl and headed for the bar. Darryl pulled me over, taking her mouth while I lost my cherry in the crying slave.