Payment To the Alpha
Chapter 51

James' POV

It's 11:30, and all pack members are at their stations, getting everything ready for the pending war.

Lisa and Trish have gathered all mothers, pups, youths, and elderly inside the house. Natasha had put a spell around it, and when the war starts, all she has to do is activate it. It was a barrier; an invisible wall meant to protect the ones in the house. She said that only the strongest of the strongest could break through it. As long as Crow didn't lay his fucking hands on it, the barrier will stay intact. Alex was out on the field, preparing the warriors with Jackson. Making sure everybody knew their positions.

Alvin went with the omega, Elisabeth, to ensure that the clinic and the tents had all that they needed. The other omegas had a job to protect the different medical stations.

We don't know when Crow is coming or who he is bringing. All I know is that this will be a war, that not many will come out from alive. My job is to make sure that the casualties aren't my own. At least to the best of my ability.

I walked outside and saw a car driving up through the gate; it was Natasha.

The car circled and stopped by the entrance as she stepped out.

Natasha walked towards me. She looked like hell. What the fuck happened?

"Tell your men to close the gates," She said and walked straight past me. I passed the message to the guards through a mind-link and saw the gates come together. The last time I told them to close the gates was when Avery had just found out the truth. She has already been through so much, and I hope that after today, she can finally breathe again.

I walked inside and looked for Natasha.

"What happened to you?" I asked her when I saw her sitting by a table in the kitchen.

"Avery knows," She said.

"Knows what?"

"She knows that we're sisters." I leaned back against the chair I was sitting in.

How the fuck could she know? I looked at Natasha in confusion.

"She's been having dreams. Dreams, where she's met people, talked to them. They've guided her. One of them was Alena. My grandmother," Natasha explained with a sad smile.

"She told Avery everything. It was when she was still in the dungeon. She had been told to keep it to herself." She continued. I knew there was more to be said, so I stayed silent.

"When we got to the other location, I didn't tell Avery whose house it was or what had happened there. But she found out for herself. At first, she simply heard my mother's screams. And then, that night, she dreamt of the day when my mother was murdered." My eyes grew wide as Natasha told me everything that had happened.

"I woke up this morning to objects being moved around the room James," I felt my entire body slump down on the seat. My legs turn into jelly, and my heartfelt like it stopped.

"Averys' fear and anger towards Crow caused her magic to resurface in the outer world. She is much more powerful than I imagined, and" she paused. A flicker of hope and pride showing in her eyes.

"And what, Natasha?" I asked her impatiently.

"And I think she might even be more powerful than our father." Natasha finished. Lifting her head and meeting my eyes. I felt my chest heave out. My mind not believing what Natasha had told me.

Avery has her powers. This is amazing. My mate is gaining her identity back. The one that they stole from her.

'Our powers are in our core. They cannot be removed.'

Blade repeated what he had told me once before. I scoffed at his proud tone. He wasn't proud because Avery had her powers back. He was proud because he had been right.

Natasha gave me a big smile that reached her eyes.

I felt so happy, a happiness that cannot be explained. I had carried around a pang of certain guilt for Avery being stripped of her powers. And now that she had them back, it was as if a weight was lifted off my shoulders.

"With power comes consequences. She must learn to control them.” Natasha said, her face turning serious.

I wrapped my arm around her shoulder.

"That's what her big sister is for, isn't it?" I said, and Natasha laughed. I don't think I have seen Natasha this happy without being around my uncle. Both Avery and Natasha lacked the love of family. They had it from other people, yes, but none that were blood-related.

Not that it matters to any of them, however. But I do believe that this will fix something that was broken long ago.

Blade started growling in the back of my mind. My body tensed, and I flew to my feet. Natasha's eyes locked with mine, and we both knew what was happening.

A loud howl was heard from within the woods. And it didn't belong to one of ours.

Natasha and I went out of the kitchen and out the door. I walked down on the gravel and closed my eyes. Letting my other senses take over.

"It's time." I said as I turned to Natasha. Lisa was standing by the door. Her hands behind her back and awaiting an order.

"Is everybody inside?" I asked her.

"Yes, alpha,"

"Good, close the doors."

Lisa closed the doors, but before they shut completely, she turned to me,

"James, for the love of the goddess, be safe." She said.

I nodded my head, and the doors closed.

Natasha went up to the house and lifted her hands, but before she could activate the spell, the door opened, and Alex walked out.

He didn't say a word but moved towards his position. Natasha continued with her spell, and a purple shadow lifted from the ground all the way around the house.

"It's done." She said and turned to me.

Natasha was on her way to the warriors. I grabbed her arm, making her turn around.

"You have a daughter and a mate. You have no obligation to fight in this war. I am giving you an out, Natasha. Think carefully before you decide." Natasha looked at me with a raised brow.

"You're an amazing Alpha, but sometimes you can be a real idiot. We're facing my father. He killed my mother and planned on taking my sister. I appreciate you giving me an out, James, but if you had allowed them, every single person in that house would fight beside you. Do not ever tell Carlos that I told you this, but there is no better Alpha in any pack than you. Now let's go kill a wizard." She said, her voice filled with determination. Natasha stormed off towards the fields.

The warriors were lined up in their positions-all of them awaiting orders.

I turned my head and looked at Natasha, who was standing across the field. She gave me a nod, and I turned my eyes to Alex. He winked at me. He fucking winked at me. I rolled my eyes and turned my eyes to Amber. Her eyes were glowing, showing that Stella had surfaced.

That wolf had some serious revenge cravings, and she was strong, alpha-strong. I was worried about my sister getting hurt, but in all honesty, besides me, Stella was the strongest wolf out of all of them.

Alex's POV

I was talking to the warriors. They were all clear on their positions and the war we're about to enter.

They were all prepared to fight. No pack has succeeded in taking over or winning a battle against us.

Looking over the warriors and the omegas running to their stations, I was beginning to see why. This pack was a bunch of lazy-ass werewolves who would come up with some shitty excuse to be annoying. But when it came down to it, when it came down to protecting the pack, they were all fearless. Both women and men switched some sort of button when there was a battle or a war to be fought. They were all driven to succeed, to win, to fight, and to thrive.

Jackson and I were lining up the warriors when a howl was heard from the edge of the forest. It was loud and powerful.

Everybodys' eyes darkened, turning black. Some of their wolves surfacing and growling.

I looked at Jackson and felt a smirk growing on my face.

'The letter.'

Shit!

Cesar reminded me of Avery's letter.

I ran into the house and up the stairs. I threw my door open and went to pick out the letter Avery had written, only I couldn't replace it. I threw out everything that laid in my drawers in search of the letter.

After nearly ripping apart my entire fucking bedroom, I saw the letter under one of the pillows that laid on the floor. Relief washing over me.

'Hurry the fuck up, Natasha is putting the spell up!'

Cesar yelled in my mind. I groaned in frustration and picked out the letter, lighting a match and holding it under the paper. The letter soon emerged into flames and turned to dust in my hands.

"See you soon, cupcake,"

I made my way downstairs and saw that the doors were closed. I pushed one of them open and stepped up, making eye contact with my brother. He looked at me suspiciously. Natasha was holding her hands up, activating the barrier.

I walked past them and made my way to the front line.

James' POV

I saw Natasha mumbling something and used my hearing to hear what she was saying.

"James, can you hear me?" She whispered while looking at me.

I nodded my head slowly, indicating I could hear her.

"There's something I forgot to tell you,"

I furrowed my eyebrows and turned my body so that I was facing her.

"In Avery's dream, about my mother," She said, not so much as a question, but a statement, waiting to see if I understood.

I gave her a slight nod, and she continued.

"My mother had told her how to kill Crow," Natasha was speaking quietly so that the others wouldn't be suspicious and listen in.

"But Avery wouldn't tell me," She said, uncertainty laced in her words. My eyes grew wide at the realization that Avery knows something this vital and wouldn't tell Natasha. It meant only one of two things. Either it was unsure, or I will go on a killing rampage if it's true, it's something that will cause Avery harm, and she doesn't want to be stopped.

I felt my blood start to boil, anger towards the information Natasha forgot to tell me about earlier.

This leaves the outcome in Avery's hands, and she would do anything to keep everyone else safe.

Noises were heard from the forest, and I could see shadows emerging through the trees. There were several werewolves, along with the wizard and, I believe, vampires as well.

How the fuck can they have vampires during the day?

I saw Crow walking out first. Dressed in a black coat with a hood. He wore a smug smile, and his eyes were empty. My mind went back to what Natasha had told me about Avery's dream. This is one severely fucked up man.

"Hello, Alpha. It's nice to see you again," He said as he emerged from the forest. Hundreds of other people followed him some in their wolf form and others in their human bodies.

The man standing on Crows left looked familiar. I tried placing him. He looked familiar, and I knew I had met him before. And then it dawned on me, it was Alpha Nicholas, from the Celestial Pack. The Celestial pack was working with Crow. They may be a pathetic excuse for a pack, but they have over four hundred pack members.

Nicholas was smirking as he gave a small nod. I stared at him, my eyes blank.

"Aren't you going to greet your guest, Alpha?" Crow asked me.

"You won't live long enough for my greetings to matter." I said as I took a few steps forward.

The warriors were growling. Some had shifted and were baring their teeth.

"You're outnumbered. Now give me the girl." He said.

"As I told you before, she is no longer a part of this pack." I stated. A smile on my face grew when I saw the one on Crow fall. His eyes were getting darker, and his hands were itching to hurt someone.

My eyes went between Crow and some werewolves who were making their way towards my pack. If those wolves attacked, they would have initiated the war.

Some of my own were moving towards the intruders. They gave away warning growls, but that didn't stop them. I looked between them and Crow, waiting for their next move.

I saw something change in Nicholas' eyes. He lowered his head, his smile going into a menacing one. In the blink of an eye, he had shifted and let out a howl. And so, the war was on.

Nicholas ran towards me. As he pushed off from the front and lunged at me, I rolled my eyes and grabbed his wolf by the throat.

"I thought I told you to show me respect," I said and flung him towards Crow.

Crow's jaw tensed, and he lifted his hands. He was moving them around in circles in front of him, and flames were starting to surround him. He gave me a cynical smile and pushed the flames at me.

A strong wind came and twirled around the fire, suffocating it. I looked over to my left and saw Natasha's hands lifted in the air and looking at Crow.

Avery's POV

I was sitting outside on the porch, looking over the burnt-down garden. Not a single plant or flipper was alive. Natasha told me before she left that I should get ready. The war is about to start.

Before she left, Natasha also asked me again about how to kill Crow. I simply shook my head, and she sighed, taking her to leave. I couldn't tell her how my own and Crow's lifelines were entwined. How after he used the dark magic to get inside my head, he also locked himself within my soul-kind of disgusting when I think about it.

But it also gives me exactly what I need to kill him. I will try every other possible way to end his life. But if nothing else works, then I must do what I have to. This isn't about him or me or even James. It is about every werewolf out there.

I was staring at the depressing scenery before me. Thinking about all of the horrific things that had happened in this house. Then all of a sudden, a small flame appeared before my eyes.

"See you soon, cupcake." I heard Alex's voice as the flame grew to the size of my hand before slowly dying down.

It's time.

I stood up quickly, grabbed the keys lying beside me, and ran down to the car.

It was a fifty-minute drive to the pack, and I had to hurry. I entered the key and started the engine, pressing down on the gas pedal, and the car flew forward in a hurry.

I know I must have broken several traffic rules, but all I could think about was my family right now.

I drove up on the road that led to the gate and saw that they were closed.

I stopped the car and ran out, deciding to go through the woods. I heard growls, screams, and snarls. I used the sounds to lead me to the packhouse. I ran over branches and zigzagged through the trees. Jumping over rocks and doing everything I could to reach them.

After running for, I don't know how long, I started to see movement and knew that I was closing in on them. I emerged from the woods, only to freeze by my nightmares flashing before my eyes. Only this wasn't a dream. I wasn't going to wake up from this. Wolves were jumping at each other, biting down, ripping the flesh off the other. Those in their human form were fighting each other until one ended up dead. There was blood, body parts, and corpses lying scattered on the ground. I felt my stomach turning and looked around. And the view my eyes landed on caused the air in my lungs to vanish. My throat was tightening, and I tried so hard to keep my heart rate steady.

I watched as Crow held vines around James' neck, strangling him. He was holding Natasha in the air with one hand, and the other, he used to control the vines. I saw blood trickling down James' neck. They had thorns on them. The thorns were digging into his flesh.

I gasped at the sight and ran out of the woods and into the masses.