The Falcon Ridge Series Book 2 Not Just A Girl
Chapter 34

(Chapter Song ‘Seven Nation Army’ by The White Stripes, The Glitch Mob)

JAYSON

"What do you mean you haven't found them yet?"

I growl as I take large steps to Rivers desk and lean my hands on it.

He sighs in a frustrated tone. "We're trying, Jayson. You're right. They're fast. We found a kill zone, though."

"What the first pack?" I arch my brow, stand straight and cross my arms.

He nods. "Yep. They killed everything. No one was left alive. Jay, it looked like a bunch of rabid dogs went through there. It was organized to an extent. They took the pack by surprise, surrounded them, but the bodies, they weren't just killed. They were shredded. It looked like something out of a horror film. I've never seen anything like it."

I wrap an arm around my chest and rub my bottom lip. "They might be caught up in the thrill of the kill. Their wolves are still young and new. We were working on control before I left. Clean kills weren't really part of those lessons.”

I let out a heavy breath. “Now that their wolves have tasted blood, they might be teetering on the edge of feral wolf." I say matter-of-factly. "You'll see more of that, I'm sure."

"We have.” He leans on his desk and laces his fingers together. He raises a brow to me. “About twenty-five miles from there, we found over a dozen more."

I nod and motion to him. "This is good, isn't it? I mean, the more rogues they kill, the less will make it Black Lake." I sink into the chair behind me and cross a leg as I lean on the arm.

He sits back. "It may be good, Jay, but we can't have unruly wolves roaming the countryside. They're crossing some major ethical lines here. If they aren't careful, they'll be hard to return back to control. Feral wolves are the gateway. If we don’t get to them soon, they might…”

“Turn rogue themselves.” I mumble my interruption.

It’s my biggest fear out of all this. As a seasoned soldier, we’re trained to go long term without our packs. We can survive without the threat of Rogue Sickness unleashing itself in us. These kids don’t know any better.

Pup training touches on the effects of running away, but that’s where it stops. Higher education and the Units go more in depth, but it’s a complicated process. There’s years of training and tools that have to be taught before we send those that qualify into the field.

Allowing yourself to go feral will only breakdown your system and your shifter will become too weak to fight against it.

I have to believe that Sarah’s strong enough to not get to that point, but from what River just told me, it’s not looking good at all.

I shake my head. "No. Sarah knows better. I'm sure it's just the excitement."

River stands with a sigh. "I hope you’re right. If she's the leader of this thing, it’s on her to make sure her pack stays mentally stable. If she loses, they all lose. Now, you need to get ready for deployment. We leave in three days."

I nod and stand. "Please, keep me posted."

"I will." He says as I leave.

****

It's been almost four days since the kids ran off. We've been tracking their movements, but Sarah's running her pack hard.

I had expected to hear something, but all they replace are death shadows. Remnants of bodies left in their wake with the kids long gone.

I've taught them too well. If they go rogue, I’ve only myself to blame.

I pack my bag thinking; I hope they packed enough food. Eating in human form is not only easier, but it shows the wolf who's in control. If you have to rely on your wolf to feed you, it takes advantage. It assumes control. Hearing the descriptions of some of the bodies, I suspect some of the kids have already run out and their wolves are starving. Soon, we won't see whole bodies, just pieces and bones.

My thoughts were broken by a knock on my open door.

"Ready to go?" Brad stands in the hall with Devin and Carmichael.

"Yeah." I pull the strap on my pack and throw it on my shoulder.

As I close my door, I hope the little girl I replace out there, is the same one I left almost a month ago.

I'll have a lot of work to do if she isn't. Reforming a feral wolf isn't easy. If she’s a rogue, there’s only one cure for that and I don’t think I will be able to pull the trigger. I’ll let her kill me first.

I shake the thoughts of dread off as we walk out to the parking lot.

Blake is waiting with a few other Alphas. We group around him and wait for orders.

"Good morning." He starts. "As you may have heard already, we have a group of friendlies out there right now. They've been impressive in killing the rogues. It's been made aware to us that they’re attacking the rogues in separate packs."

A woman puts up her hand. "Uh. Sir. Aren't they just a bunch of kids?"

He puts his hands behind his back and lifts his chin. "Yes. 18-year-old recruits from the Caledon training center."

A guy puts up his hand. "When did we become a daycare?" He turns and laughs with his buddies.

I shoot a scowl at him and he averts his eyes.

River scratches his temple. "Well, from what I've seen so far, these kids have a better kill card then you do, Johnson."

His buddies laugh and pushes on him. I smirk at him and he sneers at me.

River looks us all over. "The reason I'm telling you this is because the original plan of waiting in Black Lake has now changed. With the kids pushing from the West, we will be pushing from the East and meet them in the middle. We will squeeze them out. If White is there, we will have the advantage. Move out."

The crowd disperses, River steps up to me. "Hey, um. You think your girl can stand up to Desmond White?"

I put my pack in the cargo hold of the bus and turn to him. "Sarah fighting White is the last thing I want. Why?"

His jaw goes slack. "Latest Intel reports show he's traveling with groups three and four. Your girlfriend is heading straight for him."

I turn to him. "We need to get there first."

I climb onto the bus and take a seat. My elbow leans on the window and my fingers rub my mouth as I stare out to the trees.

Sarah has no idea who's out there. What kind of sick bastard is waiting for her. I shutter to think what a Dragon like White could do to her.

White is one of Torrents more disturbed members. He likes trophies. Body parts, or something from his victims to hang onto.

From our profiles, he wants to be attached to the lives he takes like some sort of redemption. There’s been rumors of special cases where he took a whole person as some sort of savior, but we’ve never found a survivor to confirm it.

I pray to anyone listening…

Please let me get there first.

****

The busses pull into Black Lake which now looks like a military base. Tents and soldiers cover the area and my sleepy, little town is unrecognizable.

I walk up to my pack house and am stopped by guards.

I grit my teeth as I glare at them. "Move."

"Sorry, sir. You're not allowed on the property." A young soldier warns with his hand up.

"This is my fucking house.” I growl as I point to my chest. “If you don't step out of the way, I'll rip your fucking throat out." My tone was low and dripping with Alpha.

"Let him pass!" River calls from behind me.

He joins my side, claps my shoulder and I side eye him with disdain. The fact I need his permission to enter my own house makes me want to rip his throat out even more.

"Sorry, sir. You can't be too careful." The soldier says as he steps aside.

“It's ok.” River says in an authoritative tone. “Good job.” He walks with me and I snarl at the soldier as I pass. I can’t believe this is happening.

As I enter the pack house, it’s buzzing with arguing and concern.

All my Alphas are here. They probably hoped the kids would come here instead of the suicide mission they’re on.

The minute Luke sees me, he shoots up from the couch and clears the floor in seconds.

"Is she with you?! I'm going to fucking kill her!!" He growls as he looks behind me. He locks eyes with River and growls more.

“Jackson, calm your ass down.” River scoffs.

I raise my hand up to Luke's chest. "No, she's still out there. What are you all doing here? You should be looking for Sarah."

Wren stands and joins the growing circle. "We were going to, but Riker sent us here to help. She said our skills are better used here. Though we had hoped they’d replace you.”

I turn to River and glare at him. He points to me. "My Luna knows what's she's doing, ok. Don't give me that look."

I walk in and set my pack down. "Is anyone else here?"

Deacon shakes his head. "No. Your brothers and parents are gone."

“Figures Nate and Vic would jump ship.” I grumble. "Ok. Sarah and the kids have already killed almost thirty rogues..."

Kale's brows shot up. "Holy shit. Was anyone hurt?"

I shake my head. "From what we can tell, they're fine. A little sadistic, but fine."

Wren crosses her arms. "Sadistic? What does that mean?"

I look into her eyes. "They've run out of food and water. They're relying on their wolves to sustain them."

"Shit." Luke mutters. "Jay, that's not good. They're too young to control that."

Kale scrubs a hand down his face. "You sure about that?" I can tell he’s worried about Georgia.

River walks over, reading a piece of paper that was just handed to him. "He's sure. They just found their travel packs about an hour ago. They ditched everything."

Wren has concern plastered on her face. “Jay, they won’t have much time before their wolves take over.”

“How much time?” I ask.

Wren is our resident pup trainer. She’s the one who helps kids at 12 train for the first shift at 13 and teaches the required three years of pup control before the education system takes over at 16.

“A week, maybe two. It’s hard to tell, but they aren’t just surviving. They’re fighting a pack war which can accelerate the process because they have to remain wolves for so long.” She supplies.

River hands the piece of paper to me and I read over it. "We've got to replace them."

Cass joins us. “We'll replace them and set up a medical and psychological program to help them through this. We have strong kids, Jay. I believe in them. They’ll be alright.”

“Yeah. I’m trying to stay positive.” I give him a half smile.

Wren rubs my arm. "Cass and I will head a small group to run up ahead of the rogues to see if we can intercept them from this end. You guys, kill anything that moves."

River nods. “Now, White's out there. It's been confirmed. We need to hit him before the kids do."

Cass crosses his arms. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

I look over my friends. “Thanks guys. You have no idea what this means to me.”

Wren smiles. “Jay, we love Sarah just as much as you do.”

“Yeah.” Luke raises a brow. “So save the mushy talk for later. We're ready to spill blood.” He smirks.

I chuckle. “Right. Let's go.”

We joined the mobilized units. We're two hundred strong. The kids have put in a nice dent, but something tells me the rogues won't be the only thing we have to fight.

If Sarah's army turns feral, it'll be a force to be reckoned with. Strong, well trained, very young rogues, is not something you want to fight. We need to save them from themselves and fast.

Cass and Wren take a group of thirty out to look for the kids.

I've joined Rivers unit and we move out in an organized manner. Trackers up front, soldiers in the middle and flyers in the back with wolves wearing harnesses, pulling supply carts. This isn't going to be easy at all.

The rogues are two and half days out from here. We have to move fast.

****

We move like a steam engine through the trees. Wolves huff out pants as we soldier on at a steady run. When we could no longer get the carts through the brush, we strap supply packs to everyone.

Our wolves stopped for nothing.

I wasn’t stopping for nothing. My wolves is craving dragon blood and I push him hard. I climb rock walls and run through thick mud with my jaw clenched and fire in my eyes.

Our trackers have the rogues dead to rights.

After two days of running, we finally stopped at the edge of a clearing.

River shifts and links us all to take cover. I stand with him as the rest disappear into the trees.

We lay on our stomachs in the tall grass and start counting.

Eating , snapping at each other and resting, we spy eighty rogues setting up shop.

‘You ready?’ I link Luke who has Unit 7.

‘Damn right, bro. Let's spill some blood.’

‘You ready, dude?’ I link Kale who has Unit 3.

‘Ready as I'll ever be.’

‘Dea, you ready?’ He has Unit 2

‘Bring it brother.’ His wolfs eyes meet mine and narrow.

I look to River. "We're ready."

He nods and shifts.

He looks around at his awaiting army. He raises his head and howls a huge Alpha howl. The rest of us pour out of the trees like a tsunami, raising dust and dirt in the air like a thunderous cloud.

The rogues took a moment to realize our ambush then they went on the attack.

The ground quakes as pure muscle pounds the earth and two solid walls of teeth and anger collide.

Blood flies in the air like red rain and soaks into the soil in a matter of minutes. Fur and bone are tossed and fur is quickly matted with mud and gore.

The air is filled with the deafening fury of ravenous wolves. The entire pasture is a ball of death and dismemberment.

Every throat I ripped out, I thought of Sarah. Every kill was for her. Her brother. My kids. All of them.

Rogue after rogue fell. Their numbers were no match and our skills greatly outweighed theirs.

My wolfs shoulders heave as I drop a leg and look out to the battlefield. I can’t see the ground. Some shift and start sifting through the bodies to see if they can replace anything useful to our mission which is normally don’t after a fight.

Once River was satisfied that the rogues were all dead and the injuries were minor, he called the trackers for a bearing.

They ran off and we followed right behind.

From flyer intel, the next pack was another two days or less out. This is where we meet White. Please don't let Sarah be there.

****

We all settled in a clearing for the night to rest up before running again.

I sat off to the side thinking, the last time I was in a clearing like this, Sarah's beautiful body was twirling around it like an angel.

I was lost in thought when River sat beside me.

"You, ok?" He leaned his back on the boulder I was sitting in front of.

"Yeah." I threw a little stick and leaned back, too. "Just thinking about Sarah."

"Tell me about her." He gives a half smile.

I roll my head to face him. "She's really something. I knew of her when we were kids, ya know. Knew her rep. She gave this town a run for her money. Always getting in shit one way or another. I hadn't even thought of her in years, until she hit my camp. The first time I saw her get off that bus, it was like a meteor fell from the sky and hit me square on the cap." I couldn't help but laugh.

River chuckles too. "You liked her then?"

I shook my head with a smile. "No. I was fucking pissed. I thought this girl is going to turn this camp into a disaster and make my life absolute hell." I lower my head and my smile fades. What I wouldn’t give to have that back.

"But you saw something, didn't you?" He searches for my eyes.

I shrug. "I don't know. It was like the world got brighter. Like the bullshit I was so worried about meant dick. She's just so carefree and wild. She's fun, unpredictable, obnoxious, energetic. You think to yourself, today's just a normal day and she takes that and spins you so much you can't even think straight."

River plants his head against the rock. "Almost sounds like Anna. Bet she's stubborn, too." He rolls his eyes to me.

"Oh, yeah." I grin. "You know, I haven't had a decent night's sleep since I met her? But, I long for it. I fucking crave it. I can't get enough of her insanity. Like now. She's off about to kill herself and all I want to do is wrap my arms around her. Feel her electric touch on my skin. The warmth of her. Drown in her scent. It's crazy."

"You feel all that?" He raises his head and turns more to me.

"Yeah. She's certifiable, but I can't get enough." I pick a blade of grass.

"Sounds like she's a little more than just a girlfriend." He smirks.

I arch a brow. "Fated?"

His mouth ticks down quick. "Could be. I mean, I didn't feel everything you did, but it sounds pretty damn close."

"I'd be lying if I hadn't been thinking about these past few weeks. Being away from her has me almost wishing for death man. It hurts so fucking bad. I would take a silver bullet to the chest over the pain I feel and now, she's out there, risking her life and I can't do anything to save her." I rub my nape.

"I know what that feels like. I wished for death when I left Anna. We'll get her back. Don't worry." He stood up. "Get some rest. We have three hours before we mobilize."

I nod, prop myself up against the boulder and close my eyes.

Could Sarah actually be my fated? Could I live my entire life with her. Only her? Judging from the amount of love I have for her, the answer is a resounding yes.

I have to survive this because when we do get back together, I'm standing under that moon with her. She's my fated and I will prove it. Come hell or high water.