The Wannabe Warrior
Chapter 178

Madison POV

I enjoyed cooking the pancakes. It seemed a long time since I cooked. Mary let me every now and then, it was good stress relief. The woman who was looking after the fire and cooking whatever that gunk was in the pot, moved aside and let me take over. I think she was surprised at the ease I took over the fire and cooking. It was not the first time I had cooked on an open fire, and most likely not the last. I felt a little bad leaving all the mess for someone else to clean up, but Alex made it clear that I was to follow them to the office. I looked around and saw a couple of ladies start the clean-up.

We entered a diorama room, a lot like Alex had in his pack and I assumed that each pack had one of these, but that should not surprise me. When Zane had one at the packhouse, I worked with Alex and we made a few changes. Alex had more information around his area after I was able to give him more information, and here I was feeling like I was about to do the same again here with this area. Having stared out the window for however long I was stuck in that room, Zeek seemed happy with the work Alex and I did on the diorama. After an hour or so, Alex advised Zeek that it was done and he looked over it carefully and then added some colour to some areas, making them no-go zones.

‘Madsion, can you tell me how you escaped and what made you decide to leave when you had?’ Zakary asked as he looked at the details we had added to the diorama.

I explained about the inspection cover and my desperate work to squeeze through it and out of a maintenance door on the side of the building. I was not sure if telling them this was a good idea, but I could not think of a way not to tell them. It was a normal question to ask and did not surprise me being asked, I just would have preferred not to say it for some reason.

‘I decided to leave when I did, because Jacob was getting too friendly. He also added another camera that day while we ate dinner, talking over the noise the man was making, adding that camera, and I knew I had to get out of there now.’ hesitantly I confirmed my reason, knowing that Zane would hear the real reason at the same time as the rest of those in the room.

‘Where did he put the extra camera?’ Alex asked, looking a little confused.

‘The bathroom.’ I said, staring at Zane as I said this, and saw his anger rise, and his fight to stop from growling out loud.

‘That family are all sick, I take it Jacob was trying to make you like him. You think his end game was to mate with you?’ Zakary looked at me with sympathy.

‘Yes, right from the first day I awakened, they treated me like a guest, the best food, and clothes, but locked in the room.’

‘Tell me about the guards’ movements and what buildings you noticed may house the most warriors.’ Zeek said, leaning on the diorama, and thinking, but he was not right. I don’t know how to explain the feelings I was getting with this guy. But I know he tried to act all alpha, but something is just? annoyed I can’t put this weird feeling into words, but I don’t trust this guy.

‘If you are considering attacking, then I think you need to consider, when Gladys or Emery leave the pack, they have so much respect from the members, they follow them blindly.’ I say, as I look at Zeek before I continue.

I filled him in with what I had observed about the guards’ movements and what I believed might be in each building.

‘They draw water from a well at the side of the packhouse. This is their main water for all the area. There is a blind spot over here, you cannot see it from the packhouse.’ I kept giving them more and more information as it came to me, my war battle plans coming to the front of my mind and my personal side faded to the background. Once I got into this mode, all my emotions went and I looked purely at how best to fight and other tactics, Zeek had not seen this side of me before, yet Alex and Zakary had, so it was not a surprise to them as I work through the whole pack and pros and cons for different ways to take the pack out.

‘Wow, that is fantastic, you are just like your mother.’ Zeek said and this shocked me, so that I stopped my monologue in the area and stared at him in horror.

‘What?’ I whispered in disbelief at what he had just said and I was taken out of my war mode like a bucket of cold water had just been poured onto me.

‘Your mother spent six weeks here with us when she was fourteen. She was a wonderful woman, sorry for your loss.’ Zeek looked and sounded genuine for a change, and maybe that is why he had been looking at me strangely, as I am almost the image of my mother.

‘Then if you really feel that way, then stop your pretending and show us the real packhouse. This show you have put on may have been fun for you, but I have yet to see the amusing side of it.’ Zane growled at him, and his pretence.

‘You are right and I guess I deserve your anger. Come, let me show you our packhouse and people.’ Zeek agreed and I think if Zane had not said something, Zeek would have seen how long he could keep this game up, he was like a child in a man’s body.

‘Before we go, will you let my warrior officially meet his mate?’ Zane responded hesitantly. We were pushing our luck, but we had to try and break whatever game he was playing. It made us all uncomfortable.

The warrior deserves it, putting his life on the line time after time, to get some happiness too, and he was as shocked as we were when he said those words when he first arrived.

‘Certainly, you could bring all the Blue River warriors along. They deserve to see them, they have been very courteous to all of my staff and not once made any derogatory comments.’ Zeek said this as if it was a shock that not one bad word had been heard from them. I would have been shocked if any had said anything out loud for others to hear. They may have talked through mind-links but not out loud. It is not the way our alpha had trained us to be.

‘So we were being tested?’ I growled this out, and for a moment I thought I might hit Zeek on the nose, only Zane holding my hand, and shaking his head, stopped me from doing something I might regret later. or not.