Chapter 53

Third Person POV

Even in wolf form, it took Ethan almost all night to reach the rogue’s hideout, which was mainly just a house in the middle of nowhere. There were a couple of different rogue villages nearby, but the most dangerous rogues never lived amongst the others. They preferred solitude so they could fulfill all their sick fantasies. The thought of those greasy rogues touching what was his infuriated him.

He was planning on ripping out each of their throats and making them regret ever touching Judy Montague. All thought of anything else went out of the window as he forfeited control to his wolf. His wolf was still mated to Judy so he would be able to find her with ease. Ethan knew somewhat of the location these rogues were staying in, but once he got close, everything started to look the same and he got a bit turned around. His wolf on the other hand could pick up Judy’s scent with ease and was able to track her location to a T.

The house was a rundown shack in the darkest part of the forest where the fog never died. There was a dirty swamp in the distance and the entire area reeked of rogue. It made Ethan sick to his stomach, but he swallowed the bile rising in his throat and reached the front of the house.

There were no rogues outside keeping guards, which was careless in his opinion, but he didn’t complain. He burst through the door and ran through the house, trying to pick up Judy’s scent. He was able to pick it up quickly and ran through the basement door, running down the stairs.

Her scent was so potent, it nearly brought his wolf to his knees. There was something else in her scent that caused Ethan to halt his tracks; the scent was filled with desires and lust.

Holy shit.

Judy was in heat!

What the actual fuck was going on around here? How could his mate be in heat around a bunch of unmated male rogues? Fury rose inside of him when he heard the taunting of the rogues. They were laughing and high-fiving one another like they were a bunch of frat boys about to get laid.

“That aphrodisiac worked fast,” he heard one of them laughing. “I call dibs first.”

“Relax, we will all get a turn with her…”

Judy’s breathy panting and her whispering for release went straight to Ethan’s cock. He didn’t want these men near her, and he was ready to tear them to pieces for even thinking about laying a finger on her.

“Holy shit! There’s a wolf!” A rogue shouted as he spotted Ethan at the stairwell.

“Fuck, and he’s an Alpha,” another one hissed.

He quickly shifted into his nasty wolf and lunged at Ethan, but Ethan was too quick for him and was able to dodge with ease. He countered the attack, grabbing the rogue's throat with his canines and tearing through the soft flesh, ripping him apart.

“Fuck,” the rogue that was closest to Judy said.

He took a protective stance in front of her, which only seemed to fuel Ethan’s wolf even more and he lunged towards him, only to be stopped by another rogue who side-swiped him, knocking him off course.

The two wolves fought, growling and snapping at one another.

“I mindlinked the others. They will be here soon!” The rogue close to Judy warned. He was still in wolf form and Ethan wanted to bite his legs to make him submit, but the rogue fighting with him was quick, strong, and wouldn’t let him.

Eventually, Ethan got the upper hand and was able to break his neck, killing him instantly. He tossed him aside and lunged at the last rogue. He finally shifted and he looked like he was about to fight Ethan, but to Ethan’s surprise, he jumped over him and raced up the stairs and out of the house. Ethan chased him for a minute until he reached the top floor and then he smelled the scent of approaching rogues from a distance.

Fuck!

They were coming and he wasn’t sure how many of them there would be. He needed to get Judy out of here fast! He turned his direction back down the basement and quickly made his way to the cage where Judy wiggled on the ground; her body flushed from her heat and her scent singing to Ethan’s wolf.

He shifted back into his human form before his wolf could do anything stupid. He was completely naked, but nudity wasn’t a big deal amongst shifters. Just as he was about to pick Judy up, he heard someone moaning in pain.

His eyes lifted and to his surprise and horror, he saw Irene lying in the cage as well. His arms fell and his heart dropped.

“Irene?” He asked as he approached her.

He bent down to her and touched the side of her neck to find a pulse; it was beating quickly and from the tell of her unconscious state, she was drugged with wolfsbane.

“Shit shit shit!” He cursed as he looked between Irene and Judy.

He could only take one of them out of here for right now before those rogues get there. He couldn’t save them both despite the fact that he wanted to. Irene was the one person he needed for his future and Judy was the one person he wanted in his bed. After quick consideration, he made up his mind and he lifted Irene off the ground, cradling her against his chest as he quickly rushed out of the cage.

“Ethan….” He heard Judy’s breathy whisper from behind him. He paused for a moment and turned to look at her.

Her eyes were half open and she was staring at him, breathing through her parted lips. He wanted to kiss those lips and claim her as his all over again, but he had to get Irene out of there. If he saved Irene’s life, then Gavin would surely be grateful and make him the Alpha for sure.

“I’ll come back for you,” he told Judy.

He turned and quickly rushed up the stairs. He just needed to get Irene far from here and then he would come back for Judy. Hopefully, by then, it won’t be too late. But he wouldn’t be able to carry them both out of here and get them to safety without the rogues coming after them. Especially when Judy was in heat and her scent was potent. They’d be able to find them easily and Ethan couldn’t afford to risk Irene’s life like that.

He burst through the door and was about to shift and run through the forest with Irene when a couple of cars pulled up. Ethan froze entirely when the Silver Crescent Gamma warriors piled out of some of the cars and even more gammas rushed up in their wolf forms.

An even larger wolf came rushing up amongst the Gammas; his wolf towered over everyone and had such a domineering aura that Ethan knew right away who he was.

Alpha Gavin Landry.

…..

Gavin’s POV

“Alpha, we found the house,” one of my Gammas said through a mindlink. We had been searching all night for this rogue’s house. As soon as we figured out the region the license plate was from, we spent the entire night searching for this location.

My Gammas all knew Irene’s scent, so once it was picked up, they followed the trail and were able to find her house after 10 hours of searching. A few of my Gammas were in cars just in case we needed to transport anyone, but the rest of us were in our fur.

I raced through the forest until I reached where my Gammas were, and I spotted a rundown shack of a house. Irene’s scent was strong here and I knew they were right; she had to be somewhere inside. Or at least nearby.

Just as I broke through the clearing and joined my Gammas and Beta, I froze entirely when I saw Ethan, naked as the day he was born, running out of the house with an unconscious Irene in his arms.

He froze when he saw us standing outside, glaring at him. I’m not sure what the hell was going on, but my wolf didn’t like the scene in front of us and he let out a ferocious growl.

“I… I found her,” Ethan said, panting as he held up Irene. “She was drugged and needs medical attention. I think she was beaten a little.”

My eyes zeroed in on my daughter and saw bruises along her cheeks. Through my powerful Lycan hearing, I could hear that she had a heartbeat, so she was alive thankfully. But how the hell did Ethan manage to get here before the rest of us? Did he already know she was here?

Was he behind this??

I wouldn’t let him pass; my wolf was furious and kept growling at him. I’m sure my eyes alone left him feeling paralyzed.

“Rogues are coming, Alpha,” Beta Taylor said through a mindlink.

Sure enough, there were several rogues that broke through the clearing, and they all looked ready for a fight. They were growling and snapping their canines but once they saw me, their confidence faded immediately, and they halted in their steps. Not even a rogue would be stupid enough to go against a Lycan; especially not a Lycan Chairmen.

Everybody knew who I was and if they dared challenge me, it would cost them their lives in an instant. I let out a ferocious growl in m their direction, making them shiver in fear. Without any attempt to fight, they all turned and ran as fast as they could away from us.

I nodded at my men to go after them if they could. Most of them dispersed and went after the rogues, I remained with Beta Taylor and a couple of other Gammas, each of us glaring at Ethan, waiting for him to explain before I ripped his throat out.

It was Beta Taylor that shifted first.

“How did you get here, Ethan?” Taylor asked, his eyes narrowed.

“I was worried when she didn’t answer my calls. I overheard you saying where she was and I went after her,” Ethan explained. “I only got here a few minutes ago and she was being attacked by rogues. She was drugged with wolfbane.”

“Where are the rogues that attacked her?” Taylor asked.

“Dead,” Ethan answered without hesitation. “Well, one of them escaped.”

“You let him escape??”

“I needed to get Irene out,” Ethan said quickly. “I knew more rogues were coming. I was trying to get her to safety.”

Taylor stepped back and glanced over his shoulder at me, trying to assess if he was telling the truth. After observing him for a bit longer and looking at my daughter in his arms, I relented and shifted into my human form.

“Get her out of here,” I said. “Take one of the cars. My gammas will take you to the pack hospital.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Ethan said as he rushed towards one of the waiting cars.

Another scent caught my attention, and my mouth began to water from it. My wolf was immediately on high alert and a low growl escaped my throat before I could stop it.

“Is there anyone else here?” I asked before Ethan could disappear into the car.

He froze and then cursed under his breath.

“Yes,” he answered. “Judy.”