Chapter 13

Rex had been the alpha of the Sharp Armor pack for a long time, yet he didn’t think he had ever faced an issue like this. Rogue attacks were becoming more frequent, and several of the packs in the area were finding themselves having to deal with them, including his. In the past, there weren't many losses as his patrolmen usually outnumbered the rogues in the area, but lately, there had been casualties.

The other packs had complained of the same issue.

His patrolmen came back saying that the rogues had moved with purpose as if they were organized, and their organization had only been increasing over the past few months.

It had been horrifying to hear and unbelievable, but he couldn’t ignore it. Rogues were supposed to be unorganized and lost to their passions and instincts. They were dangerous because they had no reservations against slaughtering anyone in their way and were made stronger by their bloodlust. Having such power become organized was a problem. Whoever was controlling them was cunning and the real problem behind the increasingly dangerous rogue attacks.

If only they knew where the hell to find him, so they could get rid of them, but getting the other pack leaders to see that would be next to impossible.

He sat back with a deep sigh.

If only the royals were still ruling the kingdom. None of this would be a problem.

Years ago, they were a huge and prosperous werewolf kingdom. They had vanquished the vampires. Then, there had been a great time of peace until a great tragedy struck and the royal family fell. No one had time to try and figure out what had happened exactly, prominent packs scrambled to control and defend their territories.

Under the royal family, the majority of his day had been coordinating with the royal forces to keep an eye on the borders. Now, he spent most of his days coordinating with the alphas of nearby packs about how to deal with rogue attacks. The threat of vampires returning had seemed to vanish in the face of the threat of rogues.

As strong as he was, they didn't have a strong enough leader to get them to agree or to organize a unified plan. Pack leaders argued, shifting the responsibility to whoever had the territory nearest to where the rogues seemed to be heading. No one wanted to think about finding the source of the problem, content to just fight rogues as much as they could.

They needed a king.

He returned to his pack, exhausted from the trip and frustrated. His wife and luna came to greet him, accompanied by Blade, the leader of their patrol. He shifted carefully and wrapped himself in the robe his wife gave him before kissing her cheek.

“It’s good to see you, Blade, but I didn’t realize you had become part of the welcome committee.”

His wife laughed but Blade didn’t and that was concerning.

“What is it?”

“Alpha, there have been… developments.”

Rex frowned and nodded, leading him to his home to hear the full report.

Blade seemed stiff. He smelled of medicine meaning he’d been injured recently. He was expecting to hear about another rogue attack.

“His name is Arthur. He’s a very… strange werewolf and has been traveling with a human woman named Daphne. We found them while we were tracking rogues in the forest.”

“And?”

“Arthur is surprisingly powerful. When we found them, there were at least a dozen rogue corpses in the clearing.”

“What?”

“I can certify his strength. He is much stronger than I am. Very tall, much larger than any werewolf I’ve seen in his shifted form. There’s just one issue…”

Blade was the leader of their patrol for a reason despite being a beta. His experience and technique had more than earned him the spot. He could fight every alpha under his command to at least a draw if not a victory. How could this Arthur be so much more powerful than Blade? Something flickered at the back of his mind, like a memory he had forgotten, but it faded before he could try to retrieve it.

“Well?”

“He has some… characteristics of a rogue: red eyes, difficulty controlling himself, and bloodlust. Still, Daphne, his mate apparently, can calm him. We brought them back here for safety, but during a break out from the prison, Arthur attacked and hurt several of our patrolmen.”

Rex hummed, “Tell me about these rogue characteristics? Is he insane?”

Blade shook his head, “No. Not… normally. Perhaps a bit distrusting of us, but he is capable of speech and reason. In the midst of battle, however, his strength is overwhelming and his bloodlust only intensifies his aggressiveness."

“You said this human woman can stop him?”

“She told him to stop and he did.”

How interesting. He pulled on clothing and pulled his cloak over his shoulders.

“Take me to meet them.”

After Blade knocked on the door, Rex waited. A hostile growl came from behind the door.

“Calm down, Arthur,” a woman’s voice came just before the door opened revealing a young, human woman and an enormous golden wolf with red eyes stood beside her.

For a moment, Rex didn't know where to direct his attention. The young woman was amazingly beautiful with brilliant amber eyes. There was a sweetness and innocence about her that was impossible to ignore, yet her expression was calm and strong.

The wolf beside her with fur that gleamed in the sunlight made him draw up short. Golden fur. He’d never thought he’d see it again.

Again? He gasped thinking back to the memory that had danced the back of his mind. Was it possible?

Could Arthur be who he thought he was?

The red eyes glaring at him, hostile and grumpy to match the growl that came next, made him doubt the idea.

The woman looked down at the wolf, “No, Arthur!”

Arthur looked up at her with a pitiful little grunt. It was almost placating like a husband wanting to make his wife happy. She settled a hand on top of the wolf’s head and stroked his fur before looking back at Blade and Rex with a polite smile.

“Sorry about that. Are you okay, Blade?”

Blade nodded, “I’m fine. Mamie patched me up. Thanks for asking.”

The woman looked at Rex, “Hello, Mr... Alpha?”

He chuckled and inclined his head, “My name is Rex. I am the alpha of the Sharp Armor pack. You must be Daphne.”

“I am. Please come in.”

She stepped aside and Arthur stayed close to Daphne as she gestured them in towards the table in the middle of the house. It was charming and reminded him of himself as a young man who had just met his wife and mate. He supposed they had only recently met based on how obsessed Arthur was about her safety.

Yet, how could a human be a werewolf's mate?

Daphne felt a bit out of place as Blade and Rex were staring at Arthur. Her face burned as she stroked Arthur’s fur.

“Forgive him, gentlemen. Arthur is just on edge. He’s used to staying alert... It makes him feel safer…”

Arthur bared his teeth, “I don't trust you at all.”

Rex looked between the two of them, “I understand that. You still need to take care of your mate, right? We pack can provide you with shelter, food, and other necessities of life.”

“You guys almost got her hurt!”

Rex growled at him, “And you hurt many wolves of mine!”

They stared at each other angrily. Daphne could tell that Rex was only reacting to Arthur’s hostility.

“Alpha Rex,” Daphne cut in, gently, drawing his attention. “It was your pack’s negligence that led to the prisoner’s escape. Arthur and I are used to... living in an unsafe environment, so we’re hypervigilant… Arthur was just trying to protect me! I'm sorry he hurt your people...”

Rex relaxed a little and nodded, “I will hold the dungeon guards accountable, and I'm sorry to have caused you trouble, Daphne.”

Daphne felt a bit of relief that she had diffused the situation, “We also want to find a place where we can live safely. It's dangerous in the forest, so I hope you'll allow us to stay for at least a while…”

“We pack could take you in, but…” he glanced at Arthur who had not lost any of his hostility.

“He’s…” Daphne smiled, nervously and stroked Arthur’s head, “I'll watch him! I promise!”

Rex chuckled, “You're only a human, and even if you are his mate, I can’t trust that you have enough control over him to avoid further injuries.”

Daphne winced, “I… Well—“

“You understand that I must think of my pack first?”

“Of course,” Daphne said stiffly. “But… I can… is there nothing?”

He smiled at her, “I admire your tenacity… I have a condition if you're interested.”

“Tell us,” Daphne said.

Rex looked at Arthur, “I want Arthur to join our patrol and work for our pack.”