Takeover

JAMES

“Well, thank you, Alpha Alistair. This all seems to be in order. My wolves are ready to take over the administration of your old pack and ensure its smooth integration with the Silver Fang Pack.”

The old man sighs and nods his agreement.

I feel a twinge of pity for him, but it doesn’t last long. He hasn’t run this pack like an alpha should in a long time. The pack is weak and has been hemorrhaging wolves for the last ten years.

They haven’t maintained their borders and have suffered for it with increased rogue attacks. Not to mention their stupidity in tolerating rogues and allowing them to attend the local university.

Merging with my pack will stop this.

I’ve brought in my head warrior to train their wolves and ensure they’re battle-ready. I’ll also strengthen their ranks with some of my own warriors to increase their border patrols immediately.

“Where do you plan to go?” I ask Alistair out of politeness. I want him gone, but where he goes after this isn’t my concern.

“I plan to move into the town. It’s neutral territory.”

“For the moment,” I warn him. I have plans to end that neutrality. Linton is too close to the pack’s border to remain outside of my full control.

To allow packless rogues to live there is a security risk I’m not prepared to accept. Once I’ve sorted out the merger of the packs, my next job will be to absorb the town into the pack’s territory.

He nods at me. “Well, while it is still neutral, I’ll stay there. I’ve lived here for sixty years.”

“Fine. That won’t cause me any problems.”

“What will happen to my ranking wolves? My beta is a good woman, a good beta.”

“They’re welcome to remain in the pack, but as ordinary wolves. I have no need for a new beta or gamma.”

He nods but doesn’t say anything. He knows this is as good an offer as any alpha would make when taking over a pack. Most would throw them out and force them to turn rogue.

I see no reason to do that.

As long as they keep their heads down and are willing to integrate, they will be welcome to stay. They will have the opportunity to rise in the pack hierarchy if they prove themselves.

“Right, I think we’re done here,” I say. “I’ll hand you over to my beta Chris to finalize the details.”

Chris moves forward and takes over the discussions as I walk out of the room.

I’m pleased. It’s been a successful morning. This pack will be a good addition to the Silver Fang Pack.

Their territory is big, and covered in forest; it will give my wolves the opportunity to spread out and make new homes. Now my only issue is going to be absorbing Linton into my sphere of influence.

This pack has tolerated rogues for too long, letting them live freely in Linton and attend the university.

They need to be moved on before they can cause any trouble. I’m surprised that they haven’t already; the Red Moon Pack has been lucky.

***

I take a break from pack business and go and visit my younger brother, David. He is attending university in Linton, and I’m looking forward to catching up with him.

When I arrive at David’s house, loud music is blaring, and shouting and cheering are coming from inside. I sigh.

It is what my brother does. Unlike me, he is not tied down by duty to the pack, so he can let loose and have fun.

Part of me is envious, but I know this is how it has to be. I was the one born to be the alpha, to spend my life taking care of my pack.

Inside, the hall is crowded with people standing around drinking. There is a mixture of werewolves and humans. They don’t pay me any attention as I enter. They are all drunk.

I walk through the house ignoring the drunken partygoers, determined to find my brother. I pass a group of girls who stare at me. They are all she-wolves, and they can sense I am an alpha.

I am used to the effect I have on unmated she-wolves. I am not stupid enough to think they care about me as a person, though. They are just desperate to bag an alpha.

“Alpha,” a breathy voice calls out behind me. “Alpha,” she says a little louder.

I can’t ignore her any longer, so I turn around. I recognize the blonde she-wolf as Karen, my gamma’s daughter. “Hi, Karen. I didn’t realize you went to university here.”

She looks annoyed. “I’ve been here for a year. I am in a lot of the same classes as David.”

Does she think I take any notice of what she does? With over three hundred wolves in my pack, I can’t know the ins and outs of all their lives.

Wanting to cut this conversation short, I tell her, “I’m looking for David. Do you know where he is?”

Her face brightens, and her hand brushes against my chest. “Let me take you to him. I know where he’ll be.”

She walks slowly across the room and says, “I didn’t realize you were in Linton. David didn’t mention it.”

“He doesn’t know. This is a surprise.”

She turns her head to look at me. “So, are the rumors true? Are you taking over the Red Moon Pack?”

I ignore her question. She should know better than to question her alpha about pack business.

As we walk into the kitchen, I spot my brother standing on a table surrounded by at least twenty people. He’s holding a huge jug of beer that he chugs as the crowd watches.

I sigh. As usual, David is being reckless. That glass holds five pints of beer. No human should be able to down that amount of alcohol, but for a werewolf it isn’t an issue.

If he isn’t careful, his showing off will raise the suspicions of the humans present. David isn’t thinking about the consequences of his action, too caught up in having fun.

As he finishes the drink, the crowd cheers and he turns to face them with a huge smile on his face as he soaks up their adulation.

He catches my eye and, looking surprised to see me, jumps down from the table to approach me.

I pull him into a hug and say quietly, “We need to talk, in private.”

“Let’s go outside.”

“Thank you, Karen,” I dismiss her.

She starts to protest, but David and I are already walking away.

We head toward the forest at the end of the garden. When I am sure that we can’t be overheard, I ask, “What are you doing, David? The door was open when I arrived.

“I walked in without challenge. I could have been anyone. A rogue intent on taking you down. You have to be more careful.”

“It’s cool, no rogues will attack us in Linton. It’s neutral territory.”

“This town is full of rogues; do you really trust them all not to attack you? You know what they are capable of better than anyone.”

“I don’t like them any more than you do, but the ones that live here are different. They keep to themselves, and they know better than to cause trouble.”

I snort in disbelief. “I hope so. Things are changing. The Savage Wolves Pack is mobilizing. Their alpha has claimed that he is king of the rogues.

“He’s been recruiting heavily, gathering the worst rogues into his so-called pack. They’re killers who want nothing more than to destroy the packs.”

David finally looks serious. “I hadn’t heard about that.”

“All the alphas of the packs have agreed to keep these new developments quiet for the moment. We don’t want to cause alarm. But it won’t be long before it is out in the open.”

My brother and I look at each other grimly.