Chapter Twelve

Kane stepped towards the door, confidence in his movements. He felt an overwhelming sense of purpose. He noticed instantly that Adam was not following him. He turned. "What's wrong?"

"I have to tell Violet where I'm going," Adam said as if Kane should have read his mind, and perhaps he should have.

Kane, once again, cursed his one-track mind for forgetting about Nora so easily. She would go crazy if he just ran out into the likely rouge infested streets without even a goodbye or explanation. He tried to make excuses for why he hadn't leant a thought to her. Perhaps it was the stress of the situation or perchance he knew that she would be safe either way. Those, nonetheless, were just excuses. In all honestly, he didn't understand how his mate seemed to slip his mind when his world was supposed to revolve around her.

He followed Adam, leaving an invisible trail of confusion in his wake. Nora and Violet were standing together against the wall, quiet words being exchanged. They both turned as they walked into the room.

"You're going out there, aren't you?" Violet asked. She was scared. Adam nodded. He wrapped her in a hug and for a moment, when both of their eyes were closed, Kane wondered if they were somehow speaking telepathically. Violet's expression was different when she stepped back. Kane thought he would hear pain in her voice, but instead it was pride. "Go protect the pack. I'll look after everyone here. Don't worry about us."

"Thank you," Adam whispered.

Kane was in awe, but he shouldn't have been. Those two, like so many of the mates he knew, just knew exactly what the other needed. Adam needed her to be strong, so that he could go save the pack and not be worrying about his mate back here. Violet needed strength, and their bond gave her just that. They were perfect together. They fit like a glove, and why did that spark a tiny flicker of anger in the back of Kane's mind?

"Do you have to go, Kane?" he heard Nora whisper.

Kane looked over at her. She was standing there with her hands linked, her fingers dancing in front of her. Those big eyes of hers were watery and she was blinking back a waterfall. He wanted to help her, but he didn't know what she needed. He didn't know what to say that would make her feel empowered or safe, or anything in between. He wondered if she needed love. In that moment, when she was scared and felt alone, she probably needed to know that she was loved, right? But was she? Kane didn't like thinking about that. She was liked, but that wasn't the same thing. Would it be enough?

"Yes," he said. Kane stepped closer and kept her gaze. "I will be back soon. I promise."

Nora shook her head. "You don't know that."

Kane glanced at Adam, but he was speaking with Violet. Kane looked at his mate and watched as a single tear ran down her cheek. "I know what I'm doing, Nora. You'll be safe here. I have to go protect the pack."

Nora nodded hesitantly. "Just come back, please."

Kane kissed her. It was their first kiss. It was quick and sudden. Their lips pressed together and Kane felt the sparks of their bond through their touch. He could feel the mate bond so much clearer through the kiss, almost like some of those crossed wires were able to cross back just for the moment. In that half of a second, everything seemed okay. When he leant back, he saw that Nora felt the same. There weren't tears in her eyes anymore, now there was happiness.

Nora was happy. His action had made her happy. He gave himself a metaphorical pat on the back. He had finally been able to give her what she needed. Perhaps their bond wasn't as broken as he had believed.

"I'm coming with you."

Kane spun around, facing the person who spoke. It was Mason who stood there, standing tall with his chin high.

Amelia stood too. She shook her head at him. "Mason, it's not safe for you out there."

"I'm going," he said. He didn't even look at her.

Adam stepped towards him. "I don't know who you are, but you aren't a part of this pack. This is our business."

Mason stepped closer to Adam. He was adamant. "I'm in this pack now. I'm coming with you."

The room went deathly silent. This boy had just challenged an Alpha. Everyone's eyes were on Adam, waiting for his next move. Adam wasn't a fighter, but he was an Alpha. Adam moved so that he was right in Mason's face. He spoke slowly with a clarity that was hard to mistake as anything other than an order. "I don't know what suicide mission you're planning on going on, but if you truly are a member of this pack then stay here and let us handle the rest."

Kane sighed. They didn't have time for this. There were people in danger and instead Mason and Adam were comparing dick sizes. "Come on," he said to Adam. "Let's go."

Adam walked away from Mason. Kane went to follow him but something told him to stop. He looked at Mason and was confused by what he saw. Mason looked guilty. Kane didn't know what that meant, but something in his gut worried that Mason might do something stupid. He moved so that he was closer to Mason.

"Listen to Adam," he whispered. There was a desperation to his words that he wasn't expecting.

He anticipated that Mason would disagree, but instead he nodded slowly. Kane didn't have time to figure out what was going on with his newfound friend. Instead, he sent Mason a quick thankyou nod and chased after Adam.

Adam's strides were long and purposeful as he walked out the front of the house. Kane followed behind quickly until they were side by side. Kane glanced around them, his eyes and ears searching for clues as to where everyone was. There was nothing was out of the ordinary. The town was eerily silent. The street was empty, save for the cars of the party patrons inside. The streets were dark around them, and suddenly every shadow was suspicious.

"Do you hear anything?" Kane asked.

Adam shook his head. "Maybe the rogues are still in the woods?"

"Why though?" he asked.

Kane didn't understand, if the rogues were attacking there should be noises, screams for help. If the rogues were still in the woods, then what were they doing? It had been at least fifteen minutes since they had gotten past the wall, more than enough time to reach the town.

"I don't know. We need to find our fathers or the response team."

"Do you think Phil will even let us help?" Kane wondered suddenly. Phil, the head of the response team, was very strict on following orders.

"I don't know," Adam responded after a few seconds, "but this is possibly the biggest rouge attack we've ever had, he can't exactly say no in a time like this."

"I'll try to call my father, at least then we can get clearance to help, in the meantime let's just head towards town centre." Kane brought his phone out. He started to dial his father's number but something in his peripheral vision stopped him. His eyes shot up and he looked at one of the houses to his side. He could have sworn that he saw something move in the darkness. "Over there," Kane whispered to Adam. He pointed to the side of the house.

The boys moved quickly towards the house, keeping close to the side. There were lights on in the house, but the blinds had been pulled. They walked around the side, towards the back yard. Kane kept his footsteps light. He knew that he had been right a few seconds later when the distinct smell of another wolf floated his way. He stood against the corner of the wall, Adam close to his side, and peered around the bricks.

In the dark, Kane could make out a large, dark brown wolf which stood at the back of the house, facing away from them. The wolf seemed to be walking along the line of the house, his big head facing the windows. It appeared that the family had forgotten to close one of the blinds. The wolf stopped when he reached the window and pressed his face closer to the glass, looking inside. Kane felt Adam leaning around him to see as well.

Kane didn't understand what this wolf was doing. Everything he had learnt in school said that rogues attacked in numbers. One lone wolf, walking around a house, wasn't exactly what he had expected. Perhaps this one was cocky. Perhaps he had a death wish. In that moment, Kane didn't really care either way.

"Transform," Adam whispered.

Kane looked to Adam, to be sure that was the right move, but Adam's eyes were firm on the creature. Kane felt his heart rate pick up. He had never fought a rouge before in his life. The pack had only experienced a few attacks in his whole lifetime, and all of those times he was tucked safely away in his house or at school. All those times, he had imagined moments like this. He had sat under his desk, thinking of he and Adam, side by side, fighting off rogues. In his mind, it had seemed so glamorous. He had moved with confidence and strength, and after one swift punch the wolf would go down and the town would cheer behind him in the background.

This wasn't like that. This was life or death. Either he and Adam stopped this wolf, or whoever was in this house was going to be in serious danger. Kane took a deep breath and prepared his muscles for a fight. This wolf chose the wrong pack to mess with, he thought. The pack wasn't going down without a fight.