His Sacrifice

HARPER

“We’ve been searching all night, there are traces of the human boy, though faint, his scent is strong, as if he knows to leave an imprint for us to follow.”

“Not good enough, we need him home now.” Spencer slammed his fists down on the desk. Clearly, he was losing it completely.

“I think it might be a trap, they are making us follow the trail, leading us into their clutches, think about this logically, son. How would an eight-year-old know to leave behind hints?” Fitz pointed out.

“He’s smart, that’s how,” Spence snapped, “Alpha, I need to be out there, looking—”

“Al?” I suddenly piped up in realization, “he’s Al, isn’t he?”

They all furrowed their brows in confusion but Spencer just slowly nodded as I scoffed, shaking my head in disapproval of another thing he had lied about.

I had been sitting in Chad’s office for over three hours as they sifted through the information, trying to narrow down possible locations and the best ways to tackle their hurdles.

It was exhausting. What I found really interesting was that this is my bosses’ home or packhouse and he—he was the alpha, the one who controlled them all.

Weird because, he didn’t seem scary or intimidating, actually up until this point I thought him to be a lovely person and a great boss, but now I kind of hate them all.

It’s not their fault, I didn’t hate them for being wolves or that they were being hunted—that shit was entirely crazy considering their gentle natures.

I hated them because my son was the victim in a battle that he didn’t belong in and I just wanted him home.

Spencer’s temper was at boiling point and the need for blood hung thickly in the air.

I knew why, I finally understood why, and it was comforting knowing that he would go to the ends of the earth to see that Levi is returned, even if he was partly to blame for Levi’s kidnapping.

I had sat there and not said a word for so long, just observing the scene, listening in on every word spoken.

I watched as wolves morphed to humans and then back again as the snippets of details trickled in.

It did seem as though everyone was trying their best to find Leivon and I appreciated it, even if I couldn’t tell them.

Spencer flopped down beside me running his fingers through his disheveled hair. “Fuck, they are all idiots. Don’t worry I will find him, I promise.”

I just stared at him. I know he is trying his best but his temper was doing nothing to help the situation.

Spencer needed comfort, he tried to hold my hand but before we could connect, I pulled my arms up and folded them across my chest.

Last night I had given in but at the end of the day, Levi wasn’t here and all I wanted was him back in my arms, I didn’t feel much like comforting him.

The hurt that flashed across his face was undeniable, I had crushed him.

My eyes burned and were still puffy from the hours of pouring sadness, misery, utter despair.

They felt like sandpaper every time I blinked, and even rubbing them didn’t alleviate the roughness. What I couldn’t understand was, what did they hope to gain from swiping an innocent eight-year-old?

He knew nothing, so he could tell them nothing. He was too small to use.

Well, some men and women are sick, sadistic, putrid, deviant assholes, but if I went down that path of imagery for what they could do to my son, I would never come out of that black hole.

No, my emotions and mind were already scattered. I must keep some form of sanity.

We knew they were still in the area.

We knew that they were shifting around the borders of town, as if taunting us, leaving behind droplets of Levi’s scent, a piece of shirt, his urine, even one wolf reporting fecal matter.

I actually found it quite humorous to think that if someone asked that particular wolf how his day was, that he would reply with “today I found some poop.”

I snorted at my own terrible joke, gaining the attention of the room, and I cleared my throat, embarrassed and ashamed by my sudden outburst.

I knew it had to be them as Leivon wouldn’t have known to do that. Fitz was right, but I also knew Levi did not shit unless he was comfortable, which only meant one of two things.

“So...” Even though my voice was barely above a faint whisper, it certainly made everyone snap shut the moment it opened my mouth.

“Our son will hold on until he’s constipated if he has to when he is uncomfortable with his surroundings. Not that I’m denying your claim that the poop was his, but if it really is Leivon’s, then he’s not scared.”

“What are you saying, Harper?” Mr. Johnson questioned.

“I’m saying, he either knows who has him or he’s made a friend.”

They all just gawked at me with their mouths agape, clearly, none of them had even contemplated either of those twists.

Men, sometimes they could be downright irritating. I stood up and wandered over towards the maps, their eyeballs following my every movement.

I leaned over the table and noticed there were several locations marked on the map, but there was only one that sat in the middle of them all.

From the looks of things, it was surrounded by thick bushland—good for concealment—a water supply, yet direct access in and out.

Not to mention the bunkers that provided a convenient shelter for their team, as it used to be a retreat.

“So I’m done sitting around.” I pointed my finger to the center of the circled spots.

“This is where I’m looking, if you need me, this is where I will be first, then here, then here…” I moved my finger around the map to each circled location.

“Harper,” Spencer ran his hand down my arm, “that’s where we were going to start looking but we need a plan of attack. The bullets they have crafted are made of mercury, or in more common terms, quicksilver. As the bullet enters the flesh, it shatters into fragments and basically explodes the wolf from the inside out.”

I could see the concern written as though in permanent ink across his face, he was fearful. “Jerica is now dead because of it.”

“And for that, I am so truly sorry, I am. I didn’t know her. It may have been nice to actually get to know these wolf people you are involved with, Spencer, and now it’s too late. Someone has died trying to get back Leivon. But this is where I am going. I am done waiting for you.”

I know you all want to be prepared. I know you want as many lives to come home as possible. I’ve heard everything you’ve said. Now, my mourning is over and I am one pissed off fucking mother whose innocent child was taken. You either get out of my way, or I will find one of those mercury bullets and shoot you with it myself.”

My tone kept calm, but I was anything but calm inside.

Spencer mulled over my words. I could see his resistance at my fierce determination. “Then you’re going to need this.”

He leaned over and collected something from behind Mr. Johnson, depositing it into my hands.

I looked down in morbid curiosity, compelled by the substance in my palms. He had handed me a leash and a collar. This broke my rigid stance.

“What is this for?”

“I’m going with you. This will be around my neck. You’re going to sacrifice me in exchange for Levi’s life.”

“Son, no!” Sheriff Fitz cried out in fear, but Spencer silenced him with a wave of dismissal.

“I told you I would fix this. I told you that you had to trust me. Do you trust me, sweet cheeks?”

I blinked at him, trying to understand what the hell he was forming in that head of his. “Explicitly.”

“Good, then go eat, have a nap, and tonight, we will exchange my life for his.”

I hesitated for a moment. Did he really expect me to just hand him over?

The confliction on my face was obvious; a blind person could see how I was struggling with his answer and reckless plan.

“Harper, do you remember when I told you about ‘the one’, about how I believed in the one soul mate?”

“Y-yes.”

“Well, that’s because it’s true. Our kind are destined for one true mate, a soul perfectly created for them. Do you remember what it felt like the first time we saw each other? The first time we touched, kissed, the way I just couldn’t stay away from you? The way you couldn’t stop yourself wanting me?”

I nodded.

“That’s what we call a mate bond. It’s our way of recognizing our mate. Do you remember saying that you didn’t know how, but you could feel what I was feeling?”

“Yes,” I whispered.

“All of that is because our bond to one another is strong. We are connected to each other. Your pain is my pain, your heart beats in time with mine, and your son is my son. We are not fully bound together, so that means if I die, you live on and so does Levi.”

“Son, please?” Patty wailed from somewhere in the room.

“What do you mean, not fully bound?”

“When a wolf finds their mate, they bite them in their erogenous zone,” he lifts his finger, gliding it gently along the curve of my neck, right to where the trapezius muscle is located, and I involuntarily moaned at the pleasing sensation.

“There, that is where we mark, it’s a mark that can be seen by other wolves but it also imprints my scent into you, so other males know you are mine. When you are marked, our bond solidifies, our hearts become one, no other female or male will ever have a chance at gaining our affection for the rest of our lives, even in death.

“I will fight with everything I am to get back to you, but if something goes wrong, you and Levi will have a chance at a life of happiness and love because we are not fully bound and that’s all I care about. Once you have him, you need to run, take him and run as far away from here as you can get, change your names, change your hair colors, and live, just live.

You will be unable to forgive me if something were to happen to him, mate bond or not. I wouldn’t be able to survive knowing you had lost the one thing you live for, so when the time comes, you will act as if you hate me for putting you in this position. The more convinced they are, the easier the trade-off will be. You said you trust me explicitly. They want a wolf, then we will give them one.”

My heart pounded in my ears, clenching tightly as everyone fell from view and all I could see was him in front of me.

Spencer closed the gap between us, his hand cupping my cheek, and the pad of his thumb collected the tears I didn’t know had fallen.

I sniffed, suddenly feeling the weight of what he was sacrificing for his family, us, me, and Levi. “Don’t cry, sweet cheeks, it hurts to see you hurt.”

The leash fell from my hands the moment his lips pushed against mine.

I was well prepared for a lone ranger, kamikaze, mom hell-bent on vengeance type of mission, but now, this wolf, this beast, my mate and the true love of my life was sacrificing his life for us.

He kept himself from completing the mate bond so I have the option to live another life if I needed to.

I slipped my arms around his shoulders, holding him close, deepening our kiss so he knew exactly how I felt, how much this meant to me, how I could never love another the way I love him.

The burn in my lungs signified it was time to come up for air. We had only just found each other and now we were being torn apart.

How is any of this fair? “I love you, Spencer, I love you so much.”

“I know you do, I love you. After tonight, everything is going to be just as it should be. Now go, you need your strength, eat, sleep and then once darkness falls, we will get Leivon back.”

There was still hesitation and conflict as I stayed rooted to the floor of Mr. Johnson’s office. “Explicitly, sweet cheeks, you said you trust me explicitly, I can’t do this without you.”

I nodded and forced myself with every ounce of strength I had left, to move out of the room.

Life was a cunt, the worst kind. Yes, if we were correct and that was indeed them and their hideout, then tonight would mean I would be forced with a choice. Either way, I would lose someone I loved.

I slowly and dejectedly dragged my feet back to the room, in this pack house, where I was currently housed, feeling the weight of everything tunneling into my chest.

There was no empathy, only burdened horror at what we were facing.

The risk he was undertaking, the repercussions should we fail, all with monumental and drastic consequences. I would not allow either of my greatest loves to die.

There was just one thing to do and only one person I could rely on…

Uncle Clade.