Parker

"You can't win this. You are not ready. But you will be."

"Who are you?" I ask, "And how do I get ready?"

"You will know."

I open my eyes as light assaults my eyelids. My body is on fire. I can vaguely remember seeing the world in flames. It feels like a nightmare. I remember seeing destruction. It had to be a nightmare.

As I lay in bed, I begin to remember last night.

I've had sex before but last night put everyone to shame. I remember every scorching touch and every radiating sensation. I remember the feel of his fingertips against every inch of my body. I remember his tongue sliding across my skin. The feeling of his fangs brushing against my mark sends a familiar shiver down my body.

I'm not surprised to see Kohl gone. I'm disappointed but not surprised. While I expect to be first priority this one time, I understand. I roll out of bed and head into the bathroom. I feel that I should at least brush my teeth as werewolves tend to have sensitive smell.

I notice that my mark is glowing slightly. It is searing hot to the touch. I write it off as a reaction to last night. When I'm satisfied, I head downstairs and into the kitchen area. As I enter, I see that Gaius, Jasar, Cassie and Nadira are discussing something. I enter the room and they realize immediately. Their eyes land on me.

"What?" I ask.

"You mated." Cassie says with enthusiasm, "I want to hear details but I also don't want to hear details. I'm conflicted."

"Cassie!" Gaius grumbles.

Jasar clears his throat, "Please discuss it at a later time." He says awkwardly.

"How did you know I mated?" I ask. I look around and realize I've underestimated the power of their werewolf powers. I groan before addressing them, "Okay, now that this has gotten sufficiently awkward, anyone mind telling me where Kohl is? I'm not really accustomed to being ditched after I f—um, mate."

The four of them look slightly pained before I see a look of confusion strike Cassie's face. A blaring alarm goes off in my head. I can't be the only one with this feeling.

"Kohl's not with you?" Cassie asks. I shake my head and her eyes find Gaius, "Dad..."

"Let's not jump to conclusions." Gaius says calmly. His eyes center on me, "How long has he been gone?"

"Well, he was there before I went to sleep."

"Clearly." Jasar says with a chortle. Everyone glares at him and he coughs, "I'm sorry."

"What's going on?" I demand. The four of them seem skittish and I'm not in the mood for werewolf weirdness nor secrecy.

"McKennon has escaped." Gaius confesses. I feel nervous and sick at the same time. I begin to imagine every awful implication and Gaius realizes this. I open my mouth to speak and he holds up his hand, "We don't know anything yet."

"You're not joking? This would be a very sick joke." I say looking around at them, "How could McKennon escape? I've seen his holding cell and it's secure. It's like a metal fetish exploded down there."

"We believe someone helped him." Jasar explains, "The guards say that they felt tired all of a sudden. They don't remember a struggle. There wasn't sign of a struggle."

"Now can I worry?" I ask.

"I'd vote yes but I'm not the Alpha." Cassie says with a frown.

"What do we do now? Where would he go?"

"We have no idea." Jasar says causing Nadira to elbow him. Jasar sputters out, "Sorry."

"We do not know where McKennon would go. We need to convene and see if anyone saw anything odd, even outside the pack." Gaius explicates, "I've already reached out to other packs."

I nod. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jasar swallow a lump in his throat. I begin to wonder why he seems so odd now. For some reason, I begin to search my mind for a reasonable explanation. My mind flashes back to yesterday in the woods. I remember Jasar and Kohl's weird behavior.

Jasar excuses himself and leaves the room. I watch him leave and leave right behind him. I walk behind him and as he turns to me, I reach out and slam my elbow against his throat to pin him against the wall. I hear footsteps behind me as I add pressure to my elbow.

"What did you see?" I ask angrily.

"Parker!" Gaius shouts, "What are you doing?!"

I stare at Jasar, "He knows something. Jasar and Kohl smelled something in the woods. Do tell."

"We smelled woods."

I add pressure. Jasar struggles before I pull back slightly.

"I'm telling the truth! It was woods but it wasn't the normal smell of the woods. It smelled like pure nature. I don't know how to explain it." Jasar chokes.

"What does that even mean?" Cassie asks.

"It means," Gaius says calling my attention, "that we have a bigger issue."

"And that would be?" I ask.

"Fae." Gaius says, "A woman, Ania, lives in the woods. She was known to be eccentric and considered herself fae. It would line up with the woman Mckennon joined. She would smell of woods."

I stare at him before I put all of the information together. It makes sense now. The smell was 'pure nature'. What are the Fae but beings of pure nature. The Fae are creatures of the forest at its purest. A Fae was here. I don't care, to be honest. I care about Kohl.

I pull away from Jasar and find myself staring at the floor. Ania has Kohl and she's working with Mckennon. I don't know Ania's agenda but I do know Mckennon's. He's more than hurt by his family and, from what I've seen, he wants revenge. I can't let either one of them hurt Kohl.

"Ania?" Nadira asks, "How—"

"McKennon knew about Parker when he saw him. Don't you remember him saying that?" Cassie asks Gaius. He nods and Cassie takes a deep breath, "How do we even find her?"

"Parker," Gaius says catching my attention, "You are mated to him now. Your connection can lead us to him. To them."

"How?"

"I know a woman. I will call her." Nadira pipes in.

"What kind of a woman?" Jasar asks.

"A witch." Gaius answers before nodding to Nadira, "Call her."

Nadira nods and marches out of the room, leaving me alone with Gaius, Jasar and Cassandra. The three of them watch me carefully. I feel like just when I have a grasp on one thing, something else comes to remind me that there are things I still don't know or understand.

A witch?

This is going to get very interesting.

Parker

I've been trying to calm myself for the past hour. Gaius' reassurances aren't going very far with me today. I can see he's worried. He's stoic, like usual, but he's doesn't fool me. Ania came onto pack land and took the Alpha right from under our noses. I don't know a lot about the Fae but that doesn't instill faith in me.

How utterly ridiculous is it that a glorified wood nymph can come into a land full of werewolves and take one of the most powerful of their kind. It's insulting to say the very least. The pack could be harmed by this. It's terrifying.

I watch from the window as a strawberry-colored roadster drives up the gravel road. I can see the car come to a stop and a man with shoulder-length brown hair push himself out of the car. I watch with curiosity as he Nadira walks over and embraces the man.

This is clearly not the woman they spoke of.

The man, in addition to his shoulder length hair, seems unkempt but not dirty. I take it he tries to make himself look as casual as possible. I'd say normal. The rub is that he is anything but normal. I can see an aura around him. I also realize that he seems smarmy, even from the second story.

I watch as Gaius shakes his hand. The two of them are speaking when he stops in his tracks and stares up at the window. Nadira and Gaius do the same. I move away from the window and turn to see Akari standing at the door with piece of lettuce hanging out of his mouth. He quickly chews the lettuce before taking another bite of his sandwich.

I stare at him as he swallows the large bite.

"They want me to bring you down." Akira says with a simple tone.

I watch as he turns and walks out of the room. I bound after him, jogging to keep up with him. I realize he's very calm for a werewolf. If I'm being honest, he's calm for anyone, especially in these circumstances.

"You don't seem worried." I say as we head for the stairs. He doesn't speak and I push myself in front of him, "Hey, I'm your—alpha? Do I have to say that?"

"I could call you 'sequel'. That's ridiculous."

"What's your problem?" I ask.

"Well," Akira says as he finishes the sandwich, "For starters, you brought all of this crap to our front door. And then you got our actual Alpha taken. AND then, you mock our way of life. The Sequel. That's absolutely stupid."

The two of us stare at each other, both impassive. I know he's right but I'm not letting him get to me. I've mocked their culture at every turn. I'd hate if they mocked mine. It would probably be called racist, if they did. There's only one thing I don't agree with. I didn't ask to come here. They took me from my home.

It was kidnapping...except that I went with them willingly.

"Forgive me," He says moving past me, "Sequel."

I roll my eyes and follow him downstairs. As we're descending the stairs, the front door opens and the trio enter. Akira stops at the foot of the stairs while I stop in place. The Man and I stare at each other. There is something familiar about him.

"Oy! That's him, right?" The Man says with wonder. He moves towards the stairs and I instinctively flinch. He notices and holds his hands up, "I'm not going to harm you. Doubt I could if I wanted. You're a bit smaller than I thought but bollocks."

"So, you're British?"

"What's that accent? Texas? I've only read about it. Is it true that you still ride carriages?"

"Texas? You wound me." I am amused by him. He seems personable enough but he doesn't seem fazed by me. The others watch carefully as I descend the stairs completely. I come to a stop in front of him before tilting my head.

"My but you are forward." He says extending his hand to me, "I'm Faust. Felix."

"Felix Faust? The Felix Faust?" I say as I look to Nadira. Her expression tells me everything I need to know and I turn my attention back to him, "Right, so you're here to help me find Kohl."

"A missing Alpha? I live to serve." Faust says with a gesture of his hand. Sparks fly between his hands as a smile appears on his face, "A little something for the tourists."

"If we're done with the light show, maybe we can find my son." Gaius says as he moves past us heading towards his office.

The four of us stare at each other before following him; Nadira and Akira follow immediately while I continue to stare at Faust. I'm no stranger to his legend. I am wary because of his legend.

He's entertaining but he's definitely got a dangerous air to him. He bows and gestures towards the direction everyone headed off to. I ignore the gestures as they almost seem unnecessary. I follow the rest of the crowd to the office.

When the two of us arrive, Akira is gone leaving only Nadira and Gaius. I walk over and stand beside Gaius. Faust continues to stare at us.

"Not intimidating at all. Two werewolves and a demi-god." His eyes linger on me, "Which, by the way, is incredibly disarming. I've rarely met a real-life God."

"Rarely?"

"Long story. Puerto Rico. Remind me to tell you." He says off-handedly, "I need a few things."

"Candles, salt and a map." Nadira says gesturing to a table in the corner. Faust raises an eyebrow with approval. Nadira sighs, "Faust, we are running out of time."

"Funny. Have you seen the world outside of this 'lovely' swamp."

"This isn't a swamp."

"You sure? Feels a bit swampy to me." Faust says with a shrug. I watch as he moves to the table and runs his hands over six candles, causing all of them to light. He spreads out the map and picks up the salt, "Ah, I see. Tell me Hunter, have you ever cast a spell?"

"Why would I cast a spell? And did you just call me Hunter?"

Faust turns to me. His head tilts and his eyes narrow on me. His eyebrow raises again but not at me. His focus is purely on Nadira and Gaius. The two appear stone-faced as usual. I knew they were keeping things from me but this seems a little bigger than that.

"Tell me, what have they told you about your status?" Faust asks.

"I'm a Demi-God. I can stop what's going on out there."

"What about why you're able to do this? How you're strong enough?" He asks. I'm silent and he chuckles, "Of course. If you knew, really knew, you'd leave. They can't have you leaving. After all, what would they do without their Alpha? Second Alpha. How does this work again?"

"Faust!" Nadira warns, "We didn't bring you here to dig up trouble."

"We're going to talk after this is over." I say to Faust, "Until then, find Kohl."

Faust laughs, "Bollocks. I've lived a long time but that command was intriguing. Tell me, did you feel anger? How did it feel?" He asks.

"Point?"

"There isn't one." Nadira says angrily, "Faust, find him now!"

"Fine." Faust says turning back to the map, "Wouldn't wan' the lad to know the truth, would we?"

"Okay, enough of your vague conversation. Kohl is missing. Like, gone, missing."

"Ya see, this kid gets it." Faust laughs, "Ever thought of becoming a scientist? Your comprehension of how events occur is—"

"Also, sarcasm will probably make me punch you in the dick."

"How many times and how fast?"

Gaius growls at him and it startles Nadira and I but not Faust. The two of them engage in a stare-off and it makes me a bit confused. I've never seen anyone challenge Gaius let alone get under his skin. If I didn't respect Gaius so much, it would be entertaining.

I'm not really in the mood for the veiled comments and misdirection. Kohl is still missing and my afterglow is wearing off. I take a deep breath before glancing between them. I feel completely annoyed by every single word any of them says.

"I'm only going to say this once: I don't give two shits about what's going on here. I want to find Kohl."

The three of them stare at me. They seem surprised and I can barely contain the anger in myself. Faust seems to take this as the last chance he has and turns to the map. He mumbles something I barely hear, though the two werewolves clearly do. The two neglect to look directly at me.

Faust pulls a small pouch from his jacket and sprinkles dust from the pouch over the map. Small pieces of sand swirl over the map as they all converge on a central place. I walk over and look down at the map. They're at the clearing.

"Right. You do know you could have done this yourself, yeah?" Faust asks as he raises his eyebrows, "But that would entail you knowing what you are. So, you really don't know?"

"I really don't care at the moment."

"You're a little terrifying, you know. I like a little terrifying." Gaius growls at the comment Faust rolls his eyes, "Father-in-law doesn't like it. Just harmless flirting."

"You're out of your league."

"You have got to be my favorite person in this room." He says looking towards the others, "Shall we go and get the kid?"

"I hope the kid rips your throat out when we find him." I say as I turn and head out of the door.

I have a lot on my mind but nothing is as prevalent as Kohl at the moment. I do find Faust to be refreshingly honest with me. I mentally remind myself that I have questions that the wolves need to answer.

Parker

I run to the clearing, followed closely by Gaius, Faust, Nadira and Akira. As we get closer, I see a body laying face up. I stop in my tracks, causing the others to do so as well. Gaius calls out to his son but I'm stuck.

The sight of Kohl's lifeless body laying in the clearing is enough to make me shrivel. I'm not a guy who shrivels over another guy. I remind myself of that as I sprint to him. As I get closer, I realize he's been bloodied but he's bleeding. I immediately bend down, pulling his head into my lap.

"Kohl! Wake up. We have to get you out of here." I say softly.

"Shh!" Faust says.

"What? Don't shush me!" I bark.

"No," Gaius says looking around, "You need to be very quiet."

I almost stop breathing as I look around and notice we're surrounded by men and women, all of whom are dirty. They are rogues. They are Mckennon's rogues. I lay Kohl's head down on the grass and stand.

"What do they want and how did we not see them?" I ask.

"A spell." Faust says, "A very powerful one."

"Do you like it?" Mickey says pushing past a wall of rogues in front of us. He smirks at us, "Your Alpha is absolute shit."

"Mckennon..." Gaius begins.

"Now you know my name? I'm not some filthy rogue trash?" Mickey says with an angry amusement, "Gaius, this is the great leader you touted? The one you put above all of us? Pathetic."

"Pathetic is it taking a whole troop of rogues to down him. You definitely couldn't do it, second-string." I taunt.

"Fuck you!" Mckennon says walking towards me.

Gaius pushes himself in front of me and the other rally around us. The rogues ready themselves for a fight. I take a deep breath, preparing myself for the inevitable fight. I can't help but notice two things. Gaius and Mckennon share a stubbornness as well as a heartbreak and Kohl is losing a lot of blood.

"Father, I can go through you. I will go through you." Mckennon growls.

"Now, now," A woman with fiery red hair says as she walks over to stand beside Mckennon. She puts her hand on his shoulder and he softens, "We do not wish to fight, not on this day. We only want to talk."

"Well, Ania, it's been too long...or not long enough." Faust says.

"You know Ania?" Akira asks.

Faust shrugs, "I've been around a long time. Know a lot of fae."

"Ah, Faust! You've come to help out the Alpha-less pack? It is a pity."

"It's not an Alpha-less pack." I say as I step in front of Gaius, "It has two Alphas."

Ania's eyes light with recognition. She seems impressed. I wondered what she'd look like. She's beautiful. She is also in command of the wolves gathered around us. The rogues want to see nothing less than our deaths. I suppose she's the one preventing that.

"So gallant! You are beautiful." Ania says, "You know who I am?"

"You took my mate. I'm sure I don't give two shits about anything other than that."

"Easy, killer. She's the queen of the Fae." Faust whispers.

"Again, you took my mate and maimed him. The only reason your face isn't under my fist is because you're a woman. Also, there's a lot of wolves here. Mostly that."

"Do not be afraid. You are free to go." Ania says.

"What?" Mckennon asks, "That wasn't—"

"I needed to show you and your pack that you are nothing. Your strongest wolf is nothing to me. I have ruled over these woods for centuries. I helped create you all of you." Ania says with an ethereal tone, "I can break you."

"You can try."

"And so I will." Ania says turning away from us, "We must go."

I watch as the wolves break rank and leave with her. I feel as if I've been holding my breath. I turn back to Gaius and nod to Kohl. He quickly picks Kohl up from the ground and begins back to the Pack House. I stare on after the rogues.

Ania is not the least bit afraid of the wolves, specifically this pack. She wants something and I am not sure of what. One thing is certain.

She didn't go for the kill.

Parker

I wait outside of the infirmary room as the pack doctors work on Kohl. From what they've told us, his injuries would have killed a regular wolf. In the short time he was with them, he was brutalized.

I'm not worried.

Kohl is a fighter. He's stronger than me and the other wolves. It's the reason he's the Alpha.

Seeing him near death causes me to realize I'm in love with him. As irrational as it is to know him for weeks and have this attachment to him, it happened. I can't say that I understand it but I understand that it's not meant to be understood.

"You okay?" Gaius asks as he comes to stand next to me.

I look over at him. His clothes are bloody from carrying his son. It's hard to look at.

"You were strong back there. You didn't back down." Gaius says with a nod, "I'm impressed."

I snort, "Thanks."

"The pack should be proud."

"The pack?" I ask looking forward, "What am I?"

Gaius is silent. He stares forward. I can hear him formulating the options in his head. I know that he's hiding something and it is a big secret. I know that a fae centuries older than me recognized me, as did Faust. I find it alarming to say the least.

"If you're planning on lying to me, I need you to rethink it."

"The truth is, we don't know." Gaius says softly, "We have no clue what you originally were."

"Originally?" I ask.

"You are the reincarnation of the one who created us. You were the progenitor of your own existence." Gaius says, "Ania knew you because you two knew each other in another life."

I look to him, "What does that even mean?"

"It means that, in another life, you were a God. When you died, your soul was reincarnated into the body of your descendant. You are a demi-God." Gaius explains, "And my son was the first wolf."

"Reincarnated?"

"Yes." Gaius nods, "It wasn't by chance that you two were bonded. The Moon Goddess tethered your souls but fate created your love."

"My love...is fighting for his life right now." I say softly, "Were you ever going to tell me or were you going to let me be your Alpha in ignorance?"

"Luna. But you were always going to figure it out."

"Not good enough, Gaius."

"All I can say is that I'm sorry. I apologize. It put you as well as the pack in danger." Gaius frowns.

I'm about to respond when the doors open and an older portly man comes out flanked by the woman I saw when Grey threw a tantrum. The man has a bushy mustache to match his rather bushy eyebrows. His hairline extends back, showing nothing but his scalp.

I stare at him as he comes to stop at us.

"Doctor Pavius, is my son alright?" Gaius asks.

"Yes. He will heal but he is in terrible condition. Even with his wolf healing, he's still going to be in pain for a while."

"No, he won't." Gaius says turning to me, "Go to him. You can heal him."

"Even then—"

"He can do it." Gaius says forcefully, "Go now!"

I nod to him and pass them. I walk into the infirmary to see Kohl, bandaged around his chest and over half of his skull, laying on a cot. I walk over and stand next to him, looking down at him. I've never experienced something like this. I've never had someone I was in love with be in this situation.

"Am I that ugly?" Kohl's raspy voice asks.

I chuckle as I bend down to eye level, "I have a think for mortally wounded guys. A real turn on." I say softly.

"The pack...they must—"

"Screw them for a second, okay? I only care about you." I say as I reach out and grab his hand, "I'm not sure how this works."

"What are you doing?" He asks.

"Healing you." I say closing my eyes, "Is it happening."

Kohl chortles before falling into a coughing fit. I sigh as I open my eyes. I think of every possibility in my head. I touch every exposed part of his body I can think of with nothing but thoughts of him being healed again. It quickly occurs to me that nothing would heal him without intention. I need to not only want it but intend for it to be.

I place my hand over his heart.

"Ow! What are you doing?" Kohl asks.

"I love you." I say quietly.

Kohl's eye widens, "You love me?"

"Don't make me repeat it."

"I mean, I may need to hear it."

"Really?"

"I don't know, feeling kinda dead. I think I'm fading."

I notice that his voice is growing stronger. I watch as his wounds begin to heal in front of me. I press his heart again, causing him to groan.

"I love you." I say again.

"I love you, too." Kohl says as he sits up. He winces slight before staring at me, "That stings."

"Enjoy it. You only get two of those a day. Looks like you'll be healing all on your own, sparky."

"No more touching?"

"Sorry, no. Not until you heal." I say as I sit beside him on the cot, "Next time you go into the woods, take someone with you."

"Are you commanding me to do so?"

"You bet your werewolf ass."