The Dark Road – Part One

Title: The Dark Road
Author: Jilly James
Fandom: Teen Wolf
Genre: Drama, Paranormal
Relationship(s): Gen. Minor OFC/OMC, OMC/OMC, very vague hints of future Peter Hale/Noah Stilinski
Content Rating: R
Warnings: Canon-typical violence; Death of Minor Canon Characters; Murder; Character Bashing. References to hunters being raging bigots and committing terrible crimes, also references to atrocious canon events (Hale fire, everything Kate).
Author Notes: Please see the notes tab on Main Page.
Challenge: Written for 2020 Every Fandom Reverse Bang
Beta: Pompeiia – Thank you for the last-minute save!
Artist: Cover Art by ChestnutNOLA. Thank you for the inspiring image and for being so supportive during the process. Link to her art post on AO3. (Other art by Jilly James.)
Word Count: ~34,800
Summary: When the Hale house burned, most of his family died, and his new alpha left him for dead, one member of Peter Hale’s pack refused to leave him behind.

---

---

Part One

January 2005

The darkness of the preserve at night was no challenge to werewolf eyes, the paths familiar enough to traverse with ease. Yet the scent of smoke in the air and the noxious odor of chemicals made every well-worn trail feel unfamiliar and dangerous. The closer to her destination, the more scents she could pick out on the cold evening breeze. Wolfsbane. Rowan ash. Burned flesh.

Everything in her ached with the pain of broken pack bonds, of the loss of alpha. A new, tentative alpha bond was stirring, but it wasn’t hearty enough to keep her from feeling like she was in danger of shattering with every step she took closer to the source of the devastation.

Ensuring every movement was silent and her ears were attuned for any wayward hunters, Dorothy Miller, known as Dot to her pack, approached the tree line leading to the Hale family home. She stayed back in the shadows of the old-growth trees, eyes taking in every detail.

The fire was already extinguished but rescue personnel, police, and the county coroner were still hard at work. Body bags lined the circular drive in front of the house. Dot wanted to shift, wanted to run and howl out her pain—she should have been here tonight, should have been with her pack, but Talia had sent her to Sacramento as a petty punishment.

Dot had been over ninety minutes away when she’d felt the panic and pain flooding the pack bonds. She’d raced home, but not in time to do anything, not in time to save a single member of her pack.

She forced herself to listen to the conversations going on near the house, to obtain whatever intelligence she could from these civil servants tasked with putting out fires, removing dead bodies, and investigating the aftermath.

It took only ten minutes before she gleaned that there were only three survivors of the Hale family: Laura and Derek, who hadn’t been at home, and were presently at the sheriff’s station giving a statement; and Peter. Her darling boy had survived, though he was badly injured and had been taken to Beacon County Hospital. There were other pack members, but they were not Hale pack by blood, and they were not at the family home during the fire.

Despite the need to find Peter immediately, the closest to a son she’d ever have, she forced herself to stay for a few minutes longer to ensure she’d learned everything she could. When she was certain that the county personnel had nothing left to offer with their idle gossip, she carefully backed away and retreated further into the preserve.

She decided to make a wide circuit around the house to determine if she could pick up any other scents or clues, despite the obstacle of darkness and the stench of smoke. Scents would not be as fresh in the morning.

The rest of the pack were waiting to hear from her—Hale pack members by bite or by oath rather than blood—but she’d warned them it could be several hours before she’d have news. To be safe and with an abundance of caution, Dot had advised them to all move to the city’s Holiday Inn and stay there, letting her run point on figuring out what had happened. Being together in public gave them a measure of safety.

The pack had listened to her, partly in the absence of any contact from their new alpha, but also because Dot had been the left hand of Adele and Joseph Hale before the alpha mantle had passed to Talia more than a dozen years ago. There were a few pack members who lived out of state who had been sending inquiries via text, but she’d successfully redirected them to get updates from the pack at the hotel while Dot investigated what had happened to the Hales. They also needed to give Laura time to find them—Dot had no doubt that it was Laura who had received the Hale alpha spark.

Other than death, so far, she had no answers.

Within a few minutes, she detected a few unfamiliar scents—humans who should not have been anywhere near the pack house. Dot took deep breaths of the scent, committing it to memory, and making note of the location so that she could return later and look for additional clues.

She was at the three-quarters mark on her loop around the house through the preserve when a familiar scent caught her attention.

Cora.

It was a fresh scent, laced with terror and grief, and too recent to have been in the fire.

Dot hunkered down by a tree and forced herself to focus on the bonds, painful as they were. Most ‘wolves would be overwhelmed by the pain of so many broken bonds, by the loss of alpha, but Dot was seventy years old. She was a born wolf, born to one of the oldest packs in Europe. Even with only a nascent bond to the new alpha, Dot had enough control and strength to get past the pain and feel the bonds of her remaining pack members.

It was the work of only a few moments—agonizing moments of immersing herself in the pain of her remaining pack and the raw, frayed bonds—to feel that Cora was still alive. She also had her suspicion about Laura confirmed; she was the new alpha. By any reasonable measure, the alpha spark should have passed to Peter, who had been physically present when Talia died. Laura hadn’t been anywhere near the house. Peter was more experienced and better suited to the role, but Talia had always wanted it to be Laura from the moment she first held Laura in her arms. It didn’t matter if it damned the rest of them in the process.

Despite the urge to keep investigating, despite her desperate need to find Peter, Dot got to her feet and dusted herself off. She turned herself in the direction of the scent trail. Her moral compass had never pointed anywhere close to north, but pack came first. And care for the living must come before revenge for the dead.

* * *

Hours had passed and Dot could feel the power of the moon beginning to wane. The sun would begin to rise in a couple of hours, and she’d made no progress on finding Cora. She felt as if she’d been running in circles. Hour upon hour of traversing the woods, trying to track one faint scent over the persistent scent of death, smoke, and ash had taxed her senses to the point that she wasn’t sure if she’d hear or smell Cora standing right in front of her.

She resolved to make one more pass along the strongest of the scent trails before recruiting some of the other pack members to help her look. She hadn’t taken that step so far because most of the pack were too soft for such a thing, in Dot’s opinion. They weren’t suited to ignoring their own pain and focusing on an objective outside of themselves. There were a few who’d serve her well, but she’d have to break off her search to go retrieve them as she’d long moved out of any range of her cell phone.

“Aunt Dot?” a wavering voice whispered from behind and…up.

Dot spun around and looked up the big tree behind her. “Cora,” she breathed. “There you are.” She took a moment to lock down her urge to break down and made a come here gesture. “It’s time to come down now, darling.”

There was a thump as Cora jumped down from the tree and practically threw herself at Dot. “Aunt Dot, they all died! Everyone is gone!” she sobbed against Dot’s shoulder.

“I know, baby girl, I know. But not everyone is gone.” She waited until Cora calmed a bit then pushed back from her, holding her at arms length, barely able to see the dirty face streaked with tears in the waning moonlight. “Derek and Laura weren’t home when the fire happened, and Peter apparently survived the blaze as well, though he was injured. Non-family members don’t appear to have been targeted.”

Yet. Since she didn’t know the motive or who was after their pack, she couldn’t be sure it was over.

“Derek and Peter and Laura?” The list came out in what Dot knew to be Cora’s order of preference. She idolized her older brother, adored her uncle Peter, and tolerated Laura on a good day.

“Yes. I know it all hurts so much right now, and you can’t feel anything but the shattered bonds, but they’re alive.”

“I saw them,” Cora whispered.

“Who?”

“The people. I was playing in the woods, and I felt something funny in the bonds. It was a woman and four men. The woman looked like…” Cora hesitated.

“Who did she look like, sweetie?” Dot smoothed Cora’s hair off her forehead.

“She looked like one of Derek’s teachers. The new one.”

“The English teacher?” That was the only teacher Dot knew of who had been replaced this semester.

Cora nodded.

“Okay. That’s good information. I promise I’ll take care of it.”

“You believe me?”

“Of course I do.” Dot forced a reassuring smile. “Now, listen up, I’d like nothing more than to just go get under our blankets and nurse our hurts, but I don’t know if the people who came after the pack are just after the family or if they’re after the whole pack. You understand?”

Cora nodded. “We could still be in danger.”

“Right. And others could be too. You know I was your grandmother and grandfather’s left hand for many, many years, so I’m the best suited of everyone left to figure out what happened.”

Cora nodded again, this time more fervently. “I know you can fix it.”

“I’m not sure it can be fixed, baby, but I’ll at least find out what happened. The point is that I don’t think it’s a good idea to let anyone know that another blood Hale survived, do you?”

She shook her head, looking afraid.

“Right, but you’re also only ten and you’re hurting, so I’m torn.”

“I’m a big girl, Aunt Dot. I can even stay out here in the woods until you come back for me.”

“Oh, honey, I’m not who anyone would choose to be someone’s parental figure, but I’m sure the hell not leaving you in the woods. But I am going to leave you alone, and I probably shouldn’t. With limited choices, I’ll do the best I can, okay?”

“Where?”

“I’m going to take you to one of my safe houses just outside of town. No one knew about it except Peter. There is plenty of food, and you’ll be able to watch TV or whatever you like, but you cannot contact anyone. Do you understand? Not anyone, Cora.”

She nodded so fast her little head was nearly a blur. “I won’t put anyone’s life in danger, I promise.”

“You’re a smart one. Let’s go. We’ve got a long walk back to the road.” She curled her arm around Cora’s slender shoulders and led her along the path, feeling a small part of her settle now that a missing young one was safe.

* * *

Dot paced the waiting room of the Beacon Hills hospital burn unit, unable to feign even a bit of patience as she waited for the nurse to return. She rubbed at her chest, still heavy with the echoes of the pain of broken bonds, not to mention the loss of their alpha. While Dot had lived through having the alpha bond move to a different pack member, she’d never experienced the loss of an alpha before, not in this violent, brutal way.

It was barely past 8:00 AM, well before visiting hours, but Dot just needed to know if Peter was recovering. And if he was, they needed to arrange to get him out of the hospital before werewolf healing became an issue that would be remarked on by the medical staff.

She’d left Cora at a safehouse, helping the ten-year-old girl get cleaned up and then to bed. She’d gone over the list of instructions about what to do in an emergency, but she’d left a written list for when Cora woke, hoping the kid wouldn’t be too disoriented when she woke in a strange place by herself. Hopefully, she’d be reunited with her sister and brother shortly. Though Laura still had made no efforts to reach out to anyone in the pack—Dot had checked in with the remaining pack members at the Holiday Inn, and they’d all reported that their new alpha hadn’t returned their calls or texts.

It was concerning that Laura had made no attempts to reach out to her or any of the other pack members in the hours since the fire. More concerning that she seemed to be ignoring their attempts to reach out to her. Dot tried to give Laura the benefit of the doubt that perhaps she was with investigators or child services and unable to handle calls. The excuse rang hollow in her own mind.

The nurse finally returned, her expression pinched. “I’m sorry, ma’am, but I’m not able to give you any information about Mr. Hale.”

“And why not? I’m Peter’s emergency contact.”

“Yes, but you’re not his next-of-kin, and they’ve left explicit instructions that he’s to have no visitors outside of family and that we’re not to release any information about his condition.”

Dot stared, a dark fury rising inside of her the likes of which she hadn’t felt in decades. “His next-of-kin?” she repeated woodenly.

“Yes, ma’am.”

She wanted to rage, to argue and force them to tell her how Peter was, but she could sense that it was futile. She turned on her heel and left the hospital, going in search of her new alpha. The alpha who had cut Peter off from anyone who could help him.

As soon as she was outside, she sent a text to the rest of the pack members, letting them know she was still investigating and to be patient and stay together. She sent a targeted message to two of the pack members—Josh and Matt—asking if they’d smelled Laura or Derek at the Holiday Inn. When they replied in the negative, she had a hunch where Laura and Derek were staying. There were a few possibilities for hotels in Beacon Hills, but werewolf noses meant some chains weren’t as tolerable for them. In Beacon Hills, there were only two real contenders. Holiday Inn and Residence Inn. If Laura was actually at Residence Inn, it meant she was actively avoiding the pack because the pack’s location should be obvious to their alpha.

Dot hoped that wasn’t the case. She hoped Laura wasn’t that much of an asshole or that cruel.

Laura’s car wasn’t hard to find.

The surprise was that Laura was loading the car with supplies, head snapping up when Dot pulled in across the parking lot.

“It looks like you’re preparing for a trip,” Dot said casually, leaning against her car, arms crossed.

Laura flashed red eyes at Dot, but Dot had never been intimidated by alpha posturing in her life, and she wasn’t going to begin with this uppity little bitch. Finally, Laura turned away and shoved another duffel bag in the trunk. “We’re leaving.”

“We who, Laura? Because the pack has been trying to reach you, but they’ve not heard a word.”

Laura spun around. “Don’t talk to me about pack. Where were they when my family was being slaughtered?”

“They were at home, where they were supposed to be. They have no blame for not being within the walls of a home they didn’t live in. That’s irrational and you damn well know it, Laura Hale.”

“And what about you?” Laura spat. “Adele and Joseph Hale’s great, legendary left hand. Where were you when my family burned.”

“You know where I was.”

“Why didn’t you stop it? You and Peter.” Laura scoffed. “Supposedly the great pack protectors. What good are you?”

“You’re seeking to assign blame in your grief, which I understand, but you’re focusing in the wrong direction. There’s no blame within the pack. We didn’t do this.” As she spoke, from the corner of her eye, Dot saw Derek appear in the doorway of a room. He was pale and hunched in on himself, and he flinched at Dot’s words.

Oh, Derek.

What had that woman done to him? He was the softest of Talia’s children by a mile. Even four-year-old Logan was made of sterner stuff. Had been made of sterner stuff. She pushed down the grief and anger at the reminder of Logan’s death.

“You’re all to blame,” Laura snarled. “Hunters creeping around my family and none of its great protectors did a damn thing!”

“So you’re going to blame your pack and leave? What about Peter? Are you taking him too?”

“He can rot in that hospital for all I care.”

“Laura,” Derek whispered, sounding appalled. “You said he’d be fine. That we’d send for him later.”

Laura turned to Derek, eyes flashing. “Don’t argue with me. He failed our pack. Failed mom, failed me.”

“No, it wasn’t Peter!”

“Shut up, Derek!” Laura snapped, alpha command reverberating through every word.

Derek recoiled and seemed to retreat further into his hoodie.

“You’re going to punish Peter for the actions of hunters when his alpha has had him away on pack business for 80 percent of his time the last several months?” Dot barely managed to keep hold of her temper. “You’re going to cut him off from the people who care about him?”

Laura glared at her, chin raised. “It’s none of your business Dot. You’re not family. You’re not a Hale, and you never will be.”

Dot had a million things she wanted to say to Laura, but she needed to not antagonize her too much. Not until she had a moment with Derek. “You’re going to run off with just Derek… I don’t suppose you’ve gotten custody, have you?”

“Mind your own business!”

Looking to Derek, Dot said, “You don’t have to go, Derek. She has no legal authority over you. At least, not yet. The fact that she planned to abscond with you before the investigation was even finished wouldn’t sit well with the courts.”

“Butt out, you evil old hag!” Laura’s red eyes were on full display, and Dot was grateful that the parking lot was deserted.

“Okay, Laura, I’ll butt out, as you say, but only if I can say goodbye to Derek.”

Laura’s eyes narrowed, and there was a bit of a feral edge about her that wasn’t good.

“Oh, for god’s sake, Laura Michelle Hale, I’m not going to abduct him. I’ve known you both since you were babies. I’m going to hug the kid goodbye.”

After a tense standoff, Laura finally gave Derek a jerky nod.

Derek practically threw himself at Dot, biting back what sounded like a sob. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

“Shh. It’s not your fault.” She hugged him tightly. “It’s all going to be okay, Derek. I promise. I’ll look after everyone, okay?”

He nodded into her shoulder, his whole body shaking in her arms.

Dot put her mouth right next to his ear and whispered. “Don’t ever tell her.” An alpha should be able to hear that, but only an alpha who was in tune with themselves. Laura was not. She never had been. And, right now, she was running the ragged edge, which made her aural acuity even less reliable.

Derek stilled briefly, hands fisting in her coat. Then he shuddered.

Dot pulled back and framed Derek’s face with her hands. “I’ll take care of it, okay?” She tried to infuse a double meaning, wanting Derek to know that she’d find the woman who preyed on him and deal with it. There was no way to know if he got the message because he was so torn up, but he nodded anyway. With Derek blocking Laura’s view, Dot mouthed, “Cora’s alive.”

Derek’s eyes widened.

Dot flicked her eyes in Laura’s direction, letting Derek decide if Laura should know about her sister. If it were up to Dot, Laura would never know a damn thing, but Dot was that kind of an asshole.

Derek shook his head and mouthed, “Peter.”

Dot nodded and said out loud, “You could stay, but if you’re going to go, remember that we’re here for you.”

“Let’s go, Derek,” Laura snapped.

Derek looked so sad. “I need to be with Laura. She needs a pack.”

Dot gave a vague nod and hugged Derek one more time, thinking the kid looked a little lighter for knowing his little sister was still alive. Not wanting to lurk and watch Laura be the shittiest alpha on the face of the Earth, she left rather than watch them leave, so she was driving when the nascent bond to Laura broke.

She wasn’t surprised that Laura deliberately broke all the pack bonds she’d inherited with the Hale alpha spark, but it still was another blow to an already painful situation.

Dot pulled to the side of the road to ride out the storm and worry about Peter. Her poor boy had nothing now.

It was barely a minute before her phone lit up with panicked messages, including a hysterical call from Cora.

Dot promised Cora she was on her way and she’d explain soon but assured her that Laura was fine. She then sent off a text to the pack, asking them to please wait, to stay together and be patient. She wasn’t even sure if there was immediate danger to the other pack members. While it was obvious to Dot that hunters were involved, it was a very small group and not a coordinated strike because they didn’t attempt to hit any of the non-family pack members who lived in town. Many of them easier to get to than the Hale family home.

The fire at the Hale house could very well be the end of it. It felt like rogue hunter tactics, which wouldn’t work if multiple homes were targeted. But she couldn’t afford to take the chance, so she’d keep the pack together until she knew they were safe.

First, she had a panicked ten-year-old girl to calm down, then she needed to make the pack safe, and then she needed to get Peter out of that damn hospital.

After that, there was only revenge.

* * *

Cora paced and ranted, furious with her sister. Dot should probably try to redirect her ire, but Cora had never been close to Laura, and Dot thought Laura deserved it.

Finally, Cora seemed to wind down and turned to face Dot. “How could she not know I’m alive?”

“Did you know she was alive?”

“That’s different,” Cora snapped. “I’m not the alpha. Plus, I’m ten.”

Dot sighed. “It might be worse that she’s the alpha. She’s got immense power running through her that she’s not prepared for, and she does not have enough stable pack bonds to support her. Additionally, she suffered the same trauma of broken pack bonds that the rest of us did. She also lost her alpha.”

Cora crossed her arms. “Are you trying to get me to forgive her?”

“No, I think she’s a reprehensible cunt who doesn’t deserve the slightest consideration.”

Cora gave a startled laugh. “I don’t think you’re supposed to say that to me, Aunt Dot.”

“Yes, well, there’s a reason your mother never let me babysit.” Dot folded her hands and gave Cora a look. “I was simply pointing out that there are might be causes for why Laura didn’t notice who was still alive; I’m not defending her. I will never forgive her for what she’s done, but you may feel differently someday, which is acceptable. Feel how you feel, child. Today, you’re allowed to be angry. That said, you should have all the facts so you know what you’re angry for.”

Cora pursed her lips briefly. “Laura didn’t specifically abandon me, but she did abandon her entire pack except Derek, and I was just unlucky?”

“I suppose you could look at it that way. She wasn’t deliberately cruel to you.”

Looking away, Cora seemed to deflate. “But she was deliberately cruel to Uncle Peter.”

“Yes. Very.”

“I hate her.”

“That’s fine.”

“Shouldn’t you be trying to talk me out of it?”

“I’m not your parent, Cora. I never will be. If you want to be angry, be angry. If you want to hate, hate. If you decide not to hate, that’s up to you. I’m not here to tell you how to feel.”

“Then why are you here?” The question could have been angry, but it sounded more curious.

“I’m here to keep you safe. I’m here to protect the pack.”

“How is there a pack with no alpha?”

“Let me worry about that.”

“And what can I do to help?”

“Don’t do anything to jeopardize you and whoever is left. Don’t be that kid.”

Cora raised her right hand. “I swear I won’t be a pre-teen movie plot cliché.”

Dot smiled. “Your uncle is a terrible influence.”

Cora smiled back, but it was filled with sadness. “I know.”

* * *

Dot waited until she was in her car again to make the most critical phone calls. She’d already spoken with the pack members at the hotel, but there wasn’t much she could offer them other than to say that Laura had abandoned them and fled Beacon Hills. She had no answers other than she was still seeking answers.

She’d asked the calmest of those gathered at the Holiday Inn to coordinate with those out of state. There were only a few pack members, used to living far from the alpha, but they’d still be suffering. They could come back to California and Dot would try to find them a new pack, or they could find a new pack where they were. She had nothing more to offer them.

She told no one about Cora.

With her Bluetooth headset in her ear, she dialed the first number on her list then began to drive even as the phone began to ring.

“Ms. Miller,” a smooth tenor greeted her almost immediately. “I’ve heard the news. Do we know if it’s hunters?”

“Alpha Chen,” she acknowledged with the only bit of formality she’d be able to muster in this conversation. “Yes, hunters. I think it was a small group, focused on the Hale house. Possibly even a single hunter with criminals for hire. I’m still verifying.”

“Then how can I assist you?”

“As I’m sure you can hear, I’m driving, so privacy is assured for now. I imagine the news you heard was the fire was at the Hale house specifically…?”

“Yes, and that most of the Hale family was killed. My contacts through the local police department were easily able to get information from Beacon Hills Sheriff’s Department.”

“Laura and Derek survived as they were not at home. Peter was badly injured and is in the hospital. There is a more pressing issue, and pardon me for being blunt as I have little time. Laura inherited the alpha spark.”

“That surprises me,” he admitted after a beat of silence. “I would have thought the spark would seek someone in the pack more…mature. While I’ve only met Miss Hale a handful of times through Alpha Ito, she struck me as ill-suited. Even in a coma, I’d think Peter Hale would be a more likely choice.”

“Talia has been saying for years that Laura would be her successor.”

“The only way to guarantee that is through ritual, and I thought—” he broke off.

“You thought correctly. The Hale’s covenant with the territory forbids that sort of thing. Talia was a decent alpha to her pack, but I can’t say much about the type of alpha she was for the territory. The bigger issue is that Laura has panicked like the immature brat we all knew her to be and decided to take her brother, and only her brother, and leave. She broke all the pack bonds on her way out of town.”

There was a sharp inhale over the line. “How many did she abandon?”

“Including myself, fifteen. Sixteen counting her Uncle Peter, who she left in the hospital under his legal name. She’s forbidden him visitors, not even allowing him the comfort of those he knows, bond or no, to give him company and help take his pain.” She took a steadying breath. “And while that infuriates me, and it’s certainly important, it’s not the most important thing right now.”

“No, I imagine the fifteen people without an alpha are the issue. I assume that’s why you’ve called me?”

“Yes. I need to know if you can take any of them, even temporarily, into your pack.”

“I find myself torn; you are aware that my pack’s safety rests on no one knowing there’s a pack in Sweetland. My agreement was that only the alphas and the left and right hands would know of our presence so close to the larger pack in Beacon Hills.”

“And the Hale Alphas held to that agreement. Laura was years from inheriting the alpha mantle, so she absolutely doesn’t know about your pack’s existence. That leaves Peter and me as the only pack members alive who know about you, Jason. Now, can you help me or not? I have fourteen traumatized people who need an alpha.”

There was a long silence. “I will take those who you can honestly assure me are capable of keeping this pack’s secrets.”

Dot considered that for several moments. “There are four. A brother and sister pair of twins who came to the pack when they were seventeen after their family was killed in a pack dispute over territory up in Washington. They are now twenty-six.” The same age as Peter. “They understand the need for secrecy as a means to ensure security. The other is a couple—two men, both approximately thirty. They are former military who left to be with one another. They met Talia’s oldest, Mark, through the Army, which is how they came to be part of the Hale Pack.” Mark was Talia’s oldest but also human, and he’d never wanted the bite. “However, I’d like to keep them here with me for a few days before sending them on to you.”

“It works better to send two at a time, but why do you want to keep them in Beacon Hills? I would think removing all remaining pack members, especially those with bond shock would be of paramount importance.”

“Despite the trauma of losing our alpha and the loss of so many pack bonds during the fire, I was able to pick out the bonds of those I’m close to. Cora was not in the house at the time of the fire. I found her in the woods. She was prepared to run and never look back, thinking her whole family had died. I’m hiding her for the moment, but I can’t take care of everything that a child needs.”

“Then in regard to Matt and Josh, I’ll need to meet with them immediately to establish a basic bond. I’d like to be certain they’re stable before we set ourselves on that course where they spend most of their time away from the pack.”

“Agreed.”

“Will you ask Satomi to take the rest?”

“Yes.”

“Allow me to take the burden for you.”

She slumped even as she tightened her hands on the wheel. “Thank you.”

“How many?”

“Ten. A family of five, three children under twelve, one of the children is human; a widow and her son, he’s seventeen; and a young couple with a baby.”

“And the new alpha left them all behind?”

“Without care or remorse.”

“I’m rarely at a loss for words, but the callousness is shocking.”

“I’d say ‘she’s young,’ but she’s not that young.” Dot had to fight back her urge to chase Laura down and shoot her.

“I will make arrangements with Alpha Ito and text you the particulars. I’d prefer that she retrieve her new pack members first and that they have no notion of where the others are going. Are there any close ties between those who will be split between the two packs?”

“Matt and Josh were fairly close with the young married couple I mentioned, but since they’ve had their baby, they’ve fallen into that trap of ignoring their friends to the degree that I don’t think the friendship is much of anything any longer. Matt and Josh are closer with Kristen and Kyle, the siblings, last I heard.”

“Then this will work well. After Satomi’s new pack members have left, I’ll come to meet the others and bring Kristen and Kyle back to Sweetland with me. Movers can be hired at a later date to retrieve their belongings. After we see how things settle, we may need to temporarily route their belongings farther afield if hunters are paying attention.”

“I’ll feed you any intel on threats that I uncover. Getting them out of town quickly makes it seem like the whole pack scattered and ran, so that works with my plans.”

“Do you care to share your plans? Will you be joining one of the two packs? I know Satomi would be pleased to have you, and I am formally offering a place in my pack as well.”

“While I appreciate that, I’m not leaving Peter. Laura may have put an obstacle in my path, but I’ll be damned if I’m going to leave him there alone. And then I’m going to make sure he’s the new Hale Alpha.”

Jason sucked in a breath. “You plan to make a petition to the nemeton?”

“Yes.”

“That could backfire. The nemeton may not choose Peter. It may choose to withhold the spark and make a covenant with the next werewolf pack.”

Dot shook her head even though he couldn’t see her. “What will be will be. But at least he won’t be suffering alone.”

“And if you’re successful in making Mr. Hale the new Alpha of Beacon County, is he going to want my new pack members back?” he asked wryly.

“I’m not a fortune teller.”

“Mm.” After a beat of silence, he asked, “Will they want to come back?”

“The siblings? Probably not. They’ve had enough trauma, and I think they’ll appreciate living in a more secure, secretive pack. I can’t say for Josh and Matt. They both have a deep regard for Peter, but the path Peter may choose to take could be darker than they wish to tread.”

“He’ll need at least three betas to remain stable.”

“That’s true,” Dot agreed.

Jason sighed. “I’ll assume if you’re successful that I’ll be negotiating with the new Hale alpha to send my new pack members back. Might I suggest an alternate course for the young Cora?”

“I’m listening.”

“Send her to me. We can shelter her. My pack is used to secrecy, but I’ll limit the knowledge to a very few. That way you can function unhindered by care for a child. We’ll keep her out of the public eye.”

“Then I wouldn’t need Josh and Matt.”

“I think you’ll still require the assistance. But I’ll need face-to-face meetings with my betas at least twice a week to ensure they remain stable.”

“I’ll present them with the terms and see if they agree.” It felt wrong to send off a child of the pack, but Dot wasn’t in a position to care for a kid, even if she had the disposition for it, which she did not.

“Very well. I’ll leave you to your machinations, Ms. Miller. Know that you can call upon me at any time, and the offer to join my pack stands.”

“Thank you.”

She pressed the button to disconnect the call then dialed another number. It went to voicemail after four rings, so she dialed again. He had a habit of ignoring his calls, so voicemail didn’t necessarily mean he wasn’t available.

“What?” was barked into the phone after the second ring from the third call.

“Hello to you too, Booker.”

“Dorothy,” he said dryly. “What do you want?”

“I need you to come to California.”

He scoffed. “I don’t like the West Coast.”

“I’m not asking.”

“And, yet, I don’t take orders from you.”

Her hands tightened on the wheel, and she forced herself to relax. “Hunters came to Beacon Hills. Set the Hale house on fire.”

There was a long silence. “Joseph and Adele?” Booker hadn’t seen the former Hale alphas in several decades, but he’d known them well many years past, particularly Joseph.

“Dead. Along with Talia, Steven, and eight other family members.”

“Who’s responsible?”

“I don’t know yet. I’m working on it, along with many other things.” She took a measured breath. “Peter was badly burned. He’s in a coma in the hospital. Laura and Derek weren’t at home at the time—sports event for Derek, not sure why Laura wasn’t home. She inherited the alpha spark, snapped all the pack bonds except Derek’s, and promptly left town. She’s limited Peter to biological family only. Meaning her and Derek, and since they’ve left…”

“She left Peter behind? Her own uncle?”

“Yes,” Dot gritted out.

“Damn, that’s cold.”

“As I said, I need you.”

“For what exactly, Dot? Healing magic isn’t really my forte. I can maybe help a bit with power amplification, but—”

“I need to cleanse the nemeton, and then I want to petition the nemeton to give Peter the Hale alpha spark.”

Booker whistled lowly. “That’s some ballsy shit, woman, and you have no way of knowing if it’ll work. I don’t know what the Hale covenant with the nemeton was, but the best you’ll get is enforcement of that covenant. And that’s only if the covenant was violated.”

“It has been.”

“How do you know?”

“The original Hale to settle this land agreed to let the nemeton choose the next alpha amongst the Hale family when the existing alpha was ready to step down. The closest the nemeton ever came to stalling out was choosing Talia. Some in the pack thought that meant that none of the Hale children of that generation were suitable to be alphas; I tend to think the nemeton wanted Peter, but he was too young. The nemeton was forced to choose and my senses told me that it very nearly gave the alpha power to a twelve-year-old. It’s almost like it was quivering over him.”

As much as Dot loved Adele and Joseph, she’d privately thought the timing of them stepping down was so Talia would be chosen. For whatever reason, Adele had been enamored of the idea of Talia being the next Hale Alpha, but not so enamored that she would break the covenant with the nemeton and try to force the choice. The other Hale sibling of Talia’s generation, Amelia, was never going to be a contender for future alpha, mostly due to her own lack of interest. Dot had always believed that Adele persuaded Joseph to surrender the alpha spark when he did to ensure Talia would be alpha.

“Is that the extent of the covenant?”

“No. The spark was granted to the Hales in exchange for their care and protection of the nemeton and the territory. The story is complicated, and I don’t have time to go into it now, but there’s more than one betrayal of the covenant. Talia may have been a decent alpha when it came to the pack, but she wasn’t terribly trustworthy in many respects. She decided the covenant to the nemeton was antiquated and had her pet druid do a little ritual to guarantee the alpha succession to her oldest daughter, Laura.”

“Which requires giving the intended alpha a small portion of the alpha spark. It’s done in some packs that don’t have a magically binding oath to a sacred ley node,” he said dryly. “It can also cause problems if that small amount of alpha power is given to someone too young.”

“Yes, well, not only is Laura the new alpha, but she’s also left the territory and abandoned her pack. As far as I know, only a blood Hale can make the plea to the nemeton.”

“Probably. But if you manage to wake Peter, he’s going to be set on revenge. The nemeton may choose to deny your request based on that alone.”

“Or the nemeton may embrace the idea of vengeance. At least, in some small measure.”

There was a long pause. “And why would that be?”

“A few years ago, the local druid reported that the nemeton had become tainted.”

“Tainted? While under the care of a druid? That’s impossible.”

“Believe me, I advocated for a second opinion, but I was ordered by my alpha to keep the matter quiet and not discuss it with anyone.” The only convenient part of Talia’s death was that Dot couldn’t suffer any repercussions from all of Talia’s orders she planned to break.

“And what did this lying druid advocate they do about the tainted nemeton?”

“He persuaded Talia to cut it down.”

“There’s a damaged nemeton on the West Coast?”

“Yes.”

Booker began swearing, very colorfully.

“I really don’t have time for your histrionics,” she interjected.

“Histrionics? Do you have any idea—”

“Of course I do!” she snapped. “We’ll fix it the best we can, but you can see why I think the nemeton might not be uptight about a spot of revenge.”

“Perhaps, but you can bet that if your petition is granted that the new covenant for the Hales will be a little less open to interpretation going forward.”

“We’ll take it as it comes. First we have to get Peter better and then rip the alpha spark out of that…heifer.”

“Cleansing a nemeton isn’t really my area.”

“You’re the most powerful mage alive; you can handle one angsting tree stump.” She paused. “Booker, I need you. If I have to beg you, I will. If I have to pay you, I will. Whatever it takes.”

“Please don’t. I like our relationship so much better when it’s based on favors and veiled threats. I’ll be there in three days.”

“Three?”

“Yes, three. Cleansing a nemeton really needs a druid or a shaman.” There was a pause. “Maybe a witchdoctor. I’ll have to think on it. Aside from that, while you could throw Peter’s comatose form at the tree and make a petition, it’s unlikely to work; he needs to make the petition himself. So, he needs to be healed enough to be awake, preferably healed enough to be of sound mind. While I can do some healing magic, it really isn’t my forte.” There was a pause. “If I can get all that in one person, great, but it’s likely I’ll need to hunt down two people for your little crusade. And while you don’t have to pay me, you probably will have to pay them.”

“Whatever it takes.”

“Don’t ever say things like that to magical people. I mean that as a serious warning, Dot. I actually do like you, but that’s a dumb ass offer to make, I don’t care how desperate you are.”

She fought the urge to snap at him and just let the silence lay.

Booker huffed a laugh. “Good. I’m glad you’re taking that to heart. I’ll text you an update when I know something.” He hung up before she could say anything else.

Feeling an incredible sense of relief that he was on his way, she thumbed off the phone then pointed the car toward the hotel. She’d been driving the wrong direction thinking she’d need more time in the car to talk to Satomi.

Her phone vibrated with an incoming text alert as she was pulling into the parking lot of the Beacon Hills Holiday Inn. She parked in a space near the side door and took a few minutes to get herself together then read through several text messages from Alphas Chen and Ito, firing off a few quick confirmations of the plans they’d made. At this point, she’d agree to almost anything. She needed to divest herself of her obligation to the remaining members of the extended Hale pack so she could focus her time and efforts on Peter.

She locked up her car and headed inside.

* * *

Dot had just finished changing when she heard a tap on her hotel room door. She was still in desperate need of some sleep, but the shower had revived her somewhat. Her senses informed her that it was Matt and Josh. She had multiple safe houses around Beacon County, but she’d needed to be near the pack for the day, so she’d gotten her own room so she could rest and shower after the long, painful conversation with her pack—former pack.

She’d stayed with the ten going to Satomi Ito until Satomi’s lieutenants had arrived to take them to their new alpha. They would need to sort out the details of their lives and moving their belongings in the days to come, but a new alpha was the most important thing for them at the moment.

She’d then explained the circumstances of the Chen pack in Sweetland, the four remaining agreeing that it was a good fit for them. She’d decided to leave them to meet with Alpha Chen without her presence or influence, letting Chen decide if it would be okay to leave Matt and Josh behind.

Either they were about to leave with their new alpha or they were staying since that’s who was knocking on her door. If they were stable, the plan was for them to deliver Cora to Chen in a day or two. If they were rocky, they were leaving with Chen tonight and Dot would deliver Cora herself.

She let the two young men in. They had their bags. Seemed like they were leaving.

Josh smiled faintly, but it came off more like a grimace. Josh had a face that was used to smiling, his typical All-American looks, making him seem open and friendly. He was nearly six-feet tall with blue eyes and dark brown hair, fair skin that tanned easily. Today he just seemed sad. “Alpha said we were okay to stay, and we want to help. With everyone else gone now, we don’t need that big-ass room. Should we get a smaller room next to this one?”

Dot shook her head and waved for them to drop their luggage. “We can share until we have a plan.”

Matt sat on the chair and said nothing, but that wasn’t unusual. Josh was always the chattier of the two. Matt was a couple of inches taller than Josh with short dark hair and the most shocking pale grey eyes. His looks tended to come across as severe and unapproachable.

Josh sat on the arm of Matt’s chair, curling his arm around his mate’s shoulders. “What do you need us for. Alpha— I mean, Jason wasn’t specific.”

“Initially, I wanted to keep you two around to help me keep an eye on Cora.”

Matt suddenly sat up straighter. “Cora’s alive?” Matt was hardened in the way Dot was and the way Peter thought he was, but he had a soft spot for Cora and Derek.

“Yeah. I found her in the woods last night. She’s in one of my safe houses right now, but she’s ten. Even I know you can’t leave a ten-year-old to their own devices indefinitely.”

Matt’s lips pressed into a thin line. “You didn’t tell Laura that Cora survived?”

Dot tipped her chin up. “No, I didn’t. The vicious bitch staked Peter out like a sacrificial lamb and abandoned us all without remorse. I don’t really think she deserves to know her sister is alive, do you?” Dot had never actually claimed to be a nice person. Besides, she’d left that decision in Derek’s hands, and honored his wishes. No one else needed to know that though.

Matt shrugged. “I owe Laura nothing. Except perhaps a punch to the face if I ever see her again.”

Josh sighed. “She should probably have been told though. She might have made different choices.”

Dot shook her head. “Considering that she blames everyone who was not present for the fire, it wouldn’t have changed anything, Josh. She’d have taken Cora with her, but probably only for selfish reasons so that she’d have a bigger pack to help keep her stable. She’d have still left the rest of us behind. Derek didn’t want to go with her, he did it out of duty. And if we’re going to dial in on the legalities of the situation, Laura bailed before Child Protective Services could weigh in on custody of Derek.”

Josh held up a hand. “I get it. Laura’s a nightmare, and she’d have thrown us all away no matter what. So, we’re here to babysit Cora?”

“Not anymore. Alpha Chen offered to take Cora and keep her hidden. You two will deliver her to Jason at whatever timeline he gives you. Then he’s loaning you to me.”

“For what?” Matt asked, eyes narrowed.

“I’d like you to help me kidnap Peter.”

Matt’s lips curled into a smile. “I’m in.”

Josh grinned. “Oh yeah. Let’s kidnap us a werewolf.”

---

Main Page | Part Two