I own nothing except some original characters I sometimes bring in. Kelley Armstrong owns The Otherworld and all the wonderful information there.
*I want to thank SheWolf13 for her use of her OC character Kim and making this story 100% better. I also want to say please go check out her story Unbroken. Max is in it as well.
Ch. 21 The New North American Pack
I looked at my surroundings, dark green leaves tried to dance in the slight breeze and the blazing sun scorched everything it touched. I was a mile north of our current home base. I wondered if by spring we would still be here or if one of them would be dead. More people around made this goal very difficult, but I was sure it could still be done. I just needed to think about it and figure out a solution, this was something I was good at. If I could do it soon I might be able to get back to the pack in time to avoid any major damage to me or others.
I'd been gone too long, my father had said we'd be going on what he called a scavenging mission today, I should get back. I stood and walked towards our home base. Stepping out from the tree line I saw one of the new pack members at the back of the cabin, chopping wood. It was a damned scene from Little House on the Prairie around here, take out the little girls and put in werewolves and supernatural beings.
The man chopping wood was actually one of the nicer guys. He was not interested in me at all except for conversation, he had already stuck up for me once with one of the mutts. I felt I could semi trust him and had already decided to include him in my plans. Well, I would see where it went anyway. "Hey Max," he called as I crossed the field stretching out behind the house. I nodded at him and stopped when I got within a few feet. I kicked stray kindling with my scuffed and holey converse. He had taken his shirt off to chop wood and I was appreciating the view. He was a werewolf, muscled and good looking. A sliver of guilt dropped into my stomach for thinking this. What about Addison? What about my dead boyfriend? Quickly I shook my head of this thought. Thinking about Addison was dangerous territory.
"Hey Jones," I answered after a moment. He stood and turned to me. He still towered over me like all the others, my eye line was level with his upper chest. I noticed he now had the mark and it looked as crudely done as mine, at least it didn't look infected. My mark had gotten better, the infection had gone down and now it was just a bit red and tender. The first layer of ink had peeled away to reveal a mark that looked like it was almost naturally part of my skin.
"Yeah, I got the mark too," he commented when he saw me looking, I nodded. He gestured to a pile of kindling and I immediately walked over and started piling it for him. Jones looked to me like a Goth guy. He wore black, had tattoos that spiralled around his chest and arms and wore a necklace with a pentagon. His tattoo's reminded me of Cooper making me a little sad.
Jones wasn't a bad guy, sure he had joined this pack but my father and Dustin were not above blackmail. Jones and another guy Jaxon had been blackmailed. My plan was to get them to come to my side and even out the numbers for the pack a bit. I would need to be careful about this and make promises I wasn't sure I could keep, but I needed to do this even given that the outcome might be bad.
"Guess that means you're really pack now," I shrugged. He nodded as he turned back to the piece of wood he was working on. He raised the axe and brought it down splitting the wood in half easily. I reached down and picked up the broken pieces and set them back up again so he could cut them into smaller pieces.
"Yeah I guess," he answered not looking at me. I took a look around making sure the coast was still clear. I was sure the cabin was far enough away for me to speak candidly to him. It was now or never because I knew if I didn't at least try I was a goner. I knew my father and Dustin were planning on having me killed as part of their plan, I just needed to act faster than them.
"The pack is coming you know, the real pack. They'll kill everyone that is part of this uprising, I can stop them from hurting you if you help me," I told him. He froze in mid swing for a second and then continued, absorbing my words. When he was finished I scooped up the wooden pieces and set them with the other. Turning back to him I saw he had set the axe down and was wiping sweat from his face. Finally he looked at me.
"The pack isn't coming," he said lowly. I shook my head and picked up another piece of wood. He was wrong and if I couldn't convince him of this then they would treat him like all the other members and eradicate him. The pack had to deal with these mutts swiftly and efficiently. They had to be examples to other mutts that this would not be tolerated and they would be taken down. If I could not convince him he would be killed with the rest of them making me feel bad even if it wouldn't be my fault.
"They are. Dustin and my dad didn't tell you, because they don't want to scare you away, but they almost caught up with us in the last place," I explained. He looked at me critically and fingered the axe handle. I spoke before he could sensing I might be able to get him on my side if I said the right thing. "I can tell them you and Jaxon were forced to be here and they won't harm you," I assured. He continued to look at me and then glanced towards the house. His look told me he was torn. He wanted to believe me, I was just a kid. The real threat might be in the house just beyond our hearing and if we got caught we would both be very sorry.
"How do I know you're not working with those bastards to suss out un-loyal pack members?" he asked now crossing his arms so his muscles bulged. I didn't appreciate the challenge his body language was giving off. I gave him a look and imitated his position, I knew I was not as threatening as him. Really how could he think I was working with them when he saw how they treated me? Did he think I liked being treated like this? That this was fun for me or something?
"Do you think with the way they treat me I would be ready and willing to be their lap dog?" I hissed angrily voicing my thoughts. I glared at him as he searched my face for emotions and any indication that I was lying. I was a good liar so I could cover it up, I didn't have too now. I was telling the truth.
"If you're working with them and you get me into trouble with them...," he threatened and stepped forward leaving the sentence off. He lowered his arms intimidation issuing from him. I was so tired of being threatened and cornered and of being treated like a dog. I clenched my fist in anger trying to keep calm and trying to remember what Antonio had told me about controlling my emotions. Right now it would not due to lash out at him but I needed to stand my ground.
I growled. "Don't threaten me, I take enough threats from them every day so don't you dare," I said pulling myself up to my full height and glaring at him. I had balls and I refused to be afraid of these new pack members as well as my father and Dustin.
Jones and I looked at one another for a moment neither of us willing to back down, finally Jones sighed and rubbed a hand through his hair. It didn't seem as if he was backing off, more like he was willing to take my word for it when I didn't back down from him. "Fine, I'll talk to Jaxon. You better be able to convince the pack that we had nothing to do with this," he warned. I nodded. I could not guarantee it but I would tell him I could if it would benefit me. Once Jeremy had told me I thought it was ok to lie if it benefitted me and he was right. This benefitted me and even though I wasn't sure if the pack would go easier on them, I was hoping they would. I had good intentions so I was hoping this counted.
"Alright," I answered and we had a deal. Now I just hoped the pack really was on their way. I hadn't had the chance to pick up a new cell phone and I hadn't been able to steal one from one of the other members yet. The downside with having so many people around was that I had to be more careful about my actions.
"They better hurry up and get here though. Has your father told you the plan?" he asked. I looked confused up at him. Our positions were reversed and this time I was the one needing critical information. What were they planning now? Why did they always do this to me?
"He's bought a secluded farmhouse with lots of land to run in Canada. He's moving everyone up there within the next few weeks," he informed me. I am sure I stared at him open mouthed. My father and Dustin were moving us out of the country and out of the pack's reach. I had to act fast.
Antonio POV
I walked down the wooded path behind the hotel we were currently staying in. I needed a few moments to think. Jeremy always thought the best when he took a walk, it was his time to plan and make decisions so I gave it a try.
Gravel crunched under my Louis Vuitton sneakers as I walked. None of this mattered. My money didn't matter, my business didn't matter. Only my family mattered. I would become a poor man in a second if I could just have Max back whole and happy. If I could have Max back and the pack could be ok. If I could erase all his pain and anger and give him the happy childhood he deserved, I would work every day of my life as a labourer and be happy just to see them happy. Max, Nick, Noah, Kim and Reese were my children and I would do anything for them to be ok. I would give up being a werewolf if they could just be ok.
It had been a week since we almost found Max, almost a month since we lost him. We had been searching since then but neither Max nor any other members of the gang, as we were calling it, had used any cell phones we had been tracking or any fake . We had identified a few members of the gang that had joined them only because we had a spy within the group. Yes, we realized they were putting together a gang of sorts and we realized we needed a member on the inside to get to them. We chose a mutt who had been vying for pack membership, a twenty five year old named Jones.
Jones had reached out and made contact with the Bruce's pack. Soon we would know where the gang was and we could go in, eradicate them and save Max. Jones was also going to turn some members against them, he already had one named Jaxon on his side and would try and protect Max even though he was trying not to blow his cover or let Max know which side he was on.
We would rather have had another member go in but no one else would have been able to fake being a pack traitor and get away with it. Everyone else had been here too long or was too young, Jones was our only choice right now. Max hadn't ever met him, he was perfect for this. I didn't had an issue with trusting him, I had an issue with the fact that I couldn't be there to protect Max myself.
"We have a problem," Elena called finding me down the path. I turned forcing myself to keep calm. "Karl's gone rogue." I swore.
Max POV
My cast had been on long enough. It was interfering with our random crime sprees. Bruce was tired of it. I had to admit it had been a month, while my arm was still sore I could use it better and it didn't throb. I sat on the picnic table holding the cast out as Dustin tested an electrical saw. He grinned at me maliciously until Bruce took his upper arm. "His arm needs to work," he reminded. Dustin sighed and nodded turning the saw on. I swallowed hard, fear bubbling up inside me.
I cringed and looked at Jones who gave me an encouraging look. Beside him Jaxon did not look so sure. Michael milled around in the background watching as did some of the others who I hadn't really interacted with yet. They all kind of formed into a glob in my mind.
"Hold still," he instructed. I narrowed my eyes to slits not wanting to watch but not to able look away. It had been almost six weeks with the cast on and according to werewolf healing times I should be fine by now. I hoped I was. Dustin brought the saw down. He cut through the cast making plaster fly. When he got through the first inch his started going upwards and guiding the saw up my arm. When half of it was cut through, taking some of my flesh with it, he turned off the saw and ripped the cast in half before he started on the other half.
When my arm was free I had a long tear line in my skin bleeding from where he cut me, my arm looked pale and shrunken. I flexed it finding it was weak and stiff but didn't hurt to move, usable. Jones handed me a cloth to stop the bleeding, I relaxed finally. I was sure Dustin would be taking off my whole arm. I was relieved to still see it here. As soon as Bruce saw the job was done, I had an arm, he ordered me back to doing chores. I watched as he threw my cast in the fire pit to burn later. I desperately wanted to keep it. It had pack signatures, my only link to them right then. It had Addison's name, Dias and Cooper's too. Expressing an interest in this would be a very bad idea.
My father was soulless. He was the ancient Slavic monster the Vlkodlak. This was a wolf man who roamed the Slavic country side causing fear and evil wherever he went. I assume this was actually a werewolf because many legends of wolf monsters or humans descending from a wolf line were actually werewolves.
I was just starting to get up when my father spoke again, I snapped my head to the side in shock. A new man had come around the corner, striding with purpose. "I want to introduce Karl Marsten. He tried out Jeremy's pack but decided ours was better. He been spying on the inside for us for quite some time making sure my son didn't get to comfortable with them," he informed. Getting over my shock I immediately glared at him. Karl met my gaze but didn't blink or look away. He was a traitor then. I hoped the pack made an example of him once they got a hold of him. I couldn't believe him or that I trusted him. He gave me my beloved dogs. Another lie to get my trust.
"Karl, you're getting the mark tomorrow," my father ordered, Karl nodded. My father reached down and pulled me up, pulling my hoodie and t-shirt up and exposing my protruding ribs and the mark. I coloured with embarrassment, but didn't say anything.
I shivered when the cold air hit my body, finally he let my shirt fall. I dropped back down into my seat crossing my arms and glaring at the ground. Antonio would never have humiliated me like that. Making me show parts of my body I was uncomfortable with to guys who had six packs and bulging muscles. I hated this man so much.
"Don't forget men we are the new North American Pack and we will reign with an iron fist," my father said, the pack cheered. I looked around as they did this. Some seemed genuinely happy, but I could see others, like Jones and Jaxon, were conflicted.
My father sat beside me, some conversation was murmured around the fire they were building up, I only half listened not willing to remind him about my chores. I kept sneaking glances at Karl. I still could not believe he had betrayed the pack. He had a wife and a child. Didn't he care who got hurt? Didn't he care about the twins and Baxter or his own daughter? They were completely innocent.
A few hours later the fire was put out and we all headed into the cabin. I had watched my cast burn, the last vestiges of short lived happiness. I slept on the couch preferring that to sharing a room. The cabin had five rooms and most people were doubled up except for my father and Dustin which meant the six other members, including Karl, had to share the three other rooms. This was easily done with Jones and Jaxon shared, Michael and Caleb, a guy who I hated because he kept watching me, shared and now Karl and another guy Kent who I didn't really know shared.
I made my way to the couch grabbing an extra blanket and a pillow from the front hall closet. I threw them down and was about to settle in when I saw a shadow in the hallway. I looked up to see Karl appear in the doorway, I scowled. "You're a traitor," I accused. He kept silent and crossed his arms regarding me. He seemed to be warring with himself to say something, in the end he chose to say nothing at all. He started to turn to leave and as he did my rage got the better of me. I clenched my fists, the lamp on the side table and the few books on the rickety shelf started to shake.
He turned to look and then raised an eyebrow. I had no idea if that was me. How could that be me? "I should kill you myself," I growled. His incredulous look told me to try. This just fuelled my rage, I flew at him. I knew he was a good fighter, while I had the skills he had the muscle and the weight.
I hit him and we both went down, I caught him off guard. I landed on top of him and tried to get in a punch, but he grabbed my arm and easily flipped me. He rolled on top of me sitting on my stomach and grabbing my arms pinning them down at my sides. I glared up at him growling lowly in warning. We have many growls that we used even as humans.
"I don't think you could kill me," he finally said, he didn't let me go. I could yell at any moment and summon help but really what kind of help would I get? They might just laugh at my predicament.
"How could you betray the pack? How could you just throw the twins to them and Baxter? Do you know what they'll do to them? Do you?" I growled angrily. He stiffened. Finally he let go of me and got up straightening his shirt sleeve. I pushed myself up and stood in front of him.
"I hope Clay rips you apart, slowly," I said in a lowered voice. He flinched and moved forward grabbing my shoulders. I started to pull away but he clenched my shoulders tightly and pulled me towards him.
"Addison is still alive," he informed. I gasped and went wide eyed wanting to ask questions, he turned and left the room. I sighed and bit my lip to keep from screaming after him. Instead I took a deep breath and went to lie down on the couch and get some sleep. Karl was going to pay somehow and somewhere I swore he would. He would not only pay for being a traitor but for telling me lies. Addison wasn't alive. He was dead. He was dead. He was dead….wasn't he?
I got a few hours of sleep before a bell started ringing, literally, and waking everyone up. Groggily I stood and pulled on my jeans and sweater, I was tying my shoes when Bruce jogged in followed by the others. He didn't waste a minute letting us know what we'd be doing.
I shifted in the snow looking at the dark house with my hands shoved in my pocket. It was enormous, almost as big as Sorrentino Estates and my father thought it was a gold mine. A supernatural half demon owned the estate, he was old and he lived alone.
For a moment, a moment that was entirely too short, I pretended I was standing outside Antonio's house. Ready to go in and join them for a night by the fireplace. It sounded boring as hell, to me it was like a dream. Addison would be there and Cooper with Dias too with little Baxter. When Karl cleared his throat I jerked from my day dream and glared at him. He opened his mouth to say something, I ignored him and stalked forward.
Karl POV
Oh, Max was pissed. I followed the rail thin boy, the boy I sacrificed my place in the pack to protect. I had gone without Jeremy's permission and would not be surprised if he kicked me from the pack. As long as I made sure Hope and Nita were protected within the pack I was ok with that.
I followed the sullen angry teenager inside through the side door his psychopath kidnappers had broken into. They tracked mud and snow through a kitchen more elaborate than Antonio's and much more ostentatious. At least the Sorrentino's used their kitchen. When I heard a breathless shout I hurried through the hallway and into what looked like a trophy room.
Bruce was pulling back from an old man who was slumped in a chair with blood down the front of his face and shirt. The mutt was shaking out his hand looking at bloody knuckles. Max stood against the wall watching with conflicted eyes.
"Look for the artifacts, Karl oversee it," he ordered. Max kept his eyes on the old man fallen to the floor now as everyone scattered. When everyone but I was gone he walked to the man and felt for a pulse setting him upright against a couch.
"Is he alive?" I questioned.
"Why do you care?" Max growled. He turned to me with clenched fists, anger in his eyes. When he directed his anger at me the objects around the room started to shake. He didn't seem to notice. When I kept his gaze he finally looked away and the room calmed down. "Don't talk to me, don't look at me," he ordered and left with haste.
I sighed and followed him out of the room. Ahead of me Max ducked into a room and I followed. The sound of breaking glass accompanied my footsteps. Inside the room Max had a bat, who knew where he got it from, and was smashing glass cabinet windows.
"Having fun?" I asked. Max turned and whipped the bat at my head. I ducked and turned watching it sail into a walls of items behind glass doors which shattered on impact. "Watch it," I snarled. Max smirked. He seemed to be a deranged teenager vandalising and taking his anger out on whatever he could find.
"Not my fault you're in the way of the bat," he shrugged. I sighed. It was time to give this child a little lesson. I walked forward fast. The boy went wide eyed and backed up when he saw me. I grabbed his shirt and shoved him into one of the broken cabinets. Glass reigned down dusting his hair.
"Listen, brat. I am not here to betray the pack. I'm a plant. Addison is alive. They are coming. If you keep treating me like crap I will start treating you like they do," I said and pushed him hard against the wood and glass. "Capisce?" I growled repeating Antonio's famous words.
"Liar," Max snarled struggling against my hold. More glass fell and broke around us and items in the cabinets slid off shelves and follow suit.
"I'm not, you'll see eventually. In the meantime if you keep treating me like the enemy Bruce and Dustin will look like children compared to me." Max glared hatred at me and then his eyes darted behind us. I heard multiple footsteps. I dropped Max. He fell to the floor and stood with a wicked grin. I saw a bit of the psychopaths in his eyes which put me on alert. The little boy was long gone replaced by a killer.
Despite what Max felt he was still a child and was influenced easily by his elders. These elders were not the ones who should be influencing him. I turned towards the mutt pack and saw they were spread out before me. Max zipped out from behind me and went to stand by Jones who seemed uneasy.
"Karl, as part of the pack uprising you betrayed your new pack and joined the North American Pack. None of us believe you are here to join us. You are here under false pretenses. Max is mine," Bruce said and snapped his fingers. Max obeyed the order immediately walking to his side. The man set a heavy hand on his shoulder. "The pack will not get him back. Ever. I will kill him before they do." Max didn't seem surprised by this at all.
"Boys," Dustin said. The pack members surged forward and swamped me. I may be good at fighting, but the most I could deal with and win was three. I had six coming at me. I fought breaking Michael's arm, giving Dustin a bloody nose and rang Jaxon's ears so hard he fell to the floor and yelled in pain.
It took seven minutes for them to overwhelm me. Once I was on the floor the mutts kicked me until I coughed up blood and started blacking out. The last time I awoke Max was above me with the bat over his head. He grinned and knelt down close to my ear. "This is for the pack, traitor. This is for you lying to me about Addison." I groaned and tried to speak, only blood bubbled up.
Max stood and raised the bat up. With a hard as nail look in his eyes that were no longer innocent he brought it down and smashed it against my skull. Pain bloomed and I blacked out once again.
Antonio POV
"We have a surprise for you," Max said over the loud speaker. I almost had a heart attack at hearing his emotionless voice. The cold words stuck like icicles in my heart. "You'll find your plant at 103 Wexler Lane. Better hurry," he said casually as if this was a game.
"Max, where are you? Are you ok?" I asked. I had to ask. I gripped the bedspread under my hand hard enough my knuckled were white.
Across from me Addison was jiggling his leg up and down on the bed hearing Max speak. Cooper was beside him with narrowed eyes listening to the intonation of his voice and the background noises. We'd found Cooper, Dias and Addison beaten up but alive when we went to find Max. They had been tranquilized. It was a close one. No one knows why they weren't killed. Max would never forgive himself of they were though it sounded as if he had already started to punish himself.
"You should hurry, I've already called the cops. If you don't want to get a werewolf out of jail, if he's alive that is, you might want to get there fast," he laughed chillingly. I glanced at Elena concerned. His voice was hard and cold, no trace of the child that had left. No trace of the scared little boy either. He sounded crazy and angry, a dangerous combination.
"Max, please tell us where you are," I begged. The boy paused. His breath was coming faster and he sounded strained.
"He lied to me you know. Karl, that fucking betrayer. He deserved what he got. I should have killed him myself," Max growled. I could tell he was about to hang up. I had to think fast. I stood as if he could see me practically yelling into the phone. All my business training gone out the window in my desperation.
"What did he lie about?" I asked. Max paused again. I wasn't sure he would bother answering. Were we about to lose him forever? I moved closer to the phone held in Elena's hand which was on her knee projecting his voice to the room.
"Addison," Max suddenly said. Addison jerked his head up and his mouth opened shocked. "He told me Addison was alive and Cooper and Dias. He told me the most terrible lie. I hate him for that. They're dead because of me," Max answered in a miserable tone. Venom snaked through his voice. I knew if we left him like this, where he was he would turn into a hateful wrathful mutt. I could not let that happen.
"He wasn't lying," Addison suddenly cried. We had decided as a pack not to let Max know they were alive yet. Cooper dove to cover Addison's mouth before he could say anymore, a small scuffle ensued with Cooper pinning the boy to the floor and covering his mouth.
"Addison?" Max got out before someone pulled him back from the phone. We heard something smash, a shout and Max cry out in pain before the phone crackled as someone else took it.
"You have five minutes to get Karl before the cops get there," one of the mutts informed and hung up. Addison pushed Cooper away with a glare and stood pacing. He pushed hands through his messy hair, normally meticulous the sorcerer had been falling apart.
"He needs to know," Addison yelled turning. Cooper stood and took him by the shoulder to the next room through an adjoining door. I looked at Elena a little desperate. This had to end before we would be forced to end him.
We didn't get to Karl in time. He had visited the hospital, where by some miracle they did not take blood and then bailed him from jail. The only thing to do after that was leave with him wanted by state and federal police. Karl Marsden would need to disappear for a while, while this died down. He wasn't in any shape to fight anyway. The new pack had beaten him bloody and unconscious several times.
I could imagine Max watching and fearful, Karl told a different story in a slurred voice, too many pain killers and punches. "Max participated. With a bat. You need to get to him. He's turning into them," Karl said chocking on blood he was still coughing up.
Alarmed I looked at Elena who promised we would.