Beyond the Pack’s Law: My stepsister or nobody else

Hayley’s POV

Grey-eyed Dawn bled cold and bright across the camp. The events of last night still sit fresh in my memory. Marcus was gone, and he took the answers that would have saved our pack with him. Yet it made our mission all the more urgent. We could not afford to lose him when our lives were all in danger of falling apart.

‘Hayley, get over here,’ Aiden shouted across the early morning tumult of camp. My eyes shot over to where he stood with Alpha Lucas and Luna Elara in tow, his father looking stern but determined.

I rushed over as fast as my legs would go, determination thumping in my chest. “What’s the plan?” I looked at both of them suspiciously.

Alpha Lucas answered, his voice not lacking in command. “We’re expanding the search to increase intensity.” “We can’t let Marcus get far. He is a man who knows too much, and he might bite back with vengeance he could not recover from.”

Luna Elara stepped in and said, “We will be breaking up the pack into teams, and we are going to fetch Luminescence. “All areas within and around our shackles will be covered by a team. We need to be thorough.”

Aiden nodded, his jaw clamped resolutely. “We’ll find him. We have to.”

When we started mobilizing the search teams, adrenaline rushed through my veins. This was it. Our opportunity is to hold Marcus accountable and keep our pack safe from any more threats.

This was it. OUR opportunity to see Marcus dead and finish this, now we can protect each other from him. I linked up with the Aiden-led team; we were to sweep an expansive western wood with cluttered and curling paths, not taking away from its tree coverage.

Aiden entered “Walkie” as we left. Marcus knows this ground better than anyone. He is going to take every opportunity there that he can.

We were on high alert as we slowly moved through the forest. The woods were silent, the sounds of birds and forest life seeming to have abandoned them, as if even nature knew that something tense was in store.

One of the scouts called, “This way,” and indicated some tracks leading off into the forest. “These look fresh.”

Our eyes searched the area in hopes of finding Marcus, and we tracked down his footprints. The tracks took us to a tiny glade in the woods, and it was clear that someone had been on this spot not long since.

I think he’s still here,” I announced, looking around. “But where did he go?”

Aiden dropped to his knees beside me, suspicious eyes assessing the prints. Maybe he’s throwing us off. We need to be careful.”

We searched on, pushing deeper into the woods. The air chilled and the trees grew thicker; branches closed together, forming an overhead canopy that shut away much of the sun. But anyone could be hiding down there, moving among the natural cover around them.

The further we went, the more I felt like someone was looking at us. My spidey sense was tingling, and the hairs on my neck stood up. As my eyes moved about, scanning for anything amiss,.

“Aiden,” I breathed out quietly. “Do you feel that?”

He nodded, looking around the park. “Yes. Stay close.”

We advanced with trepidation, images of any rustle triggering the snapping sound reverberating through my nerves. The shadows deepened as the light that kept them at bay faded, and it seemed to me that, for all he warned of fear outside its boundaries, there was a tension in him too, finding its way out now that our small patch had turned again on us.

Hold on, I broke off. “Do you see that?”

Aiden saw where I was looking and looked at a small, practically invisible entrance at the base of one of the largest trees. Vines had grown over its entrance, yet a dim light shone from within.

“Not a channel,” said Aiden, his voice slowly dawning with realization. “IT MUST FORGE THROUGH A WAY OUT OF THE POLO STICK’S TERRITORY.”

I felt a surge of hope. Our big opportunity fell right into our lap. This tunnel would be our best bet for catching Marcus if he were using it as an escape.

We have to inspect it,” I said strongly.

Fair enough, she responded to Aiden with the same seriousness as well. “Be careful. It’s not like we know what lies beneath.

As we crept up to the entrance, parting the undergrowth and revealing a tight, concealed corridor leading deep into the earth, The air was cold and damp, illuminated only by a faint glow produced by some type of bioluminescent fungus that clung to the walls.

Aiden walked towards the tunnel. “Stay close.”Content protected by Nôv/el(D)rama.Org.

We walked the tunnel, our steps barely echoing within; it was cramped. The passage collapsed, the walls closing in on us. Huge and confusing blades everywhere made it easy to lose your sense of direction; you had to pay attention.

Then, after what seemed like forever, there was a break leading into a bigger room. The glow had briefly cut through the void, and within that instant, people could see branching tunnels heading in every direction.

He stepped back and let us in, nodding. He lived at the base in a tidy room, very organized-evidence of his nature. We both sit, and I can see that his body is contrived; he has not relaxed as much here on this bench.

“What’s this about?” His eyes met mine, with Marcus asking

We found a goddamned warlock in the pack. I told him and watched his face for what he’d give me to eat off of. A and another helper had something in common: someone who has been working with the rogues.

Marcus’s finely drawn face gave no sign of his feelings, but there was a sparkle in his eyes. Fear? Guilt? It was hard to tell.

“And you think it’s me?” “Have I been replaced by an angel?” he said, sounding calm but slightly defensive.

Hayley was gentle but direct: ”We think it could be.” We have to figure out where you were on those nights before the amulet was discovered.

Marcus raised an eyebrow as he leaned back in the chair. What are you insinuating? I have done nothing wrong. I was with the council, preparing for battle against the rogues.

“According to witnesses, you went out of your resort secretly.” I asked, and my tone became cold. “From someone who was not of our kind…

Marcus’s eyes widened, and for a moment he looked almost panicked. “That’s ridiculous. You never understand how much betrayal that is for the pack.

“Cassandra, to me, was a little too much, like, I feel if someone can appear frequently on TV, they should be disqualified just based solely on that,” he continued before Hayley cut in. “Okay, so then explain the absences, the Secret Assemblies.”

Marcus paused and looked between the two of us. And suddenly, he leaped for the door. Hayley and I sprang into response, but Marcus was faster as he broke the grip from our hands on his side of the bars, then darted away within a twinkle in the night.

“Stop him!” My voice echoed through the camp as I shouted.

The pack sprang into motion, but Marcus was already melting away into the night. And just like that, this metaphysical gut punch hit me. The traitor was fleeing, and we could not do anything to prevent it from happening.

And pursue we did, the night wringing with shouts and scuffles. Marcus was at the edge, but with one last link, he knew this area better than everyone here. Our opportunity to learn all the depths of betrayal was slipping away with him.

Hayley sounded resolved. “We can’t let him get away.”

We shall not,” I answered with excitement. “We have to find him. No matter what.”

But they ran, and keeping up at all was hard in the dark forest. Marcus was an experienced tracker; a trail he wanted to follow ended on the seating wall. Over the passing minutes, reality began to dawn on me. We were losing him.

Ultimately, we collapsed, breathlessly panting. Silent in the forest, nothing but a quiet rustle of far-off leaves. Now Marcus was dead, and he took the answers to all of our questions with him.

Hayley sat up straight, determination filling her voice. “This isn’t over.”

I nodded, my jaw clenched. “No, it’s not. We will identify him, and we are going to bring his ass in.”

Walking back to the camp, it all started sinking in, and a heavy blanket of every fucking thing landed directly on me. There was now no doubt who the traitor had been, but he remained at large. Our pack was still in danger, and the war had only just begun.

We approached my father and Luna Elara, who looked concerned.

“What happened?” What is it? My father asked. Although his voice was fearful, he spoke calmly.

I exhaled in frustration and shouted at Marcus. “He’s a traitor. But he escaped.”

Luna Elara’s eyes went wide with shock. “Marcus? Are you sure?”

I nodded, my heart heavy. He denied that Bloom did this to him, but his actions say otherwise. We have to get at him before he can perpetrate more mischief.

A firm hand landed heavily on my shoulder, and I looked up into the stern eyes of Dad. “We’ll find him, Aiden. We’ll protect the pack. No matter what.”

Through the night, it was all hands-on that reinforced our defenses and took stock of what lay ahead. There was urgency and sheer will pushing over us, a glue that connected all of our hands in step against the chilling fate.

My resolve is thick in my voice: “We will find him refreshed; so send pairings to his kinsmen.” He will regret ever turning his back on our pack when we do.

Hayley rested a comforting hand on my arm; her eyes were fierce. “Together, Aiden. We’ll face this together.”

I felt a renewed vigor as the first rays of light began to cascade across my face; dawn had finally come over the land. That would cast the shadow of a traitor over who we are, but at least now it was one whom everybody knew and had an answer to. And we would hunt down Marcus and guard our pack well, no matter what it cost us. The war may have just begun, but with Hayley and the pack at my back, I felt a drive as fierce as we trudged through the camp, lightning and hope burning under our skin.