Chapter Thirty — Eight
James POV
Michael's authoritative voice irritated me. Even in this chaos, I felt a little angry by the way he just shouted an order at me and expected me to follow it. He was not the Alpha.
At least, not yet.
Not until he defeats me in a fight and walks over my dead body to achieve that place. I will be the only one to bear that title.
Only me.
Regardless of the way he had ordered me to follow his instructions, I knew he was right. His words did make sense. We did not have time to waste. We needed to save our younger ones. Especially, knowing that our guards will be finished soon, especially because there were more hunters than wolves, and they would be outnumbered, and only older men from our pack and women would be left to protect our younger children, if we did not reach them in the right time.
It was our duty to protect our pack.
And I take my duty too seriously.
So I decided to stop being a wimp and take the control of the situation back into my hands. Now that I had convinced myself that I would get there no matter what, and in time, then I would.
Without wasting any more time, I gathered as much as energy I could muster and ran for the main Board's room side forest. Where the hidden passageway resides.
It was one of our hidden ways and escape routes for a time like this. This was made even before Michael and I were born. Dad had made it built this up after a heavy discussion with board members. It was said that we needed them because we were The most powerful pack. And being powerful comes with the threats of attack more than any other pack out there. We needed tight security and places where we could take shelter when we needed. That we might need it for emergency escape in the future. I could not believe how right they were. Who could have thought that their prediction would turn out to be this right. That their smart thinking back then, would actually help us in the present. Also, this much.
Anyway, I ran headbutting every single hunter out of my way that dared to come my way. Many tried to grab me from my head, but I chewed their head off and threw them to the side before they could succeed in doing their work.
For some weird reason, I was in the completely Alpha mode. Somewhere inside me, I knew that even if I was an alpha yet, or one day I might not be an alpha because I could not rule out the possibility that Michael could win the position over me, that I would still protect my family. Against all odds. Until my last breath leaves my lung and my bones give out.
Until I die.
All these fuckers will have to go through me to get to them. And if I really ended up dying today then… it would all be worth it.
All of my family was worth it.
Inside my head, I smiled. Although I knew very well that a cruel fate awaits me, somehow ironically, it gave me a little boost to build up my fight. I increased my speed with this new-found energy, knowing that I would be proudly sacrificing myself for my pack, in order to protect them. It will be worth it in the end.
Everything.
My feet came to a halt when, at last, I arrived at the designated place. My eyes scanned the whole area, but I did not see Michael anywhere or any soul for that matter.
I tried to mind link Michael but just did not connect.
“Where are you, Michael?” I muttered to myself when, again, I could not get through him. I cursed under my breath. Nothing was going the way we had planned. This was the worst timing of all time to not connect with him.
For some reason it just did not connect. I tried and tried, but then I finally gave up.
Whether he was too busy to connect or something interrupted the connection. In both cases, I could not reach him.
“Screw it!” I said out loud in anger.
Standing there alone, I decided that I had two options. First, wait here for Michael so that he could give me instructions like he is an official alpha while the rest of the pack people inside the hideout die. Or my second option, take charge of the situation. Think and act like a leader and just dive into the hidden passageway and begin helping them out. And most probably take them somewhere safe.
I made a quick work on weighing the pros and cons over both options. Finally, I made my decision.
I picked the latter.
If everything was going to get wrong then so be it. I decided to be the real man and to take things in my own hand. Save everyone whom I could without waiting here to wait for his arrival.
My decision was made. So it was time to take action on it. At the moment, I stood in front of a big wall that was covered with leaves and hanging roots. From outside no one could imagine that behind this heavy barks of trees were a hidden passageway that led to the hideout. To enter this place, I had to change back into my human form. It cannot cross in the wolf form. So I changed myself back into the human form. All my furs retreated, my back limbs unfolded and started to expand while my front legs swiftly transformed into my arms. And in just a mere seconds, I was turned into a completely full-grown man albeit naked. The transformation from one form to another happened in seconds. The transformation thing never failed to amuse me. I glanced down at my body. It was all covered in dirt, but that did not matter right now. My attention was drawn back to the wall in front of me.
I did not have much time to waste. So I proceeded to move forward carefully. I did not know if anyone was still there. Parting the thick roots and leaves aside, I entered inside the tunnel. Behind me, all the roots fell right back onto the place. Turning everything black again. Only a streak of light from the creak and my wolf vision helped me see through the surrounding darkness.
I did not see any sign of anyone from our pack nor did I see a single trace of hunters. It was all too calm. I did not feel any other presence around me.
To be very honest, I could not comprehend if it was a good thing or bad. Good thing or not, I proceeded with more caution than ever. Listening to any crack of stick, rustling of leaves, the slightest change in air movement or any sort of footstep.
None.
My feet carried me to the hideout's opening in the ground. My shoulders sagged, and I let out a sigh of relief. No one here. Finally, the time for me to go inside it.
I took a step forward when something sharp and heavy hit my head. I only got a few seconds to feel the sharp, electric pain before I passed out.