The Alpha (The Pack 3)

The cold press of a barrel against the back of my skull sent fear slamming through me. “Uh, Caleb,” I murmured and he slowly turned back toward me. “I think we have company.”

Chapter Twenty

Dom

Adrenaline surged through me with a sudden rush of overwhelming terror and I jerked upright, chest heaving as I reached for Jess. My hand came up empty and I scanned the room, not recognizing it.

My gaze settled on Dylan, who was rocking back and forth in the corner, watching me. “Dylan, what are you doing?” I asked, careful to keep the gnawing fear from my voice so I didn’t frighten him.

“Watching Dom. Keeping Dom safe,” he muttered, nodding to himself. “Don’t let anyone take Dom.”

“Okay,” I murmured to myself, trying to figure out the source of the fear. It felt like Jess and I fumbled, trying to connect to the bond we shared, but it felt like a moving target. The link was there but muted as if distance and something else had interfered with it. “Dylan, where’s Jess?”

He started to shake his head, upset, and a jumbled set of images poured into my mind. I saw myself on the ground, two men trying to drag me, Caleb sprawled next to me, but no Jess. In the next image, I was standing over my own body, guarding it. “You protected me,” I stated carefully as Dylan tried to tell me in his own way what happened. “Men attacked us,” I said, piecing together the events. “They shot me.” I remembered the pinpricks and the almost instant effect. I’d tried to shift but collapsed before I could. “They tried to take me, but you stopped them?” I left a hint of question in my voice and he nodded, staring at me with huge eyes. “They took Jess and Caleb?” He nodded again and my heart threatened to burst from my chest. The wild fear pumping through me was starting to make sense. “Where is everyone?”

I pushed myself upright, setting my feet on the ground, but had to hold my head as the room gave a sickening spin.

“Go,” Dylan said, making a walking motion with his fingers. “Re-rescue.” He stammered over the word, but I caught it.

“They went to rescue Jess,” I muttered, trying to concentrate on the threadbare link that was my bond to Jess. I needed to reestablish the link, strengthen it, but my mind was fuzzy. “What did they shoot me with?” I mumbled under my breath, not expecting an answer.

“Five tranqs,” Sam replied, her tone matter of fact, giving a shrug as she added, “At least that’s how many I pulled from your ass.” She paused in the door, giving me a critical stare. “I can’t believe you’re awake to be honest. I figured you’d be out for hours.”

I shook my head and then stopped as my stomach rolled. “Jess….she’s scared,” I managed before having to swallow back a sudden flood of spit. “I can feel her fear.”

Sam hurried toward me, a wet cloth in one hand and a glass of water in the other. “Small sips,” she ordered and laid the cold washcloth over my neck. “Trent was able to talk to her through the Pack bond,” she smacked my shoulder, thankfully avoiding my head as she grumbled, “And thanks for not telling your sister you have your own Pack, jackass.” I closed my eyes, taking slow sips, and using my pain to my advantage as I moaned. “You need to lie down,” she fussed, trying ineffectually to push me into a lying position. “We don’t know what they gave you, but it would be enough to down an elephant.”

“Good thing I’m a wolf then,” I replied, raising my head. “Where are they?”

“Headed to the Hanley compound,” Sam answered, her eyes worried. “Jess told them to bring guns and finish it once and for all.”

“They’re not at the compound,” I responded instantly, not sure how I knew that but absolutely positive. “They’re searching for them in the wrong place.”

“Jess and Caleb were going to try and escape, meet up with our group,” Sam explained, sitting next to me. She nodded to Dylan, “He was left to guard you and me,” she added with a shrug. “The others are on their way. I’m not sure how to reach them,” she admitted. “Unless you can?”

I winced, shaking my head, as I was forced to admit, “No, my head is foggy, I can’t focus.”

She held my head, inspecting me. “Your pupils are dilated, must have been something in what they gave you.”

“I’ve got to warn them, find Jess,” I muttered, forcing myself up, but it was too much too soon as my knees buckled and I landed heavily on the bed. “Fuck,” I shouted, barely keeping myself from puking all over the floor.

“Hurt, Dom hurt,” Dylan said, tapping his head. “You need medicine.” Something in how he said it made me think he’d heard this many times.