The Alpha's Curse The Enemy Within

Chapter 11 Eleven

Killian's point of view

I couldn't understand why I felt uneasy, my mind constantly going back to Sheila.

Ryker's restlessness kept intensifying, and it was driving me insane. I couldn't focus on my work properly, and I kept experiencing pain from the dark hole in my chest. It was unbearable.

I left my office and headed to Thea's chamber, where I've been for several hours now. Being near her was usually like medicine to my soul. Somehow, her presence always seemed to make the pain from the cursed hole in my soul bearable.

But these days, it was almost as if the dark hole had come alive, and nothing was working, not even Thea's presence. Not even the healer's potions. Nothing.

I was on the bed with Thea beside me when I was mind linked by Mason. His voice echoed within the walls of my mind in a frenzy.

"Alpha, the pack is under attack." He rushed in a sentence. I jolted from the bed immediately. Thea was up beside me.

"What?" I snatched my clothes from the floor, wearing them in a hurry. "Who are they?"

"Rogues," he replied quickly.

My eyes flashed rage. "Mason, get the warriors and head to the pack borders. We must stop them before they get into the pack."

"Alright, Killian," He disconnected with me.

I mind-linked Adam together with the pack army, ordering them to spread out to the borders while some of the warriors swept through the pack, and the others should ensure the pack members were taken to safety.

I was about to mind-link Allen when someone connected to me.

Brielle's panicked voice flooded my mind. "Alpha!" Something was wrong. Ryker and I felt it. He had begun to growl angrily.

"What is it?" I felt my chest tighten in a knot, awaiting her frenzied voice.

"It's Luna, she——" At the mention of Sheila, I cut her off, a strange emotion exploding within me. Fear.

"What happened to Sheila?" I roared. I didn't even realize I was yelling aloud while speaking through the mind-link. Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

"Someone sighted some rogues heading north to the garden, and Luna was there. Ria left her for only a second at the garden. I'm on my way there but—" Before Brielle finished her words, I cut her off again, my legs having a kind of life of their own, hastening to the door. I could hear Thea's voice speaking, but I could care less what she had to say. I needed to get to Sheila. She was in danger.

The instant I reached outside, I gave Ryker control and shifted into my gargantuan black wolf.

We sprinted off, heading towards the pack garden. It was far away from the castle.

Why did Ria take her that far? I wanted to lash out on her, but Ryker growled in my head. "This wasn't the time for that, human."

He was right. This wasn't the time for that.

I reached the pack's garden. From afar, my eyes zeroed in on Sheila. She was on the ground, circled by three roguish wolves who had already leaped into the air to attack her.

Ryker let out a powerful howl as he raced closer to Sheila. Ryker's eyes went completely red. Without being told twice, he lunged at the wolf who was a second away from descending on Sheila.

Ryker's sharp claws pierced the wolf, and with his elongated canines, he bit another wolf, tossing them against the rough earth.

We landed on our paws, and so did the two wolves who were already bleeding. The third one was beside them, glaring at my wolf.

Ryker took his stance in front of a terrified Sheila, tilting his head to inspect her body for any injuries. Thankfully, there was none. But Ryker and I still felt the immense rage pumping in our veins at the rogues who dared touch what was ours.

"Run, Sheila run!" I sounded loudly in her head with Ryker's voice. Her round blue eyes were stuck on mine. She was trembling really hard, but couldn't move a muscle. We felt the urge to wrap our arms

around her, but I had guarded eyes on the wolves who had begun to move closer to us.

"Sheila, shift!" It was a command that would force her wolf to control her, but nothing happened. She didn't shift, instead, more fear found her blue irises. "Sheila!" I called. She looked so scared, I wished I could rush to her side.

"I— I can't. I can't shift!" She spoke quickly, which confused me.

"What do you mean, you can't?" I wanted to ask, but now wasn't the time. I turned my bloodshot eyes on the wolves who lunged at me. In swift motion, I sent my claws deep into one of the wolves, tearing it up. I sent my canines into the head of the second, separating them from their bodies, while snapping the neck of a third. Many rogues emerged from the woods, and I kept fighting.

Soon, Allen, Adam, and some of my pack warriors joined in the fight.

"Get Shelia out of here!" I mind-linked Adam, and he nodded.

From my peripheral vision, I saw Adam take Sheila away, and we continued fighting till every one of the rogues was dead. I shifted back into my human form, slipping into my shorts.

I mind-linked Mason and Xavier, who were scattered around the pack with some warriors. "How's the situation over there?" I asked.

"They are all dead. We are sweeping through the pack borders now. We will head back to the castle soon." Mason responded.

I nodded. Scanning the bloody mess of the lifeless wolves on the ground.

"I'm just confused. How did they manage to get past the Pack's defenses?" Allen came from behind.

I have been thinking the same thing as well. The crescent North Pack was the largest in the whole of the North Central, and our defenses were almost impenetrable. It baffled me how some mere rogues could get this far into the pack.

I said honestly, "I have no idea, Allen. I have a bad feeling about this."

I swerved my attention to Jax, who was beside one of the dead wolves. "You need to see this," Jax said, and I went to him.

"What is it, Jax?"

"Here." He pointed to the symbol on the wolf's body, and immediately, my eyes flared up and my body stiffened.

"They all have the same symbol." Allen looked over the body of the dead wolf. I still haven't recovered yet. It's been over a decade since I saw that symbol. My father had one just like that.

"This isn't good. Why were they here? Does that mean—" Allen paused on his words.

He was right. This was bad. That symbol belonged to the Dark Circle. They had sent the rogues, but why? It's been over a decade after the late Alpha's death since we cut ties with them. What do they want now?

"Clear up the bodies," I left the warriors, and headed back to the castle. Thankfully, the rogues were

caught before they got further into the pack. We arrived at the castle and headed inside.

"Killian," Thea came crashing into my arms, her lips engulfing mine. "I was so worried about you." Her worried eyes met mine. But mine went past her, scanning the room until it landed on Sheila. She was with Brielle. Her gaze was on me, but she retracted it quickly.

I looked away. Mason and Adam approached us, along with Valarie. Just the person I wanted to see.

Valerie was a witch. She belonged to the Crystal Fortress witches. The Crystal Fortress witches were the oldest coven of witches, and the most powerful. But they were attacked fourteen years ago, and many of them were murdered, while only a few managed to escape. Valerie was one of them.

"Did you see it? This wasn't a mere rogue attack. They were sent by—"

"The Dark Circle," she concluded.

"What do they want now?" The only link that had existed between my pack and the Dark Circle was no more. And that was my father. They've been quiet for years, even off the raiders, since their attack on the Crystal Fortress.

"And the Black Blood Pack," Ryker added. I didn't say anything. I hated remembering everything that happened that day and with my father. Nothing could change what happened to the Black Blood Pack, and nothing could ever change the hatred that existed between Leonardo Black, his brother, and me.

"We should talk inside," Valerie suggested, and I nodded.

"Alpha," I responded to Adam's call as he rushed up to me, a worried expression on his face and a

brown paper in his hand.

"What happened?"

"It's the Council." On Adam's words, Valerie threw a sharp glance at me. "Something happened, and it's bad." He handed the paper to me.

I read through it swiftly, inhaling deeply. My eyes fell on Valerie, who held a knowing look. "They are back. The Dark Circle."