32

I followed Alaricas to the training room, I was slightly nervous. I would be fighting two of his best female fighters, then one male, and finally, him. I wasn't looking forward to it, but I need to prove to him that I can do this. That I can join them in the war.

"I'm just going to warn you about Lindsey." He said, suddenly facing me.

I frowned, "What about her?"

"Me and her...we dated throughout high school. She eventually broke up with me because of my parents, but she stilk sort of...flirts with me."

I raised an eyebrow, "And why am I just hearing about this?"

"Well, she hated me for a while because I sort of...hit her with the door. On my defense, I didn't see her!"

I chuckled, "I'll make it very clear to her that you're mine. You...you don't want her still...right?"

He smiled softly at me and gently cupped my cheek. "I love you and only you."

I searched his eyes for any hint of dishonesty, but there was none. I smiled back at him and kissed him on the lips.

"I love you, now, kick their asses. And kick Lindsey's just a tiny bit more." He smirked.

As we stepped in, my eyes immediately connected with a jealous looking she-wolf. She had red hair, emerald colored eyes, and flawless skin. I tilted my head as I studied her, she's somewhat taller than me and does look gorgeous. I clenched my jaw when her eyes went to Alaricas.

She smiled as she walked up to us, I was stunned when she suddenly grabbed Alaricas' shirt. I frowned when I felt his fear, doesn't this girl know about his PTSD?

What pissed me off further was when she suddenly kissed him. Alaricas immediately shoved her off of him, his eyes shined with anger.

"What was that for, baby?" She pouted.

Alaricas folded his arms across his chest, "One, don't call me baby. It's alpha to you. Second, in case you're too stupid to figure it out, I'm fully mated to your Luna. Third, she's sexier than you and actually has a personality. Fourth, stay away from me."

I smirked as she gaped at him, I then gave her a taste of her own medicine as I gently grabbed my mate and kissed him. This time, Alaricas responded and kissed me back. We made out for a bit until we needed to breathe. I then turned towards Lindsey and smiled sweetly at her.

"You're first." I stated before stepping into the arena.

Alaricas walked away from her and stood beside Cain and Mae. Lindsey stepped into the arena and glared at me.

"Bring it on, Luna." She sneered.

I grinned, "With pleasure."

Forty-five seconds. That's how long it took for me to grab her by the throat and pin her down. She growled and clawed at my arm, receiving a growl from Alaricas. He didn't move though, knowing he wasn't allowed to.

Lindsey snarled loudly before shifting into her wolf, I clenched my jaw as I used my strength to keep her pinned down. She bared her teeth and tried biting me, but she couldn't. I smirked at her while giving my wolf partial control.

I applied even more pressure on her throat, cutting off her oxygen. She whined and clawed at my arm, but I wasn't letting go any time soon.

She eventually shifted back, her face had a blue tint to it and her eyes were wide with fear.

"Do you submit?" I questioned.

She nodded. I smiled and let her go, she coughed and gasped for air. I looked over at Alaricas to see pride in his eyes. The pack cheered for me before Lindsey was taken away.

I turned to face the other female, she was shorter than me, but I could tell she's strong.

"Ready?" Alaricas asked.

We both nodded as he signaled for us to begin. We circled for a little bit, studying each other. I grinned as she made the first move. She tried punching me, but I quickly caught her fist and squeezed it. She cried out in pain as her knuckles broke.

She held her hand and looked at me with tear filled eyes. I didn't move though, I gave her a blank look as I awaited her next move.

Multiple times she tried attacking me, but I dodged her each time. It finally got to the point where she submitted without even having me pin her down.

I bit back a laugh when the male backed out, shaking his head and saying I'm going to kick his ass. Alaricas chuckled at him before stepping into the arena.

I kept myself from smirking, I know exactly how I'm going to win this one. We circled each other slowly, daring each other to strike first.

Alaricas suddenly ran at me and grabbed my wrist. I didn't flinch or anything, I kept a bored expression. Before he could pull me closer, I jumped up ane kicked him in the face with my feet. He immediately let go and fell backwards, I landed on my feet gracefully. I made a mental note to thank Dimitri for teaching me that move a while ago.

Before he could recover, I lunges at him and punched him in the face. He shook his head and blinked, trying to clear his vision.

I felt guilty as I saw the blood smeared across his face. I didn't let that hold me back though, I attacked him again. However, he dodged me and swiped his leg under me.

I let out a yelp as I landed on my hands, I tried getting up, but Alaricas already had me pinned down. I winced at the painful pressure he was applying to my back, but I refused to submit. I have to win.

I bit my lip and let out a small, pathetic, wimper. I could feel him tense, but he didn't budge. I then sniffed, acting as if I were crying. He suddenly flipped me over and studied me. Now, time for some real acting.

I forced myself to cry as I looked up at him. His eyes filled with concern and his grip on me loosened. I quickly flipped us and pinned him down, feeling horrible as I applied immense pressure between his ribs. He coughed and tried getting free, but ended up causing more pain for himself.

"Submit yet?" I mused.

He growled, "Fine. I submit. Just let go of me. That fucking hurts."

I chuckled as I let go, before I could get up though, he stood up. I landed roughly on my shoulder, groaning at the pain.

Alaricas turned around and frowned, he immediately helped me up.

"Did I break it? Is it dislocated?" He asked.

"Alaricas."

"You should go to the infirmary."

"Alaricas."

"Fuck. I hurt you again!"

"Alaricas, I'm fine!"

He frowned, "But your shoulder-

"Is fine." I chuckled.

I sighed as I dried my hair off, chuckling at my currently, ranting mate.

"I sucked!" He fumed.

"Alaricas, you're weaker than I am because of what you went through. You lost a little muscle tone and weight. By the color of your skin and the look in your eyes, I can tell you weren't feeling the greatest either. Why did you fight anyway?" I asked.

"Because, if you can fight me and win, then you can fight in the war." He whispered, wrapping hid arms around my waist and pulling me against him.

I smiled, "I love you, you know that, right?"

He chuckled and kissed me on the head, "How could I forget? I love you too, princess."

Mae, Cain, Alaricas, Jayden, Nicole, and I all sat in his office. The war was going to happen in two days and the pack was just finishing up their training. We had all the healthy males going and half of the healthy females.

We also have about three elders going, including Amelia's father. The council told Alaricas he wasn't allowed to kill him, so, Alaricas is hoping a skin-walker does.

"So....we're going to surround them?" Cain asked.

Alaricas nodded, "Then, when I howl, we'll attack. Rip any skin-walker to pieces. Except for the one chained on the cliff, Dimitri is planning on saving him since he freed Dimitri."

"Me and four nurses will go to help with the wounded." Mae stated.

"Good, we'll need your help." Alaricas replied.

Cain frowned, "You are to hide away from any skin-walkers."

Mae rolled her eyes, "I can handle myself, Cain. Fuck off."

We all stared at them in shock, Cain released a sigh and ran his hand through his hair.

"Anyway...I'm going to hold a meeting with the pack this afternoon. Jayden and Nicole will stay behind to help protect the pack. The other half of our healthy warriors will stay behind as well. " Alaricas continued.

"We leave tomorrow for the USA." I spoke up.

"What about Eduardus and Amelia?" Nicole questioned.

Alaricas sighed, "They're already there. They've been getting the mansion ready. We haven't used it in a while."

"And your parents?"

"I made them rogues." Alaricas replied dryly.

Nicole nodded in understanding. Alaricas released a breath and leaned against his chair.

"It's settled?" He asked.

We all nodded quietly, he then dismissed us and started organizing his desk like I've been forcing him to.

I watched as Mae stormed out of the office, leaving behind a very hurt Cain. He looked at the floor for a while before standing up.

"Sorry." He mumbled.

"Cain, what happened?" I asked.

He bit his lip, "You know how I told my pack that Hayley was their temporary Luna?"

I nodded.

"Well, her mother decided to tell Mae that I promised to mate with Hayley when that never happened. Even Hayley told her that her mother was lying, but Mae being Mae, didn't believe us." He explained.

"Now, she hates me."

I frowned, "I doubt she hates you."

"She got herself a guest room." He mumbled.

Alaricas sighed, "Just give her some space, she'll eventually come around."

"I hope so, I at least want to spend some time with her before the war. If I lose her and she's still feeling betrayed then..." his voice cracked as he looked down.

I got up and hugged him, "Don't worry about it. She loves you, she's just being emotional."

He scoffed at that.

I rolled my eyes, "Did you and Hayley screw each other?"

"No."

"Did you ever make-out?"

"Yes, when we were dating like...six years ago."

"Does Mae know you dated her?"

"Not until Hayley's mother told her. Her mother is greedy and will do anything for money or power." He groaned.

"She's probably upset because you kept secrets from her. How is she supposed to believe you when you didn't even warn her?"

He bit his lip, "You have a point."

"Uh huh."

"I'm going to talk to her when she's not...trying to kill me."

"It'll work out." I assurred him.

I followed Alaricas to the backyard, hoping the pack will agree to help. We stood on the porch as everyone walked into the yard, forming half a circle before us.

I quickly spotted Mae who stood beside Nicole and Jayden, completely ignoring Cain. I frowned at how upset he seemed, he didn't have any emotion in his eyes besides pain. My heart broke for him, but I know there's not much I could do right now.

Alaricas quickly quieted down the pack and cleared his throat.

"As you all know, the skin-walkers have claimed a war against us. King Dimitri is planning on attacking in two days. No one knows that we will be joining them at the last minute. Alpha Cain's pack will also join us. We will be leaving tomorrow at five in the morning."

"My family owns a large mansion in the USA. My brother and his mate are currently there, getting the house ready. Half of all our warriors will stay here with Jayden and Nicole, so the pack has protection. The rest will obviously come with me, your Luna, Cain, his mate and the few nurses. Elders who aren't well enough to come, pregnant females, children, and so on will stay here."

"I want all of you on high alert and sticking together while I'm not here. This so called war shouldn't last long, the walkers aren't exactly strong. Does anyone disagree with this plan? No? Good. Now, you have tonight to say goodbye to your loved ones. If I have mated couples coming to America, together, then you'll have tomorrow as well."

I looked towards Mae to see her hugging Cain. Tears were running down her cheeks as she looked up and kissed him. I smiled at the happiness in his eyes.

Alaricas suddenly pulled me against him and kissed me on the lips.

"We are spending all day together, tomorrow." He whispered.

I smiled, "Good."