Scarlett POV
The six of us, myself, Cayden, Bree, Jacob, Tasha and Channing are heading back to the pack house when I realize there's someone I should talk to before I start making calls, so I start veering to the left, heading to the area of our pack lands where individual homes stand for those people who don't want to live in the pack house.
"Alpha Scarlett? The pack house is this way." Cayden says with a slight laugh as he points when he notices me going off course.
"Before I head back to my office, I want to talk to my parents. Cayden, come with me. Bree and Jacob, you're both good with next steps?"
"Yes, Alpha." Jacob replies
"You bet, Alpha." Bree says as she gives me a thumb up.
"Tasha and Channing, thank you for your hard work today. Stick around and keep yourselves available to the patrols and the other trackers who may have questions about the scent or want to go see the area where it suddenly disappeared." I say to the two trackers as I continue left, getting further away from them, my Gamma and my Delta."
"See you later, Alpha and Beta."
"Let us know if you need anything else, Alpha."
"We'll get this figured out, Alpha!"
Cayden and I walk alone in silence for a moment. As werewolves, we have enhanced hearing, but I can tell he wants to continue the conversation we started in the mind link, earlier.
"Your parents, huh?" Cayden asks, slowly and quietly.
I take a deep breath, "yeah. I want to talk to them about all of this before I make any pack announcements or start calling people in."
"Calling people in?" Cayden says, sounding rather stunned as he stops in his tracks. "What the hell is going on, Scar?"
"I have a thought as to what that scent may be, but it's so insane, I can't believe I'm even thinking it." I saw as I continue walking towards by parents' house. When we arrive at their house, built to resemble an old log cabin, I knock on the door. They must have sensed me coming because the door opens almost immediately, and there he is. My here. My mentor. The man who taught me everything I know about being a good Alpha, taught me how to fight and how to drive a car. The former Alpha of our pack. My dad, Alpha Zeb Lobo.
"Scarlett! The prodigal daughter returns!" He exclaims with a big smile on his face, as though he didn't just see me yesterday. "And Beta Cayden! To what do your mother and I owe this great honor?"
I can't help but roll my eyes at his rather hyperbolic, but still endearing reaction.
"Hey, Dad. Is it cool if we come in?"
"Always." He replies, his voice changing from exuberant to serious, as he picks up on the fact that I'm not swinging by to see my mom and dad. He opens the door wider, stepping out of the way to allow myself and Cayden inside. "I guess this isn't merely a social visit. What's going, Alpha Scarlett?" My father says as he goes into full-on Alpha mode, himself. My dad may be retired, but he still is and always will be an Alpha. And it's only in moments like this that he addresses me not as his daughter but as his Alpha. Fortunately, we haven't had too many opportunities for him to need to use my title in the time since my Alpha ceremony. Largely because of the amazing job Dad did as the Alpha of the Crimson Snow pack, so it's been a pretty easy transition for me.
"Is that my beloved daughter, my first born, the apple of my eye?" I hear my mother's voice call down from upstairs as my dad, Cayden and I move from the foyer into the living room, giving me yet another opportunity to roll my eyes and my parents' silliness.
"Hey, Mom. Yeah, it's me. I have Cayden with me." I call out.
"Lovetta, honey, you should come down here. It seems that our Alpha and Beta need to speak with us." Dad says. Neither one says anything for a few moments and I know my mom must be asking him, in their mind link, what's going on.
"I'll be right down. Alpha Scarlett, Beta Cayden, make yourselves comfortable." She calls down, using the same formality as my father when realizing it must be something serious. As the three of us walk into the living room, I see Dax, my youngest brother and my Lead Warrior sitting in an armchair, leaning forward with his arms on his legs. He's clearly overheard the conversation between me and our dad, and also wants to know what's going on.
"Hey, Baby Bro." I walk over to Dax and lean down to give him a hug. He growly softly at the term of endearment, but I don't care. He may be an adult now and a Lead Warrior, but he'll always be my baby brother.
"Hey, Big Sis." He says, returning my hug with his own. "Whatever this is about, it seems serious. Should I go or do you want me to stay?" He asks, looking anxiously between our father and me. I think for a moment. I don't want my suspicions getting around the pack, creating panic or chaos until I'm certain of what we're dealing with and Dax isn't a ranked member. Hell, I even sent Bree and Jacob back to the pack house, only bringing my Beta with me. But is also my brother, someone whom I trust with my life and the safety of our pack. And as Lead Warrior, he's a good strategic thinker and, if I'm right, would play a pretty big part in any course of action. Particularly if it means new and additional fight training for our pack. If that ends up being the case, both he and Bree will have their hands full.
"No, actually you stay. It would be good to get your take on this." I saw as relaxes back into the armchair a bit, while still keeping his elbows on his knees, like he's already planning a strategy for whatever is going on. He's a lot like Jacob in that respect, I realize. Like Jacob, Dax, while an adult, is also still young and is determined to do his job well (which he always does), taking things very seriously as to not be looked upon as a pup. That's when she arrives. The woman who taught me about compassion, taught me how to care for a pack, also taught me how to fight, and how to make the best damn chocolate chip cookies on the planet. The heart and soul of the Crimson Snow Pack. My mother, Luna Lovetta Lobo. When she walks into the living room, she immediately gravitates to my dad's outstretched arm that pulls her close to side. The pull of the mate bond. Even after all these years, my parents are still mad for each other. If Cayden and I had just stopped in to say hi, she would have come and given me a hug, but much like my father, she differentiates between her daughter Scarlett and her Alpha Scarlett.
"Alpha Scarlett, Beta Cayden. Is everything okay?" She asks, her big green eyes wide with concern and her chocolate brown hair still slightly damp from a shower. It's like looking into a mirror and seeing my future self. And I'll tell you, I could do a lot worse. My mother still turns heads and is still a beast on the sparring fields. I've never seen her in an actual battle, but I have no doubt she can still kickass.
"Hey, Mom." I say as I sit on the couch with Cayden sitting down next to me. My dad sits in another armchair as my mom rests on his knee. "To be honest, I'm not sure. I wanted to talk to the two of you before doing anything else."
"What's going on, Alpha?" My dad asks seriously, the look of worry on his face, growing.
"Last night, our patrols picked up on some strange scents that they didn't recognize, around the pack lands. Earlier today, Tasha and Channing went out to follow the trail, which they were able to for a while, until the scents just disappeared." I look from my parents to my brother, making sure they're all hearing what I'm saying.
"That's not uncommon though. Scents disappear as they get farther away from us." Dax responds, now starting to relax back into the armchair, while still keeping his brow furrowed with concern.
"That's exactly what Gamma Bree said," Cayden chimes in, "but the tracker insist the scents didn't just slowly start to fade. They just disappeared."
I take a deep breath, "Tasha and Channing also said that there were footprints around the scents," I take a pause before saying one of the weirder things I've said in my life, "of men's dress shoes."
"Humans can't outrun werewolves, especially not in dress shoes." Dax says, just as confused as the rest of us were when we met up with Tasha and Channing at the northern border. Meanwhile, I haven't take my eyes off my father as I watch his countenance change from worry to confusion until finally landing on something I never thought I'd see in my strong, brave Alpha of a father – fear. And then he confirms my own fear.
"No, they can't." He says looking directly at me. "But vampires can."
Chapter 4 coming soon