Chapter 106: The Manor


    Getting close to the manor is easier than I thought it would be. Domi was right about the fact the valley


    is almost like a deserted prison camp. Everything around the manor is still and empty while the valley


    has all those who are no longer loyal to their alpha, pushed away. Separated by electric fences,


    speakers ying nonstop the silent frequency to stop the vampire weapon being used against them.


    The whole ce is eerie, like a deserted army barracks and strangely dark despite all the spotlights


    hanging from posts. None are on.


    It’s almost like the aftermath of a battle in itself and if it weren’t for the distant chaotic noise of a real


    war going on, it would be as silent as the surface of the moon. There are no birds, no small animals,


    not even any kind of patrols and all the security cameras are facing the ground.


    It feels like life has slipped away in what used to be a bustling busy home filled to the brim with an


    eager pack. Most of the windows are boarded and with only the moonlight as illumination, the ce


    looks like a haunted house in some spectacr horror remake.


    “I don’t like this.” I murmur to myself as Sierra and Carmen turn human ande to my side, pushing


    Radar and my other nking wolf aside. We stand staring up at the dark building, no longer afraid of


    danger when the nothingness surrounds us. You can sense the fact that there is nothing here to be


    afraid of.


    “Are they even in there?” Carmen steps in front of me and peers long and hard at the top west tower


    and its balcony. The room that belonged to Juan and we see not a single light in the entire ce


    flickering through boards and curtains.


    “He’s there. I can feel him. He is hiding like the coward he is, locked away tight with his few.” Sierra’s


    venom rings true, and I find myself staring at her for a long moment and truly questioning what she


    knows right now. There’s a change in her now we are here, and it makes me nervous to think she is


    suddenly unpredictable if she has the knowledge we are no longer bound.


    If she knows, what will she do? Her death won’t affect me and that scares me more than anything. Her


    desire to see Juan die….it trumps even her need to survive. I know how strong her will to put things


    right is, and her devotion to ending this.


    “You’re right. They’re in there. At least a dozen of them or morest time the crows saw him venture


    out with his men and I can almost guarantee they know about the vampires too.” Leyanne nods


    towards one sole camera which has a small red light blinking in the dark. I stare until my eyes adjust


    and realize it’s moving, spanning the area and functioning normally. Maybe the rest are dead, but he


    still has one eye on his surroundings. The camera room was always operational from inside those walls


    and I shiver with knowing we are being monitored.


    “So we just sit and wait? And do what? y eye spy? Wave?” I snap, out of frustration, annoyed that


    while our people are out there, we’re standing here like none of this affects us. I know Colton thinks this


    is for the best and eventually they wille this way, but this just feels weird and wrong. Like we’re


    hiding from the fight.


    Luna!


    I’m side struck away from Carmen out of the blue, taken by surprise as I’m caught by another wolf and


    pulled down to the ground. Covered with a heavy brown furry beast as he bears down shielding me.


    Panting heavily, my heart skyrockets through my chest and I squirm on the dirt as I try toe to terms


    with what just happened. There’s noise of scraping ws, gnashing teeth, and yet I am concealed and


    can only wriggle to get purchase from the wolf on top of me.


    Luna. Are you okay?


    The wolf protecting me asks via the link in haste, moving enough for me to scurry to my feet and get


    behind him, to be immediately nked by other guards where I can get a look at what’s happening.


    My guards are fighting off three wolves from our old pack. They look haggard and feral, but I still


    recognize them as some of the subpack which used to run as perimeter sentinels when we lived here.


    It’s not hard to see they are not in the best physical shape and are quickly subdued by my own and


    pulled to the ground to be restrained as Carmen and Sierra shield me from the front. They seem


    disorientated and the wave of bitter hate flows freely around them like a thick smog.


    N?velD(ram)a.?rg owns this content.


    “Are they Juan’s men?” I blurt out into the chaos of noise they’re making. Grunts, growls and excessive


    heavy breathing as they are held down, and it’s now I can even see how thin and unkempt they are in


    wolf form. They don’t look like they have eaten in weeks. Shabby and pitiful and when they are finally


    held taught, my wall of wolves moves aside so I can get a better look.


    I dust myself down as our prisoners turn to human and it’s now I can see exactly who they are. They


    are the offspring of loyal followers to Juan. Sons of his closemand and yet all there of them look


    broken and exhausted and not exactly cared for. Filthy in naked skin and have sunken eyes and weary


    faces that have seen better days.


    My Guard all turn to human form too and Radar pulls the closest one to him with force, holding him in a


    grip with arms folded across his back as he bears down on his spine with a knee. Holding him still with


    that grim expression of a pissed wolf all over his face.


    “Who are you to attack our Luna? Do you want to die?” Radar snarls into his ear while a crushing crack


    as he applies force to his ex-pack mate’s spine makes me flinch. In soldier mode Radar is known for


    being ruthless. He can be brutal and violent when riled and I am seeing hints of him in war mode. It


    sends shivers down my spine.


    “Luna? Pahhh….. We don’t have a Luna, nor an Alpha! Deserters who turned their back on us and left


    us to suffer…. Don’t insult us.” Aiden, the wolf on the ground snarls right back despite being held tight


    but makes no attempt to break free. They three are outnumbered by our dozen and it seems smart


    enough to know fighting won’t end well for them.


    “I’ll show you what suffering is right now.” Radar leans in again with anger but I step forward and tap


    him on his shoulder to loosen his grip before he does anything to him. A sudden surge of guilt flowing


    through me because what Aiden said isn’tpletely wrong and I know Radar won’t hesitate to break


    his bones. We did leave them, and they have suffered. I don’t me the ones left to roam free for


    hating us and believing we abandoned them. Radar relents a little and sits back on his haunches with a


    sulking hint of grudged obedience, giving Aiden room to breathe once more. I exhale heavily and try to


    calm my swirling nerves, knowing as Luna I really need to takemand here.


    “Aiden…. I’m Alora Santo, Colton’s mate. I’m the Luna Radar refers to and this is Sierra. You must


    remember her; she is Rema now and once was Juan’s Luna. The woman he locked up for a decade


    and betrayed. You are still our pack and that is why we are here. We’re here to help.” My heart bleeds


    for these wolves and I can already tell by reading their emotions that the intention to attack us was not


    for Juan, but for their own heartbreak and pain. I wonder how many of the vigers were hostile


    towards our wolves fighting for them for the same reasons. Nerves swirling that maybe already our


    wolves are fighting among them as well as taking on that blood thirsty enemy.


    “Help? How? Do you have any idea how messed up things have be because of Colton? What are


    you going to do?” Another of the men on the dirt responds with that same bitter, curt tone.


    Stubbornness strong in his aura.


    “The whole pack is here to fight the vampires off. Stop and listen to the noise in the air. That sound of


    war and death! Your people are fighting for their lives and where is Juan? Who are the ones who came


    for you? Scoff all you want but she IS your Luna, and WE are here to help.” Carmen steps forward and


    kicks the thigh of the second wolf with a sharp dig, gaining a snarl in response from the one I recognize


    as Taemin. A once valued sentinel and someone Colton treated like a brother. A wolf who couldn’t


    leave because his family were tied here.


    “Don’t say that scum’s name. He’s dead to us. Just like his son. Nothing good ever came from the


    sacred Santa bloodline where they’re concerned.” The third, Robyn grinds out to join the conversation,


    another from the same sub pack and yet despite his hateful tone, there’s a sadness in his eyes as I


    lock my focus on his face. Behind their fury and venomous words, are wolves who have been


    abandoned and are suffering from the syndrome caused by fracturing a pack and leaving them Alpha-


    less. It’s a sense of detachment and can cause insane anger and bitterness among our kind.


    “We don’t have time for this. We’re not here to fight or hurt you. We’re here to protect the pack and take


    Juan to the vampires. You can either assist or be tied down until this is all over. You don’t want to live


    on as free roaming wolves, then help us and we will reunite the pack when this battle is won. Your


    suffering can end after this.” Sierra bes dominant in the conversation with amanding tone I’ve


    never heard from her. Stamping towards Aiden and towering over him with a fearless aura as she


    res down at him with all the presence of a queen. “You can go on with this attitude and be a


    hindrance, or you can get up, dust off and do everything to free and reunite our wolves. The vampires


    are the enemy, not us and Juan….. we’re here to make sure he pays for everything he has ever done.


    Don’t you want to be part of that?” She spits it at him and then ces a t palm on Radar’s shoulder


    to move him back so she can lean down and gain eye contact with his prisoner. “We need allies. We


    need the vigers to join the fight. If not, it looks like a lot of us will die here tonight.”


    “Why should we trust any of you? Where were you all these months when Juan turned on us?” Taemin


    struggles to get free but is kneeled upon by an extra wolf as they regain control of him. None of the


    guards are letting up and seems even if they were once brothers, the priority is to keep me safe.


    “You’re right! We weren’t here…. we were in another ce fighting to survive and trying to figure out


    how to fix a fractured pack. We were out there licking our wounds and struggling to know what to do,


    while being oblivious to your suffering. We have no excuses.” I try and soothe with my words, feeling


    the intensity of betrayal among them and attempting to push this conversation onwards.


    “We need you to put it aside and help. You’re part of the pack here and you three can be more use if


    you go rally your friends and family to Colton’s side. Look at me…. You know who I am. I was here until


    only a few weeks ago, so don’t give me your bullshit and act like you were the only ones. I lived here; I


    know what went down. I’m telling you to suck it up and stop acting like sulky babies.” Carmen walks


    around to the front of all three and stands with her hands on her hips, jutting out her jaw while swishing


    her hair back with a flick of her head. “We’ve suffered too. We’ve been fighting and hiding, and we’ve


    had our own losses. You chose to stay here so don’t put that crap on us. Cut the bullshit attitude and


    show some respect to your saviors.”


    There’s silence for a moment as they stare her down and then break contact and all three look away.


    Clearly recognizing her and knowing what she says is truth, but that high strung wolf gene is hard to


    dampen. I can feel their fire dying a little and look around me to double check there aren’t more to


    contend with. It seems these three were patrolling near the manor, probably scouting for supplies or


    maybe sightings of Juan and have no one else with them.


    I notice the camera is focused on us and no longer moving around, so someone is watching this scene


    unfold and I second guess whether these boys are with Juan or not. Whoever is controlling it is


    interested in what’s going on here and I wonder if they have audio too. I have an urge to wave and


    throw them the bird.


    “Look. You say Juan is the enemy, then help. He’s in there, right? Watching. Holed up like a coward


    and letting his people suffer. So get up and do something about it. We’re here for the same purpose.” I


    aim for a level tone, a hint of warmth in my words and pace around to get eye contact as best I can


    while ignoring the spying technology. I notice how Radar watches my every move and that the guards


    follow me closely with a severe stench of mistrust for what were once their brothers. It makes my heart


    bleed to feel the distance between blood like this and scowl at the manor with a quick nce, at the


    man who did this to them. A once superior pack and yet wey crumbled in ruins this way.


    “Get up and die by the hands of vampires? None of us are healthy enough to do very much. Isn’t that


    obvious by how quickly you took us down. We are living like wild wolves nowadays, hunting and


    foraging to survive. Juan uses the frequency to keep us weak.” He shifts enough to nod at one of the


    speakers up high and I turn and lock eyes on what he’s motioning towards. Confusion at his words


    invading my thoughts.


    “What?” I quiz and nce back and forth trying to understand. “What do you mean?”


    “You don’t feel it? I guess you haven’t been here long enough yet. The frequency, it has another pitch in


    the notes and exposure over time dampens our strength and ability. He’s making sure we can never


    take him down and are too feeble to even escape this ce.” Taemin rolls enough to stare at that same


    speaker and in unison Carmen, Sierra, Radar, and I all turn and stare at the ck box hung up about


    forty feet in the air and scrutinize it for a moment. A sudden tense quiet as we all take a moment to


    digest this.


    “So your saying the vigers are all weak right now, and that …. up there….will weaken the rest of us


    before long?” I nche and scrub my fingers through my hair at my temples, suddenly worried and


    instantly afraid. My heart lurches into my mouth and Radar and I gawp at one another as a problem


    suddenly hits us.


    “Nailed it. We have no strength, and our speed is almost nonexistent. Look at us…we can’t even heal


    properly, we’re all sick. Juan really knows how to hurt his own kind.” Aiden loses all fight and seems to


    cave into a disheveled heap under Radar, a long sigh as he gives into the fatigue overtaking him.


    “Oh my god.” Carmen verbalizes my gut reaction. A moment of panic sets in and I nce around at my


    comrades, meeting equally shocked expressions as all our minds go to the same ce.


    Colton, we have a problem


    I link him in desperation as visions of vampires taking down our strongest flood my mind and am


    suffocated by the sudden nausea and fear that we just walked ourselves into a trap set by Juan. He


    can’t regain power over his people, but he surely won’t mind seeing them all die.


    He’s pumping out a tone to disable wolves, yet if we turn it off then the frequency to counteract the


    vampire’s weapon will also be useless. It’s a no won either way and now as the noises drift toward sus


    on the wind of a full throttle war being raged in the valley, I start to wonder which side is actually


    winning.