Blood Lust and Love
Chapter 21

DarkBeauty357

Alec left with his small team of men as soon as the sun went down to get a head start. It shouldn't be a deadly mission, if anything it should be easier than the rest as long as Alec was on high alert mode. However, saying goodbye to your family was never easy no matter what the situation was.

Leah was crying even though Alec told her it wasn't a big deal. He would be back before she knew it. Besides, Leah now had a huge job to keep her busy because all the duties of Alec would now fall on her with his absence, so that should keep her mind off it while he was gone. Although the scariest thing was that Leah couldn't sense Alec because she wasn't a wolf, but Alec was still able to sense her even if it was weakened.

Peyton had already been crying for a whole week because Isaac was still in a coma, so Alec's departure didn't make him cry because he had no more tears left. He was sad and upset but he knew his dad was brave and strong.

Jade was already in an emotional state because of her pregnancy. She finally made the decision to keep the baby. Even though Jade never wanted to have kids she just couldn't bring herself to exterminate the pregnancy. She wasn't a big fan of abortion. The way she looked at it was that her child was innocent. Sadly, her unborn child's sperm donor was a bad man but Crow would never be the father to Jade's baby. Seth was. Seth and Jade already talked about the outcome before and Seth saw it as a blessing to both of them. Seth never thought he would be able to be a dad. Once Seth was turned into a vampire by his father he knew that he wouldn't be able to have children, and that thought alone hurt him but he accepted it.

Alec tried saying goodbye to Blaire and even to Damon, but for some reason, they both were acting distant and strange. Blaire's behavior wasn't nearly as peculiar as Damon's. Alec noticed that Damon was trying to avoid conversation with him and Blaire would give him the side-eye. Other than Damon trying to avoid Alec, the way Damon and Blaire conversed with each other was enough for Alec to raise a brow at both of them. It seemed like the people around him were becoming stranger and stranger by the second. Alec just shook it off though as he planned on talking to Damon who seemed to be looking everywhere but him. Before Alec left Damon just seemed to be looking on the edge and Alec wondered if the pressure was getting to him as war wasn't for everyone. It was possible that maybe he just needed a day off.

Charlie said his farewells as well because he was on this mission with Alec.

They spent two days traveling as fast as they could without stopping as much as possible. Since they were all faster than the rest they already had an advantage. Alec only stopped his group for small hunting sessions to fill the appetite of the huge strong wolves and to take little breaks.

The plan was to stop at least fifty miles away from Crow's artillery storage room and rest so they were all in top shape. They also had to scout out the area to replace the right time to destroy the storage room and make sure they didn't get caught.

Since Alec took minimal stops they were able to reach their destination faster. Before going to scout the area they set up their little camp so they could hunt and get some proper rest. They broke off into small teams to knock out their goals before the sun went down. Two days running put a good bit of exhaustion on all of the wolves, but it wouldn't take much for them to regain their maximum speed and strength.

Alec and Charlie left to go scout out the artillery house that Rem mentioned. They were both careful and stealthy, and they always stayed hidden. The rest of the group stayed fifty miles away safe and gathering some supplies. They split into two sections: one for hunting and the other for gathering firewood. It was a good thing that a water source was nearby.

Alec stayed low to the ground as he prowled through the grass with his son behind him. When he was finally able to see a building that matched Rem's description, he laid still in the tall grass and scoped out the area.

That's when he felt small little droplets of water above him. Alec's puppy dog eyes looked to the sky as he saw the rain clouds above him. Then he looked at his snout, little droplets of rain lightly hit his long snout and then rolled off. Alec preyed that this wouldn't compromise anything.

If wolves got wet it makes their scent more potent and they could easily be found if they are nearby, however on the bright side it would also make it harder to track down Alec and Charlie when they retreat back to their base camp.

Alec and Charlie watched as two men stayed guarded with guns outside the building. It was different than the one night that Rem came across this area because at the time there were more men loading boxes into the building. Now that the final shipment was already in the building, the security was cut down.

Crow wasn't expecting this kind of attack so it only made sense that he had only two men guarding the area.

Alec stayed for a little while to watch their movements and see if anyone else was on guard other than the two men. His wolf side wanted him to attack now and it was hard to resist those urges, but he knew he had to think this through. The more that he watched the two men converse with each other and goof off, Alec realized that this was going to be easy. The two men acted like nothing more than children. It would be easy to kill them both and destroy the artillery. Alec just hoped that there would be no visitors and to prevent that they would attack early in the morning.

Once Alec was able to mentally map out everything and form a plan in his head, Charlie and Alec retreated back to their group.

The rain let up a bit which allowed the small fire to breathe a little. When Alec trotted back to his men, dinner was already being cooked. Axe was lucky enough to catch a buck and the others rejoiced at how good deer tasted, but Alec preferred not to eat the buck. He ate before he left so he should be good until he got back.

After eating, the rest of the wolves felt comfortable enough to sleep because Alec would be taking watch.

The moon was full and bright in the dark sky, and the stars sparkled so brightly. It almost reminded Alec of the days that he would take his family to go camping, but the nights were never as beautiful as this one. It was ironic that such a beautiful night could transcend into such a horrific morning.

Killing, especially in war, wasn't something that Alec took lightly. In some sense, Alec felt remorseful that the two wolves had no idea what would become of them in the morning. Alec had no idea if these wolves were truly innocent or not. Maybe they were just pawns in Crow's plan, a scapegoat that could be easily disposed of. Men that meant nothing to Crow, other than the means of doing Crow's dirty work.

As Alec looked around the fire, he saw all of his men in their wolf form curled around the fire to keep warm. Some stayed close with each other to keep warm, even though none of them would ever admit that to their mates. Alec stayed sitting like a dog just looking at the fire for a minute. Even in chaotic times, there were peaceful moments like this.

Unlike Crow, Alec spent a lot of his time with these wolves. The way Alec saw it was that all of them were brothers to him. Alec grew up with some of the wolves on his team, and the rest were around his parents' age.

Alec remembered all the people who stood by his side when he returned as the alpha to his pack. They all depend on Alec as much as he depended on them. When Alec's parents died a lot of pack members stepped in and helped him train and practically groomed him to be strong. Not to mention, everything he endured with Crow made him strong and ruthless as well. After that, it didn't take long for Alec to achieve the strength he had now. Then it was Alec who rose and brought all his pack members with him.

Alec snapped out of his thoughts and shook some of the rain that gathered on his fur coat. It was barely sprinkling so there wasn't that much water.

Most nights Alec was restless anyway so he was just going to keep watch all night. Some nights were worst than others, but all of them were hard to deal with. For most wolves, it would be a downfall, but Alec worked well even when he lacked sleep.

Leah had worked so hard in the beginning because it took a lot of strength to deal with someone like Alec. Sleeping wasn't always easy when you shared a bed with him. Either he was never in it, or he would always wake Leah up when he had nightmares. Alec got over that the first time and now that he has started again, Alec really hasn't got much sleep.

So Alec walked around the fire, constantly aware of everything, and eyed the woods carefully. When the rain finally stopped it grew colder and the winds started to pick up. Eventually, the fire was blown out and the wind became more violent. It sounded like the sound of the whip as it lashed down on the trees.

The weather was so horrible that even the two men guarding Crow's artillery room could feel the effects, and they were at least fifty miles away from Alec. In order to get out of the wind's harmful lashes, they went inside to take cover.

With the fire put out, the wolves that were surrounding the pit started to shiver. It was slight shakes here and there but Alec noticed them. Alec's wolf was bigger than the rest so he knew that he generated more heat than the others. It was a known fact that Alpha's possessed more body heat anyway, so Alec walked over the wolves and laid down.

Alec faced away from them and blocked them from the wind as they gathered around his back to keep warm. Most of the wolves were too much in a sleepy state to and they quickly wanted to feel warm again to care.

Alec stayed in that possession as his focus was constantly on the woods surrounding him.

Throughout the night the winds lightened up and it grew warmer. Once it was warm enough, Alec got up and nudged Charlie awake. Alec went to replace a water source to quench his thirst as he left Charlie to watch over everyone.

The birds started to chirp and eventually, the wolves started to stir. The sun was starting to come up and that is when everything started. Some of the wolves drank some water first or even ate a rabbit nearby.

It didn't take long for Alec to move out with his men. They started out running in wolf form to at least get closer. Then with every step, they slowed down and scouted the area.

Alec stopped about three miles away to give his men directions and a small break before they continued. After that, Alec and the wolves took off.

It was still early in the morning and Alec had a much easier job than he thought. Alec would have started laughing if he wasn't a wolf.

Alec looked at the two men who were passed out against the stone building. They were sleeping on the job and it just made Alec's job easier. Alec and Charlie stayed off into the clearing and watched the two men who were snoring against the building.

Alec waited for his men to scope all around the area. Once he got all their signals through mind linking, Alec signaled to Charlie and they both stepped out of the clearing.

Alec and Charlie slithered up to the two men carefully, not even making one noise. It was like stalking prey as Alec and Charlie stealthfully crawled up to the sleeping men.

Alec's team was posted in different areas around them in a circle formation. Their job was to alert Alec if someone was coming nearby so they could leave and make the escape easier.

Alec and Charlie were now close enough to kill the men. Suddenly, in such a swift movement both Alec and Charlie latched into their prey. Alec could taste the man's blood in his mouth and it was almost something he craved. Adrenaline started pumping through Alec's veins and his thirst and appetite for killing soared. Killing seemed to also bring a sense of comfort to Alec as it was one of the easiest things for him to do.

Alec shredded into the guy's neck and jerked his head from side to side in a lightening-like speed. From Alec's intense grasps and movements, the man's head was separated from his body.

As the head fell to the ground, Alec glanced over at Charlie. With blood staining Alec's mouth and fur coat, Charlie looked at his father in bewilderment. It was crazy for Charlie to even see that side of him as he hid it so well from his kids.

Alec glared at his son and forcefully pushed past Charlie to grab his attention at what was ahead. Charlie let go of the man he killed, whose head was still attached to his body, and watched as his father neared the door.

The door was already ajar so Alec pushed it open with his nose and walked into the room. Charlie rushed in after him and they both shifted inside. Alec used his wolf's vision and the sunlight leaking in from the door to help replace the light switch.

Alec and Charlie were finally able to see everything.

Boxes were stacked upon boxes with gunpowder. Ammo and guns laid around the floor like lost trash. Tranquilizer darts and grenades were stacked against a corner. There were also other weapons

The room reeked of alcohol and tobacco as well. Alec and Charlie raked the room every inch with their eyes and snooped around the place. Alec's eyes settled on a wooden table with paper, cigarettes, and booze scattered everywhere. Alec walked over and cleared off the table. Then he found something that changed everything.

It was like a pirate that had just found the jackpot. Alec looked down at a map with Crow's handwriting. Alec had just found a map with everything about Crow's territory, which was far away from where they were now.

"Dad, what did you replace?" Charlie asked.

"A map. You?"

"Gasoline. I found it outside around back. I knew I smelt it." Charlie said proudly.

Alec still looked at the map, questioning if this was real or not. It was almost like it was too good to be true. Alec acknowledged what Charlie said as Alec thought that he smelt gasoline too. Although, Alec dismissed his thoughts at first because it seemed dumb to have gasoline near an artillery room. Alec looked around on the table and found matches nearby and a leather scroll case.

"Shift," Alec told Charlie as he rolled up the map and put it in the leather scroll case. Once Charlie had shifted, Alec handed Charlie the case. Charlie held the tubular scroll case in his mouth and waited outside.

Giving the area one last glance for anything else that could help them, Alec doused everything in gasoline. He made sure to be careful as he covered everything in gas. When Alec was done, he already ordered his men to start retreating as he quickly grabbed the matches and stood outside.

Alec quickly lit the match and tossed it into the building. He wasted no time and shifted into his wolf, immediately running away as fast as he could.

The rest of the wolves met up with Charlie and Alec near the base camp were they all assimilated. Then Alec led them back home as he heard explosions behind them.

Not only was this mission successful to Alec, but he also gained a huge advantage today. Crow had moved his pack so many times that Alec knew he wouldn't be in the same place as last time, and now he knew exactly where Crow's new territory was. This was a big discovery for the pack because Alec could now start focusing on offensive moves. Alec also prevented Crow's group from doing the ambush with their weapons, and that would force Crow to be on the same level as Alec. Alec was slowly eliminating all of his advantages.

Alec and the rest of his men had a long journey ahead of them, but they were all happy to return without any mishaps. All of them had families to look forward too at home, and none of them wanted to waste any more time.

Even with the loud explosion from the artillery room, Crow's territory was too far away for him to hear. It was later in the day when the sun went down that Crow finally found out what happened in the morning.

Crow had just stepped out of his torturing room that Rem was in, which was in his house, and decided to check up on everything. Crow was in his basement where his holding cells were and he locked Rem's room from the outside. He would visit him tomorrow and try to squeeze any information out of him. So far, Crow was unsuccessful in that matter because Rem hadn't spoken anything about his pack.

Crow went upstairs and glanced out his window, seeing the dark sky and the moon along with the stars. Then he looked at his phone that was laying on the coffee table. He was just about to make a call when someone knocked on his door.

One of Crow's guardsmen walked in once Crow opened the door and started pacing the living room. To say he was terrified was an understatement.

Crow was known for having tempers and he never cared about anyone's safety except his own. Anyone who even delivered bad news to Crow would always end up in the crossfire and that is why the man, shaking in Crow's livingroom under his gaze, wished to be anywhere else at the moment.

Crow grew tired of this man's antics, "Spit it out already!" He roared. Crow gritted his teeth. It was bad enough that he was already aggravated by Rem's sarcasm, now all Crow wanted to do was rip this man's head off.

"Alpha," The man's voice quivered in fear, "The artillery house has been destroyed, and the two guards are dead." The man told the truth to Crow as he stood still in his spot. He prayed that Crow wouldn't hurt him as he wanted to return to his family.

Crow glared at the cowardly man, whose pack he practically enslaved. That was mainly how Crow had huge numbers for fighters, he used the females as leverage. No wolf was ever going to put his mate in danger, so if he threatened the lives of women and children then the men wouldn't ever try to overthrow him. They were all under his control.

Crow was so angry, "How?" He yelled.

When the man didn't answer Crow through his fist through the wall and made him shudder, "How was it destroyed?" Crow yelled once again.

"It was caught on fire." The man replied.

Crow pinched his nose, "Anything other bad news?" Crow's gave the man a death glare and he gulped. The man shook his head with fear in his eyes.

Crow dismissed the man, and he rushed out of Crow's house and started heading to his home. He let out deep breaths. The man was surprised to still be alive. Although, he did leave out one important part that would surely cost his life. The man didn't know if the map had burned in the fire or if someone took it, but he could only hope for the best. The man prayed that it burned in the fire but judging from the old scent that smelt like wolves from another pack, his likely hood of living wasn't too good. Thankfully, what Crow didn't know wouldn't kill him.

Crow already had a hunch of who had destroyed his storage room. There weren't many options for what happened. Crow kept a close eye on everyone to make sure no one slipped in this makeshift pack that he created.

The dynamic in Crow's pack was different than Alec's. Crow's pack was basically just rogues wolves that conquered smaller packs and enslaved them. Crow had a few rogues that he trusted and they helped Crow carry out missions. Crow's beta was just a strong rogue who held the same hatred for Alec's pack. Together they were both a team that kept everyone in line.

Crow's territory was mainly underground so often when they would discuss anything relating to the war, Crow held the meetings in his house. Crow's trust circle was limited so not many pack members knew what was to come. All they knew was that their only responsibility was to carry out any orders given to them.

Since Crow only trusted a small group of people it was unlikely that any of them would have any ties to Alec. Crow even went over the possibility of his new ally betraying him, but Crow canceled that one out because his new ally harbored plenty of hate toward Alec. It was a good thing for Crow to have a new ally and not to mention he is an Alpha as well. Plus, his new ally, who is an alpha, didn't really get much detail on Crow's plans.

That only left one option. Crow went into the kitchen and grabbed his handgun as he marched back downstairs. He unlocked the door and walked in to replace Rem leaning up against the walls. The chains around Rem prevented him from moving. Besides, Rem was in an extreme amount of pain so he wanted to move as little as possible.

Blood dripped down Rem's bruised face. His left eye was black and blue, and his nose was crooked, clearly broken. Rem sustained multiple fractures throughout his body and deep lacerations. His clothes were all torn and bloody, and his breathing was rapid.

In Rem's bloody state, Crow smiled, taking pleasure in seeing Rem like that.

Crow thought against speaking to Rem as he was already fed up with him. Crow grew more annoyed with every breath that Rem took and he didn't want to hear it anymore. So Crow raised the pistol toward Rem's forehead and fired the gun.

A silver bullet wasn't even needed for this situation because any bullet to the head could kill a werewolf, it could even kill a witch as well.

As the bullet pierced through Rem's skull, blood splattered all against the wall and his breathing completely stopped. Rem's lifeless body fell to the ground and his mind escaped into the emptiness.

The room echoed painfully but Crow ignored it all because his ears where focused on the last two beeps of Rem's heart before they stopped and he left this world.

"Sleep well in hell, you mutt." Crow spat at his dead body.

~🖤~