The Secrets of the Panther
Chapter 60

BLAKE

We all get ready to leave. I know we have to go, but I needed to see Allie once more to make sure she knew I was coming back to her and with Izzy.

I walk straight to the bunker, where I replace Anita, my mother, and Kat. Kat was holding Allie, but when the little angel saw me approaching her, she climbed out of her arms and ran straight into mine.

I knelt as she wrapped her arms around my neck, and I picked her up. Her legs wrap around me as her face goes to my neck, as she sniffs at my scent. I close my eyes as the little angel comforts me.

I open my eyes when I realize that all three women are looking back at me, smiling.

“Angel,” I say softly into Allie’s ear, “I need you to do something for me.”

Allie moves away slightly and looks me straight into my eyes; her mouth twitches into a big smile. She says nothing.

I smile at her. “I want you to stay with my mum and auntie,” I tell her. “They will protect you. I’m going to bring back mummy.”

“We will be one big happy family,” she mumbles.

I nod as the smile grows on my face more. “Yeah, we will, and when mummy comes back home, you can help me win her over so I can be your daddy.”

Her face brightens, and she places her lips on my cheek, moving back. “I will do anything for you; daddy and mummy will love you. You need to save her; she needs you.”

I look at her and smile. “I will save her, but you need to hide and make sure no one takes you. If anyone comes and you don’t know them, don’t go to them.”

“I will stay with Auntie Anita and grandma,” she says, which makes my mother splutter a cough as I can tell she has been listening in. She nods. I look up to see her face. I never thought my mother could smile so brightly, but I think it will sink in soon enough after what Allie just called her.

I smile.

I walk with Allie in my arms and hand Allie over to Anita, who has a big smile on her face. “I am so proud of you, Blake.”

I nodded with a smile but turned to look at my mother and Kat. “Keep her inside, and don’t let anyone in. We all know that Michael will try to grab and take her,” I said.

Both women nod. Kat walks away and heads towards Anita, who takes Allie into the bunker to be safe.

My mother stands with me. “Be careful, Blake,” she says in a worried tone.

I look at her. “I will,” I say and can’t help but smirk, “Grandma.”

My mother stares at me with a big smile. “I have to get used to that,” she says. “I am so proud of the man you are becoming, Blake. Save her, bring her home.”

I nod and kiss my mother on her cheek.

All three women head straight into the bunker with Allie; once the door is closed and bolted, I turn around, leading to the pack house door where all five of my friends are waiting.

But I notice Alice standing there, “What is she...” I say, but Alice growls at me, cutting me off and surprising me.

“I’m sorry for defining your rule, Blake, but I need to replace my cousin, and not only that, your cousin, I want dead,” she says through gritted teeth.

I look back at her and nod. “You sure you are ok,” I ask. “They beat you badly.”

She shakes her head. “I’m fine and all healed.”

I nod and walk towards the entrance where Alpha Dawson, my father, and Graham are waiting. I notice every able man and woman is getting ready for the attack.

“Be careful, Blake,” says my father, placing his hand on my shoulder.

I nod. “You all be careful. We don’t know the numbers they have, so this is going to be the blind leading the blind,” I said.

Graham looks towards Dale and Kacey. “Both of you, be careful,” he says, but he turns to me. “Bring her back; I want my daughter back,” he says.

“I will definitely will,” I said with a small smile. “Let’s go; we must leave the same way they did. We need to get there soon. We don’t know what to expect, but we must kill everyone.”

Everyone nodded as we shifted into our forms and headed straight to the west side of the territory, where the rotten smell of blood and death was looming. The dead bodies of our warriors were still there. The scene looked like a horror movie, with blood everywhere and guts.

Axel growls out, “We need to kill them,” he says in a snarl. “They better not hurt, mate.” I could feel him coming closer. I want nothing to happen to Izzy, either.

Axel sniffs the air and catches the scent of the running vampires.

We head toward the compound as a significant building comes into view. We come close to the entrance but run around the back and hide behind some wood planks.

We shifted back into our human forms and appeared over the wood. There was a very high stench of blood coming from our direction; Alice looked behind us and tapped my shoulder, pointing to the smell.

I look at her. She says nothing to me but points behind us. We both sneak lower down onto our stomachs and appear over. There was a big dug-up hole. Inside the spot were many decaying bodies, some days old and some weeks old. They must have been replaceing humans and shifters as I noticed the girl on top of the bodies was from our town. She lost her family a while back and worked in the local shop. The owner took her in.

I want these fuckers dead. We moved back to where everyone was. Alice looks at me. “Now, we know they’ve been coming in and out of the town without being detected, but how?” she says in a whisper, but before anyone could answer, we could hear some talking from behind us.

We all look towards the compound to see a group of men walking together, but one catches my eye—Drake. He is talking to one of them. He looks back towards the compound, and so does the other man.

I have to listen in. “We need to know what he is saying to her,” the man tells Drake. “She is not pathetic and weak like she was five years ago,” he says.

Drake glares back at the man. “You all keep saying that,” he says, looking towards the entrance. “Get the elder out here. I’m staying for now. Once the attack starts, Michael wants some fun with her, and we will give him that, but we need to make sure we are away once they realize we are not there during the attack.”

The man stares at Drake. “What about my mate?” He says, but Drake smirks. “She went against the rules to talk to that pathetic bunch, so she needs to be punished. She can stay here with me; she can come with me.”

The man looks back at him reluctantly, but Drake snarls. “You need to leave with the elder; he must be kept safe.”

The man nods at him and leaves while Drake moves back to the compound door.

I turn to look at Dale. “Did you hear what he just said?” I asked him through the mind link.

Dale nods. “Yeah, shall we follow...” he says, but I cut him off. “No, leave them. Elder Johnson won’t have any ties with the council after this. Tilly is making sure of that.”

He looks at me. “What shall we do?” He asks.

“We wait for a sign. We need to know how many...” I say, but suddenly a loud, piercing scream is coming from the compound, making us all adjust. I know instantly who it is.

Izzy.

“That’s Izzy,” says Lena. “We need to get in there now.”

I couldn’t agree more, but suddenly, before I can tell them all to move quickly and quietly, a mind link comes through all four of us wolves. “ROGUES AND VAMPIRES ARE HERE,” roars my father through the mind link. “WE ARE OUTNUMBERED.”

I look towards the compound, where another scream comes out. Everyone stares at me, but we need to get Izzy out of there. But something strange happens. Drake looks pissed off. He runs from the compound into an SUV.

What the hell just happened?

But suddenly, a branch cracks; we all turn and notice vampires surrounding us.

Their smell connects with my senses, which makes Axel growl loudly.