Watch The Dark
twenty-four

When she was seven, Tana had her first encounter with silver. Alec and Tuk had found an old shed buried deep in the territory and had convinced Tana to go with them to explore it. At first, she didn't want to go. However, after being called a coward, she caved and went with them.

It wasn't anything special or interesting, but there was a long stretch of chain that Alec had thought would be fun to play with. Ever the more cautious sibling, Tuk had gone to wait outside while Tana and Alec continued to search. Eventually, Tana grabbed the chain and burned her hand so badly that she could barely hold a spoon with it for at least two weeks after.

Any contact with silver had been short and painful. But now, being tugged along like some dog by a man who wore thick leather gloves to protect himself, she felt pain like she had never known. Every time he yanked, the silver would dig into her skin and cause her to cry out. Whenever she fell, she was kicked back up by one of the warriors. They had barely made it out of the woods and into the meadow when Markus and Wynona and a few other warriors charged towards them. However, within an instant, Fang had yanked Tana towards him and pressed a silver blade to her throat, stopping them in their tracks.

"That's right. Make any move to touch me or my warriors and she dies," Fang snarled. Markus clenched his fists, panting heavily. He had all kinds of scratches and bruises on him that were healing as Tana examined them. Wynona, however, seemed basically untouched. But when she spotted her palm placed protectively over her abdomen, Tana figured out why.

"Markus just let me go, okay? I can take care of myself but you need to make sure Sincere is safe," she breathed quickly, her eyes darting to Fang, hoping that Markus would realize what she was trying to tell him. He nodded slowly in understanding, but let out a growl.

"I know you won't kill her. Alpha Declan said you need her. You're bluffing," Wynona spat. Fang chuckled and applied more pressure to the blade, causing Tana to whimper in pain as as a few drops of blood began to trickled from the wound.

"Tell Declan I'll fight to get back to him, Markus. Okay?" Tana said, groaning when the silver cuffs pressed into her wrists even more.

Right as she said that, at least ten more of Fang's warriors charged towards them, tackling Markus and Wynona and the other warriors in an effort to let Fang and the others pass. Tana cried out when Wynona was thrown to the ground, but before she could do anything Fang picked up the pace and kept dragging her while warriors flanked them both, keeping any Dark Wolves or opposing warriors away.

"Tana! Tana!" She heard Tuk scream. It was so similar to the agonized cry he had let out when Tana was first taken by Talon. She frantically looked around for him, pulling back against the chains. This proved to be a very bad idea as she was only pulled harder and burned even worse by the silver.

But it wasn't Tuk's agonized screams that made her heart stop.

It was a loud, pain-filled roar that erupted from the carnage. The roar of an alpha. Pure agony and guilt resonated from that sound. When Tana turned, she saw Declan's wolf trying to get to her. She saw him cry out for her and watched as at least ten wolves tackled him, making it hard for even an alpha to shake them off. He fought them, tooth and nail, but more kept jumping on him as he made a dash for Tana. She could see his warriors aiding him, but not before Tana was pulled towards the woods.

And as they crashed through the trees she could still hear his screams. For her. For the mate they had stolen from him.

"Let's fucking go, you bitch. Stop dragging your heels or so help me god whatever you've been put through the last seven years will look like child's play," Fang snarled, yanking her clear across the border and into what used to be rogue territory. There were Blood Wolves everywhere, laughing to themselves as Tana was dragged through the territory.

And when they reached the next border, she finally saw him.

The one who had taken everything away from her. The one who had torn her family into pieces. The one who had made her unloveable.

She imagined a number of ways that scene could have played out. But she never imagined the way it did.

The moment he grinned, a vile, sick grin, she collapsed into darkness.

***

Declan's P.O.V

The wolves had retreated. For now. The moment that bastard took Tana into the woods they all followed and formed a barrier at the border, making it impossible for even his strongest warriors to get through.

He had let her go. He should have been at the house with her and Sincere. To protect them. He didn't see Sincere with them, but he couldn't replace her in the house either. He had lost his mate and now he couldn't replace his pup.

There was blood all over the floor. The coffee table was smashed and the rug torn. There were chunks of flesh that reeked and made Declan want to vomit, but it also made him proud that she had put up one hell of a fight. Judging by the destruction, she hadn't gone down easy at all.

But he would get her back. Or he would die trying.

When he went upstairs he saw the bathroom door wide open and the stool turned over. Sincere's scent was there but she wasn't. Even in all the other rooms she was no where to be found.

A flash of rage overtook him and he slammed his fist into the bathroom mirror, leaving the glass to shatter and cut into his knuckles.

"Declan? Are you here? We found Sincere!" Markus's voice called from the main room. When Declan hurried down he saw Sincere at his side, dirt and twigs all tangled in her hair and on her clothes. She looked the way she had when he first found her.

"Dear Aurora," he breathed, crouching down for Sincere to race into his arms and clutch onto his shirt with tears streaming down her face.

"They hurts Tana really bad. I saw em' fighting. She killed a wolf too. A bad wolf. She told em to stay in the bathroom until you or she came to get me but I didn't want to stay because they would replace me so I went into your room and climbed out the window. Then I fell and hurt my knee and kept running until I saw Wynona and she and Markus took me here again," Sincere hiccuped out, burying her face in his shoulder as she cried.

"That was very brave of you, Sincere. We're going to get Tana back, I promise," he said weakly.

He kept telling himself he would get her back, but a voice in the back of his mind wouldn't be quiet. It told him what he knew already. That if he couldn't keep her safe in the first place, how on earth was he going to get her back? It was his fault she was gone. He shouldn't have been out there. He should have been protecting his family. He should have assigned more guards. Stronger guards. Warriors, too. He couldn't believe how stupid he had been.

"It isn't your fault, Declan," Wynona said quietly, watching him zone out. His wolf wanted vengeance. He wanted to kill anyone in his path to get to his mate. But he knew that he would just get himself and more wolves killed.

"Tana knows how to escape. She's real good at it, too. She told me. It's cause she's super fast and knows all the best ways to hide," Sincere offered, sniffling as she wiped the tears from her face.

"They've made it clear they don't want to do things civilly. So we'll just have to play at their game. But Declan, you need to rest for a few days. With your mind the way it is you won't be any help right now," Markus suggested. Declan let out a loud growl. Was he saying that Declan was too weak to get his mate back? His wolf was itching to take control, his anger seeping through Declan's mental barriers.

"Tana doesn't have a few days. I'm not going to sit idly by while they torture her more than they already have. I want scouts out now looking for any weak points near the border. Healthy warriors should kill anyone whose hair crosses the border. No excuses. Get it done, Markus," Declan ordered, lifting Sincere up onto his hip.

"Now," he barked, effectively sending the two of them scrambling out of the room.

"I'm tired, Daddy," Sincere whispered, resting her head on his arm.

"I know, pup. Come, you can take a nap and I'll clean up down here," he said as he began going up the stairs. Even as he tucked Sincere in, he could see the fear in her eyes.

“Do you want me to go replace Sam so he can protect you?”

Sincere nodded feverishly.

With a sigh, Declan got up and started to peer into every room, under the beds and in the closets in search of the tiny monster. Then, it dawned on him that the kitten couldn’t yet climb the stairs without assistance so he went back to the main floor. Sure enough, the kitten was huddled in one of Declan’s shoes at the front door. It had been kicked around but the kitten was completely fine.

Sincere was grateful when the kitten snuggled up against her and promptly fell asleep.

Meanwhile, Declan mopped the floors and tried his best not to let his guilt and anger overcome him.

He should have been there. He should have saved her. He should have been her mate. The mate that she could rely on to protect her.

But he wasn’t. He was doing paperwork. Paperwork.

What kind of Alpha did that make him?

He couldn’t tell, at that moment, whether it was him or his wolf taking the reins. But it didn’t matter. They had the same goal.

They were going to show Talon exactly what kind of alpha they were.