They hunted for an hour, Liam taking the lead since he was usually the better tracker. Well, not always. Sometimes, it was Alec. That’s why they worked together, why they were so good together. When they weren’t fighting over the fact that they were both ignoring who they were to each other.
Liam just wanted to know why he wasn’t good enough for Alec. Why Alec always chose being alone over what they could have. Of course, Liam wasn’t any better. He wasn’t going to think about that right then, though. He couldn’t, not with so much at stake. That was always the case, wasn’t it? There was always so much more to be done, so much more than the two of them. And that was why Hunter was threatening to kick them out of the Pack. Because they had focused on everyone else for so long, they had lost themselves. Now, they were likely going to lose the rest.
They came upon a stronger scent over an hour into their search, and Liam held his breath.
“Liam,” Alec whispered, and Liam came to Alec’s side, nodding.
“Charlie was here,” Liam, said, his voice low.
Alec stiffened. “Is.”
The growl behind him made the hairs on the back of his neck rise. There was no time for talking then. The rogue came at them, Charlie’s scent wild and manic with a touch of decay.
Liam didn’t know if the decomposition was from his kills or from his soul rotting. In the end, it didn’t matter because it was Charlie. This had to be the end.
There was no other solution.
Alec twisted as the two of them fought first, with Liam bringing up the rear.
This was how Charlie wanted it, fighting his brother with whatever conscience he had left. He must have known that Alec was Liam’s…maybe the scent. Who knew? No matter what he was thinking, Charlie wasn’t going for Liam at all. If anything, he seemed to be avoiding him, keeping all his attention on Alec, letting nothing else distract him, even in his rogue form.
Liam ducked Charlie’s single jab and then punched the rogue in the gut, his claws out. He froze at the sound of whimpering. He barely held back his strength, knowing the sound couldn’t have come from Alec, even as the two pummeled each other, punch after punch.
Alec wasn’t winning. Not yet. The problem with finding a rogue was that the toxicity in their brain made them up to five times stronger than an ordinary wolf or shifter. They had nothing to lose and used all of their energy. Liam or Alec might be able to take Charlie down, but it was going to take strategy, not just fighting.
That’s why Hunter always sent two out on a hunt, not just one. It didn’t matter that they were both strong and could take down any number of their Pack except for Hunter himself—and even then, Alec and Liam together could probably best Hunter.
A rogue on the verge of death and infamy could take out so much more than a single dominant wolf with skill.
However, that’s not what Liam was focused on just then. No, it was that whimper. The sound of someone young. And near where Liam had just punched.
Fuck.
Something small moved under Charlie’s coat. Liam growled and looked over at Alec, who gave him a slight nod. They couldn’t hurt or kill Charlie yet, not with whatever he was holding. Liam inhaled deeply, trying to catch the scent under the rot that was Charlie.
Fox.
A fox shifter.
Hell, it was a baby kit.
Motherfucker.
Liam distanced himself from the encounter and gave Alec a look, raising one finger. Alec nodded and then went one way, while Liam went the other. Charlie seemed to understand, and that was something that Liam and Alec had both known going in. Charlie would be able to understand their signals and know them.
Because Charlie had fought with them once as their Pack member. Now, he was the enemy. Alec grabbed Charlie by the throat as Charlie dug his claws into Alec’s arm. Alec didn’t growl, didn’t wince. Liam knew that had to have hurt. Blood poured down Alec’s arm, though Liam couldn’t focus on that. He couldn’t do anything but try to get whatever was in Charlie’s coat out safely. It wasn’t easy to do when the damn rogue kept moving, trying to lure Alec into a trap.
Alec squeezed harder, and Charlie’s grip on the bundle under his jacket loosened just enough for Liam to claw at the garment, ripping it to shreds. A little bundle of red fur fell into his outstretched palm.
It looked up at him with wide, scared eyes, its little nose twitching. Liam wanted to scream at the world for daring to let this kit get caught up in this mess.
Charlie, realizing his lunch or whatever the fuck this kit was to him was out of his grasp, went at Alec again, clawing Alec in the face. Alec growled, but Liam couldn’t help, not when he needed to keep the kit safe. Alec had moved a bit out of the way at the last moment, saving his eye and any deeper gouges to his face. Charlie must have known, even with the insanity of his rogue-ness, that he had to keep fighting. He leapt, running full-tilt away from Alec and Liam.
Alec’s chest heaved as he looked towards where the rogue had gone. He didn’t follow. Not when he was weakened, blood pouring from his arm and from the small cuts on his face. And not when Liam needed him. Because Liam had no idea what to do with this kit, and Alec was better with children.
Holy hell, this wasn’t going to end well. Because Charlie was strong. Far stronger than any other rogue they had ever fought. And with the emotional connections, and this little baby in the middle of it? They would have to rethink how they went about this. First, Liam needed to make sure Alec and the kit were okay.
“Alec?”
“How’s the kit?”
The little fox burrowed into Liam’s chest, and he slowly slid his hand down her soft fur, trying to calm her.
“She seems unharmed. Her heart’s racing under my hand. We need to get her somewhere safe. How are you?”
“I’ll be fine. The dragon’s lair is near here.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
Handing the baby fox over to a dragon might seem outlandish to some. However, Dante was mated to Jace and Nadie, and the three of them were wonderful parents. They could probably save the world. After all, they had already done it once or twice. They would take on anyone in order to protect their children. Would do anything to ensure their safety. And Liam knew that that protection would extend to any child, including this kit.
“We need to get you patched up.”
Alec shook his head. “The kit first.”
The little fox whimpered and buried its nose under Liam’s arm. He kept petting the little fox, and Alec reached out with his uninjured arm and slowly stroked the baby, as well.
Their fingers tangled over the fox’s fur, and the kit slowly calmed down at the feel of them, letting out a little yip before going back to normal.
“I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to stop him.” Alec growled, though his statement was pretty much devoid of emotion.
“You don’t get to put this on you. It was both of us. We saved her. We’ll save the next.”
Alec didn’t say anything to Liam, likely because there wasn’t much to say. They had failed, and they would have to pay the consequences for that. This little kit didn’t need to suffer for it.
They made their way to Dante’s lair—in other words, his home.
It was surrounded by warding, though since they had been here before, they were allowed in. They walked past the empty guard stations that served to tell the humans that there was security. It wasn’t manpower that kept the place safe, though. Eons-old magic held sway here.