Ch. 51..60

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 51-After getting a drink, I’m immediately swarmed by pack members of all ages. wishing me a happy birthday. My eyes keep scanning the room, hoping to see Cara. I’m desperate to know if she is wearing the dress | got her. My entire plan for tonight depends on it.

Chase comes over to pull me out of the group of people that have surrounded me. I’m about to thank him when the room goes silent.

I turn to the door and see Cara and her father. ‘Mate! Kai says suddenly in my head. A broad smile spreads across my face. ‘Yeah she is.*

Kai is jumping around wanting to go see her. ‘Play it cool Kai, remember, she’s not 18 yet. Artemis won't recognize us as her mate for a couple more months.’ This calms him down, but he continues to pace around in my head. ‘Calm down. Remember our plan for tonight. We'll have her in our arms soon.’ She looks stunning. The dress | chose is perfect for her. She looks…like a Luna. Like MY Luna. Beautiful, proud, strong, and absolutely perfect. And currently looking a bit like she wants to throw up. The pink in her cheeks is a dead giveaway that she isn’t happy to be the center of attention.

From the corner of my eye, | see my warriors all incline their heads. | turn back to see Mr. Nelson swallow hard, his eyes looking a bit misty at their acknowledgement and deference. Before | can move, my mother has started in their direction, my father right behind her.

| watch as my mother approaches Cara and my dad welcomes Mr. Nelson. As dad draws Mr. Nelson away, | see Cara reach up to touch her necklace. My mother is a cunning woman. | don’t know what she’s asking Cara, but she will know it was me that gave her that jewelry.

| move toward my father and Mr. Nelson. It’s time that | received a proper introduction to the man that saved my father’s life.

As | approach, my father reaches out to corral me into the inner circle of warriors that have crowded around. “Son. I'd like you to meet the greatest man I’ve ever known and the reason that | am still standing here today. Clint Nelson.” He turns to Mr. Nelson, “Clint, it is my pleasure to introduce you to my son, Rik.” | reach out to shake his hand. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you, Sir. My mother and father have told me so much about you and your family over the years.” “Alpha Rik, it is a pleasure to meet you.” +16 BONOS As my father begins introducing other warriors in the group, | can’t help but look back at Cara. I’ve only been watching her for a minute when her eyes meet mine.

| can’t help the smile that forms when | see my mother walking her over to where | am, no doubt planning to make introductions.

As my mother introduces us, I’m about to say that we’ve met, but Cara beats me to the punch, giving me a mental jab in the process. But | can tell that while she has no problem with her words or for attempting to put me on the spot, she does feel bad for confusing my mother.

She quickly covers it and then reaches out to shake my hand, stressing that she’s pleased to meet me.

The feel of her hand in mine is overwhelming and for a moment | can’t find any words, so | just reach down and gently press my lips to the back of her hand. | can feel the tingles of our touch going through my hand, up my arm and now across my lips and face. It’s euphoric and | want more. | want to touch every part of her body.

As | stare into her shimmering eyes, | catch a whiff of her arousal and Kai begins to purr in my head. These next two months before her birthday will be torture, but what a glorious torture it will be. And it gives me time to win her over so she accepts our bond.

| finally find my voice, “The pleasure is all mine Cara.” | watch her cheeks go pink again. Is she as affected by the bond as | am? She is a Guardian, so maybe her ability to sense the bond is stronger than most. Kai and | knew before today, it just wasn’t confirmed.

| have no intention of letting go of her hand until another couple comes up to wish me happy birthday. Reluctantly, | let go of her hand but | make sure to tell her to save me a dance before | watch her turn back toward where my father and an increasing number of warriors are standing around talking to Mr. Nelson.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 52-I'm pulled into group after group of well wishers, asking about when I'll take over as alpha, will there be a graduation party, have | found my mate? | try to maintain the conversations as well as | can, but I’m watching Cara. | can’t look away, especially when Trevor and some other younger warriors approach her and it’s obvious they are talking about the jewelry | got her.

I can tell she didn’t understand why | chose those colors. I've seen Artemis in her eyes so many times this week when she received the gifts that it's become one of my favorite things about her. I've dreamt of those eyes and now she is wearing the jeweled version.

| keep my eyes on her as she heads over to the bar. I’ve somehow gotten surrounded by a group of unmated females and Sheila pushes herself front and center as if she belonged there.

I'm about to move away from all of them when | see Liam enter the clubhouse. He looks around finding Cara and he zeros in on her. A soft growl rumbles out of my chest.

‘Do something.” Kai yells in my head. ‘Get him away from her. She’s MINE!’ “Alpha, are you okay?” One of the girls around me asks.

Distractedly, | respond, still watching the interaction between Liam and Cara, ” Yeah, | just need to find my parents. Do you know where they are?” The -helpful Sheila jumps in, “They are over there babe. Do you want me to get them for you?” She points to her left, near the stage. “No thanks, | got it.” I start to head that way and watch as Liam and Cara go to speak to Mr. Nelson and the other warriors. Kai snarls at the way she smiles at him. | want her to smile at me like that. | walk up to my father. “Hey dad, ready to get this show on the road?” “Absolutely son.” He steps up on the stage and grabs a spoon to clink his glass and get the room's attention. | watch as my dad interrupts whatever sexy thing Liam was about to say to Cara, thank the goddess.

Dad gives a speech about me becoming Alpha, finding a love like his and mom’s, I’m working on it dad’, | think, and having lots of pups. The thought of having S pups with Cara has me instantly hard. Fuck, now | have to do something quick before the whole room sees me popping a tent in my pants.

Thankfully Dad tosses me the keys to a new car. | see the Porsche symbol on the key chain. I’m guessing it’s the 911 turbo I've had my eyes on for a while now. | don’t even know what to say. | walk over to my parents and quietly thank them while hugging each of them. It’s so much more than | ever expected.

| take the mic. Now, it’s time to let Cara know who her mystery man is.

As | thank everyone for coming, | can’t help making eye contact with her. Honestly, if no one else but her had come tonight, my party would have been the best I'd ever had. | make a point of saying that | hope to find my Luna. | already have, but she has to accept me when her birthday comes around.

And now, it’s do or die time.

“| would like to start off the dancing tonight by asking a very special woman to dance with me.” | see Liam stiffen out of the corner of my eye. He knows exactly what I’m about to do.

“Cara Nelson, may | have this dance?” | watch as her body straightens. It’s obvious by the way she wasn’t even looking in my direction that she didn’t expect me to ask her.

She turns, looking at my hand outstretched to her with a shocked expression on her face. Along minute goes by before she steps up and accepts my hand. | give her a smile that could light up a room and hand the microphone to my father, before Ed Sheeran’s Perfect begins to play.

| pull her into me, wrapping one arm around her waist and taking her other hand in mine before beginning to sway to the music.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 53-When he asked me to dance, | stared at his hand for a moment. What is he doing?

When | collect myself, | put my hand in his. It’s his birthday and nearly the entire pack is here. There’s no way | can say no without it becoming a huge issue.

He pulls me into him, sliding his warm hand around my waist, and begins to dance. As | look up at him, | realize something | missed earlier. He’s dressed in at shirt that has a trim the same color as my dress. The collar, the cuffs and the trim down the buttons all match me. It looks like we are a couple that planned this.

When | look into his eyes, he is looking right at me, smiling, but I’m not having it. Thankfully, the music will hide our conversation as long as we keep it low.

“What is this?” | ask him, plastering a fake smile on my face for the crowd. “What is what, Cara?” “This. This dance. Why me?” “It's my birthday and | get to choose who | dance with, and | choose you.” “Yes, but why? You have an entire entourage of women who would have given an ovary for you to ask them to dance but you asked me. Why? You didn’t even know who | was an hour ago.

“| didn’t know who Cara Nelson was, or | didn’t know that you were Cara Nelson?” “Is there a difference?” | spit the words at him, having difficulty maintaining my smile while we dance and talk.

If it was possible, his gaze on me became even more intense. “Cara Nelson is the daughter of Lily Nelson. Lily Nelson gave her life saving my mother and | when another pack attacked us. | was barely 6 years old at the time, but | remember that day like it was yesterday. Cara Nelson is also the daughter of Clint Nelson. Clint Nelson saved my father’s life during that same battle but it cost him the use. of his legs due to a massive spinal injury that could not be repaired, even though father brought in the best pack doctors from around the world and even some human spinal surgeons to try.” my My mouth had dropped open a little as | listened. | knew Alpha Anders had tried to help find someone to help my father, but | hadn't realized it was to that extent. “My father has dinner with Clint Nelson every Thursday without fail. | have asked every week for as long as | can remember if | could join him for those dinners, 12 but my father insists that that is his time with his friend. And since my father ordered the pack to give Mr. Nelson his privacy, | have never been able to visit and pay my respects. So instead, | go with my mother every Thursday to Lily Nelson's memorial to lay flowers and to thank her for her sacrifice.” His eyes had gotten darker and | knew that Kai was present for this conversation. The absolute respect that Rik displayed while discussing my parents was shared by his wolf. | felt Artemis push forward as well to hear what he was saying and be present for this discussion.

“| thank the goddess every day that my parents and | are alive, which | know is only because of the sacrifice that was made by two of the most respected warriors that this pack has ever known. | have hoped to meet Cara Nelson my entire life. | have searched for her at every pack gathering, every pack event, at meals and events in the packhouse. But | have never stumbled across her.” “Believe me,” he states as he continues to slowly spin us around the room, “I have wanted to know the woman that will be my Guardian. The woman that will swear her life to protect me when | become Alpha. | want to know who she is, but more importantly, | want her to know who | am. | want her to know that | am a man that is worth protecting. That | am a man that is worthy of the gift of a Guardian. | want her to know that | will be the kind of Alpha that deserves her respect, someone that she will be proud to say she is the Guardian for.”

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 54-“Do | know who Cara Nelson is? Yes, | absolutely do. Did | know that YOU were Cara Nelson? Not until one week ago. Not until | saw you at school and something inside of me drew me to you.” | stared at him speechless. “All this time.” | whisper, shaking my head softly. “All this time, | thought you had no idea who | was or what my family had done. When you came up to me all arrogant and cocky at school” | smiled a little as | said it, well, it just confirmed for me that you had no idea who or what | was, and have no respect for my family’s sacrifice for yours.” ” His arm tightened around me more, leaving nothing but our clothes between us. His warmth seeping into my skin, his words warming me deep into my heart and soul. He leaned his forehead down to touch mine. “That couldn’t be any further from the truth. And | meant what | said. | want you to know who | am. | want us to get to know each other. | want you to feel pride at being my Guardian, not feel that it’s a burden to you and Artemis.” We danced like that for a few steps, when | finally heard the song that was playing. “Perfect, really? How did you get stuck dancing this song with me, Alpha?” 1 He lifts his head and cocks an eyebrow at me. “I chose it.” | jerk my head back in response. “You chose it?” He nods at me smiling “Yep. There were several others that were in the running, but I chose this one.

“What other songs were in contention?” | asked, interested in how he made his choice. “All of Me which was a close second, Lover, but it seemed too soon for that one.” | scoffed.

| couldn't help the laugh that escaped me as | blushed to the tips of my ears and decided to divert the conversation to safer topics. “So, why this one?” “Well, none of them fit exactly, but this one was the best, especially since you wore the dress and jewelry | got for you.” | nearly stopped dancing. He covered for my missed steps until | could recover and continue dancing.

“You?” | whisper. “You are my mystery man?” “lam.” Artemis pushed forward again, wanting to clearly see the man and wolf that had honored her. | watched as Kai came forward and Rik’s glacial blue eyes darkened to sapphires. ‘I… Thank you.” Artemis’s voice layered over mine when | thanked him, making it deeper.

He smiled at me. It was a tender smile, gentle and sweet and full of promise. “You are most welcome.” His voice was also deeper with Kai’s voice added to his own.

“Is it true about the jewelry? That you had it made for me because it is what my eyes look like when Artemis is shining in them?”novelbin “Yes.” He replied and looked a bit uncomfortable. “Would it sound creepy if | told you I’ve dreamt of those eyes several times this week?*.

I smirk at him. “Well, | guess that depends on what it is that | was doing in your dreams while you were looking at my…eyes.” | licked my lips as | said it, if his dreams had been anything like mine, they are about as far as you could get from platonic.

His eyes tracked to my lips and he looked sheepish. “Hmmm, you're just starting to sound willing to spend some time getting to know me. Perhaps we can save the dream discussions until our second date?” “Our second date? Are you counting this as a date, Alpha?” | ask coyly. “Rik. Please, call me Rik. And no. When | take you on a date, you'll know it.” The song slowly comes to an end, and he sings the final line to me, “You look. perfect tonight.” We stand there, staring at each other, lost in each other, forgetting that we were in a room filled with other wolves. He opened his mouth to say something, when all hell breaks loose.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 55-Everything was perfect. Exactly as | had planned. | knew she’d be angry at first but unless she made a public spectacle of leaving me on the dance floor, | have about four and a half minutes to tell her how | feel.

| could see the change in her the minute | started telling her about her mother’s and father’s sacrifices. Her surprise, her mouth dropping open as | went on and on about what her family had done for mine.

As | continued my story, | felt Kai push forward. He wanted Artemis to know that he was also part of this, that he also appreciated what her parents had done for us. It has the desired effect as | see Artemis push forward to join the conversation as well.novelbin | was so right about the jewelry. It’s a perfect match to her eyes when Artemis is forward. Her beautiful eyes which have haunted my dreams. Even though my entire focus is on her, | make sure that we continue our dance and I’m pleasantly surprised that she does not have any trouble following my lead. She’s perfect.

p to come | continue to tell her that I've wanted to meet her for years, hoping across her at any pack event. Then letting her know that | want her to get to know me. This is key. | want, no, | need her to fall in love with me before she turns 18 and Artemis feels the mate bond. | want her to feel it before the bond takes effect, to know that it is me that she wants in her life.

| can feel her shock at what I’ve said and how she is struggling to adjust her lifetime of thinking about me with what I’ve just told her. | pull her closer, feeling my body tingling at the contact with her, even through our clothes. | touch my forehead to hers, needing the skin to skin contact, but also making it impossible. for her to look away from me. | want her to understand that this is just the beginning. | have every intention of making her mine, showing her how wonderful our life can be together.

| can tell the minute that it has become a bit overwhelming for her as she changes the subject and asks about my song choice. She seems completely taken off guard. when | tell her | chose the song for her. | tell her some of the other choices | went through before choosing this one. | smile internally at her blush when | mention ” 50 Shades of Grey’ and asking if that’s her kink. Her blush is beautiful but, as expected, she ignores my question and pushes back to her original question. | tell her | chose this one because | had really hoped that she would wear the dress and jewelry | bought her. She did, and she does look absolutely perfect.

So, when | tell her it was me that got them for her, I’m prepared when her steps falter and | accommodate to make sure our dancing seems seamless to anyone watching.

When Artemis pushes forward and | hear them both thank us, Kai also pushes forward to reply with me. He was desperate to have her in our arms, and now that she is, he is calm and content in my head, practically willing to roll over and show Artemis his belly.

Then she asks me about the jewelry. So, someone recognized what | had done. Not hard if you’ve ever seen Artemis in her eyes. But then | decide to go a step further and let her know that I've been dreaming about her, hoping she won't specifically ask about the dreams. She doesn’t ask outright, but her devious smile gives her away. And, now I’m wondering if she’s been dreaming of me as well. Goddess | hope so.

When she licks her lips, it is all | can do to not kiss her. | don’t know if she’s ready for that yet and | don’t want to scare her off. ‘Kiss her! Kiss her!‘ Kai barks in my head. Instead, | tell her I’d rather save that for our second date, setting it up for her to go out with me at least twice.

When she asks me if I’m counting this as a date and then gives me that grin, it reminds me of the first lines of All of Me and why | nearly chose that song.

‘What would | do without your smart mouth?

Drawing me in and you kicking me out.

You've got my head spinning, no kidding | can’t pin you down.” Yeah, she has a smart mouth and one day, very soon, I'll be punishing those beautiful lips with my own when she gets smart with me.

But | don’t want her to think of me as her Alpha, | want her to think of me as her lover, her mate, her friend, her partner. So | ask her to call me Rik. | let her know that when | take her out, she will know it’s a date. I’ve never had a reason or desire to really wine and dine a girl. They always fall at my feet and don’t seem to expect much from me other than a possibility of being the next Luna, which was never an option.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 56-But Cara is special. And | want her to know every day for the rest of her life how special she is to me. | don’t want there to ever be a doubt in her mind that she’s the one and only one for me. Since the moment | saw her across the quad at school, no one will ever compare to her in my eyes.

As the song comes to an end, | can’t help but sing the closing line to her. She is perfect, in every way. I'm caught in a trance looking into her eyes. | don’t know how long we would have stood there if things hadn't gone to shit.

The howls of the patrols sounding the alarm goes up at the same time that wolves come crashing into the clubhouse, seemingly from everywhere. | push Cara behind me as two wolves came right at us. | shift as | jump toward them, my clothes shredding around me. Kai begins ripping out throats, the smell of garbage a clear indication that they are rogues. All around me, warriors are shifting and fighting.

My father mindlinks the pack. “Warriors, get the rogues out of here, we need to protect those that cannot fight.” He’s right, with most of the pack here, there are pregnant females, pups and elderly that can’t shift any longer.

| open the mindlink to the pack. “Anyone that cannot fight, move toward the bathrooms. Warriors create a barrier around them to keep them safe.” | see a wolf racing toward a pregnant woman holding her young pup. Her mate is battling another wolf and can’t help her. | jump on the wolf, ripping his head off. | look at the woman and nod my head in the direction | want her to go. She clutches her child and takes off.

| see Cara from the corner of my eye. She hasn’t shifted but she’s taking out her share of rogues while corralling others into the back room by the bathrooms. | watch as she pushes a pup behind her, letting her claws come out as she slashes the throat of a rogue who jumped at her. She then picks up the pup and moves. toward the area where several warriors are setting up a perimeter to protect the pack members.

She finds her father. He has stationed himself front and center of the protection perimeter and even from here | can see he is barking out orders to the other warriors. His eyes are so golden that they look like small suns glowing out of his eyes. Donovan is fighting with Mr. Nelson. | watch as a rogue attempts to go for his throat, thinking he’s easy prey. Mr. Nelson catches the wolf in mid air with one hand and rips his head off with the claws of the other as if it was nothing. Henovelbin may be in a wheelchair, but | will never underestimate that man’s fighting ability.

More rogues pour into the club. My father, Liam, Chase and our pack warriors are tearing into them, but there are so many and they just keep coming. Where are they even coming from? | begin tearing my way through more rogues, trying to help as many warriors as | can, when | hear a howl from outside. The rogues. begin to make their way out of the building. Oh hell no! You're not getting off that easily.

| follow them out of the building, seeing, for the first time, their true numbers. There are hundreds of them. On a hill a short distance away, | see their leader. He is looking right at me. His wolf is giving me a sly smile. He turns and runs off, away from the fighting. Coward!

Kai immediately begins to chase him. The leader’s wolf is big, but not as big ast Kai. We are gaining on him, but he’s smarter than | gave him credit for and he continues to evade us. Kai gets in a good swipe on this hindleg, but he continues to run.

He runs through some bushes and we follow. It’s only after we come out into a small clearing that | smell them. It’s an ambush, and a well played one. There are. at least 20 wolves here and they surround me immediately.

Kai bares his teeth and begins snapping at them. The leader shifts back to his human form. “Alpha Rik, how kind of you to join us. From behind me, | feel the pricks of several darts into my hindquarters.

The wolfsbane begins to flood my system and I’m forced to shift back as the drug knocks Kai out, effectively reducing me to a human.

| look up as the leader heads my way with silver handcuffs and shackles in his hand. “Now we wait for your Guardian.”

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 57-The moment the wolves charge into the clubhouse, Rik pushes me behind him and shifts attacking two almost immediately. | only have a moment to appreciate the quickness of his shift before I’m faced with my own wolves.

Artemis pushes forward, about to shift, when Alpha Anders shouts to get those that can’t fight to safety and for warriors to protect them. As | look around, | realize | need to stay in human form for now and help get those that need help to safety.

Artemis stays forward, using her claws to slice through any of the rogues that get in our way. We begin moving mothers, pups and the elderly to the safe zone. | see my father wheeling his way over to where the non-fighters will be. He will handle the perimeter set up.

| see a pup cowering on the floor, alone and crying. A rogue goes for her but Artemis slices into his side from neck to flank. The wolf yelps and falls before she rips his throat out. | grab the pup and begin to head to the safe zone. Another wolf jumps at me. | push the pup behind me before slashing the throat out of this one as well. | grab the pup and get her behind the line of warriors my father is setting up. He is barking orders at them, getting them into formation when he calls my name.

| take out another wolf as | move toward him. “Cara! Stay with Alpha Rik. That is your job. Protect the future Alpha.” | nod once to acknowledge him as a howl echos from outside.

The rogues all begin to pull back and | see Kai jumping out of the building through one of the many holes made by the rogues. | let Artemis forward to shift and | follow after Rik.

When | get outside, | see the sheer number of wolves that have the building surrounded. Artemis lifts her head and howls a warning to those inside. Our warriors can take them, but they need to be prepared, and | don’t think anyone knew there were this many rogues working together to attack our pack. Alpha Anders links me and | let him know of the large number of rogues outside and that I’m going after Rik, I catch his scent and begin to follow after him. He has taken off on his own. | don’t have time to wonder why he would do that, as | am under constant attack by the rogues. | take them down one after another and continue to follow Rik and Kai's scent.

1/3 As | come up to a group of bushes, | can smell the scent of many wolves, but also Rik’s scent. It smells off. ‘Wolfsbane.‘ Artemis tells me. ‘I can’t hear Kai. They must have captured them.” ‘So, it’s a trap?‘ | ask her. ‘Most likely.’ | reach out via mindlink to my father. “Dad, it seems that Alpha Rik has been captured by the rogues. I’m going after him, but it seems to be a trap. I'll let you know more when | can.” Before he can respond, | close the link and jump through the bushes.

When I'm clear of the bushes, | see a man holding Rik by the hair, a knife to his throat. Rik is naked except for the handcuffs and shackles on him. He’s on his knees, his throat exposed because of the way the leader is yanking his head back. The leader is a giant of a man. He smells like a wolf, but he is built like a bear shifter. His skin is the color of dark chocolate, his black hair trimmed close to his head. He has a thin mustache that follows the curve of his generous upper lip. His body is ripped, his chest looks like boulders on top of a trim 8-pack. His biceps are larger than my thighs and so ripped they look like they could cut diamonds.

| look around, slowly walking in a circle. There are at least 20, probably closer to 25 wolves surrounding me. One makes the mistake of coming too close and Artemis rips his throat out.

“Guardian!” The leader yells to get my attention. | turn back to him, watching as Rik struggles against his restraints. Without Kai, there is little chance that he will be able to get away.

| shift back to my human form. It’s the only way for me to find out what this guy wants. Rik snarls as | stand fully naked in front of so many men. The leader takes his time looking over my body. | don’t care, it's just skin and flesh. “Guardian.” Now his voice sounds like a purr. He tosses me a shirt. It reeks of garbage, but | put it on anyway.

“You seem to know who | am, which means you should know my purpose. You have my Alpha, so you are either stupid or crazy.” | cock my head to the side. ” Which is it?” Ten darts hit my chest in rapid succession. Artemis snarls loudly as Rik yells and thrashes against the leader.

| pull one out and smell it. “Wolfsbane? Really? Okay, you’re stupid. I'MA GUARDIAN BITCH! I’m immune to wolfsbane.”

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 58-| see fear in his eyes for a moment before it turns to something else. Desire, lust, whatever that look is, it makes my stomach turn.

“Well, | will admit, | had high hopes for you Guardian, but you are already exceeding my expectations.” He says with hunger in his voice as his eyes darken.

“Oh, you have no idea what misery you've just brought upon yourself and your band of rogues.” | state as | let my guardian aura out, full force. The wolves surrounding me fall to the ground, submitting to me immediately, some yelping and whining on the ground. Four others fall out of the trees, their dart guns landing beside them. | watch as the leader struggles to not submit as | focus my aura on him. Even Rik is sweating at my power.

“Enough!” He yells and digs the tip of the knife into Rik’s neck, drawing blood.” Drop the aura or | drop your alpha.” “You kill my alpha, and | no longer have a reason to keep you alive.” | retort, but | let my aura drop.

The wolves around me are panting and sweating, some still writhing in pain. | look back at the leader. “I know who you are. You're the Banished Beta, Eli Gunner.” He nods his head in acknowledgement of my assessment. “Close, I’m an Alpha now.” I snort and lift my nose in the air. “You don’t smell like an Alpha, you smell like a Beta. Just because you give yourself a title doesn’t mean it’s yours.” He snarls at me and the knife slides closer to Rik’s neck again. “I'll remind you that if you spill anymore of my Alpha’s blood that your life is forfeit, Beta.” | stress the title.

I start pacing, following Artemis’s path in my head. She wants blood, she wants to kill these wolves and get Rik back to safety. “So,” | ask, “what does a self- proclaimed Alpha want with my Alpha?” “You mean future Alpha, don’t you Guardian? He’s not the Alpha yet. After all, titles seem to be important to you.” He sneers at me.

I sneer back at him, “He smells more like an Alpha than you do.” Eli grits his teeth. “Not for long. | have a plan.” “And that plan involves you kidnapping and threatening my Alpha? You do know that Artemis is named after the Greek goddess of the hunt, and we will hunt you down like the dog you are to the ends of the earth if we must, and kill you for this affront.” “Then, | guess it’s a good thing that your Alpha’s,” he stresses the word, “role in this abduction has come to an end.” My eyes flicker to Rik’s. I’m assessing how long it will take me to reach him. versus how fast Eli can flick his wrist to slice his throat open. | know I'll never make it. The look in his eyes says that | shouldn't even try. But | have to. | have to try. | move to step forward.

“lll make a deal with you Guardian.” His words halt my forward motion. My eyes shift back to Eli. “And that is?” “Your Alpha was a pawn. What | want is you.".

“Me?” I’m intrigued. Does he really think that my allegiance can be shifted like this? Like most of the rogues in this makeshift pack have shifted.

“Yes, you. If you agree to come with me willingly, | will let your Alpha go.” “NO!” Rik yells. “I forbid it Cara.” “Oh pup, look who is stupid now.” Eli taps Rik’s face condescendingly. “Don’t you know anything about Guardians Alpha?” He snarls out the title, “The Alpha command doesn’t work on them. Honestly, it’s like you don’t even deserve to have a Guardian.”novelbin He looks back up at me. “So, Cara, do we have a deal?” “How do | know that you'll let him go?” “lll knock him out and leave him here for his people to find, if you will put these handcuffs on.” he tosses me a set of handcuffs. “But I'll warn you, if you struggle, | will kill him.” but | look at Rik for a long moment. He is shaking his head ‘no’ as best as he can, | know this is what | have to do. This is who | am. It's what I’ve trained for my whole life. And, | also know that there is no way that my father, my pack or Liam and his pack, will just let me go. They will come for me. Eli Gunner, whether intentionally or not, is starting a war.

“| agree.” “Nooooo!” Rik screams before Eli injects him in the neck with something that knocks him out cold. He lets Rik drop to the ground but stays where he is.

“The handcuffs Guardian.” | pick them up off the ground and click them into place on my wrists, the silver burning and causing Artemis to weaken, but not totally lose consciousness. Eli comes to stand beside me, taking my arm. “Let’s go.” And he begins walking, pulling me along with him.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 59-As the wolves rush into the clubhouse, the warriors around me scatter, jumping into their wolf form. Donovan pushes forward wanting to shift, but | hold him back. It is easier for us to fight in this form, partially shifted. My canines and claws extend and | begin fighting the rogues, putting myself in front of those that cannot fight or are protecting the pups.

Alpha Anders‘ command to move the non-fighters to a safe area and set up a perimeter comes immediately before | get a private mindlink from him asking me to lead the perimeter protecting the weakest of the pack. | immediately agree and begin heading that way, taking down wolves as | go. o | get into place and begin ordering the warriors, who seem to be in chaos, not knowing which way to direct their efforts. A line begins to form and others help. those that cannot fight get behind our lines.

Cara brings a pup over and pushes them behind our line. | tell her to get back to Alpha Rik. Others can help with the pups but only she can protect our future alpha.

| hear the how! that calls the rogues back and watch as Cara jumps through a hole in the wall to head outside. Her howl of warning tells me that there are way more of these rogues than we expected. | take out a final wolf trying to sneak past us to get out, before turning to make sure that everyone behind us is safe and okay. | mindlink one of the pack doctors to join us to look at the unshifted pups. Some of them have injuries and without their wolves, they won't heal quickly. We also have some pregnant females and | don’t want anyone losing their pups because of stress or a bump that they didn’t feel because of the adrenaline rush.

As | work to make sure everyone inside is okay, | hear the battle continuing outside. The rogues may have planned to run away, but our pack warriors are not letting them get away.

| feel Cara mindlink to me that Alpha Rik has been captured and that she’s going after him, but it feels like a trap. She says she’ll update me when she can but she closes the link before | can respond.

| immediately try to link to Anders, but his mind is locked, most likely busy in a fight. | grit my teeth. | should be out there helping him. | wheel myself toward an opening, trying to find a way out.

Awolf is flying through the air toward me, | grab him in one hand, and tear his head off with the other before letting him drop to the ground. | look up to seenovelbin Chase’s wolf, Nash, grinning at me, blood all over his muzzle. He nods his head at me then jumps on another wolf, tossing him at me. We keep this up and a couple other warriors join in. They take them down, | take them out.

When things settle down, Anders comes over to slap me on the shoulder. “See, | told you we still needed you.” “Anders listen,” | cut him off, “Cara linked me a while ago. Alpha Rik was captured and she was going after him. | haven’t heard any more from her.” “Do you know where they were?” He asks, moving into Alpha mode.

“No, she didn’t…” I'm cut off as Cara mindlinks me again, “Rik is in the western territory, he is unconscious. | have traded myself for him. Send someone to get him. | don’t know where they are taking me, but I'll let you know more as | can. | don’t think they realize that our connection is stronger than a normal pack connection.” The mindlink broke off.

Donovan howled in my head and before | could stop him, he shifted and pulled me out of the wheelchair. His back legs don’t work any etter than my legs, but he doesn’t care. He starts dragging us using his front legs. ‘Our pup needs us!‘ “Donovan,” Anders puts his hand on my wolf’s shoulder, “What is it, what happened?” | mindlink him to tell him what Cara told me. He shouts orders to send people to go get Rik before turning back to me. “Donovan, we'll get her. We won't let them have her.” Alpha Liam steps up, “Have who? Did someone take Cara?” Anders turns to Liam, “Yes. Cara mindlinked Clint. Someone captured Rik and Cara traded places with him. He is apparently unconscious and she has been taken away.” He turns back to me, “Donovan, give Clint back control. | promise you, my word as an Alpha, we will get your daughter back.” Donovan reluctantly gives me control and | shift back. Anders shouts for someone to bring my wheelchair and he and Liam lift me back into it. Someone brings me a towel and lays it across my lap.

The Broken Warriors Daughter Chapter 60-“We need a plan. Let’s get back to the packhouse and make one. We captured some wolves, we'll interrogate them and see what they know.

| get in my van, putting on a spare set of clothes. When | arrive back at the packhouse, they are just bringing Alpha Rik in. Rik I'm so pissed at myself for getting captured. | know better, but | fell right into the trap.

I'm not surprised when Cara, or should | say Artemis, shows up, but | am shocked at how large she is. | hadn't realized it when | saw her in the woods. before training. She is definitely the size of an alpha wolf. Her beautiful brown fur is the same color as Cara’s hair.

| watch as she assesses the situation, taking in all of the rogues surrounding her. | can’t help but feel pride when she takes one out just for getting too close to her. She’s amazing to watch in action..

The leader gets angry when she kills one of his wolves but his entire demeanor changes as she shifts into her human form, naked for all of them to see. | can’t help the snarl that bursts from my mouth, as | watch the wolves literally licking their lips as they stare at what’s mine.

Thank the goddess for small favors, the leader gives her a shirt to put on. | can see her nose twitch when she gets a whiff of it. Yeah, rogues stink.

I'm shocked when the wolfsbane does not affect her. For a second | was terrified but her anger was glorious. Then when she pushed her aura out. It was like nothing I’ve ever seen or felt before. As an Alpha, | can feel the aura of other alphas, but I’m not affected. This? This was something else. I’m not sure if | felt the need to submit because Kai is out cold or if her power is just that strong. | watch the other wolves whining and writhing on the ground. “That’s my girl. Kick ass!"

| don’t even care about the knife he digs into my throat. If only one of us is going to survive this, it’s going to be her. But she drops her aura when he threatens me. Then she calls him the Banished Beta, Eli Gunner. | know that name, but | can’t recall where or why.novelbin | have to admit, she’s good at getting under his skin. And | agree with her, he doesn’t smell like an Alpha, but | can’t smell more than the rogue on him without Kai.

When he says my role in this is over, I’m ready to be killed. After watching her in action, | know that once I’m gone, Cara will survive. I’m sad that she’ll never know that I was her mate, but she will live and maybe she and Liam will end up together. He would be good to her, although the thought of her with anyone else makes me sick.

But then he says he wants to make a deal, me for her. | can’t help myself, | have to jump in and try to order her to stand down. | know it won't work, but it's the only choice | have, because | know her. | know her family, | know their history. They will give everything for the ones they protect. And | don’t know if | can live with myself if she dies for me.

| always had respect for the Nelson family, for what they did for mine. But right here, right now, | also realize the toll that it has taken on my parents. To live with the guilt that someone gave their life for you? | don’t know that I’m strong enough to live with that. | don’t want to live without her, and | know Kai won't either. She may not know yet that I’m her mate, but we know. And now that | know that she’s meant to be mine? There could never be another to take her place.

l ignore the Beta’s taunting me about being stupid. | need Cara to look at me, to see that | don’t want her to do this. | don’t want her to take my place.

When she finally looks at me, | beg her with my eyes to not do this. | shake my head as much as | can. But | can see the resolve in her eyes, she ignores my request and agrees to his demand. | scream at her to stop. But before | can say any more, | feel the needle in my neck and everything goes black.