Enforce Me

Chapter 11: Tear Stains

Tatum

''You have to go to your father.'' Alic's eyes burned with something that I could not tell as anything other than importance. ''I'll look after your Princess.''

''I'll be back soon.'' I growled at his careless words, taking a second to nod my answer to Jaidan before I left for the dungeons, or as some more subtle people called it, the 'interrogation chambers'.

''Alpha.'' I tilted my head in respect as I walked the final stairs to the lower level benath the Alpha's quaters.

''Tatum.'' His tone was short and clipped, annoyed as he turned to face me revealing a rogue strapped in a chair.

''Is this one of the ones from last night?''

''He says he needs to talk to the next Alpha.'' My father raised his eyebrow in suspicion and exited the room for me to do my job.

I took in the rogue's filthy appearance. His shorts were tattered and torn, once maybe light grey in colour, his chest covered in mud, blood and scars. The rats nest of a mop of hair on his head a mess of twigs and leaves, nothing new from a rogues appearance.

''What is it that you needed to tell me personally?'' His head raised and his eyes met mine, a small smile making its way onto his chapped lips.

''Where is your cute mate?'' His voice was hoarse and broken but the words were unmistaken in my ears.

My hackles rose at his words and I could feel my lip curling at his addressing of Jaidan causing the lunatic to break out into laughter, my wolf itching to rip out his voicebox with my bare hands.

''Now now. I heard he's quite the catch. All of us know and there's a hefty amount of a reward on his head.'' His deep maniac laugh turned as cold as ice. ''Dead or alive.''

My wolf finally pushed through at the threat of our mate's life. I could see my vision turning sharper but all I could see was red. The thirst for blood seeping into my throat tensing it up and tightening all my muscles.

''Who sent you?'' The first fist flew to his face.

''I saw him last night. He's awfully pretty.'' Another fist.

''Who sent you!?'' Another.

''We're all looking forward to his heat.''

My body shook with rage and I wailed punch after punch to his face and torso. His lips split, leaking red rivers from the gashes and running to his chin meeting the blood from his nose that exploded with one more hit, the filth of his blood, his groans and whimpers cheering me on every time another psychotic laugh dared bubble up.

My body was now covered in his blood and filling the room with an unimaginable stench. His eyes started closing with unconsciousness as his head lulled from side to side until they settled behind me, his smug grin never leaving.

''We'll get him sooner than you think.'' He laughed manically like a hyena until my wolf snapped, taking over and spending his anger at the rogue.

--

''Did you get anything from him?'' My father asked as I ascended the tunnel and wiped my hands of blood.

''Nothing.'' I growled and made my way to the pools to clean myself so I didn't have to see such displeasure on my mates face as I did last night.

As the water washed away red and soothed my body, my knuckles healed quickly while thinking of what the rogue had said, displeased tingles running up and down my spine.

There was no doubt in my mind my mate would be safe within this den. I could smell a rogue a mile away and there were pack members at every turn to rid our lands of the filth. He'd always be safe here.

With my mind at ease I made my way to my room, not finding my mate there I headed to the dining hall. Alic was always hungry it wouldn't surprise me if he was there and he was but my mate wasn't by his side.

''Where's Jaidan?''

''In your room. I had to take the hunting party.'' He gestured to the food laid on the tables.

''He's not in my room. Did you take him there?'' My eyes scanned the room for a small blonde head but there was none.

''No, he walked back himself.'' A growl bubbled up my throat and I tore myself from the room, scanning every possible place my mate could be.

''He's fine Tatum he probably just got lost.'' Alic caught up with me at the cave opening.

''I've checked everywhere. He must have gone outside-'' The scent of rogue wafted into my nose. The second the scent hit my brain my wolf took over shifting, the pain nothing compared to the thought of Jaidan out there as a howl almost ripped me in half as I called to him.

I could faintly hear Alic shifting and howls of our pack members echoing my own as they joined me running down the mountain to kill the intruders and find my mate.

I had run for only a few minutes before I heard a booming howl from the East, a signal rogues had been spotted and he was sending the message to others and that was something I didn't want to hear with my mate all alone out here.

I had run further east towards Rick's pack lands until I heard growls and whimpers, hoping they weren't coming from Jaidan I ran full force towards the location knowing my pack had not yet reached this point.

I pushed and pushed, my body shaking with pants for breath before I broke through a line of thick trees to a less dense shrubbery.

Lying beside an oak tree unconscious was my mate, a large dead rogue to his left and two more attacking a grey wolf who seemed to be doing well enough for me to focus all my attention on my mate's wellbeing so I ran for him as the unknown wolf killed a second wolf.

My nose nudged Jaidan's face and his eyes slowly fluttered open, horror lacing them as the forest broke with a scream and whimpers from his mouth.

My body went straight for protection mode, draping myself above him in order to hide the scene from him but the terror that completely drowned his face was not directed at his surroundings, he was starring straight into my eyes like that. My mate was afraid of me.

I was the cause for the terror lacing my mate's face and it pained my wolf and I but I had to get him out of harm's way first, my body working on auto pilot as I shifted and gathered him in my arms, burying his head in my shoulder as the sound of ripping flesh lulled him to sleep, his body wracking with shivers and sobs.

''Tatum.'' I side stepped Alic and nodded in the direction of the rogues.

I didn't have the patience nor the time to talk to him. I had to worry about my mate.

With as much care as I could I hurried back to the den, pack mate after pack mate starring on before going back to running the borders to rid us of rogues.

Starring down at the tear stained, pale face of Jaidan I laid him softly onto the bed trying to contain a growl of fury at whoever abandoned their post at the borders and let the rogues slip even closely to our land.

Conveniently enough I knew who had border runs tonight and I definitely wasn't going to be as fair to him as I was to our dead rogue prisoner.