Runt [ManxMan]

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chase wasn't sure how long it had been since the rogue attack began.

He crouched in wolf form near the staircase leading down to the basement where the omegas and most of the common wolves hid safely away. Chase was on the last line of defense, behind even the other hunters, because his fighting abilities were not much better than those they were protecting. He could track better than anyone else in the pack, but that was only useful as a hunter; it did him no good as a warrior.

He'd never felt more useless than he did at that moment, not even when he'd been a child trying to find enough food to feed himself and his little brother. Even little Mason was allowed to fight, while Chase was ordered to stay behind. He couldn't fault the logic, he had never even attempted warrior training, while Mason had been fighting off rogues on his own for thirteen years.

Still, the entire time they were gone, all he could think about was his little brother out there in danger where Chase couldn't protect him. The longer he waited, the more worry churned in his gut, making him increasingly more anxious and nauseous. It must have been hours and the sounds of fighting had died away, but still no one came to give them any news, so the hunters still waited, ready to leap into action if needed.

Chase was almost ready to run out and find out what was going on, damn the consequences, when the door to the pack house finally opened. Chase couldn't see it from where he stood, so he peered down the hallway, still tense, waiting to hear sounds of fighting or cheers of victory, but he heard neither, which did nothing to calm his nerves.

When a figure appeared at the end of the hall, Chase was ready to pounce on it, was a moment away from jumping when he recognized the beta, his skin streaked with dirt and blood. His head was down and his hair was messy and falling into his face, and he was completely nude. The hunter straightened, shifting quickly into his human form.

"Mav!" Chase moved toward the man, grinning in relief, but pulled up short at the solemn look on the beta's face as the other man avoided the hunter's eyes. It was strange to see; Maverick was so seldom serious about anything, and for him to be here looking like that after a big battle had Chase's heart sinking in his chest.

He looked behind the beta at the empty hallway, his heart sinking even further until he was sure it must be somewhere under the earth. "Where's Mason?" he demanded, then, when Mav didn't immediately respond, he said with more emphasis, "Where is my brother?"

"I don't know." The beta's voice was soft and broke a bit in the middle.

"What do you mean you don't know?"

The beta met Chase's eyes for the first time since he'd arrived, and the hunter could see tears glistening there, watched as the first fell and Mav made no move to wipe it away. "I lost sight of them during the battle. I didn't think... He was with Dax, it didn't even occur to me..."

Chase felt, by now, his heart must have reached the very center of the earth. "Did Dax see what happened, then? Where is he?" When Mav's only response was to look away, another tear falling, Chase began to feel like something was lodged in his throat, his next words coming out sounding choked. "Mav, where is Dax?"

"I don't know."

Chase's knees buckled, but Mav closed the distance between them in two large strides to catch him before he could hit the ground. The hunter clawed desperately at the beta's arms, staring up into the man's eyes and hoping to see that familiar joking glint, praying for Mav to admit it was just a stupid joke, for Mason and Dax to step out from behind him, safe and unharmed.

"Where are my brothers?" he demanded, knowing Mav didn't have the answer but unable to stop the question from spilling from his lips. "Where are my brothers?"