winter of orphic love | ot7 poly |

Chapter 26 The Ambush

"Valentine wouldn't do that to us," Seokjin whispered. "I want to trust that he won't hurt us. We have been allies for years. And it took a long time for them to trust us in return. Most of their colony joined them because they were afraid of wolves. They wouldn't ally themselves with a violent pack when they had us, a peaceful ally, to protect them."

Jimin's heart pounds inside his chest as they approach the neutral zone of Calemari. The forest floor slants up into a ridge that overlooks the valley below. The once-delicate flecks of snow have turned into bundles of fluffy snow. The horizon of rolling hills turns into a gray fog as the visibility drops. The sky is dark with heavy clouds and the threat of a coming blizzard.

He stands at the edge as the weight of fear settles over his mind.

Winter is here.

In the back of his mind, he remembers how worried the pack was about preparing for winter. They worked themselves to the bone in storing extra food and sealing every crack in the cabin to keep out the cold air. The pack harvested the last of the produce and checked their solar panels. It was their top priority; everything has changed.

He looks to his side and notices Jungkook handling a rifle. Seokjin hyung and Valentine are going over the details and planning their rescue mission. They have no idea where Namjoon hyung and the others could be. Although Calemari isn't a large town, there are plenty of hiding places.

Deep down, Jimin knew the Nightwalkers would betray them. It was his general distrust of people as a collective that they would be tricked. This pessimistic side of him developed in the early days of the end of the world. Evil was the world's nature, and Jimin knew it all too well.

"Listen up!" Valentine calls out and beckons to the group to huddle close, "We're going into the neutral zone together. Proceed with caution, and we will all make it home safe."

Jimin gathers his courage and stands tall. We're going to save them. Then I'm going to make Alpha Nikolas and the Nightwalkers pay, he thinks to himself.

Seokjin breaks away from Valentine's side to stand near Jimin and Jungkook. His scent broadcasts notable fear and anxiety with its wilting roses and sharp blackcurrants; it stings the inside of Jimin's nose. In contrast to his internal feelings, Seokjin's handsome face is calm and trusting. It makes Jimin glad humans can't pick up on a werewolf's true scent.

The group begins the journey down the slope and into the neutral zone.

Calamari isn't much to look at with its outer rim of debris and rotting buildings. A gray-dead atmosphere has fallen over the seemingly abandoned town. They reach its borders and Jimin sniffs the air for any sign of danger.

Only the scent of wet cement and mold greets him.

The complete absence of scent means the Nightwalkers must be using scent-blockers. It isn't a good sign.

Valentine takes the lead and silently motions for them to follow behind him. The humans raise their guns and take aim at the spindly-cracked window panes and condemned homes. Their feet scuff loudly over loose gravel and broken glass; the storm of crunching footsteps sets Jimin on edge.

They're too loud. This isn't safe. We can't just storm the town and expect to find Namjoon, Hoseok, and Charlotte by chance! We can't just waltz to the doors of the courthouse and demand they return our packmates.

He shoots Seokjin a look and mouths, What are we doing?

Seokjin's lip curls back into a grim line. He shakes his head at Jimin and motions him to stay close.

Jimin fights the urge to speak up, to yell at Valentine that they can't ambush the Nightwalkers and expect to walk away unharmed. This is a violent pack, don't they understand that? Don't they know that guns alone won't take down a pack of this size and strength?