Finding Her True Alpha
Chapter 77: Back to Emerald Lake

Ashlyn

It’d been a few days and my mates weren’t any closer to coming home. I decided I needed to go out there to figure out what they weren’t telling me. This was supposed to be for intel, but Liam was here preparing more warriors and even Matt went back to the Dragon Kingdom to get more of their warriors mobilized.

Sage and I were stuck at home and I was growing more agitated by the minute. I was trying to get her to portal us to their location, but she was not budging.

“Sage, this is fair! What are you hiding?” I exclaimed.

We were sitting in the living room.

“You promised your mates that you wouldn’t complain about them keeping you safe.” She reminded me and I sighed.

“But you all promised me no more secrets. And if you won’t help me, I’ll get there myself.” I told her, standing up from the couch. I’m done waiting. I knew something was wrong, and no one was telling me a damn thing.

I stormed off into my room and went straight in to the closet; I stuffed some clothes into the backpack I had found. When I was done, I went to the bathroom to grab my hairbrush and some hair ties. Before I put everything in my bag, I took my anti-nausea tablets and grabbed my vitamins. I got dressed in warm clothes and I pulled on my warm boots. I wouldn’t be able to shift, being pregnant.

I charged my phone, and I downloaded a map of the area onto my phone. Even if they don’t like it, I was going out there. I was done waiting, and I was sick of the lies.

I thought of the hideaway place that Sage and I used to play at when we were kids, and opened a portal. I knew I was walking into the unknown, but this was my war and I refused to be forced to sit on the sidelines.

I walked through the portal, and for once, I didn’t throw up. I was now standing in a small cave, deep in the thick forest that surrounds the Emerald Lake pack house and lake. Tundra appeared in front of me when I thought of her. I needed her help in finding the others.

Peering out of the cave, and I didn’t hear or smell anything. Tundra wandered out like nothing could touch her.

“Tundra, we are sneaking.” I whispered, yelled to her.

“There’s no one out here.” She told me and I pushed my l!ps into a line.

“Can you smell our mates?” I asked her, walking beside her while we walked away from the cave.

“Not yet.” She told me after she sniffed the air.

I pulled out my phone to look at the map. I knew the pack house was to the north of us. So we should head south and hopefully we’ll run into them. They wouldn’t be at the pack house. I changed direction and Tundra trotted beside me. She was happy to be out.

“Sage is here.” Tundra announced, and I turned around to see that she was stepping out of the cave.

“Really, Ashlyn?” Sage growled, not looking happy but she had a backpack.

“Are you staying? Because I’m not going back until I figure out what everyone isn’t telling me.” | told her, and she sighed.

“Of course I’m staying. I won’t let my sister get herself killed.” She rolled her eyes at me and Tundra huffed at her.

Tundra would let nothing happen to me, especially since I’m carrying her pup.

“Do you know where their base is?” I asked her and she pointed behind me, in the direction I was already heading in. We started walking and Sage fell into step with mine. Tundra had wandered off, but I knew she wasn’t that far away.

“Thank you for coming.” I told her.

“I don’t like not keeping you in the loop, I trust you, but this is something that your mates ordered me, and since they’re mated to you, they can command anyone.” She told me.

“Is it really that bad?” I asked her and she nodded.

That they value my life above their own is what makes me angry. I should be able to make my own decisions, just like they are making now. I told them I felt their deaths and they still are putting their lives in danger. If they couldn’t live without me, how did they expect me to live without them?

“I know you aren’t happy about this, Sage, but I’m glad that you’re here. I know Liam is going to be pissed when he finds us gone, but we should be here. If it’s as bad as I think it is, they need us. I can heal them. How did they figure I could portal in if I did not know where they were?” I explained, and she nodded.

“I’ve been worried about Brandon, he has been very vague about everything since they came out here.” She told me and I knew how she felt. And I decided to tell her, since I wasn’t sure how this was all going to play out.

“Sage?”

“Yes, Ashlyn?”

“I’m pregnant,” I told her and she immediately stopped in her tracks.

“What?” she stuttered out.

“I’m about six weeks,” I told her and she just stared off in front of her.

“Your mates are going to fvcken ill me.” she finally said, and I laughed.

“They would never touch you. I can make people explode, remember?” I told her and she turned to look at me.

I understand your urgency to get out here and get this done now. The farther along you are in your pregnancy, the more needy for your mates you will become. That’s why you’ve been such a b!tch lately.”

She said, and I pushed my l!ps in a line.

“I’m not that bad,” I told her as we started walking again.

“Yes, you have been. You portal into the middle of the unknown to find them,” she told me, and I couldn’t argue. I definitely feel more of a need for them. And it’s becoming hard and harder to be away from them.

We had been walking for a few hours when Tundra walked back up to us.

“I found something. Get down and follow me.” She told Sage and me. We did what she instructed, and Tundra stopped right before a clearing. There were wolves surrounded by vampires and rogue wolves.

“These are our wolves,” I mouthed to Sage. Sage grabbed my arm before I could move.

“We need to help.” I mouthed to her, and she nodded.

“You walk out.” She mouthed to me. She pointed to Tundra to go right and then pointed to herself, motioning she was going left. I was the distraction. I nodded and stood up. And as soon as I walked into the clearing, a bright white light consumed me and when it vanished, I was now in my lace dress. And all eyes were on me while I made my way over to the vampires holding my wolf’s capture.

I stopped about ten feet away. The vampires were watching me closely while my wolves were growing agitated. They felt this need to protect their Queen, not the other way around.

“What’s going on?” l asked, looking at the twenty vampires not staring at me.

“Look who finally showed up, and all alone, I see. Where are you, mate, little Queen?” he smirked at me. I focused on the beating of his heart and the water flowing in his system. I squeezed my hands together, and he didn’t even have time to scream out before he exploded all over everyone. Holding up my arm, I forced the b***d and guts away from me. The smell and sound of his body made me gag.

I looked over at the other vampires, and the look of horror on their faces made me grin.

“As you can see, I can protect myself. So would anyone like to explain what is going on here? Or does anyone have any last words before you end up like your comrade?” I spoke to them.

“My Queen, the former vampire king, is forcing us to be here.” He spoke while kneeling down and bowing his head.

“How is he forcing you?” l asked him. I knew the former vampire king was here, but I didn’t know that he was forcing his people to fight this war.

“He took our families,” he answered. I noticed the other vampires had also kneeled down.

“Who did I just kill?” I asked, and the same vampire answered.

“He was part of the former king’s personal guard. He stands with the former King, where we are forced to fight this war.” Just then, Sage and Tundra approached me from the sides they took.

“How can I tell if they are telling the truth?” I asked Sage. But instead of answering, she walked up to the vampire that I was speaking with and touched his head.

Her eyes turned white, but only for a second. She turned to face me and nodded.

“King Theo stands with his Queen, do you all stand with your king?” I asked them.

“Yes, my Queen,” they all said in unison.

“Sage, make sure they are all telling the truth, Tundra. You go with her.” I commanded, before I turned my attention to the wolves.

“I need one of you to shift.”