Chapter Sixty-Nine

Once the warriors moved the three out of the room, the doctor and nurses checked both Ronnie and me out. Then they left as well. I finally collapsed against the bed, and Ronnie and my father came to stand in front of me.

“Are you alright?” My dad stared down at me until I nodded.

“I am just exhausted. How are you handling everything?” I gestured to the both of them.

My dad turned to Ronnie and clapped him on the shoulder. “I’d never question you, but I have to ask. Are you sure?” I could hear the hope in his voice. Even after everything that had just happened, he was hopeful.

“Am I sure I know who stabbed me in my stomach?” Ronnie gave a tired chuckle. “Yeah, Dad, I am.” He sagged next to me on the side of the bed. “I checked on him after the Agora and the attack. He was in bed, but healed. I told him about the attack and he played it off as if he knew nothing. With all the injured coming into the hospital, he got dressed.” He looked over at me. “Your dad mind-linked me you were in here, and non-responsive, and I lost my mind. I went hunting.”

“Hunting? For what?” I nudged his shoulder.

“For Aurora.” He tossed it out. “I wasn’t going to let that woman go after she let rogues attack us. Not after you...” He clenched his fists. “Beck said he wanted to come with me, and I let him. We searched the town and followed her scent into the trees.” Ronnie stared at my father. “Once we were out far enough that no one could hear me, he attacked. We were in wolf form, and I was winning, but he shifted, so I did too.”

“Ron!”

“I know it was stupid, but I wanted to ask why.” He stood and paced. His anger was so high. “He was our best friend. We grew up together, and randomly he was attacking me, and I needed to know why. But he had planned for it. He stabbed me once I shifted, and he laughed. He said that he was sorry, but he knew I would never turn my back on you.” Ronnie grabbed my father. “This was a plan to bring you down, not the pack. He said he told the rogues to keep the deaths to a minimum. This attack was to end you and Amy. After he said that, I shifted and ran!”

“And you came here?” My dad shook his head in disbelief.

“I needed to tell you,” Ronnie pointed out and looked at me like my father was an idiot, and he was.

“Dad…I don’t know if you realize this, but you are the Alpha.” I laughed at the absurdity of my statement.

“I know that, pup.”

“And you are Uncle Ronnie’s best friend, and Alpha. It was his duty to protect this pack, and you add in you are best friends. Of course, he would head here. If it was the other way around, and he was the Alpha, wouldn’t you?”

My father nodded. “Of course.” Ronnie and I threw up our hands.

“Then why are you so surprised he would do it for you? You know we love you. You are the most important person in this pack, to us.” I wrapped my arms around him.

“Well, my mate is the most important to me, but you are second. But to this pack, our way of life, you are the number one.” Ronnie patted my dad’s back.

“We need to find out why they betrayed you all,” I pulled away. “We also need to find Aurora.”

But my dad shook his head. “Aurora will show back up in due time. And I don’t need to know why they betrayed me, just that they did. We will be more vigilant for rogues in the near future.”

“Dad, you can’t let this go.” But my father was already pulling away. He turned and shared a look with Ronnie. “Dad. We have to find out why.”

“No, pup. We don’t. Ronnie told me the King is heading here soon, and I will speak with him about everything that happened here. It’s too similar to what happened before.”

“Before?” I looked between the two men. “Like when the last king died?” My dad nodded slowly.

“It seems we didn’t catch everyone that betrayed us, and they are starting again.” My dad walked to the window and stared out. “But that doesn’t matter now.”

“What do you mean?”

“What matters now is to finish copying the book from your grandmother and then…”

“And then what?” I followed him to the window, and I saw his look of devastation before he closed his face off.

“And then I send you home. You have mastered what you needed to here…and now it’s time to face your last life.”