Chapter 4

Margaret ran down the two flights of stairs with Salen's wrist tightly in her grasp. With her werewolf strength, she could pull off someone's arm with her anxiousness.

"Margaret, where are you taking me?" She giggled, brushing her long locks from her face.

"You'll see. I think I might have a way to help you." Salen sighed, letting her pull her along.

"What do you mean help me? Maggie, there's nothing we can do." They made their way out the back door and towards the run-down building that contained the entrance to the pack's dungeons. Deep below the first floor held three stories of stone cells and silver doors. They could contain even the strongest of werewolves, and were built to be sound-proof for any circumstances. "Maggie, I don't really feel comfortable-" She shushed her, motioning towards the farthest stall on the bottom floor.

"Just follow me. And please, please be quiet. We can't afford being caught down here." Salen nodded, sealing her lips shut. Maggie grabbed an old key from hanging on the wall and quickly unlocked the d oor, making sure she didn't touch any silver.

A girl about her age lay curled up in the corner with her head tucked into her knees. Her red hair hid most of her bruised and beaten face. The sound of the heavy door made her jump, her heart racing at an abnormal rate. Her blue eyes looked up with utter fear consuming them. Salen shot Margaret a concerned glance.

"Wh-who are you?" She stuttered, pulling her knees closer to her chest.

"My name is Salen. What's yours?" She peeked up at her with her chocolate brown eyes.

"Safiya." Salen sent her a friendly smile and knelt in front of her.

"That's a beautiful name. We're not going to hurt you." She tried to crack a smile, but instantly flinched and cowered away when Margaret moved in the doorway.

"Salen, can I speak with you for a second?" She tilted her head towards the hall, and she nodded.

"That in there is Safiya Goldreen, daughter of Alpha Goldreen in California." Salen sucked in a deep breath.

"The daughter that went missing two years ago?" She nodded with a mournful look on her face. "Well what is she doing here?"

"That's the thing, it's really hard to explain." She cleared her throat and played with her hands. "She is Darron's true mate." Salen's mouth hung wide open.

"Wha-wha-" She stuttered, unable to form a sentence.

"Two years ago, Darron paid Alpha Goldreen a visit to tie up some loose treaties. When he laid eyes on Safiya, he knew instantly that she was his mate. However, for some reason that no one knows about, he snuck her away from her pack and stuck her down here instead of with him." She sighed, leaning against the near wall in anguish.

"That's unbelievable. I don't understand why-" Their conversation was cut short by multiple sets of footsteps echoing through the hall above them.

"Quick, hide." Margaret whisper-shouted, pulling her into the nearest open cell near Safiya.

"Well well. Aren't you a sight for sore eyes." Darron's dark, booming voice shook the walls of the cell. "What, are you not happy to see me? My poor, helpless mate."

Salen could sense the fear radiating off Safiya's figure through the walls. She could feel the sudden urge to protect the small she-wolf.

"Le-leave me alone." A smack sound echoed after his hand made contact with her cheek.

"You don't speak without my permission, remember?" He growled, his eyes becoming a shade darker.

Margaret grabbed Salen's shoulder, keeping her from blowing their cover.

"Don't you worry my sweet princess. After this ceremony, you will no longer be needed. Patience my dear." He motioned for his warrior to follow him out, locking the door behind them and hanging the key back up. Salen sighed, lifting herself from the cold cement floors.

They made sure the men were nowhere to be seen before letting themselves back into Safiya's cell.

A bright red welt began to form on her cheek, her tears only enhancing the color. They crouched down next to her, trying to comfort her and stop her from crying.

"It's going to be okay. We are going to figure something out and get you out of here." She sniffled and nodded, trying to find comfort in the strangers' friendly faces.

"Why are you helping me?" She shifted her body, crossing her legs in front of her.

"My name is Salen Westbrook, the one Darron plans on mating with." A look of hurt flashed over her face, but she easily masked it. "I promise you I don't want this at all. I actually have a mate of my own." Salen dazed with a dreamy look in her eyes. "He's tall and handsome, and he's the greatest person I have ever met." Her voice became silent and frail. "All I want is to be with him." A thick silence filled the room.

"We should really get going Salen. We don't want to get caught down here. Who knows the punishment we could get." Margaret stood and dusted off her pants before extending her hand out to Salen.

"Thank you Maggie. I will make sure to visit you again Safiya. I promise we will figure something out and help you in any way possible. Please try and be safe until then." She gave her one last friendly smile before letting Margaret lead her out of the dungeons and back towards the pack house.

"I just don't understand. Why would Darron give up being with his mate?" A swift breeze sent shivers up her arms.

"I really don't know. I discovered her one day when I was sent down to clean up after one of the prisoners. She was fragile and starved, so I began sneaking her food once in a while just to help her regain some strength. I was hoping to help her sooner, but I had no opportunities that wouldn't have lead to us getting caught or attacked. She really is a sweet girl." Salen nodded, lost in thought.

She really wanted to help Safiya, but they needed to make sure it wasn't going to put them all in danger.

"I think I have a plan, but we need to make sure absolutely NO ONE gets word of it." Margaret looks around them cautiously, making sure no one was within listening distance.

"What do you mean?" Salen asked as they closed and locked her bedroom door.

"We have to stage a riot in the dungeons. That way, we can help Safiya escape without anyone knowing it was us. Then we could send information to Alpha Celus and finally take down Darron." She sent a large grin, showing her age lines next to her eyes.

"Well we don't even know what he's planning yet." They both sighed.

"We will just have to go undercover." She sent Salen a wink, earning an eye-roll and a small giggle.

Two hours later, and the two found themselves deep within the library where all the pack history was held. Old, leather-bound books sat collecting dust on two large bookshelves. Salen felt uncomfortable in the presence of all the memories, but she knew what she needed to do. Pulling out a specific book about Darron's family tree, she carried it towards an empty table and dropped it onto the surface, sending a cloud of dust into the air.

"Wow. I don't recognize any of these Alphas past Darron's father." Margaret flipped through the pages frantically, trying to familiarize herself with the information. "I have always prided myself with my knowledge of my pack, but for some reason I don't remember learning about Darron's grandparents or anyone before them. This is very odd."

Margaret searched the shelves and pulled out another book holding the information about all past Alphas. A look of confusion etched her face as she flipped through the empty pages.

"It looks like all the information was erased. I don't understand." She continued to flip through the old warn pages frantically. "The book only holds information about Darron and his parents. It almost looks like someone is trying to hide something." Voices pulled the two of them out of their thoughts.

"We need to go." Salen grabbed the two books and ran towards the exit, making sure they weren't spotted.

"Did you hear that?" One of the men asked, looking around him.

"Yeah, someone's here." The other growled, both now on high alert. Salen froze, her heart racing.

"I'll distract them. Meet me in your bedroom." Margaret whispered, back tracking to steer the men away from Salen.

"Can I help you men find anything?" She asked from the lounge area, giving Salen an urgent glance. Salen nodded, slipping quietly out of the large double doors.

Salen flipped through the book, curious about all the empty sections within each. It definitely looked like most of the information was removed, that someone wanted to keep the information hidden.

There was a knock at the door. Salen's heart raced as she threw the books in her dresser drawer, covering them up with her clothes.

"Come in!" She called out. Margaret rushed in, closing and locking the door behind her.

"Alright, I've been racking my brain and I can't seem to come up with a reasonable explanation for any of this." They sat on the edge of her bed, racking their brains.

"Oh, I know!" Salen shrieked, her eyes wide. "I can write Celus and see if he knows anything about this."

Margaret grabbed a piece of paper from Salen's small desk on the east wall of her bedroom and handed it to her along with a wooden pencil.

"I get so nervous writing him." She blushed, hiding her face with her hair.

"You guys are so cute." Margaret gushed. She has known Salen since she was a little girl, and all she wants is for her to be happy.

My Wonderful Mate,

My day has been long and filled with many surprises; most confusing. Alpha Darron has so many secrets that I am trying to uncover. But I need your help. Every book that contains information about the Alpha lineage of this pack has either missing pages or has information that isn't correct.

Margaret and I were hoping that you might have something on the past Alphas of the Moon Dust Pack. I don't have much time, and we don't have many options to help us.

I don't know what else to do, and I am becoming desperate.

                                     Yours Truly,

                                                  Salen Westbrook

"Perfect." Margaret squeezed her shoulder. "I will take it over there tonight. Now, get some sleep. We have a lot of work to do."