Alpha Dom and His Human Surrogate by Caroline Above Story

#Chapter 343 – Preparations

Sinclair

“All right,” I say, keeping half an eye on trouble and sister-trouble as I look around the room at my a*sembled team. “We’re here today to make a concrete plan regarding our next moves against the Cult that attacked our pack and attempted to kidnap my child. Everyone here has been briefed on the events that occurred yesterday. I applaud your work in coming up with the information we need to make the next best step we can. But now it’s time to act. Dad?”

I turn the group’s attention to him, eager to hear what he has to say regarding the reconnaissance that we a*signed teams to complete yesterday and last night.

“Right,” my father starts, leaning forward in his chair and glancing over his papers, though I know he’s memorized every word on them. “Our capture of a Dark Priest yesterday morning resulted in a great deal of new information, if not yet definitive answers regarding how to stop these attacks. However, one of the most significant pieces of information that we’ve gathered came in last night.”

I listen while my father speaks but keep my eyes on everyone in the room, wanting to judge my men’s physical reactions to the information. I know that we’re going to need to put together an a*sault team at some point, and I’m going to want the best and most engaged on it. At my father’s last line, everyone seems to perk up a little, but I spot a few men whose eyes burn with a particular hunger at this turn.

“Last night, there was significant consideration of the fact that, while Ella and Dominic shifted into their wolves to attack the men who came for Rafe yesterday, the attackers themselves did not shift. I want to particularly applaud Conner O’Mally for noticing this particular fact.”

All eyes move, then, to a bulky red- haired young man who nods humbly, even when a slight blush at the recognition colors his pale cheeks. I nod at him, marking him mentally as one I might want by my side.

to carry the child, of course. But the others continued the a*sault without shifting

raise our brows at each other. We were caught up in the moment, of course, but I feel, quite suddenly, a little stupid that neither of

speculation,” Henry continues, “that these men never intended to take my grandson yesterday, that they were, instead, a distraction meant to get Dominic and Roger out

nods a little, considering this fact and the

a slim dark-haired young man down the table, “Simon suggested an alternative. Simon?” Henry invites, “if you

reports,” he nods politely to my mate here and she smiles at him, “moved with incredible speed and were able to break gla*s that they should not have been able to break, which was installed recently against just such an a*sault. The obvious

I say, breaking in and turning towards her now, wanting her input. Does this line up with your memory

up and looking around. “It was incredible how fast they entered and how they came through

at me in return. I can’t help the little smile that

hard to keep a straight face around her. Roger’s right – I

begins I consider that he’s a little too small for an a*sault team, though he’s clearly clever. I make a

lack of shifting, as well as the use of magic – is rooted in my understanding of how certain priestesses of the Goddess operate. It is not a common practice, but there are certain enclaves where priestesses worship remote ones, monasteries really – where priestesses

shift uncomfortably in our chairs. It would be …incredibly painful, and isolating, I consider, to choose to turn away from the wolf that lives inside me and forcibly bind him. An act of cruel self- flagellation that, I

at it. I

do you know this,” Roger asks, sharp but curious. “I’ve never heard of this

down at the table for a moment, perhaps a little embarra*sed. “My mother…lives in

selected him for his intelligence as well as his hard work and potential. We did a thorough background check on him and while I knew he came from a remote region, I was unaware of his unique connections to a priestess of the Goddess. I make a mental note to have a further discussion with him, both about his background and about