*'Once Joy is inside she won't have any communication with us, so we need a way to communicate once we are in,' Krii spoke to the group of head wolves, planning their moves. He had Bob in his arms, stroking his little head. He drew his ear to the animal and nodded. 'Bob suggests, animal sounds? I'll be a cow. Moo... Bob says he wants to be a chicken.'
'Meow...' Joy raised her hand.
Animal sounds erupted from the adults, besides Reid who glared at them, with Krii even adding a howl.
'Ok enough,' Reid silenced them. 'How are we going to get in without being noticed? Their village is always heavily guarded, even more so today.'
'We will go in through the front door my dear Alpha.' He stroked his rabbit's head and everyone leaned forward, paying careful attention. 'Since they have no Attacker, their barrier is just as weak as ours. So, we will make a pretty hole in it, and while they are distracted trying to figure out what's going on, one of us slips in,' he pointed at Jude who nodded, 'Zab-Zab-Zabala. You will go in using Lyssa's key. The two of you finally shift to Protector and bye bye Rollin and Una.'
'What about concealing my scent?' Jude asked.
'My beautiful Jemima has been working on a new mist.' He winked at his mate who handed Jude a small glass bottle.
'But it only lasts for ten minutes so you have to be quick in every aspect of the word,' Jemima told him.
'Now, just in case something goes wrong and the two of you don't shift, just leave the village,' Krii urged. 'I'll have my cousin wait outside their village. There's a bridge over a dry stream once you leave the forest. He'll wait under the bridge and take you to the human world. We will all meet there to regroup if things go wrong. Don't try to fight them alone.' He stared between them, his gaze lingering on Jude before moving to his rabbit. 'Oh, right.' He looked up. 'Two of the most important things in this entire operation. One, no matter what happens, they can not know that these two are mates. Two, Rollin has a very unnaturally short temper. Do not provoke him.'*
The prison gates creaked open and Joy's head shot up. Snot and tears trickled to the floor as she tried to make out who it was. A torch flashed in her eyes, making them burn and she looked away.
"My darling," David Macheka's whisper echoed through the cell.
"Daddy." She stood up, following the light of the torch. She threw her arms around his body and he squeezed her tight.
"My precious daughter." He rubbed her back, feeling her face dampen his shoulder. He pulled her back, shining the light over her face again. His used his free hand to wipe her tears. "How are you here?" He asked.
"Dad, how are you here?" She croaked.
"You're supposed to be in Singapore. How did you get inside here?" She checked behind him. A dark figure whose face she couldn't make out was standing outside the gate. "No, nevermind that... How did you get to this awful place?"
"So, you know what these people are?" He inquired.
"Yes, they are wolves. Actual werewolves that killed my mother," she sniffed.
"So, you know everything now." His eyes fell to the floor.
"What? You knew about this place?"
"Yes." He nodded. "Your mother told me about it."
"And you didn't think to tell me? The one who actually had the probability of shifting?"
"You wouldn't shift if you stayed in the human world. The fact that you got used to the environment awakened your wolf," he explained. "Your mother didn't want you involved with any of this. Even if it meant you grew up resenting her. Which is why I have to help you get out." He tugged at her arm and she pulled it back.
"You didn't answer my question," she uttered.
"My dear," he huffed, pulling her with him to sit on the ground. "When your mother left, it wasn't the first time, she had done it before, a few months after you were born."
"Really?" She croaked.
"She left and I did everything I could to find her. I couldn't because she had gone to a place I didn't know even existed. I don't know what urged her to come back a few weeks later, and she did. She took care of you. Then after seven years, she left again. But this time around she explained everything to me. She told me all about her original pack, and the other one. The Blue Moon pack where she was accepted and treated like family." He rubbed the back of his neck. "When your mother left us, we were devastated. Both of us. Obviously you more than me because you got really sick remember? And I took you to the hospital."
"Mmmh," Joy mumbled in the darkness.
"I'm guessing your mother sensed this. Because she came back again. You didn't see her because you were unconscious. She left when your fever finally broke, and you were feeling better. Later on, years after she had left, I discovered what the Blood Moon pack were doing. Using humans as informants. Your mother had mentioned it before in passing, but I never paid much attention to it until I saw it happening. I thought maybe if I got into it, I could find a way to see your mother. Then I discovered that she had been killed by them. If you remember, that was the time I went to South Africa for those two months. I couldn't bare to face you, or I would have told you everything, and doing that would have put you in danger. When I came back, I made it my mission to try and take revenge for her, in whatever way I could. But of course, you can't really take revenge on werewolves as a human being." He let out a soft, humourless chuckle. "Because it has taken me all these years. And in the process I lost touch with myself and my daughters."
"Though I wish you had told me," she sniffled, "I understand why you and mom did it. I understand that you just wanted to protect me."
"We just delayed the inevitable." He sighed.
"Now it's my turn. What really happened when you went missing?"
"I landed in the Blue Moon village. Jude, the Beta, took me in and helped me out."
"Jude... Jude. He's the one your mother presumed to be your mate. Is he?"
"Yes."
"So, did you shift?"
"Yes."
"What was it like?"
"Painful," she said, thinking of Krii. She felt something squeeze her heart, bringing tears to her eyes.
The bar on the gate rang, being hit by the person standing there. "We need to go," the man whispered.
"I need to get you out of here." David stood up. "This place isn't safe for you." He bent down and tugged at her arm.
"No, I can't leave." She stood as well, wiping her eyes. "I'm here on a mission. I have to follow Adonis Krii's plan."
"Who's Adonis Krii?"
"Nevermind." She shook her head. "Dad, I need a way to send a message to someone outside this village."
"Why? What message when we need to get out of here? Joy, you can't put yourself in danger. I won't allow it." He spoke sternly, attempting to stop her with his fatherly tone.
"You put yourself in danger too." She folded her arms. "And this is for mom, and the village. I have to try and stop them for taking our village."
The man scratched his head and huffed. "What message do you need to send, and to who?"
"So, there's a way?"
"Yes, I'll do it myself because we can't trust anyone."
"Okay. There's someone waiting underneath a bridge over a dry stream when you have left the forest. His name is Jackson. He's Adonis- my friend's cousin. Since he doesn't know you, tell him... tell him that your daughter, Joy, lived in his wooden shed when she fell off the cliff and he took care of her. I'm sure he'll trust you with that statement. Ask him to take you to the Blue Moon village. There, you will look for Jude or Reid or Adonis Kr- I mean... or Jemima. Tell them that I still did the evil wolf thing, which means the curse didn't break. But, I attacked them. I attacked them, but I still can't control it."
"Evil wolf thing?"
"I'll explain it to you later, I promise." She turned him around and pulled him towards the gate. "Please try to hurry, we don't have much time. I'll try my best to keep stalling as much as possible."
"Okay, I've got it." The door creaked open again and David handed the man his torch before giving hugging his daughter a bear hug.
"Dad, after that... ask Jackson to take you to the human world." She rubbed his back and they pulled away. "It's not safe for you here."
"You really think I'm going to leave you alone here? I know what this place is like. I've been here longer than you." He placed his hands on her shoulders. "We will do this for your mother together."
***
After her father had left, Joy remained seated in the dark cell. Going over everything that had happened in her mind. Most importantly, Adonis Krii.
'Don't provoke him.' Krii's voice rang in her head and she shuddered, rubbing her arms up and down.
"I'm sorry Krii," she whispered. "I'm so sorry." She leaned her head against her palm, allowing the tears to flow as she grieved. She grieved in silence, because even if she had chosen to be loud, no one would hear her. There was no one to see her tears and share the pain with her. She released a sigh from the depths of her soul, her heart too heavy for her to carry. She beat her chest a few times, an attempted to loosen the heaviness.
A cow mooed nearby and at first she ignored it, but when the moos became consist and a bit louder, her head shot up.
"Meow..." She croaked, realisation dawning on her. "Meow," her voice became louder as she stood up and sauntered for the cell gate. "Meow."
"Joy?" She heard Jude's soft voice.
"Jude. I'm in here. The last one."
She heard rushing footsteps approach her cell, and Jude's form materialised in front of it.
"Joy," he breathed, relief washing over him.
"What are you doing here?" They held hands through the bars. "How did you get here so fast? Did you see my dad already?"
"No. Your dad? Your dad is here?"
"So, he must have left already to find you guys."
"How is your dad here? What do you mean? Wasn't he in... Singapore?"
"No, he said he's been here. He knew about this place and he's been trying to find ways to avenge mom's death. He's been coming here for years, being used as an informant."
"What?"
"They use humans as informants. That's probably why it's harder for a Rogue wolf to get accepted back in," she mumbled, rubbing his hands. How she had missed the feel of them. Her heart seemed to ease just a little bit, a fraction of the weight being lifted. "How is everyone? How is Jemima?"
"Scared. Everyone is," he mumbled. "But we still continued with Krii's plan."
"Jemima blames me, doesn't she?"
"She'll come around."
"I blame myself too. I gave in to that anger because I thought I would be able to handle it. But... Krii's d-ead." She choked. A gasp escaped from her lips, as if she had only just realised it. Her heart pounded rapidly and she felt something clog her throat. Her breath came out in heaves and Jude had to put his hands all the way through the bars to keep her from falling.
"Joy, listen to me it's not your fault," he tried to sooth her.
"He's never coming back." She shook her head. "And it's all my fault."
"Joy, look at me." His hands moved to her head, which she kept shaking vigorously. "It's not your fault."
She closed her eyes. "Go away," she groaned. "I think it's happening again."
"What?"
"The curse didn't b-reak!" She growled her eyes snapping open in bright red. Her head tilted to the side, analyzing him.
"Joy?" Jude whispered.
She held onto the bars and yanked them off where they stood, throwing them to the side. She stalked towards him, sniffing the air. He stood his ground, staring straight at her. When they were mere inches apart, she pressed one hand against his neck and squeezed. When he did not react, she sniffed him and smirked.
"Mine," she grumbled.
"That's right," he breathed, putting his hand out for her. She took it with her freehand and loosened her grip on his neck. Her eyes dimmed, and turned from red to orange, to golden yellow, and finally brown. She let go of his neck and wrapped her arms around his waist, her head pressing against his chest. They both exhaled, their hearts beating in sync.
"This is how we stop them," Joy whispered.
"Attack is the best form of defense."
"What?" He pulled her at an arm's length away, gazing into her eyes.
"I become more powerful when I'm like that. Even more than the two of them." She balled her hands into fists. "Even with their magic. I want to show them that in the end... they are just skin that can be ripped apart... and bones that can be crushed," she gritted.
"But you can't control it yet. What if you don't come back?"
"Then you make sure that I come back. You owe me for the lies. So, if I don't come back, you have to rescue me." She poked his chest.
"Oh Jude," Una sang from outside the dungeon. "I know you're here. Come out, come out."
Jude held Joy's hand and pulled her behind him.
"Hey." Joy rubbed his arm. "It's okay wolfy."
"Jude, come on. I can literally smell you!" Una called out. "I don't want to come in there, it's disgusting. Where are those stupid wolves when you need them?" She muttered.
Jude turned to Joy and dipped down to kiss the corner of her mouth. "I love you," he whispered.
"I know."