"I need two of you to stay here and guard the den," the Alpha continues. "The other two I need out, finding out whatever you can."
"Yes Alpha," you say again.
"I'll leave the particulars up to you, but don't forget, the pack is here. If you get into serious trouble, howl. We've got your back. Otherwise, good luck. I'll talk to you again tonight."
Once more. "Yes Alpha."
The Alpha gives you all one more look and leaves the room. Once the door shuts, you let out a breath. It's not the first command you've ever received from the Alpha, but it's easily the one most up for interpretation. The Alpha is letting you decide how you handle this. Where you search. Who you talk to. Even who pairs up with who. You can't help but feel like it's some sort of test.
"Well fuck," Marco mutters. "What are we going to do now?"
"What we were told to do," Vicky says. "Guard the pack. Find out how the stray hid from us, and what she was doing sneaking around in the middle of the night."
"Don't remember the Alpha saying anything about that last part," Ed says pointedly.
"I want to know," Vicky growls back.
Ed bristles. "What do you want to know? The truth? That she was probably avoiding us because she was scared? Or are you looking for some elaborate evil plot against the pack? An excuse to hunt her down?"
"Jeez," Marco holds up his hands. "Let's just bring it down a notch... or ten."