Chapter 6

DAYA POV

I snapped awake and glanced at my phone to see the time- 4:30 AM. I have been sleeping awfully all night. Tossing and turning. I called my sister Emmy when I got to my apartment and filled her in on my first-class first impression with Alpha Darius. She didn’t hold back any punches and let me know her two cents about the situation.

            “Dye, what the fuck were you thinking?!” Gotta love Emmy. She isn’t usually this brash in her language, but when the situation calls for it, she doesn’t hold back. And I definitely deserve to be brought down a peg right now. “Seriously, Daya. You were on this guy’s territory for like 2 minutes and you couldn’t hold your tongue for once?”

            “First of all, Em, he is on our territory…” I started to respond to her. But she quickly jumped back in and took the reins from me in the conversation.

            “No, Daya. It is not our territory anymore. We haven’t lived there in over a decade. I’d be surprised if anyone remembers the Veritas Pack. If you plan on being successful in this stupid plan of yours, you need to chill out. You are not an alpha female- not right now. You’re a warrior, who is not equal to any alpha. You need to show a submissive side around him. Or else he is going to be suspicious of you much faster and have you locked in the dungeons, or even killed. Seriously, Diamond. How could you be so reckless?” Leave it to Emmy to be the voice of reason. Out of the five of us, she is definitely the most cautious and calculating, which only adds to her skillset as one of the best strategists in the country. She hated my idea to come out here and challenge Alpha Darius for his pack, but when she saw how determined I was, she is the one who helped me come up with the plan. She offered to come out here and help me, and honestly, I probably should have taken her up on her offer. I may need her help to stay in line and keep up my charade for the next few months. And I can probably get back into Alpha Darius’ good graces if I mention that my sister is a top-notch battle and defensive strategist. His pack can definitely benefit from her being here as well.

            “I wasn’t thinking Em.” I sighed. “I walked into his office and all I could think was this is the Alpha who killed our father and stole our territory and made it his own. I wanted to challenge him in that very moment.” I tried to explain.

            “Daya. You are seriously dumb.” Emmy was really being harsh. I know I messed up, but she can ease up a bit. “Did you listen to anything he said, Dye? He said he has been alpha of the Running River Pack for the last 11 years. Father sent us all away 12 years ago. And Alpha Darius said he inherited the alpha role from his brother who was killed during a rogue attack. There is no way he took over Father’s pack. Father already lost the pack before then. And when Amy was helping research the region, she mentioned there are at least four other packs throughout the entire region. It could have been any of those alphas.” Emmy explained as if it was the easiest logic puzzle to solve. I swear this girl was playing tic-tac-toe while I felt like I was playing chess. I need her here.

            “Holy shit. I never thought about that.” I responded to her as if she just knocked all of the sense back into my head, which technically, she did. “Fuck, Em. I didn’t consider that at all. What do I do now?” I was almost in a panic, unsure of what my next move should be.

            “You go to bed and run the best training session tomorrow morning. You have to show your value to this pack. Make the members of his pack love you and want you around. Let them see you as a great leader. Listen for any information on how Alpha Darius is unfit as an alpha. Help create doubt, that way, when you decide to challenge him, his pack members will support you. This whole plan will be for nothing if his pack doesn’t support you in challenging him as alpha.” Leave it to Emmy to immediately go into serious-mode and get back to business. She may not agree with this plan, but she knows she can’t stop me, so she is going to make sure I have the best chance to accomplish what I set out to do.

            “Consider it done. Em, if I ask for another favor, will you consider it?” I asked in the sweetest voice I could muster, while batting my eyelashes…even though this was a voice call, and she couldn’t see my face.

            “What, Daya?” I could hear the nervousness in her voice. She knows me too well- the benefit of being the second oldest sister and knowing me better than our other three sisters.

            “Come out here with me. I am realizing how big of a task this is going to be and I need your help to make sure I do this right. And besides, it may help me get back into Alpha Darius’ good graces if I tell him my genius sister is willing to support his pack as well.” I said to her. Emmy is definitely the most modest of the five of us, and giving her praise and compliments makes her feel awkward, except when she’s complimented about her skills as a strategist. That’s how you get in with her- acknowledge her talent and abilities and she will soften up a lot faster than if you compliment her beauty.

            “Daya… I… I can’t just leave. My pack counts on me. What would I even tell them?” She asked hesitantly. I know I got her on the hook, I just have to reel her in. Emmy is kind-hearted and always willing to help any of her sisters. She’s such a good egg. Hard to believe she is a hardcore battle planner.

            “Tell them this pack is being overrun by rogue attacks. Your alpha will understand since you all were in a similar position a few years ago until you stepped up and offered to help coordinate counterattacks. Tell him it’s a temporary assignment and can lead to a potential alliance with an east coast pack.” I was throwing ideas at her left and right, hoping she would sniff out the best option.

            “Okay, okay, okay! I’ll talk with Alpha Cameron tomorrow and tell him I heard about the Running River Pack from my friend who was brought over to train their female warriors. I’ll ask to be gone for a 6-month assignment. That should be enough time to help you get in good with this pack. And if I’m able to come up with a defense strategy, you can use that to your advantage, since you’re going to tell Alpha Darius about me.” Emmy switched back to business-mode and began to build her web of a plan. Such a thing of beauty to witness. I felt myself relaxing knowing my sister would be coming out here to help me and support me. I just hope Alpha Darius would see her value and allow her to come over. And with two of the Stone sisters back in our original territory, we will be a force to be reckoned with.

            “Emerald Stone, I love you and you won’t regret coming out here. It’s actually really pretty- from what I’ve seen thus far.” I practically shouted at her. I was so excited to be able to see my sister in person. I talk with all my sisters on a daily basis. We are so close. Even though we all live in different packs across the country, we still find ways to stay connected. Technology is great that way- video chats, group texts, e-mail, we use it all. But have not seen each other in-person since the day we were sent away 12 years ago. We couldn’t risk people knowing we were the surviving daughters of Alpha Bronson; we were prizes for power-hungry alphas. I’m done hiding. Our time has come to show how strong the five of us are. Emerald spoke up to pull me out of my thoughts.

            “Don’t thank me yet. Thank me when you’re Alpha.”