Chapter Eleven

We arrived at the council room and all the Alphas were there. I looked around starting to feel a little nervous. "You'll do fine." Marcus whispered in my ear. I smiled at him and he placed me down in a chair next to Noah. He still looked a little angry but he smiled at me tightly anyway. Some of the Alphas took seats and I was shocked as Clarisa stepped through the door. Everyone looked at her and she smiled sweetly. "Gentlemen." Noah looked at her and frowned. "This is a council meeting Clarisa..." Marcus looked at Noah. "I asked her to attend. I'm not completely sure what Serenity has in mind..." He looked at me briefly. "But I have a feeling we may need some calm and leveled headed voices present." Clarisa sat down next to me and placed her hand on my leg smiling. Marcus walked around the table and stood leaning against the wall with Blake and Keith.

"Very well. Serenity would you like to begin?" He motioned to me. All eyes fell on me and I felt myself blush. "OK. Firstly, I want to apologize for my reckless actions. I realize now that I should have come and consulted some of you before just going off on my own. It was a stupid and impetuous move. So I wanted to do things right this time." I looked at Noah and he seemed a little surprised. I noticed Marcus smirk with pride at me. "Go on. So what are you wanting to propose Serenity?" I looked back at Noah and the other council members. "I want to propose me giving myself to the rogues." Marcus stepped forward in horror. Noah stood from his chair fuming and Keith was walking around the table looking like he wanted to hit someone. The other Alphas looked almost as furious as Marcus, Noah and Keith. "Gentlemen!! Gentlemen, please. I'm sure there is more to it if you would all stop and listen for a moment. Go on sweetheart."

Clarisa looked at me encouragingly and I took a deep breath. "I'm not saying that I simply give up and hand myself over to them. I propose to set a trap using me. We need someone on the inside that can get information out without being noticed or suspected. If we send someone else in they will be kept away from everything. If we send me in, then they will feel like they have had a win. I'll be exposed to everything because I would no longer be viewed as a threat." Marcus frowned at me. Noah still looked at me angrily. Keith had gone back to standing beside Marcus. "And how do you propose getting the information out to us if you are their prisoner?" Clarisa asked. I smiled. "Through the mind link." Her eyes widened. "That's why..." Clarisa realized why I had reached out to her. The other Alphas looked at her. "Serenity mind linked me earlier."

Everyone's eyes turned to me in surprise including Noah's. "That's not possible..." Marcus stepped forward. "She also linked my beta...And Stephanie." Noah shook his head. "It can't be done outside a pack and it can't be done with someone that isn't a wolf unless they are your mate." Marcus just stared at him. There was only one way he would believe it. I closed my eyes for a second and pictured all the Alphas in the room and Clarisa. I opened them again and spoke to them all through the link. "It can be done." Noah's eyes flew wide open and a couple of the Alphas stood from their seats in shock. Clarisa sat calmly watching them all. Marcus tilted his head a little surprised."Well that's a new one too Noah." Noah looked at him and I saw a smirk slowly creep out on Clarisa's face out of the corner of my eye.

Noah stared at me for a few minutes. "If... And I mean, if, we consider what you're suggesting how far does the link reach for you?" I looked at him. "I don't know. I wanted to put everything forward to you all first because for us to find out we are going to need to test it." Noah nodded frowning. He seemed deep in thought and I looked up at Marcus. He looked stressed and worried. I think he was afraid everyone would agree to the plan. I think he was afraid he would agree to the plan. "Keith is your man still in town?" Keith looked at him surprised. "Yes, but I don't think..." Noah cut him off by looking at me. "I want you to try and reach out to Christoff." I nodded and closed my eyes picturing Christoff. I felt the pull as I reached out to him. I felt my mind stretch out over the grounds. I opened my eyes and felt a pop. Suddenly he was just there. "Christoff." It was like I felt him flinch in fear. "It's ok, it's just Serenity. We need you to come back to the council house. Call Keith if you need to check in." I shut off the link and seconds later Keith's phone rang.

Keith spoke to Christoff on the phone for a few minutes while everyone sat in silence staring at me. "That shouldn't be possible." Keith said hanging up. "He heard her clear as day." Everyone continued to stare. "So what exactly are you proposing Serenity?" An Alpha I didn't know the name of asked. "I'm proposing that I hand myself over to the rogues under the pretense of not wanting to run anymore. Once in their hands someone will track us back to where they take me. Staying at a safe, unnoticeable distance I will relay information through the link on everything. Everything from who the Alpha is, their numbers, where the rogues are located and any other information I can get. From there you all can either attack directly or force a meeting with them using the information I pass along to full advantage. By theory this should minimize the number of casualties in the process for all parties." The Alphas looked to each other and started talking quietly.

Noah just sat there staring at me trying to weigh up what I said against his instinct. I looked to Keith and he still looked furious. I looked at Clarisa and she smiled proudly at me. I finally looked at Marcus and he was watching me with a blank face. I couldn't tell if he was angry with me, proud or what. He walked around the table and lent down next to my ear. "You did well. I don't agree with it, but you did well." He placed a kiss gently on my cheek and stood back up watching the other Alphas. Slowly one by one they stopped talking and looked back at us. "Noah your granddaughter is a brave little thing...And smart. What do you have to say on the matter?" Noah sighed and stopped looking at me to look at the Alpha that spoke. "That she is. I'm starting to wonder if maybe she is a little too smart for her own good." He said looking at me with an eyebrow raised.

Marcus stepped up next to me. "If it was anyone but my mate suggesting this I would agree easily Noah... But Serenity is my mate and I can't endorse this. The plan is in theory a good one though." Noah looked at him and nodded. "Agreed. I feel the same Marcus it's a good plan but... She's my only family..." I sighed and looked at Clarisa who winked at me. Keith stepped forward. "Are you sure you can do it Serenity? You will be having to face the people that have been hunting you for years. The ones who think they know all your weaknesses and strengths." I looked at him and noticed that the anger had slowly dissipated from his face. "Yes I do. Knowing that I have all of you backing me up, I can deal with that." I said looking at his face seriously. He nodded at me. The Alpha that spoke up first looked at the others and nodded before looking back at us. "Then the majority vote would be to go with her plan." Marcus and Noah growled while Keith just looked at the ground sighing. I looked at Clarisa and she smiled softly at me.

With the planned agreed on The Alphas had left the room leaving me there only with Noah, Marcus, Keith and Clarisa. Clarisa had taken to holding my hand comfortingly while Marcus paced the room. Noah was holding his temples like he had a headache and Keith had taken the chair opposite us. "I don't like the plan." Marcus growled out. "I know, but I trust you to keep me from getting hurt." He stopped pacing long enough to look at me. "They will hurt you Serenity. I don't know how, but they will." I dropped my head. "I know, but I also know you will be there to back me up the minute anything happens that I can't handle." He sighed as his shoulders dropped and he walked over to me. He knelt down and turned me to face him. "I can't believe you're doing this." I smiled gently at him and cupped his face in my hands. "I love you. I trust you, but you need to trust me right now." He pulled me from the chair into his arms and turned us around so he could sit with me in his lap as he laid his face in my neck.

I looked at Noah and felt sad as I watched his face. He was hurting as much as Marcus was except he didn't have a mate to comfort him. I gently pushed back from Marcus and he looked at me frowning. "I need a moment with Noah...Please." I linked him. He nodded and sat me back down on the chair. He looked at Clarisa and Keith motioning for them to follow. They left the room and I looked at my Grandfather. He smiled at me sadly. "I'm not doing this to hurt you. I would rather stay here and get to know the only family I have, but I need to do this so I can have the time that we need. To try and get at least some of the time back that we have had stolen from us for years." Noah sighed and stood from his chair to move closer to me. He sat in the chair that Clarisa had been in. I turned and looked at him as he took my hands.

"I understand why you're doing it and I have to admit it is a good plan, but I don't want to lose you again. After everything you've been through I couldn't forgive myself if something happened to you now. I don't think your mother would forgive me either. I just want to keep you out of hands reach. Normally I would be the one making decisions about all this but I'm finding myself lost for the first time. I'm torn between the logic of what you're proposing and the instinct to keep you safe and hidden from any danger that I can." I reached forward and hugged him tight. "You can't hide me away forever, but you can be there to back me up and help me take revenge for everything they took from me, from us..." I saw a tear form in his eye as he looked at me and nodded. "And I will be. I will be on the front lines of that battle until you no longer need me." I laughed lightly at him. "You're my grandfather, I will always need you, no matter what." He pulled me close and wrapped his arms around me tight holding me against him like I was going to vanish at any minute.

Noah got up from the chair and walked to the door opening it. He spoke to someone just out of sight and seconds later Marcus walked through the door. I smiled at him happily as he walked over to me. Marcus reached down and lifted me from the chair I was sitting in. He carried me back to my room and placed me down on the bed before closing the door. His eyes met mine with a strange intensity as he approached. Sitting down next to me, he lifted me into his lap and pulled me close. He buried his face into my shoulder and just sat there breathing my scent in. I wrapped my arms around his neck and just held him while he did it.

Finally Marcus pulled away from my neck and looked at me. "I don't want you to do this Serenity." I looked at him with concern. "I know, but this is the best option we have and it's going to give us the best chance at dealing with two very difficult situations. After that I'm all yours, I'll even let you protect me if you feel the need." I said laughing lightly at him. "I'll hold you to that you know? And you won't be totally all mine. To start with I'm going to have to share you with Noah, and if I don't share you with Stephanie I'm pretty sure she'll find a way to kill me herself." We both laughed hard. I sighed and looked at him, taking in every inch of his face. "What?" He asked. "I just want to make sure that when all of this goes down I have something good to hold on to which will help me get through the hard parts." He cupped my face and pulled me into a kiss. I moaned softly and felt him smile against my lips. He pulled back. "I could give you more..." I blushed at what he was insinuating, although I was definitely tempted by it. He laughed at me which made me blush deeper. "When you're ready my love." He kissed me again then sat me back on the bed as he got up and headed towards the bathroom. He closed the door with a cheeky wink back at me as he did.

Sighing, I leaned back on the pillows and waiting for him to finish in the bathroom. He started to take what felt like forever and I began wondering what exactly it was that he was doing in there. I moved myself to the edge of the bed and swung my legs over the edge. I looked at the bathroom door then back at my leg. It felt fine and I couldn't feel any twinges or pain. I carefully placed my feet on the ground and slid myself closer to the edge of the bed. I placed a little weight on both feet to see how my leg reacted. Nothing. I applied a little more weight again and tried again. I still felt nothing. I tilted my head sideways in curiosity. I wriggled my pants down without standing and slid them all the way off so I could look at both wounds easily without having to get up. I was surprised by what I saw. Both wounds had completely closed and were starting to look more like scars then wounds. I smiled happily because that meant I could go back to walking.

I heard the bathroom door open and looked up in surprise as Marcus stepped through smiling. His smile faded as he spotted my pants on the floor. His eyes slowly trailed all the way up my body to my face as his eyes darkened. I gulped as he started moving towards me. It felt like he had just cornered his prey, and I was that prey. He reached the bed and with very deliberate movements scooped me up. Turning with me in his arms, he started walking back to the bathroom. My cheeks flushed a deep red as I watched his face. He was trying hard not to look at me and his arms felt tightly controlled as he carried me. He stepped into the bathroom and closed the door before placing me down on the edge of the bath. I looked in the bath and realized he had run one for me. He cleared his throat as he approached the door. "I'll give you time to have a bath, just call me when you're done OK?" I looked at him. He seemed to be struggling with something. "No, I want you to stay..." He looked at me and his eyes darkened further. He stepped back towards me and I looked down smiling with a blush.

He lifted me from the bath so I was standing easily on one foot. I looked up and he leaned in and kissed me. My eyes fluttered closed and I moaned softly. I felt a rumble in his chest in response just before he pulled back. Now his eyes were almost black. I felt his hands slid to my waist as I held onto his shoulders for support. He slid his thumb into the top waist band of my underwear and pushed them down easily. They slid all the way to the floor as he stood back up straight and moved his hands to the hem of my shirt. Goosebumps spilled out over my skin as he lifted the top up and over my head slowly. Marcus dropped it to the ground without looking away from me once. He then pulled me in against him and I felt his arms encircle me. I smiled at him as he undid my bra and it fell loose. I carefully pulled one arm at a time out and let it fall to the ground at his feet while he still held most of my weight. He watched me intensely as he lifted me from the ground and into the bath. I sat down into the water as he lent down to kiss me before turning and walking away silently out of the bathroom.