His Luna’s Already A Luna
Chapter 88

Jeremy POV.

'Jer...Jeremy' Nick's voice came through the mind-link, it was strange and odd sounding, felt like he was in pain, but also spaced out. Something was bloody wrong. His Beta instincts kicked in instantly, he knew that deep down something was wrong with the Alpha. 'Boss. he yelled right back, already feeling the link to his Alpha becoming fuzzy and unstable. He turned instantly, heading for the packhouse. He'd left Nick in his office. Fear was embedding itself into him. First Braidy and Valerie were missing. Now Nick, his mind- link, was feeling really weak. That should never happen.

'Lucinda's blood, I...can't' and then it was gone. Just like Braidy's, he tried to re-establish it, but couldn't. Felt exactly like Braidy's near non-existent line. Then he couldn't reach Nick at all.

'Kevin, Alpha's in trouble.' he roared down a mink-link to his Gamma.

'On my way.' came back instantly, all his Gamma aura pouring down the line.

Jeremy was running full speed, Cal pushing him hard with everything he had. They were yelling for everyone in their way to move, clearing a path. He burst through the eastern side of the pack-house, full tilt through the unused ballroom, heard the glass door shatter as it smashed into the wall, didn't care. Ran hard down the hallway, heading for the foyer and the Alpha's office.

Stepped into Nick's office, his eyes widened at the sight before him, Nick was lying on the floor with a she-wolf on top of him. Not Lucinda, blonde hair. She had her neck to Nicks mouth, his pants were down and she had a hand around his c**k sliding back and forth like no tomorrow.

"Please Nick..." she was practically begging him, Jeremy was going to kill him, how could he?

"I'll mark you back right away." he heard her say.

Something was really off. Nick, he could see, wasn't moving at all, he was not fighting her off and Jeremy did not believe the man would allow another to touch him like this, knowing what it would do to Lucinda. He had seen his mother go through that, he wouldn't do it do her.

Nick wasn't touching her either, not actively involved in what Jeremy was seeing. What the hell was going on? His eyes scanned the room to try and make sense of the situation, saw a syringe on the floor by Nicks' feet, frowned, it was empty. What had been in it? Something to bring the Alpha down, he thought.

Took in a deep breath, smelled Lucinda's blood, he knew what it smelled like from the fight with that bear. It was unmistakably the Luna's blood he was scenting.

"I want you," the she-wolf told Nick.

Jeremy saw the blood now, on her neck, right over her neck and shoulder, where Nicks' mouth was on her on her mark spot. Valerie. It was Valerie and she was covered in Lucinda's blood, had drugged Nick and now the man thought she was Lucinda, his Mate. Heard his Alpha, his best friend moan his Mate's name and knew instinctively that Nick was about to Mark the crazy she-wolf on top of him, thinking she was Lucinda due to a combination of drugs and blood.

This crazy a*s b***h had planned this. She had tried to get the Luna's blood before, when Lucinda was in the hospital. Had access to a variety of mind-altering drugs, he would presume, working in the hospital.

Jeremy launched himself at her and ripped her off of his Alpha used all of his Beta strength to throw her clear across the room. She hit the wall by the fireplace, landed on the floor and picked herself up. Stared him down, her fangs were out. She had been ready to Mark, Nick.

Drugged her own Alpha, to trick him into Marking her, used the Luna's blood and some sort of drug to actually make him believe she was his actual Mate and it had worked. He did believe it. Had heard it with his own ears the way Nick had moaned Lucinda's name. Valerie shot across the room towards him. Jeremy watched her come, let her, as soon as she was at arms length, snapped his hand out and wrapped it around her neck. The girl was always a little slow to react, could be taken down by anyone slightly faster than her and was way faster. She wouldn't have even seen it coming not with Cal's help and he was right there up front with Jeremy.

Lifted her up off the floor one handed, watched her struggle for oxygen, screaming and clawing at him, he had interrupted her plans and she was in a rage, hadn't gotten what she wanted. She never would!

"You're going to die." he told her, Cal right there all Beta now. A death sentence awaited her.

Attacking the Alpha alone, was enough to allow them to snap her scrawny neck. But to drug him and try to seduce him into mating and marking her. Was against the number 1 rule of the pack. Nick had a Mate, one he loved, one who right now would be in agony thinking Nick had betrayed her.

He wanted to snap her neck so badly, it was causing him pain not to. But he couldn't. Nick would want to do it himself. Rip would kill anyone who got to her first. She was theirs to deal with. As much as Jeremy wanted to kill her himself, could do it so easily, one quick hard snap to the left and her neck would break. He had the power and the strength to do it. He could not.

She was really struggling to breathe now. He could see it. Was enjoying watching her struggle up off the ground with no way to save herself. Cal wanted to kill her too.

"Jeremy?" Kevin had finally arrived.

Jeremy turned his eyes on the man. "Find the Luna now," he snapped. His Beta aura was all out "Patrol 2, western border, expect Ky'ra in a rage."

Watched as Kevin's eyes moved from him to Nicks' still body on the floor in the middle of the room, half naked and drugged "f**k." he murmured and was gone, had assessed the situation correctly, it seemed. Jeremy heard him shift, his wolf would be faster, but still, even in wolf form, it would be a good 40 to 50 minute run from here.

He tried to mind-link Paulina, got nothing at all, there was no link to be established. Probably not a good thing.

His eyes moved back to Valerie. She had stopped fighting him, a hand on his, curled around his fingers trying to pry them loose, pry his hand off of her neck. He would not be letting go yet.

Lowered her to the floor, so her feet were just touching it up on her toes, eased his grip just enough to allow her to drag in a breath of air to stop her from suffocating. She was close to it, could breathe now but just barely "Where...is...Braidy?" he and Cal snarled at her.

The way Nick's link felt, it was the same way Braidy's felt. There was no coincidence, she had to have done this to him too.

She said nothing, just glared at him, it appeared she wanted to keep her filthy mouth shut. "Fine, you and I..." he growled menacingly, "will finish this in the cells." and then he punched her hard to the side of her head, knocking her unconscious. Dropped her body to the floor and turned to Nick.

Leaned over the man, his eyes were closed, though his fangs were still out "Open your f*****g eyes, Nick."

Jeremy watched as the man struggled to even do that, took a good minute and when they did open his pupils were dilated all the way, barely any blue at all. "Lucinda." he mumbled

"It's not her." Jeremy told him, using all of his Beta Aura, to try and snap him out of it, shook him roughly trying to get him to come around, come to his senses and shake the drug off.

"smell blood." the man was under a good dose of that drug, what ever it was.

"Lucinda, it is... he seemed to want to be able to talk but wasn't really able to. Too far gone, he supposed.

"NICK. Wake up!" Jeremy used all his Beta Aura on him to try and force him awake. It was no use. Just freaking great, Nick's fangs were still out. If Valerie got anywhere near him, with Lucinda's blood all over her, he would Mark her 'sorry man. he thought. 'Cal, give me all you got, he's one tough bastard.

'Trouble when he wakes up.' Cal replied, not liking it.

'He'll thank us Cal. Trust me.'

He heard his wolf snort and then felt him push all his Beta strength towards him.

Jeremy looked at his best friend, his Alpha, and sighed, never thought he'd ever have to do something like this. Punched him as hard as he could to render the man unconscious so his fangs would retract. The minute he was out, Jeremy saw them retract away. 'Emerson, Alpha's office now!' he shot at their trusted pack doctor. Fixed Nicks clothes, on the bright side, whatever she had given him did not help her cause the man was not aroused by her, not even with all he saw her doing to him. Probably gave him too much of whatever the hell was in that syringe.

Grabbed a wet wash cloth and cleaned the blood off of his face and tried his best to remove it from his mouth. It was all he could do. Then left him there unconscious on the floor. Walked over and took silver hand cuffs from the top draw of Nicks' desk. Ignored the burn that came with touching them bare-handed, and heard Cal snarl at him as he felt the pain of them and didn't like it.

Stalked over to Valerie and cuffed her hands behind her back, then sat and stared at his unconscious Alpha. Trying to fix this was not going to be easy. Lucinda had trust issues, and she and Nick had finally just come together were fully bonded bar the Marking, just a technicality now, he had thought. Now this, if they could calm her down, perhaps everything would be okay.

She would have felt the pain of betrayal, the minute Valerie had started touching Nick intimately. What a s**t show.

Jeremy tried again to reach Braidy. Nothing. What had Valerie done to the man? Where was he? He turned and looked at her, realised he couldn't smell her actual scent, just Lucinda's blood. She had masked her own scent to help with her plan. So that Nick would smell only his Mate's blood and nothing else.

She'd wanted Lucinda's blood and had tried to get it herself. Now he knew why. Damned she-wolf clearly had Alpha on the brain, so much so that she had broken the packs number 1 rule. A rule Nick himself had installed. A death sentence and she knew that. Was she so stupid and obsessed, to believe that even if she had managed to get Nick to Mark and Mate her, he wouldn't wake up and rip her head off. Thought she would be safe because his Mark was on her. Tricked into giving it to her. Ruining his bond with his Goddess-Gifted Mate. A direct descent of the Moon Goddess herself.

b***h was insane. Nick had a Mate, loved Lucinda, everyone could see it, the man had changed since she'd been here. He'd learned all he could about Luna's in short order, even taken a beating from Granny to help him understand what he was supposed to do. He smiled all the time now, especially when she was around, stared at the women with bloody stars in his eyes sometimes. Wanted to please her. Had turned into one of those Alpha's he'd always found annoying.

Never really understood what the Mate Bond would do to him, Jeremy supposed. It had hit him hard too. Jeremy had seen it for himself. Even in the car on the way here from Half Moon Pack, his friend had not been able to stop smiling. Bloody smitten right from the start, just like all his loved-up wolves that day, only she was way more difficult. Jeremy smiled, like the Luna. She was fun. Hoped they could calm her down and sort this out.

If this could not be fixed. If she rejected Nick for this. The man and his wolf would be a complete mess. A raging beast. Jeremy could well imagine. One viscous Alpha. It might just push him into being just like the rest of his family.

Emerson appeared and saw Nick on the floor, looked at Jeremy and the unconscious she-wolf, one of his own nurses, glanced around the room. Taking in the situation. "What is in that syringe?"

Emerson walked over and picked it up, smelled it and frowned, "Ketamine." He looked at Nick and sighed, "Can cause, in the right does, relaxation, euphoria, immobilisation and hallucinations." He stood up and stared down at his Alpha "often found in she-wolves, who have been stolen and abused. r***d. Keeps them pliable."

"Great!" Jeremy muttered "How long till it wears off?"

"Great!" Jeremy muttered "How long till it wears off?"

Emerson shrugged "That would depend on how much he was given." he looked over to Valerie.

Jeremy watched the man smell her, saw his eyes widen as the realisation of the situation dawned on him. "That's the Luna's blood."

Jeremy nodded "Where did she get it from?" he asked the doctor directly. It had to have come from the hospital.

"Doesn't look like much, probably the packs blood storage room. I had a vial in my private cool room, Nick knew."

"Who has access to it?"

"Not her!" he frowned, "only a couple others I would trust. I'll have them report to you for questioning."

"Good! Heads are literally going to roll. I imagine." and Jeremy did actually believe that.

Emerson nodded, but said nothing about it. They all knew the rules. "He'll wake up on his own. I can have him moved to the packs hospital."

"No!" Jeremy shook his head "it wasn't just her, we don't know who we can trust right now. The less that know her plan didn't work the better. Till I hunt them all down. If you are sure, he will be fine. I'll leave him there."

Emerson checked Nick over and nodded "his heart is racing a bit and that breathing is all drug related. I'm certain he will be fine. How'd he get the bruise?"

"I knocked him out before she came near him. It was very close, his fangs were out when I ripped her off of him. How long? Estimate for me."

"Hours, in all likeliest, if the dose was high and it might be, I'd be expecting it to be so with him being so big and an Alpha, might be out all night. I'll check his blood work."

Jeremy watched as the man took Nick's blood.

"Braidy is missing, I'm going to presume the same drug, scent masked, like hers and a fuzzy un-connectable link, like Nicks was before it was gone completely."

"Ketamine will do that. It is why you and the Alpha couldn't connect to those missing girls a few months ago, it was in their system."

"Okay." he nodded and watched Emerson leave, closing the door. So there was definitely more than one person involved in this little scheme of hers. That would likely account for Braidy going missing. There was no way she could move his body on her own. He sighed. 'Phillip, what are you and Sabela doing?"

'Having dinner.'

'I need you to organise a full troop search party. Braidy is drugged and his scent is masked, somewhere in the packs territory!

'Yes Beta.'

'Valerie did it. Spread out from her place first.

'On it, I'll have Sabela track everything.

'Good, let me know the minute she finds him or your team does!

'Yes Beta.'

Jeremy sighed, contacted Samantha and had her come down to look after Nick. He was going to have things to do, and was not about to leave his unconscious Alpha on the floor in his office vulnerable to attack. Even with the door locked and only the Alpha Unit, Samantha and Emerson the only people with access, he would not risk it. Hmm, they must make sure Lucinda got access when they found her. He thought absently.

Samantha arrived in short order, let herself in, looking quite frantic. A mother's fear for her child, he thought, was all instinctual and primal. She was on Nick and looking at him. Jeremy had to explain the bruise on Nick's face, and what he understood of what had gone down, then he had to keep her off of Valerie himself.

Held on to her and reminded her gently that Rip would be so aggressive and angry if he wasn't the one to deal with the woman, he might not care who he took it out on. Nick might not be able to contain his beast. She had reluctantly walked away from the unconscious she-wolf.

Turned and looked at Valerie at the sound of waking up. Watched her in pain the minute she was awake enough to know she was in silver handcuffs and begin to struggle. He really did want to snap her neck. Cal snarled all aggression at her, her eyes turned to him. "I wouldn't move. Cal will hunt and kill you instantly and I will let him." Jeremy actually meant it, would risk Rips wrath.

"He belongs to me." she had the hide to yell at him.

"He does not," Jeremy snapped.

"He was mine before that b***h turned up." she screamed.

"No he wasn't. Tossed your stupid a*s aside well over a year ago. Like the garbage you are. And Valerie...when...he wakes up..." he smiled at her, leaving the rest unsaid.

Jeremy sat patiently waiting for any information, it was almost an hour before Kevin linked to him. It should have been sooner but with Ky'ra who knew?

'Not good Jeremy. Paulina, the patrol guard she was with, has had her throat ripped right out, is gutted and all over the place. I had to track Ky'ra's scent, run right out of pack territory, and by the paw prints and distance of her strides, running at full wolf speed. 'Come back in. neither of us will be able to catch her, not when she's running like that. he'd barely kept up when she'd challenged Darwin and that was just her angry, not full of blood lust. Only rip was likely to catch and cage her in. 'I have Phillip and Sabela out searching for Braidy. I'm going to take Valerie to the cells. The minute you get back.

'Still alive then?'

'Nick and Rip will want a piece of her.'

'Alright...what are we doing about Lucinda?'

'I honestly don't know. Can't really go after her when she's all blood lust will kill anything and it took you what 50 min to get out there...she got a hell of a head start.

'40 man. I don't think she'll come back on her own.

'I'm aware of that! Jeremy sighed, 'best to let her wolf get it all out, then Nick will have to hunt her himself, when he gets up. None of us will catch her.'