After arriving back at headquarters, the group of three men were on pins and needles.
They had Ayla isolated away from the town for once and lost her.
More than that, she was in a position to easily talk to her, capture her, and bring her home, yet they still failed and lost her.
She managed to escape from them again.
That wasn't the first time they screwed up in capturing the girl, for sure.
It was the worst they had screwed up yet.
They had never been so close.
She had always managed to stay so elusive and fox herself away like it was nothing.
It seemed like it took minimal effort for her to stay clear of them.
What made her so damn special anyway?
Why was their alpha so insistent on capturing her?
She was just one young woman among many.
Then they remembered all of the events of the evening, and they knew that he was going to be livid.
She not only escaped them, but it was with a man.
To them, he didn't seem like just any man.
He had a domineering presence.
That didn't bode well for them.
They were now all apprehensive about their alpha coming into the update meeting.
'SLAM'
Their boss was not in the mood to deal with them, as he slammed the door behind him as he entered the room.
"WELL...I know you encountered her. Why is she not with you"?
The men all dropped their heads, not wishing to speak.
"Why is she not with you" he demanded an answer.
The first voice came in from the leader of the group.
It was strong and matched his appearance of age, darkness, and wise appearance.
"We did what we could, but sir, we can't control her. She has a mind of her own, and she is fast, smart, and tactical. She bested us" he thought quickly and figured if he talked well about her, then maybe they would live.
It was not easy to admit that she was better than him, but if it meant he would survive, he would do it.
His only desire was to leave the office with his head, attached.
Their alpha paused for a second.
"What do you mean she bested you? Are you all not the best of the best in my pack"?
They nodded to agree that they were to top three in the pack.
"Do you not have the best minds, the best bodies, and the best tracking abilities"?
"Yes, sir" the apparent leader responded.
"Yet you are telling me that she bested all of you. I want to know how. Tell me how one simple young woman bested all of you" he demanded.
They looked at each other as if they knew what was about to happen.
The fear in their eyes matched what Ayla's frequently bore.
None of the men wanted to speak because they knew he was right.
How could one defenseless girl beat three highly trained werewolves?
All of them worked hard to prove they were the best, yet one small woman kept proving that she was better.
Not in one aspect, but in all aspects of their training.
If she could show she was better in only one way, that would be different.
Ayla continuously showed them that she was better than they were at all the skills they had.
The men felt extreme shame.
Their alpha made them feel like they were ultimately unworthy of the mission they were continuously sent on.
One man to the leader's right side went to speak.
The man in the middle put his hand up to let him know that he would continue.
"It was going great at first. She was finally away from the edge of the town. We know that never happens, so it was an opportunity, and we didn't take the time to investigate it properly".
"So, you weren't prepared for your mission" the Alpha snapped.
"Of course we were" the man to the left spouted.
"I disagree" the Alpha fired back.
"Continue anyway" he said and waved his hand.
The man in the middle started again, "We were unsure of what drove her into the woods, but it was perfect because there is no sanctuary for her out there. She couldn't hide from us. That was what we assumed anyway. We quickly went after her and started to surround her at the river. Unfortunately, that's where it all started to go wrong".
Alpha looked at them, confused, "What do you mean" he asked with an even more confused tone than his face revealed.
The man to the right spoke up, "Eh, we were startled for a second because we saw a man standing between us and her. She was in the middle of the river at the edge, and he looked like he was trying to stop her from jumping".
"What do you mean by jumping. She wouldn't do that. That is suicide. She would never harm herself. Why would you make up such stories just to get yourself out of punishment" he roared.
"It's not like that" the man in the middle demanded.
"Really, tell me, Dominic, what is it like"?
"I beg you to let me finish. Even if I get punished, I need you to listen".
He waited for a response, and his alpha nodded, so he continued.
"She realized we were there, and she panicked, I guess. I'm not sure what they were up to or why she was there. I'm not sure if all the times we attempted to bring her here before stressed her or what. Suddenly, she nodded her head, and he ran to her. When he got to her, they grabbed hands and jumped together".
Dominic had finished speaking and closed his eyes.
He was waiting for the wrath he knew was coming.
There was nothing.
It was silent for more than a minute, and it made everyone in the room very uncomfortable.
"She jumped and he held her hand" their Alpha asked in a surprised tone.
They nodded nearly in unison.
"Why would she do that? That is so reckless and dangerous and, oh..." he looked at the guards, "Did you see her afterward" he asked, panicked.
"No, sir. We went down and searched everywhere. There was no sign of her, and she never resurfaced. We didn't find any prints anywhere either" Dominic finished.
He was positive this was going to be his last few seconds alive.
If he was able to do anything, he wanted to be able to save his men.
The only thing they were guilty of was following his lead.
"That means she is still alive. Do not stop searching for her. Keep a lookout. She is somewhere. Now, she is not alone, and it will be harder, but it is important that we find her now more than ever. We are on a clock; you have to find her" he said with urgency in his voice.
Just then, Luna Theresa came into the room, "She found him, didn't she"?
Alpha Theo nodded.
"It's only a matter of time now" She exclaimed, "I don't know what to do. Ayla is smart, strong, and independent, yes. That being said, she has a long road ahead of her. She needed to come home. Things will only get harder not only for our daughter but for her mate, too. She has no idea what she is or who she is. If my suspicions are correct, neither does her mate. That is going to lead to more than one problem".
Confusion seemed to settle in the room.
They heard Dominic clear his throat as if to speak, "You are not to repeat any of this, but you may speak" Alpha instructed him.
Dominic nodded in agreement and then voiced his thoughts.
"Sir, did I hear you correctly that Ayla is your daughter, and she doesn't know it? Does what you said mean she doesn't know she is a Werewolf either, and neither does her mate? More to it, her mate is probably who found her" he asked.
" Correct".
"I don't think you should worry as much as you are" Dominic said.
He was attempting to ease their minds.
"Why" Luna Theresa asked.
"I believe her instincts are kicking in, and so are his. They may not know who or what they are, but their wolves do. They found each other and trust each other already. Well, if they are fated mates, I mean. If not. Some random man has started helping her. Either way, her wolf instincts are there. What she is capable of is more than most people and wolves I know. If anything. It will make it easier to accept us if they accept each other first".
Alpha Theo couldn't disagree with what his lead guard said.
He had pursued her long enough to access her better than anyone.
If anyone was a credible person to assess skills, it was his General.
"Is that what you observed between them, General? That they were bonding" he asked.
"Yes, sir. They seem to recognize each other. Trust seemed natural, and it made sense after I heard what both of you said. If they helped each other and left the waterfall together. How about we give them some time to bond in the forest before we try to approach them again" the man to the right of General Dominic spoke.
"That is a bad plan. We need to get her now. Today. Force her by any means necessary" he demanded.
Luna Theresa put her hand on his shoulder and shook her head.
"That isn't how you will get her home" she said.
"Listen to what your men have to say" she urged him.
"If she doesn't know she is a werewolf, then she has probably been terrified every time we have tried to approach her. Unless you know we are werewolves, and that you are one of us, we are a bit petrifying when we approach. Maybe having a mate will help with that. We can give her a few days to not have us chasing her. It doesn't have to be long. Maybe in a day or two, we can look for her again. I know you mentioned time being an issue" the man to the left stepped up and spoke.
Alpha Theo listened and knew that his guard made a valid point, but he appeared desperate to have his daughter home.
Reluctantly, he nodded his head in agreement.
Luna Theresa leaned over to grab his hand and kiss him lightly on the lips, "I guess you do have the best guards sometimes," she said as she gave a small wink at the General standing before them.
He was glad for the small, rare praise.
"We waited this long, what's a few more days to ensure that she is not frightened by the men that are just trying to bring her home to us, right" Luna Theresa said, smiling.
Some things seemed to puzzle Dominic, though.
Seeing as it was his Alpha and Luna, he didn't normally question them.
In that moment, he did have a few questions that were hard not to ask.
"If you don't mind me asking, why didn't you tell us you had a daughter, and why did you keep it a secret that it was your daughter that we were trying to bring home all this time? We would have gladly done it".
"It wasn't that I didn't trust you, so please don't think that".
"Then what was it" Dominic asked.
Luna Theresa looked to Alpha Theo for help, but he wanted no part of it.
This was all her.
"It was for Ayla's protection, purely for her protection. I'm sure if you think about it long enough, you will understand why" she said with hesitation.
He could see to a degree what she meant, but it still didn't make sense.
The more information they had, the more success they were guaranteed.
Alpha Theo could tell things were not as smooth as he had hoped.
"I want to thank you for all of the work you have put into bringing her home. Hopefully, this will be the last time you have to go after her. Let me know when you head out again so I can wait for your return" he said in Luna Theresa's place.
It was clear she was happy he stepped in for her.
When the guards left the Alpha's office, they immediately began hushed conversations.
"Do you think that she is the one that everyone has those stories about, you know, 'THE ONE' Phoenix", the man next to him asked.
"Couldn't be, we would know" said Dominic.
The General had done the majority of the talking in the office, so the other two were ready to let their lips flap.
He knew that the probability was fairly high that Phoenix was right, though.
Dominic just wanted to make sure he did his best to ensure his guards were focused on the mission and not the girl from the stories.
"What do you think that she is up to right now, Raphael" Phoenix asked, winking.
Dominic just shook his head.
His lieutenant and major were insufferable.
"You know she had been a loner until now. I assume, if she did stick with that man, that it's purely innocent. There is no way a man like that is just sitting there. I wouldn't be if it were me" Phoenix said before chuckling.
Dominic didn't know what to say to his friend, "Really, are you that much of a dog" he said as he pushed Phoenix's shoulder.
"No, not at all, I'm a wolf" he started laughing.
It wasn't just him.
The others joined in the laughter as they rounded the corner to find their dinner.
Even with all that, Dominic couldn't get Ayla off his mind.
He was focused on setting out on his mission to catch her.
For him, the sooner the better.