Danger Zone Ch. 06

A/N: It became a vicious cycle of feeling guilty for taking so long to post so vowing to write a longer chapter and taking so bloody long to write the chapter that I vowed to write more.

I had to mentally backhand myself to stop writing. Enjoy!

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"No"

"Please please please..."

"I said No"

"C'mon B, aren't you curious?"

Emma looked up from the book she was using as reason to ignore the eager faces surrounding her chair.

"Curious about what? It's just another wolf pack."

"That came here specifically to speak to us." Doc spoke up

Emma snorted "Yeah they came here specifically to apologize for the fact that the majority of our captors were rogues from their pack. 6 months later. No. Thank. You." She lifted her book back up.

"Remember a couple of weeks ago when you were regaling us all about all the traditions and procedures they have for every pack event? Don't you want to see those traditions re-enacted in person?"

Emma rolled her eyes "That was a weak attempt at manipulation, even for you Lena."

Lena threw her hands up in exasperation. Alice was the next to try.

"Please, they're guarding the front door of our apartment and you are the only one who knows a way to get out undetected."

"And you're surprised? You're the one who told them about the blind spot that is now fixed. Now you're stuck here. We're just as much prisoners here as we were there, it's just fancier digs."

"Then why aren't you escaping like you planned to back at the house?" Alice challenged.

Emma gave a pointed glance at Lily.

"Me?" Lily was taken aback "Why would you willing stay in captivity for me?"

Emma shrugged and raised her book higher.

"You can't just imply something like that without answering why." Lena stood with her hands on her hips.

"Because you're my only family now and family don't abandon each other." Emma mumbled behind her book.

The room was silent as the other women digested that information before a collective "Awwwww..." When they went in for a group hug, Emma snapped "No touching." Causing them to pull back and settle back down in their chairs. An awkward silence hung in the air.

Lena cleared her throat. "Please B, we really want to see these guys before we meet them formally. You of all people know how different people are when they are trying to charm somebody vs. how they are in real life." She was referring to Damon.

"Not true, he always gave me the creeps." Emma replied calmly.

"Then do it for those of us who were fooled by that asshole and are now 6 feet under." Doc answered, gently placing her hand on Emma's.

Emma stared at the dark skinned hand for a long moment, tears filling her eyes.

"Fine but if any of you tell Peter or Jane of this way out I will hang you off the side of the balcony by your feet. Understood?"

"Yes" "Absolutely" "Perfectly" "Yes" Were the replies from the group.

"Come with me and stay very quiet." Emma said as she headed for her room. Once there she shimmied up the side of her canopy bed towards the ceiling, pushing away one of the tiles. The 4 women watched amazed.

"We aren't climbing through the vents are we?" Lily asked, voice wavering slightly. "I don't like dark closed in spaces."

"Nobody would if they went through what we did." Emma replied as she pulled a bobby pin out of her hair and fiddled with something out of sight. With a decisive click, she threw open a door and sunlight streamed in from above. "We're going to climb across the roof and enter through the attic."

Their jaws dropped. Doc sputtered. "You mean you want us to climb up a pole, traverse a sloping shingle roof on the 3^rd floor then climb another 2 stories to enter through the attic on the 5^th floor?" Emma nodded "Oh HELL NO!" Doc exclaimed "You're on your own."

Lily nodded "I think if we tried to follow you, we'd be the opposite of quiet and covert."

"Can't you just go and disable the guard so we can go out the front door." Lena said.

"But don't hurt him!" Doc added.

"Don't hurt the large beta werewolf capable of speaking telepathically to his alphas?" Emma raised an eyebrow.

"Oh ok hurt him a little." Doc relented.

"You realized what you are asking of me right?" Emma queried.

"Fight a full grown werewolf just so we can have a glimpse of the visiting pack." Lena replied calmly "I know it's stupid, but we have faith in you."

"And you know the penalty for being caught fighting with another pack member outside of training?"

"Imprisonment or death at the worst if they fear you've gone rogue. We'll take the blame if you're caught." Lily replied

"Do you know why they have us imprisoned in our apartment?"

The girls hesitated "Because they think we are weak humans." Alice spoke up.

Emma shook her head. "It's your scents. You weren't there when Dan found Lily but I was. They don't want the greeting ceremony to be interrupted by some horny wolf that just caught a whiff of their human mate."

Lena snorted. "And the 'formal meeting' is going to be any different?"

Alice shared the snort, mumbling under her breath "Meat market."

"They'll be better prepared for the meeting because they'll be coached by their alphas and they won't be as fatigued and on edge. They've been driving for 10 hours straight and they are entering another wolf's territory."

"How the hell do you know this?" Alice asked.

Emma grinned and tapped her ears "No scent and wolf hearing. Ain't nothing private in this compound." Her grin grew as she waggled her eyebrows at Lily "Pantry closets included." Lily's face turned an interesting shade of heated red.

"That doesn't explain why I'm here. I have a mate." Lily spoke, trying to change the subject.

"Ah well you are here because you are still human. Dan was nervous having you there if things went south." Emma admitted. Lily's red face went from embarrassed to furious.

"Ack that... that... BUM! Who does he think he is controlling where I go!"

Lena and Alice busted out laughing "Bum Lily? Surely you can think of a much more expressive word."

"Asshole." Lena supplied.

"Overbearing bigheaded tool." Doc added.

"Chest beating Neanderthal." Emma giggled.

As the giggles subsided, Emma got serious again. "Are you sure?"

Lena and Alice solemnly nodded. Doc looked unsure and Lily was still trying to cool her heated face.

Emma sighed and disappeared out of sight.

"Are we sure this is going to work? If we are here for our own protection, maybe we should wait." Doc said, wringing her hands.

"Relax, we'll hide out on the stairway and B will make sure we stay downwind." Lena said as she hurried to the front door, waiting for the door to be opened.

Lily gently rubbed Doc's back, soothing her fears. "B would never put us in danger. You know that." Doc cautiously nodded.

They waited 10 minutes without any sign on B. Doc started to worry. "You don't think she fell or something?"

Alice shook her head "No we would have heard about it."

"What if she was caught?" Lily whispered.

Lena shifted nervously "Surely they would have come to question us?"

"Unless she took all the blame." Alice supplied

"Stupid selfless bitch." Lena scowled.

The door was flung open. "You know I would give you up in a heartbeat." Emma joked.

"What took you so long?"

"Had to go down to the medical wing and get a tranq and a blow gun. Greg was taking his guard duty very seriously so while he would not have been able to smell me he sure as hell would have seen me and alerted the alphas."

They peered past her shoulder to see Greg slumped against the wall with a dart in his neck.

"Nice shot." Commented Lena

Doc shifted nervously. Emma sighed. "Go ahead and check. He's breathing normally and has a steady heart beat." Doc rushed over to check his vitals.

"We shouldn't leave him like this. I'll go get him a blanket." Lily said as she turned to rush back to her room. She was stopped by Alice grabbing her hand. "And leave our calling card all over him?" Alice asked.

Lily gestured with her free hand to Doc with her hands all over his body. "It's already all over him, might as well make sure he's warm and comfortable." She slipped her hand out of Alice's grip and ran down the hall.

Emma rubbed her face and sighed. "Ok here's the story. We were sitting in my room grousing about the fact that we were being held prisoner when I heard a loud thud. When I tried to call out to Greg, he didn't respond. I could smell another person but I didn't recognize the smell so I assumed Greg shifted to a wolf to better protect us so couldn't answer me. We locked the door in fear and went to go hide back in my room which is the farthest away. I shifted into a wolf so I could talk to Greg but he still wasn't answering so I got nervous and I went back to investigate and when I opened the door, we found him slumped against our door and no one else in sight so we pulled him in. Doc checked him out and we put him on Doc's bed. We locked all the doors and shut all the blinds so no one could see inside."

"Ok and what if they ask why you didn't call the alphas?" Lena said as she and Doc rolled Greg onto the blanket to be transported inside.

"In all my reading it is stated that an interruption to the greeting ceremony could be seen as an insult to the visiting pack and had the potential to cause a pack war. When you guys tried to get me to call for them, that's all I could think about."

"You really think they're gonna swallow that bullshit?" Alice asked as she knelt down to help them lift the deadweight.

"No." Emma replied as she shooed them away and picked up Greg on her own, turning and placing him gently on the bed. "But a girl can dream. Now I haven't risked my head to turn around now. Let's do this."

With one last look at the lump on the bed, they exited the apartment and made it to the top of the stairway, crouching low so no one would catch their movements.

They watched as the pack betas entered first. 'God they breed them big.' Emma thought. She could see familial similarities to some of her captors in them and it made her shudder.

It was the sight of the Alphas passing through the doorway and the man that stood to his right that caused them all to gasp loudly. Damon.

Their outburst caught everyone's attention so no one caught Damon's glare as he brought his finger to his lips, warning them to stay quiet.

'You've got to be shitting me. Sweetie your reign of terror is over.' Emma smirked and stood up and started slowly down the stairs. "Damon! Here I was rejoicing your ashy corpse and to find you are alive and well." She shook her head "Such a disappointment."

As she walked, she opened her connection to Jane and Peter, sharing her memories of her capture and the part Damon played in it. Jane growled low and made to shift into her wolf but was stopped by Peter's grip. "He has to admit to it. We can't punish an alpha's heir on heresay alone." "Based on the way the other girls reacted, they could testify to it as well." "B is their leader; they will back her up no matter what. No, it has to come out of his mouth." Jane growled again but stood down, ready to launch when needed.

Damon replied smoothly "I'm sorry you must have me mistaken for someone else. I have never met you before, though I will admit you smell delicious...mate."

Emma laughed dryly. "Liar, I don't have a scent."

"Everyone has a scent." The visiting alpha spoke up. "Peter who is this insubordinate creature?"

"One of the girls we rescued from the house." Peter growled, tensions rising.

The alpha turned to Emma who had stopped at the bottom of the steps. "Clearly still dealing with mental problems if she believes she doesn't have a scent and my nephew had anything to do with that disgusting house. Warped or not, you need to watch your tone little girl when speaking to an alpha or their heir." He said with disgust and pity for the confused girl.

Emma raised her eyebrows. "Permission to speak freely sir?" She asked Peter. Peter nodded and relaxed slightly, waiting for the inevitable tongue lashing B was about the release. He fell victim to her acidic tongue last week when he put his book in the wrong place in the library. He just wished he brought popcorn. "Glad you're enjoying yourself." Jane grumbled "Hush darling, when do we ever get a live drama played out in our foyer." Peter replied.

Emma turned on the alpha and his nephew. "If I may ask sir, when did you finally give up on finding your mate and announce Damon as your heir?"

"6 years ago."

"Come now uncle, surely you are not going to amuse her crazy ranting?" Damon rolled his eyes.

"Why Damon, it's that eau de paranoia I smell?" Emma said, delicately sniffing the air.

"No." Damon answered quickly, too quickly. "Go ahead and rant, you won't achieve anything other than proving you're bat shit crazy."

"You are probably not aware of this sir but over 5 years ago, your nephew kidnapped a lone hiker in the backcountry of Alberta."

"No I'm not but I fail to see what this has to do with your accusations..."

"For 5 years your nephew shared with this person his plans to usurp you, killing you and your most loyal betas and taking ownership of your pack. He then planned on turning his pack into hardened warriors and attacking neighbouring packs, enlarging his territory. His eventual plan was to be the only pack left in North America. From there he planned on exposing werewolves to the humans and taking over their government. Apparently, he believes that humans are unable to govern themselves and require werewolf overlords."

Peter and Jane gasped at this news "I hope this is not an opinion he got from you Ian." Peter said.

Ian waved his hands dismissively. "Of course not. This is insane. This is just the accusations of a deranged victim making up a story and projecting it on a stranger. Why the hell would someone trust the person kidnapped with that kind of information? It's like when a super villain explains their evil plot to the capture super hero only to have them escape and foil their plot. It's idiotic"

"I agree, it is idiotic. But this idiot thought he had her easily cowed because he was a big bad wolf. Plus, he says mates share things with each other. He expected me to tattle on my girls in exchange for this information. Idiot." She scoffed.

Everyone's eyes turned on Damon as he clenched his fists and took a menacing step forward. Ian put a cautioning hand on Damon's chest. He turned on Peter.

"This is unacceptable, I refuse to stand here and have my nephew's name dragged through the mud by some silly girl. We are leaving. Consider our truce ended." He turned on his heel and started to stalk out.

"Tell me, does Damon have a purple birthmark on the front of his left hip in the shape of a heart. And a large mole under his right shoulder blade?"

Ian paused and turned wary eyes on the auburn haired fireball accusing his nephew.

Emma turned to the female betas. "And when he climaxes, he paws at the sheets like a dog in the garden whether he is in human or wolf form?" A couple of the females nodded and giggled a little, eliciting an angry growl from Damon.

Emma turned back to the Alpha at the door. "He always volunteered to do patrols on the far side on your territory, causing him to be away for a week or more. In that time, he would drive to the house and spend that time with his 'pets', beating us, raping us, torturing us. Or he would sit back and laugh as his lackeys did what they wanted to us. What you have there is the ringleader of the rogue pack." She said, pointing at Damon .

The alphas eyes widened in shock "He said the longer patrols would allow him to get to know the land he would be inheriting." He turned on Damon "How could I have been so blind?"

Damon, realizing he was caught, turned on the weakest link, Emma "YOU LYING WHORE!" He yelled as he launched himself at Emma, shifting in midair.

Before anyone had a chance to intercede, Emma whipped out her knives from their hidden sheaths on her arms, ducking down and slicing upwards into his vulnerable underbelly as Damon leapt over top of her. Damon howled in pain turned back towards her, launching another attack. He was tackled by his uncle and forced to shift by his alpha.

With his forearm across his throat, Ian growled "Tell me it's not true. Tell me this wasn't your idea." He shook him "Don't lie!"

Damon, gasping for breath, said nothing. Ian howled in fury and snapped Damon's neck, almost completely decapitating him in his anger.

Breathing heavily, eyes glowing yellow, he turned to the rest of the room, noting the absence of sound. Everyone was afraid to speak or breathe loudly so as to attract the attention of the feral wolf in a man's body. Once his eyes turned to their normal milk chocolate colour, he searched out the catalyst of this event, the auburn haired beauty with the strange teal eyes.

"While I do not approve of your methods and believe you should be taught more self-control, it seems we have more restitution than we thought for what has happened to you and your group. Please accept my apologies miss..." he said as approached Emma and he offered his hand.

Emma stared at the extended hand with wide eyed fear. She was extremely pale and had a haunted look about her. Her irises were such a light blue they were almost white, a sign her wolf was close to the surface. She blinked rapidly, pushing down her wolf. "I..." She stuttered "I need to go check on the others." She said as she backed warily towards the stairs, bloody blades dripping down at her sides.

"Uh B, would you be so kind to tell me what you have done with my mate?" Drea spoke up with a menacing tone.

B paused at the top of the stair. "He's fine. We didn't hurt him, he's just sleeping." Drea growled loudly. B put up her hands. "Sorry it was the only way I could take him down without permanent harm." She said as she disappeared down the hall, closely followed by Dan who was anxious to see Lily after the dramatic events of the afternoon.

Peter cleared his voice nervously. "I apologize for her manners. She's not overly comfortable with the other men, or physical contact."

Ian rubbed his hand absently on his jeans, staring after the mysterious human. "Not to mention I killed someone in front of her. It's no mystery she is afraid of me. Tell me, why doesn't she have a scent?"

Peter shook his head. "That my friend is an interesting story. Why don't you and your entourage get settled and we can meet later to discuss the girls and other pack business."

Ian nodded and signalling his pack, he and the others disappeared towards their assigned quarters to get unpacked for their 2 week stay.

"B we need to discuss your punishment for this afternoon's shenanigans. Please meet us in my office." Jane sent after the retreating Emma.

"Ok Madam Alpha, can I please change my clothes?"

"Yes but hurry. You have 5 minutes."

"Thank you."

Emma ran to her room, avoiding the curious and worried looks from the others. She sank down to the floor, leaning heavily against her closed door.

"What the HELL was that?" She demanded of her wolf. "First you want to kill the man for taking your kill, then you want to rub and lick all over his body."

The wolf whined piteously while sending pictures of the alpha, Damon's uncle.

"What's wrong with you? Why are you so fixated on this guy? He's Damon's uncle. Damon."

The wolf recalled the scent of the man, dark coffee and cinnamon.

"Yes he smells heavenly. And?"

Letting out a loud groan, the wolf sank to the ground and laid her head on her paws, giving Emma a long look.

Emma sighed. "Whatever dude, I need to get changed fast and see the alphas. They do not seem too happy with me."