33: Stand Trial
AIDAN
After I found the cleared path that led me away from the city and to the woods, I made sure I didn’t rush my pace and be left with no expanse of land to run when I finally shifted, so I kept my feet light on the ground.
Thankfully, Vermont pack had a really large uncharted portion of land that looked like it was reserved for mainly shifting and running.
After walking for a few more minutes, I recalled that I was so tense and angry earlier, that I forgot to take a change of clothes along with me.
So instead of just letting my wolf out immediately, I took note of the surroundings that I was in and noted how many trees were around me and in what direction they pointed so that I could. easily find this spot when I was done running.
When I was satisfied that I wouldn’t get lost or misled by my scent that would be all over the place when I finished, I took off my shirt and tucked it behind a tree.
My shoes and socks came off next, followed by my accessories.
I was left with just my slacks, and I was about to take those off when my heightened senses picked up the presence of someone else with me.
Before I could speak or react, sniffing and sobbing came from
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somewhere behind some trees, and I instantly went alert.
It was a female’s voice, and she was crying.
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“Hey,” I said out loud, my protective instincts kicking in immediately. I quickly thought of a way to make whatever the problem was gone. “Hey, I’m the only one here, and I’m heading towards you. Don’t be scared, okay?”
Both of my hands came above my head, and on looking closely, I could see the young girl with tears running down her face.
“Hey, Angel, what’s your name?”
She didn’t respond.
“My name is Aidan. Can you tell me how you got here?”
No response.
“Why are you crying? Do you know where you are? You can talk to me,” I pried, but I got nothing in return. Just more sobbing.
I squatted to her level, searching her face for answers where there were none.
“Tell me what the issue is, and I’ll help you, I promise,” I tried one more time.
She finally raised her head, and her chapped lips moved to say something, but it was just unintelligible sounds.
“What was that?” I moved closer to listen in, but a twig breaking behind us caught my attention, and my wolf surfaced with a snarl.
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I whirled around, ready to spring, but still making sure that the scared girl was safely behind me
Collin came out of the bushes, and I could swear that I almost gave full control to my wolf to attack him.
His laughter was taunting. “Woah there, big bad alpha, ready to jump, aren’t you? There’s no need for that in my opinion, alright?
Not when you’re the one who has been caught red–handed.”
He wasn’t alone, and the supportive laughter from behind him told me so.
I ignored his words.
“What are you doing here?” I asked, trying to tone down my anger as Jace’s last words rang in my ears.
“No, Aidan. The question is why do you currently have your hands on one of my packmates?” Collin pointed to the girl behind me.
“What are you talking about?” I asked, confused. “As you can. see, she’s troubled, and like any sensible person, I’m trying to find out what the problem is.”
Collin shook his head. “It doesn’t look like that to me. Looks like you attacked one of my packmates, Aidan,” he said with a growl.
With a humorless laugh, I looked around me and quickly realized what this was. A setup.
Barely hours after Collin struck the first time, he came up with another one. Really?
He spoke again. “Isn’t that what this is?” He asked his group of
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minions that were with him, and they responded in agreement. “You attacked my pack mate, Aidan. Trespassing and refusing to back down is one thing, but putting your hands on one of mine is an entirely different case that I won’t take lying down.”
Ignoring him, I turned to the young girl who was still sobbing behind me.
“It’s okay. You can say what really happened, which is that I found you here like this, right?”
The young girl looked up at me, and I could see the fear shining in her eyes. I wasn’t surprised, because this was a recurring theme when it came to Collin.
None of this looked like her fault. She must have been innocent and here against,her will, so I turned back to Collin.
“I don’t know what you intend to achieve by making me look like a predator, but you won’t be able to do it. Let the young girl go, and we’ll settle this,” I said calmly.
“No!” Collin bellowed, veins straining from his neck. “I’ll tell you what is going to happen instead, and you listen very carefully. You will face me and the rest of the judges, and you will be given a chance to defend yourself against your crimes.”
I laughed uncontrollably because Collin was outright comical. “Me. Crimes?”
“Laugh all you want, but remember that I know something, or rather, some things, that could be of particular interest to you. I run this pack, and I’m the one who can pull the strings here.”
I took a step forward, ready to pounce on Collin. I didn’t care
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how much he knew about Tara and Nadia, but mentioning them was crossing a line. “I dare you to test me, Collin,” I said.
He smirked, obviously getting the reaction he intended from me. “Tomorrow, at noon, you will stand trial. And do you want my opinion on how it’s going to go?” He didn’t wait for a response. “You will be out of here before the sun sets, and sweet Tara won’t be coming with you.”
Without another word to me, he motioned for his company to bring the young girl who was currently shaking like a leaf behind me, and they did that.
I didn’t want to start a fight that I couldn’t finish right now, so I let them leave with her.
“Don’t worry, love, everything will be okay,” I said to the girl, even though it didn’t feel like it.
As I watched them leave, the purpose of my run wasn’t to let me think anymore, but instead, it was to cool off the anger with the intensity of a volcano that was brewing inside me.
