Page 31 of Rescued By Four Alphas
"Someone threw a brick through our window tonight and left a charming little note with it. Has there been any incidents like this?"
"Fuck," she breathes.
"You're not the first," she says quietly. "We've had several prominent shifter families who have received similar threats in the past week."
My grip tightens on the phone. "Why am I just hearing about this now?"
"We didn't want to cause panic, and I needed to be sure it was a pattern." She pauses. "Check the brick. Is there a symbol carved into it?"
I walk back to the living room where the brick still sits among the glass shards. "What am I looking for?"
"Anything carved or painted on it. Even small scratches."
I kneel and examine the brick carefully. On one side, barely visible, someone carved a small symbol into the surface.
"There's something here," I tell Maxine. "Looks like a circle with a line through it."
"Son of a bitch," she swears. "My suspicions were right. We're dealing with the Natural Order."
"Who the hell is the Natural Order?"
"They're an anti-shifter extremist group," Maxine explains. "Shifters who believe shifters don't belong in human society. They want to force us back into isolation."
"What the hell? Since when has this been happening?"
"Well, you've been busy with your personal life, I guess."
"Fuck! Do you have any idea who's behind it?"
"Nothing's confirmed yet, but we think someone in the government is involved. The Natural Order has access to information that only someone in the government has access to."
My stomach twists. "I can't say I'm surprised. They begged us to integrate into society, and now they want to chase us out again. Humans piss me the fuck off."
"Onyx, listen to me." Maxine's voice turns serious. "Maybe it's time we stopped allowing these people to control us and fight back. We were good on our own. We didn't ask for this."
"That's not the answer to this. They are still more advanced than we are, and they have more weapons. We are still the minority."
"But they are scared. We can play on their fear."
"Maxine, do not do anything for now. Double the training with your warriors and send this to all the Alphas under this region. I will come up with a plan and get back to you."
"Fine. But the moment this gets out of control, I will retaliate with or without your blessing…"
"Maxine…"
"Fine."
"Keep me posted if you learn anything else."
"I will. And Onyx? Watch your back. If they found a way past your security once, they'll try again."
The call ends, and I stand there for a moment, turning the brick over in my hands. The symbol seems to mock me, and it's like a promise of more trouble to come.
I need to talk to Evan. If this group has government connections, we need to know who we can trust.
I head toward his office, and my eyes fall on the expensive artwork on the walls, a reminder of the privileged life we've built. A life that’s now under threat.
As I approach Evan's office, I hear movement inside. The door stands slightly ajar, but Evan never leaves his door open. My wolf senses sharpen, and I slow my steps, moving silently across the plush carpet.
