Avery and I spent the morning meeting all the employees on the ranch and getting the lay of the land. The ranch was well-developed and well managed.
All of the employees we spoke to had heard of our offer to Allen in the garage that morning and expressed their desire to join the pack and continue on the ranch.
The more people we spoke with, the greater my respect for Gabriel became. Each one of the ranch’s ninety-six employees had been disadvantaged and living tough lives when Gabriel found them and brought them here. They all came to work for him not only because they wanted to, but because they genuinely loved and respected him.
Of all the things I’d heard about vampires in my life, this was the first time I’d knowingly met a one thousand-plus-year-old one. That he spent his life saving and caring for so many, humans and otherwise, was remarkable.
Our ranch employees came from so many backgrounds. There were folks he rescued from sex trafficking, drug rings, gangs, abusive families, and the list goes on. These were all good people who had been through some horrific circumstances, and one powerful being had truly seen them and offered them a better way of life.
There was something deeply touching about a powerful being who cared for others whom a lesser man would consider beneath him. At this point, I would offer Gabriel my own blood if he asked for it.
As we were meeting the ranch staff, many were being called away to the house to help my Luna prepare for the influx of wolves that would soon arrive. I smiled and released them into her service.
The ranch foreman took us out to the staff cabins, and we toured one of them. They all had the same layout: a kitchen/dining room combo with a living room, two bedrooms, and one bathroom. They were all furnished simply with a dining table and a sofa, and each bedroom had a queen-sized bed with a simple dresser and two bedside tables.
The foreman informed us that there were 148 staff cabins and that only 92 were occupied. The cabins were originally built to grow the ranch, but Gabriel hadn’t progressed with the next phase of the ranch’s development yet.
This fortunate set of circumstances left us with fifty-six vacant two-bedroom cabins or 112 beds in total. I made a mental note to bring this information to Jane at lunchtime.
The foreman drove us to the stables to meet the staff that cared for the horses. We would meet the cowgirls and cowboys another time since they were out with the cattle this morning.
On the way there, Avery’s new cell phone rang. It was an unknown number. She looked at me and then picked it up.
Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
“Hello?”
“Avery, it’s David. We have an issue,” he began.
“One second, David, let me put you on speaker so the Alpha can hear you, too,” she held out the phone and tapped the speaker button.
“Hi, David. Tristan here,” I said.
“Alpha, we managed to get everyone out last night while you guys flew to Montana. All 509 of us successfully left MacKenzie’s pack. He didn’t discover we’d left until early this morning when he checked in with border patrol and realized there was no one patrolling the borders.”
“He threatened us through the mind-link to return immediately, or he would turn us rogue and notify all the packs in the east to capture us as traitors.”
“Where is everyone now?” I asked.
“We gave up all the vehicles to the families with children to drive directly west along the northern US to head straight to Montana. They were driving through the night and rotating drivers for minimal stops. They should arrive by tomorrow morning at the latest.”
“Where are the rest of you?” I asked.
Once they pledged to me and I received them into the pack, I would be able to locate any member through the link. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t be in the pack for another couple of days at best.
David answered, “The rest of us shifted and started running south to draw anyone chasing us away from the children. We made it to the south and have run all the way to the Louisiana/Texas border since there were large areas to run through that didn’t belong to any packs.”
“Are they catching up to you?” I asked.
“We got a good eight-hour head start, so it’s not likely they’ll catch up too soon, but Alpha MacKenzie severed us from the pack. We are now rogues.”
“From here on out, most of the territory we must cross belongs to other packs. We’re scenting as rogues and no pack is going to allow this large number of rogues to cross their territory. We’re trapped between three packs and going back the way we came. We will have to cross one of them before MacKenzie’s hunters catch up to us,” he finished.
I knew this area vaguely, “All of East and North Texas, that’s Alpha Clovis’s territory. The Divine Moon Pack. I’ve only met him once, but I know he and my father didn’t get along.
“Father said he was too progressive with his attitudes towards humans. He was also disgusted that he has five unmated daughters, all in their mid-to-late twenties.”
David replied, “Alpha MacKenzie also disliked him greatly. I’ve never met him, so I’m not sure how receptive he would be to letting us through his territory.”
“David, is this your cell phone number?” I asked.
“Yeah, it’s a burner phone I picked up at a gas station nearby to call you.”
I replied, “Keep it handy; I’m going to try and contact Alpha Clovis. Hopefully, he’s willing to let you through. I’ll call or text you back.”
I sent David’s number to my new cell phone and saved it. After, I dialed Gabriel’s cell.
He picked up after five rings, “Tristan?”
“Sorry to wake you, Gabriel, but I have a situation. Do you know Alpha Clovis from the Divine Moon Pack by any chance?”
“Of course, I have a ranch in Texas, too,” he revealed.
“How friendly are you with him?” I asked.
“Your pack is rogued and needs to get through,” he said factually. It wasn’t a question.
“Don’t worry, Tristan. I know him well. I’ll give him a call for you. Standby for my text,” Gabriel said.
“Thank you, Gabriel,” I said and hung up.
We continued to tour the stables while we awaited Gabriel’s text.