Jace crawled out of bed late the next morning and practically had to drag himself to the bathroom. He slipped out of his boxers and kicked them into a heap behind the door, then managed to grab a quick shower. Ten minutes later, he was toweled off and dressed in a pair of faded jeans and a T-shirt with Metallica’s signature logo on the front. Leaving his long hair to air dry, he hurried downstairs for food. He had a craving for meat, preferably something greasy. Aside from his intense hunger pangs, everything else seemed fine. So far, the beast hadn’t reared its ugly head.

As he approached the kitchen door, he caught a whiff of something sweet mixed with a meaty aroma. He tucked the previous night's terror in the back of his mind and pushed his way inside, where he found his twin brother.

“Look who finally decided to get out of bed,” Jem said, forking a couple of pancakes. “You just missed everyone, but there’s plenty of leftovers.”

“Ah, good,” Jace said, eyeballing his brother’s plate. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a cow.”

Jem smirked. “Couldn’t sleep either, eh?”

“Mm,” Jace replied, concentrating on filling his own plate.

“Want some milk to go with all that syrup?” Jem asked, watching Jace drench a stack of pancakes and several sausage links.

“Yes, please,” he replied before shoving a heaping forkful into his mouth. 

Jem poured his brother a glass of milk. “Have you checked your messages this morning?”

Jace glanced up from his plate and answered with a shake of his head.

“Tim wants us to meet him in his office in an hour.”

“What about?” Jace mumbled around a mouthful.

“I’m just going to be upfront with you,” Jem began. “He wants us to meet a guy who knows where our biological father is.”

Jace suddenly shot from his chair, his teeth gnashing together. “What the—”

“Hold on, brother.” Jem held up a halting hand. “Just calm down and let me explain.”

The tension was so thick you could have cut it with a knife. Finally, exhaling a deep breath, Jace lowered himself back down. “Go on. I’m listening.”

Jem nodded. “By what Tim told me, this guy…” He paused and shrugged. “I believe Tim said his name is Drakon Hexus. Anyway, he’s coming here to warn the Covenant.”

“About what?”

“Apparently, our father—”

Jace pounded his fist on the table, cutting Jem’s words off. “Stop addressing that bastard as our father.”

“Okay, okay,” Jem said, letting out a frustrated sigh. “What I meant to say was Alexander is building an army of rogue wolves, and he plans on using them to destroy the Breedline Covenants.”

“What?” Jace narrowed his eyes into slits. “That’s insane. Why would he do that?”

“I don’t know.” Jem threw his hands up in defeat. “I guess this Drakon guy will give us all the details when he arrives.”

“Pfft…” Jace snorted in disgust. “And we’re supposed to just trust this joker? For all we know, he could be working for Alexander. This whole thing might be a setup.”

“According to Tim, Drakon is working for Alexander,” Jem explained. “Or at least he was. This Drakon fella obviously had no idea what our fath—” He quickly backpedaled. “I mean, Drakon had no idea what Alexander was planning until recently. And Tim did some checking up on this guy. Evidently, he used to be a rogue himself.”

“But that’s impossible,” Jace said. “There’s no way a rogue wolf has that kind of power. Hell, it’s in our True Laws, for crying out loud. It says once a Breedline takes another life out of revenge, they’ll never be able to shift back into their human form.”

“Well, they sure as hell can now,” Jem stated.

“Great,” Jace huffed. “Just freakin’ great. How in the hell are we supposed to defeat an army of rogues? One of those bastards alone has the strength of at least three of our Breedline wolves, if not more.”

Jem shook his head. “I’m hoping Tim and the council members can come up with a solution. If we’re lucky, maybe this Drakon character knows how we can stop them.”

“Face it, brother,” Jace said, furrowing his brows. “We’re screwed.”

“Don’t give up so soon. Our numbers outweigh theirs. And remember, we’ve also got God on our side.”

“Yeah, well,” Jace wearily said. “We better start praying now. We’re gonna need all the help we can get.”

Nearly an hour later, Jace and his twin brother Jem stood outside Tim’s office, their nerves pins and needles.

“Well, here goes nothing,” Jace said as he reached up and lightly tapped his knuckles against the door.

“Come in,” a familiar voice called out from inside.

The moment they opened the door, their eyes met Tim’s. He sat behind his desk, slightly leaning back with seriousness written all over his face. Across from him sat an extremely large man with a dark, short-trimmed Mohawk. His brooding features gave off a serial killer vibe, and the black leather getup he wore added to the whole menacing look.

Tim rose to his feet. “Please,” he said, motioning toward the Chamberlain twins. “Come join us.”

As soon as they moved in closer, the Mohawked guy lumbered from out of his chair, towering to the height of at least six-seven. His arms were the size of tree trunks, and his shoulders were as broad as a barn. He focused his steely blue eyes toward the door, looking between Jace and Jem with avid curiosity.  

“This is Drakon Hexus,” Tim spoke out, introducing the ginormous man. “He has asked to join our allegiance and help us stop Alexander Crest’s plans to destroy our Covenants, along with his rogue army.”

Jace shot Drakon a distasteful look, then shifted his eyes toward Tim. “How in the hell do you expect us to trust this guy?” He snapped off, jabbing a thumb in Drakon’s direction. “For crying out loud, he’s a former rogue, not to mention one of Alexander’s cronies. Have you considered he might be baiting us?”

“I will admit,” Tim began, exhaling a deep breath, “the thought occurred to me when Mr. Hexus first contacted me. But after careful consideration and a thorough background check, I have decided to bring his proposal before the council. If indeed, Alexander Crest is planning an attack, we need to be prepared. And there’s more.” He gestured toward the two vacant chairs next to Drakon. “Please, guys. Have a seat. This is urgent, and it concerns the both of you.”

“I’d rather stand, thank you,” Jace defiantly said, glaring at Drakon, who had already seated himself.

“That wasn’t a request,” Tim firmly stated, carving the twins—mostly Jace—down with a blade-sharp stare. “Take a seat.”

Jem swallowed against a rising lump, came forward, and sat in the chair next to Drakon. But when Jace remained standing, Tim’s patience started to wear thin. “I said, take a seat,” he repeated, sounding more demanding.

“All right, all right,” Jace grumbled, raising a hand in defeat. Deciding not to further test Tim’s resolve, he trudged forward and took a seat next to his brother. “So, what’s so urg—”

Jace’s words were cut off by a sudden elbow jab. He flinched and scowled at Jem, then muttered something under his breath.

“As I was saying,” Tim continued, sitting back down. “Mr. Hexus has brought forth some information that not only has to do with the welfare of our species but also concerns the two of you. It seems that one of you has inherited a rather powerful gift. And Alexander is planning to lure whoever bestows this gift to use it as a weapon against us.”

Tim’s announcement immediately alerted Jace. Then, haunting images popped into his head. He wondered if this had anything to do with the wolfish beast he’d been seeing in the mirror.

To be continued. . .

Thanks for taking the time to read my chapter. I am rewriting my first book and would appreciate your feedback. If you're interested in previous chapters, you can find them on my profile under Revised Sweet Chaos/A Novel of the Breedline series. Thanks again & I hope you enjoy it!