The Lost Pack (Paige) novel Chapter 162

Chapter 162

Through the glass, I see them… Ryder and Remy. Their bodies tense, eyes glowing faintly gold in the darkness. Even from here, I can feel their energy, wild and alive, humming through the air like static before

a storm.

Relief slams through me so hard my knees almost give way. They’re alive. They’re still fighting.

For a moment, the rest of the world fades. Ryder’s gaze finds mine through the window, sharp and steady, his wolf close enough to the surface that I can almost see him. It’s the look he gives when he’s already decided what comes next. My eyes move to Remy next, his wolf just as close as Rye’s. His eyes give more away though, and a trickle of fear runs down my spine. They’re not here to tell us it’s safe.

Right on cue, Callen’s voice cuts through the air, harsh and commanding. “Evacuation! Move now!”

I turn as he storms into the room, issuing orders even as he moves. “Leo, Parker, shift and flank. Jake,

Poppy… grab all the medical supplies you can carry without it slowing you down. No one gets left behind.”

Poppy bolts for the med cabinets, while Jake moves with frightening calm. He’s controlled, efficient,

already knowing what he’ll need. He grabs the transfusion kits first, then blood bags and antiseptics, his

focus unbreakable even as his hands shake faintly.

“Mummy, what’s happening?” Jax’s voice trembles, so small against the roar of panic around us.

“Just a trip, baby,” I whisper, though my throat is tight, and my heart is hammering so loud I can barely hear myself. I hold him close, breathing in the soft scent of his hair, grounding myself. I have to stay calm for him. “You’re safe. I’ve got you.”

Callen turns, his face set, jaw tight. “Give him to me, Paige. I need you fast.”

I hesitate, clutching Jax for a heartbeat longer before I hand him over. Callen holds him carefully but firmly, his body a solid wall of muscle and control. “Stay right behind me. No matter what.”

He doesn’t need to say it twice.

Callen glances toward the door. “Go! We need to move now!”

We run.

The second the door bursts open, the world explodes into motion. The alarm wails in the distance, sharp enough to rattle my bones, and the air smells wrong. Smoke curls low over the ground. The forest glows red where the lights shine, making it even more terrifying.

Wolves dart up ahead of us, streaks of fur and muscle. Pack in human form run, carrying wounded, carrying children, carrying what little they can save. Shouts echo… “Regroup at the ridge! The north and west sides are compromised! Two down near the stream!”

It’s chaos. Controlled, desperate chaos. We run with them.

Poppy is ahead with Jake, her breathing fast and uneven. She clutches the medical bag to her chest like it’s her lifeline. Callen’s strides are long beside me, Jaxon’s small hands gripping his shirt.

The forest rushes past in a blur of silver and shadow Every heartbeat, every breath feels too loud. I keep glancing back, searching the darkness for Remy, for Ryder, half-expecting to see them burst through the

trees.

They don’t.

Branches whip my face, leaving stinging trails against my skin. I can hear the pounding of paws all around us, wolves flanking, guarding, howling warnings to each other in bursts of raw, aching sound.

I’ve run before, but never like this. This isn’t a retreat. This is survival.

The realisation hits me like a blow.

We’re fleeing our home. Our territory. Everything the pack has built. Every inch of ground they bled for. All of it…gone. Because men with guns and masks decided we didn’t deserve to exist.

I clench my fists as I run, fury burning through the fear.

We’ve done nothing wrong. We keep to ourselves. We don’t hurt anyone. We raise our children, protect our borders, follow the human laws, and still, it’s not enough.

It never will be.

Tears blur my vision, half from rage, half from wind.

Parker’s wolf runs beside me, massive and powerful, his fur shining silky in the moonlight. He presses close enough that my hand brushes his back, the warmth of him grounding me in a world that suddenly feels like it’s slipping away.

His fur is damp with sweat, and I can feel the tremor in the muscles beneath. He glances back, golden eyes meeting mine, and I hear the thought echo through the bond… “We’ll get through this. We always do.”

I nod, gripping his fur tighter, taking strength from him. But the reassurance barely lasts a second, because something in the air changes.

The pack’s rhythm falters, a ripple of unease running through the air. The ground beneath us seems to hum

with tension, and then Parker stumbles.

It’s small at first. A hitch in his stride. Then another. His front paws catch on the uneven ground, and he lets out a sharp, broken whine that makes my blood run cold.

“Parker!”

He goes down hard, skidding through the mud.

I drop to my knees beside him as his body ripples and convulses; the shift forcing itself through in a

violent wave. In the next breath, he’s human again, naked, gasping, his hand pressed against his chest like he’s trying to stop it from breaking open.

“Parker!” I shout again, panic clawing up my throat. “Talk to me!”

Callen spins around, Jax clutched tight to him. Leo circles back in wolf form, growling low, scanning the dark for threats. The pack slows, confusion spreading through the ranks.

Parker’s eyes are glassy, unfocused. His skin is slick with sweat, trembling.

“Hey!” I slap his shoulder, desperate. “Parker, what’s wrong? Tell me what’s wrong!”

He tries to speak, but the words break on a shallow breath. He shakes his head violently, as if he’s trying to force the thought free. “It’s…” He chokes. “It’s not me.”

“What do you mean it’s not you?” My voice cracks.

He looks up at Callen then, horror dawning in his eyes. “It’s Remy.”

The world tilts.

Callen swears under his breath, his grip on Jax tightening as he scans the tree line. “Are you sure?”

Parker nods weakly, a shudder running through his body. “I felt it through the bond. He’s hurt. Bad.”

The words hit harder than any bullet ever could.

My chest seizes. “No,” I whisper. “No, no, no…”

I can feel him then, faint, somewhere out there in the distance. The bond between us flickers weakly,

barely holding. He’s there, but the connection is… wrong, faint, distorted.

Poppy stumbles to a halt ahead of us, spinning around, eyes wide. “What’s happening? Who’s hurt?”

“Remy,” Callen grits out, already shifting Jax against his shoulder so he can free one hand. “Jake, set up a

triage zone at the ridge. We’ll bring him in if we can get to him.”

Jake’s expression hardens instantly, the calm healer taking over. “We’ll clear a space and prep blood. Move

now!”

But I can’t move. My body won’t listen. I’m stuck, kneeling in the mud beside Parker, my hands trembling as I press against his chest like I can steady the echo of Remy’s pain through him. Through us.

Ryder’s howl tears through the night then. It’s deep, raw, full of fury and heartbreak. The sound shakes the

trees, rolling through the forest like thunder. Every wolf stops. Even the children.

The answering howls rise like a storm, the pack’s grief, the pack’s rage, but all I can hear is that first one. The one that means something’s gone terribly, irreversibly wrong.

Jaxon starts crying softly against Callen’s shoulder, his small hand fisting in his uncle’s shirt. His sobs are quiet but sharp, slicing through the noise.

Parker tries to sit up, but his limbs shake too hard. “He’s still alive,” he gasps. “He has to be.”

Callen crouches beside us, his voice low and rough. “He is. If he wasn’t, the bond would’ve snapped clean.

He’s still out there.”

I nod numbly, my throat tight, tears burning at the corners of my eyes. I want to believe him. I want to believe that howl was just a battle cry, not a goodbye.

Callen barks out orders that I can’t process, and behind us, the pack starts moving again; the noise rising as Jake and Poppy lead them onward. I stare back toward the darkness we came from, where the trees hide the flashes of light and the echoes of chaos.

“Remy,” I whisper. “Please hold on.”

Another gunshot cracks in the distance, distant but unmistakable. The sound echoes through my bones.

I press my hand to Parker’s shoulder, steadying both of us. The words slip out before I can stop them, a promise I don’t know if I can keep.

“I’m coming for you.”