An Honest Mate

Unsettled

Nathan

Sheer panic was all I felt.

Love is an enormous amount of risk, fear, weakness in some cases, an uncontrollable unconditional need to be by their side, and huge responsibilities. Love was a lot of things, but currently, it's been overwhelming and not in the sense I'm used to.

I'm a soldier and a damn good one at that.

I can't be having trust issues and worrying when this so-called issue happens between Grace and my mate.

In war, you make plans, and you make plans for all the things that could go right and all of them that could go wrong.

There's a system. I don't need all the answers. In a real fight, you won't know every defense tactic you're going to use until it happens. Not like on the mats where you've had time to study your opponents.

Why would the Goddess choose for this to stay under wraps? We could be preparing for all outcomes. To save their lives. I can't be for certain that they die, Alesia was just way too quiet when I asked. I've interrogated many, and I've learned how to analyze facial expressions and body language.

I love my cousin but what she looked like... She looked like h*ll. Even when she'd lost fights on the mats that meant the world to her, she would look unhappy by the outcome. She worked hard for her results. This reaction was far worse. Like her life literally ended, and she had no reason to live. This was a melancholy I'd never seen before from her, and Luke has been harping on my a*s asking for details.

It's to the point that I'm waiting to be trapped and poisoned to get info out of me. That's how crazy he's getting. Yet he wouldn't get anything of true value. Even if Alesias' quietness was her saying yes, what does it mean? The stress in all of this is unwavering and cruel.

I feel my wolf acting restless and decide to ditch the office work of organizing my special units and go for a run even though we had just gone for one at 3 a.m. when we couldn't sleep.

That's another thing Alesia slept like a rock. She was out. I'm so confused. It was so worrisome that they looked like death was knocking on the door, and it very well could, and she was able to sleep!? Maybe it took too much out of her, and they both needed rest.

I simply huffed and continued down the hall to the cafeteria to grab a snack before I headed out for a run to release my beast.

Alesia was still at home resting. She wasn't assigned to work till next week. Or really anything at the moment even though she is insistent to get back to work.

We had an appointment today at 3:30 to make sure everything was still on the rise, but she seemed uninterested in the progress, seeming to know or act like our son would be 100 percent okay. I believed in our goddess, so this gave me some slight hope that my family would be okay.

I made it to the cafeteria, and I saw a few of my men and their mates sitting around a table chatting with huge grins. They wave at me, and I walk over.

"Gamma!" They all say in unison. They stared at me, waiting for a response when I finally snapped out of my thoughts, realizing the smile I should have on my face was a tight, thin line. Not at all welcoming.

I shake off the feeling and smile at them softly.

"What's the party?" I said, trying to make small talk as I passed by.

I had made it my mission to get to know as many of my pack as I could through training and outside events. It helped me cope with my late mate Rose. It ultimately kept me busy and responsible for my pack.

When she died, I was at a convention for our type, giving a speech when I got the link from my assistant. The tears that threatened to drip from my eyes dared to fall at that moment. I had to reel in the pain and shock as I physically felt her pass away, and my body and heart shattered. But I had a pack to help run, and I was desperately needed here to make sure our pack got the necessary equipment. It felt as though I was leading a whole country on my back with her passing and having to pretend she hadn't died.

However, the night got worse when other wolves noticed my mark starting to fade away. At that moment, every wolf in that room understood the depth of this meeting and how much pain I truly was in.

Luke had only sent me and my assistant to cover this meeting but had driven himself three hours to be where I was so I could go back to the pack and see my Rose.

Only I couldn't bring myself to see her. To have my only last thoughts of her on a bed unmoving to my touch. Unphased by the sparks, I would send down her whole body. My heart was already shattered. I didn't know how much more I could handle.

Grace was there with me when I decided to see my Rose. She was the only person who knew how to make that situation slightly bearable. Grace and I are like rocks. I always loved my sister, but Grace and I just clicked so much. This is why I'm frustrated to see her the way she was yesterday and that she can't talk to me to help her.

Again, I was shaken out of my thoughts when one of my guys sat me down and tapped me on the shoulder.

"You alright, man? You look as if you've seen a ghost?" He said.

"Yeah, I just think becoming a dad and having a second chance mate is crazy and I felt overwhelmed there for a second thinking of all the things I have to do and get done. Just got to me, " I said, coming up with an excuse. It was true. It's just not exactly what I was thinking.

They all looked at their mates and shook their heads in agreement with a smile I swear could reach ear to ear..

"Having a mate is one heck of a blessing."

I said, shaking my head in awe of my pack members.

This pack and the people within it are what drives me and many high ranked wolves to do amazing work for our packs.

"Gamma, do you know what you're having yet? " One of them shouts across the table.

I smiled and nodded my head.

"It's a boy. We will have a new Gamma male within our ranks." I said proudly.

A few of the guys clapped their hands and gave fist bumps. The female warriors around the table shook their heads in approval, and at the end of the table, I saw two of the guys pass a ten dollar bill. They bet on the gender of our pup. My wolf said so matter of factly.

" Who lost the bet?" I yelled down the table, chuckling at them.

" I thought you were gonna get a girl, sir. You seem like a girl dad kind of guy." The guy on the right side of the table said.

Everyone laughed so hard at the table that it made me wonder if I would be a dad to more and if I would get a girl. I smiled at the thought.

"Are you excited to be a dad?" One of the ladies asked. Her name was Evelyn. She was a good friend in training with Rose. She is a strong fighter and a great friend. I smiled kindly at her and responded,

"Yes, I'm excited to be a dad. It's overwhelming." I rubbed my hands through my hair. "but I'm thankful the goddess blessed me with a second chance, a beautiful mate and a healthy baby boy." I said, smiling at everyone.

They all smiled kindly, even Evelyn.

Rose would be happy for you. She always said your heart was huge. It seems you two really fit well. If I'm honest, you fit better than Rose. I love Rose, but Alesia is good for the pack. Different skills and mindset.

Evelyn linked.

I smiled at her, letting my eyes cloud over.

Thank you. That means a lot, and I'm grateful for you and your mate during everything. Alesia really is really something. I really can't thank the goddess enough for giving me another chance, even if I didn't think I could handle it. I ended the link, and my eyes returned to normal.

"Hey, I'll catch you guys later on the mats. I'm gonna go for a run along the borders." I said and finished my snack. They all said to have a great run, and then I was off.

Hey man, I'll be back in the office. I'm going for a run. I link Jackson.

Okay. Was all he said, and I ran to the edge of the forest.

I took off my clothes and stored them in a storage box that was placed for clothing and transitioned into my wolf. When I opened my eyes, I could see every pore and every slight color change. The world was so pretty in the eyes of my wolf. That's because I'm gorgeous. My wolf chuckled in my head. I rolled my eyes, laughing internally, and let him feel the earth in our paws. I sigh, relieved, and take off into a sprint.

We passed numerous trees and other wolves casually in the woods, enjoying the sunny day. When they noticed me, they all slightly bowed, and I showed them my respect and kept moving, feeling the dirt between my paws felt so good. I stopped when I got to the water line and took a few gulps, feeling the cool water trickle down.

A breeze later came through, and I decided to walk over to a patch of grass and lay down in it. I looked up and watched the clouds pass over.

I'm not sure how long I had laid here, but I got a whiff of something rancid, and my ears perked up. That doesn't smell like a wolf. Narin said. I agree. Let's take a look.

We walked on following the scent and found a few people in the distance. It's still too far to get a clear smell. A few wolves walked up behind me and gathered on each side of me.

Gamma, we smelled them on our run, too, and decided to follow it.

Why didn't you link anyone? A patrol? Me beta Jackson or our Alpha? I linked the female wolf next to me.

She was a trained warrior a part of our patrol. She knew protocol. Perhaps she didn't know if it was a human edging to close? Maybe she just wanted a better picture before sending off alarms. My wolf said. Doesn't matter if it's human or not. These woods are for our pack to go for runs. If anyone ventures out here, it could be bad. I get it, buddy, but this is serious.

Doesn't matter. I'll link the alpha now that we all have a better consensus. I linked to all three of them.

Alpha, we have movement down in the run. I've got 4 wolves, including myself, with me. Don't know who the outsiders are? Permission to go forward? I waited for a response and crouched down with my other pack members.

I saw one of their eyes cloud over and began thinking of ways to keep them safe while we figured out the ulterior motive for them to be on our land. They didn't smell like vampires exactly, but they had a unique smell I wasn't a fan of.

Yes, I'm sending reinforcement your way. Luke linked almost immediately.

I began drawing up a plan to surround the invaders. We weren't going to attack because if they were human, that's the last thing we'd need on our hands. It only looks like there are three of them. We will surround them, and once we get closer and can tell what they are, we will shift back to humans to converse with them. If they're vampires, we will move forward.

I gave out my directions carefully, and we all headed out on our territory to surround them. Each setting up a square enclosing in on them.

Almost to the far side, gamma. One of them linked.

Got it, just lay low and be quiet. Just then, as I finished off the link, more bodies exited out of the tree line, and the wind carved a snaking path carrying their scent straight to me.

VAMPIRES.