Mythical Mate for an Alpha

Chapter 18

It was early. Far earlier than I wanted to be up. The sun hadn’t yet started to crest over the horizon, but it didn’t matter. I didn't sleep all night. Thoughts of Kitty and Eli had been plaguing me. I decided it was time to have a serious talk with my Father. 

I hustled through my usual routine and headed downstairs. The house was quiet, which wasn’t unusual for this time of the morning. My sisters liked their sleep and our house was still a sizable distance from the pack house. I made a pass through the kitchen for coffee and headed toward my father’s study. 

I pushed open the door, only to find it empty. I thought he may be somewhere in the house so I continued to sip while I perused the folders on his desk. There were quite a lot write-ups of rogue sightings near the borders. Other folders contained information of families that were seeking asylum here with our pack. This in itself wasn’t unusual. However, the number of applicants seemed high.

With my coffee finished, I realized that my father was not in the house. He must be at the pack house, or out on the grounds. I wondered briefly where Eli could be, before pushing it out of my thoughts. He was the reason for doing this. I needed to protect him, or keep him from hurting himself with Kitty. 

I hiked through the forest on foot, taking my time to mull through my thoughts. I couldn’t actually recall the last time I had a serious talk with my father. While at the summit, there wasn’t much I wanted to discuss. Every day was another reminder of a life I did not want. To avoid the topic of Alpha, I nearly stopped speaking to my dad in general. 

I came into the clearing and saw the early morning bustle starting to take shape. Cabin windows were opening and the smells of breakfast were heavily scenting the air. Laughter from little ones could be heard as I walked past the cabins. Men and women chattered all around me, discussing plans for the day, latest news, and a piece of gossip or two. It started to unexpectedly lift my spirits hearing the daily workings of my fellow pack members. 

“Good morning young Alpha,” called an older woman as I walked into the pack house. I nodded in her direction, but nothing more. ‘Young alpha’ wasn’t a nickname I cared much for. My once high spirit was beginning to slip at the reminder as I headed to the offices. 

I reached the Alpha Office and could hear muffled voices on the other side. Not wanting to be rude to the guest in with my father, I knocked briskly. Yes, I could be abrasive, but courtesy and respect were still very important in this pack, Alpha’s son or not. 

“Come in,” called my father in his baritone. 

I entered in through the double oak doors. The Alpha Office, as we called it, was much darker than my own. The carpet was a deep burgundy while the furniture was cherry. Book cases of the same wood lined the walls, as did it border the floor and ceiling. It was an old and mascuiline room, exuding that same essence that an Alpha possessed. 

I was surprised to find that the second voice didn’t belong to some random pack member. Instead, it was Owen sitting in one of the wingbacks across from my fathers desk. All three of us looked at each other confused as though it was our first time meeting. 

“Syrus,” my father stated with an inquisitive tone. “What brings you here so early?”

I looked him over briefly, then Owen. I took the second wingback next to Owen and made myself comfortable. 

“Good morning. I had some things I wanted to discuss with you. When I didn’t see you in the study at home I thought you might be here.” I relayed. 

I looked over to Owen hoping he would offer a reason as to why he was here so early. After a beat, I began to really take in his appearance. I had not seen Owen much since we returned from the Summit. Normally, we were always together. Thick as thieves. However, the more I balked at the Alpha title, the more I noticed a rift between Owen and I.

I could see the faint bluish-purple hued bags hinting beneath his eyes. His hair was a bit longer than he normally kept it. The faintest shadow was creeping along his jaw. It made me wonder what has been going on these last few weeks that is having such an affect on him. 

“We can continue this another time Alpha,” Owen said as he made to move from his chair. 

“Just a few minutes more please, Owen” came the Alpha in reply as he shuffled through more folders on the desk. “Andre’s latest report cites three more visitors to the surrounding area, still within one mile of the border.”

“Yes Alpha. We have been keeping a close watch and have doubled the watch in areas where they have been spotted.”

Owen’s tone was a bit more formal than I ever recall when speaking with my father. It also seemed a bit deeper to me as well. We had gone through the change to manhood quite a few years ago now, so the Owen next to me seemed odd.

Owen sat straight and formal in his chair as he spoke with my father. Likewise, the way my father addressed him was more commanding that normal. The dynamic had changed somewhere along the way, and it was clear that Owen was truly becoming the Beta to his Alpha.

Pulling myself from my thoughts on Owen, I quickly registered what my father had said. “What three visitors?”

Owen looked to my father who gave a small nod. “There were sightings at the border last night. Three rogues were seen about a mile past the border, on the other side of Hancock Stream.”

Rogues? I thought to myself about the reports I had seen in my fathers study. Come to think of it. Andre mentioned in the car on the ride from the airport about other rogue sightings while we were in Europe. He sent them via email, but my father had been behind on reading those reports. How long has this been going on?

“Thank you Owen. Let’s plan to meet this afternoon to discuss further preparations and possible rotation.” My father stood from his desk.

WIth that, Owen stood too. “Yes Alpha. Please link whenever you are ready.”

Owen gave a small bow to my father, before turning to me with a brief nod. He strode to the door and disappeared behind it. I turned to my father and watched him walk to the tall windows lined side by side down most of the wall. Out beyond was the back of the pack house. 

“How long have these rogues been showing up here dad?”

“Don’t worry too much about it Syrus. These things are quite common, especially for a large pack like ours.” He turned and headed back to his desk. His face void of any kind of expression that would give away emotion. 

“Dad, I don’t remember us having multiple reports like this before” I said sitting forward in my chair. My father looked at me with a curious expression.

“I saw the reports on your desk while I was in the study. These have been getting more frequent and seemed to start around the time we left for summit” I pressed. 

“There can be such a thing as coincidence Syrus” he reasoned, and went back to shuffling his papers back together. “What is it you wanted to talk about?”

Frustrated, I pushed up from the chair and began to pace the room. First, he doesn’t tell me about the rogues, and now he simply dismisses them. 

“Dad, you and I both know there is no such thing as coincidence. You are just avoiding the question.” 

“If I didn’t believe in coincidence then I would have gone mad years ago thinking that everyone and everything was out to get me.” He sat back in his chair and steepled his fingers above his chest. “Did you happen to see your mother on your way in? I was hoping we might have breakfast together with the Fosters. I heard their daughter has been ill more frequently than normal. We wanted to pay a visit.”

Now he was just flat out dismissing me. I ran my fingers through my hair, still disheveled from lack of sleep and motivation. 

“Are you even listening to me, or is your intention to purposely side step every question I ask? As a member of this pack I have a right to know what is going on with these rogues.” I was almost shouting. 

“Syrus. Your safety and that of the pack is secured. There are things you don’t understand about how this works.” His tone was getting rough and stern. I knew I was pushing buttons, but he was pushing mine. 

“You say that, all the while letting some strange creature into our house. You don’t find it the least bit odd that rogues are suddenly all over pack lands right around the time that Trish decides to bring home some stray?” I yelled. 

“Syrus! Watch your tone. You don’t have any evidence to support Kitty being anything other than was she presents herself to be.” He was now on his feet behind the desk. 

“Kitty is behind this! I don’t know how you can’t see it. Since when has Trish ever had another girl, let alone a girl who is supposedly human, in the house? And Eli. We couldn’t get so much as a frown out of him when his turtle died. You expect me to believe that the way he acts around Kitty isn’t caused by some external influence?” I was raging now. How could he be so blind? I gripped the top of the wingback with force as I tried to keep my claws contained. 

“Even mom acts differently with Kitty. The last I checked, you had three children, not four. And you! You hugged the weird girl.” I shouted pointing to him. 

“Enough Syrus!” he bellowed, as his fangs grew out. 

“No! It will not be enough. This filth has invaded our house and our family. You are supposed to be my Alpha, my father, and yet you too seem to be rolling over to Kitty just like the rest. Has she gotten to you too?” I could no longer control Nash and he was coming to the surface. I ripped through the chair and tossed it across the room. 

“What it seems, Syrus, is that you have forgotten your place. You have expressed well enough that you will not be the next Alpha. Your tantrum will cease now. You have no right or bearing to dare disrespect me, and are reinforcing every reason why you aren’t fit to take this title.” 

It felt like a blow to the gut that I wasn’t expecting. No, I did not want to be the next Alpha. However, it never crossed my mind that my father might actually think I was never good enough for it in the first place. From the anger he portrayed, this was something he has felt for quite some time. 

“Now suddenly I’m not fit? That was a far cry from the last few years of you shoving it down my throat” I scoffed, trying to hide the hurt I felt. “Any other option will always be lesser than me, and you know it. This is about upholding your reputation and lineage. You don’t give a rat’s ass about what I want, and you never did.”

“Eli will train to take the title. It was decided before we ever left for summit. For the sake of the other Alpha’s I brought you along so as not to cause a ruckus. This was a special year for all in attendance and the shock to the European lineages would have distracted from important matters.”

There it was. The missing link. I began to roar with laughter. Everything finally fit and yet he thought I was the one without enough wit to lead.

“This is almost comical” I spat back to him. “Just as you leave for an extended trip to Europe, you make Eli your heir, rogues are showing up left and right, and some leech comes out of the woodwork to start making eyes at Eli. All the while, you can still stand there and tell me that you believe in coincidence.

I used to think there was no other Alpha that could hold a candle to you. Clearly I was wrong if you can’t see the writing on the wall. Kitty is conning all of you. She wants Eli as a mate so she can take over this pack. Nothing in this world is a coincidence.”

I had truly well lost it. Never in my brief years of living have I ever spoken to my father that way. The hurt and betrayal that I felt was something I could not possibly put into words. Instead, the anger overwhelmed me from my very core. I couldn’t stop the shift that was coming, though in truth I didn’t want to. I was ready for a battle.

I could see my father and his wolf doing the same. The dominance was flooding the room and I could feel the tension getting tighter. His eyes were fading to black just as I felt mine doing the same. 

A sudden crash halted everything. My father and I both turned to find Andre in the doorway. He had a panicked expression and his eyes were wide and wild. 

“Alpha!” he yelled. “Rogues have breached the border.”