Reclaiming Herself—Completed

Chapter Eighteen

Patrick.

It took well over ten of his men to stop Aero from making it out of the pack grounds. There had been an easy trail of wounded wolves to follow as more of his warriors had attempted to calm him down. Matthew had sent out a red alert to all the fighters not on duty to stop their alpha from making it off the premises. If they had lost Aero, there was no telling what that wolf would do to Richard. They needed to be subtle if they wanted to catch Richard red-handed and present their evidence to the New Council. Aero couldn’t just charge in and rip the guy to shreds, even if he did deserve it.

Aero didn’t give up control until he was sedated. Once shifted back, Patrick slept until that evening, groaning as he woke up. Matthew was by his side, grinning at him.

Looking over, Patrick frowned. “What?”

“You are just impressive. Or rather, Aero is. Remind me to never piss your wolf off.”

“Yeah, well, he’s not speaking to me. He’s livid that anyone would stop him. I mean, he’s not wrong. To know that my mate has been forcibly marked is hard to fathom; and by that piece of s**t?” Patrick shook his head. “But, thank you. This is why you’re my beta. I need someone who can make quick calls and hard decisions.”

Matthew continued smiling at him. “It’s even when I have such a good alpha to follow. However, you’re going to need to apologize big time to your men.”

Patrick winced. “How bad is it? Do I even want to know?”

“No one died, so that’s good. But, yeah, some of these guys are going to be out for a few days.”

Nodding, Patrick started to get out of the hospital bed.

“What are you doing?”

“I gotta go apologize. You just said.”

“Well, I meant once you’re fully good! You can rest and recover first!”

“No. I need to apologize and show my warriors that I appreciate them and that they come first. Besides, I’m fine. I wasn’t hurt. They were.”

Matthew marveled at his alpha as he watched the other climb out of bed and hobble out of the room. He was quick to follow and for the next hour, Patrick went into every room and asked each warrior for forgiveness at losing his cool. He even promised them a bonus for their efforts.

Matthew was constantly amazed by his friend and was always reminding him why he’d follow his alpha to the end. The guy was practically a saint and lived for his pack. He was such a stark contrast from Richard, and he hoped that his alpha could save his mate before Richard could do any more harm to her. Everyone deserved to know and feel the love Patrick offered, especially her.

Once done with his task, Patrick made it back to his room to finish sleeping. Caleb had already been informed that the next day would be devoted to getting things set up for the action Richard was holding. Patrick had to get invited. There was no other option at this point. He needed evidence of Richard’s wrong doings and that was the most perfect opportunity.

After tossing and turning for several hours, Patrick finally gave up on sleeping and buried himself in paperwork. By the time it was nearing 6 in the morning, he was ready for a break. Although he’d made a significant dent in things that had begun to pile up, his vision was beginning to blur, and he knew he needed to stop in order to avoid errors.

Patrick left his office and made his way over to the kitchens. There, a still shy Taylor greeted him.

“Alpha,” she whispered. “What can I do for you?”

Patrick smiled gently at her. “Just a cup of coffee for now, please. Thank you.”

She bobbed her head, a habit that he hadn’t gotten her to break yet, and disappeared for a moment. Patrick pursed his lips, thinking. Though she’d been a free omega for quite some time now, she still had the same timid demeanor and old habits from when she was abused. She was adjusting rather well, but there was so much he didn’t understand.

Once she came back, with his coffee in hand, and set it down in front of him, Patrick looked at her pensively.

“What’s wrong?” she asked instinctively. “I mean, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t pry.”

“I don’t mind. Actually, I’m glad you said something. Can I ask you some questions about your time before this pack?”

Taylor’s face whitened. “Uh, wh–why? I mean, y-yes. If you’d like to.”

“I don’t want to take you to a place you still fear,” Patrick began quietly. “If you don’t want to talk about it, I totally understand. I only want to do what’s comfortable for you, Taylor. Never again do you have to do something you don’t consent to, even if it’s answering questions.”

The omega bit her bottom lip and stared at the counter for a moment before asking, “What if you asked the question first and then I decide whether I want to answer?”

Patrick nodded eagerly. “Great idea. I don’t want specifics about what you had to do at your old pack. I, well, I am just curious about how you still have habits and ways of doing things as if you’re still there. I mean, you’re free now. You can do whatever you’d like within reason, and yet, I still feel like you’re holding yourself back, waiting for the backlash.”

Taylor’s eyebrows knitted together in both confusion and in thought. “I’m not sure I realized that,” she said slowly. “I guess I just grew used to how I needed to act in order to survive so that I don’t deviate just in case. My brain may logically know I’m safe, but that doesn’t mean my fight, flight, or freeze response is turned off. D–does that make sense?”

“Wow, yes it does. I guess I never thought of it like that.”

“Why ask these questions?”

Patrick smiled at her. “Well, first of all, I care about all my pack members. And I’d safe that half my pack has come from trauma inducing packs, and I’d love to be a better alpha for you and understand how to lead you without sending you back into your trauma. But also…I, uh, have a friend who’s stuck in a bad pack. I’m hoping to save her and anyone else I can, but she’s been through…a lot,” he said carefully. “So, I want to learn how to be around her without spooking her.”

Taylor nodded in comprehension. “You are a wise alpha. Being honest is key. At first, it isn’t believed, but with your actions backing up what you’re saying, I’m sure she’ll come around eventually. We all have. You’ve been so, so wonderful. More than you’ll ever know, and I’m sorry it’s taken so long to heal–”

“Please don’t apologize. Your journey is your own.”

Ducking her head down slightly, Taylor gave him a thankful though embarrassed smiled. “Thank you, Alpha,” she said quietly. “What you’re trying to do is commendable. Just remember to be patient with her. She’ll need time.”

Patrick nodded before grabbing his coffee and getting up. “Thank you very much, Taylor. I really appreciate your honesty. And, if you don’t mind, I may come back for more advice.”

“Always, Alpha,” she smiled. “Can I get you breakfast?”

“That’d be great.”

“Make it two!” Matthew shouted from the hallway, entering the room. “I’m starving.”

Taylor giggled before heading towards the kitchen where the cooking happened. The eating area and cooking area were separated by swinging doors.

“You look like s**t, Pat,” Matthew grinned.

“Thanks,” he said with a roll of his eyes.

“Didn’t sleep, huh?”

“Too much on my mind.”

Matthew nodded and pushed off from the counter. “I told Caleb to meet us at your office. He said he already did most of it, isn’t that cool? Seems like he wants to save her almost as much as you. But this means we can focus on the details and plan everything else. Once you get that invitation, it’ll be a go, and we’ll be that much closer to getting yo girl!”

Patrick remained silent. His mind was thinking the worst, and Aero wasn’t helping with his silent treatment. He needed a distraction.

“Aren’t you even a little bit excited?” Matthew asked, his enthusiasm starting to vanish.

He cleared his throat before answering. “Nothing is for certain. I can’t stop thinking about how she reacted to me. It was almost like she was repulsed or something.”

“Or maybe it was just fear. Richard is a monster. Maybe he threatened to kill whoever her real mate is. We don’t know. Don’t think the worst. Let’s just focus on getting her out.”

“Getting them all out,” Patrick murmured, reminded of the dream he had had. “I have to save them all.”

Matthew walked back with his alpha to the office, where they waited for Caleb, who arrived after they had finished eating. It took almost no time at all for Caleb to complete the fake profile using all the keywords that would ensnare Richard’s greed. Patrick was disgusted by the profile, but he knew it had to feel authentic.

It read, “35-year-old male looking for two submissive she-wolves. Brand new to gently used acceptable. One blonde, one brunette. No older than 21. Sisters would be ideal, but not a deal breaker. No price cap.”

Patrick would be posing as Brett Jacobs, a millionaire from overseas that had been living off and on in the New European countries since the war. He had belonged to a pack and was loosely affiliated with one but was mainly living the high life and traveling around.

Once Caleb had submitted the profile to the Black Web, which was the underground information communication center, it didn’t as long as Patrick thought it would to receive a notification. Caleb clicked on it, and up popped a new window on the browser.

“That was fast!” Patrick remarked.

“It’s automatic. They have a screening process that searches for keywords, and if it finds said key words, then it’ll just forward the invitation.”

“So you specifically used certain words, knowing it would trigger this?” Matthew asked.

“Yup.”

“Dang.”

Patrick stared at the computer screen, where it read, “You’ve been specially invited to a unique auction for your rare tastes. Bring a copy to show as proof at the door. Dinner included; donations always accepted. See you there!” Below was the address, which he wrote down, and they quickly printed off a copy.

Two weeks. Two weeks to practice being Brett Jacobs. Two weeks until this disgusting auction. Two weeks until, hopefully, he saved his mate.