The Beast's Blind Serenity

Alpha Kane’s POV “Kane, are you ready to go?” My first Beta, Axel, said as he leans against my open-door frame of my suite. With his lean, muscular arms crossed over his chest, he watched me with an amused expression on his face. I throw random clothes into a duffle bag with more force than necessary. I go to my walk-in closet, pull out the suits I never wear and throw them into a garment bag. I am even more irritated when I walk out and see Axel still standing there… f*****g smirking! A low growl escapes my lips, but he just chuckles with a slight head shake. “What!” I said, throwing the garment bag and duffle onto my king-size bed with my entire wolf force, making them bounce off and land on the floor. Axel pressed his lips into a tight line. “Nothing, just watching you throw a hissy fit over our little trip is amusing,” he said. I roll my eyes; he is lucky we have been best friends since we were pups, or I would have slit his throat for mocking me. It is my least favorite time of the year, the annual Alpha Summit. Five days of pompous Alphas, self-righteous Betas and snobby Lunas meeting together to discuss their packs and to just show off who’s got the biggest d**k. At the summits, I am treated like a prize bull at an auction house. Many alphas go to great lengths to form an alliance with me. The Devil’s Mountain pack is the strongest, most powerful warrior pack in the States. Our standing and wealth are only second to the Royal Pack. My pack would raise the other alpha’s status with the king. Alphas throw their unmarked daughters at me as if that would please me. I always find the she-wolves in my room, naked, cowering in the corner, their faces twisted in fearful displeasure at my presence. I evaded the last five annual summits until the king got word of my absence. When King Elijah Galante found out, he commanded me to make an appearance at the next Alpha Summit in Crescent Moon and to quote “have fun.” “Come on Kane! All the Alphas and Betas have fun at these parties. It’s a great reason to dress up. You could make some friends, or even allies. You may even meet a mate who would tolerate that ugly mug of yours!” he laughed. I f*****g hate him. His royal highness of an asshat is lucky he’s the king, and I’m forced to tolerate him. Even my mother was harping on me about the Alpha Summit. Our last conversation over the phone was more of a scolding than a conversation. “Try to pretend to be civil with the other alphas. Fake it until you make it, son. How would you make friends if you didn’t try?” I pinched the bridge of my nose in irritation. “Mother, I have friends.” I said, feeling like a child. I am 32 years old, for f**k’s sake. “Oh Right… Tweetle Dee and Tweetle Dumber don’t count. They’re your betas.” She scoffed. I try to hide my amusement because she doesn’t know my two betas are sitting across from me while she’s on speaker. “Mother, that isn’t very Luna Regent of you to say.” “Well, no one is around, so I can speak freely…” Completely clueless, she continued with her scolding. “At least try to find your true mate. That’s the real reason you must go to these meetings and parties. Your Luna is out there waiting for you. I just know it.” “Mother, please, I…” I start to say but am cut off. “Listen to me very carefully,” her tone suddenly felt like ice. “Find her NOW or the Elders will find one for you! We have held them off for too long already. A bunch of old buzzards! They think just because they are close to the royal family, that gives them power… They ruined one life; I won’t have them ruin another.” I sigh because I know she is right. The Elders chose my mother’s mate. Now… he’s dead. Like dark shadows, the unwanted thoughts begin to creep in. Knowing where my mind is heading, my mother’s voice turns gentle. “You are nothing like that man. You saved me. Remember that. Please try to find your true mate. It is never too late.” What mother doesn’t understand is that I will never have a mate. She forgets my obvious flaw, but others don’t. I am tired of the way women look at my appearance with disgust, the fear I smell off them, the avoidance in their eyes. In the end, I know my mate will reject me. “Where’s Graham? He’s supposed to be letting me know of the itinerary for this week.” Looking down at my packed bags, I scowl with a grumpy expression. All the suits are in a rumpled heap. Axel snorts out laughing. “His d**k has probably taken over his brain again.” f*****g Graham. He’s my second beta in command. Prominent leader, i***t man w***e. “I’ll see if I can mind-link him. If not, I’ll call him.” Axel said before walking out of my suite. I walk into my private bathroom to finish packing up my toiletries when I catch my appearance in the mirror above the marble sink. I am over 6 foot 7 in height and my body is broad, like a muscular tank. My arms are impressively muscular and covered in full-sleeve tattoos. My shoulder-length jet-black hair needs a haircut, but it’s my eyes and scars that I truly focus on. I see nothing but a dull dead life behind the deep blue irises. My father’s blue eyes look back at me, a reminder of who I am - the son of the madman. The alpha I murdered. The scars on my face and body are a badge of my father’s attempt to kill me when I was a child. The deep ugly gashes cut from one side of my face, across my nose and lips, to the lower part of my jawbone. While another set of scars run across my right shoulder, down my chest and across my abdomen. My wolf, Volter, comes to the surface; his glowing red eyes replace mine. We regard ourselves with such contempt, noticing only our imperfections. His scars mirror my own across his muzzle and left eye. His rugged, coarse fur is pitch black as my hair. I look away from my reflection when the shame and anger take over. The words of my father come back to me again. “You are a worthless little bastard! How f*****g dare you! I should have killed you when you took your first breath as a baby! Just die!” ‘YES BABY! f**k ME! OH! GODDESS YES!!! HARDER!’ The sound of aroused screams came through my mind, pushing my father’s words away. Graham opened the mind-link. The repeated slapping sounds of skin against skin echoed through. The horrifying rhythm sent a wave of revulsion through me. Axel snarls through the link. ‘What are you thinking?’ ‘I’m thinking p***y ain’t bad, but the mouth… Meh, it was better when it was plugged with my c**k!’ Graham shares. ‘The opening Moon ball is tonight, and the rest of the week there will be meetings, conferences, guest speakers and special dinners. A couple of small packs asked if they could pay for some training. They’re having rogue issues. I put Zack and Bane in charge of that. Oh, I was able to secure a meeting with the CEO of Cliffe Enterprises!!’ The female dramatically screams in the background, and I try to tune her out. I’m focused on the prospect of finally making a business connection with the head of the Rizzuto family. We were looking to upgrade our military facilities, and the construction alone was going to cost a fortune. His nephew recently took over after his uncle passed away. No one knows anything about him except he is more ruthless in the business world than his uncle was. ‘What’s the new CEO’s name?’ I asked. A few grunts of pleasure, then the woman screams, “YES!” before Graham answers. ‘No idea. Was told to call him Mr. Rizzuto. Warren, his personal assistant, said he would meet with us at their Cliffe Enterprise building about two hours outside the Crescent Moon Pack on Wednesday at 10 am and don’t be late.’ ‘Anything else?’ Axel asked. Graham sighs. ‘Yeah… He said the CEO doesn’t take personal meetings, so we should feel privileged. He usually leaves it up to his staff. But Warren warned me, - Early is on time, on time is late, and late… Well, don’t bother showing up. So, I suggest we get there by 8 or 9 if we want this meeting. We can’t f**k up this deal. We won’t get another chance.’ I closed the mind link and took my bags to the elevator. When I reached the first floor, two omegas greet me before taking my things to the waiting vehicles that were parked out front of the main seven-story packhouse. Graham comes out of the front double doors, zipping up his pants. He looks around and spots Axel. “Yo! Axel! Where’s your hubby? Thought he was coming too.” Axel smiled. “Jasper is in the Alpha Office, looking over the patrol duty schedule for the week. He’s staying to monitor the pack with a few of our high-ranking officers. He’s the most qualified to run this pack besides Kane.” “Kiss ass…” Graham mutters under his breath. Axel leaps onto him for a playful spar. The two play-fight with each other in the snow, trying to get the other in a choke hold. “Try to avoid Axel’s face. That’s my favorite part.” A large menacing shadow comes up behind me. I turned to see Jasper stepping off of the front porch, glaring at Graham. His military boots crunching in the heavy snow as he walks towards his mate. Graham smirks, releasing Axel with a playful shove. “Oh, really? Jasp, I thought your favorite part would be Axel’s assho…” In one swift motion, Jasper punches Graham squarely in the gut, making him buckle onto his knees with a groan. Taking Axel into his arms, Jasper kisses him on the forehead and whispers something into his ear. Axel’s face blushes beet red. Both men are looking into each other’s eyes, completely forgetting Graham is gasping for air on the ground beside them. A pang of jealousy seeps into a small crack of my dead heart watching the exchange. A mate bond is something I will never have. The Beast of Devil’s Mountain doesn’t deserve love. ‘What about if we find our mate? She will want us!’ Volt’s words are always the same. Our mate, our mate. I wish he would have given it up already. ‘Volt, our mate won’t want us; just give up on that mate bullshit already.’ I said, but he just huffs at me before closing off our connection. Ready to get a move-on, I command attention from everyone. “Warriors! We got about a three-hour drive to the Crescent Moon Pack. Divide yourselves up between the vehicles. Beta Axel, Beta Graham and I will be in the front SUV. Mind-link if you have any issues. Understood?!” A unison shout of “YES! ALPHA!” rang out.