The Golden One

An Alpha of Alphas

"Meila, stop." A hand grabs me roughly and spins me around. Hands grab my face and hold it steady so I can't wriggle free.

Michael's sparkling blue eyes pierce my own, his eyebrows crinkled showing his frown lines.

"This isn't you." He speaks calmly, his touch softening as he strokes at my cheeks.

My eyes sting and a lump forms in my throat before tears fill my eyes and fall down my cheeks. I melt into his strong body, bury my face into his chest and inhale his familiar scent. Long sobs escape my mouth as tears fall onto his shirt. He only squeezes me tighter, resting his chin on my head and rubbing my back in soothing circles.

Ayoke is still on the ground behind me, shaking and crying.

"Take her to the cells." Michael directs to Christopher and Carl. Surprisingly, they listen and scoop Ayoke off the ground before guiding her down towards the pack cells. Both Christopher and Carl look devastated as they silently walk Ayoke away from Michael and I, my face still buried in his chest.

"I-it's too m-much pain, Michael. I c-can't do this a-anymore." I sob out, my voice muffled by his chest.

Michael sighs heavily and steps back. He places a finger under my chin, pulling my head up to look him in the eye.

"You are the strongest person I've ever met." He removes his finger from my chin to wipe away the tears that are still falling.

"You can do this. And you are not alone." His voice is soft and loving. He places a light kiss on my forehead while his hands run up and down my arms.

"We have to go and speak to the others. Once we're done I'll send them away and you can shut down. But first, business." His voice is firmer, more professional. My Michael is back.

I nod, knowing he is right, and we both head up to the house to join the other Alphas and Betas.

We enter and the room silences. Eyes are trained on me, all filled with uncertainty and fear.

Minutes pass and the room is still silent. I stand at the top of the table, scanning the room.

"Where do we start?" A quiet voice come from the far side of the room, it's Alpha Caesar's Beta, Toni.

"For starters, anyone associated with traitors should leave." An Alpha speaks from my left, directing it at Toni. The statement is met with nods and whispers.

"No." It slips from my mouth without even realising and everyone looks at me.

"They can't be trusted!" He snaps back at me and my glare falls to him.

"I said no." I growl at him, eyes flickering between red to my normal hazel.

"Your judgment is poor, look at what happened when you trusted that Seer." He talks through gritted teeth and my body tenses at his comment.

"People deserve to be given the benefit of the doubt. If people are met with hostility it only creates and breeds the hostility and retaliation we fear in the first place." I try to regain my composure. Standing tall, I look over the crowd of Alphas and Betas in front of me. Carl has just joined, his eyes filled with sorrow, but Christopher has still not returned.

"We are about to engage in a war for the survival of our species. The Elite want to play god and kill off anyone they see fit. No one should have that power. We must stand together, united, if we have any hope of surviving this fight. If anyone is not entirely sure they are fighting on the right side then you can leave now." I let my words sink in, people fidget and shift thinking about what I have said.

Alpha Alaric stands at the opposite end of the table from me. I've not really spoken with him. He is quiet and reserved but quite clearly very powerful and very well respected.

"In a room full of leaders, we need one strong enough to lead us all. One to unite us." His deep voice travels around the room causing Alphas to sit taller in their seats.

Alpha Alaric walks slowly around the table, eyes never leaving mine. When he stands next to me, his eyes roll over my body and back up to my eyes. He doesn't make me uncomfortable as it doesn't feel like a hungry stare or a lustful stare. It actually feels respectful.

Sighing deeply, he kneels in front of me and exposes his neck, submitting to me. Sharp inhales of breaths can be heard around the room at his submission. His Beta quickly follows suit, along with Carl and Michael. A wave of submissions fall before me until every man in the room is on his knees for me, necks exposed.

My mouth drops slightly looking around and I notice Christopher has returned and is kneeling next to Carl. He flashes me a soft smile although it looks like he's been crying.

Alaric snaps me back to the moment by standing and taking my hand in his before raising it to his mouth and placing a soft kiss on the top of it.

"An Alpha of Alphas." He smiles at me. I smile and nod back.

"Let's begin."

The meeting rolls on for hours, with us discussing next steps and preparations to be made. Some packs were experiencing disappearances and it is now suspected to be The Elite and their diseased rogues. As their attack on Carl's pack had been unsuccessful with four bites in total and now all are cured, we agreed they must have came up with another plan to infect pack members.

It is agreed that packs are to be on lockdown, training increased and supplies doubled and stored in case of long drawn out fights. Each pack will receive a supply of my blood as it is proven to heal the infected.

As it now appears to be a species wide problem, Alphas will reach out to contacts across the world to find out if they are affected. This has to be done subtly of course, as members of The Elite could be hiding in plain sight.

Once everything is agreed, everyone packs their things and leaves. There is no time to waste to get ready for what is to come. Without Ayoke, we don't know what the future holds or when it will happen.

After the last Alpha thanks me and leaves, I slump into my chair and hold my head in my hands. Michael sits beside me resting a hand on my shoulder, rubbing his thumb backwards and forwards. Christopher watches on, not making comment or noise, knowing I need all the comfort I can get.

Holding back tears, I stand and thank the three most important men in my life and leave the room. Hurriedly, I walk to the sanctuary of my bedroom.

I close the door softly behind me and lean against it, letting out heavy breaths as tears stream down my cheeks. I quickly strip off my clothes and head for the shower, hoping the hot water will wash away some of today's hurt and sadness.

It doesn't.

Leaning my head on the glass, tears continue to fall as my mind flicks through newly found memories of my childhood.

Blood draining, pain testing, torture and beatings.

My wolf cries inside me as I relive my pain and suffering. She came to me so young because I was suffering, she saved me but she couldn't save me from the hurt before her.

I squeeze my eyes shut trying to force away the memories. Life was easier when I didn't remember.

My ears prick up at the sound of a heated conversation coming from outside the bedroom door.

"Here, you are her mate, not a Beta. I am the Beta and I am well within my rights to ask you to do something." Michael's voice is strained, like he's holding back his frustration.

"I'm fine with taking your instructions, Michael, it's you taking advantage of my mate that I have a problem with." Christopher snaps back at him. I roll my eyes.

"Pfft! Taking advantage? You were going to let her kill Ayoke. I had to do something! That's not who she is, who she's destined to be." Michael's frustration is clear now as his voice raises slightly.

"She can make her own choices. I won't control her." Christopher's voice rises to match Michael's volume.

"It's not about control, it's about understanding her. She doesn't make snap decisions in anger unlike you, she needed to be reminded of that. If she had killed her she would have never forgave herself. And you were just going to let it happen." I hear a thud as Michael finishes his sentence and an angry growl from Christopher.

"You need to back off! She's not your girlfriend anymore!" Christopher snaps back and I hear more thuds and struggles.

I quickly wrap myself in a towel before making my way to the door. Before I can reach it I'm stopped by Michael's words.

"I know she isn't my girlfriend anymore but she was the best damn thing that ever happened to me. Just because she is your mate doesn't mean I've stopped caring about her. It doesn't mean I've stopped loving her!"

I slowly open the door and take in the scene before me.

Michael has Christopher pinned against the wall, arm across his throat, while Christopher is gripping on the arm that has him pinned, trying to release it. Both look at me standing in the doorway wrapped in only a towel, hair dripping wet and face emotionless.

Their eyes fall to the floor as they separate and stand away from each other.

I have no words. No words for Michael's declaration, no words for Christopher's jealousy and no words for them picking a fight with each other when so much other s**t is going on.

"M, we jus—" I don't let Michael finish before closing the door and returning to the shower. Once again stepping into scolding hot water, trying to wash away my sins.

I hear the bedroom door open and shut again and Christopher appears in the bathroom doorway, standing sheepishly.

"I'm sorry about that." He says while scratching his neck. I ignore him, shut off the shower and wrap myself in a towel again before brushing passed him and heading for the bed.

"I just get jealous. I don't know..." He sighs as I tug on my pyjamas and slide into bed.

"You two are the least of my worries." My voice is cold and I don't look at him, choosing to curl up and cuddle into a pillow.

"Do you need anything?" He asks quietly, walking to the side of the bed and kneeling to face me.

"I want to be alone." My voice continues to be void of emotion. A numbness has spread through me as I try to push away the overwhelming memories of my tortured past and my recent betrayal. Christopher reaches out his hand and rests it on my cheek, stroking it softly.

"Don't push me away, sunshine. I'm here for you." His voice is soft and filled with sadness. I sigh into his touch.

"I want to be alone to process everything. Please." I can't bring myself to look at him and roll away.

He stands and sighs heavily then walks to the door and leaves.

Once the doors shut, the tears fall again and they don't stop falling all night long.

...

Each day passes and I don't leave my room. And each day I shower, I change and I lay in bed sifting through my traumatic memories trying to understand them, trying to find clues to help us in the future.

People visit and I don't talk much. Carl has tried to cheer me up even though his pain is evident. I think he really liked Ayoke and was starting to fall for her.

Christopher comes in and lies next to me, talking about random things to take my mind off the pain. I cuddle in to him but my mind is fixed only on the trauma that has resurfaced. His pain is clear too. He has dark bags under his eyes and he seems like a shadow of himself even when we talk about normal things. Ayoke wasn't a close friend but she is the cause of his suffering also. After an hour or so each day I ask him to leave, exhausted by pretending to be ok.

Michael stops by to discuss pack business. Since I overheard his argument with Christopher he has been overly professional, again, probably embarrassed that I heard it all.

And Geoffrey stops in every breakfast, lunch and dinner. I pick at the food while having little chats with him. He is the easiest to talk to since he is the most detached from everything.

It's been almost a week since everything happened. Messages are coming in from the Alphas to say the disease has spread overseas. It has reached four out of the six continents we inhabit (there are no werewolves in Antarctica, surprise surprise).

Ayoke is still locked up. I can't bring myself to see her or decide what to do with her. Of course I'm not going to sentence her to death, my rage had taken over me that day and Michael was right; that's not who I am.

The bedroom door swings open, tearing me out of my thoughts, and Michael enters, determination across his face. He doesn't speak but struts over to the window, opening the curtains and causing the sun to beat down onto me. I hide myself under the covers and groan in displeasure.

I feel the covers rip from the bed and hide myself into a ball, covering my eyes. His strong arms wrap around me, lift me up and swing me over his shoulder.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" I snap at him, using my fists to bang on his back.

"You are not wallowing anymore." His voice is curt and matter of fact. I squirm on his shoulder, kicking my legs and growling angrily.

He marches us passed pack members in the house who raise an eyebrow at the commotion. Christopher sits up from the sofa where he's been sleeping, rubs his eyes and frowns at us.

I kick and scream all the way down to the training field but Michael ignores my protests. He drops me heavily on the ground in front of him and removes his shirt.

"What the hell is this?! I'm in my damn pyjamas you d**k!" I stand and dust myself off, checking for anyone who might be watching our altercation. Thankfully the field is completely empty.

"You need to train. You need to channel your anger and pain." He stretches out his arms and walks around the circle. The morning sun shines down on his rippled muscles. Goddamn it, he's been working out.

"I don't want to f*****g train." I turn to leave but he grabs my arm and pulls me back.

"You can leave this circle after you've beaten me, not before." A cheeky glint shines in his eyes.

"I'm the f*****g Alpha. I will do as I please." I complain, stamping my feet in protest.

He lunges forward and lands a heavy punch on my shoulder. I yelp in pain and the ball of rage that consumed me almost a week ago returns.

My body roars into action, lunging at him and landing punch after punch on his chest and stomach. He blocks some and returns punches, hitting me hard in the ribs and abdomen.

Allowing the rage to flow out of me was already clearing the cloud that is fogging my brain. Each punch, kick and attack I feel more like myself. More in control, more aware, more alive.

Michael swipes a kick at my chest, knocking me off balance and causing me to stumble backwards. He chuckles at his successful hit, but it only stokes the fire inside me.

I growl loudly and slide to the floor, swiping the legs from under him so he lands with a heavy thud. I chuckle as he swears before he reaches for me, drags me towards him and pins me down.

I wriggle under him and push myself free, rolling him over and landing a few hard hits on his face. He grabs my arm and pulls it back causing a loud crunch and a whimper from me.

"You've been slacking." His breathing is heavy as he speaks. Cracking my shoulder back into place, I swing my arm around and land a weighty punch across his jaw. He lets out a pained laugh at my response to his comment.

Still kneeling over him and holding him down, I notice Christopher and Carl running from the pack house out of the corner of my eye. It is enough to distract me and allow Michael to flip me onto my back, him kneeling on top of me, a wrist in each of his hands held above my head.

He leans down towards me, not realising Christopher's proximity, eyes staring deep into mine and I notice a hint of lust. Sadly, this used to be a kind of foreplay for us and it's been a while since we've fought together, he is clearly lost in the moment.

Growls and shouts come from behind us as Christopher approaches. I feel his anger pulse through me before a stab of pain hits my head.

Christopher yells suddenly and drops to his knees. I push Michael off me and run to him as he growls and whines on all fours. Before I can reach him, he lets out a pained shout, his body tenses before he lunges forward, shifting into his wolf.

I slow as I reach him, mouth hanging open, taking in the sight in front of me.

Stood before me is Christopher's wolf, fur as dark as the night and standing taller than any wolf I'd seen before, apart from myself. He shakes his head, seeming confused and disorientated. I step forward with my hand outstretched.

Christopher?

The mind link seems to calm him as his eye line snaps to meet mine. My hand makes contact with his forehead and he leans into me, bowing his head and nuzzling it into my stomach.

Michael has made his way to stand just behind us, his arms crossed and face scrunched into a frown. Christopher's attention shifts to him, growling and snarling in his direction. Michael's eyes narrow and his arms fall to his sides, fists clenched.

Before I realise what's happening, Christopher has lunged passed me and Michael has jumped forward, shifting into his wolf. I fall to the floor, eyes wide watching them roll around in a blur of fur and teeth.

Well f**k. This isn't going to end well.