The Rejection Contract

The Agreement

It had been a whole year since Alisha Guillaume left. One year since the incident that saw her father, Alpha Guillaume, rise with rage and promptly demand for her temporary leave from the Lunoir pack. A whole year. Alisha didn’t exactly know what to expect when she returned back home, she could feel anxiety sparking in her nerves as she watched the trees thin out the closer she got to the pack house. It had been a year since the last time she had seen or heard from her family, the program she had been put on prohibited any contact with family beyond weekly letters and monthly care packages that were thoroughly examined for any items that they considered contraband. A whole year.

Alisha didn’t know how to feel as the car pulled up the driveway of the familiar white mansion. However, the last thing she had expected was to see her family standing right at the door, awaiting her arrival; her father stood tall, his tan skin seemed nearly golden in the harsh afternoon sun and she could already feel his severe gaze through the tinted windows of the car and knew the gold flecks in his hazel eyes were burning into her silhouette. Beside her father, Alisha spotted her mum, Luna Saloni, who looked as ethereal as ever as her dark skin contrasted smoothly with her white sari, her long straight black hair billowing gracefully in the wind as she raced to the approaching vehicle, glowing with gaiety much to the annoyance of her father. Alisha noticed her mum was not alone as her siblings followed behind her, Carina nearly barreling their mum as she did so, with Ranbir following closely behind, running with Aarav in his arms.

‘Alisha!’ Alisha barely had time to catch her footing when her felt her mum wrap her arms around her, hugging her tight. ‘I miss you so much.’ She said, pulling back to kiss her forehead, her dark coffee eyes glistening when she pulled her back in for another hug.

‘I miss you too mum.’ Alisha smiled, her eyes watering slightly in the familiar warm embrace.

‘Our turn!’ The chorus behind her said. Alisha’s mother released her and her siblings suffocated her into a bone crushing hug; Carina’s short arms wrapped around her torso, Ranbir’s lanky arms wrapped around her shoulders and Aarav wrapped his pudgy little arms around her neck. 

‘I missed you Ali!’ Aarav said. ‘Look! I got big and strong.’

‘Yes, yes, I can feel you crushing my neck.’ Alisha huffed.

‘I missed you too Ali…but not that much.’ Ranbir said.

‘Ranbir is lying! He slept with your blade under his pillow every night!’ Aarav giggled.

‘I did not!’ Ranbir cried. Alisha winced at the yelling in her ear.

‘He totally did!’ Carina laughed.

‘Oh yeah? Well what about you?! You cried for a month when she left!’ Ranbir exclaimed.

‘I did not! He’s lying Ali!’ Carina said.

‘Okay, okay I love you guys too but I can’t…can’t breathe.’ Alisha wheezed. She knew how to handle the weight of a grown human woman but the weight of three pups was slowly crushing her. Carina and Ranbir let go but Aarav still clung to her neck, his grip loosening slightly as she scooped him in her hands.

‘Alpha Guillaume.’ All of them turned their attention to the driver who had gotten out of the car and was now kneeling before her father, head bowed in reverence. Alisha swallowed, she hadn’t heard the man get out of the car and now she felt her face grow hot in embarrassment, fingers trembling slightly as she put Aarav down; she rushed to join the man, mimicking his position. It was one of the most basic things she ought to have done, man, she had barely been back for five minutes and she was already unintentionally disrespecting her father.

‘Father.’ Alisha said. 

‘You may rise.’ Her father said, his baritone heavy with silent approval. Alisha was hesitant to look up at first but slowly got up, squaring her shoulders and fixing her gaze on her father’s when she heard his heavy footsteps make their way towards her. It wasn’t a silent challenge, rather an acknowledgement; there was a quiet respect Alphas reserved for one another and even though he was her father, Alisha treated him no different than she would have treated any other Alpha, especially when she was considered a guest on his pack territory.

Alpha Guillaume was a tower of a man with a bulky build and although his daughter did not inherit his height or build, she took an impressive amount of space when standing next to her father; both Alphas exuding the same dominating air that made the other wolves around them squirm in discomfort.

‘I’m glad you are back.’ Her father said, a small smile on his lips.

‘I’m glad to be back.’ Alisha said, offering a small smile back. Then her father reached out his hand towards her and she took it, both clasping their hands around their forearms with a firm greeting squeeze.

‘Thank you.’ Her father said, turning to the driver. The driver nodded before turning back to the car to offload the luggage. Her father turned his attention back to her with a soft smile on his lips. ‘Welcome back. We have much to discuss.’

*     *      *        

It had been a few hours since she arrived and Alisha after taking a warm shower and changing into a comfortable set of black joggers, a simple black fitted shirt and white sneakers, began pacing her room. Alisha couldn’t help it, once she found out that there was going to be a celebratory party being thrown in her honour, she immediately felt a rush of excitement wash through her because she couldn’t remember the last time she was at a proper party – she couldn’t wait to meet her old friends and catch up with them and eat something else except f*****g deer stew for the first time in a year. She could already smell the spicy aroma of her mum’s famous chicken curry wafting through the house and she was tempted to skip downstairs and sneak into the kitchen to have a taste – unfortunately for her, Alisha was ordered to stay out of sight until she was properly reintroduced to the pack.

‘Who’s there?’ Alisha asked at the knock at her door.

‘It’s me.’ Ranbir said.

‘Come in.’ Alisha said, turning back to drying her damp curls.

‘Damn man, why are we wearing the same outfit?’ Ranbir asked. Alisha turned to look at her brother and scoffed. Ranbir inherited their father’s height but their mum’s build, giving him a tall yet skinny frame and all his clothes seemed to hang off his body; his black ripped jeans, black leather jacket and black shirt fit loose but it was a look that worked in his favour with his deep bronze skin and curly jet black hair that was now cut into a tapered fade – he looked more like a little rock star with his black combat boots, black painted nails and thin layer of black liner under his dark eyes.

‘Please. Don’t insult me. Obviously I look better.’ Alisha smirked.

‘Aha, still a basic b***h, I see.’ Ranbir said sarcastically.

‘Takes one to know one.’ Alisha said, laughing as she dodged the pillow he tossed her way.

‘I hate you.’

‘Join the club, you’re not the only one.’ Alisha said with a humourless chuckle. Ranbir squinted up at his sister and after a slight pause said:

‘He doesn’t hate you, you know?’ It was a statement, not a question and Alisha wondered how Ranbir could speak with so much confidence – it’s not like he didn’t know their father and what he was like and how he could be like, especially when it came to Alisha in particular.

‘Ah yes. Didn’t you see how excited he was to see me?’ Alisha said sarcastically.

‘You know how he can be sometimes.’ Ranbir said with a slight wave. Yeah, she knew. Which is exactly why Alisha did not believe that her father didn’t hate her or was still upset with her at the very least. ‘Besides, he’s been under a lot of pressure.’

‘Is that news for an Alpha?’ Alisha asked with a roll of her eyes. Of course being an Alpha is stressful and if it wasn’t, that probably meant the Alpha in question was doing a piss poor job.

‘No. I mean, he’s been really stressed out.’ Ranbir said. ‘I think it’s because we have a lot of new pack members this year.’ He said, tapping his chin thoughtfully. ‘But I’m not sure.’ He shrugged, falling back on Alisha’s bed.

‘How many new members joined?’ Alisha asked.

‘I don’t know. Maybe a hundred or two hundred or something?’ Ranbir shrugged. ‘Somewhere in the hundreds.’

Alisha whistled.

‘That’s a lot of wolves.’ She said.

‘I know! There are so many!’ Ranbir exclaimed.

‘Come in.’ Alisha called to the door at the rather aggressive knock – which she knew couldn’t be none other than Carina – echoed through her room.

‘What are we the matching triplets now?’ Carina said, pausing in the door way sizing both Alisha and Ranbir up and down; she had worn a simple black spaghetti strap sun dress with adorable white daisies printed on it and matching white sneakers as well.

‘Oh goddess no, now you’ll both have to change.’ Ranbir said.

‘No.’ Alisha and Carina answered in unison. Alisha was not about to change out of these clothes, they were warm, comfy and she was just too lazy to be bothered.

‘Why do we have to change? Why can’t you change?’ Carina huffed, crossing her arms over her chest.

‘Because I’m the cool one who wears all black.’ Ranbir said. The expression on Carina’s face was one that sent bubbles of laughter up Alisha’s throat and out her mouth, she couldn’t help but laugh at as the girl looked as though Ranbir has personally slighted her with his remark that he was the cool one – she looked completely scandalized by the mere thought of it.

‘Anyway,’ Carina turning away from Ranbir ‘I came to tell you that dad is calling you to the board.’

‘Oh, okay.’ Alisha said, suddenly feeling a biting uneasiness course through her. ‘Did he say what it was about?’ Alisha asked. Carina shook her head and Alisha couldn’t help but recall what her father had said to her when she arrived:

‘We have much to discuss’

What more would they have to discuss? Alisha had done everything he had wanted her to do and she had just gotten back from the hellhole, she wanted to simply enjoy the night, to at least have this one night before he father was back to his old antics again. But no. A few hours in and she is already being called to the board. Alisha sighed as she finished dying the last sections of her hair and put her dryer down, turning to the door.

‘Alright, both of you, out.’ Alisha said, shooing her siblings out of her room. She locked the door and made her way up the stairs to the topmost floor of the house to the board room, knocking on the door once.

‘Come in.’ Alisha heard her father call. She stepped inside, shutting the door behind her.

‘I was told you wanted to see me?’ Alisha said. Her father sat in the chair at the far end of the large oak table that stretched across the span of the room. The table was laid bare, only punctuated by the intricate map that sat at the center which pack warriors and the Alpha sat and tarried for hours on end, discussing everything from the formation of new packs, expansion of pack boarders and even decide and monitor which boarders and quarters were safe for wolves from the Lunoir pack as well as monitor any break outs or potential civil unrest among the numerous wolf packs within the different territories. Alisha had been coming to this room since she was thirteen, her father deeming it necessary as she was next in line for the seat of Alpha, he said it was vital for her to know this room as intimately as she knew the back of her hand.

‘Yes. Please.’ He said, gesturing to the seat at his right. Alisha said beside him and he looked…tired. It was strange to see her father’s face fold in a manner that betrayed his years but his weary expression, coupled with his naturally stern countenance, made her question the saying ‘black don’t crack’ and ‘wolves don’t wither’ – she could see her father withering and cracking under the pressure of being an Alpha and she silently hoped to the dear goddess she would never end up like that.

‘Is everything okay?’ Alisha asked. It was a stupid question but she asked nonetheless. Her father never called her into this room unless it was to do some strategy training, map studying or simply if there was a problem. The last time she was here, Alisha soon found herself shipped off to another to that godforsaken place…but maybe this wasn’t the case, maybe everything was fine, she could be hopeful – right?

‘No.’ He father answered flatly.

Damnit!

‘Okay…so what’s wrong?’ Alisha asked.

‘For the last year, the pack has seen an exponential growth rate which is a great thing.’ He paused and rubbed his fingers over his eyes.

‘But?’ Alisha asked. There was a ‘but’ somewhere, she could just sense it.

‘But the problem is that our resources are spread very thin.’ He said. ‘As you know, being able to take care of a pack means being able to take care of all the members in it and we have created a safe space for all the wolves of the Lunoir pack. We provide them with good shelter, good business and good schools where they can live with their own kind if they chose to.’ He said.

Alisha nodded but something didn’t add up. See, as much as a pack is supposed to provide for its members, its members also provide for the pack; any person who is a part of a pack and has an income of any kind is taxed accordingly to cater to the whole pack; those who earn higher wages are taxed higher than those that don’t but they still have the same basic benefits and need covered for them by the pack – they go to the same wolf schools, have access to good food, a standard car and apartment and luxuries and excesses are up to the individual person who can afford them. An influx of new members would mean an influx of new sources of finances and a richer pack so…why are the resources being spread thin?

‘But wouldn’t new members mean more money to fix this issue?’ Alisha asked. Her father gave a dry laugh.

‘Money is not the main problem here Alisha. It’s land.’ Her father said. ‘Most of the land our pack owns is forest land. Forest land that hasn’t been desecrated and land that we must maintain that way. We can’t use our land to build properties or schools or hospitals for houses for our own kind.’ Her father said. Oh…now Alisha could see the problem.

‘I see.’ Alisha said. ‘Is there any way we could...change this?’ Alisha asked.

‘Yes. We have two options: either expel some pack members or gain land by coming to an agreement with another pack.’ Her father said. Alisha knew that her father would not expel any wolves from the pack, the idea of expelling members from your pack is not only humiliating as it implies that the Alpha of the pack isn’t capable of taking care of his members but it is also shameful because there will be many wolves left stranded and packless, defenseless and exposed to the mercy of whatever is out there from rogues, to human hunters and other preternatural creatures that aren’t particularly fond of wolves – not to mention the potential for future problems in the event one of those expelled members choses to claim retribution for being wrongfully expelled from the pack. The only other option they had was the second.

‘What kind of agreement?’ Alisha asked.

‘A union between the two packs.’ He said. Alisha felt her blood run cold.

‘By union you mean…a marriage?’ Alisha asked, trying and failing to keep the shock from her tone as she spoke.

‘Yes. A marriage.’ He said. ‘And not just any marriage, a marriage between the two Alphas of the packs.’ He added. Alisha felt her heart stop when it occurred to her what her father was asking. A marriage? A marriage to another pack? A marriage? Alisha could feel her pulse rise, she could hear it thundering in her ears as her mind reeled in disbelief. Alisha didn’t want to get married. For f***s sake she’s seventeen! She wasn’t even the proper Alpha of her pack yet and her father was proposing that she gets married to some complete stranger on account of pack politics?!

‘I…’ Alisha found in hard to breathe, the news had literally knocked the wind out of her and she could feel her lungs burning for oxygen as though she had been submerged under for too long but she remained frozen in her seat, unresponsive.

‘Alisha, my child.’ Alisha snapped her attention towards her father when she felt a large warm had clasp her own. ‘You know I would never make you do anything you do not want to do.’ He said. But Alisha didn’t know. She didn’t trust the man before her to truly and freely give her that option at all. If anything she felt trapped; if she didn’t agree to this then the pack she had known and loved for her whole life would fall apart before she even had the chance to lead it and make life better for those within it and if she did agree to go through with this, that would mean that she was obligated to marry a complete stranger for the betterment of their packs and Alisha didn’t know if she could truly live with that.

There was a large part of Alisha that wanted to turn to her father and cuss him out for putting her in this position but a larger part of her knew that it wouldn’t solve anything. Whether she liked it or not, Alisha knew it was her duty as an Alpha to take up this responsibility for the betterment of her pack; she couldn’t abandon them nor could she watch them be destroyed. If anyone was the one to make this sacrifice to make this gabble, it would be her, the future leader of the Lunoir pack.

‘Does…does anyone else know about this?’ Alisha asked.

‘No. But –’

‘– Good. Then I’ll agree to this if you promise that this stays between us. That’s all I want in return. Silence.’ Alisha said. Alisha had a feeling that it would be better if no one else knew because she was certain that if her mum found out about what she was agreeing to, she would never permit it, she would probably try to stop it completely and she didn’t want to break her mum’s heart.

‘When will I have to be married?’ Alisha asked. A part of her still managing to remain astonished as she heard the words leave her lips.

‘Once you are of age to take over the Lunoir pack.’ Her father said. That’s in a years’ time and she’ll be eighteen by then. Alisha nodded.

‘Okay.’

‘Alisha, are you sure about this?’ Her father asked.

‘Yes. My pack and the well-being of my pack are my responsibility. As an Alpha, my duty to my pack comes first and I will do whatever it takes to ensure that they are cared for.’ Alisha said, her voice monotone drawl as she spoke. Her father had a talent for leaving her feeling completely and utterly drained, she hadn’t even been back a full day yet and the man had already managed to leave her feeling completely hallow.

Alisha’s father stared at her for a long moment. Alisha stared back, her gaze steely and unwavering. With his hand still clasped on her own, her gave a gentle squeeze and said:

‘You have spoken like a true Alpha.’

For a moment there, Alisha thought that she had caught the hum of approval in his tone and she hated the fact that hearing those words actually made something inside her twist with warmth because he actually, almost, sounded…proud of her.

‘Is that all?’ Alisha asked. Her father nodded and smiled.

‘That is all. Prepare yourself to enjoy the evening festivities. After all, we are celebrating your return.’ He said. Alisha felt numb as she rose to leave the room. What the hell? What the hell did she just agree to? A marriage? A marriage? A marriage to a complete stranger?  Who the hell would she even get married to? Did she even get to choose who it was or was her father to make that decision for her? Alisha felt as though she had just been hit with a silver bullet, her mind reeling once more and she wanted, no, she needed some space, she needed fresh air, she needed to breathe. Alisha needed to be outside, she needed to go to the forest, she needed to run and get all this restless energy out.

Alisha had been so caught up in her thoughts she hadn’t even realized that she had passed her bedroom door or made it down the flight of stairs. She hadn’t realized the slight bounce in her step as her walking pace increased and she only vaguely caught wind of some delicious vanilla scent lingering nearby. Alisha’s mind was so crowded, so filled with thoughts of the solace in the serenity of the forest that she didn’t notice herself walking too close to the man with the tray of moonshine glasses until it was too late, he swerved sharply and next thing she knew, she was felt a weight crash right into her, a sea of red flashing before her eyes as her entire body startled with the brusque zap of sparks that lit up her whole system. It was a sensation she had never felt before but one she had heard described to her enough times for her to immediately pinpoint what exactly it was.

It was her mate.

FUCK!