The Beta's Blood: Rewritten

Chapter Twenty One

Ace didn’t wake to the shrill chirp of her alarm. Because her grandmother beat her to it. Jean had crept into her room before dawn, quiet as a cat. Stubborn as only an old she-wolf could be and slipped the phone off the nightstand. Alpha’s orders, she’d said last night with a twinkle in her eye. Don’t let the girl go to training. Let the dust settle.

So when soft winter sun finally bled through the blinds, pale and sleepy, Ace bolted upright with a gasp. “s**t! I’m late for-” “Language.” Her grandmother stood in the doorway in her housecoat, arms folded, silver hair wrapped up in a scarf. Not a trace of guilt in sight.

“It’s too late for training,” Jean said, chin lifting. “And even if it weren’t, Alpha Kai said you’re not to go today. You and I are going shopping.”

Ace stared. “Shopping? Now?” “Yes, now.” Jean’s eyes softened. “You’re the Beta now, Ace. You can’t show up in old gym clothes to everything. And if you go to training today, those wolves will talk you to death.”

Ace flopped back onto the pillow with a groan. She wanted training. She needed the rhythm of fists and sweat and orders to drown out her brother’s angry voice from last night. Aaron’s words still crawled under her skin.

But Alpha said no. And honestly… he was right. They’d mob her. Half the warriors would want to “congratulate” her, which was code for interrogate. The other half would want to test her.

“Fine,” she muttered, throwing the covers off. “But I’m getting coffee first.” “Already made,” Jean said smugly. “Get dressed. We have a long day.”

It was a long day. The kind where the sun moved but time didn’t. Where your arms got sore from carrying bags and your brain got bored of choosing colors.

They started at a home store big enough to house a small village. Ace walked in with no plan and walked out with a whole aesthetic: warm woods, cream textiles, a couple of forest-green throws, and a sleek desk she absolutely did not need but absolutely bought. If she was going to be a Beta, she was going to look like one.

She picked out plates, silverware, a kettle for tea, a coffee machine with way too many buttons, and fluffy towels that felt like they’d been made by angels. She planned every bathroom, every corner, every shelf like she’d been doing it her entire life.

Jean watched her with quiet, proud eyes. “You’re nesting,” her grandmother said finally. “I am not nesting,” Ace huffed, dropping a set of glass canisters into the cart. “I am furnishing.” “Mmhmm,” Jean said, clearly not convinced.

After the home store came the mall. The mall was danger. She hit the boutiques for soft leggings and fitted turtlenecks, the business-wear section for blazers and trousers, and then, because she was still eighteen and still loved cute things, she wandered into a*****e with sparkly displays and bought three more pairs of heels than any warrior wolf would ever need.

“Ace,” Jean scolded. “You can only wear one pair of feet at a time.” “One pair of shoes at a time, Grandma,” Ace laughed. “And yes, I know. But look. Red. Black. Nude. Business. Casual. Date.” Jean’s brows popped. “Date?” Ace blinked. “Hypothetical date.” “Uh-huh.”

They ate greasy mall food at the food court. Fries, chicken, big cups of soda they didn’t need. For a moment, Ace forgot she was someone important now. She was just a girl shopping with her grandmother, laughing about nothing.

Then they hit the tech store. Ace stopped short in front of the collectible shelf. A pure white wolf figurine stared back at her with blazing red eyes. She tilted her head. In her mind she saw it: red eyes painted over in icy blue.

Ace picked it up. “It looks like him.” Jean sighed, but there was no real heat. “You’re going to get yourself in trouble with that one.” “It’s just a small gift,” Ace said lightly, placing the wolf in the basket.

By late afternoon, a small U-Haul, arranged by Alpha Kai, of course, had been loaded with all her loot. She’d forgotten how nice it was to have an Alpha who actually supported her instead of one who used her like leverage.

They drove back toward the mountains, the sun sinking behind the pine ridges, turning everything gold. In the parking lot of the pack house, Ace hugged her grandmother tight. While Jean was distracted kissing her cheek, Ace slipped a roll of cash into her grandmother’s purse.

“Ace!” Jean scolded when she found it. “I don’t need your money.” “I know,” Ace said, eyes soft. “But I’m the Beta now. Let me spoil you.” Jean’s expression melted. “Fine. But next time I get to spoil you. Go on. I’m going home. You look tired.”

“Tired” was an understatement. Inside, Alice at the front desk greeted her with that always-bright, always-poised smile. “Beta Ace,” she said, already using the title like it had always been hers. “The movers are taking your things upstairs now.”

“Thank you, Alice,” Ace said, still getting used to people being…nice. The elevator dinged. Ace turned and froze. Amelia was standing inside. The Alpha’s mate.

Every bit as breathtaking as the first time Ace saw her. Dripping in casual luxury. Satin, gold, fur. Her beauty was sharp, like a blade. Her eyes flicked over Ace, taking in the shopping bags, the clothes, the Beta suite keycard.

Ace stepped forward, hand extended, polite as she’d been raised to be. “Amelia, right? It’s so nice to finally meet you, I’m-” “Don’t.” The Lycan’s voice was cold. “Talk to me.” She batted Ace’s hand away like it was dirty.

“Such disgusting beings,” Amelia muttered to no one and everyone at once, her entourage flowing around her like icy water. Ace’s wolf bristled. Her knuckles tightened at her side. But she didn’t snap. Not here. Not now. Not while Amelia was still technically the Alpha’s mate.

Ace let out a long breath through her nose, schooling her face into calm. “Have a nice evening,” she said anyway, then stepped into the elevator after Amelia left, feeling the ugly echo of rejection she hadn’t earned. “Not tonight,” she whispered to herself. “You don’t get to ruin tonight.”

She unpacked for hours. Box after box. Hangers. Throws. Picture frames. She made the office room functional—desk by the window, Murphy bed folded along the wall. She put the kitchen things away with military precision. Bathrooms stocked. Closet half organized.

Around ten, she decided she needed a ladder. So she headed to maintenance. She almost ran straight into Allen. “Hey, Beta Ace!” he called, grin big and warm, hair mussed from training.

“Hey you,” she smiled, relief threading through her tired bones. “Perfect timing. I need a ladder.” “Oh, a ladder, is it?” he said, wiggling his eyebrows. “What else does the new Beta need?”

“For you to stop calling me that every three seconds,” Ace teased. “Come on.” They found the ladder in storage. Allen, being Allen, carried it like it weighed nothing. “I’m sorry I had to cancel on movie night,” she said as they walked.

“Eh,” he shrugged. “We’ll go again. I just wanted an excuse to hang out with you. You’re kind of fun, you know.” “Kind of?” she scoffed.

They got to the elevator and just as the door started to close, a familiar voice slid down the hall. “That… sounds like a security risk.” Ace rolled her eyes but smiled as she reopened the door. “It’s just Allen.”

Alpha Kai stepped in, dressed down in black jeans and a soft shirt, hair looser than usual. Except… there was something off. The faint scent of alcohol. A shadow in his eyes. “Just moved in and already having guests over?” he said, amused. “You acclimate fast, Beta.”

“You sent me shopping with Grandma,” she reminded him. “What did you expect me to do with all that stuff, stare at it?” Allen set the ladder down in her living room and took a spin like a kid in a toy store. “This is insane. I’ve never been up here.”

“Well now you have,” Ace said, smiling. Kai clapped him on the shoulder. “Thank you for helping Beta Ace,” he said, voice warm but firm. “But go get some sleep. You’re training the young ones in the morning.”

Allen deflated a little, but nodded. “Yes, Alpha. Night, Beta.” “Night,” she said, giving him a small wave. The door shut. Silence poured in.

“Oh, I should call Alice and tell her I brought someone up,” Ace said, reaching for her phone. “No need,” Kai said, dropping onto the arm of the sofa. “I already linked her. You can do that too now, you know.” “Oh. Right.” Ace blinked. “Goddess, that’s going to take getting used to.”

They moved through the suite together, him looking, her straightening. “It’s beautiful,” he said after a moment, fingers trailing over the back of the leather couch. “You did all this today?”

“When else was I going to do it?” Ace laughed, grabbing the ladder and dragging it toward the office. She climbed, carefully tapped a nail into the wall, and hung the canvas she’d picked up. “Is it straight?”

He didn’t answer. When she glanced back, he was in the nursery-that-wasn’t—hands on the top rail of the pack-and-play she’d set up. His face… shifted.

“Alpha,” she said softly, climbing down. She touched his arm. “Hey. You okay?” He looked at her, blue eyes suddenly older. Sad. “Are you…” He exhaled. “You aren’t-”

“Pregnant?” she finished for him, laughing lightly. “No, Alpha. I think I would’ve led with that. Also I haven’t… yeah. That hasn’t happened in a while.” Color rushed to her cheeks. She hadn’t meant to admit that. He huffed a tiny laugh.

“I got it for Jessica’s baby. I’m going to be watching him sometimes. I might have gone a little overboard.” She pulled tiny toys from the bag, matching sets. “Look how cute,” she said, grinning.

He took one in his hand, turning it slowly like it was the most fragile thing in the world. “I always wanted kids,” he said suddenly. The words just… fell out of him. “But Amelia… doesn’t. Not with me.”

The ache that flashed across his face made her chest hurt. “That’s her loss,” Ace said instantly. “Not yours.” He looked up, like he wasn’t used to anyone saying it that plainly.

“You’re a good man, Alpha,” she said, voice low, sincere. “And capable. And you care. That makes you dangerous. Some people don’t know what to do with that.” He let her lead him back to the couch. He sat, elbows on his knees, head bowed.

“Alice said she hit you,” he muttered. “Or… struck your hand.” Ace waved it off. “It was barely a tap. I was trying to introduce myself. She didn’t want it. It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine,” he said, sharper now, grabbing her hand and tugging her down beside him. “You’re my Beta. She doesn’t get to treat you like that.”

Ace blinked, startled at the heat in his voice. Then she saw it. He wasn’t just angry for her. He was tired. “Tough day?” she asked. He gave a humorless laugh. “Tough three years.”

“You don’t have to figure it out tonight,” she said gently. “You don’t even have to talk about it tonight. We’ll figure it out when you’re not exhausted.”

He stared at the floor. “I don’t want to be alone,” he said quietly. That was it. No Alpha edge. No command. Just a man, worn thin. Ace’s heart squeezed.

“Okay,” she said immediately. “Then don’t be.” She stood, took his hand, and tugged him toward the master bedroom. He stopped in the doorway. “Your bed?” “Relax,” she laughed. “I’m sleeping on the Murphy bed. You can barely keep your eyes open. Lay down.”

He toed off his shoes, slid under the covers like a man who hadn’t slept well in years. She pulled the comforter up over his shoulders. “Thank you, Ace,” he murmured, voice already fading. “Anytime, Alpha,” she whispered.

She turned off the lamp and retreated to the closet, quietly hanging clothes and folding sweaters, giving him space. When she checked on him again, he was out. Completely. The lines of tension were gone from his face. He looked younger. Softer.

Ace stood beside the bed, watching him for a moment. Then, very gently, she brushed the back of her fingers across his cheek. “Moon Goddess,” she whispered into the dark, “help him.”

She tucked the blanket closer around him, made sure the room was warm, then slipped out, closing the door to a soft click. For the first time since joining Winter Moon, she wasn’t the one needing shelter. Tonight, she was the one giving it.