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“I WANT HER DEAD! She stole my day. I was supposed to find my mate! Not her! That alpha is supposed to be my mate!” Sandra shouted from the side, making Alpha Geoff lose his shit.
“SHUT YOUR TRAP, YOU USELESS FUCKING PUP! I already have to figure out a way for Alpha Markus not to demand punishment for you. Couldn’t you control your fucking mouth for two days? You know the kind of mess you got yourself into? You beat someone in front of all the fucking alphas, and none of them will protect you because you couldn’t fucking grab one as a mate.” Spit was spraying everywhere as he continued to berate her, making her shrink into the couch.
“The man and his mutt of a beta are coming. Make sure you stay the fuck away from the hospital wing,” he said.
Sandra stomped out of the room when Markus came in while Alpha Geoff righted his clothing and hair.
“You wished to see us, Alpha Geoff?” Markus and Gillian came in. Hostility rolled off both of them in waves.
“Yes, come in, come in. I would like to apologize on behalf of my daughter. She was not in the right state of mind. She had her heart set on finding her mate and was extremely disappointed. If she knew Celeste was your mate, I assure you, she would not have acted as she did. You know how young girls are, right?” He chuckled, but Markus and Gillian didn't share his humor.
“The problem here is that your daughter beat two innocent women that, as far as we can tell, have done nothing but work hard for your pack all weekend. They are also underage. That is fairly illegal and presents a problem that I’m not sure we can just overlook,” Markus stated, and I saw a vein at his temple trying to pop with how much restraint he was exercising. I could see his internal fight with Atlas to remain in control.
“Come now, Markus. You know how it is with ranked wolves. We get a little overzealous with the help when we’re upset. We don’t need to involve the council over a temper tantrum.” He tried to wave the offensive accusation off with a sleazy smile.
I could see Markus’s fists at his sides, but Alpha Geoff didn't appear to notice as he served himself a drink. Markus and Gillian mind linked each other shortly before Markus sighed. “I will not call the council to report the attack, however, I need some assurances.”
“Name them,” Alpha Geoff growled.
“Your daughter needs to learn she can’t beat innocent pack members because they don’t have their wolf or are of lesser rank. They aren’t our punching bags, Alpha Geoff.” Markus growled, but took a deep breath before he continued more calmly. “She’s not to come near my mate or Maya. She is not allowed on my pack lands unless invited or in an official capacity. She will address my mate as is deserving of her role as my future luna. If you can guarantee me this, I will leave here on good terms, and not an enemy.”
“Done. I will make sure she never touches your mate again,” Alpha Geoff grumbled, sticking his hand out for Markus to shake.
Just as the two men shook on terms, Sandra's shrieking reached them and the three of them bolted out of the office.
The mists swirled around us, dissolving the vision.
Why would Markus not press charges? She almost killed me,I asked Kara.
He needs them to lower their guard so he can trap them. He cannot afford Alpha Geoff to go on the offensive. Who knows what he might do to the rest of the girls if he feels cornered?
Why did I need to know this?
Because you need to be aware that Markus will always have you at the forefront of his mind. Even before you accepted him, he was already trying to save the people that were important to you. And also because you need to learn to choose your battles. Sometimes you need to pretend to let them think they’ve won so you can get them to step into the snare, she said as we walked out of the mist.
We walked towards the next platform. There were only two left before reaching the top, and I could see the back of the woman sitting on a bench. Her hair was as black as the night around her and pooled on the floor. Her white dress shined like the stars against her copper skin, but I still couldn’t see her face.
Chapter twenty-one
Celeste
Themistsswirledaroundus. We were back at my parents’ pack grounds, having a picnic by the banks of the river. I saw six-year-old me chasing a butterfly while my parents talked happily from the blanket on the ground feeding each other food from a picnic basket. The scene was in fast forward, but my heart overflowed with love for them. Seeing them this happy, I mourned all the lost memories I had forced my brain to forget in order to survive.
I watched when time went back to normal as a six-year-old me got too close to the edge of the bank and started falling in, but then she didn’t. She floated upwards on the top of a small wind tornado. My father grabbed me from the top and carried me back to my mother, who ran towards us with her hand raised. Little me cried into his chest, scared.
“You have to be more careful,” Mom said tenderly before I saw my dad lift his head and sniff. They both turned to the other side of the river, and I saw the back of a man running into the woods.
“Cory...” Mom whispered, and I could see worry on her face. My father passed me off to my mother and shifted as he ran after the unknown man. Five minutes later, my father returned to the clearing, shifting back unhurt, much to my mother's relief.
“I couldn’t catch him. He had too big a head start,” he said, pulling us both into his arms.
“Do you think it was him?” My mother asked, fear coming back into her chocolate eyes.
“I don’t know. We have never seen his face. How could he find us? We don't even go out anymore,” he answered, furrowing his eyebrows.
“Do you think he saw?” she asked, referring to her wind tornado.
“I don’t think so, but we should be more careful. Little Celeste, we should not run by the edge of the river,” he said. Little me giggled when he tickled me, but her eyes turned white and my parents waited patiently while the vision played out. When my eyes returned to their normal color, I was smiling.
