by Tamara White
I take a moment to let them think about what I’ve said, hoping now it will make a bit more sense to them why I’m so hesitant to form a closer connection.
Jason wraps an arm around me, pulling me close.
“I’m sorry, Dani. I didn’t think. You have to understand, though, that the population of females is very low these past few years, so we’ve grown up around men sharing their females as a mate. We should’ve known it would be different when your father told us who you were, but I guess we were hoping it wouldn’t be.
I’m sorry if my kissing you, has made this harder. I won’t apologize for the kiss itself because I don’t think I’ve felt such passion before, but I do apologize for not waiting until we knew each other better.”
I can tell he’s hurt at making this harder for me, but you only live once. I could die during the trials, or someone could assassinate me for being the female in the Alpha Pair. Life’s short and even werewolves don’t live forever.
“Okay, enough of this sad, soppy stuff. Tell me, Dani, how do you plan to juggle all of us? It’s only fair you get to know each of us before making a decision. Well, at least give the others a chance, I know I’m a shoe in. I bet I’ll even be the next one to get a kiss,” Pete says cockily. How can someone so hot, be so full of himself?
“Not sure yet. I think Alpha Tim gave me this room, so we would be close. It would also make us get to know each other.”
I remembered to refer to Tim as ‘Alpha Tim’ this time. Yay! I’ll get a hang of these rules sooner or later.
“Sounds like something my dad would do. Since we have to spend time together and you have to learn the etiquette of all things wolf, would you like to come to the movie room? We have recliners set up and a projector screen for movies. We can fill you in on some of the important stuff before my mum corners you.
Don’t get me wrong, my mother is a soft and gentle person, but if she knows your life depends on it, then she’ll drill you until our rules and traditions are second nature.”
I nod and that’s how I manage to be standing here gawking like an idiot at the monstrosity of this room. I imagined, from his description, it would be some sort of small games room, but they have their own private cinema!
Three rows of reclining chairs, sitting side by side in rows of ten. Then there’s the beanbags placed around the edges of the room. There’s even a mattress leaning against the wall as if someone has slept in here.
“Is this someone’s room?” I ask, pointing at the mattress, trying to figure out what the hell they need it for in here.
“Ha! No that’s our ‘we’re too tired to go to bed so we crash here’ mattress. Usually on the weekend after training, we sit in here, watch movies, and pig out,” Jonnie says, scaring the crap out of me.
He must have been behind me, I was just too busy taking it all in to notice.
We go over to the massive bookshelf that’s built into the wall and try to choose a movie. It’s an impossible choice with so many to choose from. There must be thousands of movies here. Somehow, we manage to narrow it down to a few select choices.
“Okay, most votes win. Write down which movie you want, and put it in here,” Jason says ripping up a piece of paper into small squares for us to write on, moving a bowl into the center of the table.
I don’t know which one to pick. On one hand, Transformers is action packed with only slight romance. I definitely don’t need a romance right now. Or there’s Avengers. Action packed, barely any romance, good versus evil, it’s a no brainer.
I write my vote down, putting it in the bowl that Jason has set in between us, and the others quickly follow my move.
Jason pulls out our votes reading and placing them in two piles before telling us the decision, “Avengers wins.”
Yes! I grin that I got what I wanted and laugh when Johnnie tackles Mitchell tickling him. Yes, tickling him like a child.
“You sneaky son of a bitch. You said you were going to vote Transformers. You fucking tricked me!” Jonnie growls, tickling his side, while Mitchell tries to push him away.
“Dani, help me.”
I shake my head, laughing. No way am I getting involved.
“Please, your mate needs you!” he begs, still fending off Jonnie’s hands.
I sigh, going to help him when Mitchell jerks out tripping me, making me land on top of the them both.
“You ass!” I squeal when his hands find my sides trying to find my ticklish spot. “You want a fight, you got one!”
I wink at Jonnie and we both go on the offensive, him going for Mitchell’s sides, while I attack his collarbone. There’s a sensitive spot inside the collar bone that acts like a pressure point and ticklish spot all at the same time.
“Okay! Okay! I give in! Please stop before I wet myself,” he cries, causing Jonnie and I to bust out laughing. Jonnie offers me a hand up, while I try to control my laughter.
Mitchell is sprawled out on the floor, panting heavily while Nate, Pete, and Jason just stand there smirking.
“Looks like you’ll have to watch it now, Mitch. Dani’s a fighter,” Cam says from his seat on the other side of the room.
He’s been distant, and, while I feel bad, I don’t know how to approach him. I know he’s not his father, it’s still a lot to take in knowing his father is the reason I don’t know my mother.
I don’t want to hold it against him, especially if he ends up as my mate, but I can’t just ignore it and pretend that nothing’s bothering me. We need to talk it out and hopefully resolve it. I can’t go around blaming him for something he didn’t do.
I smile at Cam as the others all look away. I’m guessing my smile wasn’t enough to break the tension.
“Cam, can we talk?” I ask him, hoping to let him know my feelings.
“Um sure? My room’s just across the hall.”
“Alright, you guys start the movie we’ll be back in a minute,” I say, following Cam out the door. Before he closes it, Pete winks at me and I just shake my head. These boys will be the death of me.
***
Cam’s room is pretty dark and gloomy. I thought it would be brighter, full of light, like the others I’ve seen, instead it’s filled with black linens and dark blue decorations. You can see small splashes of white, where it looks like someone has tried to brighten the room.
We sit on the bed, Cam against the head board, me on the other end facing him with my legs crossed.
We’re both quiet for almost a minute. Just when I think it can’t get any more awkward, Cam blurts out, “You hate me.”
I’m shocked that he thinks that. Hate is such a strong word, which I don’t use lightly. I won’t say something that strong unless I mean it.
“Cam, I swear to you that I don’t hate you. I guess, I’m just coping. Part of me knows it’s not you who hurt my mother. Another part of me wonders if you look like him? Whether or not you act like him? And if you’ll do the same thing to me that he did to her.
It’s not rational, but it’s how I feel.
I want to know you as a mate, so that means putting that stuff aside and getting to know you, and not what I feel for your father. I swear I’ll be honest with you, and, if it seems like it’s going to be too hard, I will tell you.
Is that acceptable? Or is there something you would like to say?”
“No, that’s fine. I’m happy with that. I would like to tell you about my father, though, if that’s alright? It’s not all sunshine and rainbows with my family.
The reason I’m here with Tim and the others is because my father loathes me and my younger brothers.
You know most of what happened when my dad took over, but what you don’t know is, he was given twenty years. Our society has always been ruled by an Alpha Pair, so when dad took over, the Elders told him he had twenty years to produce a female heir to continue the tradition of the Alpha Pair and their trials. If that didn’t happen, the Elders would choose another Alpha or a female born from an Alpha at the right age range, t
o go through the trials.
Dad mated with my mom and rushed to have children but got me. During my mom’s pregnancy with me, they discovered she was pregnant with twins.
When we were born, my sister was born without a heartbeat, and I lived with the torture from it. Dad would get blind drunk at his pack parties and once everyone had left for the night, he would shackle me in the basement. I stayed there letting him whip me until one day Jason and Nate came back for Jason’s phone after a party when they heard my cries of pain.
They rushed in, knocking him out before stealing me away. The next day, Tim tried to call the Elders’ council for justice, but they had no proof except my wounds and the words from Tim, Jason and Nate, which didn’t mean much since they were my friends.
Turns out my mother had cleaned up the evidence of what he’d been doing to me. Tim said I wasn’t going back and used his authority as Alpha to convince the Elders to let me move in with them. Since Jason is almost alpha as well they couldn’t deny his request with two Alphas and four soon to be Alphas.
After the meeting was held, I asked my mother why she helped him, why she didn’t want to get free of him? You know what she said? She said I was an ungrateful monster that killed their only hope of having the throne.
That was three years ago. Since then, I only have contact with my parents on ritual occasions like the birth of my three younger brothers. Turns out as soon as I was gone, they started trying harder than ever for a girl, but it hasn’t happened. I guess it’s fate’s way of making sure the right person leads us.
My parents are heartless. I want you to know, no matter what happens between us, I will never be like my father. I knew he was harsh growing up with the punishments, but I never thought he could murder someone in cold blood just for power, and, for that, I’m truly sorry.”
Wow! To think that Cam has gone through so much and has come out the way he is, is astonishing. If I went through something like that, I doubt I’d find the will to keep going. But here he is, with friends who care and a mate that can whoop his ass. A mate who was going to distance herself based on the actions of his father. God, I’m a horrible mate.
“I’m so sorry. You’re incredibly brave, you know that? Going against your father and the person who’s pretty much in charge of your society. I’m not sure if I would have been able to.
If I pass all my trials, I promise I’ll make him pay. Not only for my mother, but for what he’s done to you. No child should suffer through that.”
He smiles solemnly, hanging his head down to hide his thoughts from me.
“Cam, that tattoo on your chest? Is it for your sister?” I ask him, thinking of the tattoo I saw when we sparred yesterday.
It looked like a wolf howling but when I got close, I could see it was protecting something, I just had no idea what it was.
“Yeah, do you want to see?” he asks head jerking up with a blinding smile. He really must care to show that much emotion in one smile.
He lifts his shirt off over his head when I nod, and I try not to get distracted by his beauty. There over his heart is a wolf howling to the moon. Underneath the wolf, a baby swaddled in a pale pink blanket is just visible.
Unless you were up close, you wouldn’t know what it is, but it’s definitely a baby. How heartbreaking.
He lost his twin sister in the womb, he didn’t get to grow up with her, but his parents blamed him for her death. What sick, sadistic people could think a foetus could harm another in the womb?
I reach out to touch it, waiting for his approval, when he pulls my hand to his chest. I run my hand over the baby swaddled under the wolf protectively. There’s scars under the tattoo but I don’t ask. I don’t think I could handle the answer.
“Turn around,” I demand. I need to see how bad it is.
When he turns, I gasp and stifle a sob.
“How?” Scar after scar, covers his back. Some are smooth, while others are lumpy as if the skin was ripped open and left to heal without stitching them. It should be impossible for scars this big to be here when we heal so fast. I wouldn’t believe it if I couldn’t see and feel them myself.
“My father had a special whip he liked to use. It was lined with pure silver,” he whispers under his breath.
Holy, motherfucking son of a bitch! What kind of sadistic person could do this to their own flesh and blood?!
“I’m so sorry. You should never have gone through that. How do you stand seeing him again? I doubt I could face him after that without showing him a beat down,” I say, offering a smile.
He smiles back at me, and I can see sadness in his eyes but also hope. I just hope I’m not the one to squash it.
“Come on, the boys are probably wondering what’s taking us so long,” Cam says, throwing his shirt back on, effectively ending the talk about his parents.
I’m disappointed I can’t admire him more. I wonder if he’s embarrassed by the scars?
We walk back into the cinema, I would say movie room, but it’s definitely a cinema room. I guess no one wanted to watch the movie without us because they’re all us sitting around on the mattress and somehow another has been added. Where the hell did it come from?
“Come on let’s start the movie,” Cam says throwing himself in a recliner, while I sit in front of him between, Pete and Jonnie. I lean my body against Cam’s legs, smiling when he pushes his leg against me. He needs the comfort, and I’m more than happy to oblige.
“So, Dani, you ready? We’ll watch the movie and try to teach you what we can. Maybe you can test your knowledge out at dinner?” Jason asks with a slight smile. I guess things are going to be a bit different between us now.
“Alright, just go easy on me. Learning is not my forte.”
Chapter 9
Rule 1: Respect your Alphas.
Rule 2: Respect your Elders.
Rule 3: Submit.
The movie has long since finished. Now, we’re all sitting around on the mattresses the guys have placed down on the floor.
“There are three absolute rules for our society,” Jason begins. “Respect your Alphas, Respect your Elders, and Submit.”
That’s it? Three rules? I thought for sure they were about to start spouting off a bazillion rules that I’d have to write down in a book to keep track of.
“Only three? Jeez, guys, that’s really anticlimactic. I thought there’d be more than three,” I say laughing, but stop seeing the serious expressions on their faces.
“We only have three main rules. You have to remember that each of our rules have sub rules. Then we also have traditions. So, the rules are more ‘need to be followed’ whereas our traditions don’t need to be followed to the letter, but it’s better if you do. Make sense so far?” Mitchell asks, waiting for me to nod in understanding.
“The first rule, pertains not just to your Alphas but to the Alpha Pair. The Alpha Pair is infinite power in our society. As much as you’ll hate it, you’ll need to be respectful when you see them for the first time.
As a part of the future Alpha Pair, you don’t have to submit to Luke because technically he’s not the rightful King Alpha. Cam’s mother, Carrie, has no direct lineage to an alpha line so you don’t need to submit to her. Even though she’s Queen Alpha, she holds no power above your position. Before trials or not. You’re still the rightful heir, so there’s only so much she can do to you.
She can ask you to do things and if you refuse, you will be seen as disrespectful. You can challenge her if you don’t want to do something she asks, though it may not be worth it. If you win the challenge, she can never ask your help or she will be seen weak by the pack. If you lose though, you are the weak one and you won’t be able to compete for your trials,” Pete says, trying to explain the full extent of the rules.
“Okay, so only mess around with Luke after I finish the trials. Got it,” I say, hoping for a smirk or smile, even a cheesy joke would be good right about now.
“It’s not funny, Dani. These rules are the key
to surviving in our world. We rely heavily on them to keep order and stop wolves from going rogue. You need to know this if you make it through,” Nate interrupts moving to sit in front of me. I’m left looking into his eyes and see the seriousness of the situation.
“I’ll try to take it more seriously.”
“So, respecting your Alphas and respecting your Elders, means pretty much the same thing. When you’re near them, you don’t say anything or do anything that will cause them to target you.
The Elders and the current Alpha Pair have had control of our whole society for nineteen years. Once they know who you are, they’ll become scared and confused. They don’t know you, or what you stand for so they’ll be sniffing around, trying to figure out what you’ll do if you win the trials.
My advice would be to act stupid if you’re approached. It will make them think you’re not a threat until you start the trials. Once we’ve started the trials, they can’t kick us out. That’s why you have to choose at the end. The current Alpha Pair and Elders will no longer have jurisdiction,” Cam nudges my shoulder playfully.
“Okay, so pretend to be stupid until the trials start, check. Be respectful to Alphas and Elders, check. What about the Submit part?” I ask, curious to know.
It seems simple enough, though from what they’ve already said, there’s going to be issues attached to it.
“You won’t like this. Judging from our little play under the bleachers, your wolf is extremely dominant. Shifted or not. Submit means you submit to wolves more dominant than yourself.
Now I’m not one hundred percent sure on this, but I think your wolf is dominant to everyone. That means you’re going to have to fake it until the trials.
People are going to want to challenge you to see just how dominant you are. The trick is going to be to control her. She will want to unleash her full strength on any wolf that challenges you. If that happens before the trial, the Elders may not let it go forward. They’ll think you’re too much of a threat and use any means necessary to stop you from getting near the throne,” Jonnie explains.