Chapter Twenty-Six: She Was Right

Demetri’s POV.

I stared at Sasha, knowing I couldn’t help the situation, not now. She was already paranoid about me and Freya and now she knew. The look on both of their faces sent a wave of remorse down my spine.

“You guys…” Sasha laughed hysterically. “I was right, I thought it was the jealousy but no I was fucking right.”

Freya looked at me, almost crying for help.

I wasn’t going to say anything for fear I’d make things worse but Freya wanted me to so I did. “It’s all my fault, Sasha, I pushed for it,” I said. “She even wanted to tell you and I tried to talk her out of it, I’m sorry.”

Sasha’s face was red and her eyes were puffy. My words had no effect.

Freya was the first to follow Sasha out of my office. She stopped her in the hallway and I could still hear them since they were practically shouting. “Sasha I didn’t know!” Freya defended herself. “It was one time before I knew and I was going to tell you but I was waiting for the right time.”

“There was never going to be a right time Freya!” Sasha exclaimed strongly through her tears. “I—I wish you would have stayed away.”

“Sasha… you don’t mean that,” Freya said, lowering her voice. “You said we need each other.”

“You’re fucking kidding me,” Sasha said dumbfounded. “You found out we were together and you didn’t stay away from him at least until you could tell me. You just went on a trip with him for fucks sake.” she took a deep shakey breath. “Even with all the excuses in the world I don’t need you Freya and I don’t need him.”

I stayed at my desk because I knew exactly where this was going. There was no reasoning with Sasha or stopping it.

“I don’t need this pack.” Sasha paused. “I, Sasha Garder, resign from the Blood Moon Pack.”

There it was.

Their conversation was done and I could hear Sasha’s footsteps fading. Freya lingered in the hallway for a few more moments. I got a mindlink from Kyle, ‘I felt Sasha disconnect from the pack, what happened? Did she find out about you and Freya?’ Of course, he knew. Freya had to have told Becca for him to have found out.

Freya didn’t come back and I could only hear whispers from pack members who witnessed their argument when she was gone. A few more concerned pack members mindlinked me about Sasha leaving to pack but I ignored all of them.

After a good hour passed I stopped by Sasha’s room so I could talk to her before she left. “What do you want?” Sasha spat. She looked like she had been crying for a while…

“Can we have that talk where I’m honest now?” I asked since we never got around to it.

Sasha got up from her suitcase and shook her head. “I don’t want to hear how you’re in love with Freya because you’re fated and bonded by it.” I had feelings for Freya long before the mate bond was activated. It was barely even there since I broke it, cutting the strings of fate.

“I was going to apologize for not being honest sooner,” I said. “I’m really thankful for the years you’ve spent with me. Sasha I don’t want you to think I regret us.”

Sasha wiped her remaining tears away. “But you regret rejecting Freya,” she mumbled.

I shrugged and answered, “I do and I’m sure your mate regrets rejecting you.”

Sasha walked to her closet and frowned. “You don’t know that,” she said sadly.

“He’s contacted me.”

“What? When? And you didn’t tell me?” See, I wasn’t the only one too weak to even mention my fated mate. “Demetri, don’t look at me like that.”

I dropped my slightly smug expression. “It was about a few months ago. You told me you wanted nothing to do with him so I told him that,” I explained and she didn’t respond right away.

At the time I was still in love with Sasha so of course I wasn’t going to tell her. And I felt justified in that but now I’m thinking I wasn’t.

“I wouldn’t have done to you what you did to me,” she said.

“I’m telling you now as a part of my apology,” I said, but it didn’t feel like a good enough apology, she deserved something better. “He was checking on you and that’s a good sign. In case you want to revisit a relationship with your fated mate, something I don’t think I can do but you should.” I wanted Sasha to find happiness, something I couldn’t give her.

Sasha scoffed as she dragged the clothes out of her closet. “You can, Freya couldn’t even promise me that she wouldn’t get together with you. Plus she probably hates me for what I said to her so there’s nothing stopping her now. I don’t deserve her loyalty and I don’t want it anymore.”

Sasha wasn’t the only reason Freya wouldn’t be with me, I had to earn it and I wasn’t sure if I could anymore. It’s not what I was focused on anymore. Right now I wanted my friend back.

“Ashton is with The Shining Diamond Pack,” I said as I watched her stuff her clothes in the suitcase with anger. I wanted to hug her and tell her everything was going to be okay but that wasn’t true. “They're far from here but I’m familiar with their alpha so I can ask them to accept you, vouch for you.”

“I don’t want anything from you Demetri.” She cried. “I’m not Freya, my fated mate isn’t going to drop everything he has going on for me! I was happy with what we had, Demetri I felt lucky.” I think even before we got together Sasha would compare herself to Freya, she created this rivalry Freya was oblivious to. I somewhat noticed it when I was friends with Freya but never said anything.

“You don’t need to be Freya,” I said.

Silence.

“Can I at least say goodbye to Mable?” I asked but she didn’t answer. I didn’t want Mable thinking I didn’t care enough to say goodbye but who knows what Sasha was going to tell her. In the last few years I treated her like a daughter. Still, I wasn’t her real father so I didn’t have any rights. “I’m gonna vouch for you with The Shining Diamond Pack anyway. Stay away or go to them, do whatever you want.” I walked to the door and looked back at her. “Again, I’m really sorry, you’re always welcome back here Sash.” She didn’t say a word as I left.

I wanted to go to Freya next but I wasn’t going to be the right person to comfort her so I sent Ashley instead. I planned on waiting to see Freya until she officially rejoined the pack. She needed space so I’d allow her that.

As the next few days went by I focused on my duties. I got a childcare provider replacement for Sasha, approved Freya’s application to become Adam’s nurse, and met with my inner council. I missed Sasha but there was nothing I could do about that.

Around noon my mother walked into my office unannounced as I was reviewing Kyle’s notes for the week. I haven’t seen her in a while. In the last couple of years, my parents have really been enjoying their retirement.

“You weren’t going to call me personally and let me know I have a grandson?” She asked right away. They didn’t bother coming to last-minute pack assemblies. Most of mine were called last minute.

“I’ve been busy protecting a blessed wolf," I said in my defense. "I haven’t even spent as much time as I’d like with my son. Sorry about that Mom.”

“Where is he?”

“With his mother.”

“Who is?”

“Freya Roman.”

Disapproval was written all over her face. “Demetri you can't be serious.”

“I am,” I said and went on to reveal that her family was framed and completely innocent.

“At least she’s not a traitor but I’m still really disappointed in you Demetri for not saying anything about your son sooner. We don’t keep secrets like these from the family.”

I wasn't keeping it a secret, I just hadn't got around to it. “We don’t? So do you know anything about a secret involving Freya’s adoption?”

Mom frowned, she was never good at lying, not to her children anyway. “This question is for your father,” she said before changing the subject. “That girl leaving was a pleasant surprise.” She never liked Sasha. My mom was overly concerned with who would be replacing her as the next Luna. Sasha wasn’t the right fit in her eyes, apparently it had to be my fated mate. “Be honest with me baby,” she said, staring at me seriously. “Is Freya your fated mate?”

I looked at her and saw an agenda in her eyes. It wasn’t something I wanted to keep secret anymore. I wanted it to be clear to the pack that Freya was mine and was not to be touched but she might resent me for that. I already stopped covering my mark, the only thing hiding it now was my shirt.

“She is," I admitted. "But I rejected her before she was kicked out of the pack.”

“Demetri,” Mom glared at me and then let out a huge sigh before pacing. “That’s okay, we can still salvage this.”

Mom was on my side but for the wrong reasons. “Mom, she doesn’t have any interest in being with me or being Luna. I messed up.”

“That’s the thinking that got us into this situation,” she said, lightly glaring at me. Us? “Freya isn’t ideal but I can take her under my wing. Give me a month and I can bring her potential to be a great Luna out.” This was exactly one of the things I wanted to keep Freya away from.

Yeah, Mom was going to make things worse.