Chapter 6 ALPHA LOGAN
LOGAN
"Welcome Alpha. It's an honor to have you here." Jane, William's mate, greets us, welcoming us inside.
"Thank you." We nod, stepping in.
The aroma of food hits me as soon as I enter. Although it smells delightful, that is not the reason we are here. We have business to discuss and a lot of it. The pack is at risk, and until we find the intruder on our territory, we will not rest.
My beta, Andrew, my father and I are gathered around the small living room across from William waiting for his mate to take the seat next to him.
It is always customary for the Alpha to stand while doing business because it shows leadership and boldness, something every Alpha needs to have.
"I believe someone is missing," my father states eyeing the Brooks.
That's right. Didn't they have a daughter? I believe her name was Grace, if I'm not mistaken. I used to attend high school with her a few years ago. I haven't seen her much since graduation, apart from the few mandatory pack meetings we had.
She didn't attend them otherwise. She was one of the few werewolves that went to the local college in town. A few of the elders had displayed displeasure because of this, stating it was encouraging other wolves to seek a life outside the pack, but I didn't feel it was necessary to become concerned until more wolves started following her example.
It was a threat to the elders for the she-wolves to have a mind of their own. They didn't like the idea of them becoming so independent. It made the male wolves look weak.
I suppose in that sense I had to agree with them. It should be the males taking care of the she-wolves. They were supposed to be mates to the males and bear pups, but that was it. They had a role to play and if not for them the pack would never expand. This was why it was important to keep them here.
I hadn't noticed William's mate had gotten up from her seat until the sound of her coming down the stairs breaks me from my thoughts.
The worry etched across her face is enough for me to become concerned as well.
"William, she's gone."
A growl rips through my chest. How dare she disrespect her Alpha! When I am invited to someone's house for a meeting, I expect the entire family to be there. I would not have come, had it not been important.
I am to question everyone about any suspicious activities of the trespasser.
What's worse is that she has also disobeyed my orders about leaving her home. No one except for me and a few others are allowed to walk the territory until this matter is resolved.
"Find her." I order. "When you have her, she is to answer to no one but me. Understand?"
With quick nod of their heads they are racing out the door and into the dark of the night towards the woods.
"Alpha you'll have to excuse our daughter. I don't know why she would have done this." William says. He looks worried for his daughter, as he should be.
"She defied me, and for that she will have to pay the price." I state.
He shares a fearful glace with his wife before nodding in submission. "Yes Alpha."
I won't have some rebellious she-wolf disobeying me or my orders. She will have to learn her lesson and learn from her actions. It is the only way to set an example for the pack. It can not go unpunished.
GRACE
I am standing in the middle of the woods in my human form. So far no one has seen me, but that is not to say that they will never see me. I decide on staying human for obvious reasons. Had I changed into my wolf, Logan would have mind-linked me and ordered me back. I would have no option but to obey then. There would be no escaping.
At this point I have nothing more to lose.
I continue on my way through the dark forest, looking for any sign that the highway is nearby. If my calculations are correct, then I would be coming upon the human territory very soon and there would be nothing they can do to me with witnesses around. It is my safe haven. If only I can make it there.
Where is that stupid road? I know I have to be close to it. I rarely enter this part of the woods, so it is hard finding my way around in it.
I walk on a little further until I come to a large oak tree in middle of the woods and pause. I am lost and what's worse is that I have a feeling that I am being pursued. I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere a while back. But where?
I know it is my fault for not letting my wolf out to run when I should have, but I didn't have time to think about that, I was always busy. Now I need to figure out where I am and act quickly.
The snap of a branch gets my attention and I spin around in alarm. What if it is the intruder? The one from the cafe, Samuel Jackson? Would he hurt me? I don't know why I am even thinking about that question, since it is obvious that if he wanted to hurt me, he would have done it when he had the chance.
However, this only raises more questions than I have been thinking about.
Why is he really here and why has he stuck around?
I now realize how stupid I am for believing his 'visiting a friend' story he told me yesterday. There is no friend, and even if there is, he wouldn't have had to sneak on the property to see them.
How naive can I get?
Another snap of a branch not far from me causes me to jerk again. They are getting closer to me and I am panicking. If someone wants to hurt me then they will have no problem doing so. I am not that strong of a wolf anymore. I have been out of touch with that side of me for quite some time now. I have never participated in things with the pack anymore. I am more of a lone wolf now. The fact that I still belong to a pack is the only difference between me and a Rogue.
"Grace." The sound of Beta Andrew's voice comes from behind.
This is it. I have been caught.
No more running for me. He is sure to drag me back to the Alpha, kicking and screaming.
And he should. We should have never have ran. He's our mate. My wolf whispers.
You don't even know if he wants us. He's with Josephine, remember? I remind her.
She is not his mate! She snaps in return.
I am a bit shocked at her behavior. She has never acted this way before. I suppose it is Logan's appearance that has brought it out in her.
If only she understood I was doing this to protect us. I don't want us to be hurt from the rejection we may receive.
"The Alpha is looking for you." The Beta's voice speaks behind me. "We are here to take you back with us."
I should have known to expect this, but I still feel alarm at his words. I don't want to go back.
"Please don't." I beg as I face him. "I can't go back there."
The Beta is not the only one there. I quickly catch sight of Logan's father, who is also there standing a little way behind him to the right, looking at me with disappointment.
He doesn't need to say anything for me to know what he is thinking. It is pretty clear from the look on his face.
"Why?" The Beta asks, curiosity in his voice.
I sigh. I can't tell him. I can't tell anyone.
"I just can't." I reply.
He shakes his head at me. "I'm sorry Grace, but that's not a valid reason. You have to come with us now. If you don't he'll just come searching himself. You're in quite a bit of trouble for running off like you did." He says.
I nod my head, knowing I am no match for the beta and the previous Alpha. They are much stronger and faster than I am. If I were to run now, it would only be a matter of seconds before they catch up to me again.
As much as I hate to, I force myself to walk to them. My wolf, however, is very pleased. This is what she was hoping for all along.
"We're only about two miles from your house. We can walk the rest of the way." He says. motioning for me to proceed.
"You've got a lot of explaining to do when we get back." The previous Alpha, adds. "Based on that will be your punishment."
The walk back to our house is long and agonizing. I have been dreading facing Logan the entire way. I just know that as soon as I face him, it will be all over. Everything will change.
If he does accept me, no doubt he will be mad at me for running off. I suppose I only have myself to blame though.
I should have just told him and let the chips fall where they may. At least then I would know where I stand with him. It is better than not knowing, I suppose.
"Can I have a minute to collect my thoughts before going in?" I ask, hoping they would at least give me that.
"No." The previous Alpha answers. "He made it very clear he wanted to see you just as soon as you returned."
"I won't wonder off. I promise."
He merely shakes his head. "Your actions seem suspicious and you must be questioned about it. With what has happened in the past twenty-four hours, it must be done as a precaution." What exactly was he implying?
"You think I had something to do with the trespasser?" I ask.
"I don't know. You tell us," he snaps.
I know he doesn't take my disrespect towards his son very well, but does he really dislike me that much for it? It isn't like I disrespect him directly.
If he was acting this way over my disappearance, then there would be no way he'd be able to handle what else I had done.
Yes, I might have willingly given up information to a stranger about our pack's whereabouts, but if I wouldn't have told him, someone else would have. Probably an unsuspecting human who thought they were just giving him directions.
As soon as my house comes into view, my heart starts racing again. My palms are getting sweaty, and my breathing is rapid.
I'm sure the two men are curious as to what is going on, as they look at me curiously again.
My mate is inside my house, and he is about to meet us for the first time as his mate. He'll know everything soon. It is scary. Scarier than I believe it would be. And with every passing second my fear is getting worse.
The beta seems to be conveying some kind of message to the Alpha through mind link as we approach my house. His face is very serious.
No more than five seconds later, Alpha Logan is already coming out the door with my parents following close behind him.
None of them looks happy.
I can see my parent's disappointment just as obviously as I can see the Beta's a little while ago in the woods. It makes me feel bad that I have made them feel this way.
In my attempt to run from my mate, I have hurt everyone. Including my wolf.
Taking my eyes off them, I drop them to the ground. I can't bear to look at them any longer. It is too hurtful.
In only a matter of moments, Logan is standing in front of me in his Alpha stance. He has yet to speak. I can sense his anger.
A loud growl erupts from within him at my lack of respect, causing me to flinch. He may have been my mate, but he can still be a bit frightening. He is the Alpha after all.
"Look at me." He orders me in his Alpha tone, daring me to disobey.
His command is too strong for me to ignore and I have to do as he asks, whether I want it or not.
I suck in a deep breath as I prepare myself for what is to come. This is it. Everything comes down to this moment. The wait is over.
It is meant to be.
I lift my face slowly to meet his and our eyes lock. In that moment something snaps, and it is as if everything falls into place. I can feel it, everything it feels to have a mate and so does he. He smiles at me. A happy genuine smile that takes my breath away. This handsome godly looking man is mine. All mine.
For once, I am not worried what he will think of me when he finds out because from the way it looks now, he can't have been more pleased.
"Mate." He whispers.