Chapter 118 - Unreject Me

Kaya’s pov

I became uneasy in his presence. Nonetheless, his disclosure left me too stunned to respond. I remained motionless while I reflected on what he had said. At that moment, I understood why he refused to admit that he loved her. I simply wished he would leave her alone. Perhaps she would have found someone who would love her and treat her as she deserved.

He didn't appear to comprehend that what he said had shaken me to the core. An eager squeal from the pups drew my attention to them. I suddenly felt unable to trust him among them. If he didn't hesitate to hurt the woman who blindly trusted him, why would he not hurt my family? He might do something.

“Mira?” I called my wolf for counsel. “Pete is creeping me out.”

“Me too. I now think he isn't being entirely honest about the reason he left the pack,” she said.

My lips pursed together. “You think?”

“Yeah. Maybe something really big happened. How else could our parents not bring him up at all?”

I found myself agreeing with her. If Pete left on good terms, at least my parents would have told me that I had an uncle I never met. Maybe Pete wasn't the kind of brother I thought he was. I mean, what kind of wolf would do that to his wife? Yes, she was a human, and she was his wife. That didn't give him the right to harm her like that. He didn't own her, and if he didn't want to have pups with her, he shouldn't have married her. By doing that, he destroyed her life.

I glanced at my mate, who also appeared astonished. I discreetly nudged him with my elbow, gaining his attention. With a deep frown etched on his face, he looked at Pete and then at me.

“What the fuck did I just hear?”

I heard his mind link in my head.

“I know. I never thought... Do you think he is telling the entire truth about what happened in Golden Crescent?” I voiced my thoughts through our link.

His gaze drifted towards Pete. An archaic smile curled on his lips when he saw that Pete was looking at us. Perhaps he noticed that we were having a private conversation among ourselves.

“Did I say something bad? Don't worry, the elixir didn't harm her. It wasn't poisonous. She just wouldn't be having kids. That's all. And actually, by giving it to her, I did a favour. She wouldn't have been able to handle a pup.”

I forced a smile and tried to loosen up. Since he was an Alpha by blood, he would notice any tension in the air, and I knew that wouldn't be a good thing.

“Why don't you introduce the pups to me?” He said.

I mustered up the best smile I could as I nodded my head. Denying a simple request like that one would be awkward. I stole a glance at my mate, gesturing to him with my eyes to stay close to us. We walked up to them. As soon as we reached them, Avery started to giggle. Seeing her smiling face melted away a lot of tension in my heart. Regardless, I was alert.

Archie glanced at us and grinned. “Hello mommy, daddy.” His gaze travelled towards Pete. He offered a polite smile and returned to building the blocks on the play mat.

I heaved a breath. “Archie, this is Pete. Can you say hi to him?”

He looked at Pete again and said, “Hello.”

A broad smile spread across Pete's face.

“Hi! I am so happy to meet you, Archie. Do you know who I am?”

Archie shook his head.

“I am your mother's uncle. You can call me grandpa, okay?”

I almost cringed. Grandpa?

Archie gave me a look. He must have sensed from my expression that I objected to him referring to Pete as grandpa.

“But why?” he asked.

“Well, I am your grandpa's brother. Since your grandpa isn't here anymore, you can call me grandpa.”

I pursed my lips. I hadn't told my son anything about his grandparents, and thankfully, he hadn't asked me about them either. However, after what Pete said, I knew a tonne of questions awaited me.

Archie didn't say anything. He just offered a smile and went back to playing. Grinning from ear to ear, Pete stood up to his feet.

“He looks just like you,” he said, looking at Theo.

“He does, doesn't he?” Theo said.

“Yes. I am glad he doesn't look like Benedict. He got your good looks. Benedict would have ruined it for him.”

Even though I pretended to dismiss those words, I couldn't stop thinking about them. That was an odd thing to say about your deceased brother. What did he intend by that? I remembered what my father looked like. He was a handsome man with sharp features and a strong frame. Why was Pete implying that my father didn't look good?

When Theo offered to tour him around, I had to follow, despite the growing resentment in my chest. The more he spoke, the more I loathed him. If he were actually sincere, I wouldn't have had such a terrible vibe about him.

“He may be our uncle, but I don’t like him. I can't wait for him to leave the pack,” Mira said, and I found myself agreeing with her.

I just hoped that he left without causing mayhem in the wolf world. After so long, we finally had some peace. Disrupting the tranquillity wasn't what we needed.

***

Asking him to leave the pack crossed my mind several times, but I just didn’t know what to tell him. Besides, if he leaves the wolf's territory, he would go back to his unsuspecting wife, who would literally worship him. I became anxious for her. He had deprived her of what she desperately desired. If he was capable of it, what more would he do to get his way? What if she started protesting against his wishes? Will he hurt her? Will he make another elixir and get things done his way? He hadn't tried to kill her yet, but what if he did someday? I'd never be able to forgive myself if that happened. Especially after discovering what a sick man he really was.

“He wouldn’t kill her unless he was a murderer, would he?” Mira muttered in my head.

I pursed my lips. “He isn’t normal, Mira. Only a deranged villain would consider giving someone a potion solely to render her barren. His sick mind does not function like ours. I don't think he's above killing someone to get his way.”

Regardless of the thoughts that disturbed my mind, I dared not voice them in his presence, even via our mental link to my mate. Pete had a sharp eye, and I didn’t want to get caught having private conversations around him again.

“The pack is lovely. I would like to go for a run this evening. It has been such a long time since I have trekked this part of the woods,” he said after we returned to the pack house.

I was holding my true emotions inside the entire ride and faking it was becoming harder with each passing minute. Nonetheless, with a smile plastered on my face, I said. “Sure. Go for it.”

Was it bad that during his run I wished he would fall into a ditch and never get out? Kathy would be better off without him. If only there was a way to heal Kathy...

“The omegas have taken your bags to one of the guest rooms,” Theo said.

“Great. I will get some rest before the run. I bet my wolf wouldn’t want to return to the pack anytime soon. I have some old friends in other packs. I am hoping to see them around,” he said.

“Oh, a lot has changed over the years. When you left, there were how many packs? Like five?” Theo said.

Pete nodded his head.

“Well, now we have just two in this district. Crystal Lake and Black Woods.”

He frowned. “What happened to Opal Moon and Silver Claw?”

“Opal Moon has become part of Black Woods.”

A strange smirk curled on his lips. “Did you claim their land? You bastard!” He slapped his hand on Theo’s shoulder with a lot of enthusiasm. I was a little surprised at his excitement. Weren’t Opal Moon and Golden Crecsent close partners?

Theo quickly shook his head. “No, actually. They wanted us to take over. They had a little situation.”

“Okay. So they are alive?” I noticed that his excitement was diminishing as we nodded in response. Pete’s smile was reduced to a grim line. “And Silver Claw?”

“Well, that pack was dissolved. They were attacking all the packs and causing a lot of trouble for everyone,” Theo explained.

Pete’s expression remained neutral. It was hard to read him, but I tried hard to decipher what went through his mind. Since he lived in the human world, all of that would have been news to him, but he seemed rather calm and collected when he heard the news… perhaps too calm.

“So Alpha Fin is gone? Did you see him die?”

He was asking about the Silver Claw’s Alpha. I narrowed my eyes at him. Fin? Was he close to him?

“Yes,” I almost snapped at him. Fin was one of those wolves I would never forgive for what he did to my mom. Even hearing his name boiled my blood. “He is dead. My teammate decapitated him.”

The only reaction I saw from him was a little twitch of his brow and a slight purse of his lips.

“Okay. I don’t know what happened, but I am sure he deserved that,” he said. “I would like to get some rest before my run this evening. Where is the room?”

Theo gestured to one of the omegas to escort Pete to the guest room. I watched them ascend the stairs. His being close to Fin was unacceptable. However, that was long before Fin began his reign of terror, and I could accept if Pete stopped supporting him.

I sincerely hoped my presumptions were incorrect.

***

While he rested in one of the guest rooms, Theo and I went to the Alpha’s office to attend to some work that needed our attention. My mate was awfully silent as he dove deep into the paperwork. He usually did that when he had a lot to think about. Perhaps he was trying to be respectful because he was my relative. I wouldn’t lie to myself and pretend that I wasn’t excited about finding him alive. But the minute he revealed what he did to Kathy, that feeling vanished.

“Theo,” I said. “I am worried.”

He glanced at me. “About?”

“Kathy. If he didn’t hesitate to make her barren, what else is he capable of? What if he tries to kill her eventually? She is so naive, and she wouldn’t stand a chance against him.”

Theo looked at me. “But she is way out of our reach. We won’t be able to help her as long as she lives there.”

I sighed. “I wish I knew how to heal her. At least then, she stands a chance of becoming a mom after Pete.”

“After?” Theo stopped whatever he was doing at his desk and turned his swivel chair to face me. “What do you mean, after?”

“She is better off without him. I don’t think she would stay with him after finding out what he did to her.”