6. Mother
Cerberus
I left Alpha Reiss' house in a bigger slump than I usually did. He wants me, ME, to look after some girl. As if I don't already have enough to deal with.
Something was different with him. I could see it in the way he watched that girl eat. What was her name again? Lindy? No, Cynthia. Whenever she looked up, he pretended his meal was his only interest. What a poser.
Moonlight shone on my skin. It felt so peaceful listening to the chatter of my fellow wolves. I arrived at a crossroad, paying attention to the cobble under my shoes when my ears picked up a familiar voice.
I didn't pay much attention to it since I was well-known and heading home through a populated area. After she called me a second time, I realized I should have run away.
Instead, I stood in place, frozen.
"Darling! I wondered if maybe you didn't hear me."
I wish I hadn't. I wished I had the strength to ignore my urges.
Yet I gave in and turned around to look my mother in the eye. Like I always do.
She always kept her voice low. One would think she was trying to seduce a frightened deer with the way she spoke.
My mother stepped forward. "Darling, you haven't come to check on me. How was the Alpha?"
"You can go and ask him yourself," I snarled. "What do you want? Or are you just wasting my time again?"
Suddenly, a tear rolled down her cheek.
"How can you talk to me like that? Your own mother? I-I would never waste your time. You're my precious only son."
Memories of a younger me flooded my vision. The cold floor, her shouting at the smallest inconvenience. Dad telling me to stay while he left forever.
But the worst memory, the one that I couldn't black out despite how much time had passed.
Water, lots of it surrounding my head. Someone's hand gripped my hair to keep me under. I told myself that they would never let me drown. They're just training me, building my endurance. This was how much they loved me.
Shivers ran up my spine. Being around that woman made my blood run colder than the night air.
I drew in a deep breath before replying to her through gritted teeth. "I am not your son. You're nothing to me, you hear? Nothing! You were never there until after my grandfather died. And whether or not… Why are your hands wet?"
She immediately ceased crying and held up her dripping hands as if seeing them for the first time. There was no way they could still be that wet even if she just left her house. She still lived in my childhood home which was two miles away. The packhouse was half a mile away. But I knew somewhere closer that had a lot of water.
The lake.
Anger and fear cut off my breathing. "Chelsea, what did you do..?"
She smiled. "Something exquisite."
"Tell me…"
"Oh, it doesn't matter." Chelsea shrugged and wiped her palms against her long skirt. "Let's catch up, Darling! Has Alpha Reiss made you his Beta yet?"
"Stop messing around and tell me what you did?!"
I shook with every fiber of my body. I lost control of my composure. My wolf was under the surface of my skin begging to break free and rip that woman apart. It didn't get to.
Multiple people heard my outburst and rushed to my mother's aid. Water dripped from her eyes like a running faucet.
"I didn't mean to make you upset," she sobbed.
One of the men rubbed her back. "Is he causing trouble again? Mrs. Berry, I told you to leave him be."
"What an ungrateful child. After everything you've done for him?!"
"I'm glad I don't have a son like you."
"Acts decent but turns into a vicious three-headed wolf when no one's looking. No wonder he's called Cerberus."
Chelsea cried harder, begging everyone not to be mean to me. She called me a lost soul who needed help.
I couldn't blame them for thinking that way. A seemingly helpless woman was on her knees, bawling her eyes out. Compared to her, I'm an intimidating man breathing erratically with his usually well-groomed hair falling over his crazed eyes.
But I did blame them. They were only capable of believing what they could see.
I swept my hair back and straightened my shirt. Without another, my feet carried me home.
Alpha Reiss
I blew out a puff of smoke. The moonlight shone on the cigarette in my hand.
I inhaled one last time before putting out the butt.
After changing, the next step was to make sure the door was closed and go to bed. But sleep wouldn't come.
As soon as I saw her, I knew she was special. She refused to look me in the fast but I could tell. Even my wolf could tell.
She's the one.
She's my one true mate.
Why had she come so late after all this time?
The older wolves told me that after five years of becoming an adult, there would be no chance for a wolf to find his mate. It'd been eight years for me.
And two years since Emery and I started dating.
After so long the one I desired is sleeping soundly on the same floor. If I listened hard enough, I could separate her breathing from all the other noises of the night.
It was like a dream come true. My wolf was so happy it jumped around in circles. It called her beautiful before I had a chance to stop it. She's so calm and quiet. So cautious.
Why did she have to be human?!
I checked the information that Chairman Roger Brice sent me. She's at the age where she would have known I was her mate if she was a werewolf.
Not only that, but we had yet to know anything about why she was here. I refused to believe Colt sent her here for no reason.
If I let her know that we were fated, she might use it to her advantage. I had to remember that although I felt the urge to be with her, she felt nothing in regard to me.
Someone was approaching. I sat up but relaxed once I recognized the footsteps.
Emery opened the door and closed it behind her. She released her red hair from a scrunchie. "Missed me, honey?"
"Of course," I replied with a smile.
"The meeting went well. Tomorrow, training will be focused on scouting." A black leather bag slipped off her shoulders. She reached for the hem of her dress and pulled it over her head.
I opened my arms, gesturing for her to come to bed. Emery removed her panties and allowed me to unhook her bra.
In the next second, she was in my arms and resting her head on my chest. "I like listening to your heartbeat," she whispered.
I pulled the blanket over both of our naked forms. Her small body felt warm against mine. Outside of our pack, no one would have thought that she was a Gamma.
"I'm glad, 'cause I like having you here."
I kissed the top of her head. And what about Emery? I asked her out because she amazed me with her potential. Am I actually going to dump her for someone who might never love me?
Maybe I'm thinking too hard. Tomorrow, we'll see what kind of person we're dealing with.