Filed to story: Claimed by My Ex’s Alpha Brother
For the next hour, I answered my pack’s many questions about the Rogue wolf threat-which was still a concern. Even though we had won a single battle, that was only just one army of Rogues. There were still many more out there.
Once the meeting was adjourned, my dad came up to me and pulled me aside.
“Son, I am so sorry that I allowed my worry for the pack to cloud my judgment. I can’t believe I’ve been so foolish…I ignored you every time that you tried to tell me that the Alpha King was corrupt. And you were right this whole time, ” my dad said with guilt in his eyes.
“It’s okay, Dad. Your heart was in the right place the entire time.” I paused, but the corners of his mouth were still turned down. “Dad, you tried to find evidence that the Alpha King was corrupt before you even considered making a deal with him.”
“I did,” my dad sighed, his shoulders slumping. “I don’t understand how I wasn’t able to find any proof.”
“Because King Ezekiel had hired corrupt software engineers to conduct his shady business,” I answered. “But the engineers at my company are better than his.” I grinned. “My team was able to find all that evidence I just presented to you. I believe that the Alpha King wanted my company so he could use my engineers to hack into other pack technology to steal their money and pack secrets.”
My dad sharply inhaled.
“I can’t believe I almost let myself with that asshole. I’m glad you’re taking him down. I can help you with whatever you need on that front…on all fronts.” We shared a smile. “Again, I’m sorry for not trusting you, Son.”
We all make mistakes, Dad,” I told him. “Sometimes we inadvertently hurt people, even when we think we’re doing the right thing.”
I looked past my dad’s shoulder and made eye contact with Ella.
For a moment, the gold thread that connected us flickered, then disappeared.
Hopefully, I would get a chance to rectify my past mistakes.
Ella POV
“Ella, will you please help me with dessert?” my mom asked from across the table.
“Of course,” I said, squeezing Grayson’s hand before I stood.
Liam and I were engrossed in listing all the food they wanted to try to grill.
“What about watermelon?” Grayson suggested, his eyes shining with excitement.
“Good idea, buddy. I heard watermelon is weirdly good when it’s grilled,” Liam said, smiling down at our son.
“There’s nothing weird about watermelon!” Grayson said and giggled as Liam tried to tickle him.
My mom, Grayson, Liam, and I were just finishing dinner out on the back patio. Liam had grilled steaks-he had explained the process to Grayson, even letting him flip one. I made Caesar salad, baked potatoes, and roasted asparagus. My mom had spent hours making a blueberry pie from scratch.
We were celebrating.
After the pack meeting earlier this afternoon, where Liam had revealed the truth about the Alpha King, my mom, Liam, and I met up with Aunt Mia and Grayson, who were at the compound hospital visiting my dad. In the middle of the visit, Healer Nia came into the room to share my father’s latest CT scans.
His most recent test has shown increased brain activity. My dad wasn’t completely out of the woods yet, but it was a good sign. Healer Nia was hopeful that my dad might wake up. Aunt Mia was going to spend the night at the hospital to sit with her brother, and the rest of us came back to Liam’s house for a celebratory dinner.
As I stood up from the table to follow after my mom, I admired the beautiful pink and orange sunset. But when I looked down to see the colorful clouds reflecting off the surface of the pool, I inwardly cringed at an image in my mind of Grayson struggling to stay afloat in the water. I tried not to let the fear show on my face.
Even though I was terrified of my son ever swimming again, that wasn’t realistic. I wanted him to become a better swimmer, so if something like that ever happened again, he would be able to swim to the edge. After the pack meeting, Liam and I had discussed putting him into swimming lessons when he was ready to get back in the water.
I followed my mom into Liam’s kitchen, and the delicious scent of fresh blueberry pie hit me.
“It’s almost finished cooling,” my mom said, gesturing to her dessert on the stove.
“It looks delicious, Mom.”
She crossed her arms and leaned against the counter. There were dark circles under her eyes, and when she looked at me, her gaze was full of guilt.
“Honey, I’m so sorry.” Her voice broke as she whispered the apology.
My heart began to frantically pound.
“F-for what? Why are you apologizing? What happened?”
“It was my idea that you go on a walk that morning. It’s my fault that you were kidnapped,” my mom said, a tear rolling down her cheek.
“Oh, momma, no.” I stepped closer and drew her into a hug, inhaling her familiar smell of flour and a hint of the floral perfume she wore. “That wasn’t your fault. Noah was determined to use me against Liam. He would have found me eventually.”
I could feel my mom stiffen in my embrace.
“If Liam hadn’t killed him already, I’d track him down and kill him myself,” she said in a low voice as she stepped slightly away.
“He’s gone, Mom. I watched it happen myself.”
I traced the scar Noah’s knife had made across my neck. Since he hadn’t been in his wolf form when he gave it to me, the pink line would eventually fade.
But I was more afraid of the mental scars Noah and the Rogue wolf who attacked me when I was sixteen had given me. Before I left the hospital, I’d brought this up to Healer Aja. She recommended a therapist she knew from the Pryegate Kingdom who specialized in healing trauma. I had a video call scheduled with her in a week just to see if she might be the right fit for me.
“Do you think Aunt Mia stayed back at the hospital because she’s sad that you, Grayson, and I are moving back to Brindle Creek?” I asked as my mom carefully cut her pie.
Earlier today-right before we heard the good news about my dad-my mom and I talked to my Aunt Mia in front of the compound’s hospital. Liam took Grayson for a walk to the coffee shop to buy him a donut. My mom and I told Aunt Mia that Liam had made it safe for Grayson and me to move back to Brindle Creek. Aunt Mia had been ecstatic, but I could see the sadness in her eyes when she thought no one was looking.
“I do,” my mom said and sighed.
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?