Chapter 8: Chapter 8
LUCIUS
A few days after my last encounter with Dusk, I decided to bury myself further into more pack work, which was a major reason why Alpha Jake, a neighboring Alpha, was in my meeting room. Ethan sat quietly beside me, watching every move he made.
"What do you think about merging our trainings together?" Jake leaned in his chair and spread his arms, dramatically throwing the question at us.
"That shouldn't be a bad idea." I started, my clipped and controlled voice echoing throughout my office. "But the last thing I want now is a fight among our men."
"I agree." Ethan spoke up for the first time. "The war or practice techniques could be sent to your pack as well. So, despite the location of the training, we still have the same skills."
"Bravo." Jake smiled, followed by a deep baritone laugh. "You surely live up to your name, Ethan." He turned to me. "You are really lucky, Lucius."
"Yeah right." I said absentmindedly, flipping through the truce document that was brought earlier.
"But not in all areas, I guess." The mockery was evident in his tone; I guess I wasn't the only one who picked up where he was driving.
"If that is all for today, I guess we can call it a day. I'll—"
"It's okay, Ethan." I stopped him. For some reason, I wanted to know his perspective on my mate.
"You got her from an auction?" He asked, and I nodded, leaning into my chair and studying him. "You deserve a stronger mate; no offense to her, though."
"None taken." I said. My wolf gave me incessant signals not to go on, but why? Why must she obstruct everything and leave nothing but irritation in her wake?
"I guess the moon goddess decided to punish me for my wayward life with the ladies." I smirked.
"Oh really? I guess you have the crown on that." He paused. "Why don't you reject her? I mean, If you don't want her to suffer, you can reject her and make her well to do; that way, she would be far from you."
"Not happening." I replied almost immediately, fisting my palms. I looked at him pointedly. "Her place is where I am, and if she needs to see me fucking and having my way around with other women, then so be it."
Maybe that would brace her up. But she looked helpless; no amount of hell could make her less pathetic and irritating.
"You should think about it." Jake said, stretching out his hands, which I accepted with a nod. He walked out moments later, and I couldn't help but feel a strange tension rising in the room with Ethan by my side.
"Lucius, what you said back then was hurtful." Ethan said that doing the same thing he does makes me go mad. I snapped the pen on the table and turned to him furiously.
"What do you want me to do about it?" I snapped, a coldness spreading through my body. "I can't have a weak mate, Ethan. What kind of Alpha would I be?"
"You can make her—"
“Oh, come on, strong?" I cut in with a rude chuckle. "I can't. I am not made to make my Luna; she should be a gift from the moon goddess, a strong and worthy one. And besides, know your routes. You are my beta, not my fucking advisor! Now leave!"
Ethan looked taken aback by my words. I saw the evident apple gobble in his throat. In a very quiet yet audible voice, betraying no emotions, he bade farewell and walked out.
As I watched Ethan leave the room, my mind raced with thoughts of my mate. Was I really willing to sacrifice my connection with her for the sake of my reputation? I couldn't bear the thought of having a weak mate and ruining everything I had built over the years.
-----
The next day I was walking along the pack, checking out things, when Seline walked up to me. I found my anger returning. She had no right to take my mate out without getting a pass from me, but I swallowed whatever I wanted to say and willed my face into that of coldness.
"Great to see you, Alpha Lucius. I need to speak to you...about Dusk." She said.
Though her eyes wandered in nervousness, I could still feel the determination that oozed from her.
"What is it, Seline?" I asked, trying to hide my boredom. "Don't waste my time; I have other things to attend to."
"So? Am I to be blamed for her weakness? You can't be serious right now, can you?"
"I know you can't." I noticed the restraint she had from yelling at me, but she knew better than doing that. Who in his right mind would speak back to an Alpha because of someone as weak as Dusk?
"Ardiane and Dalia are taking it to the extreme, Alpha. It's time for you to step in and take control before something irreversible happens," she said, her voice laced with urgency.
My eyes narrowed as I stared at her. "I don't care about Dusk," I said dismissively. "If she can't handle it, then she should fight back or suffer it. I'll get rid of her whenever I feel like it. I have more important things to worry about."
Selina was taken aback by my response, and hurt was evident in her eyes. She shook her head in disbelief and turned to walk away, leaving me alone with my thoughts.
As I stood there by myself, a maid approached me and informed me that my father wanted to see me. I was not in the mood to see anyone, especially not my father.
Without waiting for another word, I burst out of the palace and made my way to my car. I got in and zoomed off.
Driving down the winding roads, I couldn't help but feel the weight of my responsibilities bearing down on me. The thought of Dusk and her problems crept into my mind once more, but I pushed them aside. I had more important matters to attend to, or so I thought.
****
I knew just the perfect place to ease my tension and get some good and distracting pleasure for the night.
I walked in, the scent of alcohol and cigarettes filling my nostrils. The bar was crowded, but I managed to find an empty stool at the counter. I waved at the bartender, who poured me a glass of whiskey.
As I sipped my drink, my thoughts kept drifting back to Dusk. The more I tried to drown out this pathetic image from my mind, the more I found my wolf resisting, making me totally uncomfortable.
"Hey there, handsome." A slurred voice interrupted my thoughts. I looked up to see Freya stumbling towards me. She had clearly had a little too much to drink. We have had some meetings in the past.
I didn't want to deal with her, but I also didn't want to be rude. "Hey Freya," I said, trying to sound polite.
She sat down next to me, her body swaying. "What brings you here tonight?" she asked, trailing her fingers along my arm.
"I needed to clear my head," I replied bluntly, trying to discourage her advances.
"Me too!" Freya giggled. "Let's have a drink together. On me!"
I didn't protest, and soon we were both downing shots of tequila. Laughter filled the air as I watched her get drunk. I felt a little bit lightheaded right now, and my wolf, who was already tired of nagging and fighting, crept into the back of my mind and remained silent, leaving his human to deal with the hard shots of tequila.
As the night went on, Freya became more flirtatious. I tried to ignore her, but I couldn't help but admit that I felt a little horny and that it wouldn't hurt to have just one night. I heard my wolf yelling protests in my head, telling me how it would hurt our mate. But damn, did I look like I cared?
"Let's get out of here," she whispered, leaning in close to me. "I want to show you something."
Despite my reservations, I found myself nodding along. We stumbled out of the bar and into my car. I drove us back to the house, which was situated at the edge of the road.
Once we arrived, I helped Freya back to her room. She turned to face me and, before I could react, kissed me forcefully. My wolf howled in protest, but I couldn't resist any longer.
The next morning, I woke up in her bed, my body tangled with hers. Dusk's pathetic face flashed through my eyes. I pulled my clothes on.
I snuck out of her room, and I couldn't deny that a certain weight of guilt is currently dumped in my chest. I got into my car and drove at a very high speed, the wind blowing its cold and damp air into the car as I returned back to the pack.