Cain POV
"What the f**k were you thinking getting drunk and speaking against your sister to the pack" I say as I push Bryce into the house. He almost falls over his own feet, but he's able to right himself. He whirls on me with his fists clenched at his sides. He has the good sense to keep his mouth shut as I step closer to him.
"How could you say that you hope your sister dies. Do you not understand what you've done? Getting her back here and in Reese's bed is the only way you'll keep your title now because you had to act like a three-year-old that lost his toy. Without your sister, Reese will never accept you, his wolf won't allow it."
"That's the only thing that is important to you, isn't it, Cain? You've lost your mate, and soon you won't have your f**k buddy. Your title's all you have left." I pull my hand back and slap him across the face. No one knows about the relationship I have with Robert except for Bryce. Miranda was visiting her original pack with the other pups. Bryce had stayed behind to train with Reese. He walked in on me and Robert in my bedroom. He was about fifteen at the time.
I knew he was upset, and I tried to talk to him. Make him understand that I still loved his mother with all my heart. He refused to talk about it and swore he would never tell anyone what he had seen. Bryce's eyes meet mine. They are filled with hatred as he licks the blood from his lips. "Go get yourself cleaned up" I say, looking at his blood-covered shirt. "Then sleep off the booze Bryce. You are going to ruin everything if you don't pull yourself together."
"In case you haven't noticed, dad, everything is already ruined. I rejected my mate and Reese can't even look at me, let alone touch me. All he can talk about is getting Rosie back, so how do you expect me to act," he says. "I expect you to use your head. Robert will make sure what he proposed happens. You need to get on board with that plan, Bryce. Your sister has to birth the next heir to the pack. It will ensure the strength of the next Alpha. After that, if she wants to leave, she can."
"I hate the thought of him touching her." "Well, suck it up. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made for the greater good. Robert's brother will be here tonight, and I need you involved in the meeting. He has assured Robert he has a way to locate your sister, mom, and Emmett." He turns without another word and heads upstairs.
I plop down on the couch and place my face in my hands. How did everything go to sh*t so quickly? "That's called karma a**hole," Granger says with a growl. "I don't need your sh*t Granger. I have enough to deal with." "Tough sh*t, your greed and entitlement lost me my mate. You better pray to the goddess you don't need to defend yourself in wolf form because you'll be f**ked."
"What the f**k are you talking about?" "I refuse to shift and defend your pathetic a**. What kind of man betrays his mate and pup?" "Don't talk stupid, Granger. If you don't allow the shift, we will both die." "Then so be it. I would rather be dead then stuck with a piece of sh*t human like you," he says and blocks me out. He can't be serious. I know he's angry, but he isn't that stupid.
Reese POV
After my dad left the office, Fallon and I decided we needed to go for a run. As we made our way around the pack my only thought was about how the conversation with my mother was going to go. My father has no choice because Addie has no intention of backing down. Part of me is glad that my mother will know the truth, but part of me hates that my mother will be hurt by what's transpired.
My mother is going to be devastated when she realizes that Miranda, Rose, and Emmett have no intention of returning to the pack. Miranda is like a sister to my mother. We were all inseparable growing up. Now everything is a f**king mess. "Reese, Uncle Robert has arrived. I need you to go to Cain's house and bring something of Rosalyn's to my office now." My father doesn't give me a chance to ask why he could possibly need something of my mate's before he cuts the link.
Fallon heads back to the clearing and my clothes. I quickly dress and make my way to a house that I spent a great deal of my childhood in. I knock twice before Cain pushes the door open. "Your father has already linked me. Go head up and grab something so we can make our way to the office." Part of me wants to tell him and Bryce to f**k off after the way they have treated Rosie, but I know my father won't agree.
I take the stairs two at a time. When I push open her bedroom door, her faint scent nearly brings me to my knees. Goddess, how I've missed it. I take a minute to just breathe deeply as I make my way over to her bed. I notice something sticking out underneath her pillow. I grab the red fabric between my fingertips. When I pull it out, my heart squeezes in my chest. It's one of my t-shirts she must have worn home. She was sleeping with it to feel closer to me. I fight the urge to rip the room apart.
She wanted me as much as I wanted her and I f**ked everything up. After I manage to calm myself down, I walk over to her dresser where there are pictures of us together. I grab two of them along with a bracelet I gave her right after I claimed her. It is a charm bracelet with our initials and a wolf dangling from it. I grip it in my palm and close my eyes letting her scent calm me. "Reese" Bryce's voice breaks the silence.
"Not now, Bryce. I need to get to my father's office." "I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry. I never should have said those things earlier. I know Rosie is your mate and I have to respect that. I know you are angry at me, but I hope in time you'll forgive me if I can prove to you that I want you and my sister to be happy," he says. I nod, but I know he is only saying what he hopes will get him back in my good graces.
I push past him and make my way down the stairs. Once I'm outside, I make my way to the pack house. I'm sure that Cain and Bryce are behind me but I make no effort to wait for them. I need to distance myself from Bryce. If I do manage to bring Rosie home, she will not be safe around him no matter how many times he offers empty apologies. He is a threat to my mate.
I reach my father's office and the sound of raised voices echoes through the hall. When I push open the door, my father, mother, uncle, and a woman I've never seen before look in my direction. Her scent hits me and I immediately know she is a witch. My mother looks at me and, for the first time in my life, I see disappointment in her eyes. Did he tell her already? What the f**k? I want her to hear my side of things.
She turns her focus back on my father. "Addie said you had things you needed to tell me. Now I show up to find your brother and a witch in your office. I want to know what the f**k is going on, Robert and I want to know now." I don't think I've ever heard my mother curse in all my years. "Maureen, please" he starts to say, but she growls at him.
"The only thing I want to hear from your mouth is the truth, Robert." Before my father can answer, Cain and Bryce step inside. My mother's eyes turn in their direction. Her eyes damn near bug out of her head as she looks at Cain. She reaches him in three long strides. He is startled when she grabs his collar, yanking it down. "What the f**k is going on? Where is your mating mark" she asks, and it feels like all the air is sucked out of the room.
My mother may be a Luna, but she is of Alpha blood. Cain's eyes look to my father for help before my mother repeats her question using her Alpha command. I can see Cain holding his lips tight trying to resist the urge to give into her orders. He fails miserably when he blurts out three words. "She rejected me."