Chapter 70: Rumor Has It

Background color
Font
Font size
Line height


Caleb

After New Year's Day, I have not felt more pain. To be honest I do not fell anything anymore, no pain, no happiness, no nothing. I lost the most important part of me. I have been calling the Silver Fang Pack for the last couple of days non-stop, but I always get the same answer: everything is perfect; we are not accepting visits; everyone is busy. Samuel had been calling Matt but he had not been answering his phone.

"We are here, son," my mother said.

I peeked through the window at the large convention center in front of us. My parents brought me to the Alphas meeting this year, while Samuel and my father's Beta take care of the pack. The Alphas from every single pack across the country were there. The council itself takes care of the security every year.

The security guard at the front door confirmed our identities; He put our names and pack in a tablet and gave each of us an ID. What a time to be alive. Our bags would be delivered to our rooms in the hotel next door.

We walked into the building and as expected it was packed. I looked around me. The decoration was modern and minimalist, nothing too extravagant, just like I like it. I noticed the two large buffet tables at each side of the humungous room. People around me seemed to be entertained in dramatic conversations, but I did not pay attention. I have never been a fan of gossiping.

My gaze darted to the stage in the center of the room. I needed to focus on my plan. The three Alphas of the three most powerful packs always give the welcoming address. My idea was to directly ask Anna's brother for permission to visit her. I may have to beg and humiliate myself, but it would be worth it.

The lights around the room were dimmed and the stage was illuminated. Some people walked up the stage, Alpha Tobias Maddox and his Luna from the Mountain Oasis Pack and another couple I did not recognize. That was weird. Neither Alexander Hunter, nor Anna's brother and his Luna were there. The room went quiet.

Alpha Maddox took a step to the front and began talking. He gave some speech that I did not really pay attention to. I was clutching my sweating hands without tearing my gaze from the stage. Why isn't Anna's brother on there? I do not know what else to do to see my mate. I turned to my mother and she seemed distressed for some reason. She was sobbing quietly while my father rubbed her back. I was about to ask her what had happened when the unknown man on the stage began talking and caught my attention.

"Hello. I am Alpha Adam Nash. This is the first Alphas' meeting I attend to as the Alpha of the Blood River Pack. Most of you know me as the former Beta of Alexander Hunter. From today on, my person and my pack would like to distance ourselves from Alexander Hunter and the whole Hunter family. You have probably have heard about Alexander's crimes. Both my Luna and I are... were friends of Beta Amores. We attended to the trial against our former Alpha and testified against him. I assure you, our pack condemns his behavior. Leaving that aside..."

He kept talking but I did not bother listening. What crimes had that guy committed and what does it had to do with Anna? I could feel my heart beating faster and my feet started tapping on the floor without me thinking. My head hung low while I fidgeted with the sleeves of my jacket.

"Psst... You seem confused," a boy standing to my side said. He was not older than ten years old.

I looked at him a little ashamed. "I am. What did Alexander Hunter do?" I whispered.

"Haven't you heard the rumors? That guy kidnapped Beta Amores and her son and tortured both of them. He drugged her, beat her; He even made her kiss him in front of her mate while he had hidden guys aiming at him with guns."

I felt as if the ground below me and everything around me had shattered. "Wh-What?" I asked with a shaky voice suddenly feeling the contents of my stomach burning my throat. This could not be.

"Yeah. My older brother went to the trial. Look at this." He pulled out a phone and showed me pictures of wounds and bruises in my beautiful mate's skin. I would recognize her anywhere. "He even injected her with wolfsbane, so she could not run away. When her brother found her, he was on top of her about to rape her."

I wanted to yell or shout or something but my voice would not come out. I staggered back, my eyes filling with tears. The lump in my throat was painful and I felt as if I was at the verge of shifting. My whole body was trembling while I kept my fists clenched and my jaw tight. My Anna had gone through so much, and I was not there to save her. I promised I would always protect her, and I didn't. That is why she looked so pale and weak that day. She still went to me and tried to make things right even though I had failed her.

"Hey, are you okay?" the boy asked.

No. I am miserable. I have no idea of how to even begin to fix my mistake. Flowers and romantic notes would not cut it anymore. I nodded to the kid and turned around to leave the room but a single question made me halt. Those words that someone said maybe out of curiosity of concern devastated my whole world.

"Is it true that Beta Amores is dead?" someone asked.

Adam cleared his throat. "It is not my place to talk about that. Even I do not know the truth. When I asked her brother, he only answered: I have heard the rumor."

What... No... That... That is not possible. Suddenly it was not only devastation what I was feeling but complete hopelessness. The world around me began to slowly fade and some arms, which I recognized as my dad's, caught me.

When I opened my eyes again, I was laying on a bed in an unknown room. For a moment, nothing made sense; I did not know how I had gotten there. I remembered that I was in the Alphas meeting waiting for an opportunity to approach Anna's brother, but he was nowhere to be found. Wait... I sat up and stared at my mother. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot, her cheeks wet and her nose still running.

Everything I have heard came back flooding my mind, and I collapsed to the bed. I hugged my legs curling myself in a ball. "Mom... What happened to my mate?"

My mother began to cry and sniffle again. My father sighed; He pulled my mom in a side hug and began talking with a strained voice as if he also was about to break into tears any second.

"It seems that in New Year's Eve, the Silver Fang Pack was attacked by a massive number of rogues. Most of their defenses concentrated in the South limit. However, more rogues than expected attacked from the North. When the warriors were about to fall, Anna went there and saved them. She is a hero, but..."

"But?" I asked.

"But there is a rumor going around saying that she did not make it."

For the first time in a while, I was feeling something more than emptiness. It was raw pain, not the same kind of physical pain as before, but something more profound. Something that slowly dipped into my soul, eroding it. The idea of never seeing her again, never hearing her sweet voice, or her sarcastic remarks, never touching her soft skin, never kissing her was too cruel to bear. It was all my fault. If I had trusted her when she came back to me, she would be by my side today; She would not be a martyr.

My wolf was not even complaining. He was just whining and howling in pain. I needed to get out of here. I told my parents that I was going for a run and sprinted to the forest where I shifted to my wolf form. I spent the rest of the night running and howling. It did not matter what I did the hole in my chest would not stop aching.

That night, I understood that it did not matter how much sad or hurt I was, I should have considered my mates feelings. I should have known that there are always two sides to a story, and that love is not real without trust. I only thought about me, like an egotistical foolish kid, and hurt the most beautiful, compassionate, loving woman in the world, my gift.

I went back to my hotel room in the early morning. Luckily, there were no people around. I was a mess; my head throbbed from all the crying and I had a few deep cuts from falling on some rocks. I took a shower and got my phone. I would get them to talk to me that day.

After one full hour begging and crying to the girl on the phone, she finally felt enough pity to let me talk to someone else.

"Are you that kid from the Wild Moon pack?" a deep intimidating voice said.

"Yes. I need to know about my mate, please," I said in a pleading tone.

"What happened to my daughter is that she gave up in life. She went through so much shit to then, get rejected by a good for nothing excuse of mate! If you care so much about her, why don't you become someone worthy of her?" He yelled. "Maybe that way, she would come back to us," he whispered and hung up.

I threw the phone across the room and covered my face with my hands. I knew it! I knew it! Dammit. I made her give up on life. She just got tired of waiting for me. Why? Why did I have to hurt and reject the one person I love the most; The one person who would always be there for me and love me even when I failed her. I could have grown up and matured for her. I wanted to do it; I still want to be the man she can rely on. If only I had had more time.

I chuckled sadly, not bothering wiping off the tears. That is the thing with time, though, it only goes forwards. Once I read that living is just spending the time given to us; I wasted so much time that I could have spent with her. I know that I am not worthy of her. I have known that all along, but I want her, I need her. None of that matters anymore. Sweet words and all the wisdom in the world will not bring her back to me.

If I become the man she deserves, will she see it? I need to believe that yes. Otherwise, I might as well go behind her. The first time that I read Romeo and Juliette, I thought it was foolish. How could they kill themselves for something so silly as love, but now I understand; I completely understand them.

I looked up and sniffled. Then, I blew my nose. I coughed and sniffled again before closed my eyes to remember the last time we were together. I wanted to follow my mate. However, I could imagine my Anna telling me to not be an idiot. I could see her scolding me for acting like the character of a sappy drama. I know how pissed off she would be if I tell her that I would end my life to go to her. Oh, she would be so mad. A sad smile crossed tugged at the corner of my lips as her angry face came into my mind.

I will live to become the mate I should have been for her. Those are just rumors, right? My mate is the strongest werewolf. She will come back. When that happens, I will be better and stronger for her. My bottom lip quivered as more tears began to fall. I wept and sobbed loudly... Starting from tomorrow on.

You are reading the story above: TeenFic.Net