May 16, 2020 edited

Not perfect but better...No plot changes

TONY'S POV

"Where's my son?" The Alpha asked nobody in particular. It was after dinner when the Alpha and Thomas had returned and about an hour ago we were all called for this meeting.

    The meeting was small with myself, Nick, Brad, Thomas and our Alpha in attendance. Jenson should be here since he was going to take over the pack but he wasn't.

    It was Nick who answered. "He is out with Tania and Brooke." We all knew what he was doing and the Alpha was not happy about it at all. "Sir he won't listen. He doesn't want a mate and will do everything he can not to find one. Hell I am not even sure if he did find one that he wouldn't reject her on the spot." Nick informed us. I knew Jenson was a playboy but rejecting your mate was incomprehensible. It was a true gift that we only had one shot at most of the time. Sure once in a while there have been records of a second chance mate but if you were really lucky you would find someone that you learned to love and respect. Someone that helps that void in your heart where your fated mate should be. That void was always still there but the presence of that chosen mate made it more manageable.

    "I guess he doesn't want to be Alpha than." Alpha Alexander looked in a mix of pain and disappointment. "Fine. I do not have time for this nonsense. I will deal with him later. Anyways how has the past week been?"

    This time everyone looked at me first, They knew Mac and I were becoming close. If this wasn't to help her I would feel like I was betraying her trust. I still did but it was for the greater good. It was for her survival. "For the most part good. She hasn't fought anyone in a couple weeks. She seems more relaxed around me and even starting to warm up to Nick. She will talk to the younger kids in passing and smile at some of the older ones. She actually came into the theatre room with a bunch of us on Friday night. That is a huge step for her. She still trains harder than I have ever seen anyone train. She is committed that is for sure. Her anger is still there but she doesn't fly off the handle as easily but then again no one has tried to touch her. She looked truly happy yesterday and not just faking it. Not that she fakes too much. Mac is one of those people that you get what you see, well what she will allow you to see."

    Nick interrupted. "Actually that is not true. I mean about the touching part. Yesterday after that scene with Jenson she let me help her up and to her room. I had my arm around her waist and she let me. Then the same thing today after gym. Oh and with that human kid in the cafeteria."

    "Wow.Wow.Wow. What scene? And what happened today at school?" That was Thomas who asked. This was the first time I heard anything about the cafeteria.

    Nick and I both looked at each other. I wasn't sure this piece of information was going to help about yesterday. I had my suspicions and if they were right it was going to make things worse for Mac. Nick was staying quiet so it was up to me for the first part. "On our way back from our run Mac jumped on my back so I could carry her the rest of the way. She has been having some issues sleeping on and off. No I don't know why and I only know because the next morning she seems sluggish."

    "Wait," Thomas cut me off this time. "She initiated physical contact on her own and she let Nick help her?" I could see the hope in his eyes. Man I hated to break that.

    Even though I knew what I had to share next I smiled. "Yeah Thomas she did. She even kissed me on the cheek and said thanks. Anyways when we got back to the house Jenson was a little...ah...upset. But instead of her getting angry she walked away and that was when she tripped and let Nick help her upstairs." Here goes hoping they didn't ask for more details. I knew it was wishful thinking but I tried.

    "Why was my son upset?" Alpha Alexander demanded while staring at myself and Nick. Shit he had his suspicions already.

    "That is a bit unclear." That was the truth. It was unclear and Jenson denied everything.

    "Nick, tell me what was said now!" He was using his Alpha command and since Nick was supposed to be Jenson's Beta and his best friend he would know and understand Jenson better than anyone.

    "Jenson said she was not his mate." I wasn't the only one playing it safe but our Alpha wasn't falling for it. I didn't think Thomas or Brad were either.

    "What do you think is going on?" Tricky bastard. Nick couldn't lie or get out of this one especially since the Alpha command was so strong, I wanted to answer the question and it wasn't directed at me.

    Nick took a deep breath. "Short version. Something is up. Mac was fine till she walked past Jenson and tripped but it looked like her legs gave out. There has been tension between the two since the night he came home. He even does everything he can to avoid her. And now he is keeping his distance from me." Ha! Our Alpha isn't the only tricky little bastard. Nick never said he thought they were mates just thinks something is off. So yeah the thought is there but nothing else. This gives us more time to save Mac. Alpha Alexander was never one to do anything without all the facts so with us not knowing for sure it gave us more time.

    The room was quiet, all you could hear was our breathing and out heart beats. Mine and Nick's were beating a little faster then they should have been and there was no way of hiding that fact. The Alpha, Beta, and Gamma could hear them clear as day. Even though they were not looking at us it didn't help the tension filling my body. Brad sat there in deep thought looking relaxed as usual. It took a lot to get him rattled. And that was actually the reason why he held the Gamma position. He was the cool head of the group. He was incharge of keeping the pack calm and protecting the Luna. Thomas, our Beta, looked pissed. He knew that if Jenson was Mac's mate that he would reject her and that could tip the scales and turning her delicate young wolf  feral. I had no doubt she would eventually shift. If she didn't hold so much anger than it would be different. Then she could choose to stay as she was or finally bring out her wolf. All it would take was one bite. Our venom would trigger the dormant gene and bring on her wolf. By choosing that road it will help her wolf to be bonded to the pack immediately but if she turns on her own she will not have the bond in place and that could let her wolf take over and she would be a wild beast until she fought for control. If she could fight for control. With her anger it hurt her human side but fueled her wolf. The odds were not in her favour.

Now the Alpha looked conflicted. If his son had a true mate and he rejected her he would no longer have a chance to become Alpha unless he picked a Luna the pack would respect. Rejecting your mate is not a practice that is respected unless for drastic reasons. But I also knew he wanted what was best for the pack. Where his mate, Luna Lola, was soft and carrying and a great Luna for the pack, Mac was the opposite. She was strong and a fighter with a short fuse. I knew she would protect the pack once she understood but she was nothing like Luna Lola. I believed Mac would be an amazing Luna but I was also biased because I was one of the only ones who knew her softer side. Hell she might even make a kick ass Alpha with the right Beta and Gamma by her side. Not that I would share that little piece of my thoughts with anyone.

The other issue was that if his son did reject her then the chances of not going feral were slim and they would have to kill her before she went on a killing spree. So her death would be all on his son's hands. We didn't kill the innocent and right now that was what Mac was. We only killed to protect. Which was actually what we would have to do if Mac's wolf went feral. It was definitely not a position I would want to be in even though I was in the middle. I knew I would do almost anything to protect Mac. And that was the scary thing.

    "Ok then, we didn't find out a lot but have some guidelines on where things may have started to go wrong so it is better than what we had. We still have a few more leads to look into," Alpha Alexander broke the silence and all the inner mental wars that were going on in a few of us. "We know it was when Mac turned 12 things started to change. Without a pack and his mate Mac's dad started to lose himself to his wolf. She probably started to see the difference in him shortly after. We are pretty sure there was no physical abuse. Even when a wolf starts to take over our human half their need to protect what is theirs is still strong. I am not saying things didn't get bad I am just saying he didn't outright beat her. Plus there is no evidence that he did. No concerns from the school or any medical records pointing in that direction. We do know something happened when she was 14. That was when things went downhill pretty fast. It was the only time her marks dropped before she got them back up. We found an old acquaintance and they told us she had a boyfriend for a couple of months but it ended abruptly. They also hinted that it was a less than adequate pairing. Mac was shy and timid where this boy was outgoing and popular. After that ended there was possible bullying going on. That was around the time her father started her training. The second year of high school was when the fighting really started. Some say she had a short temper and just like to fight where there were a couple who said she was defending herself and sometimes others. After her father's passing she spent some time with this one boy who is bad news. He is actually in jail now for assault, sexual assault,  and possession. Besides the first boyfriend and this guy we found no others." Alpha Alexander finished.

    "Some of that makes sense now," Nick was mumbling while staring off into nothing. "That first day in gym class when she tripped Drew. He did it to that Jason kid first. The human one that she let him pull her away today at lunch. Her first time was when she was 14 and now she doesn't like being touched especially when in anger or in a sexual manner or suggested. The way she gets defensive when she feels trapped or overwhelmed. When she is angry she needs some kind of physical outlet. Can you imagine what she was going through after losing her dad and her home? I bet the fighting wasn't enough. She needed more and with her having the wolf gene the older she gets the more she needs a pack. The more she needs to feel a bond."

    "Are you saying the Mac was...taken advantage of at the age of 14?" Thomas's voice was low and cold. He was barely keeping his shit together.

    "No! I don't know. It is a possibility. I don't know anything for sure. But what I do know it would all make sense. And if she is craving that bond and the need for a pack then we could fix this. It is not too late even if Jenson..." Nick trailed off. We all knew what he was going to say. Even if Jenson rejects her.

    "Tony, Nick you guys have another week to see what else you can find out but after that we need to tell her what is happening. She needs to know and understand in order for things not to go all to shit. But Thomas," Alpha Alexander stood and stared right at Thomas. "If things don't go well then you know what needs to be done. I will not ask you to do this. I will not make you take your only nieces life. I will accept that responsibility. I will order you not to do it, in fact. None of this is your fault. Please remember this."

    The emotions swirling around Thomas was making me dizzy. There was hurt, fear, anger, sadness, and understanding that continued to fly around him. I could barely imagine what he was going though. I was struggling and I had only known her for a few weeks and was not family well not really. But I cared for her deeply.

    That night I snuck into Mac's room and just watched her sleep for a while. The whole time trying to figure what to do and how to help. When she started to stir I left.