Chapter 43: The Alpha Curse

Chapter 43: The Alpha Curse
Silas
“I understand now.” Syd’s voice is tender and soft as she looks into Pearl’s eyes. It makes me wonder if this is how she was with her mother.
Pearl turns to look at my parents with a charming smile, “Beta Youngbloods, do you mind if I have a moment with the Alphas.”
Before anyone could say a word in response, Syd replied, “they are family. If it’s important, I would like them to hear it.” I was shocked. I expected to be kicked out of the room myself for a second.
In a gentle voice, I asked, “Syd, are you sure?” She didn’t answer in words, just a shy smile; I could see her eyes were glassy.
“If that is what the Alpha wishes, I will oblige. I must warn you this is not a happy story, nor should it be shared outside of this room.” Pearl’s ominous warning sucked the air out of the room. We all took a deep breath.
“Please, Elder Pearl, continue.” Syd sat up straight. If I couldn’t feel her emotions, I would think she was calm and regal looking, but I knew she was not only nervous but slightly terrified of what Peral was about to tell us. I felt the same. I wiped my sweaty palms on my shorts, hoping no one would notice.
“The downfall of the White Ridge pack started with Alpha Burt Tarlo, Reed Tarlo’s grand-daddy.” Pearl leaned back in her chair, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath.
“Burt Tarlo? To my knowledge, he was nothing extraordinary, just a small pack Alpha.” Dad was leaning forward, rubbing his scruffy beard like the action would spark a memory or some forgotten information.
“Have you heard of the Alpha Curse?” Pearl’s clear grey eyes showed a flash of brown; her wolf agitated at the mention of the term. I could feel Bram pushing forward. My heart started racing. Was this something we were not allowed to know? A secret of our wolf spirits?
I could see the hair on Syd’s arms standing on end, and I could feel her fighting Thora. She growled out, “Proceed.”
“As you can feel, our wolves are displeased but try to keep them under control.” Pearl snarled as she closed her eyes once again to help regain complete control of her wolf. “The Alpha Curse goes back to our origins. It is a tightly held secret of our wolf souls. Our first Alpha promised Selene after she blessed him with a mate that his offspring would trust the goddess’ choice for a mate, or they and their pack would fall into madness and ruin. This must be the Alphas’ choice to trust the goddess; that’s why it’s a secret not shared even between our two souls. You, Alpha Sydney Eld, have trusted the goddess and lifted us out of this curse. Thank you.”
This news shouldn’t be this shocking, as it was unspoken knowledge that Alphas rejecting their fated mates go a little crazy. Hearing it confirmed and packaged for some reason was unsettling. I forced the knot in my throat down, “it’s unspoken, but yes.”
“Good, then what I’m about to tell you will make more sense. Alpha Burt Tarlo became obsessed with growing his power and influence. Even as an Alpha heir, he was consumed by the fact that our pack held no seat on either council. He felt he was better than our small mountain pack. When he found his mate, a young warrior from a long line of warriors, you think he would have been happy, but he was disgusted with his mate and rejected her the moment he met her.”
Mom gasped. She was a hopeless romantic and loved hearing others’ stories about how they found each other. It was inexcusable to her for anyone to reject their mate.
Pearl continued, “Burt Tarlo was certain the goddess was wrong and instead made a deal with a neighboring Alpha to take one of his daughters as his mate.”
“A deal? Who would just hand over their daughter like a business transaction?” I was appalled at the idea. It wasn’t the middle-ages for crying out loud.
“The Hyde Alpha of the Clear Lake Pack, the pack, and Alpha Family were also part of the new moon alliance. Alpha Hyde only had daughters and refused to have his pack taken over by a female Alpha. He forced his Beta’s son to mate with his daughter and produced a “proper heir.” They were not fated mates, but rumor had it they did care for each other. Sadly, once Alpha Hyde had an heir from the forced union, he killed them both and the whole Beta family. This must have angered the goddess because the Clear Lake Pack dealt with a lot of misfortune after that. He basically sold his other two daughters off for profit because the pack was having a hard time. His youngest was only 17, and her name was Maria. She was forced to become Burt Tarlo’s mate before she could even find her own.”
“What they got wasn’t even a horrible enough punishment in the end?” Syd’s jaw was clenched, and I could see her neck veins popping out. I grabbed her fisted hand and wrapped mine around it. Her shoulders relaxed a bit.
“It would seem so, Alpha. Chosin mates are common but not with ranked wolves. A ranked wolf rejecting their mate invokes the Alpha Curse.” Pearl took a sip of water, her hand slightly shaky, so different from her usual, dignified demeanor. “As I said earlier, my mother was a human and what we wolves call a reader. My father was a top-pack warrior, so his status protected my mother. When he found out the captive Luna was pregnant, Burt Tarlo called my mother to the pack house. He wanted her to do a reading on his soon-to-be heir and mother. I was just a small girl then and discovered the true details later. The reading my mother did was damning.”
My dad’s voice was shaky, “the innocent doomed before birth. It’s as sad as a Greek tragedy. Our kind can be horribly cruel.”
Pearl nodded and continued, “I remember sneaking out of bed and eavesdropping on my parents that night. My mother saw that the Luna would have three pups, but only two would reach adulthood, and of those two, one would still meet a tragic end. Our pack would be corrupted by a curse. My father was conflicted. He always followed his Alpha which was his instinct, but he knew in his heart that my mother, his fated mate, would never lie to him. He also knew he was powerless to stop what she described.”
“What a hopeless situation. Why didn’t your family leave and become rogues?” I could hear the pure frustration in Syd’s voice. Knowing her history, it felt more inward than directed at Pearl.
“The same reason you didn’t leave, family. My father knew if he tried to run with us, my mother and I would be the targets, not him. So my parents devised a plan, one that saved many in our pack from the curse.”