Number 17

Chapter
Taking a look, first at Roman and then at Lorelei who remained sitting before turning the door knob and opening it.
"You have to try and keep them safe," The Dead Moon pack Luna said in gesture language before jamming the door close.
After the Luna left their home that evening, Roman elapsed into thoughts, his eyes furrowed as he thought of a million possible reasons why his Dad was trying to hurt his mate. His mind drifted far and wide with no answer forthcoming to his numerous questions.
Long after she left, Lei had sat still cuddling Xander who had just finished taking his bath. It took a while before Xander disengaged from her embrace and ran off to play.
Every Alpha's greatest wish is to see his son get a mate and live in happiness, so why was his father different from the others? The two events had put him on edge, he had to think hard if he would elude this situation.
Dead Moon pack was no longer safe he knew, 'I have to do something about it,' he thought. 'But where do I start from?'
The spies of the Dead Moon pack were everywhere, they knew all about him, nothing was left hidden from them, and everything about him was virtually known to them. That means his father never trusted him, if not he wouldn't have set eyes all around him to hurt the one thing that makes him feel like it was the only way to get peace. Besides, it was his way to get peace not minding the situation hovering around them.
For years now he had been pretending to be mute, pretending he could not speak just to complete his task; to make sure he wouldn't blow his cover, but it seemed everything was being flung back to his face. First, was Xander being frightened by a group of wolves, and now Lei getting ambushed; the worst part was that he was almost forgetting how to speak. Besides, why wouldn't he forget how to go speak, when all he did was the grunt, snarl, and gesture if Lei was around him; aside that silences the order.
Soon Xander ran in with his clothing all covered in cobwebs, holding up a piece of a squeaking little mouse in his hands.
"Hey, Papa bear. Where have you been?" She asked Xander, yet to see what he was holding.
"Just up the cellar, playing all by myself," Xander answered with a grin, showing off his white twenty-eight teeth.
Horror crawled up Lei's face when she saw what Xander was holding.
"Xander, what is that in your hand?" She crawled into the chair, wrinkling her nose in disgust.
"A nice mousy mouse!" Xander cheered, wiggling it in the air and she palmed her mouth, feeling sick in the gut.
"Trash it away, please. Don't play with dead things." She reprimanded him softly. "Also wash your hand when you do that or you might put it in your mouth and fall ill. I know someone hates injections or do you want-"
"No!" He cut her off, scrunching up his face.
"Then throw it in the trash can and wash your hands like the good boy you are." She waved her hand, not wanting to be touched by the dead thing.
She never liked or played with nice or their carcasses when she was a child. She still didn't like it.
His lips fell into a line of disappointment and somewhat between relief that he wouldn't be taking any injections. "Yes, mommy."
He reluctantly went into the kitchen and returned, cleaning his wet hands on his shirt.
Roman sat on the sofa with his eyes glued to the tv show going on, literally his thoughts were on something far from the tv show. He had to do something quickly or risk seeing Lei and Xander in pain or trouble.
"What are we having for dinner tonight, mom?" Xander asked with a quizzical look on his face.
"And what would you like to have, huh?"
"Uhmmm, would like some meatballs and noodles, preferably with some lettuce and tomatoes," Xander answered with a glint rising slowly in his eyes.
"You had that in the morning, not again this night; pick something different for tonight." Lei objected.
"But mom..."
"Something different, papa bear." Lei hushed as his head hung low.
Raising his tear-filled eyes he spoke out in a shaky quiet voice. "What about some flakes and milk or a sandwich?"
"So which do you prefer between the both?" Lei asked him again.
"I will prefer the sandwich and some milk, that would be better." He tapped his belly and licked his lips.
"Then you get that for dinner tonight and guess what else you can have?" She bared her gum.
"What, mommy?" His eyes sparkled with anticipation, the little child loved surprises.
"Kisses!" Lei squealed, planting a thousand kisses all over his face.
"Mommy!" He let out a shout of glee, falling into her arms and laughing.
"Do you want tickles too?" She inquired and shook his head, laughing uncontrollably with tears stinging his eyelids.
She hugged him tightly and then sniffed his body. "Ugh! Did you fart?"
"Yes!" He guffawed, shoulders quivering.
Lei let go of her papa bear and pinched her nose, saying, "I hope you don't fart this way in public, it's wrong. Okay, buddy?"
He nodded and she kissed his forehead.
"Now, go clean yourself up, while I go prepare dinner, okay?" She kissed him again.
Xander ran off towards the bathroom, while she stood looking at his receding figure before turning around to go prepare dinner when her eyes fell on Roman where he sat on the sofa.
Walking up to him she asked him what he would like to have for dinner as he grunted and gestured he wasn't hungry, but Lorelei gestured that she wouldn't leave him alone if he didn't eat dinner. Roman maintained his ground until Lorelei gestured to him that she wouldn't eat if he didn't eat, Roman then accepts to eat gesturing that he would like to have the food Xander ate in the morning.
"Meatballs and noodles?" She inquired with a hand resting on his thigh. He looked at her hand then averted his gaze to her face.
"Yes." Roman gestured.
Lei smiled and stood up not before giving him a peck on the cheek, still smiling she turned and headed towards the kitchen.
Later that night after Lorelei had finished reading Xander's bedtime stories to him, she tucked him in for the night, kissing him goodnight.
She went in search of Roman and found him pacing around with a worried expression on his face.
To Roman he had decided to tell her every truth about him, it was better she knew about it than she found it out by herself. Soon his mind drifted towards the incident in the garden, the head of those wolves had asked him a question.
"Are you mute or you are pretending to be one?" The wolf at the garden had asked him in sign language before adding, "They would soon find out"
'Do you think it would be wise to tell her about yourself now?' This time his wolf asked, it had been a while since he had listened to his wolf speak; he could sense hesitation in its voice.
'Why ask me so, what if she finds out herself and loses her trust in me?' He asked his wolf back as Lei walked towards him.
'Be careful of your actions, think about it before you make a rash decision you would come to regret.' His wolf whispered to him again before retreating into its shell.
'No matter what, I'm telling her the truth.' He fired back even when he knew the wolf wouldn't reply anymore.
Once his wolf made its point and retreated into his shell, no amount of talking or questioning could make him speak again.
Grabbing her by the arms, he tried being frank with her, to let her know he had been faking being mute to be able to achieve his aims, that blowing his cover would mean possible trouble for them; which might be more than he could handle on his own. But Lei didn't seem to understand him. She kept hushing him while trying to make him understand that it was okay, when that didn't work she held him in an embrace whispering to him that he was better off the way he was.
Lei cried and leaned on Roman, telling him that thankful he was different from those werewolves, who go around bullying weaker wolves as if there is any fun in it, whispering that he was better off as the mute he was. But that wasn't what he wanted her to hear, he wanted to tell her about everything; his faked muteness, his alpha bloodline everything but she doesn't seem to want to hear that.
Soon Lei began her share of worries, she began complaining about how every powerful wolf turned into a bully, and how they derived joy from bullying other wolves below them. These questions made Roman think twice about telling her the truth, since skeptical thoughts were already running around her head it was better he bottled up the truth for now, besides who knew if it might destroy everything he had built up and struggled to maintain. He should keep the reason a secret from her till the right time.
'I told you, but you never seem to listen to me.' His wolf pointed out, sounding slightly offended.
Roman ignored his wolf, prompting him to crawl back into his shell.
Roman held her hand, trying to comfort her, drawing her closer and wishing he could whisper words of encouragement to her. Lorelei gestured that she felt and nodded to Roman.
He wrapped his arms around her and her head rested on his chest. She listened to his heartbeat and it calmed her nerves. He stroked her hair, feeling shivers run down his spine at the body contact.
Glancing up at him she broke the news to him that she purposely learned some gesture languages so she could talk with him, and assured him that everything was gonna be fine at which Roman smiled bitterly.
He smiled not because he was relieved but because she still trusted him despite everything, the bitter truth hovered in front of him instilling in him a fear that can't be quenched by a mere spoken word from his mate.
His head sagged down due to the bitterness as he thought of his life, a life of being mindful of everything around you but remaining silent even when you want to talk.
But how long would he continue to keep his identity a secret, how long would he continue to pretend he was mute? Now, his voice was dying, everything about him was dying, his secrets are known to almost the whole of the Dead Moon Pack, and his life and that of mate Lei and Xander were at stake judging by the current look of things.
With tears running flowing down his face, he did a mental flashback on how he met Lorelei; she had told him with gestures that her former mate had rejected her and taken another mate, how he had beaten her and she ran away to save herself and her unborn child, how she came to go to work in the bar to make ends needs even though she worked part-time she indulges in her work with all humility and endurance.
In her, he saw a pure and true love, a love that cannot be quenched by tribulations and trials. It was there that he met her, he had pretended to be a waiter there before she came along while pretending to be a mute. Within a short time, he came to understand that she was his fated mate but he couldn't tell her the truth nor reveal it since it would jeopardize his mission, just the same way he couldn't tell her now.