Her Alpha Mate 32

Freya:

"So, how long do the heat cycle last in werewolves?" asked Juilet, helping me fluff up some pillows.

I sighed with exhaustion, "Three days. I'm already on day two."

"Is it bad?" she asked anxiously, probably wondering how she was going to make it.
After all, her cycle was supposed to start tomorrow.

"It's just exhausting. As long as you're with your mate, you should be fine. And stay away from unmated males."

"Duly noted."

After we finished, I flopped down on the sofa with a groan and stared at the clock. Zack had left a few minutes ago to welcome Alpha Peter to the pack, and I was already feeling the effects of the heat cycle. My stomach felt uncomfortable, and my abdomen began to ache from the cramps. I even had a light layer of sweat on my forehead and neck.

I decided that I'd have Zack mark me before my next heat cycle. There was no way I was going to go through another cycle. It used up so much energy, even if I did nothing but lie around.

Besides, I think we were ready for the next stage....so to speak.

I knew Zack was still out to make it up to me, but he could make it up to me by tagging me so I wouldn't have to go through this ordeal again.

"So how are you and Reece doing?" I asked Juilet, who was sitting across from me on the recliner.

Her cheeks were turning slightly pink as she picked at her peeling nail polish, "This whole friendship thing is surreal. Griffins don't have mates, they choose who they want to be with just like normal humans. The only problem is that most of them have a problem with commitment." Before I could ask what she meant, she heaved a soft sigh and stared at the carpet,
"My father had four mistresses."

My mouth dropped open, "Four mistresses?
What about your mother?"

She snorted, "She'd two affairs of her own before she died. My parents loved each other, but obviously not enough to be faithful to each other. The only time they acted like a couple was after Gigi was born. It brought them together in a way."

My heart ached for Juilet. I couldn't imagine growing up in a family where parents had affairs with several other people.

That must've been traumatizing. I was lucky that werewolves had mates, so the chances of someone cheating were extremely low.

"Does Gigi remember her?" I asked quietly.

She shook her head, "They died in a car accident shortly after she turned two.
I told her they'd gone to heaven and were watching over her from there."

I nodded and bit my lip, "Juilet, I don't know what to say. I just wanted to..."

"It's okay, you don't have to say anything." she interrupted me gently. "It just feels good to talk to someone about my life. Part of the reason I ran away was because there was no one to talk to. I was pretty lonely. I just wanted a fresh start, where I could meet someone and fall in love because I know he's going to be faithful to me and committed to our relationship."

"Looks like you finally found that someone," I grinned, running my fingers through my hair.

She closed her eyes and let out a dreamy sigh, "And he's incredibly cute. I don't give a shit if I just met him yesterday, it feels like I've known him my whole life."

Suddenly, the front door opened and Zack stormed into the living room in a rage, "That damn selfish bastard. I'm going to kill him before the day is out."

Well then, the welcome home parade had obviously not gone well.

"What did he say?" I asked, sitting up so that Zack could sit next to me.

"I told him I'd to get back to you because you were in heat, and that we could talk later, and this idiot said, 'If you need tips on how to satisfy your partner, I'm your man."

I looked at Juilet and rolled my eyes in amusement. The way Zack made it sound, it was like Alpha Peter had offered to satisfy me for him, which was much worse than the tips remark. It was one of those things with male wolves: They hated being told they couldn't manage to satisfy their mates.

It was like telling them their dicks were too small.

"I guess you don't want me to meet him," I murmured, allowing him to pull me closer to his body and kiss the top of my head.

Fortunately, the cramps and discomfort disappeared as he stayed close to me.

Zack played with the ends of my hair. "When your heat is over you can meet him. I don't want his wolf to get any ideas. I can't believe he hasn't found a mate yet."

I yawned and rested my head on his shoulder, "Sure."




***




"She slept through the whole day. I thought her heat wouldn't be so bad this time," Zack's voice echoed in the hallway.

I heard Pearl's soft voice reply, "She's probably worn out anyway. It's not like her body is going to stop its desire to mate when she's around you. I'm sure she'll wake up soon. She's fine, Zack."

I then sat up and looked at the clock.

I'd been asleep for fourteen hours.

How was that even possible? I was pretty sure that was called passing out, not sleep.

The door opened and Zack came in with a worried look on his face. When he saw me sitting there, the look was replaced by one of relief, "Oh, you're awake. I was so worried you'd have to go to the hospital like last time."

I yawned and stretched my stiff muscles, "I'm fine. I think I just needed the sleep."

"Is your wolf tired?" he asked, sitting down next to me on the bed.

My wolf stretched as well and shook out her fur.

"She's fine."

Zack nodded, "Then let's get you something to eat. We've a long day ahead of us, and I need you by my side so I don't lose my mind."

"Is Alpha Peter driving you crazy yet?"

"Fortunately, no. I haven't seen him since I got him and his warriors to settle down in their huts."

"Well then, let's get going."

I quickly got out of bed, ignoring my freezing feet as I climbed to the bathroom. One of the things I hated about winter was that the floors were always cold. I'd to get a pair of slippers or fuzzy socks.

When I came downstairs, Zack, Reece, and Pearl were making breakfast and coffee.

"Where's Juilet?" I asked, sitting down on one of the bar stools.

Zack handed me a cup of coffee, which I accepted gratefully before he said, "She's helping Gigi with her work. Her bathroom. Apparently Chance scared her yesterday with a silly story about a bathtub monster, and now she refuses to be alone while she takes a bath."

I chuckled and took the plate of bacon and scrambled eggs from Pearl's hand, "Are we talking about battle plans today?"

"I guess so," Pearl muttered, "At least if neither of us decides to kill Alpha Peter before the meeting is over."

I raised an eyebrow over the rim of my cup, "Did he say anything to you too?"

She snorted, "I haven't seen him yet. Last time I saw him, he gave me some pick-up lines, so I decided to avoid him at all costs this time."

"That sounds like quite a character," I muttered, savoring the taste of the bacon.
There was nothing better in this world than bacon and cookies. Those were my two favorite foods.

"Oh, believe me, he's charming at first, but as soon as he opens his mouth, it's all downhill."

I chewed quietly to myself, wondering how bad this alpha was going to be. It was clear that I should be wary of him until
I thought he was trustworthy. My father had never said anything about Alpha Peter being troublesome, so maybe he was nicer to my father. That could be a good sign that he respected his elders. On the other hand, he probably didn't want my dad to mess with him and found Zack's reactions funny.

"If I'm reading this right, one of his pick-up lines was, 'Babe, you're so hot, my zipper is falling in love with you.'"

I nearly choked on my bacon as I tried to stifle my laughter. Zack, on the other hand, managed to tear the dishtowel in two with rage.

"I swear, if he tries to hit on any of you,
I'll rip his pretty little head off."

Zack muttered, throwing away the torn dish towel and getting a new one from the linen closet.

Suddenly all three froze in their seats. I watched them intently, my concern growing with each passing second.
"What's wrong?" I asked, croaking.

If it was another intruder, I didn't know what to think. Too many things were happening lately, and I didn't like it at all. It was like the griffins were testing the waters for something.

Zack swallowed hard and dropped everything he was doing, as did Pearl and Reece.

His words almost made my heart stop,
"They found a dead wolf on the border."




***




A dead wolf.

The worst news an Alpha and Luna could ever get.

A pack bond ripped from everyone's heart.
No matter how many people were in the pack, the pain was the same.

And as an Alpha, there were a lot more feelings involved.

Guilt. Anger. Sadness. Helplessness.

I didn't feel as many emotions because I wasn't connected to the pack yet, but I did feel the sadness and guilt.

Sadness that a young life was lost and the wolf wasn't able to live it to the fullest. Guilt because it was all my fault.

It was moments like these that I wondered if I should just hand myself over to the griffins. I didn't want to cause people pain and grief. I wasn't worth the many lives that would be lost in this war.

As we made our way to the border, I squeezed Zack's hand and tried to send as much comfort as I could through the connection. He gave me a weak smile and shook his head, "I don't want you to blame yourself. I know these thoughts are going through your mind. You're not going to leave me, Freya, not now and not ever. If something happens to you, I won't be able to survive without you."

I swallowed hard and gave Pearl a sad smile as she grabbed my other hand, "It's really not your fault. You didn't ask those cruel griffins to come after you and kill innocent people. You're just as innocent as the wolf that lost its life."

I let out a soft sigh and nodded slowly as the group of wolves came into view. They moved to the front of the group, where a mass of brown fur lay on the ground.

"Alpha," a pack warrior stepped toward Zack. "There was a note attached to the wolf."

Zack took the crumpled note from the wolf and read aloud so that Pearl and I could hear, "Pull my heart."

I looked at Pearl, who seemed as confused as I was. I stared at the dead wolf before I realized that the note meant to pull the heart out of the dead wolf.

With shaky hands, I walked up to the dead wolf and squatted down next to it. There was a large hole in his chest, and
I carefully reached forward and dug my claws into the hole to feel for his heart.
After a few seconds, I pulled out his bloody heart and resisted the urge to gag at the smell.

There was also a note stapled to the heart, but it was tucked into a plastic sleeve so the blood would not stain the paper.

I looked up at Zack, who felt sick at the sight. He squatted down next to me and pulled out the note.

It read:

Do not grieve for the little wolf. He was a traitor after all! You should thank us for killing him. He wanted to kill the Blessed One for us and bring us the body. But since he was not able to obey orders, he had to take a small punishment.

If you decide to deliver the Blessed One, bring her to the mountains on the second full moon from today. If not, there will be war.

Ta-ta!

"He was a traitor," Zack muttered before turning to one of the pack warriors, "Do we know his identity?"

"Yes, Alpha. Vincent Graham."

He pursed his lips, "I should have guessed.
He was the one who was most against you."

"So he's not innocent," Pearl breathed.

I stared at the dead body and shook my head, "I do not think so."

"Alpha Zack."

Zack and I stood up and faced a tall, muscular man who had a grim expression on his face. He had large, chocolate brown eyes that seemed to take in every detail around him with careful precision. His hair made him look like he had just gotten out of bed.

And based on the power emanating from him, I knew this was Alpha Peter.

Zack stood up and moved closer to him so they could talk without anyone overhearing. I knew full well that even if Zack often got annoyed with Alpha Peter, but all insults and teasing aside, the two of them were only concerned with ensuring the safety of their pack members.

Suddenly, Pearl let out a scream that caught the attention of the two alphas and all the pack warriors. I turned my head to see what had made her gasp and found that she was looking at Alpha Peter.

Her eyes grew as big as golf balls as the two of them stared at each other like deer in headlights. It took me a second to realize why the two of them were staring at each other the way they were.

And my first thought on this new discovery:

The shit hit the fan.