Thirty Six

Alaric's POV
I am watching Torin and Chelsea from a distance, and I am sort of regretting putting him on this mission. He looks too comfortable sitting beside her and it pisses me off so much.
She is laughing at his jokes and I just can not handle it at all. I really feel like walking in there are throwing him out, but that will only freak her out and I do not want that right now. I want her to be at oblivious as possible. It is way safer for everyone that way.
I leave my self proclaimed hiding spot I usually use to spy on Chelsea and head towards the mountains to cool off my boiling blood.
I step behind a large rock and carefully take off my clothes so I do not destroy them when I transform.
I change into my wolf form and take off running with high speed. Running always helps me with clearing my head and it stops me from doing crazy or impulsive things.
I used to be a really violent person before I met Saira, and she taught me to use running as a form of therapy. It has helped me in a lot of other ways apart from controlling or subsiding my anger rage.
In battle, I have more stamina and endurance than my opponents because I have gotten so used to enduring the pain and fatigue when running to clear my head so I am at more of an advantage.
I stop at a lake to rest for a bit and my reflection stares back at me.
My wolf is white furred. Standing on it’s limbs now, it was much bigger than most wolves and my father used to take great pride in that. He knew before hand that I would one day become an Alpha and I guess that is why he was so hard on me, and tough.
For a while, I felt like he hated me, or had some sort of problem with me, but when I look back at some things he put me through, I realize that it helped to mold me into the man I am today, and the leader I have inevitably been all this time.
The sun is setting, so I retrace my steps through the mountain, change into my human form, and dress up.
When I come back to view, I see Torin leaning on a rock and he re-arranges himself and bows his head when he realizes he has my attention.
"Alpha. Good evening." He says.
"Torin. How may I help you?" I ask.
"You asked that I give you a daily report on Chelsea." He reminds me.
"Yes. True. So what is the update?"
"So far, her safety has not been threatened at all. But I, and her friends as well, have noticed some changes in her." He says, threading carefully.
"What are the changes?" I ask. Too curious for my own good.
"She has been eating a lot, easily gets irritated, is ready to bite almost everyone's head off all the time, and isn't adding weight. At all." He says. "I think..." he starts to say.
"The mate bond." I interrupt him. "It is getting stronger." I add.
"I think you should let her know soon." He suggests quietly.
I heave a heavy sigh. "I know. I will. Soon. Just keep an eye on her still. I need to be sure that I am really her mate." I explain.
"What more proof do you need Alpha. She woke you up." He says with a little too much guts which earns him a stern look from me. "I am sorry for my tone and choice of words Alpha." He apologizes.
"It is fine. And you are right. But I need to be sure. These things are tricky and complicated. It is never too bad to be sure."
"Yes Alpha. As you wish." He says and I dismiss him.
****
I am back in my room, and after a nice long hot shower, I head into my office to go over our defense plan once more.
Don't get me wrong, my army is good at what they do. Their strategies and plans are top-notch and almost always effective. But there is something about this particular plan that is wrong. I feel like we are missing something. Like there is a loop hole in our defense plan and that could most likely be our biggest weakness.
I telepathically summon Cain and he arrives at my office within minutes.
"You called, Alpha." He says.
"Yes. I am sorry to keep you up this late." I apologize and he quickly dismisses me, urging me not to talk that way to a subordinate.
"The wolves who joined alliance with the vampires, how close were they to the heads of our pack?" I ask, still scanning through the papers.
"Not really close Alpha." He answers.
"So they were not really aware of any of our planning strategies. Both old and new?" I question.
"None that I personally am aware of. Is there something you are looking for?" He asks, referring to the papers spread on my desk.
"We have a weakness. And it scares me to think that the vampires know it and we don't. That is probably they are so confident and corky." I say looking at him.
"I am not sure what you are talking about but I will look through our old records and history books to see if I can find something." He says.
"Okay. Thank you. I would really appreciate that." I say.
"Is there anything else you need?" He asks.
"No. I am fine. Thank you."
"Okay Alpha. I will take my leave now." He says and exits the office.
****
I am watching Chelsea and her family play board games and my chest tightens in my chest.
I could not fall asleep back at the tower so I decided to come over here. I am beginning to believe that she truly is my mate because these days, after a long hard day, I crave to be in her presence a lot.
Everything about her consumes me. From her smile, to her laughter, her wit and sharp tongue, and how she is so passionate about little things.
The tiniest accomplishment gets her excited and the way she cares about everyone around her does things to me. Just noticing these little things proves how utterly consumed I am by her being.
She gets up and kisses her parents goodnight before heading to her room. I follow her immediately.
I am hiding by her bedroom window when she puts on the light, takes off her jewelry, cleans her makeup from her face, and sits cross-legged on her bed.
"You can come in if you want to. I won't scream or get upset."