Chapter 64
“So what’s on your mind, boss? The only time we eat this late without your twins is if you have something big going on.”
I nod my head as I jot down a few more things. My notes look more like lists right now but they’re enough to remember my train of thought when I go back to them later.
“I’m getting involved with the prospects this time around.”
I see Damian and Lucas slow down their eating as I come straight out with the main aspect of tonight’s meeting.
“You’re always involved with the prospects, Demetri. You always have. More than any alpha that I know of that’s involved in this program.”
“Yes, I do tend to be more involved than the average alpha as, considering the pure size of my pack, I’m extremely picky as to who I bring back let alone who I transfer in but that’s not what I’m talking about. This is beyond the meet and greet as they get off the bus. My insistence on being the main speaker for orientation and going through all the paperwork I have each of you do regarding the intense testing of their strength, endurance, technique, intelligence and character. This is well beyond any of that.”
“Why are you getting involved now? It’s been years since you’ve felt the need to increase your presence during the first run.”
So far my conversation seems to be just between myself and Patrick.
“Half of you here have seen parts of the whole picture that I’m speaking of. I think those of you who have interacted with him and are seated here can answer that question without me. I’ve led this pack for fifteen years and joined the warrior program ten years ago. In the first six years that I was a part of the program I’ve helped two dozen wolves escape the brutal reality of their pack. It’s been four years since I’ve felt the need to get hands on with the prospects but that’s exactly where this is headed.”
“You're talking about Cole.” Damian speaks quietly for the first time since sitting at the table.
“Yes son, this is about Cole. Problem is this goes beyond Cole as well.”
Patrick stops eating, placing his fork down on the table. I can tell by his body language that he doesn’t approve. That he’s going to challenge my desire to help Cole. I take a bite of steak and slowly chew the tender meat waiting to hear what he has to say. Even though we rarely agree on anything right away, Patrick has been the perfect beta for me during the ten years since he’s returned to his birth pack.
We have been friends since we could walk and he challenges my thoughts making certain everything is considered before action is taken. Unfortunately, I’ve already started making moves with Cole that he doesn’t know about. I will help him get out.
“Have you ever met a pedophile or rapist that has admitted to doing either?”
I can’t help but chuckle as I knew that was exactly what he’d bring up.
“No, have you?”
My reply is clipped making certain he understands my feelings towards the subject.
“You can’t simply ignore information as damaging as he’s raping his luna and that he’s marking and raping girls as young as seven. The condition that he’s in is a direct result of those actions.”
“He’s never been caught in the act of either of those. He’s merely been accused of those actions.”
“If he’s never been caught then why is he receiving physical punishment for it?”
“Have you ever known Charles Redmen to be a rational man? To follow the rules of punishment? Cole appears to be a very complicated case of family scapegoat abuse. While he refused to go into the details of his relationship with the little girl pups of his pack he did share his side of what’s going on between him and Luna Sasha. Short version, she’s not his brother’s fated mate. He tried to warn his brother three weeks before the mate’s union ceremony that she was a loose woman and his brother punished him for his comment. Several days later his father punished him again in front of Sasha and several others. A month after his brother marked her he started getting beat for sexual assaults that have never been proven. And keep in mind Alpha Redmen makes it extremely difficult for a female to prove sexual assault and rape.”
I see Patrick’s eyes soften from the hard anger he seems to have towards Cole to one of mild skepticism about the rumors.
“If she’s not the fated mate why would she have the need to pin assault on Cole?”
My youngest son, Lucas, joins the conversation.
“Fated mates can tell when their other half is experiencing physical or emotional pain as well as when they are being touched sexually by another wolf once they meet and their wolves recognize each other as mates. It doesn’t matter if she or he wants to be touched, the other half always feels it.”
“Are you saying that before the mate’s union ceremony, before she was marked, she had no need to lie about cheating because he couldn’t feel it?”
Parker’s curiosity has gotten the better of him.
“I think Cole trying to warn Andre about his arranged marriage being unfaithful has a lot to do with it. As most betrothal contracts will be nullified if one of the parties engages in relations outside of the agreed upon relationship. It’s especially bad if cheating can be proven before the mate’s union ceremony has been completed. Usually there’s a financial penalty for the one caught cheating in such arrangements.”
“So after the two of them marked each other, either during or after the ceremony, the moon goddess gifts both of them with the same abilities to feel what the other is experiencing just like you would have with your fated mate.” Lilly chimes in with her intimate knowledge of how mate’s, both fated and unfated work.
“Let me get this straight” Patrick has stopped eating again to speak. “Before they marked there were no issues with Cole raping this luna?”
His comment comes out sounding more like a question.
“Yes. The accusations of rape started about a month after the ceremony. Or at least that’s the first time his father told him he was being beat for raping her.”
“He reported to his brother that she was a loose woman. Did he see her cheat?”
“Yes. He claims that it started about a month after moving into the pack house. She was very open about making out with both genders but no one else was willing to say anything.”
“Does the mate bond extend to the same sex?”
I look to Lilly on that question, taking another bite in the process.
“Once the two complete the mate’s bond then any sexual activity, even something as mild as kissing, can be felt by the other. Being fated mates doesn’t matter once the bond is completed.”
“Considering what little he was willing to explain about this luna I will concede to the idea that the rumor is possibly false. He’s being used as a scapegoat so she can screw around. But I can’t let go of the possibility that he’s hurting the pups. You said he won’t deny the rumors.”
“He reassured both of us that he’s not raping the girls or having inappropriate relationships with them of any sort. But….”
“He didn’t deny marking them.”
Patrick picked up on my hesitation to admit that part of my conversation with Cole. I sigh as I nod my head.
“He doesn’t deny marking them and he refuses to go into any details as to what the exact nature of his relationship is with them beyond the fact that he’s protecting them.”
I look up at Patrick as he chokes on his tea.
“Protecting them?” He shouts as he gains his breath back. “How can marking them protect them? He’s hurting them and he’s really fucked in the head if he sees it as something different.”
I hold my hand up stopping Patrick from going any further into his tirade.
“I linked with Angela on my way out here and while it’s extremely rare and I will have to take some time to confirm it, she reminded me of something we had vaguely heard about in medical school. That there is such a thing as a protection mark.”
Silence has washed over the table as I continue.
“If what Cole is saying is true. I don’t believe he fully understands the significance of what he’s doing.”
“What do you mean the significance of what he’s doing? He’s marking them without understanding what it’s doing to the pups?”
Patrick has calmed slightly with the news of the possible existence of protection marks.
“Once again, if he’s being truthful about his involvement with the pups, then I believe his knowledge is limited to the fact that it’s protecting the young females. That it’s discouraging the older males of his pack from raping them.”
We eat in silence as everyone takes in what little has been discussed.
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