Chapter 22
Caspian’s POV
“You don’t understand what you’re saying.” I snap, temper and frustration rising alongside the overpowering and irresistible urge to mate Viviane.
I can feel her uncertainty through our bond. Her body wants it almost as badly as mine, but her mind is unsure. “It was going really well.” She murmurs, turning back. I groan internally, seeing her lust-glazed eyes is not helping. “And it felt–
“That’s lust talking.” I cut her off before she can tell me how good I was making her feel. It isn’t necessary, I can smell her arousal even from across the room. “You’re not ready.” My wolf howls in my chest, an unmistakable mating call.
To my surprise, Viviane sways forward as if she hears it, but the confusion on her face tells me she has no idea why her feet decided to move. Interesting. I think, wondering what else our mate bond might allow. And very inconvenient.
“Viviane.” I don’t want to raise my voice, but she’s leaving me no choice. If she touches me I’m a goner. She freezes on the spot at the sound of my loud bark, a little blonde deer in the headlights. The trigger floods her body with primal fear, and her adrenaline spikes as she frantically tries to decide between fight and flight.
Too late I realize I’ve badly miscalculated. Viviane won’t fight, but if she runs… Fuck. I won’t be able to stop myself in this state: my prey drive combined with the heat will force me to give chase. No wonder she looks so petrified, she knows she doesn’t have any options. Such a clever little mate.
Fortunately my shout did not go unnoticed by others in the house. Unfortunately, the person who’s nearest is my father. The door swings open abruptly, Dad filling the frame with grim-faced scrutiny. He looks between Viviane and I, noting her terrified expression, as well as my position crammed into the farthest corner of the room.
“Would someone like to explain what is going on here?” His booming voice demands.
“Get her out.” I growl through clenched teeth. “Have Chase take her home.”
My father’s disapproval is all too apparent, but like a good Alpha, he sets it aside to focus on the upset citizen in front of him. “Are you alright, my dear?” He asks, approaching Viviane. She immediately flinches away from him with a muffled cry, and I cannot withhold the vicious snarl the sight of another male near my mate inspires, nor the innate pull to protect her from the source of her fear – never mind that both are my own father.
The Alpha glances back at me questioningly, his gray eyebrows furrowed. Don’t try to touch her, just encourage her out the door. I manage to relay.
“Easy now,” Dad says gently, “Just move carefully and quietly to the door. It’s alright.”
Viviane’s frightened eyes leap to my face. No, no, no. I think, Don’t do it. It’s no use, I know, a half-second before she moves, what she’s about to do.
CHASE! I shout to my Beta, praying he’s near.
In the middle of a post-traumatic stress episode, with the most powerful and aggressive wolf in the pack towering over her, still aroused and needing comfort; her instincts send her running straight into the arms of her mate – or they would have, if my father hadn’t gotten to her first.
Dad catches Viviane around the waist as she tries to dart past him, and mayhem erupts.
Chase comes running to the door just in time for my father to throw a thrashing and screaming Viviane into his arms, before he turns on me, shouting for his own Beta and Gamma. There is not a rational bone in my body at the moment. All I know is that another Alpha is between me and the door, he put his hands on my mate, he frightened her, and now he’s keeping me from her while another wolf takes her away against her will.
My father doesn’t have time to shift before I crash into him. Viviane’s screams punctuate my savage growls as I lunge for the Alpha’s neck, determined to get him out of the way so I can go after Chase. He dodges me swiftly, now a sleek red wolf, and counters with a swipe of his claws as he scrambles to his feet.
I tackle him again, and we roll around in a brutal whirlwind of fur and fangs. Behind me I can hear more wolves approaching, rapidly grumbling Beta and Gamma trying to decide how to break up the fray without getting their own necks snapped. Letting us fight it out isn’t an option. I’ve never fought my father outside of a sparring ring, and to be honest, I’m not sure which one of us would win a battle. The problem is that fights between Alpha’s of our standing generally end in death.
A car engine revs outside, and tires screech, carrying away the sounds of my crying mate. I headbutt my opponent and race for the door, only to be downed again – this time by no less than five adult wolves, including my father’s guards and my Uncle James. They hold me down until one of the sentries can inject me with a tranquilizer, then a second and third when my adrenaline overpowers the first.
When I wake, my father and James are sitting at my bedside, both men looking horribly solemn. At first I don’t remember, and then like trickling water, it all comes back to me little by little. My attention turns immediately to my father, checking him for injuries but finding only quickly-healing bruises and gashes. “Dad, I’m so sorry – I can’t believe… I don’t know what came over me.”
“You were in heat.” He answers gruffly. “And another wolf got between you and your female.”
“Well she didn’t help the situation by reacting the way she did.” James scoffs. “What was all the bawling about?”
My growl surprises them both, and my father sits back in his chair. “So not just any female I take it.”
“Where is she?” I interrogate, feeling a crushing pall of guilt settle on my shoulders.
“Chase took her home.” Father answers, “She was also tranquilized – with her mother’s permission.”
I drop my head into my hands, my stomach already in knots. So much for being a better person. I’ve probably completely retraumatized her. Gods, things couldn’t have gone worse if we’d tried. “She was abused.” I explain after a long moment, still not lifting my head. “She was having a PTSD episode.”
“She was already upset when I entered the room.” Dad reminds me, stating the fact as a question.
Before I can answer, James interjects. “Caspian you know our laws, assaulting a woman is inexcusable no matter the circumstances, even in heat.”
Glowering at my uncle, I indulge my wolf in a few violent fantasies. This is incredibly typical of James, who disapproves of my rebellious activities even more than my father does. He’s primed to always assume the worst of me.
I turn my attention to my father, who is still waiting patiently for an answer. “She was caught up in the moment and pushing to mate, but I knew she would never consent in her right mind. I yelled at her so she would leave before we’d do something we’d regret.”
“Well that would explain why you were practically climbing the walls to escape her when I arrived.” Dad nods. This counts as humor in his book, though there’s hardly any inflection in his words. I’m relieved he can find any light in the situation, considering what happened. “I’m certain I don’t need to tell you the severity of your transgression.”
Ah, this is more like it. The only time I see my father anymore is when I get in trouble. When I was little he was always warm and caring, but we were rarely together. The Alpha never seemed to have time for me; he was always busy with the pack or distracted chasing my mother. I’m not even sure he knew about her neglect, as she never mistreated me in front of him.
Eventually my mother left us to start a new family with her lover, but after departing Nightshade territory they were set upon by rogue wolves targeting wealthy travelers. When they refused to hand over their money the thieves attacked, and only James survived. He ran all the way back to Asterion, his fur dripping with his sister’s blood.
My father felt his mate’s death long before the news arrived, but the sight and smell of her lifeblood destroyed him completely. From that day on I was as good as an orphan. After the murder his attention withdrew completely, he slipped into a deep depression from which he’s never truly emerged. In the 10 years since her death, our only interactions beyond pack business have been disciplinary, and those meetings aren’t exactly heartwarming displays of paternal affection.
I glare at the austere man, seeing myself in 30 years. “And I’m certain I don’t need to tell you how much I regret what happened, or that I would never have knowingly done such a thing. I was out of my mind.”
“You would have killed me, you know?” He announces. “And not only because I would not be able to deliver a killing blow to my own son.” If I didn’t know any better I’d think there was a note of affection in his voice. “You are already stronger than I am, Caspian.”
“You can’t know that for sure.” James’ eyes narrow, “he had rage and adrenaline on his side, it wasn’t a fair fight.”
“I’m not talking about our fight.” Dad counters, patting his nephew’s shoulder firmly. “I’ve been watching the Games trials.” This surprises me, my father doesn’t normally pay attention to such things until he’s forced to attend the finals as part of his Alpha duties. “My point is that you have the physical strength to lead. But if what I saw tonight was any indication of your intelligence or control, this pack is in trouble.”
We might not be close, but his words still pack a hard blow. “When you’re Alpha you can’t go out of your mind. Not ever. And I guarantee at some point over your career, you will be tested like you were tonight. If you’re going to stay my heir, you need to prove to me that you will not fail next time.” He rises from his chair. “I mean it, pup. I’m giving you one more chance to prove to me you are worthy of this responsibility. There will not be another.”
