Chapter 54 Beta Order

~Gale~

Alpha Flynn was seated on his office chair and I opposite him. The more I visited packs, the more I confirmed that our pack was the odd one out. Every high-ranking wolf dressed to show off their position, while we usually wore casual and avoided wearing a suit and tie unless necessary. Either we were weird, or we simply didn’t have the same fashion taste. Or I was distracting myself with nonsensical thoughts because the long wait was getting to me.

They should be here any minute now.

Right on cue, the door opened with a bang. Liam entered first followed by Rigel. Both had a heavy look on their faces. I didn’t have to ask. There were no leads again this time.

Alpha Flynn sighed. Getting up, he paced to a corner of the room and began to pour drinks for the four of us. Meanwhile, my brothers settled themselves on the single-seaters, exhausted from the search and the dark circles under their eyes, they needed a long sleep. We could all use some.

“Thanks,” said Rigel as Alpha Flynn handed him his drink. Minutes ticked by and none of us said a thing. Drinking, letting the bitter drink take the edge off. Personally, though, I would’ve preferred coffee.

“No more,” my wolf whined, sticking out his tongue.

“Just for a few more, Gil. At least until we find her.”

Gil whimpered in my head. It’d been three months and we still had no clue as to where she might be. Every lead turned to a dead end.

“The car’s been parked there for months. Clean,” said Liam tiredly. His patience was running low, but so was hope. We knew who our enemies were. We kept tabs on them and none of them did this. Whoever did this, they weren’t on our list. This was a new enemy, one bold enough to take our Luna yet too scared to show themselves.

Luca wasn’t acting up. For now, it was a good sign. She wasn’t hurt, at least. But how much longer will this relief last? The anxiousness was beginning to take a toll on each one of us, wearing us down and making us lose hope that we’ll find her soon. It’d be easy to point fingers, but that wouldn’t solve a thing. We needed everyone. But if this went on any longer, this already delicate truce would soon tear.

They didn’t have to say it. We were guilty of letting her go and turning our backs on Liam. He was guilty of something he’d rather keep to himself. And Alpha Flynn – he might just challenge Liam into another death battle even if it’d kill him.

Knowing Liam, he’d accept just for the sake of it. I’d seen him lose his world before, saw what it did to him. It was my fault. And over my dead body would he have to go through it again. I don’t think he could, and I didn’t want to see him succumb to grief once more. This time, it’d kill him.

I’d already lost way too many brothers – I wasn’t losing another.

“Your sister came over,” said Alpha Flynn. “She’s been looking after Carson all this time. I can’t thank you enough.”

“He defended our Luna,” Liam replied.

Alpha Flynn’s hand tightened around the glass.

“It’s the least we can do.”

Setting down the empty glass, I slowly rose to my feet. “If you’ll excuse me, I best be going now.”

“Call me if anything happens,” said Liam. “Anything.”

“I’ll call when I get there,” I replied then after nodding at Alpha Flynn and Rigel, promptly left the room.

The pack was getting restless. News of their kidnapped Luna had them worried for all of us. They were doing well by handling the small matters themselves, though it was still my duty to make sure they were safe. Some of our sisters from the Red Circle were lending a hand, but with the four of us frequently away, a surprise rogue attack like the last one would be catastrophic.

From the office, I made my way around the mansion. Having spent some time here, I had almost the entire layout memorized. We were given rooms of our own, and so I headed inside mine which was on the third floor’s right-wing. It was almost as wide as the one back home. It still didn’t feel like it. After gathering all my laundry in a bag, and checking that the room was clean, I locked the door then made my way to the fourth floor.

It was the only room with a sliding door. I knocked to let her know I was outside.

“Hi,” I said softly, offering her a weak smile as I walked inside.

Carson was a minimalist. One look around the room led to the conclusion. The only pieces of furniture were the bed, the nightstand, and the dresser. Brightly illuminated through the glass walls, Carson laid on his bed with wires and tubes exposed outside the blanket.

“Hi,” she replied.

Lexy hadn’t been enthusiastic these last months. My noisy, loud-mouthed partner in crime sat with him on his bed looking the thinnest I’d ever seen her. She seemed to have lost her spark, the sunshine vibe that she always gave off, but the way she looked at him brought a glimmer in her eyes that couldn’t be mistaken for anything else.

Lexy knew since Liam and she came here for the ceremony. She never said a word about it for the sake of Liam and Anna. It was crucial that the Blue Moon Pack fuck off. She understood it well, thus, she sacrificed her relationship with her mate.

You silly thing.

“How’s he doing?” I asked, standing beside the bed. Carson had a bandage wrapped around his head and more on his torso and left arm. His right leg was in a cast and was held up. They did quite a number of him – thank Goddess he lived. His wolf had been healing him, but the process was too slow. Lexy was passed out for three days after she was done with him.

“He’ll be fine,” she answered without taking her eyes off him. “He’ll wake up.”

“When were you planning to let us know?” I asked and her head shot up in shock. “I didn’t tell them.”

She sighed. “Is it too obvious?”

“Your hair is tidied up in a high ponytail when it’s usually in a messy bun. You smell like vanilla whenever you pay him a visit, which according to my count is at least three times a week,” I said, smirking as she blushed. “Do I have to say more? Liam and Rigel don’t see it now, but they’ll eventually catch up.”

With a sigh, she raised her head and stared at me with dejected eyes.

“Don’t blame yourself, Lex. We couldn’t have known.”

“If we believed bro, none of this would’ve happened,” she said, looking back at Carson. “Lia’s not talking to me. Our mate might never wake up, and Anna’s missing.”

“We’ll find her,” I replied. Tipping her chin so she’d look up at me, I smiled at my little sister. “Lia’s not upset with you, Lex. Let Gil talk to her.”

“Thanks, bro,” she said, forcing a smile.

“Leave our brothers to me. You focus on your mate.”

“Are they here yet? How’d it go?”

I slowly shook my head.

“I asked him to reject me,” she said, holding his hand. “He was from Anna’s pack. I didn’t trust him then. When he didn’t, I rejected him. He never accepted. I couldn’t understand why.”

She raised his hand to her lips. “Our packs weren’t rivals, but we weren’t allies either. Alpha Flynn abused Anna. That, I can’t forgive. He’s the Beta. He should’ve understood the consequences. Lately, I’ve been thinking… that maybe I was too cruel to him. He asked me what it’d take for us to be together. I told him it was impossible because our packs weren’t allies –“ she paused, taking a deep breath to calm herself, then continued, saying, “- and he said it didn’t matter. The night we left for home, he promised he’d go, rogue, if it’d make me change my mind. Could you believe he said that?”

She let out a small laugh. “A Beta going rogue for a mate? He must be out of his mind!”

“Lexy…”

Her shoulders shook and her voice cracked. “He asked me again that morning and I said ‘no’. I pushed him away. I wanted my mate, Gale. Whenever Anna talked about him, I realized I was wrong, but I couldn’t simply accept him. I… I rejected my mate and now… I’m starting to think I might never have the chance to take it back.”

She looked at me through tears. “I’ve always wanted my mate; you know it more than anyone. What if he never wakes up? What if he wakes up and accepts my rejection? What if-“

I quickly wrap my arms around her, and she breaks down. I came here to cheer her up, but I somehow ended up doing the opposite.

Way to go, Gale.

I patted her back as she cried.

“Do you remember what your Mom used to say to your Dad all the time? We often heard it from her when your Dad does something stupid.”

She giggled between sobs.

“Say it with me.”

“Unforgivable!” we said at the same time. I smiled. “Then your Dad will say the cheesiest lines and she’ll forgive him anyway? Remember those, Lex?”

“They were embarrassing,” she whispered.

“Remember those times he upset her, and we’d gang up on him to avenge your Mom? He’d knock the three of us right away, but you’d only get pushed aside gently.” Lexy giggled.

Letting her go, I held her by her shoulders.

“If your Mom can forgive your Dad many times over, even on those times, I’m sure Carson will understand. You are a strong and loyal sister and I’m proud of you. You put the pack first before your mate. Now please trust the pack and those two to me. You deserve your mate, Lexy. Don’t you dare think otherwise? You deserve to be happy, too. Trust your brothers, alright?”

“Mm.” She nodded.

“And no more hiding secrets like this, alright?”

She nodded again.

“As of now, you are temporarily relieved of your post. Your priority is to look after your mate. Any medical assistance to the pack should be authorized,” I said firmly.

Her eyes widened and her mouth slowly gaped.

“This is my Order, as Beta of the Red Claw Pack.”

Our link glowed a bright red, signifying that the Order was in place.

“Wha-Why?”

I stood and turned my back to her. As the door slid, I looked back at her and smiled.

“I can’t help it when my sister’s a crybaby.”