Another Choice
Chapter 4

(Selina)

It's our fifth mission with Tom, Lana, and Asher. And this is so refreshing! It’s really what I needed. Here I’m not the future Queen or the rejected Princess. I cut my hair short and it now ginger. I’m also wearing color lenses, so nobody knows who I really am. Except for Tom.

Speaking about Tom, he’s acting weird lately... Since the beginning of the mission actually. We’re helping a pack that has rogues’ problems but the Alpha thinks the neighbor pack is involved. So we are here to investigate and not to take part in the fight. So Alpha Benedict wants proof to report the other pack to the Queen.

Right now we are spying on the rogue’s camp to see if they are working with Dark shadow pack. And this is kind of boring.

“Where is Tom?” Asher asks.

“I have no idea!” I reply and it’s bothering me.

“Well, he is snapping at us every five minutes so I’m not complaining about his absence.” Lana says.

True! Since we arrived here he is in a bad moon and in the last two days, he became angry and aggressive. When our mission is done, I will have to talk to him privately.

“Speaking of the devil...” Asher adds still looking at the camp.

“What is he doing there? He’s going to blow up our mission!” Lana adds.

Good for not tacking part of the fight! What is he doing in the middle of the camp? I can see his hands are cuffed in his back and he had been beaten up. How did he get caught? They are pretty far but I focus on my hearing sense.

"What are we going to do?" Asher asks.

"Sh! I want to hear them!" I silent him.

"That far! Impossible!" He whispers.

"Duh, Lycan's hearing!" Lana says slapping his shoulder.

"Now shut up!" She adds.

"Sire, we caught him while we tried to kidnap some girls. He protected them and killed five of our friends. It looks like he has something for this girl." A rogue says as another brings a young girl.

To confirm that Tom growls as he sees the second rogue manhandle the girl. She can't be more than 14. Why is he so protective? How does he know her?

"You, son of a bitch!" The boss says slapping Tom in the face.

"Interrogate him and if he doesn't want to answer, torture the girl." He orders.

"Damn it!" I whisper.

"What?" Lana and Asher ask in one voice.

"We need to go. They will torture the young girl to push him to answer. We need to take action. Let's clean a rogues' camp."

They both nod as I turn into my Lycan.

"Wow, it's really impressive!" Lana says.

"I know!" I hear Asher answers in awe in my back.

Yeah, it's the first time, they are seeing my Lycan. But we don't have time for this now.

"Let's go! But we don't kill more than necessary. I'm going for the boss, you're taking care of Tom and that girl."

As I'm spying on the boss, an alarm starts to scream.

"What's going on?" The boss asks annoyed by the noise.

"You're under attack!" I say going out of my hiding place.

"Lycans!" He says, fearful. "Look we don't want to do anything with you. We are just doing the job we are paying for."

This is so easy that it's even funny. I was hoping for a fight. I turn back in my human form.

"What job?"

"We were paid to create a war between these two packs and make sure people believed it's Alpha Simon fault." He explains.

"Why?"

"Someone wants his pack and the best way for him is for Alpha Simon to be dismissed by the Queen."

"Who is he? Who hires you?"

But before he can answer, Tom's wolf comes in like a fury and kills him. Then, he leaves as he had come. He is in a killing trance.

"What the fuck!" I scream.

"Sorry, he was unstoppable." Asher enters breathless.

"Where is Lana?" I ask

"With the prisoners and we replace a Luna." He replies.

"What?! Nevermind. One thing at the time. Go with Lana. I have a crazy wolf to stop."

He nods and goes back, as I go looking for Tom. I follow his smell and see a lot of mutilated bodies. I replace him a few minutes away, tearing apart the rogue who brought him here.

"Stop it!" I order him.

He growls at me so I let my aura out.

"Shift back now!" I order him and he has no choice than to comply.

"What's wrong with you?" I ask him.

"They are rogues, they don't deserve to live! It's my kill, Selina. Stay out of this!" He says.

"You're totally blowing up the mission, Tom! Why?"

"They were going to torture her! They are monsters! Why are you protecting them?"

"What's so special about that girl? And don't lie to me."

"She... She looks like her."

"Like who?"

"My mate." He whispers so low that if I have not a high hearing I would have missed it.

"So it's all about since we arrived here! If you aren't able to let your emotions apart you should have stepped down for the mission! Because of your erratic behavior, we lost precious information!"

"Fuck you!" he replies give me a finger.

"You don't let me another choice, then. Go home Tom, you're out for this mission." I tell him.

"Perfect because I quit! Noah is right, you're a cold bitch!"

"Go to hell Tom! I may be a cold bitch but at least I'm doing what I can." I say, hurt by his comment.

Tom tried to call me a few times but I never answered. He left a few messages of excuses but I was too hurt to hear its. I did have decided how long I will ignore him when I added a call for my cousin Julia where we finished speaking about him. She explained to me how Kaiden and his family were worried sick about him. As he just stays at home, going out only to buy alcohol. They don't even know if he's eating well as he refused to open his door and he had shut them all out. So here, I'm in front of his door. He's my friend, after all, I think... I don’t know... What I know is that I can trust him and it’s what I need now. I knock but he does answer. Let's try to pick the lock then. There is a first time for everything.

"If you are here to stole something you're not in the right place!" I hear Tom say from the living room.

As I enter his apartment, my noise is attacked by a bad smell, a very bad smell. Did he even take a shower since I sent him away?

"If you are to give me a piece of advice, you can go fuck yourself." He says, not even looking up. He is laid on his sofa.

"Goddess, do you know what a shower is?" I ask him.

"Selina!" He says surprised.

"What are you doing here?" He asks me getting up and trying to clean his dirty shirt.

"Is that obvious? I came to speak to you. And you forgot your last check even if I don't think it's a good idea I give it to you now." I reply.

"You want to talk about how my behavior was shitty with you?" He asks me.

"No. We will talk after you shower because you smell like shit." I say starting to clean a bit his living room.

He comes back 20 minutes later. I had time to clean his living room and his kitchen.

"Wow, I didn't you know you were able to clean." He says and I give him a dirty look.

" I didn't mean like that sorry. It's just you're a princess. I thought you never had to do it. And you're fast."

"I'm the one who is cleaning my room. I know how to cook and to fix things. My parents thought it was important for me to learn all of that, to teach there's not a job better than another one. We need to respect everybody. And I used my Lycan's speed. This is not my favorite tack so better doing it fast." I explain.

"So why are you here?" He asks me.

"I want to know what happened to you over there. I mean in the dark shadow pack. I need to know, you are...Uhm okay? That we are fine."

"Why you don't give up?"

"Because I miss you. And there is something in you, that makes me want to fight for you."

He walks toward me and surprises me with a big hug: "Goddess, I missed you! I'm sorry for being the bigger asshole in the world."

"I know a few persons that are bigger assholes than you," I reply hugging him back.

"Does that mean I'm forgiven?" He asks me.

"Of course, you're."

He sighs, relieved: "Sorry I blew up the mission."

"We succeeded so nothing else matters."

"What happened in the end?" He asks.

"It was Beta Matt's ex-lover. She wanted to mate him and become the Luna. She hired rogues, kidnapped her pregnant Luna and the plan was to make believe it was Alpha Simon who wanted to go after the Dark shadow Pack. Going with rogue against another pack is punishable of losing your rank. If Alpha Simon had lost his title, the next in line was his Beta."

"That's a stupid plan." He comments.

"Indeed... Even more when you know that the Beta doesn't love her and never planned to take her as his mate."

"What happened to her?"

"The luna killed her and she totally deserved it."

He nods.

"I need to know if you can react as you did in another mission?" I ask.

"Does that mean you still want to work with me?" He tries to joke.

"Is that even a question! But I need to know I can count on you all the time. What will happen if we cross another girl that looks like your mate."

"It will not happen again." He sighs.

" How can you be so sure?"

"Because she was not only looking like my dead mate, she was also her little sister. Melissa was from the dark shadow park."

"Oh! Why did you accept the mission then? You could have said no."

"Because since she died, I never look for her pass or to know her. I thought that going there would have offered closure. And it made it worst."

"How don't you know her?" I ask him.

"I don't want to talk about that! The only thing I can tell you is that I discovered that she was drunk. She drank alcohol with a mix of wolfbane and absinthe. That way you can be drunk like a regular human. Her friends begged her to not drive but she didn't listen. Her own stupidy killed her. There is nothing more to know." He says, his anger rising at the end.

"So you're judging her on one mistake. A big mistake, but just that. Don't you think it's not fair for her." I ask him.

"She didn’t care about other people or me her mate when she decided to drive when drunken. She doesn't deserve my time."

"Still you are drinking every night trying to forget her. How does that is not losing your time?"

"Fuck you, Selina. I don't need your comment."

"And I was thinking we were going somewhere and we could be friends." I mutter.

"You and I, we are nothing. Call me for the next mission."

"As you wish Tom. See you around." I say before leaving in peace.