The Alpha and his Mate
Chapter 26

Annabelle’s POV

We stayed like that for several minutes, both of us calming the other down before Jax finally felt comfortable enough to let go and look at me. “I really am sorry Annabelle; I rarely lose my temper like that and you just unfortunately had to witness one of the few times that I do. I promise I will be more careful in the future.”

I sighed and shook my head but decided to stay quiet on the matter. He really didn’t need to walk on eggshells around me and I honestly didn’t want him to. I had overreacted, majorly, but I made a promise to myself that in the future I would try to never do that, especially when it was Jax.

“So” I muttered, getting back on track.

“Oh hang on” Jax muttered before his eyes fogged over for a second. Next thing I knew there were people streaming into the dining room, taking up any nook and cranny they could replace. When did they even leave? Jax must have mind linked them all I guess. Well at least they didn’t have a front row seat to my brief meltdown.

“Sorry I want the others to hear what you have to say, you may continue” he said as he smiled down at me.

I sighed before nodding my head, I was not comfortable in a room full of this many people, but I had to get over it. For Wills sake and for the sake of my parents and the rest of Jax’s friends.

“So.. after I had been found out and h-held down” I stuttered “I was dragged into a room, away from your brother and forced to sit in a chair. They said they wanted to talk” I muttered. I felt really uncomfortable talking in front of this many people and I think Hannah, who was standing in the far corner of the room, knew because she suddenly piped up.

“Jax why don’t you get us to broadcast her through the wolfpack mind link? That way Anna doesn’t have to feel uncomfortable about talking to this many people she doesn’t know but the information is still accessible to everyone?” Hannah suggested as she looked between me and her brother.

I smiled over at her, gratefully before looking up at Jax to see what he thought of the idea.

He thought about it for a moment as he weighed up the pros and cons, before thankfully nodding his head. “Good idea Hannah, dad if you could stay as broadcaster and Hannah and mum for moral support that would be appreciated, everyone else is dismissed for the night, we will reconvene first thing tomorrow morning in the pack hall.” There was no mistaking the authority in his tone and before we knew it everyone had quickly emptied out of the house leaving just me, Jax, Hannah, Jackson and Emily.

We all settled into the sofas, now that there was room for us to do so, and I wrung my hands in nervousness.

“It’s okay little mate, I’ve got you and I’m not going to let anyone hurt you ” Jax stated as he took my hands in his to stop my fidgeting.

I nodded and took a deep breath before continuing. “It wasn’t long before whoever we were waiting for turned up. I didn’t know who he was, but by the way he spoke to everyone and how they reacted to him he seemed like the person in charge.”

“So it wasn’t Alpha Parker then?” Jackson butted in with a deep frown on his face.

I shook my head “no it wasn’t him, he smelt like him though.”

“Dad does Alpha Parker have a brother maybe? A brother we didn’t know about? Or maybe that was his Beta? I mean who know what goes on in that pack” Jax asked his dad who had misty eyes from relaying everything I’d said through the mind link.

“Not that I know of son, but like you said, no one knows what goes on in that pack” he sighed.

Jax’s sigh was his only response as he squeezed his hands that were still encaging mine. “Go on little mate”.

“Well there was a lot of uncomfortable staring between the two of us before he finally piped up about what he wanted from me and why I was there.” I stumbled across my next words, struggling to finish my story for fear of Jax’s reaction. “He umm... he said he was willing to release your brother, my parents and the rest of the pack that were taken on one condition” I muttered. I couldn’t look at him in the eye, knowing I was about to see a furious Jax all over again.

“What did he want little mate?” Jax asked, torn between comforting me and pushing me to get the information that could save his pack members.

“He-he wants...” I stuttered as I withdrew my hands from Jax’s and held them in my lap.

“It’s okay Anna” Hannah tried to reassure me as she got up and sat on the arm of the sofa next to me. I had noticed that Jackson’s eye were no longer fogged over and I was very thankful that he wasn’t broadcasting this to the entire pack. The last thing I needed was for everyone to see me having another emotional breakdown, one of many it seemed today.

I smiled up at her and took a deep breath, steadying myself before I turned around and took Jax’s hands back in mine. “He wants me Jax. He said he would let everyone else go if I went to him willingly and freely. He said if I didn’t, he would just kidnap more and more pack members until we complied with his wishes”.

The room was silent for a moment, the only sound coming from the clock slowly ticking away on the opposite wall above the fireplace. It stayed like that for a good thirty seconds, I counted the ticks, before everyone started shouting and screaming all at once. No one knew what to do, on the one hand this was their brother and son that was currently in harm way but on the other it was their Luna. I mean I know which way I would sway in a heartbeat, but apparently for them it wasn’t that easy.

“There is no way in hell I am letting you go anywhere near them Annabelle do you hear me? I am not letting you get taken by those animals and let them do goddess knows what to you.” Jax ran his hands through his hair as he continued to scream profanities and pace across the living room floor. “We’ll figure out another way to save the rest of the pack, without offering you as a sacrifice to them.”

I stayed quiet, not wanting to tell him what was running through my mind, that I was strongly considering taking the strange smelling wolf up on his offer. I would do anything for my new pack and if this was the price I’d have to pay, then so be it.

I glanced next to me to replace Hannah staring at me with questioning eyes, looking as if she could read what was running through my head as we all watched Jax carve a whole in the wooden floor. She knew what I was considering doing and I quickly shook my head at her with pleading eyes, not wanting her to give anything away to Jax or the rest of her family.

She squinted her eyes at me in a warning glare before sighing and nodding her head in understanding. I smiled gratefully at her before getting up and taking Jax’s hands in mine to get his attention and to stop him pulling at his hair.

“Let’s go home, we can talk more at the meeting tomorrow” I said as I went in to give him a hug, hoping to ease his nerves and bring him back to a more calming state.

Thankfully it had worked and before long we were back home and tucked up in bed with me safely folded up in Jax’s arms.

“I won’t let them hurt you Annabelle” I heard Jax whisper into the darkness of our bedroom, his heart rate speeding up slightly as I kissed his bare chest.

“I know you won’t” I whispered back as I pretended to fall asleep. Little did he know my brain was whirring away a mile a minute, weighing up all of my options that were laid out in front of me. On the one hand I could do what Jax says, stay here safe and sound whilst I let other innocent people go and fight my battles for me, or I could face my fear and deal with my issues head on.

The guy had given me a time and a place to meet him if I decided to hand myself in. I had 24 hours to decide and if I decided not to show he would take another group of people from our pack and kill them. He said it would continue like that every day until I gave myself up.

I had seen that place first hand, seen the filth that my parents had been left in as they sat with their wrists and ankles shackled to a nearby stone wall with silver. I could smell their flesh burning as their skin touched the metal, their bodies not being able to heal quick enough for the burns and welts to completely go away.

How could I possibly allow my pack members, who I am supposed to protect, endanger their lives in being possibly kidnapped just to give us another twenty four hours to try and figure out what to do? It would just be wrong of me to sit back and allow them to be taken from their homes when the only reason this person was interested in our pack in the first place was because of me. It was all because of me.

Guilt seeped into my soul as I looked up at Jax, who had fallen fast asleep whilst I had been weighing up the pros and cons in my head. To me there was only one clear answer. There was no way I was going to let innocent people die because of me, and with that in mind I formed a plan. If the meeting tomorrow came up completely empty handed and no one could think of a logical plan on what to do next, then I was going to meet this mystery man and hand myself in.

I sighed and looked back at Jax, taking him all in. For all I knew this could be the last time I get to see him sleep.