The Alpha Twins Rejection
Chapter Four - Ashley

As I entered the conference room, I instantly noticed both my father and Beta McMillan had already poured themselves a scotch. It had been a rough day, so I cannot say I blame them. I walked over to the bar and poured myself one while we waited patiently for Zac to join us. If I had left the poor man alone, we wouldn’t have to wait, my cheeks flushing at the thought. A knowing smile lifted his father’s mouth slightly at the corner when he caught my eye, making the heat creep further up my cheeks. A few moments later, Zac entered the room with slight embarrassment on his face. Avoiding eye contact with both of our fathers, since he was still half-mast, he chose the wise option of sitting down straight away at the massive conference table. Good choice, kiddo, I thought. Good choice. I took an appreciative sip of the cool amber liquid and sat down beside him.

“As you are already aware, the River Run pack will be here within twenty-four hours. Zac, I want you to meet them at our territory line and escort them in,” my father said to a nodding Zac, and then he turned his gaze to me. “Ashley, I want you to follow up all pack patrols with Beta McMillan and make sure that everyone takes the threat seriously. We cannot afford to have the rogues breaching our territory lines,” he continued earnestly. I was about to protest to my father about sending a Delta to welcome the River Run pack but thought better of it. He must have his reasons, I thought.

As if my father had been reading my mind, he said, “I am aware that it is highly unusual to send a Delta to welcome and escort another pack onto our territory, but I have spoken to Alpha Rayne at length, and we both agreed that due to the circumstances our Betas time would be better spent elsewhere. He expressed his sorrow at not meeting you, Ashley, as they have heard a great deal about you and are suitably impressed with your accomplishments. I am glad he is a reasonable man and Alpha”. I let out an un-ladylike snort and glanced over at Zac.

He had a slight smile hovering over his lips, to my utter astonishment. Curious, I mind linked him. “I see that makes you happy that I am not escorting the Alpha twins,” I said with mock anger, raising my eyebrows at him. “Sure am sugar”, he replied with a dark chuckle, a smirk forming on his luscious lips. “You know I will meet them tomorrow night at the reception dinner at the packhouse Zac. If I don’t run into them sooner”, I mind linked back with a deep laugh. Glancing over at Zac, I noted that the muscle in his jaw was now twitching slightly, and his smile had faded. He knew I was right. And by the looks of it, it pissed him off. Why? I couldn’t say.

“I will run the perimeters with Ashley and my father tonight to ensure all our guard posts are well stocked with supplies and that everyone is alert,” Zac stated.” I have ensured that our elderly pack members have been moved to the town hall and are comfortable. Thankfully, they are happy to stay there until the conclusion of the Bloodmoon Ball. I will create a team to help escort them back to their homes once the threat has been eliminated,” He continued thoughtfully.

I was about to speak when suddenly, we received a communal mind link from one of the guards, Jace, who was currently stationed at a guard post to the northeast. “Excuse my interruption Alpha Miller, but a lone wolf has been spotted a few kilometres from our pack territory line,” Jace said franticly, his breath coming out ragged. “John and Andrew have given chase, but they have not returned yet. I am just about to go after them,” he replied hurriedly, suddenly ending the mind link.

My father’s mouth opened to say something, but I stopped him swiftly. “Dad, let us handle this. It is our job. You make sure the rest of the town is secure along with your pack. I will keep you updated,” I said enthusiastically, flashing him a huge grin. Only I could get away with talking to him like that.

My father was used to me getting my way. I didn’t do it to be an insufferable brat. I did it so that I could do my job correctly as the Beta of our pack. In his eyes, I was still his little girl, and he sometimes hesitated, so I had to be a little bit forceful and remind him that I could handle myself as well as the pack’s security. Before a protest could leave his lips, the three of us were racing out of the back door of the packhouse, running swiftly towards the vast expanse of woods behind it. As we made it into the tree line, Zac, his father and I all shifted into our wolf forms, shredding our clothing as we did so.

When I first became Beta, it had been awkward being naked in front of my boyfriend’s father. As shifters, it was second nature to be naked, and no one really batted an eye at nudity because it was so commonplace, but still, it was a little weird getting naked regularly with Zac and his father. Allowing my wolf to the forefront, Callie gently stretched her long legs and shook out any tension in her body, coiling low and taking off at breakneck speed through the woods. Like me, she had speed and ability on her side, something I was forever thankful for as Beta of Bloodmoon.

Inhaling sharply, I could smell the damp earth as we raced through the forest floor. The familiar smell was intoxicating. As Callie continued to bound through the extensive forest, jumping logs in her way, I could hear a small stream running up ahead and knew we were not far now from the guard hut. Even though Callie was on a mission, her head in the game, she allowed herself a brief glance to the left and then right in quick succession to make sure that Beta McMillan and Zac were keeping up.

It constantly amazed her that they seemed to be very light on their feet for wolves almost twice her size and used little effort to stay in sync with us. Zac and his father’s wolves were virtually identical and hard to tell apart if you didn’t personally know them. They were large sandy-coloured wolves, but Zac was slightly bigger than his father and had blue eyes instead of brown. They were breathtaking, I thought fondly as I glanced towards them briefly once more. The three of us made a handsome trio. Callie’s coat was a shade of stunning silver like my hair, paired with my lilac eyes. While I didn’t consider myself beautiful, I was in awe of Callie’s remarkable beauty and didn’t think any other wolf compared to her. Not that I had ever seen another silver wolf with purple eyes, though. I felt fortunate every day that the Moon Goddess paired me with such a magnificent wolf as her.

My praiseful thoughts had Callie running with a goofy wolf grin on her face, her tongue lolling in the fresh forest air as she ran. “Pull yourself together, Callie. You must look silly running with your tongue out,” I said wryly, teasing her. “You’re the one who won’t stop praising me. How am I supposed to keep a straight face when you keep thinking about how beautiful I am” She responded breathlessly. I replied with a chuckle. “Ok, I will stop. Time to be serious,“. Callie’s demeanour flipped like a light switch. She promptly pulled her tongue back in and increased her speed.

I was pulled from my admiration by a loud, piercing howl that sounded off into the distance. Reaching my mind out, I earnestly tried to mind-link with John and Andrew at their station but got no response. I quickly linked Zac and Beta McMillan. “Zac take the left; McMillan, take the right. Let’s cover some ground and replace this arsehole,” I said with fierce determination. Looking over at Zac, his wolf Callan nodded at me before veering sharply off to the left. “Let me know if either of you see anything”. Callie lengthened our stride, barreling through the forest and scaring small prey animals and birds with her haste.

The creek we scented earlier came into view. Not bothering to slow down to wade through the stream, Callie coiled her muscles tightly on the creek bed at the last second and sailed over it effortlessly. We would have relished a dip in its cool, sparkling water to slake our undeniable thirst if it had been any other day. A small sigh escaped Callie. “Another day,” I said soothingly. “It is probably just some unmated male out having some fun and not a rogue”, Callie huffed in protest. “It may well be Callie, but we need to check every perimeter breach, you know that”, I scolded her lightly. “Besides, if it was just an unmated male goofing off, why haven’t any of the men on guard been able to mind link us to let us know that everything is ok?” I reasonably questioned. “Good point”, Callie replied thoughtfully, replaceing another gear as she sailed forward with a renewed sense of urgency.

As we rounded a thick stand of oak trees, we suddenly came into a clearing where a sickening smell of lavender hit us full force as soon as we entered. Both Callie and I recoiled at the thoughts the scent provoked and came to an abrupt stop, skidding to a halt deep in the forest. The lavender smell fueled the vicious flames of a locked away nightmare, forcing memories to flood back. Overwhelming fear took root in our spine as we tried to process the uncontrollable terror that now threatened to consume us. Our eyes flickered with nervous trepidation as we scanned the trees to replace the source, stopping abruptly on a towering pine to our left. Standing before us was our worst nightmare, a very naked Alpha Dante leaning smugly against the tree with an arrogant smirk on his face. He had obviously shredded his clothing when he shifted into his wolf form. Being in our territory, Alpha Dante wouldn’t have any spare clothes close by, I thought with an almost hysterical, nervous snicker. Judging by the look on his face, I didn’t think he cared.

“Like what you see, doll”, Alpha Dante laughed spitefully. In another world, he would have been just my type. The guy was huge, well built in all the right places. It was a shame that losing my mother had shattered his fragile mind. He had let his raw grief consume him over the loss of my mother to another Alpha. Callie could sense my mind wandering, fear trying to drag me into its inky depths. She frantically tried taking over to force herself to the forefront. Callie wanted nothing more than to execute him on the spot. I was a formidable warrior but had been up against him before and knew that fighting him in my wolf form was useless. When his wolf took over, he had zero control and was lethal with feral viciousness. Trying desperately to figure out a way to get out of my situation, I quickly mind-linked Zac and Beta McMillan. “Alpha Dante, northeast of the guard hut”.

“Fuck”, was all either of them replied with a fierce growl reverberating through the mind link. I knew they would not waste any time changing course, so I shifted into my human form. I didn’t have any spare clothing to change into either, but I didn’t give a shit. Alpha Dante knew my body intimately, unfortunately, and I hoped it made him uncomfortable to look at the hideous scars he had inflicted on my body. “Hardly”, I spat with all the burning hatred I could muster. “What do you want, Dante” I didn’t bother using his official title. He didn’t deserve to be an Alpha.

It seemed that once again, he had shamefully deserted his pack while he went on some delusional mission. I desperately wished another Alpha would hurry up and kill the man, absorb his pack into theirs so that his people could at least have a fair and just leader in their life, I thought sourly.

“You know what I want, little doll”, Dante replied evasively in a silky-smooth voice as he stalked towards me, his eyes shamelessly roaming over every inch of my body. “I was surprised, to say the least, when I learned that you had survived and look at you, as beautiful as ever I see”. He was gradually edging closer as he spoke, trying to distract me with his words. His arousal was evident as he devoured my body with his hooded eyes. The man was certifiably crazy. I tried my hardest not to make a gagging sound as my body revolted at the thought of him touching us again, but I refused to look away from him. “Come with me, my love. We belong together, you and I,” he said with a sick smile playing on his lips, his calloused hand outstretched towards me. The guy was delusional to think that I would take his hand and ride off into the sunset with him.

“I will never be your fucking Luna nor your mate Dante,” I spat contemptuously. I was grateful that he hadn’t yet detected my paralysing fear. After all the years of training as a warrior in the hopes of killing him had suddenly been replaced with terror, his scent of lavender curling around me cruelly and dragging me back into the past. I felt exposed, rooted to the spot, frightened like a deer in headlights. I loathed that just the sight of Dante made the memories flood back along with the familiar fear his presence produced. “Still fucking that pup, huh. I can smell him on you,” he said scornfully with flared nostrils, mirth dancing in his eyes. “It is only a matter of time before he replaces his fated mate, little she-wolf. Then what will you do?” he questioned with one eyebrow cocked, stalking closer still. “You are nearly 25. I would wager that your mate either doesn’t want you or is dead” he laughed maniacally. “If you come with me, I will give you the world”, he stated with a feral look in his eye.

“No thanks, I have seen what your world looks like, and I would rather be dead than join you, Dante”, I spat. “As you wish, little wolf”, he replied sourly, lunging towards me with blinding speed. The excessive fear froze me to the spot for a second, unable to move. I could feel Callie pushing strength through me, desperately willing me to defend us. Squaring my shoulders, I curled my hand into a tight fist and swiftly darted to the left. Crouching low, I punched Alpha Dante as hard as I could in the side of the ribs, knocking him off his deadly path. He spun around faster than I could have imagined possible for his sheer size. Alpha Dante kicked me with all his brutal strength in the stomach with feral determination, sending me flying backwards into the forest floor, where I landed in a heap with an audible thud.

The wind was violently knocked out of me, and I needed a moment to suck in lungfuls of air. Recovering rapidly, I swiftly rolled over and jumped onto my feet before Dante could charge again. Crouching into a defensive position as his muscular leg came flying directly at my face, I ducked just in time and used the lost moment to kick his feet out from under him. He landed hard on his side but quickly rolled away and was back on his feet in no time. “What a shame you have rejected my generous offer, doll. I am not going to enjoy killing you. On the contrary. You are such a fine little she-wolf. But if I cannot have you, no one can. I am a selfish man, after all. I will, however, take joy in taking what your father loves most for what he did to me,” he said through grunts, his eyes turning to black as he allowed his wolf to come forward and fight dirty for him.

“Yet I will thoroughly enjoy ending your useless life Dante,” I said through gritted teeth. I lunged furiously at his throat with my claws extended fully, blinded with rage at his audacity to come into our territory, to attack me again. I was so overcome with fury that gripped me tightly that I didn’t see the silver dagger he held in his right hand until it was too late. My eyes widened at the flash of the metal that glinted in the sunlight as he swung his hand viciously above his head in a deadly arc motion. I desperately turned my body to the left, trying to dodge his lethal blow, but it was a fraction of a second too slow. I felt the sickening sensation of the razor-sharp blade gliding through my skin as if it were butter. Dante furiously shoved the dagger to the hilt inside my abdomen with a loud snarl. Maintaining his death grip on the handle, he began a sick twisting motion upwards towards my chest with all his might. Dante was trying to slice me open from just above my pubic bone to my clavicle, but in a zig-zag pattern for maximum damage, I thought hysterically.

The pain was instant, white-hot, and had me screaming shrilly in sheer agony. “No, not again”, Callie howled violently inside me. She fought to come forward but was suppressed by the silver of the dagger inside us. I fell to the ground helplessly as searing agony ate at my insides, clawing uselessly at the blade protruding from my body as I thrashed in unbearable pain. My eyes started to flutter from the shock, my mind trying desperately to comprehend how this was happening again.

A brutal snarl ripped through the silent forest. Using my last ounce of willpower to lift my head to look for the source, I saw Zac and Beta McMillan’s wolves barreling toward us. Thank the Goddess, I thought before darkness consumed me.