Chapter 12


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    .


    I awkwardly pushed the food around my te as suffocating silence sat heavily in the room. I sat at the


    dinner table, in the Zev household, praying that the ground would open up and swallow me. I wanted to


    be anywhere but sat right there.


    Seth was sat to my left, his younger brother and his mate sat opposite us, with his parents at each end


    of the table. Seth''s younger brother, Dale, looked scarily simr to him but his face wasn''t as chiselled


    and his shoulders not as broad – but despite the two year age gap, they looked like twins. Dale''s mate,


    Sofia, was a beautiful woman with flowing blonde hair and bright blue eyes, despite herrge pregnant


    stomach she sat with grace and sophistication that I envied.


    "So May I hear you''re good at sports" Dale said, trying to push through the tension.


    "Yeah. Where did you hear that from?" I asked, knowing that Seth wouldn''t be bragging about my


    sporting abilities.


    "I was putting your Pack file together today and I was looking at the information your old Pack emailed


    over" he exined. "It said you''re rated the top archer in the country, under the age of eighteen. You


    were chosen topete for the Olympics this year".


    Seth blinked in shock, "I didn''t know that".


    "Under eighteen" Angie muttered in annoyance, instantly turning the conversation silent again. I bit my


    cheek, looking away as I tried not to let how much she hated me hurt. But it really hurt to know both my


    mate, and my mate''s mother, didn''t like me because of my age – something I couldn''t control or


    change.


    "That''s amazing" Sofia carried on, giving me a sympathetic smile as she tried to ease my nervousness.


    "Why didn''t youpete in the Olympics?"


    "My Alpha didn''t want me topete. He thought that I would be in the public eye too much for a


    Werewolf, which wasn''t good since I am due my first Shift. So I was removed from the training system"


    I shrugged, but I could feel the sickness circling in my stomach.


    Thinking about that timest year, when everything I had worked my entire life was ripped away, made


    me want to cry. Pulling me from the Olympic training was one of the reasons my rtionship with my


    family had fallen apart – they''d taken away the only thing I truly loved.


    "Oh that doesn''t seem very fair" Sofia pouted.


    "It''s fine" I dismissed easily, "archery in the Olympics is only with the use of recurve bows anyway, and I


    am a fan of the traditional longbow". The normal lie I told – it wasn''t fine.


    "I didn''t even realise there were different types of bows" Dalemented. I could feel Seth''s eyes on


    my profile, but I didn''t turn to look at him. I was just d that the conversation had turned away from


    my age and onto a subject I could talk about.


    "Are you two going to mate?" Neil, Seth''s father, suddenly demanded. I stayed silent, as did my mate.


    "Well?" Neil pushed when we stayed silent.


    "I don''t know" Seth finally replied. "I don''t think I will be able to not mate her, but at the same time it is


    also wrong to mate her".


    "It is not wrong, Seth, she is your mate" Sofia insisted. "The age does not matter, you are meant for


    each other". She gave me another smile. I was beginning to like her more and more with each thing


    she said.


    "Yes it is wrong" Angie yelled, "I will not allow my son to go to jail for statutory rape".


    "Mother, they''re mates" Dale sighed heavily.


    "They''re right Angie" Neil told his wife. "They can''t help the age gap. Seth will only get one mate, and


    that is May, it would not be right for us to wish for him to be without a mate".


    .


    .


    Angie frowned deeply, "then he should send her away until she is of age".


    "You expect me to send my mate away from two years just because you think it''s wrong?" Seth


    challenged angrily.


    "I don''t just think it is wrong. It is wrong".


    "Look we will be going around and around in circles about this" I snapped angrily, making silence fall all


    around us. "You will never agree with either answer Seth would have given. You don''t want us to mate


    but at the same time you don''t want Seth unmated. It''s ridiculous. So why are we still having this


    conversation?"


    It was silent for a moment, before Neil spoke up again. "She''s right. Plus, it is their decision about this


    rtionship. If, and when, they decide to consummate this union we should support them. They''ll get


    enough scrutiny from other Packs about this, they don''t need us fighting amongst our ranks".


    "Are you crazy?" Angie yelled, throwing her napkin onto the table and standing up. Her chair screeched


    across the ground as she flew to her feet. "I do not support this, nor will I ever support this. This girl will


    ruin Seth''s life. I will never, never, support this". She turned on her heels and stormed out the room.


    "We should go" Seth muttered, throwing his own napkin down and standing up. I quickly followed him


    as she stormed towards the front door.


    "I''m sure she''lle around" Sofia said, offering me a small smile, before I disappeared after my mate.


    "Seth" I called out to my mate, jogging after him. "Seth, wait for me".


    "Get in the car, May, now!" he snapped, as he climbed into the driver''s side. I was silent for a few


    seconds, before sighing and climbing into the car – knowing that Seth was in a bad mood and would


    likely stay like that for the remained of the night.


    When we arrived home, Seth still hadn''t spoken a word to me. "You''re upset" I observed, as we walked


    into the house.


    "I''m not upset. I''m mad" he countered, throwing his keys onto the side as he removed his suit jacket. I


    followed Seth up the stairs and towards his bedroom.


    "Mad at me?"


    "No. Yes. Maybe" he mumbled, throwing his jacket onto his bed. Seth''s bedroom wasrge, with a


    darker colour scheme to mine, arge mirrored closet on one side. I perched on the edge of his bed as


    he took a seat next to his dresser and began to untie his shoes. The stress was obvious in both his


    shoulders and his frown lines.


    "Are you angry that I shouted at your mother?" I pushed.


    "No" he shook his head. "I''m just frustrated with the situation, May, you have to understand the


    dilemma you have put me in even if you didn''t have a decision in it. You being so young really brings


    my morals into question for others. I am about to fight one of the biggest wars in years and I don''t need


    my allies questioning me because of you".


    I wet my lips nervously, "you could send me away you know. I would understand if you didn''t want me


    around until I was older". It hurt me to admit, because I didn''t want him to send me away, but I guessed


    it was better than him rejecting mepletely.


    "No" he shook his head, "that will never work. I''ve imed you now, made an emotional connection


    with you, if I sent you away it would be harder than having you here. With you here I am tempted to


    mate you ever minute of the day, but if you weren''t here I would probably be driven mad with not


    knowing your whereabouts".


    I considered his words for a few moments, before selecting my words carefully. "You care about me


    that much?"


    He snorted in almost amusement, "you''re my mate".


    "That didn''t answer my question" I retorted. He sighed heavily, running his hands through his hair


    before standing up. He flicked his shoes off before moving over to the bed and taking a seat down next


    to me. Seth looked at me for a moment before speaking, his blue eyes staring at me.


    "You are a nightmare, Mabel. You''re stubborn, immature, rude, bitter and angry. Which should not be a


    problem for your mate. But, unluckily for you, I am also all of these things. You not only challenge me,


    you rival me. I would be worried you''d try and take my Alpha position if you weren''t so afraid of public


    speaking".


    "I''m not afraid...just cautious" I defended.


    "That is not the point, May. The point is that thest week I have been focused on you, which is fine


    you''re my mate, but I have a war to fight. I need to spend my time nning and gaining more allies".


    "What is your war over?" I asked.


    He raised an eyebrow in shock, "this war is the talk of every Pack in the country, how is it you don''t


    know anything about it?"


    I shrugged carelessly, "I don''t pay attention to things that don''t concern me. And before you walked into


    my life, it didn''t concern me what so ever".


    "Fair enough" he considered, "this war is about respect".


    "You''re kidding".


    "No at all". His words had me shaking my head at him – men were too prideful for their own good. "Ten


    years ago, when I''d only been an Alpha for a few years, I set up a treaty with the ck Bloods Pack.


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    Back in the nies some Wolves from our Pack, as well as the ck Blood Pack, were captured by a


    group of humans. They were taken to Yellowstone for reintroduction of Wolves".


    "Hold on a second" I interrupted. "Are you telling me that the Wolves at Yellowstone are Werewolves?"


    "Not all of them. Only four of them originally" he exined. "But they were tagged and observed, so


    they couldn''t really up and leave without exposing Werewolves. So I made the decision that they would


    have to stay. Which would mean living lifepletely in Wolf form, mating real female Wolves, and


    helping repopte Yellowstone. My decision, although hard, was challenged by the ck Bloods".


    "This is veryplicated".


    "Not really, just pay attention" he snapped. "So, the ck Bloods were furious with my decision to not


    save those Yellowstone Wolves. They raged war. We won but I was merciful. I didn''t kill the Alpha, or


    even the Beta, but simply set up a treaty. I took half of their Wolves into my Pack – making my Pack the


    "So you''re pretty much in charge of the ck Blood Pack as well. They have to do what you say" I


    realised.


    "Exactly" he nodded. "However, they betrayed the treaties. Last year they took a trip to Yellowstone


    and pulled one of their previous members out. They were able to cut his tracker out and hide his


    removal from the biologists...for now. When the biologist realises they are missing one of their main


    dominant males, they''ll begin questioning things. In breaking the treaty, it was said that I was supposed


    to take over the Packpletely. But they refused to join the Equinox Pack and have fought me. So I


    will need to go and take the Pack by force".


    "That seems like a violent way to sort this all out" I pouted.


    "I didn''t want a war, but I had no choice. In disrespecting not only me, but also the treaty, is a direct


    deration of war. All I could do was honour that and assemble allies just as the ck Bloods are".


    "I don''t want toplicate this all for you" I admitted truthfully.


    Seth smiled gently at me, "I''m pretty sure you''re going toplicate everything in my life Mabel".


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