14. ASANI

14

ASANI

I watched Mateo fall apart when he lost his father. I watched him mourn who he thought was Nepheline for days after the white wolf was buried beneath his window. I watched him rip apart intruders and scream into the heavens about the injustice dealt to him.

But the pain pouring off of him now is so much worse, darker, thick with anguish and despair. Losing Gael is an entirely different kind of pain that I can't possibly imagine. Ilsa was my home base but regardless of what Mateo says, Gael was his. Gael has always been the soft spot that Mateo could lean on when things got rough. Gael accepted Remi and River like they were his own sons, never belittling the relationship that they had.

Hell, Gael was even happy to have me in his home because of my connection to Remi. He believed that I would aid in Mateo's quest as pack Alpha, not detract from it. Gael nurtured and supported Mateo as much as the council would allow. Watching Mateo smile because of his Omega father and the stories Remi would spill as we lay in bed made me respect the man.

He was a pure piece of sunshine that this pack so desperately needed and Calista has all but snuffed it out for plans we still don't understand.

I wrap myself tighter around Mateo, holding him back from shifting again and rushing to his mother's house. As much as we all want her dead, no one will understand and the council will twist it to their advantage. Mateo has his head stuffed in River's neck, his entire body vibrating with adrenaline and anger. The power emanating from his aura is almost stifling, the magic within this room growing until I can barely breathe.

Mother Nature feels furious, angry that a wolf has desecrated one of her own, that an Omega has been harmed. Even in medical school, I was taught that Omegas were precious and were to be protected. A Luno or Luna held power far above just any Omega and I can't help but wonder what the magic returning to the pack lands will do to Calista in return for her greed.

Mateo slowly straightens up. I expect his eyes to be bloodshot from the tears, his face distraught but there is only determination there. He smacks away the water trails from his cheeks before twisting around to slip my phone from my pocket. I'm not fast enough to stop him as he dials a number. It rings several times and then picks up the voicemail. He growls at the device, hangs up, and tries again.

He repeats the motion until a small, timid voice answers. "Hello?"

"Why wouldn't you tell me that you were hurting? You texted me that you were fine!" His hands tighten around my phone, threatening to crush it as a growl rumbles through his chest. "You're not fine, are you?"

"Nothing would have changed, son. I needed you to be strong. To save your Omega and your pack. Worrying about me would have kept you from that."

I frown at the elegance of his words. Gael never spoke like that to us. He has always been this free bird, rambling on and enjoying life as it comes. Now, he speaks like a prophet, someone who knows that death is near. He's no longer the Omega, the Luno that I used to know and it hurts.

"She has taken everything from me," Mateo pushes out as he stands. His shoulders widen, his free hand fisting at his side. The partial shift returns, hair sprouting along his spine, his teeth elongating until his full fangs are visible.

Gael grunts and then lets out a small moan. "She hasn't taken your pack from you. You still have those you love and trust and a beautiful Omega that is now our Luna." A cough follows his words.

"She rejected you." Mateo's words are tearing him apart as he voices how truly evil Calista is.

"I no longer serve a purpose to her, Mateo and I know you. You would have tried to save me but you couldn't. You may not understand now but I did this to protect you. You would have run yourself ragged trying to save me instead of saving your pack."

I place a firm hand on Mateo's shoulders, River taking up the other side as we give him the strength he needs. "Calista knew what she was doing to you. She knew ."

"Promise me that you'll move on. That you'll save the Nightshades from what she's doing."

Gael must have been silently suffering behind a wide smile that none of us could see through over the last several days since Nepheline arrived. Many Omegas start showing signs of deterioration after being rejected but Gael never did. Or maybe we just weren't looking hard enough.

Mateo's grip around my phone tightens but surprisingly the metal frame holds. "How long? Daddy, please ." The whine that follows only comes from a broken wolf. Regardless of how strong Mateo is, watching his family fall apart little by little from the greed that has ruined the pack lands isn't easy. Worse off is knowing that there's nothing we can do to stop Gael's decline.

I haven't heard Mateo call Gael ‘Daddy' since we were kids.

"It won't be long, son. We will see each other before the next full moon. I can promise you that. But focus on what is important, on what needs to be done before it's too late." The call ends, Mateo chucking my phone across the room as another growl rips from his throat. It breaks off into a sob, his partial shift holding steady. He looks more animal than man as he stands there, seething.

The next full moon is tomorrow, around the same time that the Sapphire pack will visit us. It all seems too heavy for coincidence but I say nothing, waiting for the pack Alpha to declare what's next. "I want to shred the woman that gave birth to me. There is no love left for her but the pack must know what she's done before that. They need to see the devil in her eyes and cheer for her demise."

River lets out a nervous chuckle. "Alpha, we'll get there but you need to shift back. We can't very well attend that dinner with you looking feral." His eyes are wide, unsure if Mateo will lash out or relax now that he's had a few moments to digest his father's situation.

The pack Alpha says nothing as he stalks into the living room, standing just behind the couch. We follow, my gaze falling on our Omega and those curled around her. Maverick is now behind her, a hand thrown over her waist, Remi curled on the other side of the Beta. However, it's the Beta that draws my attention, the way he slowly drags his fingers down Nepheline's face every time she twitches in her sleep.

With every touch, she calms and the Beta smiles a little wider, triumphant. He pets her like she's precious and a little piece of me heals, knowing that Nepheline has what she needs. Unfortunately, we don't have the time to truly enjoy this scene.

"Mateo, what are you thinking?" I ask, gesturing to our Omega. She twitches again, Maverick rubbing his cheek along hers as Remi shuffles closer.

His face scrunches up and then relaxes, the power in the room dispersing the longer he stares at how well taken care of our Omega is. "As much as I want to give her time, we don't have it. I know Nepheline isn't fragile but this isn't the life that I wanted for any of us. The dinner was supposed to ease her into her position, not throw her to the wolves."

A bitter laugh falls from my lips at the thought of a fragile Omega. She would have never made it this far. It makes me think of the wolf Mateo buried and whoever she truly was or if it was a shifter at all. Silas would have never killed an Omega shifter; they're too rare. I stuff that line of thinking into the back of my head for a later time. "Are we rushing things?"

River shakes his head, reminding me that he's here as well. He tugs on his bottom lip ring with his teeth before letting it go. "The Sapphire wolves will be here soon and if we don't know who stands with us, we'll have a much harder time wading through this fuckery. Remi and I have patrolled the edges with Boone and other than the energy building through the forest, it's been strangely quiet. There's always noise, always the extra scent of a wolf. Now? There's nothing."

"Maybe the pack lands are being protected." It's an interesting concept that Mother Nature may not only be returning the magic but protecting us from whatever else is out there. "Just a week or so ago, there were so many wolves from the pack of the Forbidden, and now not even one? Maybe cleansing the pack of the evil that's spread through it is helping."

Mateo clicks his tongue, folding his arms across his chest as he drinks in our words. Most pack Alphas never had to deal with the shit that Mateo has gone through. The decisions he'll have to make while weathering Calista and Silas will be brutal.

"What can I do, Mateo?" I may not want to join the pack for dinner but it is my duty as one of Nepheline's bonded Alphas.

"Find something to ease my father's pain. I can't save him but he doesn't have to hurt. It's the least I can do for him." His gaze is still locked on Nepheline, a light in the darkness for him. She was always going to be his and he hers but I think she's saved him in ways he didn't even know he needed. Nepheline will be there for him through this but so will we.

I grip his shoulder and squeeze a little before making my way to the makeshift clinic. If I can spare his father the last bit of pain before he leaves this world, I will do it. If I do nothing else, today, it will be this.