True Nature Ch. 09

Instantly, the air filled with peaceful, light pheromones that tasted of lavender and chamomile. I could tell the beta was trying to calm me down, though she wasn't powerful enough to force me to do so, especially given my detoxed state. However, my wolf urged me to allow it, not seeing her as a threat.

Besides, I'd been cuffed to the bed in question with unbreakable chaines, after my morning meeting with the healer, so escape was currently futile.

"Hey, Cain. I need you to relax. Let's talk about this alright," Sophie reassured, with a gentle hand on my shoulder. "I... I really don't know what you're talking about, so let's clue me in nice and slow okay?"

"Will you save him?" I asked, looking at her hopeful eyes. "I'm stuck here and no one will help me!"

"Let's just take this one step at time. Okay? You're a rogue, making a very serious accusation about a high ranking pack leader. Think about that long and hard and then tell me the whole story."

"But he needs help!" I begged, already feeling defeated. "Can't you just go now?"

"Cain, I promise, if an omega is really in trouble, it will end soon. But I need to know everything. Maxwell and Frank have been best friends since they were pups, that's a strong bond to go up against. I need everything I can to convince Max to look into this."

"Why would my father's son help me?"

Sophie looked stunned, as if she'd never made the connection before, and I mused that maybe no one had.

"He doesn't know he has a brother, which I'm assuming you just found out as well." She paused for a moment, considering, before she looked deep into my eyes. "Cain, Maxwell is a good King. He's not like your dad. I'll admit, I don't know much about the old king. Mother kept me separated from most of his antics, but I do know Max. He's gentle and kind, for a ruler, and he's been doing his best to rebuild our pack and pack relations since the moment he came of age. He's tired of the turf war and the discontent between the other eleven packs, especially Lotus Pack. I know he wouldn't want this to escalate into something violent. I also know that he will help if he believes Frank is hurting an omega. He's always had a soft spot for the weakest of pack members."

I nodded and then proceeded to tell her everything I could about Fae, even my shame in leaving him time after time without doing more for him. It was hard to recall much about my last game night but I knew he'd been in trouble and I knew he'd begged to be with me. I was seriously beginning to question my worthiness as his mate and I admitted with shame what I had done to him and how I'd been drugging myself constantly and why. I was completely honest and by the time I'd finished, Sophie had tears in her eyes, though she quickly wiped them away, all business once more.

"What I want to know is... where did he get the omega?" She finally asked, looking wary. "None of ours have ever gone missing."

"I... I don't really know," I answered, feeling helpless. "Oh! But the doctor that's keeping me here, he asked a lot of questions about Fae. He acted really weird too and then ran away without any explanation."

Sophie gave me the same confused look that I felt. "I'll see if I can find anything out about that but, for now, I need to go. The King needs to know this and... I'm not exactly supposed to be here."

"I'm surprised you even got in," I replied.

"I could say the same for you," she responded with a sly smile.

"It's all in who you know," I offered, showing off my cuffs.

"Exactly," she answered with a wink and a giggle, before disappearing from my room.

**********

No one else came to see me for the rest of the day but my own thoughts made sure to torture me for hours. As a result I ended up staying awake like the doctor wanted. Now that the fog of the medication had lifted, I could fully communicate with my wolf again and he was furious with me. So furious, that he made sure to replay each and every time the little wolf had begged me to accept, love or save him. It had happened more often than I cared to recall but recall it I did. The more I remembered, the more convinced I became. Fae really was tied to me and I... I was tied to him. I could feel that so strongly now and I wondered at how I'd thrown that love and acceptance away.

I closed my eyes and suddenly wished for a moment that I could have a do over. That the first night I'd been with the omega, I'd followed my true nature and bitten him as I came for the first time, for I now knew I'd never want anyone else.

I'd cost both of us so much with my fear and pride and hesitation to love but my mate was the one suffering the most. I hated that and I hated myself for making that Fae's reality. I mentally shook my head in disgust. If I didn't know, with every fiber of my being, that I was the only wolf that could make Fae the happiest, I'd have been trying to find the sweet omega a replacement by now. I truly did not deserve him. I didn't deserve his pleasure and I didn't deserve his love. Despite this, I knew it would be all too easy to free him and run off, so that he could try and replace me, but no, I needed to save him and then look him in the eye and beg for his forgiveness. I needed to tell him that if he wanted to keep me around, I would be his, always. The omega had complete control over my happiness now.

My jaw began to ache. It had been aching off and on terribly throughout the night and started back up each time I thought about Fae. I felt the need to bite, to own, to claim my mate as mine. I tried to get up but was brought back to reality by my cuff's, preventing me from leaving, as always.

I laid back once more against the pillow, day dreaming of being in bed curled up with Fae. Then, a newly familiar fear began to take hold once more. I'd rejected Fae so often... what would happen if I tried to claim him now? Would he even accept me? Would he allow me to be in his life at all? If he didn't, I knew I'd deserve it but I still couldn't accept the thought of him being with anyone else.

He was mine. I knew he was mine now. His scent remained in my wolf's memory and I could almost taste it. He smelled perfect. I no longer knew why I'd let the fact that he serviced other wolves bother me. He couldn't control what other men had done to him and from the moment I'd touched him, he'd only wanted me. I had absolutely no competition. I'd truly been selfish and stupid. I would never deserve him.

I shuddered, trying to imagine what my life would be like if Fae disappeared from it for good. Whether by choice or not, the very thought had me trembling in anguish and I prayed to the moon goddess that I would not be too late. I needed to save him, I needed to have him in my life for good. If he rejected me... I'd probably never be okay again, which is what I deserved... but Fae deserved to be happy and loved and I hoped and prayed that I could still give that to him.

*********

Several more hours passed and I began to miss being intimate with Fae. I had so much to make up for and I began to fantasize about what I would do once I had him alone in my home once more. I wanted to tie him down to my bed so that I could look at him, like in my dream, all beautiful and spread out for me, looking up at me with need. I wanted to lick at his tiny hole, making him leak all over the sheets as he moaned helplessly. I wanted to dominate him fully, forcing him to do anything we wanted just so I could watch him flush as he enjoyed it. I wanted to make him feel completely beautiful and owned by me and then, I wanted to mark him as mine and take away any lingering doubt that I would ever leave him again.

In a matter of hours, that omega had become my life. I no longer feared that he would be weight on me, like I so often had after we met. It felt right to care about him, it felt right to love him and that I needed to protect him... in fact, it felt perfect. Almost as if I'd been mindlessly flitting through life and now I was suddenly grounded and at peace and he was my center. I sighed wistfully, giving no attention to my throbbing member. There was no way I could even think about touching myself when my omega might be hurt and my longings to make love to him turned back into fear.

What was Frank doing to him? I knew it had to be something awful, for I felt sick with worry every minute I'd been awake. I knew my omega was in complete distress because I could feel it through the lightest touch of a bond. That touch had been growing steadily weaker throughout the day but it was always present. I clung to it, trying to send some sort of message that I'd take care of him soon but I knew the bond probably couldn't work properly without my bite. I cursed myself again for not doing it when the omega had first begged.

I sighed in frustration as I made up my mind. The moment I was able to get up, I was coming for Fae, even if it meant killing Frank and living on the run with the omega. I refused to be weak any longer. I was an Alpha.

**********

Bright and early the next morning, Ben came to visit, waking me with a rough shake to my shoulders.

"Hey, time to wake up!" He encouraged. "I heard you're almost clear to go, so let's not give my brother any more of a reason to keep you here.

I groaned but forced my tired eyes open. Ben was right, I needed to prove that I was safe to leave.

"Hmm... your scent has changed a little. Funny, if I had smelled that on you before everything that happened, I would have never said yes to your date proposal."

"It has?" I asked, surprised. "What are you sensing now?"

"Oh you're definitely taken," he answered with another deep whiff. "But, I see the change as a good thing!" He assured. "It means that you're accepting your mates bond. I'm glad. Hopefully that acceptance will help protect the little omega. At least a bit."

I smiled at the information, pleased that I smelled like I belonged to someone for the first time in so long, before realizing that I probably owed Ben an apology. "Hey... I... I really want to apologize for everything. I never meant to hurt anyone and I didn't mean to lead you on. I behaved poorly... please forgive me?" I asked the omega, gazing into his surprised eyes with shame.

Ben smiled gently, "Well, at least it's leading to the omega getting out of that life," he answered.

I perked up at his words, "Do you mean Lotus Pack will help?"

"I'm not actually sure but if we can't officially help you, I will still do everything I can to help you get the omega away from that horrible beta! But, the council did send me to come collect you, so hopefully that's a step in the right direction."

"Collect me? What for?" I asked, feeling apprehensive.

"The leaders of our pack and the head of our fighters want to interview you about your little omega. Something you said to my brother raised some flags and now the entire council is buzzing with something... something big! I'm not sure what exactly but I think it has something to do with the lost prince."

"The who?" I asked, never having heard of any such person. Surely if a member of a leading family was gone, everyone would know about it.

"I don't actually know much. Only what little my brother told me... but some people seem to think, based on some things you said... that maybe your mate is the missing child of our Queen and Luna."

I felt my jaw drop, "How did he go missing? How could this be such a secret? How was there not a war?"

"Nobody knows what happened to the boy, so... there was no one to blame. There was an investigation of course but nothing came of it and after that Queen Emma and Luna Jane refused to talk or hear of it. In fact... they were so heart broken that they never had another pup."

I had no idea what to say. Fae had parents... possibly? Would he be happy to know this? Would the omega return to Lotus Pack and abandon me for being a rogue? Especially considering that would make Fae a prince. A prince I'd treated horribly. Would Fae have the power to take revenge on me? I would deserve it. If this was true... Fae would have complete control over my life. Would he throw me away like I had with him?

"I hope it's true," I suddenly said, surprising myself. "Fae deserves to have a family... he's suffered so much. I'd love to give him that back."

As I spoke I found that I deeply meant what I was saying. I wasn't sure when the feeling had begun to creep up on me but I knew now that I'd fallen in love with Fae. And, as a person that loves him, I wanted to give the omega anything I could to make him happy.

Ben smiled softly, "I hope he forgives you. I can see how much you want to make up for everything... and this entire time there's been such a possessive edge to you scent. You really are sorry, aren't you?"

"More than I can say," I replied, feeling my throat go raw with emotion. "And I'm terrified that he hates me now. He has every right to...I... I was horrible at the end of our time together. I should have tried healing the wounds of my past instead of taking pills! I know that now but... well... it ruined everything... he was my first and I want him to be my only and I'm sure that I probably ruined it. I hate myself."

Ben gave my shoulder a sympathetic squeeze, "It's very hard to break the bond of your true mate," he encouraged. "Keep fighting for him. If he rejects you, then at least you'll know you did everything you could for him. Make things right and I think you might have a chance."

"To do that I need to get out of here," I groaned, feeling restless. "I've been awake for long enough. I'm sick of being stuck here! I need to do something. Anything!"

"Then let's meet with the queen and her council. We're running late anyways," Ben answered, holding up a silver key.

Ben un-cuffed me, allowed me to dress in the clothes I'd arrived in, and lead me to the elevator. From there we went up four floors, arriving at the top floor of the building.

Once the steel doors opened I could see that this part of the hospital barely resembled the name at all. In fact, it look as if the space could be a regular meeting place for the wolf council. What with the luxurious, royal purple carpeting, lotus banners and art covering every available wall space, along with a lavender and gold lighting that softened everything it touched with an ethereal sort of glow. In the center of the room was a circular wooden table made of pure oak that looked as if it had rooted on the spot and grown out of the carpet that way. The dark wood was covered with green creeping vines covered in lavender flowers of every variety. In the center of the table floated a glowing orb, brilliant with fuchsia colored smoked and the occasional flash of blue lightening. The orb pulsed with magic that only came from very old werewolf families. The ones that were there at the beginning of time, most of who's bloodlines had not survived, despite their magic.

I stepped closer to the table, wanting to touch the ball of smoke but my way was suddenly blocked by two large, white haired betas wolves, flashing their fangs at me with deathly snarls.

"You mustn't touch the orb, Rogue."

A strong, harsh but distinctly female voice addressed me out of the shadows created by the room's odd lighting.

"It is very ancient and very fragile... we intend to use it for the purpose of today's investigation but the process must not be disturbed as memories are very hard to restore... even if they are few in number." The voice continued, and as she spoke, the woman stepped into the golden light revealing the worn but determined face of the Lotus Queen.

The queen was tall and muscular for a woman, even for an alpha. She wore a simple halo of gold on top of her brown and silver hair that was pulled back and wound into a tight bun. She was dressed in long purple, sleeveless robes, enabling me to see the many tattoos that covered her bulging arms. She could probably give me a run for my money if we were ever to fight but she didn't seem as if she'd waste her own energy to do so. The air prickled around her with authority and her strong, fiery scent compelled me to bow.

"Your majesty," I said, barring my neck nervously as I dropped to one knee.

"As you were," she replied, accepting my sign of respect even as her cold blue eyes shot daggers at me. "Now, to begin. One of my healers has given me a very interesting story to ponder over and I have not been able to let it go." She started coldly, glaring at me, eyebrow arched as she continued. "As you should know, it is quite uncommon for our pack to work with anyone outside of us, given that Shadow Pack destroyed any chance of peace negotiations with us. Further more, you are a rouge from that pack, which, in the past, had leas us to believe that you were somehow involved with the disappearance of my son... though I could never prove it."

I gasped at her words, confused and on edge. Was I about to be arrested... or killed? "I don't understand what negotiations you're speaking of... I've never had anything to do with your pack until a couple weeks ago," I offered, hoping that the truth would be enough to make her believe me.

She gave me another accusatory glare but said nothing.

"Why else would the Shadow King throw his own son and Luna out, if not for the retribution of breaking an important pack alliance, right as our child would have come of age?" Another voice challenged, this one softer and higher pitched than the queen's but just as regal. She also stepped forward into the light as she spoke and I felt my breath catch in my throat as I took her in.

She looked exactly like Fae, from her long white hair to her dark green eyes and tiny stature. However, my omega was even more beautiful than the Luna in front of me and I soon realized it was because he possessed some of the queen's more delicate features as well. Fuck, he looked like both of them.

"My Luna barely leaves our home," the queen interrupted my revelations as she wrapped her arm around the slim omega. "It's been difficult for her, since our son disappeared, but she's come to hear you out. If you say anything to displease her, I will kill you. She's very fragile and does not need to be messed around with."

"Alpha!" The luna protested, looking fondly exasperated with her wife.

"Leave it alone," The queen replied, hugging the tiny woman close, "You've suffered enough and I'm tired of it." The small omega blushed prettily and snuggled closer into the safety of her mates arms.

My whole body ached as I watched them. I knew in my heart they were my omega's parents. It didn't matter what the magic said, there was no way that Fae didn't belong to them. Would they separate us if they found out he was alive? Would they kill me when they heard what a terrible mate I'd been so far? My wolf whined at the thought, not wanting to be parted from the little omega ever again, but I knew I was at their mercy.

"I never knew about any treaty. I swear!" I pleaded, in an attempt to defend myself. "My father had us separated from any type of pack involvement years before it became known to the public. I... I was away... looking at schools out of state when he exiled us officially and," I took a deep breath, trying my hardest to keep my voice from cracking. I did not want to cry. "I wasn't even told that my mom had died shortly after the order!" I finally exploded with a choked sob, "I came home to find that I had nothing left. No mom, no home, no money for the future... and... and that I had nowhere to go... nowhere except in between the boundaries of this shitty little human town, while I attempted to pick up the pieces of my miserable life!" I finally snarled, letting my anger show, just a little. This whole thing was a waste of time. I just wanted to save Fae!

"You're lying," the queen accused, glaring sharply and my wolf snarled at her words. "We've already heard of your confession to abandoning your potential mate. Who knows what else you're capable of."