Chapter 7
“Not sure, but I think he ran because he doesn’t want me as his mate.” Slate hung his head in shame, though why he felt that way was a mystery.
Oh shit! Slate is meant for Dakota? This has heartbreak written all over it. “Slate, are you Dakota’s Fated Mate?” Jackson asked softly.
“Yes, but he rejected me,” Slate answered. “Don’t ask me why because I just don’t know. He’s never met me before, we barely talked…”
He knew why his brother was freaking out but Slate would have to find that out for himself if there was any hope of the mating working. “Have you talked to your mother about this?”
“Yes. She told me I couldn’t claim him until she told my mate about the gift the Fates would give him. I promised I wouldn’t.”
“So you still want to claim him?”
Looking up, Slate stared at Jackson. “Of course I do. He’s my mate…the one the Fates chose for me.”
“Did she tell you anything else regarding the Fates and their gift?”
“Noooo, just that she had to talk to him.”
Jackson sighed. Oh joy! I get to be the harbinger of bad news. “Did Steel ever tell you what happened when he met me?”
Slate thought about Jackson’s question. “Not really…just that he found his mate.”
“Steel stopped to help me after I was robbed of everything and left naked on the side of the road. As soon as he got out of his truck, I knew he was my mate. Yet I hid that knowledge from him in order to protect my pack. After he dropped me off at a gas station, he left and I went home to my brothers. I kept it from them because I thought I was doing the right thing…putting my pack first. That’s when the pain started, and it grew worse until I agreed to claim your brother.
The reason I’m telling you this is because Dakota is going through the same stuff right now and it will only get worse. ”
Slate’s wolf howled, hearing their mate was in pain, and tried to surge forward, wanting to track him down.
Keeping control, but just barely, Slate swore he could feel Dakota’s pain, clutching his chest as his own pain got worse.
Thinking over what Jackson told him, he got the feeling there was more to this.
“If Dakota is in pain, why did he run from me? He doesn’t have a pack to protect so why reject me? ”
Rubbing his hands over his face in frustration, Jackson knew why but he couldn’t tell the man sitting in front of him.
Sometimes being Alpha really sucks. Well, I better tell him the rest. “That’s a question you should ask Dakota.
Slate, I’m going to tell you the same thing your mother told me when I told her why I had rejected Steel.
She said the Fates gave me a choice of whether I wanted to be claimed or not… ”
“You mean Dakota can decide he doesn’t want me as a mate?” Slate asked, hurt coming through his voice.
“Yes he can, just as you can reject him, but the pain won’t go away for either of you, it will only get worse…”
“What the fuck is that shit? Sounds like blackmail to me!” exclaimed Slate.
“Maybe, but the Fates gave that choice to each of you because the gift Dakota will receive has only been given to one other Alpha…me…and they want to make sure both of you are committed to each other.”
“So Dakota can reject me!”
“Yes, he can, but there is a price to be paid for that choice.”
“A price? What kind of a price?”
“You or he would have to die. It’s the only way the pain will end.”
Stunned into silence, Slate sat still, frozen in a world that had gone crazy. His mind went blank as he heard his heart cry out in pain, and at that moment, his wolf decided to take matters into his own paws, surging forth, refusing to wait any longer to find his mate.
In a heartbeat, Steel was in Jackson’s study, shifting and snarling at his brother’s wolf. A warning howl echoed through the room as Steel’s wolf leapt between his mate and Slate’s wolf.
Before Jackson could use his Alpha power, Slate’s wolf turned, running through the open door, seeking his mate, wherever he might be.
Ignoring the people in the great room, his wolf ran, looking for a way out of the house.
Suddenly, his wolf scented fresh air and headed toward it, finding the front door held open by his father.
Bounding through it, Slate’s wolf quickly picked up his mate’s trail and followed it.
~/~/~/~/~
Stewing over his failed plan, he sat nursing a beer in an out-of-the-way café in France, waiting for news.
It was a brilliant scheme and took him a year to find those who would do his bidding, ignoring their morals in exchange for money.
He had planned each step meticulously—it was fail proof—so he thought, but never figured one of his servants would blab.
He would take care of her after he took care of the son-of-a-bitch who fucked up his plan.
Lost in past memories, he didn’t notice the man who stopped at his table until he heard his name.
Looking up, he saw the shifter who claimed to have the information he was seeking.
Shoving the wooden chair away from the small table with his foot, he said, “Sit. Keep your voice low. I’m not interested in everyone knowing my business. ”
Slapping a large envelope on the table the rough-looking man sat down, and said, “Don’t worry, no one around here cares about what you do, they are only interested in the color of your money.”
“Did you find what I want?”
“Yup, do you have my money?”
“Of course, but I want to see it first.”
Sliding the envelope over to the man opposite him but keeping his hand on it, the seller growled, “Where’s my payment?”
“You’ll get it after I see what you have.”
“Nope,” the seller said, moving the envelope back.
“Wait!” Then the buyer looked around before pulling a small bag of gold from his pocket and, setting it on the table, reached for the envelope.
“Not so fast. This here is an exchange so slide it over.” Neither trusting the other, there was a flurry of hands reaching and grabbing what they wanted.
The buyer opened the envelope and removed the documents. Quickly scanning them, he grunted his satisfaction. Getting up, he murmured to the seller, “Nice doing business with you,” before fleeing into the darkness.
~/~/~/~/~
Shifting back after his brother left the room, Steel pulled on the sweatpants Jackson handed him before exploding at his mate, “What the fuck were you thinking, being in here without backup. It was sheer luck my mother told me to get in here. And why the fuck was my brother attacking you?”
Jackson walked over to Steel and, laying his hands on his mate’s bare chest, softly said, “Thank you, babe.”
Wrapping his mate in his arms, Steel bent down, burying his nose in Jackson’s hair, closed his eyes, and then drew in the scent that always calmed him.
It would be a long time before he would forget the frightening scene that greeted him as he entered the study—his brother looming over Jackson, jaws snapping between snarls. Thank the fucking stars, he got here in time.
After his heart had slowed down and was no longer in danger of leaving his chest, Steel opened his eyes, and finally was able to speak calmly. “Mo chroí, why did my brother attack you?”
“He wasn’t though I can see it looked that way. Let’s sit down and I can explain.” Leading his mate over to the love seat, Jackson pushed Steel down on it before sitting next to him, snuggling into the side of his mate. “Babe, please don’t be angry at Slate…I know he wouldn’t hurt me.”
“I’m trying but I…what I saw…how could my brother do that? Put you in danger?”
“Babe, Dakota is your brother’s Fated Mate. I’m not sure how they each found out but when they did, Dakota ran from Slate, shifted and is now in the woods, at least I hope that’s where he is.”
Steel was gobsmacked. My brother’s mate is Dakota?
Oh shit, that means Dakota is getting the same gift my mate got.
Sitting there, he was trying to picture his brother mated and a parent but couldn’t.
As the reality of what this meant sank in, Steel was able to put the pieces together.
“My brother knows what it means if Dakota rejects the mating, doesn’t he? ”
“Yes, I told him and it caused him to shift. His wolf wanted to make sure their mate was okay. I just happened to be in the same room. But I’m glad you came in or Slate might have cut himself smashing through the window.”
“Shit, does my brother want to claim Dakota?”
“He said he did…both to me and your mother.”
“So my brother isn’t the problem but Dakota is reluctant.
That surprises me, because he supported you at the pack meeting when everyone found out you were pregnant.
I always viewed him as a nurturer, you know what I mean?
Look how protective of Lizzie he was when she first cooked for us.
Theo has blossomed under his tutelage. I know he views finding a Fated Mate as something to be celebrated because of the special mating breakfast he does for each couple. And…”
“Babe,” Jackson interrupted him, “everything you said is true, but on the other hand, ever since his childhood, Dakota has been…well the best way to describe it…remote. Even here, how much interaction do you have with him other than at meal times?”
Steel thought about it and realized Jackson was right. “Why is that? Why does Dakota shut himself in the kitchen, away from everyone?”
“Dakota feels safe there. You know how Colton always said he wasn’t looking for a mate?” Jackson paused, continuing after Steel nodded. “Well multiply that sentiment a thousand times and that is not even close to how Dakota feels.”
“Fuck! Why does he feel so strongly about it?”
“I don’t really know, but that’s why he ran after finding his mate.”
“So if he rejects my brother…”
“Yup, you know what that means.”
“We need to talk to my mother!”
~/~/~/~/~
Dakota’s flight from the house was driven by panic—panic caused by Slate finding out he was his mate.
Now he would have to make a decision since he could no longer hide.
Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! And for the hundredth time since scenting Slate he asked himself ‘why’.
Why didn’t the Fates respect my decision?
After all, I have two other brothers who could have mated Slate.
Carson! He would be perfect…they both love business.
Or Zane? That would work too. Unable to answer his own questions, Dakota gave up asking, instead letting his mind go blank—the way his mother taught him.
Running at full speed, his wolf headed to a place he felt safest, a small cave high up on the side of a mountain.
Dakota had found it one day when his wolf had been restless and needed a run.
There, it was quiet and isolated, a place his mind could rest and recharge to handle his curse—at least that’s how Dakota viewed it.
No matter how many times his mother told him he was special, he never believed her.
The noise in his head had brought him to tears so many times as he was growing up that it wasn’t until his mother taught him how to get rid of it—at least for a short while—that he could have some respite.
That quietness in his mind was what was needed now.
Somehow Dakota had to figure out what to do with the mess his life had become.
Fuck! Double and triple fuck! He wished his mother was still alive—she would know what he should do.
But his uncle took away his lifeline, almost killing Dakota in the process.
Looking back, he honestly didn’t know how he survived the death of his mother.
She kept him focused, calmed his mind when nothing else could, and surrounded him with a love that protected him from all evil.
But her death brought real evil into his life and he was woefully unprepared to handle it.
Step by step, he found a way to survive and he was now able to find a little piece of himself.
He slowly realized none of his brothers knew what he could do and he was able to use that knowledge to build a life—narrow as it might be—finding happiness once more in cooking.
There wasn’t any amount of thanks he could give his brother and Steel for allowing him to be the chef.
Shut away in his kitchen all day, it kept his interactions with the rest of the pack to a minimum and that meant the noise he lived with on a daily basis was manageable.
Finally reaching the cave, Dakota’s wolf sniffed around, then lay down after finding no traces of other occupants.
The shock was gone and Dakota could think about his choices without any noise in his head other than his own thoughts.
He figured out what gift he would get from the Fates if he mated with Slate—which caused him to whimper.
No matter how hard he tried to imagine himself having a pup, the picture never materialized in his mind.
The need to protect his pup would drive him insane with all the noise that would be flooding his mind.
Maybe Oracle could help or Lizzie…she is as close to a mom as I have now.
Thinking about how to approach her gave Dakota hope that Lizzie would be able to sort through his thoughts and help him see the right path to choose.
Finally with his panic gone, he found the quietness necessary to gain control again.
Exhausted by the emotional events of the day, he fell into a deep sleep, trusting his wolf to protect him.
~/~/~/~/~
Dakota’s scent had faded, but Slate was able to find it though it was slow going; each time he lost it, he had to backtrack until he found it again.
He persisted until he found his mate, sleeping in a small mountain cave.
Not wanting to disturb him, Slate lay down near the entrance, hoping when Dakota awoke they could talk about what drove him to run away.
For now, he and his wolf were grateful their mate was safe.
Resting his head between his paws, Slate’s exhaustion finally caught up with him and he fell into a dreamless sleep.