Chapter 22
Zoey
Monte wasn’t himself.
I knew it while still in wolf form but was hoping he would perk up once we shifted back into our skin. But he remained distant, sad, maybe even a little regretful.
We stayed in our fur for another two days before the doctor cleared us to shift and we were ushered straight to Dean Shannahan’s office minutes later.
“It’s going to be okay. You didn’t do anything wrong,” were the first words out of my mouth.
“I could get expelled from the ARC for this,” he reminded me.
“I know. And if that happens then we’ll deal with it. You were just trying to rescue me, nothing more. This wasn’t your fault.”
If I could have gotten the upper hand and killed that guy myself, I would have. I was proud of how Monte had protected me. It made me feel safe knowing he would always have my back no matter the circumstance.
“Zoey, I could be excommunicated from my Pack. This is really serious.”
“I know. But that’s worst-case scenario. I don’t think it will come to that. But if it does, how do you feel about Montana?”
“Your Alpha isn’t likely to take in an excommunicated wolf, Zoey.”
I grinned. “Sure he will. He loves me. He’ll do anything I ask. I’m his favorite cousin.”
“The Alpha is your cousin?”
I nodded. “Yeah.”
We were waiting outside Dean Shannahan’s office. Monte’s Alpha had been called in as well. They were going to be questioning us individually and then together. And they were going to make a decision on our future.
Technically it was on Monte’s future here at the ARC, and possibly regarding his Pack status, but after going through this with him, I knew my heart was long gone. I was his even if he hadn’t marked me yet. Whatever they did to him, they did to me too.
I should have been more terrified about this. We were one semester away from graduating, and they were talking about kicking us out. Most couples would be worried about their future, but I knew we would be okay. My income was more than enough to support both of us.
And the fears I’d had before the attack were long gone.
I understood clearly why Monte had gone after the kid on the quad.
It had terrified me to see him like that, but that guy had broken a boundary that should never be crossed.
I saw it all quite differently in hindsight after what had just happened and vowed to put up tougher barriers between me and the public, even if it was just a bunch of mostly innocent students here.
You just never know when one of them will cross that line.
I shuddered and Monte wrapped his arm around me.
“It’s all going to be okay,” he tried to reassure me, even though I knew he was really trying to hold onto that reminder for himself.
“I know. No matter what they decide today, we are going to be just fine.”
“We?”
I smiled at him and nodded. “We.”
He leaned down and kissed me. Any remaining concerns vanished in that moment.
“I’m sorry I screwed up.”
“You did not screw up anything. Do you hear me? And when you go in there, you remember that you were not in the wrong. They attacked me and as my mate you had every right to protect me. Don’t forget that.”
“And on the quad?”
“That was different, but you didn’t hurt anyone. And that guy was no better than the other two.”
As if I’d somehow manifested them, the door to the Dean’s office opened and two of the three boys from the quad incident walked out.
They didn’t even look my way, just hurried past us when they saw my mate.
“Guess they learned a lesson about inappropriate behavior towards females,” I said.
Monte snorted.
“We’re going to talk about that more later. There are things you need to know about me. Some of it may come up today.”
“Give me the abbreviated version quickly.”
“Short story is that my father has a terrible temper and it’s been problematic in the Pack.
Josh would have probably exiled him if it weren’t for me and my mom.
They could say I showed signs of being just like him.
” He shook his head and turned a faint shade of green.
“I don’t ever want to be like him, Zoey.
But I will protect you at all costs, no matter what. ”
I nodded. It was a reminder that we didn’t know that much about each other yet. But I knew everything I needed to know.
“You are not your father.”
“Thanks. I needed to hear that.”
“Monte,” Dean Shannahan called.
He took a deep breath and let it out.
“Guess I’m up next.”
“Remember, you did nothing wrong.”
He nodded, gave me a quick kiss, and then disappeared into the office as the door closed behind him.
I sat there anxiously waiting, wishing they didn’t have a dampener in the office so I could listen in to what was being said.
My leg bounced up and down until I couldn’t take it any longer and began to pace the small room that felt like it was closing in on me with each passing minute.
It felt like an eternity before the door finally opened and Monte walked out. He looked tired and his face gave no true clues as to how things went.
I ran to him and hugged him. He kissed the top of my head.
Dean Shannahan stood in the doorway clearing his throat. “Ms. Rey, it’s your turn.”
I looked up into Monte’s eyes. He managed a small smile of encouragement, but I had a bad feeling that things weren’t going in our favor.
Nervously, I forced my legs to move as I left him standing there to face the Dean. And as he closed the door behind me, shutting Monte out, my wolf perked up on full alert.
I had no idea that being locked up in a room with two males would trigger me so much.
The hair on my arms stood up and I crossed my arms and rolled into myself. It wasn’t like me. It didn’t feel comfortable, but it did feel necessary. My wolf’s agitation was not helping.
“Hi. I’m Josh Maxwell, Monte’s Alpha from Maxwell Pack.”
“Hi,” I managed, but that was it. I hadn’t even considered giving him my allegiance or showing any signs of respect. I was just trying not to freak out by the circumstances.
“It’s okay. You can relax. We’re just going to talk,” he said in a soothing voice.
“Easier said than done,” I muttered.
“You’re perfectly safe here, Ms. Rey,” Dean Shannahan said.
“Forgive me if it doesn’t feel that way.”
He all but dismissed my concerns with his response. “Don’t be so dramatic. Nothing will happen to you. This is regarding Monte’s place here at the ARC, not yours.”
I glared at him. “You’re aware he is my one true mate.”
“I am.”
“Then you should know that whatever happens to him, affects me too.”
“You can relax. You will not be kicked out of here for what happened.”
“And neither should Monte,” I blurted out.
“That remains to be seen.”
Josh Maxwell interceded more kindly. “We just have a few questions to help us understand what happened. We’ve heard Monte’s account of what happened and we’d just like to hear yours too.”
I nodded and started from the quad before telling them how I felt and admitted I had never seen Monte like that. I explained that it had upset me and I was still processing it when I decided to go for a run to clear my head.
“I was kind of lost in thought, so I really don’t know how long they were following me.
And by the time I realized he was there, I was by the lake.
His friend showed himself as they cornered me.
I let out a cry for help. Fortunately, that call was answered.
I don’t even know who they were. I’ve never seen those wolves before. ”
“Really?” Dean Shannahan asked, sounding surprised.
“Yeah. Why?”
“Because I find that interesting given they were the friends of the young man your mate attacked on the quad earlier that same day.”
“What? Are you serious?”
“I am.”
“So they were what? Just out for revenge on his behalf or something?”
“According to them, they were just out for a run when your mate attacked them.”
“That’s bullshit! Monte wasn’t even there until after I howled for help. And his brothers from Delta Omega Gamma were there as well as a few of my sisters. They all got there shortly after Monte.”
“Convenient, isn’t it? That no one was there to validate that.”
“I was there,” I reminded him. I thought hard through the events and anything that could help his case. “Remy! Remy was there too. He was right behind Monte. He had to have seen everything.”
“What do you think provoked Monte to attack these boys?” he asked.
“They were trying to rape me in my wolf form,” I told him.
“Why didn’t you just shift back to your skin? Perhaps this all could have been avoided,” Dean Shannahan said.
Bile rose in my mouth and I thought I was going to puke.
“Did you really just say that to me? I had two male wolves trying to attack me and force themselves on me and you think I should have shifted in the hopes they would actually abide by the laws of the Grand Council and not attack me in my skin? Is that honestly what you’re telling me right now?”
I was furious.
He blanched as the reality of the situation sank in.
Monte burst through the door.
“Leave her alone. She was the victim here, not the problem. If you need to blame someone, then blame me. I’m the one that killed that bastard and given the events, I’d do it again every damn time.”
“Settle down, Monte,” his Alpha told him, and I could feel the warmth of Alpha power filling the room.
“With all due respect sir, I think your line of questioning is in very poor taste. By all accounts we have a pretty good picture of what happened out there. And by his own account, we know those boys followed her out there with the intent to teach her a lesson. If they tried to rape her and Monte walked in on it after hearing her distressed howl, then he had every right to protect his mate.”
“We agreed we weren’t going to discuss this in front of the kids,” Shannahan said.
“Well, I’ve heard enough and I’m tired of these games.
If you decide to kick him out of Archibald Reynolds over this, I will be taking it up with the Grand Council.
And if you insinuate one more time that Zoey had any blame in what happened and was anything but the victim in this, I will be coming for your job. Am I clear?”
“Crystal,” Shannahan said with gritted teeth. “My apologies, Ms. Rey. I was simply testing all theories. I did not mean to be so insensitive.”
“Better,” Josh Maxwell said.
“Does this mean you aren’t going to kick Monte out of the Pack?” I blurted out.
“Hell, no. I’m proud of you, Monte. Anyone willing to stand up and fight for his mate like that is okay in my book.
That was never a question. I came to hear the evidence for myself and to be an advocate for you.
I can’t control what the board decides about your fate here, but if it goes negatively and you want to challenge it, I will be right here fighting by your side. ”
I was pretty sure I heard the Dean groan in frustration. But Monte embraced his Alpha and thanked him.
I hadn’t realized just how much the idea of being kicked out of his Pack was bothering him. It gave me relief knowing it wouldn’t come to that, and the fact that his Alpha had stood up for me, too, made me like him immensely.
He quietly escorted the both of us out of the office.
None of us spoke until we were outside.
“Thank you,” I finally told him.
“Josh, this is Zoey, my mate.”
“It’s really nice to meet you, Zoey. But you,” he said to Monte, “why am I just hearing about this now? You should have called me the second it happened.”
“It’s been a crazy week. I was getting around to it.”
“A week? That’s it?”
“A little over, like ten or so days now,” I said.
“Damn. Your bond is very strong for being so new.”
“You can tell that?” I asked.
He nodded. “I would have guessed you’d been together weeks, if not months.”
I liked knowing the bond was healthy and strong despite everything we’d been through. It made me feel like we were going to be okay despite everything.