Chapter 38 Caleb
CALEB
Since migrating two packs, it hasn't been easy to get everyone working together. The way Cole ruled his pack is entirely different from mine, and it shows. They might not see me as their Alpha yet, but we still need to work together to protect our land and our livelihoods.
Without trust in one another, we might as well be dead.
Today, our training session together is vital. They’re still wary of me, and that’s expected, but I’ve shown them nothing but respect.
But some days, it feels like I’m talking to a brick wall.
Their loyalty still lies with Cole.
I stand back and observe the training session, allowing Cole’s original pack members to take the lead to give them the ability to showcase their skills.
It’s not until Carson approaches my side that I know something is wrong.
“What?”
Carson stands tall. “Your father. He’s on his way over.”
I grumble something under my breath. The peace was fun while it lasted—but it was short-lived.
My eyes land on Micah, who has been leading this session. “I’ve got duties that I need to see to,” I state. “You’re in charge.”
Micah’s gaze flicks between mine. “In charge?”
“Yes. Keep me updated when the session is over.”
When we turn to leave and head towards my office to prepare myself for the storm that is most likely coming, Felix is right there behind us.
“Where has he been in the last week?” Felix asks Carson and Aimee.
Carson clears his throat. “Mostly in the North. We believe he’s been looking at derelict buildings and scoping out the weakest packs. We already know he’s been tormenting one for definite. It’s probably a matter of time before it’s more.”
“We’ve been collating a plan,” Felix says as he steps towards my desk. “It’s not foolproof yet, but if we get him in a good position, then I think we’ll have him.”
I stare down at the notes scribbled onto a notebook as Felix talks me through it. He’s right, it’s not foolproof; it’s almost idiotic, but when it comes to my father, there are no shortcuts. It’s an impossible plan, but do we have any other choice?
“We did this while you’ve been galivanting off at the district town when you’re needed here,” Felix murmurs as he pins me with a stare.
I dismiss his words without replying. I don’t have time for this.
Carson’s shoulders tense. “Guards say he’s here.”
I close my eyes in defeat and watch as they all exit my office swiftly. It doesn’t take long for my father to appear in the doorway, his beard long and tangled, his shoulders rolled back, and his eyes as lifeless as ever.
“Caleb,” he rasps.
“Father. To what do I owe this pleasure?”
He flashes me a crooked smile, and I get an eyeful of his discoloured teeth. “I can’t come and see my only son with the life and world I gave him?”
My nostrils flare because I never asked for this.
When Kyle passed away, my father lost a piece of himself—then proceeded to try and make me into a clone of my brother. Kyle wanted to impress our father, but I wanted to stay as far away from him as possible.
I didn’t have a choice but to do what he asked. It was either listen to everything he said or be killed along with my closest friends. Fear is his greatest tool in manipulation.
“I have an important mission,” he says as he starts to walk around my office, the heels of his boots clicking against the floor. “And you’re going to join me.”
My arms fold over my chest as I stare at him. “Can’t.” I shrug.
“What did you say to me?”
“I can’t abandon my pack when I’ve just got here,” I state simply. “How will I earn their trust then?”
He rolls his eyes as if I’m being dramatic. “You don’t need them to trust you; you need to be stricter with them. Nothing wrong with throwing them in the dungeon to show them who’s boss. That’ll stop them from acting out.”
My eye twitches at his words. “That’s not how it works here.”
“Because you’re weak,” he seethes through his teeth. “Because you have all the authority and power right in front of you, and you refuse to take it.”
“I’d rather earn authority and power in an authentic way.”
My father stares right through my soul, and I don’t dare look away. “I thought you’d finally seen the other side, Caleb,” he grunts. “Yet, you keep disappointing me.”
“I might be your blood, but that doesn’t mean I have to be like you. You can rule how you want. I’ll rule how I see fit.”
He takes two steps towards me and pushes me back into the wall, but I don’t let him intimidate me. I shove back until my blood hums and his jaw clicks.
“Watch your tone with me,” he growls. “I gave you everything.”
“I didn’t ask for it.”
Ryker’s face twitches. “Have any women fallen pregnant yet?”
“No.”
“What the hell are you even doing here, Caleb?”
“Working on my pack,” I state. “Like an Alpha should be.”
Hey, are you there?
Evan’s voice floats through my head, and I try not to let the panic rise in my expression. Not when my father is standing this close to me.
Caleb?
Fuck.
I can’t talk right now.
My father’s eyes narrow, and I freeze.
Okay. I’m sorry.
The sadness that flows into my body feels like agony, but my father’s powers are unpredictable, and if he wanted to dig through my head to find why I’m distracted, he could, and if I have to push Evan away, I will.
I’ll never forget the time I was thirteen and became friends with a local boy from the town. He didn’t judge me because of my father and treated me like I was normal, but when I was meant to be out running errands, Ryker caught me with him.
The screams that fell from his mouth as Ryker broke both of his arms haunt me to this day. He told me I couldn’t have any distractions or friendships that would make me soft. Ever since then, I was terrified to even talk to another person, fearful that he’d hurt them to punish me.
“You are so ungrateful,” he snarls.
“All I want is to live my life as an Alpha,” I murmur. “Your brutality will be short-lived.”
He releases a low, sharp laugh. “Short-lived? It’s what will have me ruling this country one day. And when you bring in an heir, it’ll be our world. Once you see what you could have, I know you’ll come crawling to me, begging me for forgiveness for all these wasted years.”
My blood boils at his words.
“You will join me on a mission soon,” he says before taking a step back. “And I don’t care how I get you there. You’ll come to your senses, sooner or later.”
I grit my teeth together as a chill runs down my spine.
“I’ll be back, Caleb.” He straightens out his jacket. “And next time, I’m not going to be so polite about it.”
Then he’s gone. I slump against the wall as the weight of our conversation starts to drown me. He hates me. He always has. So why doesn’t he kill me? Because he wants a pure bloodline of evil, and yet I’m far from that.
Soon, Carson and Felix filter into my office. “What the fuck just happened?” Felix demands.
I shake my head. “He’s not going to give up until I’m on his side. All of this is persuasion, and when it comes to it, he’ll force me if he has to.”
“Which is why we need to implement this plan,” Carson says as he pokes his finger on the closed notebook on my desk. “Before things escalate.”
Felix nods in agreement. “We need to sit down right now and go through every single possibility.”
“Yeah,” I rasp.
My thoughts drift to Evan and the sadness in his voice.
Hey. Are you okay?
My mindlink goes unanswered, which tells me he might be asleep. I sigh and scrub a hand over my jaw.
“We need no distractions,” Felix says as he rests his hands on my desk. “And we need to get the pack on board.”
I nod. “I’m not letting him destroy what we’ve spent years building.”
Even if it fucking kills me.
After sitting together for three hours to go through possible attack plans, my brain is practically fried. When everyone heads off to bed for the night, I head over to Jaxon’s pack house with a spell intact.
It doesn’t take me long to crawl up to Evan’s window, and as I poke my head inside, I find him sleeping in his bed, sheets pulled up to his chin.
I exhale a breath of relief when I realise that he’s safe and unharmed. I’ve been kicking myself ever since I shut him out, but if my father got hold of who I was mindlinking, it would have been game over.
My eyes study Evan’s peaceful slumber as his chest rises and falls. I smile and resist the urge to stroke back his curls and wake him up.
Instead, I crawl onto the bed silently and curl up in front of him. His lashes are sprawled out, and his lips are parted.
“I’m sorry for ignoring you,” I whisper.
Evan remains asleep as I scoot closer, enjoying his scent as it becomes embedded in my bloodstream.