Marked by the Alphas

Chapter 25: Chapter 25

Kane POV

“The fuck I am,” Elara glares at the High Elder, her thoughts exposed to us.

“Good day, sir,” she smiles stiffly before turning around and storming off.

“We expect results,” the High Elder says. “Don’t disappoint us.”

“If shit was bad before, it just got a whole lot worse,” Axel sighs as we watch the elders leave.

“What the fuck was that with Elara?” I hiss as we walk to our office.

“I could hear her so clearly,” Axel replies, dumbstruck. “It was like we claimed her. Like we had a mate bond with her instead ... you know.”

“This is bad,” I sigh, frustrated. Alice would be even more pissed off if she knew.But Alice aside, the whole mate-link thing with Elara isn’t as unacceptable as I thought it would be.

My mind is racing with thoughts of Elara beneath me, inhaling her deep, heady scent. Her red, wet mouth and perfect breasts. The way her eyes cloud with desire and how her skin feels under my touch. Instantly, I am dizzy with need for her and know I must have her again.

“We are so screwed,” I turn to Axel, offering him a whiskey, and his eyes distant and glazed, too.

“How the fuck are we going to sleep with Elara again without Alice finding out?” Axel groans painfully, accepting the drink.

A familiar smell fills the room, and I quickly turn around ... Alice.

“I’m sorry...what?” She gasps, her eyes wide and glassy.

“Alice, it’s not ...”

“I don’t want to hear it, Kane!” She cuts off my explanation, her pale face turning redder by the second.

Fuck. Why did she have to come in right now?

It is not like we can keep the news a secret, but this is the worst possible way for her to find out. Now it is going to look like we have been keeping secrets, and nothing we say or do will convince her otherwise.

“It’s bad enough you already slept with that bitch once,” she shrieks, her eyes flashing and her fists clenched by her sides. “Now I must share you all the time, and ...”

“Alice, love, please listen,” Axel says calmly.

“No,” she shakes her head feverishly. “I won’t have it. I’m the Luna, and I refuse to share.”

“You don’t have a say.” I lose my temper. It is bad enough to deal with the High Council; I am in no mood to deal with her hysterics. “And neither do we.”

“Fine,” she huffs, flipping her blond hair over her shoulder. “Then I’ll ... I’ll go back to Gregory and Lucas.”

“Yeah, right,” I scoff, finishing my drink. No way in hell was she doing that.

“Alice, we can explain,” Axel intervenes, throwing me a warning look as he drapes his arm around her shoulders. “This isn’t a choice for any of us. The High Elder commanded us to impregnate Elara, too.”

“So?” Alice steps out of Axel’s embrace, throwing her hands in the air. “You’re the Alphas. Don’t listen to him!”

“Sure,” I chuckle humourlessly, and she steps closer to me, her eyes wide and murderous. She must think I am making fun of her, and maybe I am, because she is being ridiculous. fɾeeweɓnѳveɭ.com

“Are you out of your mind, Alice?” I snap, now properly irritated with her. “If we defy the command of an Elder, we will be put to trial in front of the Council. Do you know what they could do?”

Alice stares at me blankly, not saying a word.

“They can take this whole fucking pack away from us.” I lean closer, my voice a chilling whisper in her ear. “And then you’ll have no choice but to mate with Gregory and Lucas.”

“I ... I don’t care,” she says with a quivering bottom lip, but she does not back down. “I should be the most important thing to you both.”

“Alice, you are,” Axel holds out his hands. “Don’t be like this ...”

A full-on roar rips from my chest, and Alice stumbles backwards. I had had enough of this. I know she can be sensitive sometimes, and for good reasons, but I never thought of her as selfish. And I do not like this side of her at all.

“You’re a Luna now, Alice, and you need to behave like one.” The deep rasp of my voice cuts through her like a silver blade. “Rule number one: Pack before self ... and you should know that Luna means responsibility.”

She stammers backwards, her blue eyes glassy with tears.

“She gets it, Kane,” Axel hisses, but I am not done.

The mate thing was a mess, first the Elder Anton and then The High Elder came after us. My nerves are crumbling here at Alice.

“Lunas won’t put their entire pack at risk, I continue furiously. “Lunas don’t cry when they don’t get their way. Lunas support their Alphas. They do their duties, and they don’t just cry to Alpha. Do you understand?”

Alice’s lip trembles as she gazes up at me.

Without warning, a wave of fury sweeps over me, and Hunter springs to the surface, my claws shooting forth, my canines flashing pointy and white while Alice shakes beneath me.

Axel POV

“Holy shit! Kane! Stop!” I yell, forcing myself between him and Alice.

Kane had never threatened Alice with his wolf before, and I never thought he would.

“Calm down before the whole pack knows there’s trouble in paradise,” I hiss, pressing a hand on his chest.

“Fuck, I’m sorry,” he mumbles, pressing his palms to his eyes. His breathing slowly steadies, and he retracts his claws and canines.

“Alice,” I reach out to her, but she flinches, and my heart drops to my stomach. Even though I wholeheartedly agree with Kane, his outburst caused us to lose her trust.

“Love, please,” I smile tenderly, my voice smooth and comforting. “You know it’s our job to keep everyone in this pack safe, including you. We only want what’s best ...”

“Don’t talk to me,” she cuts me off. “And don’t touch me, you ... you assholes! I’m your mate, and you’ve been treating me like shit since you marked me. You don’t want to go out, you expect me to do stuff, and now you expect me to be okay with the fact that you’re going to sleep with Elara. What about me and my feelings?”

Suddenly, Blade is pawing at my insides. I knew my wolf was almost lose it, and I was barely holding it together. Alice was right, but damn, there’s no fixing this. We seemed fine every step of the way, but how the hell did it all go so wrong?

I signed,“Take this as the Alpha’s order. No more arguing.”

Alice takes a deep breath and stands tall, her back still against the wall.

“I’m not listening to you,” she says defiantly. “And I’m not your Luna, either. I know the mate bond didn’t work.”