Alexander’s POV
Meetings.
Just the thought of attending them made me nauseous. I hated them, and I hated them even more when I had them with the council.
It felt like a never-ending story, and everyone wanted a turn to talk and give their ten cents.
I sighed under my breath and pulled my body up straight. My back was hurting, my ass was numb, and my neck was cramping.
Who bought these dumb, uncomfortable chairs in the first place?
“You did,” Ghost muttered. He was just as annoyed as I was. “You changed the seating to ensure the meetings didn’t take long.”
“Well, it isn’t working, is it!? I growled.
“No!” He snapped. “It’s as if it helps to prolong the f*cking meeting!”
He was right. The council was discussing everything except the reason I was called, and my mind had wandered in all directions, not listening to a word they were saying.
I had better things to do than sit here and listen to other things. At that moment, nothing except my mate was more important.
My gaze moved to Luke’s, and he answered my silent plea.
“I know it is boring and long,” he said. “But you always excuse yourself from these meetings.”
“But we are not discussing the issue I was called for!” I hissed over the link.
“We are,” he replied, pulling his lips in a thin line. “You were so out of it that you didn’t even notice that we were discussing Michael’s case for the last half an hour.”
“Wait? What?”
I turned my attention back to the meeting, now interested in knowing what was going on.
“Why are they discussing other she-wolves?” I linked.
“We are not only doing this for Luna, but for all the other she-wolves living in this pack,” Luke linked. “Michael has been busy, and a lot of she-wolves have come forward.”
Come forward? What the hell was he doing?
My gaze snapped toward my father sitting among the Elders, his eyes widening, then his lips pulled into a thin line, and he balled his hands into fists as he listened to the evidence against Michael.
How long has this been going on, and why didn’t anyone report it sooner?
“I know,” I sighed over the link. “But can’t they get to the point and close the meeting? I need to get back to Emily.”
“All the evidence needs to be presented,” Luke replied. “And you need to decide on punishment.”
“We already know he is guilty,” I growled. “Can’t we just skip the proceedings and get to the juicy part where I ripped his head off?”
“And then?” Luke asked. “What do I put in my report? I still need to explain why we have lost one pack member-who grew up in this pack-to my Alpha’s hands.”
“Tell the truth in your report,” I said. “He threatened the Alpha’s mate and pack, Luna.”
“Alex!” Luke linked, rolling his eyes with a sigh. He only called me by my name when he got frustrated.
Luke gave me the ‘are you serious right now’ look.
“What?” I asked innocently. “This isn’t a court, and the proceedings are not between two packs killing off one another’s members. This is an internal issue, and we do not need a formal hearing. There are witnesses, and if everyone has already given their statement, I just need to read through it and make a decision.”
Luke reached down, pulled a file from his bag, and placed it on the table.
“What’s that?” I asked, noticing how thick the file was.
“The she-wolf statements,” he said, searching my gaze.
That many? What the f*ck!
“Good, now hand them to me,” I said.
Luke did as he was told, and I opened the file.
One thing about Luke was that he could organize things.
A list of she-wolf names and dates was recorded on the first page, and I started reading through the names; Emily’s name was at the bottom of the list.
I internally growled, feeling my blood boil in my veins.
“Calm down, Alpha,” Luke linked.
“It’s hard!” I snapped, taking a deep breath.
Thirty-eight she-wolves had come forward, claiming that Michael had assaulted them in some way or another. The oldest record goes back as far as his school years, when he had just turned eighteen.
“This is only our pack member.” I linked, reading through the testimonials.
Luke nodded stiffly.
“We are not sure about how many rogues he assaulted,” he linked. “But I…”
“Do you think he has an accomplice?” I asked.
Guarding the dungeon was not a one-man job and required at least two people on shift.
Luke looked at me like a deer caught in headlights. He didn’t expect that kind of question.
“By your facial expression, I can tell that you haven’t investigated that, did you?” I asked.
“No, I haven’t,” he said. “I can’t imagine that someone would join in Michael’s fantasies.”
“Well, think about it,” I linked. “If Michael had tried something with the rogues, he must have had an accomplice working with him.
How else would he be able to get away with it?”
“Sh*t!” Luke said, rubbing the back of his head. “What do we do now?”
“We kept it quiet and investigated every person who was with Michael on shift,” I linked.
“But that would take forever,” Luke muttered.
“No, it wouldn’t,” I replied. “Just compare the names with when we had the rogues locked up. It should at least narrow down the suspects.”
A smile followed on Luke’s lips.
“And that’s why you are Alpha, and I’m not,” he said, chuckling.
“Now, can we please get to the end of this bloody meeting?” I hissed. “I need to get back to my mate.”
“Mmm,” he said. “The mate who is on heat!”
My gaze snapped to Luke.
I had forgotten about that, and my gaze landed on Luke’s watch.
More than an hour had passed. F*ck!
Luke muffled a chuckle behind his fist, and I jumped to my feet.
“Alpha?” “Is there a problem?” Elder George exclaimed, shocked.
“Uhm-”
How am I supposed to inform them that their soon-to-be Luna is in heat? That is private!
“My apologies for the interruption, Elder,” Luke said, getting to his feet. “However, Alpha needs to attend to a pressing issue. Please pardon him; he will come back once everything has been resolved.”
“Very well,” Elder George said. “If everyone agrees, we can take a quick break.”
“Everyone in favor?” Luke asked, and the group all turned to me.
They all nodded at the same time, clearly observing the desperation in my eyes.
“What would I do without you?” I linked Luke, turning to leave.
“And that’s why I am your beta,” he called behind me, giving me a genuine smile. “Even if it was just to save you from awkward situations!”
Things were about to escalate, creating even more awkward and sticky situations. Will Luke be able to help me out of them?
****