Scum (Book 2)

105. Hearings

Chey's POV

It took a lot of convincing, a lot of meals, and a lot of sleepless nights, but I now have thirty-seven new pack members, which includes twelve children.

There were fifty-six of us, but I said it before and never had to repeat the fact that I would not be playing savior to everyone.

The man who beat his mate was among the first to be cast out, and shockingly, his mate didn't want to follow him.

I was always taught that the bond was greater than life for werewolves, but clearly it's not because she took my offer without hesitation.

Currently, I’m attending my first council hearing, where three women and one man from my pack are having their cases heard.

Sadly, I was told that at least two of the women have a bigger burden of proof to meet, so I'm not really sure what will happen to them.

That kind of worries me because among them is the woman whose mate had a child before he met her, and when I confronted her about the emotions I accidentally tapped into, she broke down and confessed to being so miserable that she wanted to kill everyone.

Her mate was oblivious though, believing only that she was stressed about living under Cornell, the man who terrorized her with constant mind-linked threats that I can't even repeat without getting angry because it’s that disgusting.

"Why is it taking so long?" I ask aloud, grateful that Noah is with me because it's helped stop others from talking to me.

I won't say that I'm not friendly anymore, because I love meeting new people, but I don't know who’s who, so I'd rather keep to myself until the council decides to leave me alone.

“Let’s take it as a good sign. At least you know she’s being listened to.” Hearings like this are done in a one-on-one setting, so there’s no one in the room except the people involved and the council mediator.

I thought I’d be able to go inside as their alpha, but I was told that my presence would be ‘problematic,’ with which I can’t disagree.

Jett’s alpha was, for whatever reason, allowed to speak at his rejection hearing, and with the man being more influential, and better educated, the tables turned quickly.

Marissa claims that he was able to make it seem like there was no feasible way to go back on a promise, despite the fact that Jett hadn't even held his position for two months, and the person he usurped was willing to take over.

“I’m getting-” Just as I started to feel too anxious to stay seated, one of the doors opened, and Liza, the first to have her rejection heard, stepped out of the hearing room. "How did it go?"

"They denied my request," she says, opening her arms to hug me, which is weird because we hardly know one another. “They said that I knew what I was getting into when I allowed him to mark me.”

“And that’s it? They offered you no solution?” Technically, Jerome, the woman’s mate, is also my pack member, so I’m not out for blood, just peace.

I know that he doesn’t want to reject his mate, but he also loves his son, so he’s in a tough spot, especially since the child's existence isn’t the problem, it’s his biological mother.

“They advised us to use the human court system to have the support payments lowered.” I don’t know anything about that, so I won’t pretend by offering advice.

In the meantime, I’ll arrange for the woman to stay with Dyson and Miguel, who have an extra room to accommodate guests.

“Okay. I’m here for you if you need me.” The woman nods then finds a place to sit because she and I drove together.

It takes only five additional minutes for Taniya, the abuse victim, to come out of her hearing room with tears of relief pouring from her eyes. I don’t know what she feels, but I remember counting the days to eighteen, desperately needing to get away from Porsha and Liam, no matter the consequences, so I can somewhat relate.

“I’m so scared,” she admits, shaking, because at thirty-one with three kids, it’s going to be hard for her to start over, but I know that her fear is mostly based on insecurity.

She met her mate in high school, so she’s lived with his torment for years, and simply put, she’s used to it.

What she really fears is that she won’t be able to make it without him, because while she worked, he was the one who stayed with the kids, not that the situation was ideal, but he only started to turn his fists on the children recently, so she wasn’t worried about that.

“Didn’t I tell you that I wouldn’t allow any of your children to suffer?” Even if it means putting my plans to kill Liam on hold, I have no intention of leaving the people I chose as my own behind; they just need to trust me. “When does it officially end?” I ask, wanting to know where the woman’s head is because she looks pale.

“At four,” she whispers, likely having second thoughts.

That’s less than ten minutes from now, and while I’m still trying to get details, a woman wearing scrubs approaches and asks Taniya to follow her.

Rejections don’t kill, but they can cause adverse side effects, such as dizziness, weakness, and even fainting.

In more extreme cases, it can cause a reaction that mimics a heart attack, so a medical professional is always a good addition.

I’ve never seen someone immediately after being rejected, but I’ve met people who’ve gone through the process, and they were healthy.

In fact, one of the top fighters of Alpine rejected his fated mate, and it in no way affected his life afterward.

I remember thinking that he would come back looking sick or weak, but he was back to his normal self just days after returning, and he held his position for years before Dallas knocked him down a few pegs.

Now, there are only two members I’m waiting for, and just as quickly as Taniya, they come out of their hearing areas, but I’m shocked by what they report.

Abigail, mother of five, won her case, and she will get to keep children that don’t belong to her biologically, but Danny won’t get the rejection he wanted.

His mate is literally married, and she marked him without telling him that she was already in a committed relationship with a human.

“Why though? What did they say?” I’m so confused that I’m angry, but once the man tells me that his mate is carrying, I understand.

Pregnancy and rejections don’t go well, so he’ll probably have to wait until after she gives birth to petition the council again, but they could have at least given him a date, making me feel like the woman Danny tried to reject had connections that she was able to exploit.

When my group is officially done, I'm presented with paperwork to sign and I pay the fees, which were much higher than I anticipated.

Those who've successfully rejected their mates are so quiet it's scary, but it’s because they've been given sedatives that should wear off in a few hours.

I'm a registered nurse by human standards, so I can handle the aftercare, but it reminds me that I need to get back into the were-nursing program.

I want to get it done before I meet my mate. That way, if necessary, he and I can join another pack that's willing to pay me well.

I don't want to struggle in life ever again, but as it is, I'm basically surviving on the luck of my genetics.

Since my car only seats four adults, Noah helped by driving his own vehicle, and because he's a more aggressive driver than I am, he was back before me.

He hasn’t asked anyone any questions, and I like that he respects my members' privacy, but it sometimes scares me that he's not at least a little curious about their situations.

I know that I would be asking all kinds of questions if I were him, but he doesn't seem to have that kind of mindset.

"You drive too fast," I say to the man, meeting him in front of my building where he decided to sit and wait for me.

"Well, I know the area, but don’t worry, I like the way you drive. It feels safe." Marissa has said the same thing, but Jett has another word for safe, and that's slow.

"Want to stay for dinner?" I didn't have plans to cook, but I owe the man for keeping me company, so I might as well.

"So, I’ll finally get to see the inside of your place?"

"It's not the best," I admit, not wanting Noah to think he's missing out on something he isn't.

"Come on Chey, surely you know that I don't care." I do know that; I just wanted to avoid having my feelings hurt if he says something rude.

After entering my apartment, Marissa was the first to greet me, but she paused in her speech because, somewhere in between ‘I'll be supportive’ and recently, she no longer likes Noah.

She says that he’s too full of himself, but I’m also quite pleased with myself, so I don’t see anything wrong with being confident.

However, according to Marissa, it’s different because I’m not trying to impress anyone, whereas Noah is always trying to seek attention.

I don’t like that quality either, but he literally gets paid to look his best at all times, so I can’t blame him.

“You brought him home?” The woman mind-links.

Her tone is so deadpan over the link that I can physically feel her irritation.

“He’s helped us a lot, so please be nice; he’s only here to eat.”

“Actual food or yo-”

“Marissa!” I didn’t mean to shout over the link, but I was not expecting her to ask me that. “You know I’m not ready for that kind of relationship again. He’s really just here for dinner.”

“Everything okay?” Noah questions, probably sensing the tension. “I can leave if-”

“No need,” Marissa practically forces herself to say. “You’re my alpha’s FRIEND.” The way the woman put so much emphasis on the word friend almost made me laugh, but I was able to fight it back because Noah picked up on it too.

“I get the sense you don’t like me.”

“Really?” Marissa asks, not even refuting the statement.

I feel bad for Noah, and for no other reason than that, I change the subject.

“So, what am I cooking?”