Luna's Rejected Vengeful Mate

Chapter 4 - Decisions

Moon Howlers pack, California

Blake

The doctor arrived, followed by Lucas and James, Alpha Ray's brother and Beta.

"What the he.ll did you do to him?" James ran to his brother and growled at me-I roared back, making him lower his head in submission.

"I didn't do anything. I guess your brother got overexcited listening to my conversation with Natalia."

"You talked with my niece? What did you say to her that made my brother faint?" James whispered in despair as he watched the doctor check his brother's vitals.

"That's not the point. Our previous conversation probably overwhelmed Alpha White and talking to Natalia worsened things. Now shut the fu.ck up and leave the doctor to do his job, James," I snapped at him, and he kept quiet, throwing disgusted glances at me from time to time, but I ignored him.

"Lucas, go back to the conference room and inform the Alphas that the meeting is over. I will inform everyone about Alpha White's decision and whether this alliance will occur later."

Lucas left the room, and I turned my full attention to the doctor, ignoring Beta James's disapproving look.

"His blood pressure rose; he will soon regain consciousness," the doctor looked at me and continued. "Our Alpha has been unwell the last couple of weeks; his heart condition needs medical attention, but he is too stubborn to accept any advice and rest. With all due respect, Alpha Hunter, please don't put too much pressure on him unless you want to have his sudden death on your conscience."

My eyes turned red with fury, and the doctor trembled in fear, bowed his head, and kept quiet.

"Why am I feeling guilty about the old man's condition? I am not the one to blame for his problems."

"Are you sure about that? You are not to blame for everything that happens to him, but you are pushing him to the edge, Blake. Stop being a pri.ck, because soon you will feel sorry, and it might be too late to do something about it," Aries warned me, infuriated.

"Whose side are you on, Wolf? Have you forgotten what they did to us? For crying out loud, where is your ego?"

"You stubborn as.s! He is not to blame; why don't you get it through your thick skull and move on with your life? Do you understand I want pups and a mate like every other wolf? Not a fake Luna, like you decided, you i***t!"

"ARIES!"

"BLAKE! Your pack members will want to see you put your mark on Natalia-you will have to do it. As the Dark Moon Stone's Alpha, you must satisfy your pack's wishes and give them what they have needed for so many years; a Luna and an heir to your throne! Have you ever thought about that before making this move on Ray's daughter? Have you considered my feelings? Who even told you I wanted a chosen Luna? Why don't you try and find our second-chance mate and make me happy for once?"

"Aries, this is really not the time for this." Irritated, I blocked my wolf; I would deal with him later.

Alpha White opened his eyes, and the doctor helped him sit on the sofa, giving him something to drink. He slowly regained his colour and looked at me with misty eyes.

"Blake, what did Natalia tell you? Is my daughter all right? Has she accepted your condition?" All the questions came at once, and he was soon out of breath again.

"My Alpha, please calm down. Your heartbeat is still unstable," the doctor put his stethoscope on Alpha Ray's chest, worried.

"Why are you doing this? How can I sacrifice Natalia's happiness? She is the most innocent of all, and you know it," he whispered, holding his chest, and a cold chill ran down my spine.

I soon regained my composure, and not replying to his question, I turned towards James and the doctor and spoke to them.

"Move him to your pack's hospital and do the necessary check-ups. Let me know if his condition changes." With that, I left the room and the Moon Howlers packhouse.

Lucas was waiting for me outside, and we got in my car and left the territory. We drove in silence, Lucas glaring at me from time to time, and I could tell he wanted to tell me something, but he hesitated.

"What, Lucas? WHAT?"

"Easy, man. What got you so riled up, huh? Did you get upset when Alpha Ray fainted? Or did Natalia say something to put you in that mood?" Lucas replied, not paying any attention to the tone of my voice.

"She called me a lunatic, Lucas! She called me a fuc.king lunatic! That is how she addressed me while talking to her father. Can you believe that?"

"I sure can, Blake."

The shrill sound of my car's brakes and the sudden halt on the side of the road made Lucas swear at me, gaining a loud growl from Aries in return. No matter what, my wolf never accepted disrespect from his subordinates.

"Hey, man, relax! I am just stating the facts here. Natalia's last memory of you is tearing her whole house apart and attacking her people and her father. How did you want her to describe you, Blake?"

"She'd better accept the lunatic's condition then, Lucas, or else her daddy and his pack will vanish from this place," I gritted through my teeth and got back onto the road.

None of us said anything more until we reached our territory. I left the car and gave orders regarding warrior training to Jacob, who was waiting for me at the packhouse entrance.

"I need time alone and a good run to clear my thoughts," I told Lucas, and headed to the woods.

I shifted to Aries, an enormous wolf with thick dark ebony fur, and landed on four paws. His muscular body moved at full speed, feeling the wind in his skin, calming down the rage I, his human, felt.

I was thankful to the Moon Goddess for granting me my wolf, Aries. Besides being a strong and fearless warrior, he was just and fair and always the one who kept me from making bad decisions whenever I was angry and didn't have a clear judgment. There were times, though, that he turned into a stubborn ass.hole and provoked his opponents with rude and sassy behaviour, which only made people avoid him.

"Blake, I feel your rage has nothing to do with the past. It is related to Natalia's perception of who you are, right? Why does it bother you that much? She means nothing to you, to us. She never did, and she never will. She was just a friend, a good friend to you. Nothing more. And she will continue to be nothing to us. I will not allow you to mark that female as our Luna and make the rest of our lives miserable."

Aries lay his body by the lake shore, lazily licking his paws as if his denial of my plans to marry Natalia and make her my Luna was a natural. My wolf's statement startled me, and I kept quiet in the back of his mind, pondering what he had said. Why was I so bothered by my wolf's words, though? And why did the memory of Natalia's voice arguing with me upset me more than I expected?

Milan, Italy

Natalia

I looked at the mug in my hand-it was my fourth coffee since I'd left my room. There was no way I would go back to sleep after my dispute with Blake. What an arrogant, evil as.s he was to blackmail my father and me with our pack's lives, forcing me to go back to California and marry him.!

"Like he.ll I will! There must be another way to fight the rogues than to marry that pathetic excuse of a male."

"Is that why I felt your heartbeat accelerating at the realisation that Blake was on the phone talking to you? Come on, Natalia, you can pretend as much as you want that you don't care, but you know the truth well. You had a crush on him when you were younger, don't you remember?" Leia's teasing voice interrupted my thoughts and confused me.

"Come on, Leia, stop teasing me, please. The man is serious. How can I marry someone who hates my family and me? He even told me he would never consider me as his mate or Luna on the phone this morning. He will make my life a living he.ll, Leia, and that means that his wolf will make your life difficult as well."

"He can try, honey. We will see who will make things difficult for the other," my wolf sneered, and that was when my phone rang, interrupting our conversation. "Finally," I thought and answered.

"Hello, Dad?"

"Nat, this is Uncle James, sweetie."

"Uncle?

Suddenly, it felt stuffy in the room, and I opened the balcony door and stepped out of the kitchen. The morning air was cold and made me feel better.

"Yes, dear, it's me."

"Where is my father? I've been waiting for him to call me and tell me what happened after Blake hung up on me."

"Natalia, your father forbade me from calling you, but I thought you should know, sweetie. Ray hasn't been feeling well the last couple of weeks, and the doctor says he has some heart issues. And today, after listening to you and Blake, he collapsed."

My legs went numb, cold sweat ran down my spine, and my free hand clamped onto the balcony railing to avoid falling.

"What?" I could barely hear my voice- it felt like it was coming from a pit far away from me.

"Hey, Nat, take it easy, sweetie. We transferred him to the pack clinic, and the doctor is running some tests on him as we speak. I will personally transfer him to the hospital if needed for further investigation. Don't worry."

"Uncle, please don't let anything happen to my Dad. He is the only family I have. You know he's been both father and mother to me," Ι told him between sobs, moving my body back and forth, trying to control my sudden urge to scream. He'd spent my entire life making up for my mother's absence. Not that he could have helped it, she'd died giving birth to me.

"Natalia, please forgive me, sweetie. I know this might sound selfish, but I think it's time for you to come back and take care of your father and our pack's needs as the Alpha's daughter. Don't leave your father alone now that he needs you more than ever, my child."

"Uncle, are you implying that I should…?"

"Yes, Nat, you should accept the conditions of that damn contract and marry Blake Hunter as soon as possible, despite your father's disagreement. Your father will have only one thing to worry about then, you. But you are a strong woman, Nat, and I believe in you; I always believed in you, even when I let you board a plane to a foreign country alone ten years ago. I know you will tame that brutal young man sooner or later."

There was pride in my Uncle's voice, and I knew he was not pretending. The thought of going back, though, especially under those circumstances, scared the s**t out of me.

"Come on, girl, where's your fighting spirit? Let's go back and put that ass.hole back in his place once and for all. Let's make our father proud of us once more." Leia urged me; it was the first time my wolf's fighting spirit affected me so much.

"Okay, Uncle James. Just give me a few days to arrange everything regarding my work and obligations here in Italy. I need to talk to Fabricio today and inform him of my intentions. Please don't let anyone know I am returning, not even my father. Let it be a pleasant surprise for some and unpleasant for others," I said coldly, tightening my fists, ready to fight against Blake and his stupidity.

"He will regret it, the dic.khead," Leia sneered, and affected by her spirit, I couldn't agree more with her.