My leg bounced anxiously as I glanced out the window to see how far the Alpha's car had gotten, waiting in tense silence for there to be enough distance between his car and the one my family and I were following him in before I started talking. It had taken a lot of convincing to get him to allow me to ride in my family's car in the drive over to his house instead of going with him. He looked extremely reluctant, even as I promised not to run away. It had taken my mom stepping in to say she would drive and promising she would follow him to his house for him to agree. 

I sat next to Nora in the back.  She had turned herself towards the window but the tears that dropped from her chin onto her jeans leaving little darkened marks in the light blue denim gave away that she was crying. I cupped her cheek in my hand, gently guiding her face down onto my shoulder and she curled into me. Hugging onto my arm in a way that had my eyes stinging and a lump forming in my throat. 

"I will never let that wolf anywhere near you." I promised, pressing a kiss to her forehead. She stayed quiet for a moment before lifting her head from my shoulder to look at me.

"How Athena? Now that Alpha Onyx knows he'll tell Russel and they'll be keeping an eye on our family to make sure I can't run away." 

"We'll find a way. You will not spend your life tied to a mutt." I said and my mom called my name sharply, her red-rimmed eyes connecting with mine in the rearview mirror as I looked up and she gave me an admonishing look. 

"I'm the mate of their Alpha, they're not going to toss me in jail for calling a wolf a mutt." I said. 

"Still be careful, we don't need any added attention at a time like this." My mom said and the air went out of me.

"You're right, I'm sorry. How did it happen?"

"We stopped for gas but the pump wouldn't accept my card so I went in to pay cash. The wolf was there in line, he seemed to smell Nora on me the moment I walked in." My dad said, glancing back at Nora with an incredibly guilty look making it clear he blamed himself for all of it. I tried my best to hold back my wince at the sight of his rapidly darkening bruises, hating that there was nothing we could do to keep those beasts away from us. 

"He knew the scent wasn't mine and asked who I was there with. Before I could even respond he had run out to the car and it was unlocked. " My dad said, trailing off as though unable to tell the rest.

"He dragged me out of the car, I didn't even see him coming. I was so surprised I didn't even make a sound. Mom was screaming at him to let me go and Dad tried to get him off of me and that's when he hit him." Nora continued, her voice strangely detached even as tears dropped from her big eyes, running down her cheeks dropping down her jaw. 

"No one helped us, even as we screamed and begged him. He was so strong, none of us could move him. He was completely beastly at first but he turned back to talk to me, tell me I was his and he was taking me home. He lost it again when I started struggling." 

"You must have been so scared, I'm so sorry." I said, finally letting the tears fall as the guilt of being the reason they had ever been in Onyx's territory overwhelmed me. I should have fought him harder on not inviting them, then the wolf would never have met Nora. 

I went rigid as I suddenly recalled the only other way for a wolf to find their mate. Barely able to hear a word as my parents and Nora tried to convince me it wasn't my fault. An Alpha could tell by the scent of someone whether they were the mate of one of their pack members. Onyx had known all along that Nora was one of his pack member's mates, it was impossible for him not to. He had known and he had kept it from me. 

"What is it?" Nora asked, sensing how tense I had suddenly gotten.

"Nothing." I said, forcing myself to focus as I looked down at her, the silvery tear tracks on my little sister's cheeks steadying my resolve to make the Alpha regret it.

"We'll have to figure something out for the both of you." My dad said, careful to choose words ambiguous enough that we didn't have to worry about eavesdroppers. Still I couldn't help but glance around, worried the Alpha may be near enough to hear and relieved that my mom was following his car at a significant distance. 

"Nora hasn't even finished school yet." I argued, I didn't want a life on the run for my sister. There had to be another way. It was not fair for her future to be snatched away. 

"It's more preferable to the alternative." My mom said. 

"There has to be a way. Onyx is the Alpha, there has to be something he can do." I responded.

"Can't they order their pack members to do anything?" My mom asked.

"As far as I know they can. He even got the wolf to let Nora go just now by commanding him." 

"Mates are sacred to them, he wouldn't do that for our Nora." My dad said, quietening us all since none of us could refute his statement. He may not do it for Nora but perhaps he would for his own mate. 

"I'll find a way, I'm not going to let him take you." I reassured Nora, heart aching at the scared look on my sister's face. 

"I'd rather be free than go to school." She said. 

"You shouldn't have to choose." I responded, meaning every word. I would do anything it took to make sure my sister still got the future she had envisioned for herself. One where she wasn't shackled to a beast. 

We stayed silent as my mom exited the highway, driving down the quiet road that led to the Alpha's home behind him. Dread filling me the closer we got, wishing I had argued for us all to go to our home instead even if the Alpha would accompany us. 

The car came to a stop as my mom parked behind the Alpha and I waited till Nora got out before climbing out behind her. All three of their eyes went wide as they took in the sight of the home. It was scarcely believable that only 2 people lived in a house this size. It was even less believable that despite having a home this size, the Alpha still managed to constantly be breathing down my neck though we should have been able to go days without running into one another. 

The Alpha was at my side the moment I was out of the car, blocking my view of my family. My stony expression seemed to confuse him but I merely brushed past him on my way to the door. 

"Welcome to our home." The Alpha said as he passed us to get to the door,  unlocking it and holding it open for my family and I. He gave me a questioning look as I passed him which I ignored, not wanting to confront him in front of my family.

"I'll take your coats." He said as they stood in the foyer, collecting their coats and hanging them up. Nora choosing to keep hers on and merely shook her head as the Alpha asked for hers, arms huddled tightly around herself. 

"Please have a seat." The Alpha ushered them into the living room, the cheery flowers now looking horribly out of place.

"Nora I'll get you something warm to drink." I told her, heading for the kitchen. Not needing to turn back to know the Alpha was going to follow me. 

I opened up the cabinet that housed my tea, vaguely remembering having seen hot chocolate mix in there as well. My shoulders slumping as I realized it was on the highest shelf and since the Alpha's house had freakishly high ceilings, that meant I could not reach. 

"Let me get that for you mate." The Alpha said from behind me, crowding me in against the counter as he leaned over me to grab the tin. 

The moment he had set it down, I whirled around. Realizing I wouldn't make it till the end of my family's visit without asking him what had been bothering me. 

"You knew didn't you? That's why you invited them?" 

"What are you talking about?" He asked, brows furrowed in seemingly earnest confusion. 

"You knew she was his mate." I said sternly, frustrated that he was pretending to be innocent. Understanding dawned and his brows cleared before a flit of panic widened his eyes so briefly I nearly missed it.

"Athena you have to believe me, I wouldn't keep something like that from you. Vincent only transferred to the pack recently. I hadn't seen Nora since then or my wolf would have realized." 

My body slumped as the rage that had been coursing through me drained out within a second, leaving only the sinking dread. 

"Athena do you really think I would keep something like that from you? You're my mate, I have no secrets from you." He said, eyes roving over my face to try to figure out whether I truly believed him as I stayed silent. 

"But you're his Alpha, aren't you? Can't you ask him to choose someone else?" I asked, watching as all expression left his face and he stared at me blankly. 

"You know it doesn't work that way." 

"He's just biologically attracted to her, he doesn't even know her. It shouldn't be too hard to root it out this early on." I said, his eyes darkening at my words.

"The pull to your mate is not a disease that can be removed. Every wolf is raised on the promise that they will one day meet the person who will complete them in every way, you can't take that away from someone." 

"My sister was raised with the promise that she would get to decide her own future." 

"And she will, she has merely found her soulmate early on. Everything else is up to her to choose. This is a blessing, not the tragedy you were led to believe it is." 

"She's just a kid." I mumbled, more to myself than to him since it was clear nothing I was saying was getting through to him and I couldn't risk angering him with my family just in the other room. 

"That is why the laws are in place Athena. Go, comfort your sister. She is in shock, I will finish making the drinks." The Alpha said and I shook my head immediately. Nora would not be so willing to accept something he made. 

"I know how she likes it, I'll make it." I said, not waiting for a response before grabbing a pot to get started.  I turned my back to him in the hopes that he would take that as a hint to leave but as always the Alpha never seemed to pick up on when he was unwanted. 

"Athena you don't need to be so stressed about this. Nora will be that wolf's whole world, he'll never do anything to harm her." 

"He harmed her today. She's 16, she doesn't want some werewolf claiming that she's theirs for life." 

"She's only scared because of what your parents taught you both. Having a wolf for a mate is not the end of the world, it is a promise of ever lasting love and devotion. A wolf would do anything to make their mate happy." The Alpha said.

"Onyx if you were looking for the one person who really doesn't have the stomach for pro-wolf propaganda then you've found them. For the love of all that is sacred to you, please stop trying to convince me this is a good thing, it's not going to work." I huffed turning to look at him, confused as to why he looked so stunned. He swallowed thickly, before speaking.

"I-uh-all I'm trying to say is don't scare your sister any more than she already is by acting like this. She's found her mate, you can make the process easier for her by helping her adjust." 

"Please just let it go, I can't argue with you about this right now." I said, knowing there was no way I could make him see my perspective, not without the risk of it turning into a fight and that was the last thing I wanted with my family sitting in the other room. 

I finished making the drinks in silence, grateful he didn't try to broach the topic again. I put them all in a tray, carrying them over to the living room with the Alpha following me. 

Nora sat between both my parents, my mom holding one of her hands in both of her own. A glassy faraway look in her red-rimmed eyes. My parents glanced up as I walked in and I was nearly stopped in my tracks at how much they had seemed to age in just the past few months alone. Looking nearly a decade older than the day our lives had been turned upside down. 

"Nora, here take this." I said softly. Carefully pulling her hand away from our mom, Nora took the mug of hot chocolate between the both of hers silently. I offered the tray to both my parents and they each grabbed a cup of tea.

"Do you have a first aid box?" I asked Onyx and he nodded, leaving the room even as my dad protested that it was unnecessary. He returned just moments after, holding it out and I passed it to my mom who was able to silence my father's protests with a single look. 

I set the tray down on the table, grabbing the last two cups in it and passing one to Onyx who thanked me with far more sincerity than was warranted for such a small gesture. Ignoring his odd behavior, I took a seat in the armchair that separated the couches my family and the Alpha sat on.

Tense silence filled the room as my mom finished dressing my dad's injuries. I wanted so badly to comfort Nora but I didn't have the words. Certainly not any that I could speak with the Alpha present. 

"So what happens now?" Nora asked suddenly, to my surprise looking straight at Onyx. 

"Once your Alpha is made aware that you have found your mate, he will assign a mating bond worker to you since you are a minor. The worker will act as a sort of guide for you and help you and Vincent figure out how to navigate the mating bond as you continue to live with your parents." 

"What if we don't tell Alpha Russel?" I asked.

"For now." I added quickly as Onyx turned to give me a look. 

"It is mandatory for your Alpha to be informed when you find your mate. By law, I am obligated to inform Alpha Russel." 

I had to bite my tongue to hold back from remarking about how easily he discarded the law when it came to using or threatening violence against his mate's fiancé. 

"If I don't, Vincent will track her scent and figure out which pack Nora is from anyway. It's better to go the legal route for these things if you don't want him showing up unannounced. As she is a minor, all meetings can be in a public space or with a chaperone present." The Alpha said. 

I wrapped my hands more firmly around the teacup to hide the way they trembled at the implication of his words. The knowledge that wolves couldn't control themselves around their mates was so innate that even they had built laws and procedures around it for minors. The idea of Nora going through anything I had sickened me to my very core. 

"What if she or her guardians don't want her seeing the wolf at all?" I asked, already knowing the answer but hoping there was some sort of loophole since Nora was under 18. 

"That's not possible. The wolf would lose their minds if they go too long without seeing their mate." He answered. 

"I don't get any say in it?" Nora asked quietly and the both of us snapped our heads around to look at her. 

"Humans don't feel the pull so these laws are in place to ensure the wolf gets the chance to court their mate." 

"It's not courting if rejection isn't an option." I interjected. 

"If the human gives their mate a real chance, there would be no question of rejection. No one will ever be as devoted, loyal or willing to do whatever it takes to ensure your happiness as your mate."

"She doesn't want a mate, she's just a kid. As an Alpha can't you do anything?" 

"There is nothing to be done. Nora has found her mate, it's a pity that their first meeting went the way it did but I will personally speak to Vincent and ensure that he keeps better control over his wolf in the future. Should he ever do anything that makes you uncomfortable Nora, I want you to tell me and I will deal with him myself." 

There was a protective edge to his words that made me realize how serious he was when he said he thought of my family as his too now. That wasn't much when he seemed so steadfast about the mating bond, but it would have to do until we figured out a more permanent solution, especially when coupled with the influence I held as his mate. 

"Seeing him makes me uncomfortable." Nora said softly, making my heart clench at how small she looked huddled against my mother's side. Wishing desperately that I could make this all go away for her.

"Alpha if you wouldn't mind, I think we should take our leave. Nora has been through a lot today and I think it's best for her if she's allowed to rest at home." My mom said.

"I understand, we'll have to invite you all over another time. If you have any questions or need anything, please do not hesitate to ask." The Alpha responded, rising to his feet and we all did the same. A thought occurred to me just then and I turned to the Alpha

"Onyx-" I started, faltering when I saw him visibly jolt at the sound of his own name. He turned to look at me, pupils slightly dilated as he fixed in on me. 

"Can you have someone check on Vincent to make sure he doesn't follow them home?" I asked warily.

"If it makes you feel better, but he is going to find out where Nora lives from the mating bond worker." 

"Yes but that won't be tonight, so please do." I retorted and he nodded, letting out a sigh as he pulled out his phone. 

I followed close behind him as he walked out the door with the phone held in his hand, getting an amused quirk of his brow for my troubles but I ignored him. 

"I need you to escort my mate's parents home. Keep at a distance from their car and ensure they're not being followed. Send Max to keep an eye on Vincent, make sure he doesn't try to follow them." 

"Tell him to use any and all force if necessary." I whispered as quietly as I could, earning a blank look. 

"No, don't use all force." The Alpha growled into the phone after the person on the line had responded. 

"I'll explain later, just make sure he doesn't follow them." The Alpha said and I glared at him, gesturing to the phone to try to make him understand to add the point about using force. 

"Restrain Vincent if he tries." The Alpha added, raising his brows at me as though to ask if I were appeased. I wasn't, I'd rather they use all force to begin with but his orders would suffice. 

"And report back once they're home." I added quickly before he could hang up, forgetting to make any effort to be quiet in my haste. 

"Yes Alpha Mate." I heard the person the Alpha was speaking to answer and blanched at the title, scowling when I saw the way the Alpha's lips had twisted up into a smirk. 

"They'll leave once you're here. Goodbye Jason." The Alpha said, a glint of mirth still in his eyes as he hung up. Paying him no attention, I turned on my heel to join my family again in the hallway where they waited. 

"One of his pack members is coming, he's gonna escort you home while another makes sure that Vincent doesn't follow."

"He should be here in just a couple minutes." The Alpha added from behind me. 

"Thank you Alpha." My mom said. 

"Please, no need to thank me." 

The Alpha led the way to the door and I fell into step beside Nora as we walked. 

"Have faith." I said to her quietly, knowing she would know I was asking her to have faith in me to get her out of this. She glanced towards the Alpha pointedly, giving me a worried look and I knew she wanted me to be careful to not risk invoking his wrath for her sake. I gave her a reassuring look, not wanting her to waste her time worrying about me.

Though the Alpha wasn't looking at us, I know we had his attention. If he was even half as smart as I knew him to be, he would be more alert than ever. Escaping with Nora wasn't truly an option. I had very little hope of getting away with it when his guard was down but the chances were nonexistent now. The solution would have to come from him. Alphas had a freakish amount of power over their pack members and society turned a blind eye no matter what they did. 

We waited in silence for news of the pack member arriving. Luckily we didn't have to wait long before the Alpha seemed to have heard him and informed us he was here. 

I hugged my sister as we got to their car. Squeezing her to me tightly, wishing I could just hide her away from the world. A lump forming in the back of my throat as she clutched my sweater tightly in her fists. 

"I love you, don't worry too much, okay?" I said, hating that I couldn't give her any more reassurance when she so desperately needed it. 

"Athena would you mind showing me to the bathroom, I'd forgotten how long a drive we've got ahead of us." 

The Alpha's eyes narrowed at my mother, clearly knowing this wasn't an innocent request to use the bathroom as surely as I did. 

"Alpha how often do I have to see the wolf?" Nora asked, stepping out in front of him to block his way. He caught my eye over Nora's head, his eyes seeming to flash in warning and I ducked back to face forward.

I ushered my mom in to the house quickly, giving her a questioning look but she refused to look my way as we walked in. There was no doubt he'd be listening in to anything we said. 

"I know you're worried about your sister but be mindful of how far you push the Alpha, Athena. Alpha's can give out punishments when crossed." My mom whispered, emphasizing the word punishments in a way that implied a hidden meaning.

"When you first found your mate, your father and I did a lot of reading about this topic. Just be mindful." She said, seeming to implore me with her gaze to understand her cryptid words. I stared back, hopelessly confused. 

"Don't talk to him just yet, read a little to calm down." She added with a pointed look before slipping in to the bathroom leaving me outside utterly bewildered that she would want me to read about punishments if I were deciphering her words correctly. 

I waited outside the bathroom until she came back out, walking her to the car in silence. The Alpha's eyes were on us the moment we were out the door. His expression was blank but I could tell he was upset by the way his eyes had darkened and the tick that formed in his jaw as he clenched his teeth. I was in for an interrogation the moment they left.

I hugged both my parents before they got into their cars, able to offer them as little comfort as I could to Nora. 

"Inside. It's cold." He ordered briefly, clearly more pissed off than I realized to be so short with me. Following close behind on my heels as I walked in. The door had barely closed  behind both of us before he was tugging me around to face him. 

"What did your mom say to you?" 

"Just what you heard." I said, knowing we had still been well within his hearing range and made no effort to be especially quiet. 

"Did she give you something?" 

"No." I said, and though he could hear my heartbeat to tell I wasn't lying, he still didn't seem convinced. 

"You're hiding something." He growled, increasing my frustration at not being able to understand what my mom had been hinting at and was now being accused of hiding.

"I've had a hard enough day as it is Onyx, I really don't need this right now." 

"If you or your parents think about trying anything foolish-" He began but I didn't care to listen to his threats when I had to figure out what my mom had been talking about. 

"I know, you'll lock me up and never let me see them again or something else horrible. I get it. Now I'd like to be alone so I'll be in the study and you should be anywhere but there." I said, turning to leave before he could get a response in. Angering him was the least of my worries when my sister was at risk of being snatched away by a beast. 

My mom had never been one to act impulsively. She was the most level headed of us all, if she had risked making the Alpha suspicious then it would be for good reason. I just had to figure out what she had been hinting at to figure out how to go about saving my sister from a fate like mine. 

Author's Note - 

Hello my lovelies! I hope you all are well and not too mad at me. I know I promised a quick update and then disappeared for months. Truly I have no excuse, I'm just a terrible person who sometimes descends into an endless cycle of consumption only and no creation. We are so lucky to have books when the world is completely going to hell, they are the purest form of escape and comfort. 

I have never been a political person and have lived most of my life shamefully ignorant of what was going on around the world but have been keeping informed about the genocide that has been happening in Palestine for over a year now. Please keep informed about what is going on there and do not stop talking about them. There is a lot of suffering going on all around the world right now, I hope you and your families are safe.