Chapter 4 - Kai

It was never fun seeing my friends flirting with my younger sister, but they were all old enough to know she was not their fated mate. All well past shifting age, and all having their wolves by now. So it was clear by now that they would not be the one she ended up with, and it wasn’t like we hadn’t heard the tale often enough from our Mum about being careful about getting into relationships before meeting our fated mate; after the struggle she had gone through before meeting my Dad. Though, I do think her situation was somewhat different…

And, it was hard to have to see Jorge in more recent times suffering after being rejected by his fated mate all because she did not want to end the long-term relationship she was in to be with him, after meeting at an inter-pack sports event we had all attended. Seeing the happiness as he had realized who she was, as he introduced himself... and then the pain take over as she told him she did not want him. That he was not the one that was meant for him. His wolf retreated for quite some time, and Jorge looked broken... I had never wanted to hurt someone so badly as I did the guy she was dating. Jorge had been heartbroken, and now, almost six months on, was only coming to terms with it.

He was gradually getting back to being the usual character he was, which, in all honesty, was much like his Dad, Uncle Gabe. I looked across at Jorge, currently lounging in the sun, beer in hand, and I smiled. “You going to pass me a beer?”

He was sitting next to the cool box, and he raised his brows at me in a mocking manner. “Your legs broken are they, big man?”

I laughed. “They might be after training. Dad was giving us a hard time today, right?” I asked the guys, and they all murmured their agreement. Training had been a killer, especially in the heat. I was being prepared to take over my Dad’s Alpha role, Leo the Beta role from Uncle Jake, Finn the Gamma role from Uncle Dan, and the other guys were all close to completing warrior training, having been encouraged to attend college first, following in Uncle Manny, Uncle Gabe, Uncle Diego, and Uncle Luis’s footsteps. That included my younger brother, and Finn’s younger brother, despite both of them not being of warrior blood.

But we all enjoyed training together, our Dad’s providing the training on a daily basis to give us a head start, and I think it was safe to say they were not going easy upon us. “I think Uncle Knox is trying to kill me.” Leo said with a grin.

“Probably heard you were flirting with Cleo.” Kaleb piped up from his place near the grill he and Daxton had set up. I couldn’t help but laugh. My Dad was as protective of Cleo as I was. But I knew he also loved the fact that my sister had so many of us to protect her. Every one of these guys was protective of her.

Leo shook his head, with a smile, he didn't care, he loved spending time with Cleo, and I highly doubted my Dad would bother him. “Was Landon there while you guys were training?” he asked Kaleb, asking after the upcoming Alpha of my Mum’s former pack. The son of the guy she had thought she would be fated to. Grandson, to the best friend of my grandfather. So, in all, a guy we had known since we were children, and one we were close to. Though, admittedly, not so much in recent years.

I looked toward Kaleb in curiosity, wondering what he would answer. From what I could understand, Landon was at Lotus Shadow Pack as often as he could be, despite it not being his home pack. It was his Grandmother’s former home pack, and he escaped there because he enjoyed time with his cousins, and from what I had gathered from Daxton and Kaleb when we had spoken before, he wasn’t ready to take the reins from his grandfather and become Alpha yet. He had been going on visits there since his mid-teens, and they had only increased as he had got older. A definite escape from the pressures of River Ash it seemed...

Kaleb nodded. “Where else would he be?” he smiled, and Daxton smiled too, giving Kaleb a sideways glance, like they were communicating without even talking. These two were close friends, and spent most of their time back and forth to Luna Shadow Pack attending the Warrior Training Programme that had recently been set up there, which also meant they spent a lot of time with Landon. I guess, both being born as the second born sons of fathers with titles meant they missed out on having to inherit the titles, but neither one seemed too concerned by it.

“He still not ready to come home?” Angel asked from her place next to Sofia, currently braiding her hair. “I don’t know why he didn’t just renounce his title. It seems pretty clear he doesn't want to become Alpha, or he would have come and taken the title by now. He is more than old enough. He has cousins, right? Could they not take the title if he doesn't want it?”

Kaleb frowned. “Alpha Grayson doesn’t want that. Never has, right, Kai?” he looked across to me to back him up, knowing I would have some idea from the stories Mum and Dad had told us. I nodded. Alpha Grayson, or Uncle Grayson as we knew him, had decided to continue in his role as Alpha to ensure Landon could still have his rightful title he would have had if his Dad had never died. He had done a lot to make sure that happened. Sacrificing a lot in his life to ensure Landon could be the Alpha of his pack.

But, if things were this bad, and Landon was continuing to avoid going home, then I was beginning to wonder if Angel had a point. Uncle Grayson was getting older, and he had already taken on an additional spell as Alpha after he lost his son, as had my Grandfather in his role as Beta. So, they were both ready to retire. They deserved their retirement time. Landon's delaying in taking over was not fair, and while I was sure he had his reasons, it wasn’t right, and it was time he stepped up, or did the honorable thing and handed his title to someone else.