The Alpha By Her Side, page 14
“I am being serious for once. I finally have what I have wanted for so long that I have fought for and searched for years. That’s you, by the way. Why wouldn’t I want you right next to me. I told you that we would wait to do whatever kind of commitment ceremony that you actually wanted. You said that you would probably end up talking to the hive to see if they had anything. However, that isn’t going to change the fact that eventually I want you to have our children. The cubs that we have will be the next in line to take my place when I’m old. When you and I are old. So, if I’m going to wish for anything, it’s for you to be by my side. I don’t want to rush you so I’m not going to say that I wish that you would be already breeding, and I know that it probably takes more than once.” he smiled as he looked at her and then all of a sudden she looked at him and realized that he had actually said the words out loud. The others wouldn’t be able to understand the fact that he was joking around when he actually said that. That he was talking about the future. The others had no concept of time. They had no real concept of anything other than the timeline.
“Do you know what you just probably did?” she asked if she looked at him and she just sighed.
“Not really, but I guess that you’re probably going to tell me. Because I probably messed up somehow.” he said as he just lowered himself to the chair, knowing that he was probably in for some kind of lecture. The look on her face was one of those that was almost complete exasperation.
“Think about what you just said. If you and I are in a magical area and we are in a magical house, that is able to give us what we want just because the hive made it that way. You just basically started talking about the future and us having children. Do you understand that the hive doesn’t actually understand what time is? They can go back and forth at any time. They have no concept of the actual timeline except for what they can go through. You just basically said you wanted to have a family, and that you hoped that I was already pregnant.” Desiree said she just shook her head, realizing that even though it was probably an improbability that they would be able to just snap their fingers and she would be pregnant. If they mated again, however, they would probably end up that way.
“I see. And by the look on your face, I can tell that you’re not exactly thrilled with me.” he replied as he began to laugh. “But I also don’t see you arguing the fact that you don’t want that to happen in the future either. Do you think it really matters if it’s now or then?”
Chapter 39
“I think you and I both need time.” Desiree replied as she looked at him, knowing that this was probably going to happen many times in their life. They were going to have to discuss things, and they both understood that communication with each other was probably the key. They knew that they were going to be able to be able to say anything to the other, and that was also a key. However, he wasn’t going to change what he wanted for his life. He didn’t particularly care if he was the ruler of their kind or not. He would find a way to survive and make sure that their family thrived. Even if that meant that they had to spend years in this cabin that could hide from the other world that was raging beyond the little field they were in.
He understood that things were going to happen, and he really didn’t want to have to deal with any of those things that were going to happen because they were going to be brought on by his parents. They were going to try to play off of his loyalty, which he already knew had completely changed. His loyalty was only to Desiree. There was no loyalty to his family or even his pack. That was a hard thing for him to swallow at first, but then he realized that’s exactly how it should be. There was no reason why he needed any other outlet for any of his energy. She was it. She was the important thing in his life. Her and their unmade cubs that would be their future.
Then he started to think that maybe they actually needed to stop with the seven ruling families. There was nothing that was beneficial to only keeping the line like this. It only bred hostility between all of the different lines. He could only imagine what it was like to get a ruling from people you had never actually met for the packs that were scattered throughout the entire world. He needed all of them to understand as well that their bloodline wasn’t and any better than anyone else is. It was all a farce.
There wasn’t anything else that he needed to do. That was what his goal was going to be. They didn’t need to be some headmaster alpha of their kind. He needed to make sure that they all stayed within a certain amount within their pack, but other than that, he didn’t want to rule over the different packs. He wanted a different path in life. He knew that he was not supposed to be the next ruler even deep down, though he had gone through all of the training. His father had only had a son just for that reason. To continue the bloodline, but as far as he could tell, the bloodline was already tainted by his mother and her demand for more power.
“I think that when the chance comes that I want to move forward in a different way. I don’t think that we should have a say with packs that are so completely different from us. I think there seven ruling families just need to give up a lot of their power for just having pure bloodlines. I think that the individual alphas for the packs should be more in charge than we should be.” Gabriel said as he looked at Desiree, knowing that she was probably the only other person on the planet that would understand what he was trying to say. He knew that he wasn’t being extremely clear either, but it was something that he really did feel strongly about. She would probably feel strongly as well, since she had lived in those packs for most of her life. It was something that divided them.
“I think the individual alphas would be more than happy to take up more of the ruling reins. I know all of the alphas I’ve ever met or always the ones that tried to balance things. If you gave them a little more power, they would probably be more loyal.” Desiree said as she looked at him, knowing that for him to actually admit that he didn’t want to be the almighty ruler of their kind was a huge step of trust. He knew that he was born for that. Just as she was born to be his mate. When the two ruling families had come together, it was supposed to create a line that was even stronger because it was of the number one and two families. That was something that nobody could deny. What they didn’t understand or would never actually know unless she or he told them was that she was also gifted by the others. That was something that had never happened before. As far as they knew the others have never taken an interest in any other kind of their own. She still had to figure out exactly how she fit into this world with all the differences that she had, but she would. She would figure everything out, eventually. She was sure that the others were going to protect the two of them while she was trying to figure out exactly what was going on.
“Then I think that’s exactly what we have to do. When and if we ever get the chance to be the rulers of our kind, I definitely want to make sure that the individual pack leaders have more power and don’t have to report to us at all. Unless there’s a major problem, I don’t see why we would have to be involved in their everyday life. I don’t see the reason for making more useless laws for them to have to follow and enforce.” Gabriel said as he looked at her and then she moved closer to him.
“Then you will have the loyalty of probably every one of those local pack leaders. Every single one of them wants to make sure that they are the only one that actually rules. If you give him that chance to be that, then nobody will ever think twice about defying you.” and with that he pulled her into his lap and just kept her there. It was one of those moments where he just wanted to have her close to him. He knew what was going to happen later on that night. Even though he had wished for it, he almost hoped that it didn’t happen so he could continue to try. He was sure they both would like to keep trying for the end result and they would for many times over their lifetime. He didn’t see the reason to stop like his parents had, and even hers. He wanted more than the required one cub. He wanted a few of them, but one special one. A daughter that would be like her mother. He could see now how much he really wanted that sometime in the future. That would be after he had a few boys to help out and watch over their sister.
Chapter 40
They knew that they couldn’t leave the cabin for at least some time. They didn’t know how far his parents had gone to actually set up camps nearby. Though in the darkness, they could actually see the trails of smoke and he had to wonder exactly what they were doing. They were not being stealthy at all. Gabriel knew how they were all trained. He had been trained the same way. This was going against everything that they had ever learned. He had to wonder if they were actually from his mother’s camp and not his father’s because his father would have their heads for not following the most simple of these instructions. It was almost sad to see how badly they were acting in this, though it was the couple they were there to flush out.
Gabriel could not wait. He said when he wanted to give up the major ruling aspect of the different packs. There were too many things and factors that he didn’t know about the local areas that could play a huge factor and why certain pack leaders made decisions. That was one of the things that he wanted to make sure that their kind was sustainable, and they were the only ones that would be able to make that decision. The rules didn’t make much sense to him about they all had to answer to the people of the island. Most of the people of the island had never been anywhere but the island. It was all about power.
Gabriel didn’t want power like that. Even though he had been raised his entire life to know that was his birth rite and that was the way that their kind had always worked, he was absolutely positive that he didn’t want to continue that way. It just didn’t make sense to him. It would never make sense to him.
Now, if he looked at Desiree, he knew that he wanted the next generation to be slightly different from the thoughts that they had been raised with. Things like this would always happen if there was some kind of power differential. She had been taken away, and she didn’t even know her birth rite or her place in the world just for the simple reason that people have made decisions for her. There was nothing that was important enough for that to happen again. He was going to make absolutely sure that his children were already taken care of well before they’re even thought of. There was no way that Desiree was ever going to have to do anything like that again. None of their children would. None of their children’s spouses would either.
For now, though, it was just time to rest. There was nothing that needed to be decided right then in there. They had time to figure things out, even though he understood that his mother or father, whichever one of them was responsible for, the soldiers outside were going to try to push things. He was actually afraid that they were going to push a little too far. If they started to bring other families into this, it could turn out into another whole war. Though he was never going to take part in that he was going to stand his ground though. He was never going to let somebody take Desiree again.
The fact that his mother had basically alluded to the fact that she did not want the younger woman to be there and had done many things to ensure that she wasn’t. It was something that he still couldn’t wrap his head around. She was the daughter of his mother’s best friend. They were cousins, in a way. Some distant form. They had grown up together for what he had remembered. Only Desiree’s mother had actually ever acted like a mother to both of them.
He understood the desire for the woman to want to protect both children. Right now, he was thinking of he was protecting the entire pack of their kind. If that meant he had to make an alliance with the others, he would do that, but the woman had already done that for them. Now the others were on their side. Not because they were werewolves, but because she was part of their hive without even knowing it.
Things were going to happen, and they were going to happen soon. They were probably going to be existentially changing to every single person that was there. He already knew that things were going to turn very quickly. He didn’t particularly like the idea that they were probably headed straight into a different kind of war. His father wouldn’t go down very quietly and probably thought that somehow, he was almost immortal. He wasn’t going to take the fact that he was not very well.
The man craved nothing but power in any shape or form. He had always been like that as far as Gabriel could remember. He had cut through the many women in court and Gabriel and everyone else had looked the other way in disgust as the man moved from one to the other. His mother had never thought to say anything about it, as she was doing the same. They both craved the power over the others and they would use it any way they could.
Gabriel wasn’t going to stand up and try to take the throne. If anything, he wanted the throne to be abolished, but that wasn’t going to happen at the moment. He wasn’t ready for that responsibility of changing everything for their entire species. Right now, he was just more focused on staying safe and keeping her safe. That was all he actually ever wanted to do.
Without thinking about it or even really acting, he found himself right next to her, holding her close to him. She was a sense of strength for him. She was one of those things that was emanating peace and relaxation around her. Though she was probably just as worked up as he was. She still had a lot more to figure out than he would ever have to.
He knew things were completely different with her and that was one of the driving forces for him to make sure that everything was better for her as well. He was never going to be the one that she could not turn to. In a way, she had already given up so much freedom just to be there and even though he knew that he was the one that brought her there a little by force, she still needed time. Time was the one thing he didn’t know if he had to give her.
Chapter 41
After the dream that she had, Desiree woke up and was in a cold sweat, knowing that she was going to have to run again. She didn’t realize that she had been training for everything her entire life. It seemed that she had to be tell him what was going to happen in their near future. They were going to have to leave the island even though she had just gotten there. They would remain together, though. It was almost as if being in this particular area, some part of her brain that was connected to timeline itself. She could see things that were going to happen in the future. She could also see things that had happened in the past.
“What?” Gabriel had asked as he looked at her, knowing that she bolted awake, and he had felt it. Even though his voice was still rough with sleep, he knew that she probably needed to talk. She was gulping for air, and she had known something was going to happen. The fact that his arm was wrapped around her, keeping her close to him, was something that he didn’t exactly completely understand. He just needed her to be that close to him. It was also to feel her as if something had happened, which it had.
“We’re going to have to leave the island sooner rather than later. I don’t know what it is about this place, but it feels like I’m connected to the timeline itself. Things that the others had told me to start to make more sense now that I can actually see it as well. It was almost like a warning that this was going to happen. Especially with us being right here. I can actually feel what’s going to happen in the future. And I can actually see what’s happened in the past just like they can.” Desiree said as she turned into his arms and looked at him in the eyes.
“So, we’ll have to leave?” he said as he looked at her and though he wasn’t exactly thrilled with the idea he knew that it was something that they were going to have to do if they were going to have any peace. He didn’t want an all-out war to start again, and he knew that was what was going to happen if his parents had their way. If they didn’t get exactly what they wanted out of the couple, a war was going to take place. Even he knew that without having to be connected too much to the timeline. The others were hinting at that from the beginning.
There were a lot of things that were going to have to take place, but they were going to have to be safe for right now. Right now, the only safe place on the island for them was right where they were. In a cabin that no one could see outright. Unless they wanted them to. The others were probably working their magic right now to make sure that this cabin stayed hidden. There was not much else they could do, but use the time they had to think about the future and know how they wanted it to turn out.
He knew that the others were also trying to avoid a war. Everything would be disrupted, and that was something that they didn’t particularly like. It was just a feeling that he had, but nobody actually liked war. Nobody actually liked fighting or the senseless injuries and death that happened with it. The only person who would actually see them did with someone who had never actually seen it or had to deal with it. His father had remained completely in the castle, so had his mother. They had no dealing with what they had actually caused. They had not actually fought in it at all.
He knew that Desiree’s parents had gone out and fought, and that’s one of the reasons why they were probably easy targets for his parents. He felt the guilt of his own because now he was the one who was supposed to be protecting their daughter and they were on the cusp of the exact same situation.
“Do you think that you could actually see what happened to your family?” he asked as he looked at her, knowing that he needed the answers more than she did. He had to know who took the bait and went after them. They had been upstanding members of the Royal Court for so long that he had to know who was actually a traitor and who wasn’t. It wasn’t them. He knew that right off the bat. He didn’t need her to tell him that either.
“I probably could at some point.” Desiree said as she looked at him, knowing that he must have some kind of plan if he was going to ask her to do something like that.
“I don’t want to rush you and the new abilities that you seem to have. I definitely don’t want you to have to watch somebody get murdered, let alone your parents. The only reason why I asked is because I would really like to know who was a traitor to the Royal Court. I also want to know whose orders they were acting on. Because if it was my parents, I need to know that when we do actually come out of seclusion. These people right here that are watching us are not going to try to attack. However, I do think that they’re trying to flush us out. We will be able to remain here for quite a while. I don’t have a question of the fact that the others will probably make sure that we have food and water for as long as we need it. I just don’t want to stay cooped up for very long if we don’t have to.” Gabriel said, believing in the words he was saying. If that meant that he actually had to leave the island, then he would be more than happy to as long as she was safe. She was the future of their kind, and he also knew that. There were more things that he had to come to grips with, though, and she needed to remember as well. There were quite a few things that still needed to be done and they had the time currently. In hiding, they were actually hiding within time itself. They had all of it in the world at their fingertips.
