Chapter 5: Hidden Motive

RAY’S POV

I pull up to Anna’s house in the empty lot, putting the car in park. The ride back was actually pleasant. I didn’t think we would hit it off so well, but she’s a pretty funny girl, I’ll give her that much.

However, a nasty feeling churns in my gut. Are these really my feelings? Or…

Tuning out my thoughts to the radio, I turn to her. Change the subject.

“No one’s home?” I ask.

“No, my parents are out of town this week, so it’s just me and my sister,” she says. “But they’ll be back tomorrow.”

“Ah, gotcha.”

We sit in silence. A country song kicks up from the station and fills the car with soft strings and a man’s love story.

“Hey, you never told me about your family.” She flips through the stations for a different song. So she’s not a fan of country. “Do you have siblings, too?”

Oh no. I hoped we wouldn’t come across this topic, but of course we do.

Reeling back my shoulders, I ease myself into the seat. Time to evacuate.

“Ah, no, I'm an only child. Which reminds me,” I start off slow, seeing that she finally found a song to her liking. How unfortunate. “I gotta go. There's some stuff my mom needs help with before I head back to my apartment. So…I’ll catch you later.” A quick lie that’s straight to the point. I internally applaud myself.

“Oh…alright,” she looks a little down saying that. My victory quickly turns into a sting. “Well thanks again for driving me home. I appreciate it.”

“Yep.”

She clicks off her seatbelt and slips out of the seat. “See ya.”

I only smile in response, silencing the impending guilt I’ll feel later. She doesn’t have to know, and she won’t know. The fact that I got involved with her at the mall is a problem in and of itself. I need to cut this off before it gets bad.

There’s no way she’d be able to handle the truth.

Suddenly, a series of howls could be heard from inside.

“Ah, Ben!” she whispers harshly, scurrying towards the front door. I laugh at the urgence in her step. Saved by the dog.

At this point, I’m used to it though. It’s their way of showing respect.

I shift gears to reverse and pull out of the lot, watching Anna push her dog’s nose back as she squeezes through the door. She looks up again, and waves at me one last time before closing it behind her.

I laugh at that.

Putting the car into drive, I take off down the road. Fishing for my phone, I pull it out of my pocket and scan through my contacts, tapping Sam’s name to call.

“Yo.” Her voice rings through my car. “Did you drop her off?”

“Yeah, just now. I’m heading over to the spot, so I’ll see you guys in a few.”

“Alright. How was it, by the way?” The question came off reluctantly.

“Uh, fine?” I raise a brow. “Why do you ask?”

“No reason, just curious.”

Sighing, I readjust my grip on the wheel. “Sam, you always have a reason for everything you do. But I’ll let it slide for now.”

She stays silent for a bit, but then asks, “Did Zeus show up at all?”

My grip tightens. “Surprisingly, no. It’s the same as last time.”

“So it wasn’t a coincidence…” She hums in thought. “Alright, we’ll talk more about it when you get here.”

“Sounds good.”

I hang up just as I turn into an old road, reaching a gated community. Pulling up at the gate, the night guard leaves his post, approaching my car. I lower the window for him.

“Beautiful night, isn’t it?” The guard tips his hat.

“Truly. May Selene dawn her light on us tonight as well.”

The man’s sole eye glimmers. With a toothy grin, he nods. “May Selene protect us all.”

He returns to his post and the gates pull apart, screeching against the concrete. I proceed through the road, taking a left onto a dirt path.

Just before the second checkpoint, I steer my car to the right, down a small slope smothered by overhang trees and weeds. Turning off the lights, I pull into a spot beside a camo van. They’re here as expected.

***

DEMING WOODS, WA – RAY’S HIDEOUT

“Wow, they sound like a*sholes.” Nathan, my trusted friend and Beta leader, scoffs while setting a bottle of rootbeer on the coffee table. Leaning back into Sam on the gray sofa, he relaxes at the touch of her fingers combing through his blonde hair. “But nothing you’re too unfamiliar with.”

“Nathan.” Sam growls, to which he throws his hands up in surrender.

“Alright, alright, but they were talking about you again in the meeting.” he says. “The Alpha and his squad. They were thinking of taking you out of college to work full time for the pack.”

I scoff, picking up the bottle. Popping the cap off with ease, I fell back on a chair across. “They always are.”

“Well you’re practically a prodigy. Everyone knows that you really don’t need college, you’re hella smart.” Nathan sighs, sitting up from Sam’s chest. “Although your mom’s been holding it off for now, your dad’s looking to pull you out this year.”

I groan in frustration. My mother’s the only one who actually wants me to experience living for myself before it’s all stripped away from me. Back then, we even made an agreement that I’d be able to finish college and then assume my duties as Alpha, but of course father would never keep his word.

“How soon?”

“Once the Holy Moon tournament starts.” Nathan says.

I click my tongue. “That a*shole, that’s less than a few months from now.”

“We’ve been talking about this since the beginning of the year,” He sighs. “This was bound to happen eventually.”

“I hate to say it, but he’s right, Ray.” Sam speaks up. “The Holy Moon tournament is coming up soon. If we don’t have a representative for our pack, then the others will-”

“I know.” My voice drips with bitterness, silencing them. The Holy Moon tournament is held only every decade; it’s an important event in which the strongest of each pack participates in a set of trials to honor Selene, Goddess of the Moon.

Nathan and Sam understand that I’m under an immeasurable amount of pressure and are only speaking rationally, but I still can’t ignore the fact that it’s become so much that I can’t take it all on. Yet my father, or should I say the Alpha, couldn’t care less if I’m drowning in his expectations.

“I get it. There’s a lot of problems with the Vagabonds, too. They’ve been encroaching on our territory ever since the tourney announcement.” I down the bottle in one go and sigh. “I’m just so sick of it. I didn’t ask to be born in this position. And of course I’m seen as a spoiled brat for thinking that way.”

Sam looks down at her hands, clutching the holes in her jeans.

“But what they don’t know,” I chuckle darkly, “Is the hell that I’ve been through because of it.”

As the Alpha’s son of the all-powerful Bloodclaw Pack, there are a lot of expectations of me to perform well as the next heir to lead. Not only do I have to gain the respect of my pack, but of our allied clans, the Silver Moon and Lunar Howls, whose ties are already thinning for dominance.

Thus, I’ve fought relentlessly for my father’s approval, only to be shoved back into the dirt time and time again. I trained, studied, and worked harder than anyone else, and yet it still isn’t enough. None of it will ever be good enough for him.

So I’ve given up fighting for the impossible.

And power to me. I’ve never felt so liberated in my life. I can finally live life how I want, when I want. At least, that’s how it was until Zeus’ behavior started to intervene.

Given Selene’s divine blessing at birth through ceremonial ritual, our inner wolves awaken as our comrades in arms at the shy age of twelve. But Zeus has been anything but an ally to me. His emotional flares were minimal at first, but the longer I refused to shift, the intensity grew stronger, rendering me completely useless to the point he would control everything I do.

Recently, he went on a rampage, shifting under the city lights and running through the shadows of people’s homes. I had to fight back for control, at the cost of taking an injury to regain the nerves in my body. And that’s how that girl found me. Anna.

Ever since then, I’ve noticed that Zeus’ stirs would cease. I finally felt peace. Maybe that’s why I gravitated towards her at the mall. Why I couldn’t stop staring at her pitiful face. Why I wanted her to look at me, and only me.

“Ray?”

I perk up at the sound of Sam’s voice. “What is it?”

“Zeus has been stable both of the times you’ve hung around Anna, right?” I didn’t fail to notice her change of voice when Sam mentions her name. “Even though before, you couldn’t so much as look at any of the girls on campus without him outright refusing.”

“Well that’s also because they’re all human, Sam.” Nathan wraps an arm around her. “Zeus doesn’t like the idea of romancing anyone but his mate. I mean, we can only find them within our packs.” He motions at the both of them to which she smiles.

“But Zeus hasn’t found anyone here. Nor the Silver Moon or Lunar Howls. We’ve been to plenty of gatherings, and Ray hasn’t matched with anyone.” Sam sighs, recalling their pack's history. “Although it’s most common to find one amongst ourselves, there’s also the chance that his could be human-”

“Don’t joke about that, Sam,” Nathan’s sweet demeanor shifts into a serious one. “We haven’t had that happen in centuries. And he’s the Alpha’s son of all people. You know what would happen if he brought a human home.”

“He’s going to have to bring someone, or else he’s stuck with Scarlet from the Lunar Howls,” Sam’s face scrunches just thinking about her.

Scarlet Locke, the Alpha’s daughter of the Lunar Howls. She’s pretty much on par, if not just like Anna’s friends. Sassy, rude, narcissistic, you name it. To be frank, she’s a headache, and she’s been obsessed with me for years.

Although Zeus has made it clear that she’s not my mate, there’s still a way for one to force their wolf to match with another regardless if they’re meant to be with someone else. It’s a painful process though, and it’s not one I would risk enduring for the sake of someone like her.

Even so, I wouldn’t put it past my father to force me through something like that if it means gaining more security and power for our pack. He’s never considered how I felt about anything, I can’t expect him to do the same with my love life.

Sam looks up at me with earnestness in her eyes. “Just experiment with Zeus on her for a little. If he really is quiet and doesn’t cause a fuss, we can use this as an opportunity for you.”

“Oh not this again,” I groan, throwing my head back. “I already said I’m not participating in the Holy Moon Tournament. I don’t want a mate, I don’t want to get involved. End of story.”

Although it’s tradition to send the Alpha of the pack to represent, it isn’t mandatory. Thus, the Holy Moon tournament is something I can’t nor will be a part of.

Sam pales. “But, Ray, your dad’s going to force you to go with Scarlet-”

“He can force it, but that doesn’t mean I’ll go through with it.”

“Ray!”

With that, I get up and head to the back room, plopping myself on the single bed with plain sheets. I could hear the two bickering a bit before shouting their goodbyes and closing the door after them.

I turn to the window, watching the moon glow as bright as ever.

‘Experiment with Zeus on her for a little.’

What is she, a drug? I laugh until I realize that that held more weight than I thought it would.

Maybe she is.