The Alpha's War/Soul Mate - Book 2

Part 59

*A.N.: Dedicated to iran3373 - you were my inspiration for today's update. I wonder if you find the part I'm referring to :) 

"Father, Alpha Jena wants to see you."

"Let her in please."

"Alpha Abbigor,"

"Welcome! Have a seat. Are you feeling better?"

"I was well enough to talk to you two days ago. You know I have to go back."

"You know the healer supersedes the Alpha when it comes to his patients. I'm pretty sure the same goes for your pack. She said you had to rest and threatened to chew my balls off if I didn't listen."

"You may be biased because the pride's healer is your mate."

"Maybe just a little. Sandheeya, you are excused."

"But father, I was involved, I should be here for..." but when she makes contact with her father's eyes, the girls suddenly eats her words and leaves the room.

"That was harsh, Alpha Abbigor."

"Some words are meant to be private, and please drop the title when we are in private."

"Oh?"

"Don't you 'Oh' me! WHAT the HELL were you THINKING?!? So you've found your mate and you can't be reunited with him just yet. That is no reason to become so emotional and make rookie mistakes because you can't focus on the task at hand!"

"I..."

"Hush and listen! You are not a child anymore, Jena. You may be young and fairly inexperienced overall, but you are definitely not a child. You've been an Alpha for almost five years now; you should have your priorities straight and organized in that head of yours. You aren't any regular wolf, you are the Alpha to your pack and as such you do not have the luxury to go awol or berserk or whatever it is you did back there. Perhaps you didn't get the memo yet, but YOU ARE NOT allowed to put yourself in danger needlessly when you have a pack to run. You should also have already realized how much a pack's emotional state and general well-being is tied to its Alpha, and what losing said Alpha would mean for everyone. GET YOUR SHIT TOGETHER! And don't get me wrong, your decision to send a message and the way you thought things up are tactically sound, I would have done the same, but fighting that warhog in human form was beyond stupid. Is that clear enough for you?"

"Yes, sir..."

"Good! Now take it and use it as a learning experience. What's done is done and there is no reason to dwell on it longer.

Just remember, for the Alpha, the balance between pack and mate is a precarious one.

Ultimately, when push comes to shove and you have to choose between the two, if you pick your mate, you'd better have the decency to step down from the Alpha position.

On the other hand, if you choose the pack over your mate, you'd better have the decency to step down from the Alpha position, because no good Alpha would let his or her mate – the Luna or whatever title you wish to give to the other member of the Alpha pair – come to harm, which would once again irreparably affect both the pack and the actual Alpha, indirectly affecting the pack again. Just consider what it meant for you father to lose your mother and how that affected the Oasis Pack after it. Magnus was a stronger man than me, though. I wouldn't have been able to go on. Not as an Alpha anyway."

"So there is balance only if both the pack and the mate are there."

"Exactly. Take either one off the scale, and the whole thing falls apart."

"I see."

"Excellent. Now, what is your next move?"

"As tempted as I may be to go after my mate, I've run out of time and I need to return back East. So I must go."

"I wise choice."

"Would I even have a chance to find him and this Umani if I decided to go after him?"

"No. Not really. Umani is – a mystery. You don't find him, he finds you. Or he lets you find him. Your mate is safe in his care."

"I guess I'll have to settle for that right now."

"Take my daughter with you. You are preparing for war; I doubt you could afford to not have your Beta in training with you."

"And you can afford to do without your next Alpha?"

"Well, it's not like we could separate those two. Plus you'd have another voice and witness confirming what you tell the Eastern Alphas. I envy you, you know? All of you in the East. Somehow you've peace for another 5 years. 5 years more than the West had to prepare for this war."

"We will leave first thing in the morning. Bare minimum for maximum haste. Will you tell your daughter?"

"I will. Good luck to us all!"

"Oh, and Abbigor?"

"Hmm?"

"You are a good father."

*A.N.: Remember to vote, it really helps the book out.

Quick question: Why do you think Jena said that last sentence? What did she mean by it?