The Unknown

Chapter 30

I have a hard time coming to the conclusion that I will have to choose between my destiny and the person that is meant to be my soul mate, my other half. I can't believe that the elders, those chosen to speak for the pack, have chosen to banish Colton and Jessica.

I know that my father has final say on what will happen to them, but I also know that he can only do so much. Ultimately, I know that he can only save one of the two and as much as I want it to be Colton that he picks I know in my heart it must be Jessica.

My dad looks me at me with sad eyes. His eyes begging me to understand.

Being the next Alpha of this pack, I have always known that there would be hard choices to be made. I just never thought that I would have to do something this hard this soon.

I nod at my father and look down to try to hide the tears that are filling my eyes, begging to be released.

My father stands up to address the room, "I am grateful for your thoughts and I have taken them into consideration. While I do agree that something needs to be done, I do not agree that they should be killed only banished. As for Jessica James I believe she should not be banished. She will be questioned later to find out if she knew anything and if not, she will be set free. I will give her the option of staying in the pack or leaving with her son Colton. As for Colton James, I agree that having an ex-hunter living among us is something that cannot be. I hereby state that Colton James be given Eraser and then released out far from this area. These orders will be carried out in two hours. That will give us enough time to get everything set up and to talk to Jessica."

Eraser does just what its name implies, it erases one's mind of events that have taken place. While the person is under the drug's influence we can feed the victim lies that fill the lost hours.

I know that the two hours aren't needed, it would only take roughly forty minutes. Dad has allowed as much time as he could to let me choose what I will do.

Dad starts to leave the room but stops next to me. Learning down so only I can hear him, "Don't let them see you cry and know whatever choice you pick I will always love you".

I turn towards him so that my back is to the rest of the room and quickly wipe my face. Once I have collected myself dad leaves the room.

I turn, hold my head high, and follow him out of the room.

Two hours.

Instead of going to my room to inform Colton of what just went down I head to Oliver's room. I need to see if he is awake yet. He is one of my best friends and if I leave he will be Alpha. I need to talk things over with him and see what his thoughts on everything are.

As I walk up to his door I send a small prayer up that he is okay. I knock once and wait.

"Come in", Alan's voice comes from the other side of the door.

I open the door slowly and the first thing I see is Oliver's smiling face. "Hey, how I've missed that face of yours."

Hearing his voice brings a smile to my face despite everything that is going on.

I turn to Alan, "Can you give us a moment, please?"

"As you wish Alpha Mia." Alan gets up from his spot beside Oliver and exits the room.

"So how are you holding up?" I don't want to ambush him with my problems right way when he only just woke.

He shrugs, "Eh, I've been better. The real question is, how are you? I can tell that something is wrong. Come over here and sit down."

Oliver has knowns me since we were both in diapers and therefore can read me like a book.

No sooner that my butt hit the edge of his bed the tears come flowing down. I'm talking full on ugly sobs.

Alarmed Oliver sits up and winces at the pain. I try to tell him to lay back down but don't seem to be able to get the words out.

He pulls me to him and puts his strong arms around me. I try to not put too much pressure on him since he was recovering from being shot but his grip tightens on me when I try to pull away.

After sitting in each other's arms for a while Oliver finally allows me to lean away. He keeps his hand on top of my own hands.

"Please, tell me what has gotten you this upset. I haven't see you like this since that night your mother died."

I nod and attempt to speak, "I d- don't know w-what to do" I manage to let out between hiccups.

"Well you are in luck, I happen to be your Beta. Do you know what that means?" He doesn't wait for my response before continuing. "That means that when you are unsure of things I help you figure things out. That also means that you can come to me whenever anything is bothering you. I am the shoulder that you lean on that you know will always have your back."

I continue to take deep breaths until I have faith that my voice won't shake any longer.

"I guess I should start by saying that I found my mate, but he is about to be given Eraser and banished."

"Woah stop there and elaborate please. First, congratulations but what do you mean he is being banished?"

"So, I have had a feeling that this guy was my mate but until recently I wasn't positive. You know him, it's Colton." I stop him before he can interrupt, "Yes I know that human mates aren't normal, but they do exist. Anyway, Colton was brought up by hunters. He isn't a part of their world any longer, but his adoptive father was the one that planned the attack and shot you. The elders believe that he is a danger and my father could only save one, Jessica since she did nothing wrong that we know of."

"You are telling me that Colton is your mate?" He waits for me to nod, "How does it feel to have finally found your mate?"

"Oliver, that is beside the point." I want to shake him and make him see the real issue. "It felt wonderful for the first five minutes until I was kidnapped by his father. It was great being to talk to him for a while before I found out his sentence. But now? I wish I didn't have a mate. Do you not understand that I will either have to choose between a mate that I barely know but feel deeply for or my pack and the role that I have been raised to take? I need someone to tell me what to pick, someone to tell me how things will turn out."

As soon as the words leave my mouth I regret saying them so harsh. I know that I should be kinder to Oliver, he is just trying to help but I'm not in the mood.

Oliver sighs, "Mia, I know that this is an impossible decision. I can't even begin to understand the pain you are facing. Colton seems like a nice guy that has made some bad choices and the pack is and always will be family. It is like picking your love or your family. I wish I could take some of your pain away, but I can't."

He squeezes my hand and looks deep into my eyes, "I will support you either way and I'm sure that Alpha William feels the same way. If you pick Colton then I will take care of the pack, I will step up and lead in your absence. If you stay, then Colton will forget about you after being given the Eraser, but you will have to live with the pain. I have heard that you will have a rough few months but eventually loose feelings as well after rejecting him. If you choose to reject him I have heard it is extremely painful for the both of you."

"Thank you for talking with me."

"I believe that you have made your choice. I hope to see you later tonight and get the honor of leading alongside you."

***
Just one more chapterrrrrrr!

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