Rejected Mate

Chapter 35

(unedited)

Izzy

  No mention was made about Granite being a bastard, and Aroha wasn't strung up for cheating on the Alpha, so things could have been worse. But not by much in Izzy's opinion.

  She blew a stray hair out of her eyes and rubbed the sweat off her face, then went back to scrubbing the the blood off the floorboards of the new Beta's hut. She was really throwing herself into the task, because if she didn't expend her energy somehow, she was going to do something stupid.

  Blood had seeped into the deep cracks in the old dry wood, lodging itself there like an unwelcome visitor. She splashed more water on the floor to get it to dissolve, then had to mop it up quickly, before it spread everywhere.
  The way the liquid ran across the uneven surface reminded her of Patience and her pool of urine. She shuddered in recollection.
  It was what had betrayed the pure to the Alpha, he'd scented the hCG hormone in her piss, and immediately known she was pregnant.
  God only knew what they were going to do to her and the baby now. Abortion was unheard of among werewolves, because their pregnancy rates were so low, but she wouldn't put anything past Hammer.

  This part of the floor was as clean as it was going to get, so Izzy rose to her feet and stretched out her back.
  Her eyes flickered to the dark corner of the room. She didn't want to get any closer to the nightmare, but no one else was going near it,so it looked like she'd have to. She didn't know how they managed to find such a multitude of things to clean in the one room shack, but they did, and it kept them well away from where Granite had been assaulted.
  Izzy reluctantly made her way over. She splashed water on the red streaks on the walls, then started scrubbing where the blood was thickest.

   They worked over the interior quickly, as no one wanted to spend much time in there. It was habit as much as anything, because the Beta's hut had never been a safe place to be, so even those who didn't know what happened to Granite were desperate to get out.
   The Housekeeper had gathered the cleaning crew together to give the teens something to occupy them, as Hammers 'meeting' had made them miss the school bus. She wished the woman would have just given them a punishment instead.

  Rock and Iron were cleaning the gutters outside, and they had the wood to repair the rotted window frames and broken weatherboards after that. In Izzy's opinion they should burn the hut to the ground and start again, but it was Hammers call.
  Her mate was so close, but she wasn't able to talk to him. It was frustrating, but not as bad as the hurt she felt when he'd rebuffed her.

  He didn't want to talk to her. It was fine, and she was stupid to be so upset by it. So he got his rocks off (pun intended), and now didn't want anything to do with her? Who cares? Typical male.
  Besides, she had been planning to leave today anyway, and would have been long gone by now if it wasn't for the Alpha's interrogation, so she shouldn't be hung up on what Rock did with his life from now on.
  But she was.
  In her original plan they would have said their goodbyes to each other at school, before she left, so they would have had some closure. Now she felt like she was left hanging, blown about by the vagaries of Rock and Hammer, and completely out of control of her life and emotions. She was stuck here, at the mercy of the Pack... at least until school tomorrow. Longer if she was suspected to be implicated in her mothers disappearance. The thought made her shudder.

  This meant she had to watch, while Rock rubbed himself all over the 'pure'.

  It had been a shock when Hammer had made the announcement that he'd chosen a new breeder for Rock.
  Apparently his sons emotionless demeanor during the interrogation had impressed him, and he'd decided to give him another chance to prove himself. All he needed to do was impregnate Melissa, and Rock would be instated as a Warrior, just as he'd always dreamed.

  Yes, Hammer had picked the most unpleasant out of all the unmated 'pure' females.

  Izzy had cringed, and expected Rock to do the same, but her mate had seemed... pleased. It was difficult to tell how he felt from his expressionless face, but she sensed a sort of angry satisfaction there that disturbed her.
  Was becoming a warrior that important to him? She wondered.
  Or was it because he wanted Melissa?
  That thought stung like a bitch, and she worked harder as she tried to burn the angry jealousy out through her over-stressed muscles.

  Rock had nodded to the 'pure' without sending even a fleeting glance in his mates direction.
  She'd told herself he was just being careful to protect her identity, that it was all an act.
  But when he'd touched Melissa's back, and guided her down the rickety stairs, she had to admit to herself that there was more to his actions than duty.
   Rock was treating her as if she weren't a freaking werewolf, but a 'lady' in need of care, and that wasn't normal behavior. He didn't do that for anyone, not even his mate.

  Melissa had clearly been as surprised as everyone else when her name was called, but Izzy knew she'd had her eye on Rock for a while, so she wasn't surprised when the flirting started. It was subtle at first, but there was no mistaking the predatory gleam in her eye, despite her docile demeanor. Submissive behavior was valued in women of the Pack, so her seduction techniques included using a soft voice, exposing her neck, and deferring to him as if he were her Alpha.

  'You don't need to woo him!' Izzy snapped, in an angry internal monologue. 'He's a sure thing! He has to fuck you.' But his behavior ever since had everyone convinced that he wanted to, including herself.

  If she could just talk to him, find out what was really going on...
  Would it make things better or worse? How would it help to know for sure, that he was hungry to fuck another pussy? One that was attached to a womb which could breed him a purebred pup?
  And did she have the right to blame him if that was the case?
  Izzy wouldn't stay in the Pack and Rock couldn't leave, so they were never going to be mates in anything but name. He wanted a place in the hierarchy, and he wanted to sire pure pups. He could achieve both of these goals with Melissa as his breeder.
  Izzy didn't get to have a say, and she certainly shouldn't be plotting a way to sabotage the union.

  'Suck it up buttercup,' she told herself bitterly, 'it's only going to get worse.'