Falling For You (bxb)

34. Alex?

5.27.20

Antony's POV

When Allystar stormed out of the room, I stood up to collect the strewn chair and book that was now half way across the room. My ultimate plan was to get him angry enough that he adopted the Alpha mindset, but doing so just made me feel worse. I can't have another of my kids hating me.

The door opened, and I was soon enveloped into Jackson's embrace. The day we agreed to run away together, even if it was disastrous, was the second best in my life. The first being the day my sons were born, obviously. A soft kiss was placed onto my uncovered shoulder; somehow he had baited me into trying off the shoulder shirts, and I had grown attached to the style. When I tilted my head slightly, I felt his brown eyes do their work at calming me down. "What'd you do this time?"

"I was probably going too far, but I had intentionally made him upset to slide him into the right mentality. I know that not every alpha is the same, but I need him to be able to assert himself more. Training an older man is much harder than a little boy. When I was still teaching Alex, he was a young boy with a very moldable mind, so I was able to get him used to very long hours and copious amounts of stress in early development. There's a reason you're encouraged to train all possible heirs almost as soon as they receive a wolf, but I didn't know Ally existed back then."

"I see. It might be better for you to ease him in just a little bit."

"I wish I could, but this pack is teetering on the edge of destruction. I can't lose everything I've worked for again. I'm just nervous that I'll bend him too hard and I'll have lost two children."

"Things have a way of working out, Tony. You're never alone."

A loud knock occured on my office door, so I commanded, "Come in!"

A disheveled guard came into the office, and I was immediately on edge once more. "We were patrolling around the Harsin Mansion, and we found someone sitting on the stairs. We don't know whether to attack violently or use stealth to capture whoever it is."

I thought for a moment. Seeing as it's only one person, I figured I would give Allystar a chance at doing alpha duties. Of course, I would be there to fix it if he made a huge mess, but I was curious how he would approach this conflict after everything I've been teaching him for a month. "I want you to go treat Allystar as if he is your alpha. Whatever he decides to do will be our action."

The woman dipped her head in respect before rushing out of the room. "Am I doing something stupid?"

"I don't think so. Sometimes, the best way to learn is to experience. As long as you're there to keep everyone safe, I think we'll be alright."

I turned my head enough to catch his lips, and I could see the happiness swirling around in his eyes. It had been hard getting over the death of my little boy, and while I still get upset when I think about it, Jacky was always there to keep me afloat.

"We should probably follow them, though."

"That would be necessary."

Jackson grabbed onto my hand, and we ran together after the group my son was in. We caught up at the South Carolina line, and I began to feel a bit of danger when we met the patrol already there. The leaves were damp, but I still wasn't going to take any chances with the possible crunches. "We should move our party so that we can't be smelt by him. Right now, we could be scented at the tiniest wind change." I'm kind of glad that Ally caught that because I was too busy making no sound to remember our scent. He might be better than me at this whole thing!

I could see the mysterious stair person in the moonlight, but I couldn't see its facial features. Everything was pretty silent tonight except for the hooting of owls, so even a slight noise would alert hypothetical enemy on the stairs. The wind suddenly began blowing, but at least it was towards us this time. Jackson's hair flew in different directions, and his posture showed how annoyed he was when he swept the locks out of his face only to have them back. Suddenly, he got an idea, and pulled his son's old hair clip from behind his ear to keep the fly away black blob from making him unable to see. I still think it's adorable when he wears his hair with the clip in it, just saying.

Once we were getting the scent of the intruder, Ally stopped our movements. It was slightly familiar, but also different at the same time. No. I'm going insane just because I'm missing him. It hardly smells the same! Damnit.

"I'm going to try and get a little bit closer. Stay here, but be prepared to fight in case this is a trap." I was proud of Ally being prepared to risk himself for the protection of the pack, but this might have been a little bit too risky for me to be comfortable. However, it is only one person, so it might be okay unless this is all a trap. As far as we're aware, there were only a few survivers. The mansion was really old, so the fire alarms were non-existent. The only people who knew the place was going up were those who lit it, and even then Ash didn't make it out with his life.

My heart was hammering out of my chest when I saw Ally approach, and I grabbed onto Jackson's hand tightly. I can't lose another child without descending into madness. Jackson squeezed my hand back reassuringly, and I managed to return my attention to the child slowly slinking through the tall grass. Suddenly, a cry pierced the night, and I saw a head jerk up to scan the trees. The mysterious stair man's posture was designed to protect something, but I was unable to figure out what the person may have been trying to protect.

Meanwhile, Ally had climbed up onto the rubble, and was slowly traversing across the treacherous stone. I could hardly watch when he began to get closer, but I knew I had to just in case he was in danger. I wanted to be the first person to come to his aid if things turned south. Every muscle was tense, and I wished to poof out of this world at this very second. Maybe hit the skip button? My entire body jolted when a stone came loose under Ally's body, and I saw him drop down like it was second nature. The pebble clattered down for a few more seconds before hitting something else to make an even louder noise.

The stair figure jumped before scanning the area behind it. The next word that went tumbling out of Ally's mouth made my blood run cold, yet it also sent a thrill of excitement throughout my entire body.

"Alex?"