Denying The Alpha
Chapter 24

Faith. I ignore it. I just want to continue to sleep. Faith. The feminine voice repeats. I know who it is. I'm just too foggy to register it right now. FAITH, WAKE UP, FOR GODDESS SAKE!!! Sapphire yells at me. I don't know how long I have given her control so that I can sleep but, I am glad that I did. Still, it's hard to push my consciousness forward right now. I always struggled to wake at first. Apparently, it was no different in here.

Okay, okay, I'm awake. I reply, still half asleep. We're almost there. She tells me.

How do you know? I was fully awake now, watching the world around us whizz by, and I couldn't see anything but trees and more trees.

I can smell it. She says like I am the one being ridiculous.

Smell it? I mean, I guess it made sense. She did have an incredible sense of smell, and werewolves had their own unique scent, so I think it was entirely possible to smell out a group of wolves.

Yes, smell. I can also sense the boundary. She admits. I have heard that wolves can feel the boundaries of other packs. It's how rogues knew when they got too close to a reserve, so they didn't accidentally cross into it. Alpha Jackson was always able to tell when a person or werewolf crossed our boundary who wasn't supposed to, not that it happened often. Amelio's wolf slows to a trot, and Sapphire follows suit.

Two half dressed humans step out from a place of hiding. Wow, the men here are fit. I thought.

We do not need a man right now faith. Sapphire snaps, but I get the sense that's it's not really me she's upset with. She's still hurt because of Declan. I was too, and I was in no way ready to be with anyone else yet, but I hadn't gone blind. Amelio shifts, and I avert my gaze.

"Go shift," he tells me.

Sapphire gives me the control back, and I trot over to the thick trees. I use my snout to push at the bag until it finally drops.

I slipped the filthy black dress back on that my father packed me and made my way out. I wish he had thought of slipping in more than one outfit, but it could be worse. I could be naked right now, and I wasn't.

Both men's noses turned up slightly, although they did their best to try and hide it, which I appreciated. I must smell terrible right now. Not only was I a rogue now, but I had also been rolling around in dirt and mud and moss. I have also been running all day without so much as a shower. It was a wonder with their incredible sense of smell that they could stand being in my presence at all.

"Hello", I half-wave awkwardly at the pair. I have nothing against either of them. I don't even know them, and this was, on my part, a terrible first impression, but I hope I do not make a habit of seeing them around in the future. I didn't want them to think of me as the smelly no good rogue she wolf.

"Hey", the first gave me that polite awkward smile you gave someone when you were unsure of what else to do. The other simply nodded in my direction.

"Is Alpha Kyle aware of this, Amelio?" The man who nodded asked blandly. Why don't you just come out and say you disapprove of the rogue? He and I were not going to be friends.

"This is my niece. She may smell like a rogue, but I assure you she is not. She is simply transferring from her old pack to this one. Before she could transfer, she had to break away from her old pack." I don't know why he was explaining it to this douche, I thought bitterly. If their Alpha was cool with it, why should I have to explain myself to some hot warrior? Instead, I held my tongue. This wasn't his fault. He was just being cautious. I try to remind myself. "Why?" He stares at me distastefully.

Boy better watch himself. Sapphire snapped. I could both feel us growing rather sharp as the hours passed on. Could the insanity really set in this quickly? Is that what all this anger was? A side effect of being a rogue? Ugh, I hope this doesn't last. Calm down. I tell her, but it's hard when I'm on edge myself.

"That between Faith, her old Alpha and her new one." Amelio is deadpanned. I was grateful to him for keeping my secret. I wonder, how long will any of this stay secret? It's rare for a werewolf to reject its mate. Surely rumours would spread and quickly. The man's face goes blank, and his eyes flicker. I know this look. He is mind linking someone. My money is on this Alpha Kyle. I wonder what he's like? Was he kind? I hope so.

"You may pass." That is all he says as he steps aside.

"Do we shift?" I ask Amelio.

"No. You are a rogue wolf. The pack is aware of your presence now, but seeing you in your wolf form might put a few members on edge. It's best if you stay human." Amelio explains.

I feel sapphire bristle a little at the idea of being called a threat, but honestly, I understand. If I were still at crescent moon and I saw a rogue wolf, I would question it.

"Where are we going now" I would understand if he wanted to take me straight to this Alpha Kyle, but I would appreciate a shower first. I had dried mud and small twigs in my hair, and don't even get me started on how itchy I am right now. "To the pack meeting, of course," he smiles obliviously down at me. He had to be joking.

"WHAT" I squeak. Appearances weren't everything except that they were. Come on. He wanted me to meet the entire pack for the first time LIKE THIS. I'm going to be sick.

"I'm just kidding." he chuckles. "We're going home. Amy can't wait to see you. Then you need to call your mom and dad and get cleaned up. Alpha Kyle will see you in the morning after you have had the chance to eat and rest properly." he bumped his shoulder gently against mine.

I could slap him. He got my heart racing there for a moment.

"OH MY BABY", Amy sequels excitedly as she races down the stairs, arms wide open. Before I can say or do anything, I'm already in her arms. She picks me up and spins me around in a circle the same way she always would when I was little, except she could barely get my feet off the floor anymore.

"Oh darling let me get a good look at you", she cooed as she set me back down on the ground. She takes my hands in hers and praises me up and down.

"You look exhausted," she says as she clicks her tongue disapprovingly, "I'm so sorry, Faith" she huffs and sighs. Her concern for me is genuine as it reaches her eyes. I wish I knew what to say to her right now, but I don't. "Thank you" I shrug and shuffle my feet a little.

"Come on. Let's get you inside." A regretful smile mares her face. I wish she wouldn't worry about me so much. I knew my situation was pathetic, but when other people felt bad for you, it just somehow highlighted how pitiful it was. "Thanks, Aunty Amy," I mumble back.

A shower had never felt so in my entire life. For the first two minutes, the water ran dirty brown. The thought of how disgusting I was made me shudder. Amelio was in that forest with me, and he didn't get half as dirty, and he went hunting. Then again, my fear had me literally rolling the mud, a good thing, too, because that fear saved my life in the end.

When I stepped out of the shower and into the spare room that Amelio and Amy had set up for me, I noticed a stack of different clothes neatly folded at the end of the bend. I was too tired to care and slipped into the first pair of pants and whatever shirt was on top of the pile.

I dragged my heavy feet back down the stairs. It crushed me a little to walk away from that bed, it looked so comfortable, but I still had to call my mom first. I wanted to know how my dad was doing. I hope that he was okay. As soon as I saw Alpha kyle in the morning, I would beg for his help.