Mated To The Alpha Of The North
Chapter 11

Jax

We were not waiting long before Zeke appeared to lead us down the hall toward the dining hall again, his annoying voice droned on. I tuned him out as I surreptitiously glanced around, looking for any traces of the girl. There were none.

The faint hint of honeysuckle and vanilla seemed to be getting stronger the further we walked into the house, but it still remained elusive, until it disappeared again completely.

I took a quick look around the room when we entered, doing a double take when I noticed my sister staring out the window, seemingly lost in thought. “Ronnie!” I called out, immediately striding toward her. She turned, instantly running into my open arms once she recognized me.

With tears running down her face, she pulled back to say, “Jax! I cannot believe you are finally here. I have missed you so much!”

She continued hugging me for a few more minutes while everyone else took their seats.

I held on tightly, not wanting to let her go, but of course, Zeke’s obnoxious voice had to intrude on our moment. “I figured you would want to see your sister without any further delays, so I had my warriors invite her for breakfast this morning. Let’s eat before it gets cold.” Zeke spouted off, gesturing to the spread.

Though I did not like the guy, I took my seat without saying a word. I actually was thankful for my sister’s presence, but it did complicate the plan. Hell, if I was going to tell him that though.

There was not much talking as we began eating. The food might have been even better than it was the night before. I wondered idly when Asher’s distraction would come into play, though it sounded like most of the people were upstairs. I quickly began thinking of a Plan B as we continued quietly eating.

Asher continued stuffing his face, despite the furtive glances I kept shooting his way. After he had consumed a good portion of his plate, Asher broke the silence in his typical fashion, “Oh, my god. These muffins are to die for. Jax, you’ve got to try one of these man.” I hoped that was not his distraction.

I rolled my eyes at him but snatched up one of the muffins, nonetheless. The gooey chocolate melted in my mouth as I savored the taste. I looked at Zeke and Ronnie in between bites.

Ronnie seemed to be enjoying the food just as much as Asher and was not adding much to the conversation. Zeke kept looking around, seemingly nervous.

I finished off my chocolate chip muffin and turned toward Zeke. I started, “This food is just as great as it was last night, but again your lovely mate seems to be absent yet again.”

Zeke’s spine stiffened, but he quickly responded, narrowing his eyes, “Yes, she was just so excited about the idea of throwing a ball for all the unmated wolves that she wanted to get started on the planning immediately. After all, one month is not a lot of time to pull something of that magnitude together.” Zeke yammered on. He continued, “But she wanted to make sure you guys had a great reunion, so she helped me…”

“Wait! What!? A ball?” Ronnie shrieked, interrupting whatever Zeke was about to say. She went on, “Oh, I can’t wait! And in only a month! There is so much to do. Can I help your mate with the plans please, please, please Alpha Zeke? Shell be so overwhelmed, and I absolutely love this type of stuff!” She enthused.

Normally I would not encourage her in displaying that type of disrespect, even towards Zeke I grudgingly admitted, but that whole speech was so far outside of anything I ever would have thought Ronnie capable of, even if it had been two years since I had last seen her.

Add that to the fact that I knew she absolutely despised planning anything, and I definitely knew she was up to something. Maybe she did know something about the whole Zeke kind of sort of having a mate thing.

Playing along, I enthusiastically agreed, “Yeah, I think that sounds like a great idea. You just agreed there was little time to pull this together. Ronnie can help your mate with the details for the ball while you take care of your alpha duties. I do not mind sticking around a little longer before I head back to the Northern Province.” I noticed Asher animatedly nodding his head in agreement.

Zeke seemed to be trying to come up with some type of an excuse, but with all of us ganging up on him, he was backed into a corner.

A look of resignation crossed his face before he gritted his teeth and replied, “I am sure she would love some help with all the planning. Thank you for your gracious offer Veronica.”

Before anyone could say anything else, four of Zeke’s warriors rushed into the room, looking out of breath. The one in front spoke first, “‘Alpha, sorry for the interruption, but there’s a group of rogues that somehow broke through the boundary.” He finished panting and holding his side.

Another spoke up, “They are heading toward the town!” The others simply stood there, not adding anything to the conversation. Why were they all here if there was a threat? Surely it did not take four warriors to report a threat to their alpha.

Before I allowed myself to react to their words, I looked at Asher. This was probably the distraction he had spoken of.

A discreet nod gave me the answer I needed. I watched silently as Zeke directed his men; however, he made no move to leave. So much for that plan.

Well, if I was not going to get to look around, then we needed to get out of here to start forming a plan. I had a fairly good idea where she was anyway, but maybe my sister would be able get more information when she actually met the elusive woman herself. I tapped my foot impatiently while Zeke finished up with his men.

Zeke turned to us, stating, “If you would like to join me, we can check on the women and children in the town. Veronica can stop by after lunch to help my mate with the planning for the ball after everything calms down.”

Jumping on the opportunity, I quickly declined Zeke’s invitation to join him and instead proposed, “I would actually like to catch up with Ronnie for a while, and I am sure Asher needs to check in with his men. I am sure you can handle whatever is going on.” I enthused, feeling sick even pretending that Zeke was remotely competent.

Asher nodded vigorously while he stated, “Yeah man, I am sure those rogues are causing all kinds of trouble. I got to get back to my men.” He finished while getting up.

I noticed he definitely made sure to clear his plate first, and he grabbed a muffin for the road. Ha! I guess I was rubbing off.

Ronnie and I followed suit, pushing in our chairs and filling our hands with the remaining muffins, or pastries in Ronnie’s case. She always did have a sweet tooth.

Zeke put up no argument and quickly walked us to the door, babbling on about something while we walked. I noticed he made no comment about our having pilfered his food though.

What? This shit was good!

I could not pay attention to him or anyone else. Again, something was bothering me. I wanted to stay right here in this house, but I also felt extremely on edge. I knew I had to be constantly running my fingers through my hair at this point. I shuddered to think of what it might look like. Whatever.

I glanced around, finally noticing that we were outside walking down the path. While lost in my musing, I must have been functioning on auto pilot. I quickly looked around to ensure we were alone before I began, “So Ronnie, do you want to tell us what you know about Zeke’s mate? Since when are you into planning anything?” I finished skeptically, rolling my eyes anyway at her remembering her antics earlier this morning.

I could not resist pulling her into another hug, right after I freed my right hand by stuffing the remains of the chocolate chip muffin into my waiting mouth, as we continued to meander down the path.

Ronnie half-heartedly attempted to shrug me off, but I could tell she had missed me too. Nonetheless, she looked serious when she responded in between bites, “Zeke doesn’t have a mate. There’s a woman that a few of the other girls have seen from a distance, but he never allowed anyone near her the few times she was seen outside the pack house.” I am sure she would have continued; however, she was interrupted by the sound of twin growls coming from Asher and me.

I spun around, immediately intent on going to save that girl from Zeke’s slimy paws, and then, well, let’s just say Zeke may well wish he had run when he had the chance. “I told you! I knew he was hiding something.” I growled out.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Asher pivot to accompany me, a dangerous glint in his eye. No alpha, especially one tasked with being the sole guardian of the vulnerable during a tumultuous time, should ever abuse their power, and Ronnie’s words had just confirmed all our suspicions.

I drowned out Ronnie’s voice and continued heading back to the pack house, intent on making Zeke pay for his actions. However, I was unable to ignore when Asher switched sides, apparently Ronnie had gotten through to him, and began trying to drag me back the other way. “Just stop for a second, man!” Asher called out.

Ronnie’s sharp voice rang out, “Jax! Stop it right this second. We are going to go get her, but we are going to be smart about it. You cannot just go rushing in there. He has all his warriors in on whatever the hell is going on.” She paused for a second when she noticed I had begun to calm down. I wanted to ignore her, but her scolding tone had sounded just like Mom’s used to. It made me stop for a second, long enough for her words to sink in.

I had heard several warriors upstairs. While Asher and I were tough, Ronnie was with us, and we were not even sure where this girl was, though I was positive she was in that house. Something in me just knew.

Asher released me, seeing that I had calmed down some. While Ronnie went on in a softer tone, “We are gonna head back to your place and come up with a game plan before lunch today. Come on Jax, you know I have got your back.”

I did not respond, but we all resumed walking in the direction of my residence for the time being. I was also upset with myself for having dropped my last muffin. I noticed Asher and Ronnie exchanging glances, but I was too caught up in my own head to question it at the moment.

Why did I become so irrationally angry like that? I mean, Asher was upset too, but I had blacked everything out. In that moment, nothing else had mattered but rescuing that girl.

It was like I was already acting like a possessive, mated male hellbent on destroying anyone who stood in my way.

Wait a minute.

Oh. Oh!!

Holy shit.

Could this girl be my mate?