Sold To The Alpha
Hated Ties That Bind Chapter 20

After their meeting, Rowan had excused himself, saying he wanted to wash up and rest, the warrior hadn't come out of his room again that day. Riley had gone to visit his son, making sure he was OK and discussing their next step to try and replace Ariana again before retiring to the room that Archer had allocated to him. At 2am, the Luna found himself wandering the corridors of the Rogue's pack, his mind turning over everything that had happened in the last twenty four hours.

'Can't sleep Luna?' came a gruff voice from behind him, spinning around, Riley found himself face to face with Alpha Archer who was studying him, an understanding look on his face. 'Come with me Luna, let us have a night cap before we retire' the Alpha said as he clapped a hand onto Riley's shoulder and led him back to his office.

Opening the door, Archer gestured to the chair that the Luna had vacated earlier before pulling out two cut glass tumblers and pouring a decent measure of whiskey into each. Handing one to Riley, Archer took a gulp of his own as he settled into his chair behind his desk.

'It's hard when everything we grew up believing is turned on its head in front of our eyes isn't it' the Alpha mused quietly.

Riley nodded as he sipped the smooth liquid, his eyes distant as he wallowed in his thoughts.

'Why did Rowan take care of you?' the Luna suddenly blurted out, 'no offence to you and your members, but he didn't know you and he didn't owe you anything so why take that burden on?'

Archer smiled sadly, 'Rowan has a lot of ghosts that haunt him, and I'm not sure that I have the right to reveal all his secrets' he said simply, 'I already hurt him by telling you about how he supports us, he was always adamant that no-one know! Riley met the warrior's gaze, 'so why did you tell me?' he asked stiffly.

Archer shrugged, 'because you needed to know, Rowan is fiercely loyal Luna Riley and even if he doesn't see eye to eye with you, his loyalty to you and your pack is unwavering. The fact he brought you here when he knows that only Rogue's in need are ever allowed to know our location, tells me that the young man in my clinic is one of the most important people in Rowan's life!

Leaning back in his chair, Archer sighed, 'Luna, the young man that you dislike so much, he has a good heart. He may put the cape of bravado on, meet your jibes with barbs of his own, but it's all an act. Rowan has been hurt deeply in many ways throughout his life and it shaped the man that you see today. He is guarded and closed off, makes decisions that seem on the surface to be selfish or uncaring of others, but in truth are made to try and better the live of the people he has feelings for!

Riley took a gulp of his drink as he allowed the Alpha's words to sink in, 'he still kidnapped my mate though' he muttered more to himself than his companion.

'That he did' Archer agreed softly, 'out of interest Luna, do you also treat Graham, the other party involved in your mate's kidnapping, the same way? Do you hate him as deeply as you hate Rowan? Do you snap at him, and Belittle him too?' Riley looked up at Archer in confusion, 'well no.. ' he said hesitantly.

'Why is that Luna? Surely, Graham deserves more of you wrath that Rowan does? He was the one who planned and recruited to take your mate from her family, he was the one that drugged her and stole her memories. From what Rowan has told me about that time, he is guilty of taking her, yes, but other than that, he treated her well. He trained her so that she is the strong woman that leads your pack, he was careful to never harm her other than the usual injuries our kind sustain during warrior training. So why is it that the man who plotted the kidnapping of your mate is spared your anger, but the man who actually committed the offence can never be forgiven?'

Riley scowled as he battled internally, 'because.. because..' he muttered angrily, 'because he kissed my mate!' he finally burst out. 'He kissed her and tried to get her to pick him over me! She is mine! Not his!' Breathing heavily, Riley sank back into his chair, his grip on his glass so tight that his knuckles were turning white.

Archer smiled as he nodded, 'so your anger doesn't ever seem to have been about the fact that Rowan kidnapped your mate, but more to do with the fact that he developed feelings for her when she belonged to someone else? Belonged to you' he stated quietly. Running his finger around the top of his glass that he had placed on the desk in front of him, Archer continued, 'but now Rowan has his own mate, Gabby? He is no longer interested in Isabella, so why do you still hate him so badly?'

Riley struggled to rein in his anger as he delved through feelings that he had buried so long ago, 'what if he changes his mind about my daughter?' he finally muttered, 'what if one day he wakes up and it's Isabella all over again, suddenly my Gabby isn't the one for him, it isn't the mate bond and he breaks her heart? My baby is strong just like her mother, but I see how she looks at him, if he leaves her, she'll never be the same again!

The Alpha leaned forward, his elbows on the desk as he studied the Luna intently, 'that isn't how the mate bond works Luna, we both know that. Rowan's feelings for Isabella died because she was never meant to be his. Gabby is his entire world, you can see it in his face every time he speaks about her or someone mentions her. The man is so unbelievably in love with your daughter it's almost painful to look at, and though I can't tell you all his secrets Luna. I will say this, that man, that you can't forgive for one foolish error of judgement, he deserves love because he sure as hell never had any before he met her!

Archer shook his head as Riley went to open his mouth, 'no Luna, that is not a story for me to share, that is Rowan's story and I will always respect his right to share it or not with the people he calls family!

Unknown Location

'No no no no no! what did I do? I didn't mean to do it!' Ariana paced back and forth in the dimly lit room, pulling at her black tresses heartbrokenly as she replayed the image of the strangely handsome man running in her direction, his hands stretched toward her as her spell hit him squarely in the chest. The momentary look of surprise that had passed fleetingly across his face before he crumpled to the ground, his breathing laboured, his hands still reaching for her hopelessly.

'I shouldn't have run away, I should have stayed and helped him' she whispered desperately. 'But I couldn't, I didn't have a choice, HE was there, he would have hurt me just like he hurt Vincenzo, and those others that were with him.. would they have let me explain? They were protective of the injured man, I could feel it, they wouldn't have listened, they just would have attacked me if I hadn't got out of there. Anyone who can be friends with that monster, must be monsters as well!' The squawk of the black raven that was sat on a perch behind her ruffling his feathers, drew her attention. 'I wanted to help him Bramwell, I don't understand why? But... I felt like I knew him, do you think he's OK? Why do I even care?' Frustrated, Ariana slammed her hands on the wooden table in front of her, causing the bottles of potions to rattle against each other from the impact.

'No, I must stay focused, the monster is on the loose again and he must be stopped before he hurts another!... but his mate... how will it affect her?..' she muttered as her eyes furrowed with her conflicted emotions, 'I would be helping her though, protecting her even. She doesn't know who he is or what he is like! She would survive his death, someone as black hearted as him could never truly love another so would not be completely bonded to her' she whispered to herself.

Raising her eyes to the Raven who glared back at her unblinkingly, Ariana smiled, 'you know that he will come for me Bramwell, of that I am sure. Now that he knows I am the one who cursed him, he will want revenge and to snuff out the danger to his life. I need to begin to prepare, and maybe, if the opportunity presents itself to me, I'll replace him before he replaces me.

The Raven tipped his head sideways, letting out a soft caw, rolling her eyes, the young witch shook her head, 'that other man... I doubt he could have survived my curse, it was intended to kill Rowan ad was potent' she said, a cold hand slipping around her heart and squeezing it tightly, causing her to gasp involuntarily. 'If.. he... she started before pausing and clearing her throat, 'if he is OK, well that is one less burden for my shoulders to bear' she mumbled as she began to move around the room picking up bottles and boxes to place on the table.