Sold To The Alpha
Hated Ties That Bind Chapter 22

Galena finally gave Nathaniel the all clear the next day, the warrior jumping out of bed ecstatically and running around the room, pulling on his clothes and throwing his things into his back pack. 'Chill dude' Landen groaned as he sat in one of the chairs watching the Alpha fly around grabbing his belongings.

'I have been stuck in a bed for four days Lan, I want to get going' Nathaniel grumbled back, pulling a brush through his hair distractedly.

Grabbing his bag, the Alpha made his way out of the room, his Beta behind him as the pair made their way to the mess hall where Archer's pack and the rest of their group were sat eating breakfast.

'The invalid rises!' Alessia called out as she grinned, the two warriors walking toward her, Nathaniel slipping into the seat beside her, Landen on the other side of him.

'I can't believe how much you play down my injuries!' The future Alpha grumbled as he reached out for some of the bacon and sausages that were on large platters in the centre of the table in front of him.

'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger Alpha' the she wolf replied with a wink, 'which means you should have been up and about days ago.'

Shaking his head in amusement, Nathaniel started to cut into his food, listening to the conversation that was happening to his right between Archer and Rowan.

'Are you sure you want to set off today my friend?' Archer asked worriedly, 'you are welcome to remain here a few more days if your Alpha requires it.

Rowan shook his head, 'thank you Archer, but it's ok, Nathaniel is eager to replace his mate and she will only slip further away from us the longer we sit here!

Archer nodded solemnly before leaning closer to the warrior, his voice dropping lower, 'be careful Rowan, you know the depths of that woman's pain. She will try to take you out and I'd hate for you to return to the Goddess so soon, especially as I am yet to meet your beautiful mate; he said, a smile on his lips as he spoke of Gabriella.

Rowan grinned, 'I have no intention of leaving my mate Archer, she would resurrect me just so that she could then inflict unimaginable pain on me for having the audacity to leave her' he laughed. 'I will bring her to visit you soon my friend, and thank you for allowing us to stay here while Nathaniel recovered!'

Archer waved his hand dismissively, 'please, I owe you my life Rowan, my pack is your pack and always will be, just don't leave it so long between visits this time' he ordered sternly.

'Yes Alpha' rowan replied in amusement, causing the Rogue to roll his eyes before he laughed.

Walking up to the group, two Omega's bowed to their Alpha, the Rowan and finally to Riley and Nathaniel before holding out a tray packed with wrapped sandwiches and pastries. 'For your journey' the male Omega said softly.

'You didn't have to do that' Landen protested.

'It is an honour Beta, we rarely get to show our gratitude to Beta Rowan, this is the least we can do' the Omega replied.

'I am not a Beta' Rowan grumbled under his breath but was careful not to be loud enough to be heard by the two Omega's who were still waiting with hopeful expressions.

'Thank you, that is really kind' Nathaniel said as he took the tray and placed it on the table so that the group could pack them in their bags.

Bowing again, the Omega's hurried away back to their tasks as Rowan glowered at Archer, 'why are they calling me Beta still?' he growled in annoyance.

Archer shrugged, 'I can't get them to stop calling me Alpha, and you actually think I have a hope in hell of stopping them from calling you Beta?' he asked as the table chuckled at Rowan's defeated expression as he sank back into his chair exasperatedly. Soon the group were packed up and standing at the entrance, Archer beside them as he shook each of the warrior's hands in turn before turning to Rowan and pulling him into a tight hug.

'You better remember your promise' the Alpha growled, 'don't make me hunt you down, I want to meet that mate of yours!

Rowan smirked, 'I'll make sure I have ample bandages just in case you decide to track me down alone' he replied flippantly.

Rolling his eyes, Archer turned to Nathaniel, 'keep him safe Alpha, he is important to this pack' he said in a low voice as the future Alpha nodded solemnly.

With a final wave, the group set off out into the morning sunshine, they could hear the soft tread of wolf paws to their left and right so knew that Archer's men were guarding them until they got out of the forest. Breaking through the tree line, Rowan turned to the shadows and lifted his hand in thanks before the six companions made their way onwards, hurrying to catch up with Nathaniel, Alessia plucked at his arm hesitantly. Looking over at her, the werewolf's face broke into a broad smile, 'hey, you OK?' he asked warmly.

Alessia nodded as she fiddled with the strap of her ruck sack nervously, 'umm, Nate' she started, 'I know you want to search for Aliana but.. do you think we could head back to the witches village first?' she asked softly. Nathaniel's brow furrowed, 'yeah sure, any reason why?' he asked curiously.

Alessia let out a sigh as she distractedly pushed her hair behind her ear, 'when you were unconscious, one of Alpha Archer's pack children came to bring me food. She said I looked like someone she met.. turns out it was my brother' she admitted, hope shining in her eyes. 'She said he headed toward the witches village so I'm hoping someone there may remember him as he passed through!

The future Alpha nodded immediately as he mind linked the others saying that they were taking a detour to the village before heading out to replace his mate.

Alessia slipped her arm through the warrior's hugging it gently before letting go again, 'thank you Nate, I know you are desperate to replace you mate so I really appreciate the sacrifice' she murmured. Nathaniel shrugged as he let out an embarrassed cough, 'we are also looking for your brother, I'm not going to walk past a lead when it presents itself' he replied with a small smile.

Walking together in easy silence, the two start to eavesdrop in interest as Daniel randomly punches Riley in the shoulder, his scowl evident, 'I do NOT hide from my mate' he grumbled loudly. Riley laughed, 'umm did you or did you not change into a set of my clothes and get under the kitchen table when you broke her favourite vase last year so she couldn't replace you?' he asked innocently. Daniel growled, 'you can laugh, Mr "I lived on the Omega's floor for a week after my mate found out that I let our youngest child drive my car when he was fourteen!" yeah? Didn't see you so cocky then mate! 'Did you dad really do that?' Alessia whispered as she giggled quietly.

Nathaniel nodded as he tried to smother his own laughter, 'yeah, my brother Henry wanted to go see his girlfriend and was pestering dad to drive him, dad was trying to watch the football on TV and threw his keys at him, told Henry to drive himself. Dad swears he thought it was me that was talking to him, but mum went mental, chased him around the pack house until he got one of Omega's to hide him from her in one of their spare rooms!

Alessia laughed harder, her stomach hurting as she clutched it, 'it must have been so much fun living in your pack' she said excitedly.

The future Alpha nodded with a smile, 'yeah it really was, mum was the ball breaker, wanted us all highly trained and insisted on good grades at school. Dad was the soft touch, especially with Gabby, she could get away with anything with him, he could never bring himself to punish her, all she had to do was pull the innocent baby face and he was mush.'

The she wolf's grin widened, 'ah that's how it's meant to be with daddy's and their daughters, especially when they only have one' she replied.

'Was your dad like that with you?' Nathaniel asked, interested.

Alessia nodded, 'yep, my brother was my dad's shadow, they did everything together, dad trained him in everything from fighting to how to tend the land. Dad used to say that it was just as important to be able to feed a family as it was to protect them. I was his baby girl though, he wouldn't ever believe that I would do wrong, would get super protective when anyone tried to say I was doing something bad' she giggled.

Nathaniel raised an eyebrow, 'and were you doing things you shouldn't have?' he asked keenly.

The she wolf blushed as she nodded, 'I may have been guilty of bending a few rules, especially after I realised that my daddy would never believe that I was in the wrong!

The future Alpha laughed, 'Oh you sound just like my sister, she would love you! I am soooo glad that you two didn't know each other growing up, I think mine and your brother's lives would have been t*****e!

Alessia beamed, 'I would have loved to meet your sister, everything that you and Rowan have said about her makes her sound like so much fun' she confided.

'Fun is one word for her, I prefer annoying, or insolent, or conniving, or my particular favourite treacherous' the warrior replied with a pained look.

'Hey! That's my wife you are talking about Alpha, don't make me pick a fight with you' came Rowan's amused growl from behind them.

The pair turned their heads to look at Rowan and Landen who were walking together, Nathaniel raised an eyebrow, 'you think you can beat me warrior?' he asked challengingly.

Rowan shook his head, 'not me mate, but if I have to tell my mate the things you are saying about her, I'm sure she'd be more than happy to accept a challenge from you' he replied as Landen started to laugh. The Alpha's face paled at his warrior's words, 'nope! No need to bring my sister into our squabbles Ro, come on, bro's before hoe's and all that' he said quickly.

Rowan arched an eyebrow, 'did you just call your sister.. my mate.. a hoe Nate?' he asked slowly.

Nathaniel raised his eyes to the heavens as he muttered, 'I'm gonna quit whilst I'm behind here.'

Turning back to the front, he blocked out the chuckles that were coming from behind him, raising his eyebrows at Alessia who was laughing as she walked next to him.

'Are you laughing at my expense warrior?' he asked in amusement.

Alessia nodded, 'I can't believe you used the term Bro's before Hoe's to the mate of your sister' she spluttered.

Nathaniel blushed, 'OK so I'm not the most motivational of speakers, but you haven't met my sister, she's vicious when provoked' he whined before breaking into a laugh of his own.