(Alaric's POV)
"Donaghy, we'll figure something out. You can't leave."
I stand outside of Don's room in the pack house. His dad, the beta, is trying to convince him not to leave. After many failed attempts of Don trying to see his mate, he's frustrated and angry.
"I'm not staying, dad," he tells his father. He walks out of his bedroom door. He throws a duffel bag over his shoulders. I know he hasn't taken all of his stuff. He's been living here for years and that can't all fit into one duffel bag.
"Are you sure you want to leave," I ask Don.
"I'm not staying here with an alpha that couldn't protect my mate. Do you understand how fucked up that is, Alaric," Don asks me. I can't force him to stay and I completely understand why he wants to leave.
His mate is locked up in a dirty cell and his alpha didn't even try his best to help. I couldn't do anything and I'm his best friend. I let him down.
"So you're going rogue," I ask him, not trying to stop him from leaving.
"No, but I can't stay here, waiting for some miracle to get Chris out of that fucking cell. I have to find a way. I'd rather die than to just let them torture her. If I see Arsenio's face ever again, I'll fuck him up and he'll regret all that he's ever done."
"Hey, that's your alpha. You can't talk about him like that. Your not leaving and that's final" his dad tells him.
"Do you think I care? He's not my alpha as long as my mate is stuck in that cell." Don starts walking down the stairs and I race after him, his dad right behind him.
"Don, your next in line for beta. You can't leave," his dad still tries to convince him.
"You know everything I've said is true, dad. I understand that you are bound to him, but I'm not. I've never looked at him with respect, but now, he's no longer over and above me." Don stops once he's at the front door and turns to look at us.
I know his dad still wants to try and convince him to stay, but he understands the pain his son is going though. Instead, he pulls him in for a quick hug.
"I'm sorry I couldn't do anything. I'll try my best to fix things from here and you call me whenever you need help with anything," I tell Don once his father pulls away from him.
"I don't blame you, Alaric. It's not your fault. It's your alpha's fault. I'm going to find a way to get Chris back." Don walks out of the pack house and I don't know when is the next time I'll see him again.
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"Sorry, I can't come to the phone right now. Leave a message and I'll call you back."
"Hey, Gianna. I've called a couple of times and I'm still waiting for a call back. I haven't heard from you in a while. Please, call me back. Bye." I pace around my room, pulling at my hair.
I have no idea how Gianna has taken the news of her dead father. I've been calling her for a while now. She already has a lot on her plate with the pregnancy and now the death of her dad might just send her over the edge.
My phone vibrates on my bed and I jump to get it. I answer and put the phone to my ear.
"Hello," I answer, not knowing who's on the other side of the call.
"Stop calling my sister's phone." I'm greeted with an angry Gio, which is not expected.
"Can you tell me if she's ok? I can come over and help out with anything. Gianna is my fiance." I know I don't like Gianna in that way and she's mostly a bitch at times, but I know how it feels to lose a parent and I would never wish it on anyone.
"The arrangement is off. My father made the deal with your alpha, but now he's dead. The arrangement is dead."
I'm stunned silent as I try to process this new information.
"What about the other agreements with the park warriors and weapons? Have you gone over this with my alpha? I'm still the father of the baby and I still want to be there. I need to know if they're doing ok."
"The agreements between your alpha and I have nothing to do with you. What I discuss with him is none of your business. I think you and your squad have done enough damage to my family. You stay the hell away from my sister." Gio's voice is so robotic I can barely recognize it. It's cold as steel, but it still burns me deep inside.
He hangs up the phone in my face before I can say anything else.
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"Anne, where the hell are you?" I lay on the floor of this broken shed, looking up at the stars. I'm pretty sure it's more beat up than it was before.
I take a sip of the wolfbanes, already feeling woozy and weak. I figured I couldn't get anymore useless, so I gave this a shot.
It helps me forget about everything, one by one, shutting down my mind and body. It shuts out my wolf from trying to talk sense into me. I can barely lift my arm to get the bottle to my mouth.
"I need you," I call out for her. I feel like I can't breathe and I don't know if it's emotionally or if its the wolfsbane.
I laugh at my own stupidity.
"Why am I calling for you as if you can hear me," I ask Anne, as if she's here, inside this broken down shack.
"I just hope your ok." My eyelids feel heavy as I take another sip. My body has become addicted to this feeling that wolfsbane provides. It takes a lot more wolfsbane to knock me out than the first time I tried it out.
As long as it does the trick, I don't mind having to search hours for it.
My body slows down. My heart even seems to beat slower. Parts of my brain shut down as the minutes tick by until I can't think or focus on anything, including Anne.
The only thing I see are the stars until the wolfsbane pulls me in so deep that I black out.