Dark Times

Chapter Four

I wasn't standing in the presence of the smiley man I'd seen back at the table anymore. This wasn't the man who'd looked ready to coddle me in bubble wrap and call me tiny. This was an Alpha who struck fear into the hearts of his enemies and forced respect from each and every one of his pack members.

The fight seemed to calm under his gaze, though it didn't stop. Two pack wolves were fighting over a woman. One quick look her way said she was enjoying it, though her peers weren't feeling it so much.

As the wolves drew blood with every passing slash, the Mothers pulled their children into their sides, hiding them from seeing the carnage. I didn't get what the big idea was. I'd seen much worse from eight years old. I'd felt worse at eight. Mothers these days had gone soft. How did they expect their children to learn if their children never saw anything?

It was pathetic.

When Aidan growled and his eyes flashed an Alpha's shade of red, the men stumbled apart as if some force had wedged a gap between the two of them. Both raised their heads to the Alpha and instantly submitted.

"Speak," He demanded. There was no follow up. No quantifier. He wasn't even specific with which one he wanted to speak. The men simply looked at each other, daring the other to go first.

The shorter of the two men stumbled forwards a step, then started stuttering. "W-well, uh..."

Oh, I was going to enjoy this. It'd been way too long since I'd seen a grown man piss himself.

"Well what?"

"Angela was cheating on me with Eric."

Aidan glared between the three of them, his stare betraying nothing. I wondered if he knew the names of any of these wolves. If he'd conquered as many packs as Igor had alluded to, then to know so many people by name had to be impossible.

"Is she your mate?" He asked.

"No."

"Then what's the problem?"

Angela's mouth fell open. Obviously, she'd been expecting something different too.

"R-right, Alpha, sir, there isn't a problem."

He gave a simple nod. "The three of you can report to Beta Jackson for your punishments. You've wasted pack and council time."

If only he knew how wrong that was. They couldn't waste council time when no true councillors stood in their presence. Providing we didn't shift, they'd be none the wiser.

It wasn't over yet. From the back of the crowd, an older man started pushing his way through to the centre of the circle. When I spotted his uncanny resemblance to the woman, it was an effort to hide my smirk. A true councillor wouldn't find such a sticky situation funny.

Angela's Dad had something to say.

"This isn't over yet." He grabbed the nearest villain to him by the collar, dragging him down to his height. When he was happy with that, he bashed his head against the other wolf's. Everyone heard a crack.

That was when the chant started. 'Fight! Fight! Fight!'.

Really, I wanted to see how the Alpha would handle it, but Igor gave my side a nudge. A council member- an executioner no less- would get involved. She'd put a stop to the fight. It was unfortunate, really. The day had only just started to get entertaining.

More people were getting involved too. Sighing, I first went for the diplomatic approach. In other words, the council approach.

"Alright guys, break it up. Come on."