Brayden

06 Aftermath*

Ari called a pack meeting. Everyone was there. He gave an overview of what happened and how they beat the invading packs. He said he was sending the warriors from the other villages back home and thanked the warriors from the Red Rivers pack and their Alpha, Mason, for their help. He spent most of the day meeting with the families that lost loved ones individually. Alpha duties. Since I couldn't follow him around I decided to find Eric and see if his dad is okay.

"Hello." A woman says as she answers the door.

"Umm... I was just... could I... umm." I stammer unable to complete a sentence.

"Eric or Erin?" She asks with a smile.

"Eric please," I say quietly.

"Eric you have a visitor!" She yells into the house then looks back at me. "Come on in honey." She turns and walks into the house so I follow.

"Hey, Brayden!" He says as he comes downstairs.

"Hey, Eric... how'd your dad make out?" I ask.

"He's good! Like you said not a scratch!... you know everyone is talkin' 'bout you." He says.

"Really?!" I ask. "Why would they talk about me?"

"Your speech! Everyone loved it! They thought you were great! People were scared and you comforted them." Eric explains.

"Plus people were questioning if the Alpha was fit to lead... not us of course." His mom says walking in with snacks for us. "Hearing a child speak so highly of him after such a short time opened people's eyes in regards to our Alpha... you know they say children are a good judge of character." She finishes, placing a tray of fruit on the table.

"I didn't realize I impacted them like that... glad I could help I guess," I say unsure how to respond.

"There is also the fact that Alpha Aaron led fearlessly. He put his life on the line to protect his warriors. Most Alphas are more concerned with their own well-being. He has proven himself our Alpha and he won't be 20 for another month." Eric's mom says.

"Wow! That's awesome... it's what Beta James told him to do when they argued about paperwork... I guess Ari just did it his own way." I say

"That he did... well you boys have fun. Stay out of trouble." She smiles as she leaves the room.

"So what are we doing?" Eric asks popping a grape in his mouth.

"We could go to the gym," I suggest eating a strawberry.

"Why would we do that?" He asks.

"Ari was teaching me to fight... I wanna practice." I answer.

"Sure." He shrugs.

Eric's mom tells him to be back in a couple of hours for dinner as we leave. We walk towards the gym just blabbing about whatever we can think of until an older boy stops us. He pushes me to the ground.

"Stupid mutt!" He yells.

"What's your problem?" Eric asks as I jump up in a position to fight.

"He said they'd be okay! He said the Alpha'd protect them! What about my mum!? She was a strong warrior! She shouldn't be gone! He's a liar!" The boy screams in my face. I drop my hands no longer wanting to fight him.

"I said he would protect everyone he could... I'm sorry for your loss. I wish I could help you or say it gets easier... I'm here for you though... I'm Brayden." I say offering him my hand. He looks at my hand and then into my eyes.

"Screw you, Brayden!" He yells punching me in the mouth. I cough and spit up blood and the lose tooth.

"I need to get Ari!" I look at Eric panicking.