Brayden

15 Still a Pup*

"Aaron!" I can hear Alpha Mason through the phone.

"What's wrong, Mason?"  Ari asks.

"Lilly!" The Alpha responds. Oh no! She just left! What could have happened?

Ari drops the phone and takes off. Clay picks it up.

"Alpha Mason, what happened?" He asks.

"They crashed 5min after leaving your pack house. Sounds like a rogue wolf ambush." He answers.

"Aaron is already after her. I will take a group of warriors with me and follow. We will bring your daughter home to you, sir." Clay tells him.

"Thank you, Beta. Hurry and save my baby girl." I would have never expected to hear Alpha Mason sound so weak. He must really love Lilly.

I see Clay's eyes go foggy as he hangs up the phone. I'm guessing he's updating Ari and getting the warriors ready. He walks past me out of the office, and I follow.

"You're not coming, Bray." He tells me as we reach the front door.

"Yes, I am!" I protest.

"Don't make me put a guard on you, Brayden! You are still a pup, and you going will only distract us!" He yells at me. I never see Clay like this, and I flinch away. "Sorry, pup." He sighs. "Please stay here. I can't look out for you and save her." I want to argue, but the kind look on his face makes it hard to disappoint him.

"Fine." I grumble and head up to my room. I hear him say thank you as I reach the stairs, but I just wave him off.

"Little Bray, sulking in his room." I hear a feminine voice from my doorway.

"Clay, send you to babysit me?" I ask her.

"I believe my brother's words were 'make sure the pup doesn't do anything stupid'... so how are you?" She asks.

"I'm fine, EV... I just wish I could help." I say.

"One day you will be the big bad Alpha and will be able to fight rogues all you want. Right now, however, you being in battle will make Aaron and Clay want to protect you whether you need it or not. Their wolves have accepted you as their pup, so their first instinct will always be to protect you. You would distract them, and they may get hurt." EV explains.

"I guess I never thought about it like that." I mumble.

"They love you, Bray. They will always look out for you no matter what." She says.

"Thanks." I respond.

"Go to sleep. They won't be back any time soon." EV tells me.

"I can't sleep when my family is in danger. I'll stay up until Ari, Clay, and Lilly are safe." I hardly know her, but Lilly already feels like family.

"Let's watch a movie then... we need something to distract us." EV suggests.

"Sure." I say, and we head downstairs.

I don't know when, but I ended up falling asleep on the movie. I woke up when EV flipped me off the couch.

"Hey!" I complained, rubbing my head that contacted the floor. I then notice that Ari and Clay are home and Ari doesn't look happy. I jump up and run to him, giving him a hug. "I was so worried about you! Are you okay? Is Lilly okay? What happened? Did you kill the rogues? Was anyone injured? Ari? Answer me!" I rant.

"I would if you would breathe between your questions." He says, and I give him a look telling him to answer now.

"Lilly is fine." Ari says, placing a hand on my shoulder. "And so are Clay and I."

"The rogues?" I ask.

"Gone." He answers.

"Anyone hurt?" I continue.

"The Delta of Red Rivers is in rough shape. Their warrior is dead... no one else was harmed." Ari explains. "I'm going to bed." He suddenly states, leaving the pack house.

"What's up with him?" I ask Clay.

"He didn't want to leave his mate... it's not surprising considering how crazy his wolf has been without her... the mate bond makes it hard, especially when your mate is injured or in danger, and Lilly is both... they were after her, and Aaron wants to protect her." He explains.

"If it hurts so much, is having a mate really worth it?" I ask. Ari seems on edge since he met her. He's going crazy! How is that a good thing?

"Your mate completes you. She is the other half of your soul. You go a little crazy because you love her. It's amazing and totally worth it." Clay says all misty eyed.

"You will find her one day." I tell him with a smile.

"I hope so." He sighs. "You know it's been ten years since I could find her? Now that Aaron has his mate, it makes it harder."

"Maybe you should take a break and go search for her." I suggest.

"You think Aaron could handle the pack without me?" He asks, eyebrow raised, and I shake my head, knowing Clay does a lot for the pack. "I'm loyal to my pack and my Alpha. She will show up eventually... I hope."

I don't know what to say, so I just give him a hug.

"Go to bed, Bray... I'll see you in the morning." Clay says after holding me a moment. He steps away and heads upstairs. He has the Beta house but chooses to stay in the pack house until he finds his mate.

"Night Clay." I say as he walks away.

"Goodnight." He responds and disappears.