And Then She Was Gone

A Tense Exchange

It took the better part of a half an hour to explain how they kept Elizabeth in the dark for all these years. Uncle Dominick and Aunt Shelly, lived secluded from the pack in the outskirts of its territorial region. As soon as they realized at an early age that she was displaying signs of being a noshif, it was all the push Dominick needed to keep her sheltered in obscurity. She had already lost her parents, he couldn't bear to let her face the pack and live a life of turmoil because of it.

The only wolves that she encountered on a regular consistent basis were Uncle Dominick, Aunt Shelly and Alex. It was revealed that Alex had been assigned to her guard when she enrolled in college. It apparently becoming a conflict of interest almost immediately as he developed feelings for her, much to the disdain of Dominick. Even in the periods of abstinence from each other, Alex was still attending his duty. One of his better attributes was stealth but it also helped that Elizabeth was hopelessly aloof, this being one of her defining characteristics.

The three men that sat across from Jason and his three Betas, were all complicit in the deception, and while they swore it was for her own protection, each one had shown subtle signs of guilt and second guessing. Maybe had she not been so secluded, this whole situation wouldn't have been so shocking and jarring for her. However, when they did come up with the idea of leaving her in the dark, they never even thought of the concept of her finding a mate, especially Alex.

Jason's curiosity was finally satisfied, the amount of anger he had for all three of the men across the table from him was intense. All three of them were responsible for his mate living a lie, his delay in finding her was directly their fault. They had denied both her and him of each other, and for that, they most definitely were not going to be on the family christmas card list.

"Good, now you explain it to her.." Jason said in finality. His own voice commanding the tone of the conversation at hand.

"What do you mean?" Dominick questioned, as if there was some other way to relay the information.

"Don't ask stupid questions.." Mark spoke just as clearly as his alpha, intense blue eyes glaring at the Master Beta across from him.

"I haven't been lying to her for twenty two years. I see no reason as to why I need to be the one to traumatize her with the news." Jason said, leaning back idly in his chair, a hand propping his head with his knuckles under his chin.

"No, that's right. You prefer to traumatize her through kidnapping." Alex added himself to the mix, keeping the same steady glare he had adopted earlier in their conversation.

"If you open your mouth one more time, I will not hesitate to whip my dick out and make you choke on it." the young Alpha said in total sincerity, his hard green eyes staring intensely at Alex who diverted his eyes in the briefest flicker before returning the hostile look.

"Where is Elizabeth?" Alpha Ryan quickly stepped in, diverting the topic and bringing it back on track.

"Cane, have the guard bring her." Jason said, and instantly the white haired Beta grunted as he stood to an impressive height, his thick frame taking quick steps and disappearing behind the entrance door.

It was dead silent in the room. All the men equally feeling enough had been said between them, and conversation was no longer needed or wanted. The few moments it took for the Beta return with the guard and Elizabeth were intensely quiet, and seemed to stretch beyond any measurement of recognizable time. Six pairs of eyes immediately going to the door as the handle was turned from the other side. All of them anxiously awaiting for the Helen of Troy among werewolves.

Cane was the first to come through the door, remaining wordless and finding his seat just as quickly as he entered. Joseph trailed behind Elizabeth, who's hazel eyes were showing her mixed emotions, wrought with confusion, excitement and anxiety as they bounced around each of the men. Some she recognized, others unfamiliar to her.