Total pages in book: 220
Estimated words: 205637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1028(@200wpm)___ 823(@250wpm)___ 685(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 205637 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1028(@200wpm)___ 823(@250wpm)___ 685(@300wpm)
“Unfortunately, because of my gifts, my younger brother was soon largely ignored by them. My older brother too, but by then he was old enough to have his own life. My younger brother started to pull away. And my parents let him. He was the weakest of us, after all. Below their notice.
“As he was slipping, I was being showered with attention. I soon learned what my duties would entail. When the royals traveled, I would accompany them as their beta. They told me I was to seek out wolves that would be assets to our kingdom and…steal them, essentially, capturing them with a pack bond.”
Nyfain stayed very still, but turbulent emotions rolled through the bond. If his father had possessed that ability, he would’ve jumped on it.
“At first this wasn’t a grave concern for me. I was young, and my parents saw no fault in it. It would make our court mighty, they said. Everyone tried to steal members from other courts, they said. It was easy. And after I’d taken someone, the royals would snatch up their families to ensure they stayed together.”
“To ensure the royals had first pick of future generations,” Nyfain growled.
“Yes. And I might’ve continued to go along with it. After all, I seemed to naturally understand how to make a pack thrive, and the royals allowed me to make changes for the betterment of the pack. They didn’t ask much more of me than I was willing to give. That is, until my brother tried to leave the court.”
He paused and looked at me.
“You see, Finley, my brother might not have been a bright star, but he was from a very strong bloodline. A bloodline that had churned out me. The royals didn’t want to lose that. So they ordered me to make him stay.”
Weston ran his fingers through his hair and looked away for a moment, expressing more emotion than I’d seen from him before.
“I did, I’m ashamed to say. To keep my life of luxury and my standing in the court. With the blessing of my parents, I did as they asked.” He sucked his lower lip through his teeth. “My brother became wild, after that. Self-destructive. Violent. He became more animal than human. That was when my older brother came to me and told me I was failing in my duty to protect those who were weaker. To protect my family.” He shook his head. “Such simple words that struck me to my core. He was right. What kind of alpha harmed his people rather than protected them?”
He paused for a moment, staring out at nothing.
“I didn’t release my younger brother,” he went on. “I held my bond to him tightly…and released everyone else. I took what little was actually mine and left the court with him, keeping him close until I could nurse him back to health, forcing him into two legs as often as needed, fighting or running or hunting with his wolf until the poison in his thoughts finally bled away. Only when his mind was right did I release him. At that point, he wanted to stay of his own free will. So we moved to the nearest town, spent some time learning the pack there, and I finally challenged, took over, and watched as he worked his way up to my beta.”
I blinked through misty eyes. “That’s a really sweet story.”
“The royals allowed you to leave?” Nyfain asked, his tone unusually somber. I couldn’t read the emotions rolling through the bond, which was unusual for us.
Weston locked eyes with him for a moment. “Let’s just say they got tired of losing valuable wolves trying to keep me.”
“When you returned from the demon lands…” Nyfain let the sentence linger.
“My brother had assumed the role of alpha. He’d found a new beta. The rest of the pack structure was still in place. The wolves in his care were happy and healthy and prosperous. He was leading the life he always should have. While he was not quite cut out for the court, he is more than capable for a large, remote pack. Moreover, once I was presumed dead, the seemingly random attacks on the pack stopped. They had found a level of peace I wasn’t able to give them.”
“That sweet story took kind of a shitty turn,” I mumbled.
Weston shook his head. “Not shitty. My brother is finally out from under his siblings’ shadows. He got his happily ever after.”
“He couldn’t have been happy to see you return,” Nyfain said.
“Salt in wound,” I whispered to him.
“He was happy I was alive. But worried I’d take over, yes. Thankfully, I had a prior obligation.” Weston looked at me. “I did him the courtesy of staying on two legs, took what money and belongings were solely mine, and left again. Those closest to me from the past insisted on leaving with me. It will hinder the pack somewhat, because they are strong wolves all, but my brother has a large, healthy group of young to bolster the numbers. He’ll be fine. Even still, I would’ve tried to deter them if we hadn’t needed numbers. As it was…”