Chapter Six

Cassius' P.O.V

"We have to do something about them!" Arnold roars and the committee then sets his eyes on me.

"If we do nothing about those Easterners they'll continue to barge into our territory and plunder our lands! We cannot ignore this situation any further."

" A meeting may be in order then, Elder Arnold," Says another elder, Elder Suzanne to be exact.

" We cannot fight fire with fire and expect not to get burned in the process. This conflict between us has gone on far too long. A change is in order."

" AND how exactly will that happen, Elder Suzanne? This boy here won't forgive the people who had murdered our Alpha, Our King. He died an untimely death leaving him to succeed him at only fourteen years of age. There will be no compromise reached!" Elder Richard states as he also begins to stare at me.

I continue to listen on in silence as the elders took turns bickering about the same issue and then direct their attention towards me again. I don't bother to address this issue because whatever I say will be biased to them. They are right about one thing though. I have yet to forgive the perpetrators who had taken my father's life and brought a whirlwind of hell in its wake.

I no longer had a childhood. I had to grow up and grow up fast at least for my mom's sake. She had lost her mate, her True Mate. She was in more pain than I and I wanted to help her as best as I could.

I stayed out of trouble and focused all of my attentions on the betterment of the pack. As the years passed and things began to stable out again I realized my childhood had passed me by right before my eyes. I had grown up with little friends and for those who didn't treat me any differently because of my rank or loss dwindled in number. Besides my Beta Grimm and Enforcer Stevens along with Lily, I have no true friends.

I look at the elders with a passive face and begin to sigh. " I am the Alpha and I will not be lectured. Thank you for voicing your concerns. You may all leave." I say close to snarling making them lower their heads and proceed to get up and leave out the door.

Left by myself, I begin drumming my fingertips on the side of the chair. The Eastern lands are going to be dealt with. I had long since made plans to dispose of that wretched Alpha for some time now. But it will do me no good if his sons come after my pack for revenge. In my best interest it would be best to kill off the entire family of them.

"Cass." I hear Grimm's voice come echoing through the mind-link as he opens the door.

"Hm?"

"The meeting. . .how did it go?"

"Stagnate as usual." I mumble dryly. " Two out of the three of them want me to openly declare war on them ridding ourselves of this false, implied stalemate. Elder Suzanne on the other hand wants to compromise with him. I believe she hopes to unite our two packs, but that will never happen."

"Mating. . . promising your heir to one of theirs. It could be possible. Ultimately it is your decision." I nod my head in confirmation.

" And what of the power structure? Who will be Alpha then? That man will never settle to compromise. He wants war and blood and I am very much willing to give him just that." My eyes narrow as I feel some of my power seeping out from the anger showing out through my voice.

"Well. . .you do have two enforcers from their pack. He may be more than willing to give up some luxuries for the lives of his kin."

"Gabriel belongs to our pack now. He has cut off all ties with his pack and isn't willing to go back."

He shakes his head this. "He has already submitted to me. His allegiance is to me now."

"And the new one?"

My eyes widen at his question. I had yet to figure Pierce into any of this. As my mate he's. . . I see Grimm eyeing my contemplative face as he comes closer to me. " I'm not sure of the new one. . ."

" I've heard you've been personally trying to win over his allegiance. That is quite unusual. "

" You do what must be done." I say keenly under my breathe. " As you can already tell, he is no mere member of the Eastern pack. I push my hair back and lean my head to the side as he stares at me with incredulous eyes.

" I've always wanted to slaughter that Alpha and now after stepping into the no-claim territory of our descendant tribal members, I believe he openly insulted us giving me no reason to allow him to go on with nothing but a slap on the wrist. He gives me just cause to openly wage war on him. My have I waited."

" Your Grace. . ."

"Hm?"

"You mean to kill him off as well as his offspring?"

I smile a wicked smile at him. " Isn't that how I always do things, my dear friend Grimm? Never half-hearted, always thorough. The Luna may die alongside them if she so chooses. I can care less."

He drops his gaze as a small smile appears on his lips. " Yes of course, your highness. My doubts were rather unsupported."

" A millennium can pass and it still won't dull the hatred I bear for that man. I will see to it that he suffers, just as my father had." Killing his children right before his eyes. I say in more than my head than anything. I will see to it that he suffers the greatest of sufferings and tortures before I finally find some form of mercy within me to kill him.

I get up from my chair and walk out of council room still a little riled up about the previous meeting as Grimm silently trails behind me. Not even am I a foot out the door when Stevens comes up to me with a sour look on his face. I immediately roll my eyes and set my gaze on him.

" So the old hag sings again." I say dryly.

" The Elders are here for your council. You must listen to them even if you disagree."

" I know, Stevens." Stevens gives Grimm a curt nod as he looks back at me.

" At the last meeting. . .have you gave it some thought?"

" Of course not. I'm not mating with any of these she-wolves or wolves for the matter. I can provide an heir later on in life. I am but nineteen and you all speak of if I'm three hundred."

" The pack will feel more secure if you marry someone and have the other person share the heavy burden that has been put on your young shoulders. As you said you are but of nineteen years of age. No pup that young should have to carry the weight of a kingdom on his shoulders that young by himself."

" And so the husband has finally made his deafly appearance." Grimm says mockingly causing both of us to scowl at him. " I'll leave you two love-birds at peace." He gives me a slight bow as he excuses himself and heads off somewhere into the pack houses.

". . .Your Grace." He tries to reach a hand out to me but I smack it away.

" Don't call me that. You know how much I hate it when you call me that. It's nothing but condescending when coming from your voice."

" You're a pup that thinks he knows everything."

" I am no pup!"

" You are. Greener than grass. and people notice that. Unchecked, and your temperament may get the best of you and you'll make a costly mistake."

He lightly brushes his hand down the side of my face making me inwardly cringe. Before I would usually always welcome his shows of affection for me, but now it just feels disgusting. I move his hand away from me as I try to slip past him but he boxes me in with both hands placed on each side of the wall I'm backed against.

" Stevens. . ."

" You cannot do this by yourself. If you don't choose, the elders will choose for you."

". . ."

". . .So. . ." His hand falls down to my neck gliding down towards the inside of my chest. " Just choose one of us already." I hold in a sigh of pleasure. Though my wolf is growling and is close to snarling, my body is responding as it usually does. I kind of miss this. . . His lips glide down my neck delicately as I think this. As if my wolf finally had enough, I get the strange urge to push him away.

" Enough of this Stevens."

" Your mother and father met by chance." He says still encaging me. " She was from this pack. Your mate is not from here. You met every were of age here and you still can't find her or him. Just give up on this pointless escapade and settle with a Choice mate. They make no true difference. . .as long as if you love them." His voice is soft and blithe as he says this making me divert my aways away from him.

Before I can respond to him I hear a very intense growl coming from the side of me slowly getting louder and louder. Once I turn and look I feel my stomach drop into the very pits of my stomach. Why didn't I smell him or even sense him until now? As he made his timely approach towards us he stops and stares at Stevens for less than a second before practically ripping Stevens away from me. He throws him on the ground and doesn't bother to take another glance at him.

"Pierce!"

Just as Stevens is about to get up completely not expecting that attack, Pierce only kicks him back down with his foot and places it on his neck. With him being a half a foot taller and having much more muscle mass along with strength, Stevens stands little to any chance against him.

" Stop immediately!" I say in an Alpha command, but it has no effect on him.

" Stop you say. You believe I will heed your command why?" I see the extra pressure exerted on his throat causing my eyes to widen.

" Because" I take cautious steps towards him trying to make sure he doesn't hurt him. Is he mad about Stevens touching me? Is that what is causing him to act like this?

" He hasn't done anything to deserve your anger Pierce. . ."

" Just him being born a Northerner, it does." I feel him seethe bitterly while I notice Stevens is beginning to struggle to breathe. " I can rip his head off as I so please."

I go on to touch his arm lightly waiting for the timely swat that never comes. " Just let go of him. " He finally removes his foot from his throat still glaring daggers at him while he coughs.

" Are you ok Ste-" Just as I am about to go over to him Pierce grabs my arm halting me in my steps.

" As long as I am here, you are not allowed to touch him or the same thing will happen to you over and over and over. . .again. Do you understand me?"

My eyes widen as his narrow in anger. So it was because of me. . .

He coughs again while rubbing his throat. " I get it. We can use a man like you on the force. "

" A weakling like you asking me to join your force? I'd rather die first."

" My aren't you courteous. You just have a way with words."

" Forgive him Stevens, it's nothing but a grave misunderstanding. If you would excuse us, I need to talk to him in private."

" At your command." He says as he bows slightly. I pull at his arm furiously unable to contain my once controlled temperament. He just loves to say and do things to incise my anger. He will not be allowed to get away with this one.

As soon as he round the corner I swing him against the wall of the now emptied gathering hall building. " What was that?"

" Me helping you. What else would it be?"

" I didn't need any of your help." I say through clenched teeth but my anger didn't seem to stir his resigned, cool persona.

" As I can recall you take your mates rather seriously. . .yet he isn't yours. . .so that lead me to believe his affections were unwanted. Did I misinterpret something or is that you actually did warrant his affections?" He gives me an icy look making a shiver run through my body.

". . .I did not warrant his affections, but I was well aware of the situation. I could have handled it myself."

" But you didn't. You belong to your mate as does he. After singing your song about the importance of a mate I would have expected you to stay faithful, loyal, just as everyone is making you out to be like but instead you sneak around behind closed doors with-"

" None of that concerns you." Just as fast as I say that does hurt register in his eyes. Why should he feel hurt when he is hurting me just as badly? He doesn't even want to recognize himself as my mate. I mine as well have slept with him just to spite him! Having another man's scent on me. . .another man's mark. It's the same as the rejection he keeps handing out to me day in and day out and it hurts.

" You're right. It does not. But I still must overlook your good health. A debt has yet to be repaid." He says stoically and emotionless. A voice met primarily for an Alpha and his subordinates with no kindred feelings involved. Almost instantly do I feel him distance himself from me even further.

" Just leave me. Pay your debt by leaving." I say madly under my breathe.

" Strangers you want us to be. Strangers we'll become."

________________________________________________________

Pierce's P.O.V

I look at him storming away madly like a child having a tantrum. Though everyone sees him as this easily angered man to be feared by all, all I can see is a man throwing constant tantrums whenever he doesn't get his way. I can't possibly take him seriously. It's almost laughable.

Yet. . .what he said rang true nonetheless. His love affairs should not concern me, but I feel as though it does. My wolf does. Even so, I shouldn't have barged in on them like that. It just made me mad. . .his hands all over him, way too close for my liking.

I blink at that confession. Am I really becoming like him?

Like a kid wanting to be pampered he is probably sitting up in his room sulking. I'm too old for this. I train men not pups. Why the hell should I bother with a spoiled brat? Did I embarrass him that much? I roll my eyes at this. I suppose I should go and apologize properly. . .he gave me permission to leave. I should thank him for that. Though he said it out of anger, his word is his word.

I stalk back towards where we left the man and see him still sitting there in what seems like deep thought.

" Hey."

I stop and look at him.

" You really should reconsider."

" And why would I do that?" I say while narrowing my eyes on him like he is a little bug I want to crush.

" He needs loyal men and he is desperately lacking them. Grimm and I can't always be around for him, but you can. " I shake my head at this.

"You don't like me touching him I get that. . .you must another one of his admirers I'm guessing." I hear him sigh out tiredly. " Even still a guy like you is needed. I barely even sensed you until you had me knocked down on my ass!"

I look at him numbly as he continues to ramble. " Listen, I may be a candidate for his mating selections so it comes with the territory. I can touch him, feel him, touch him again, taste him as I please as long as I have his consent. I don't need yours."

I scoff at this. " Oh but you do. Unless you want to end up somewhere a little less comfortable than the ground." I say close to growling.

Mine! My wolf snaps violently causing me to step a little away from him.

" He doesn't belong to you. You're not his mate. You do know what a mate is right?" As he gazes in on my face he lets out a scoff of laughter. " So you must be the new one eh. . .Pierce is it?"

". . ."

" Well listen up, there are two choices of possible mates: True Mate and a Choice Mate. As we all know or should know, a true mate only comes once in a lifetime. They say you'll know instantly. You'll feel tingles, sparks almost. Lax in one another's company. Understanding of one another. . .you know the whole shebang. They say you'll instantly know the moment you lay eyes on your mate. Choice mates work much of the same but it'll require you to break the old bonds you had with your true mate, whether you met them or not. It hurts and it's painful, but you'll soon begin forming a new one, maybe even deeper than with your True Mate."

I look at my hands for the briefest on moments as I feel an incredulous stare on me. " You can't possibly be. . ." I clutch them in fists and look sternly at him.

" I want nothing more than see him to safety, after all he saved and spared my life. If you get in the way of that I will kill you. I have no hesitations unlike the rest of you. You are no kin of mine and I will feel nothing when I do. Don't tempt me now or ever."

He lets out a short laugh and nods again. " Goddess be good. Cass sure did rack up nicely with you."

" We're not-"

" But you are. You know it. You just continue to deny it. Well this is none of my business. He's all yours." He says dully.

I throw one last glance at him before I begin to walk away and head towards his building.

" All I ask of you is to be honest with him. "

" I'm not his mate."

He smiles at this. " If the sparks doesn't do it for you, just try kissing him. One time is all you need. You'll know for certain then."

". . ."

" What to do. What to do. Hm? I'll say only this much: hurt him, betray him and I'll kill you myself."

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[A/N] So what's a were to do eh?? Do you think Pierce will finally come to the realization that he is, in fact, his mate or is he going to stay stubborn and still push the idea of being just strangers? With their lives at crossroads constantly conflicting, what do you think will happen? Thanks for reading!! Muah!