Page 63 of Shifted Fate (Broken Luna #1)

I turned back to the matter at hand and watched as my mother begged for Shannon.

“I asked why not? Why can’t I put her in her place?

” Nix’s anger surprised even me. Normally, we shared the same mind, and she was the voice of reason.

Unranked wolves were weak. They don’t need to be pushed down any more than they already are.

Their wolves have the instinct to roll over and bear their stomachs whenever an Alpha or Beta comes into the same room.

As ranked wolves, we don’t need to exert our dominance over them.

“Nix, she is unranked. Her wolf is weak.” My mother pleaded with my wolf.

“Is she? I don’t know. Her human is rather prideful.

She walks around here, and this pack forces stronger wolves to do her bidding by using her Beta father’s rank over the entire pack.

She has learned to flex her father’s rank, not her own, to get what she wants, and everyone falls in line because Morgan supports her. ” Nix growled out.

My mother’s hand fell. “What do you mean?”

Nix’s head snapped up. “Do not play dumb here, Mother.” Her voice was a little vicious, and that’s when I pushed forward. I had nearly pushed Nix back when the door exploded open. Morgan, Vince and Brandon rushed in, skidding to a stop seeing how big my wolf was.

“What the fuck is going on?” Vince’s power slammed out, trying to take control of the situation.

Nix’s eye glowed, and she let out a bloodcurdling growl. “Do you want to measure aura for aura Alpha? I think I’ll win.” Nix slowly turned to face the men at the door, and I watched as Brandon shivered.

His eyes blew out with heat, and I wanted to gag.

I heard a low, mournful howl from deep in my soul and knew I had to take hold of this situation, or everything would be ruined.

“Nix! I need you here for Megan. I’m not strong enough to fight her back.

” She ignored me, but I felt a flicker of worry.

I heard another howl, and this one was a little closer, like Megan was making her way back.

“Get off my daughter.” Morgan started forward, but Nix let out a vicious growl.

“Who are you to tell me what to do?” She looked back to the Alpha.

“Your Beta steps out of line to protect his pup. This one…” Nix pressed her paw into Shannon’s face.

“Struts around this pack, making demands higher than her station. She thinks your son and her father will protect her from ranking battles.” Vince turned and looked at the two men.

“Is she telling the truth?”

Nix chuffs. “Morgan has hospitalized four she-wolves, including the Beta female, Sydney. Brandon has scared the entire school to listen to her pathetic demands.” I pushed forward.

“Nix, I will make your point.” I looked back to the forest as Megan breached the trees. She was limping but increasing her speed. “I will say whatever you need me to say, but you need to handle Megan.” I screamed out and pushed forward again. This time, she let me slip past her and take control.

“You are lying.” Vince’s anger was directed at me, and I chuffed out another laugh.

“I’m not, ask them.” I flexed my claws, pushing them into Shannon’s face, but not breaking the skin. I looked up at Morgan. “Tell the truth, or I will blind your mutt of a daughter.”

“She’s telling the truth.” His words were whispers.

“A little louder Beta, no one can hear you.” I yelled.

“She’s telling the truth. I put Sydney in the hospital last year because of Shannon.” He cut his eyes to Vince. “She is just a pup. My pup.”

“She is weak!” Vince screamed.

“Dad…” Brandon started.

But Vince turned full circle to stare at the two of them.

“You both abused your rank to protect an unranked wolf when she was overstepping. We have ranks for a reason. There is a pecking order for a reason. Ranked wolves are to protect the unranked wolves. Unranked wolves are supposed to fall in line. They are the backbone of the pack, but they need to know their place!” Vince screamed.

“You had a weak child, Morgan. You mated an unranked wolf and had an unranked wolf. That is the chance you take when you mate outside of your rank.” Vince turned back.

“But you do NOT allow your unranked daughter to push around the ranked wolves. You throw the entire order of the pack out the window when you do that.”

“She is my pup.” Morgan tried again.

I growled, tired of his shitty excuse. “And what?” I tossed out.

“She is your daughter, but no one was trying to fight her. No one was abusing her, which, by the way, runs rampant in this cesspool of a pack.” Vince’s eyes tightened at my words, but he kept quiet.

He thought it was still my wolf in charge, and he knew what I was saying was true.

“She was kept apart from all of that, out of respect for your rank. It was only when she threw her status of the Beta’s child or the Alpha apparent’s girlfriend around to push wolves to do her bidding.

Her homework, stealing their money, their clothes, abusing other unranked wolves for pleasure, that others stood up to her.

Even they found what she was doing disgusting.

But she ran back to the two of you, and like fucking pawns, you came running to fight, or abuse, your own rank to make the others fall in line. ”

“Nix, it isn’t like that.” Brandon tried to come forward and I growled again. “I, I, I did it, Father.” Brandon turned to his dad and nodded.

Shannon screamed beneath my feet. “Brandon, why?”

“Because she is right. We turned our pack into a fucking circus placating to you.” He tossed out and dropped to his knees in front of Vince. “I knew at the time that it was wrong. But Shannon had convinced me that the girlfriend of the Alpha apparent shouldn’t be seen as weak.”

“Brandon…” Shannon cried weakly, but I flexed my claws again.

“I would stay silent if I were you.” I dropped close to her.

“I am close to killing you to cull the rot from this pack.” But even with my words, I knew it wouldn’t help.

There was something fundamentally wrong with this pack.

I looked up at Vince and felt a kick in my stomach.

Vince had something to do with it, and I think that is what my father wanted me to figure out.

“Why would you do this?” Vince’s voice was low, and his eyes flickered to me. “After everything I told you, raising you, why?”

“Because I had needs, and she was the easiest to get it from.” Brandon cut his eyes back to me -and I saw the longing, but I felt the bile raise in my throat. But I also tasted the hint of a lie from his words. He wasn’t being completely honest.

Shannon screeched letting me know she heard it, and I felt a little bad about it.

I mean, who wants to hear that the man they love was only with them because they were easiest to fuck?

I could see the fire in Morgan’s eyes as the truth came out.

The relationship he was banking out between Shannon and Brandon was just one of convenience for the Alpha apparent, and not the one based on love for his daughter.

Vince cut his eyes to Morgan. “And you?”

Morgan stared daggers at Brandon. “Shannon had always loved your son from the time she could walk. Everyday she would talk about mating him, and I had hoped that they would be mates.” Morgan pulled his eyes away from Brandon and turned to me.

“Shannon could never measure up to Amy in power level, but in looks, she was just as good. Better even. So, if throwing my rank around got her closer to your son, so be it. She could get the one thing she wanted most in the world.”

“At what cost?” I asked. “They aren’t mates, yet your daughter betrayed her mate.

Brandon betrayed his. You threw this pack into internal turmoil with your pathetic maneuverings, and for what?

To have your sullied daughter tossed aside for a chance at a stronger wolf?

” I chuffed out a laugh. “Look at the Alpha apparent. Salivating at Amy, all because of me and my power. And where is your daughter now? Tossed it in the trash because he got what he needed from her.” I cut my eyes back to Brandon, who had paled.

“I’ll make myself clear, for all here, neither Amy nor I are interested. ”