Not just the Beta (Oriana and Slade) novel Chapter 96

Slade

He stared at his father now, at that word implied, and thought about that himself. “Oh implied…like you implied to me that threat to banish the Vale family… Ah yes, I guess, father, you can take it that same way. Because, as you implied that threat, of banishment, to get your own way in what you wanted. I implied you’d get what you wanted, in order to get what I want. There is no difference at all. Implied does not mean a done deal.” He shook his head “I just needed to use that threat you used on me, to have you punish Hayden, for laughing at Oriana in her moment of anguish. That was all that was about for me. Punishing the boy.”

“Are you so heartless, Slade?” His father bit out.

Now that got his undivided attention, and he stood all the way up, and faced his father properly, as anger touched him, he saw Anders stiffen and ready himself to protect his own Alpha. It seemed they were expecting him to try and duel his father.

He wasn’t heartless, never had been. He was heartbroken, and didn’t know how to deal with it, or fix it either. All he could think was that if he righted the wrongs that happened inside this pack, he might find some semblance of peace in his life. Might not have those dark torturous thoughts of a night, as he lay in his bed and thought about all he’d lost.

There was only one thing that he thought could stop those thoughts, that he couldn’t escape from when on his own, and that was to bring Oriana home. It was the only way he could see himself being mended, and only then if she would forgive him.

“Me, heartless, I’m not heartless father. That would be you,” he snarled “And them.” He pointed to the man’s unit “You all ruined her life, my life, the future heir to this pack’s life, with what you did, had no right to do… I wonder now, father, how many times you and your unit here, mother and her women out there, have meddled in other lives within this pack. How many lives out there in the pack have you ruined?” he snarled at him “Just to bring about what you want to happen?”

He watched his father blink in shock at his words, his accusation, and then he just sighed “None, Slade.”

“I don’t believe you. I can’t trust you, any of you anymore, after what you all did. Not you, not them, not mother or her women. I certainly don’t, and never have trusted that Beta you thrust upon me. He’s loyal to you and not me.”

“Slade, son. We’ve never done anything else.” His father stated with a shake of his head “Please calm down.”

“I will not, you will give me what I want, initiate Vance into this pack and accept him as my Beta, but he will not pledge loyalty to you, he will pledge his loyalty to me and the pack. Because, as far as I can see, you’re no longer trustworthy.”

“Slade?”

“No father, why would I trust you? Any of you after what you all did? How you push Hayden at me at every turn, it’s all about that boy, and don’t think I haven’t noticed, you haven’t answered me about that, avoided it. I’ll get to that truth eventually. If it is what I suspect…well, let’s just hope it’s not. His head might come off his body because he’s a traitorous little bastard, and has tainted blood that needs wiping clean out of this pack.”

He walked across the room to his father’s desk and reached out, picked up that ceremonial blade and held it out to his father. “You’ve not even sent a team out there into the world to find Oriana, it’s been two years and no one went after her, are you even actually looking for her? Or is it all just a show?” he asked angrily. It wouldn’t surprise him at all.

“The tech team never found anything useful, Slade, you’re over there all the time, they report to you now, not me because that is what you wanted, to take over the finding of her.”

That was true he had taken it over. “I did,” he agreed “Because I didn’t believe you were actually looking for her. Because I don’t trust you, is why.”

“The pack…”

“Hate’s what happened to Ori. Dariah hates it, doesn’t like Hayden either. That speaks volumes, doesn’t it, that your own daughter thinks what you did was wrong, so how can you not?”

“We were just trying to help.” Anders sighed.

“Some of the worst things in this world, come from good intentions, and only in hindsight does one understand that things that aught not to be meddled in, should be left alone.” Slade grated out. “Do you know what would have happened, if you’d not meddled in the will of the Goddess?

“For all you know, she put us together, to have that pup for a reason. Selena could have done that, so Ori if she was my Mate would accept me without issue, allowing Hayden to ascend naturally.

“Yes, and for what! All I’m asking for is to have a Beta of my own choosing, loyal to me, is that really too much to ask for? When the pack law states, I get to choose anyway.”

He was just standing there staring at his own father, knowing that he’d not asked for anything that wasn’t actually his right to have, and yet the man was steadfast in his decision, that he wanted Hayden in this unit still. “Why is it, father, that this is so hard for you to accept. That I refuse Hayden and chose another as my own Beta? What is that boy to you? That you would argue so hard for him, argue and threaten to remove me from my position even, just to keep him there. Is he so important to you? More important than me, your own son, that you’d willingly screw me over, for the Beta’s boy.”

His father sighed now, “Ten generations, Slade, that’s how long the Vales have been here inside this pack, they were handpicked by our ancestors to be the Beta bloodline when the pack was created. All Vales mate to other Betas.”

“Really so me and Oriana?” he stated now “I’m not a Beta.”

He watched his father’s mouth open and then close, and he huffed. Yes, if that was what they believed, then how was it he and Ori could be mated to each other, if that was his logic. “The bringing together of the two bloodlines was foreseen generations ago, you and Ori, that is how it’s

to be done. She’ll be the first Vale to be mated to an Alpha bloodline.”

“That’s some theory you have.” He shook his head “I see you can twist anything to your likening.

Well, father, it’s time for fresh blood, after what her own so-called family did to her. They, none of them, are worthy of the title Beta, not in my eyes and know not in hers. She severed that kin bond herself from all of them, years ago.

“Proving she wants nothing to do with them and my, her son or daughter will not have the name Vale as a last name. I can guarantee she changed it. Because anyone betrayed by their kin, the way she was, would do that. I also approve of it.” he jabbed that pack blade at his father “I won’t ask again, I’m done waiting. You’ve got 10 seconds to initiate my new Beta, or I’ll unleash hell on you.

By way of the pack elders, and they will tell the pack what you all did, how long father, do you think you’ll stay in power once that happens?”