Chapter 7

Roarke

"This is getting ridiculous! Why won't she come down here and claim me as her mate? Doesn't she want me? Or is it that I'm not good enough for her? Is that what she thinks?" I sprout out angerly as I pace back and forth in front of my brothers.

My mind won't stop over thinking scenarios of why she doesn't want me as her soul-mate and none of them are in my favor.

It's been five minutes since Saxon disappeared from our eyes. She let him up there, why not me?

"You need to stop. Otherwise, you will drain yourself again. We can't have that with the pack members arriving today," Tristen says as he stops me from creating a path in the wet dirt below my feet.

"Then why don't you stop worrying about locating your mate, Tristen," I snap at him. All he does is raise his eyebrow at me. "Yes, that was pathetic of me to say, I get it," I sigh, rubbing my face with my hands. This whole experience with Lexi is a shit hole. It's dragging me down and forcing me to come exceedingly irritated with everyone around me; including my family.

"Extremely. She will come around, Roarke, give her the time she obviously needs." Tristen leans against a tree, letting his gray eyes shoot up to the tree when laughter rings out.

"It's hard to when I've waited four years for her. To finally feel a connection to someone other than my brother's and parents was exhilarating for me to wake up to and now that I've found her, all my wolf and I crave to do is be near her. We don't even have to touch her, just feeling her warmth from sitting beside her will do for us until she is comfortable. The last thing I want to do to is frighten my own soul mate away." Leaning on the tree next to Tristen's, I toss my head back, groaning out in frustration.

Does she not feel for me as I do for her? How can she ignore a bond which drills into her mind who she belongs to?

Is it because of that pup who will not leave her side? Does she have feelings for Kai, feelings which involve getting naked? I'll kill the bastard. He will breathe his last breath between the clutches of my claws as I rip out his heart and feast on it.

Dalton grunts, bringing me out of my dark thoughts. "I've been thinking about coming up with a way for you to speak to her when she isn't near you. Jacob's new mate owns the electronic store in town. I can link him and see if he can open it and I'll go buy us all a cell phone and one for Lexi. It will be easy for you two to text or call each other this way. It may not be the closeness you hunger for, but it is a start. I think it will help, Roarke," Dalton says as he leans against a different tree.

His gray eyes staring back at me. It's like looking into a mirror with him. The only difference is our height; he is four inches shorter than me. Other than that, our facial structure, eye color, short black hair and body make-up is dot on.

"That sounds to be a brilliant plan, Dalton. Ask Jacob if he will open the shop for you. Do not demand it of him, though," I make that a strict point. This pack is based on trust and respect. It doesn't matter that I'm an Alpha and Dalton is my brother, we will never use that to get what we want unless it's for the safety of our pack.

"Jacob is eager to help in any way he can to bring Lexi closer to you, as are the rest of the pack. You don't have to ask twice for help, Roarke. When one of them needs our help, we are there in the blink of an eye. They feel as if it's their turn to assist their Alpha for once," Dalton replies back after his eyes switch to their natural gray.

"That was a quick response." Looking up to the tree house, I'm curious to what is going on. I'm not ashamed to say I was scared when Kai and Andrew held her over the edge of the balcony. She wouldn't be able to straighten her body out to catch herself in time. If I had to catch her, it might've harmed her as the landing would have been brutal.

One day those five males will learn what it feels like to fear for their mates life, and I will want to throw it in their faces, but I won't as I know it's a horrendous numbing sensation. My whole body felt emotionless to do anything about saving her if she did fall.

Thankfully they pulled her back to safety. That is when Saxon decided to climb the tree once more and see if he would be given permission to enter their hideaway.

I do not trust Kai in the least and Saxon is there to watch the boy. If she is to sleep near those males, I want one of my brothers there watching over her safety in case something happens.

First thing tomorrow night, Saxon will teach me and the other's how to climb a tree. Preferably this tree. I never want to be separated again because of something I'm unable to do. It leaves an acidy feeling in my gut at the thought of being weak for her. She deserves a resilient male to watch out for her, and I'll be just that.

"I had asked him earlier today about it. He had to make sure there were enough phones in stock if you agreed to it. I'm going to head over there now. I'll be back as soon as I can. Is there anything else you need while I'm in town?" Stripping his clothes he places them in a bag that is lying on the floor.

"A pen and paper. I wish to write Lexi a note when we leave the phone for her."

"I'm going to head home and get my bow and arrow. When she wakes up later today, I'll shoot an arrow past her, so she hears it. Saxon can retrieve her phone and the letter after you're done writing it and hang it on an arrow I shoot. That way she will believe the arrow hit the tree house right then and there. Once she sees it, Saxon can talk to her about it. Inform her she can call or text any of us when she needs to."

This is why I love my brother's; they are always thinking of others. "Thank you, Dalton." Clasping his shoulder, I give him a genuine smile.

"You're our brother Roarke, we will do whatever is necessary to get your female in your arms." Winking he shifts and dashes off in the direction of the town we've been occupying for quite some time now.

Knowing I need to get my mind off the matter of speaking with Lexi, I shift and begin to mark each and every single tree surrounding her tree house. Tomorrow night I'll come back and embed my scent further back, letting all wolves know this is now my territory. No unmated male is welcome here unless I see fit to let them in. Not that I will be able to keep her best friend's out.

"Roarke, father called the house. The next group is on their way now. They will be landing in the next two hours," Tristen says through our family link. With me in wolf form and the males up above us, we do not trust speaking out loud.

The Black Knights have a secret, a gigantic one. Anthony and his pack of pups do not realize how many wolves belong in my pack and they never will. With rotating shifts and hidden tunnels through our pack house, there isn't a way for the Blue Crest wolves to count my numbers. It's how I want it, the easier way to outnumber them if ever a war comes to pass.

"Who is on the plane?" Curiously I ask.

"Maddie, Natasha, and Sage," Tristen grunts out, his furry shoulder bumping into mine. "You know what that means right?"

"Trouble. Maddie will most likely try to avoid Natasha and Sage at all costs. She will no doubt attempt to sneak her way into Blue Crest and get to know her older brother's mate," Landon chuckles, shaking his head as his wolf's shoulders ram into my sides, knocking me slightly off balance.

"I do not worry about our dear little sister. It's Natasha and the boy we need to keep our eyes on while you and Lexi are on rough ground. Sage doesn't respect anyone." Anger pulses through my veins at the pup's contempt towards my family and me.

"He is family; it's not like we are allowed to place him in a box and ship him off to the other side of the world." Tristen's fur bristles at the mention of kicking the boy out of our pack.

If only he isn't my responsibility, I could rid myself of him. Training him to be the next Alpha isn't what I desire to do, especially not with his mother hovering around me as if I'm her mate.

"If only, Tristen, if only," I grumble, my fur rubbing up against the tree my beloved is hiding high up in.

"You have noticed how he's been acting while near April, haven't you?" Landon's words stop me in my tracks of lifting my leg on the last tree.

"How has he been acting? Are they mates?" The poor little girl is only seven years old, she doesn't need to be stuck with that prick for the rest of her life.

"I believe they are. Sage becomes aggressive when the twins, Mika and Nikko, hang around her. All three boys are eight years old and already have ego's the size of the Prince's," Tristen answers stiffly.

Don't get me started on that douche bag.

"Good thing April isn't going to take his shit. She will turn her back to him if he continues to bully her. That is what he is doing, correct?" Finishing off the last tree, I go and sit down at a distance which allows me to see the edge of the wood porch.

"Being a young pup, it surprises me how desperately he tries to destroy the mate bond with April. Last week, father said Sage brutally shoved her down one of the holes from the earthquake cave-ins. It took them nearly four hours to reach her at the bottom all broken and bleeding. The only reason she survived is because of our genes. It's the reason behind Sage and Natasha arriving today instead of the last group. Father wants Sage far away from April for a while. He is hoping with the distance Sage will realize he actually wants and needs to be by her side to protect her instead of causing her injuries." Landon states as he shifts and stretches out his body on a blanket a pack member left moments ago. No doubt Dalton had them bring a few items to us when he stopped at home to get his gear.

"We will have to keep our eyes on April once she arrives. If Sage continues his warpath of destroying the bond, I will have no choice but to put him in the silver room to calm down." Shifting to my human form I grip my hair in distress. This isn't what I need at the moment.

Putting an adult wolf in that room is torture, placing a child is sickening. The room was built to separate the wolf and human mind, not physically but mentally, for a short period. The silver laced walls prevent the wolf from communicating and overpowering its human counterpart. With a single touch, the wolf is forced deep inside the human's mind, into a cage with silver locks. Until the human exits the room, the wolf will stay dormant.

If Sage continues to use his wolf's strength to his advantage, I will have no choice but to show him what it's like to be snap without the bond of his wolf and soul mate soothing him in his time of need. The human feels empty and depressed, on the verge of a mental breakdown once the connection breaks.

The night after a wolf turns fifteen; my father places the wolf into the room to experience what the darkness that creeps in and drives you crazy when you lose your wolf or mate. It's a warning for the future of what will happen if they ignore their human side, murder, rape or abuse their mate in any way possible.

Rejection of a soul mate is one of the worst offenses; the consequence is spending a whole week inside those silver walls. I'm not positive what it does to the human's mind while it's locked inside the four small walls, but I do know the human side is soon begging his or her rejected one to take them back. The saying 'you never know how much you will miss a person until you lose them' is correct when it comes to werewolves.

It's a technique which has been around for generations now. Ever since the Wolves took over the world and the humans became obsolete. A few hundred exist today, and that is only because they never received a wolf at birth. It happens less each generation, and soon enough there will only be wolves occupying the Earth. The King decided each pack needed a room to help a feral or disobedient wolf to calm down and see reason. Usually, the wolf will shift into its human skin within minutes, stronger and stubborn Wolves will keep their people hostage for a few hours before being broken.

My brother's and I have all lasted less than ten hours inside before going crazy and begging to be let out. A little over a month ago, I lasted for six hours and twenty-two minutes before my wolf let go, and I passed out from exhaustion. It took me three days to gain back my health before my brother's let me out my room.

"Let's pray the boy learns soon how to treat his soul mate rightfully. It doesn't surprise me who taught him manners. His mother is an A-grade bitch at its finest," Dalton says as he appears from behind us a bag hanging from his muzzle. "Sorry, it took so long. Jacob helped me put all the SIM cards in and set up the phone plans. Lexi's phone is on ours, and all our numbers are programmed into each phone. If she ever wants to speak to one of us, she now has a way."

Tossing us the phones, I instantly bring hers to my chest, coating it in my scent. I've seen what the scent of a male does to his female. If it will turn Lexi on and drive her to climb down the rope to me, I'll rub the damn phone on my cock.

"Do I need to get gloves to handle her cell?" Saxon says through the link for the first time in over an hour.

"Do you think it will work or freak her out?" All my brother's know me like the back of their hands. It's how our pack lives. Family is everything unless you're a lying murdering bitch who deserves to rot in a cell for the rest of your life, then we don't give a crap about you.

"Honestly, if you rub your dick all over her phone she will probably chuck it and hope it hits you in the face, smashing it in," Saxon chuckles before his link cuts.

"Dude, that's gross to even think about it. Keep it away from your man parts," Tristen gags. "Saxon is right; she will chuck it at you with force. She isn't like you." He shakes his head.

Keeping that thought out of my head, I focus on writing out a letter to beauty. If I'm going to keep my distance from her, she needs to understand why I'm doing it. The bond will only grow between us and with a disappearing act accruing things might be painful for the both of us. If I'm lucky, she will say screw it and pounce on me. Only I will be able to satisfy her appetite, and she knows it.

"Saxon, can you come down to retrieve the phone and letter, please?" I ask him. It's bugging me that he isn't opening his mind to me.

"Give me a few minutes. Lexi is finally in bed and falling asleep. I do not want to wake her up when I get off the bed," he says with worry.

"You're in bed with my mate?" The snarl comes out automatically.

"She is wearing your shirt, down boy. No need to be jealous. The covers are over her body and under mine. I'm only lying on the bed because Kai and Cain are curled up at the end the bed in wolf form. I know you do not trust Kai which is why I haven't left Lexi's side. Do you wish me to come down now?"

The boiling anger starts to simmer down to a gentle rumble as he says she is wearing my shirt. Tristen thought it up after arriving here. We had a mated female enter my room to retrieve my shirt from yesterday. It smells like me, and I know it will calm her down. Plus, it will leave my scent all over her chest to ward off other males. Not that my pack mates do not know who she belongs to anyways.

If any of the unmated males step within twenty feet of her, I'll rip them a new one, and they know I keep my promises. Most male wolves understand and stay away, though there are a few juvenile pups who believe they do not have to obey the fundamental rules of our lives. They learn quickly enough when the mate of the female they are tracking issues a challenge. It's not to the death, but damn near close. It makes sure the offending wolf doesn't go near the female who isn't his.

"Yes come down," I respond.

Within minutes, Saxon is climbing down the tree and walking over to us. His shorts hanging dangerously slow on his hip as the wind blows through his shoulder length light brown hair.

"You will have to take it easy with her Roarke. She has a past, a horrible one at that. Whatever she is afraid of hasn't settled with her yet. I'm worried how unstable she is right now. Lexi is clearly under the mate spell, but she is fighting it with all her being. With all of the sexual tension building up it's not going to end well if she continues to play the game cat and mouse. She will lose, and I'm afraid another male wolf will step in and try to start shit." Shaking his head, he takes the black cell and letter and stuffs them in a bag before putting it in his pocket.

Sighing, I run my hand down my face. This is exactly what I've been afraid of these past few months. Lexi is going to keep pushing me away even though she yearns for my touch.

"Let her know I'll keep my space. I wrote it in the letter, but maybe if she continues to hear it and see it, she will grow to trust me."

"She will, brother. I promise." Gripping my shoulder, Saxon gives me a firm shake before heading back up the tree.

Dalton shoots an arrow into the tree house, a few feet away from Saxon. With a thumbs up, from our brother, we know he has placed the letter and phone in a bag attached to the arrow.

Now, all we have to do is wait for her to wake up. My heart clenches in the hope of her calling me. To hear her sweet voice and to know I'm not going after a female who wants to reject me in the end.

**************************

Love hearing from the Roarke for a change?

Will he keep his promise of keeping his space?

I just want to clear a few things up for all of you. A few of the readers from this book have asked me if when I will be posting who I'm selecting to be characters in this and the series. I select the people by who comments. It's normally a comment that either gets me to laugh or is way out there, or the person has constantly commented on every single chapter and responds back. That is how I ask for their character info. If the person responds back with it then I use it, if they don't...well I can't use their info.

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