Beyond Beta's Rejection

(Harper’s POV)

The sound of a car woke me up, and I was unsure of what the hell was going on for a moment. I woke up in a ditch in a ripped dress, and my body felt like I had been hit by a truck. Then it all came back to me. Oh goddess, what was I going to do about Colton. There was no way I could go back to the pack house. But I had nothing on me, and everything I owned was there.

I was trying to get my body to move without crying out in pain when I heard another car. Only this one slowed to a stop right by me. I froze as I heard the engine shut off and the car door open and close. I heard someone moving towards me and then felt hands on me.

“Goddess Harper, I have been looking for you all night!” I looked up to see Alex pulling the bushes aside.

I growled at him and tried to back away. “Get the f**k away from me.” He stopped looking shocked, and then he grimaced. He moved towards me again, and I kicked out at him, sending pain shooting through my body.

“Harper, calm down, will you?” he snapped as my foot connected with his knee. “I’m trying to help you here.” I glared at him and growled again. There was no way I was going to let him near me. I wasn’t going back to the pack house. I would fight first.

Alex sighed and backed off. He watched me for a minute as I glared at him. I didn’t want to take my eyes off the bastard for even a second. He looked towards the car and glanced back at me, and then walked away over to the car. I used the moment to pull myself up and tried to run back into the woods. I fell and cried out in pain and heard Alex swear, as he probably saw I was trying to escape again. I tried crawling, but he was on me in no time, and I felt something cover me fully. I realised he had used a blanket to hold me, but I still fought to kick, scream and hit him as he scooped me up and carried me to the car. I screamed more as he pushed me into the backseat of the car, and as soon as the door was closed, I crawled to the other side to try to get out there. I got the door open, but Alex was already there.

“I didn’t wanna do this, Harper, but it’s for your own good,” he said as he pushed a needle into my arm.

“What the f**k did you….” I started to feel floaty and fuzzy. Oh crap, it was the painkiller that Doctor Roberts had given me. I tried to fight it, but the drug mixed with exhaustion took over, and I passed out.

I woke up again, only this time I was in bed, in fresh clothes. But it wasn’t my bed or my clothes. I struggled to sit up, wincing at the pain when I heard voices. They were coming from the other room. My door was open a tiny bit, and I could see a line of light.

“I swear to the goddess. I will f*****g kill him!” I recognised that voice and instantly felt my body relax, knowing I was safe.

“Tommy, calm down!” That was Louise. “Remember the last time you went all caveman and stormed up there?” I smiled as she chastised him.

“Listen, you should figure something out,” Alex’s voice floated in. “He’s already out searching for her. I dunno how long I am going to be able to hide that I know where she is.”

“Alex, you can’t tell him,” Louise said.

“What do you want me to do, Louise? It’s not like he won’t be able to smell her on me the second I hit the pack house.” There was a pause and then, “And you know it won’t be long before he comes looking here either.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m trying to figure something out,” Tommy snapped.

“Also, Louise, you need to stop spending the night here. Dad is gonna figure it out,” Alex said, and for a second, I got excited. Tommy and Louise!

“Like I care,” Louise sneered. “What’s he gonna do? Lock me away?”

“After mum, I wouldn’t put it past him,” Alex said.

I pulled myself out of bed and made my way to the door. I winced at the pain that just moving caused. I knew they had heard me moving and, as expected, they were all looking as I opened the door. Louise was cuddled into Tommy’s arm on the sofa while Alex sat in one of the chairs. I smiled weakly as I moved to the other chair and let myself drop into it. Relieved that the pain had dulled now, I stopped moving.

“So…” I said, looking around the room. “What are we talking about?” I said with a grin or as much of a grin as possible. The tension in the room visibly relaxed, and Tommy chuckled at me. Louise untangled from Tommy and grabbed a blanket, and put it over me. I grinned at her as she did.

“So, Tommy, huh?” I said, and she flushed red.

“Shush!” she said, and I giggled.

“How are you feeling?” Alex asked. I looked at him, and he couldn’t meet my eyes.

“Like I have been repeatedly run over with a truck,” I said with enough edge to my voice that he flinched. “Did you know what he had planned when you drove us up there?” I asked. The look on his face answered for me, and I felt the sting of fresh tears.

“What could I do, Harper?” he asked. “Said no? He would have just gotten one of his buddies to do it instead, and they wouldn’t have thought twice about joining in.”

“Wait, what?” Tommy sat up. “I am missing something here!” I glanced at him. “What happened?” He looked between Alex and me.

“Colton took me to someplace in the middle of nowhere. At first, I thought it was sweet, like a midnight picnic, but Damien was waiting there when we got there,” I said. Tommy’s face was set in a frozen fury.

“Waiting for what?” he hissed, and I shrank back at the power rolling off him. I had never seen this from him before. Louise put her hand on his shoulder, and I saw as he relaxed slightly.

“Colton s-said that they…erm… s-share,” I stuttered. I really struggled to say it without fear washing over me again. I had my head down because I felt shame in what had gone on.

“I think he used his Beta command to coerce me into….” I fiddle with my fingers. “Anyway, I realised, and I said no, that was when he got angry.”

Tommy growled, and I looked up in shock. He was glaring at Alex, his eyes shining silver. Louise was looking between us in shock.

“And you took her there?” Tommy sneered at Alex, stood up slowly, and backed around the chair.

“Tommy, he helped me get away,” I said quickly. “And he brought me here, right?”

“Not good enough,” he snapped, and I shrunk back as tears fell down my face. “I should rip your throat out where you stand.” He began to rise from his seat. Louise jumped up and stood between the two of them.

“Alex, go home,” she said. “Do not tell anyone where she is. I mean it!” Alex nodded. He slowly moved to the door and looked back at me.

“I’m really sorry,” he said, and Tommy growled.

“Just go,” Louise said, and he slipped out.

Louise wrapped her arms around Tommy and whispered something in his ear, and slowly he relaxed against her. He pulled her into him and buried his head in her hair. I knew that the scent of your mate was enough to induce a relaxed state, but to see it actually happen was fascinating.

“I should go too,” Louise said. “He’s right. Dad really is going to notice that I’m not home,” She turned to me and smiled. “I’ll come back when I can, but I suspect I will be watched for a while, so it might be a bit,” I nodded.

“Just be safe,” I said, and she smiled again.

She and Tommy said their goodbyes quietly and sweetly at the door before he let her out and locked the door.

Tommy turned and looked at me and smiled.

“Hot chocolate?” he asked, although it clearly wasn’t a question as he headed to the kitchen and began filling the kettle.

By the time the drinks were made, and I was cradling mine in my hands, I was already starting to feel sleepy again. Tommy noticed and took the mug from my hands.

“Get some rest, kid,” he said as he tucked the blanket around me. “I am going to make some calls.” I nodded sleepily and found myself drifting into sleep almost instantly.

I slept all day, although I had dreams of being chased through the woods. I woke up with a start and looked around for Tommy. He was on the phone, and I could tell he was angry.

“I told you, Darren. I haven’t seen her. Did you check with Susie? Maybe she went to visit her.” He paused and glanced up at me. “Well, she’s your bloody daughter, maybe you should know what is happening to her.” He made another pause as he screwed his face in frustration. “Ok, fine, if I see her, I will let you know.” He ended the call and swore under his breath with his eyes closed tightly. He then took a deep breath and opened his eyes, and smiled at me.

“Hey, how are you feeling?” he asked, and I pointed to the phone in his hand. “My dad called you?” I asked.

“Yeah, I’ve been ignoring his, and well, everyone’s mind links” then he looked a little sheepish. “Well, apart from Louise’s,” and I grinned at him. He rolled his eyes and sat down on the sofa.

“Listen, there is a full-on search party out for you right now. Louise said Colton’s going crazy. When she got back to the house, she saw him kicking the s**t out of Alex.”

I gasped, “Oh my goddess!” I exclaimed, “Is he ok?” and Tommy nodded.

“He’s a werewolf. He’ll be fine,” he shrugged. “Apparently, it took Damien and a few warriors to pull Colton off. He could smell you on him and demanded to know where you were. Louise said Alex didn’t spill, so that’s good at least,” he said.

“I don’t like this,” I said, getting annoyed at the fresh tears. I was sick of crying. “People are getting hurt because of me.”

“No!” Tommy said. “People are getting hurt because of him. Do not blame yourself for this.” He stopped for a minute, and I could tell he wanted to say something.

“What is it, Tommy?” I asked.

“Louise linked me an hour ago,” he shuffled. “Colton has declared that he plans on completing the mating ritual Saturday night after the engagement party.” I couldn’t help the sob. If the mating ritual went ahead and mine and Colton’s bond were completed, he would have complete control over me. I wouldn’t be able to resist his command. The wolf with the higher rank automatically becomes the stronger one in the relationship, and even with my up level, he was still stronger than me. I couldn’t let it happen.

“We need to get you away from the pack as soon as possible. You need to accept his rejection and leave the pack,” Tommy said. “That is the only way I can see this going. I nodded in agreement.

“Listen, I have a friend. I contacted him and told him what was happening, and he said-”

He was interrupted by a knock at the door. We both looked at each other and then at the door. He stood up and signaled for me to go into the bedroom. I quickly moved in there and closed the door, all but a little bit, and listened. Tommy opened the door and sighed.

“What can I do for you, Greg?” he asked as if he was bored.

“Cut the crap, Tommy. He knows she’s here.” Greg Henderson, my old teacher and elite warrior, stood at the door. “I’ve come to take her home.”