Fated for Two

Farrah returned to the front room with a long-handled duster to clean the fan off. Thankfully, the dust clung to it, so it didn’t all land on wolf Everard who was almost directly under the fan. Once she had it clean, she turned it on and hoped it didn’t make the dust in the rest of the room fly.

Now concerned about that possibility, she went to find the front hall where the supplies had been left. Digging through them, she quickly found a rag and a can of Endust Furniture Polish. Moving back into the front room, she moved swiftly, cleaning the worst of the dust from the surfaces. Once that was done, she looked at the dusty drapes but knew it would create too big of a mess to pull them down now.

Leaving the front room, she headed into the kitchen to find Melba with her head stuck in the refrigerator. There was a pile of food items on the counter she’d pulled out. Walking over, Farrah wrinkled her nose at the mess of molded and disgusting foods.

Melba, obviously hearing her, turned to look at Farrah. She softly said, “It’s a mess in here since nobody cleaned anything out.”

Farrah sighed and said, “Yeah, I highly doubt that was on Alpha Phillips's mind the day he locked this place up and decided to never step foot in here again. We need to throw all this stuff out, but to do that we need a garbage can.”

“I think I saw one on the back porch,” Melba informed her. Her nose then wrinkled as she said, “Although, it may have stuff in it that is worse than that stuff there.”

Farrah laughed and agreed, “You’re probably right. Okay, so someone needs to get us a garbage can from somewhere, oh, I’ll call Brenton!” She turned and ran out to the front room where Brenton had laid Everard’s clothes. Her purse was in Brenton’s truck, but Everard’s phone should be in the pocket of his shorts. Finding it, she called.

The phone rang only once and Brenton answered, “Phillips.”

“Brenton, I need you to bring us a huge garbage can,” Farrah told him. “The refrigerator is… well, it isn’t pretty, and we need somewhere to toss the stuff.”

“I can do that. I’ll swing by the pack-house on my way and have them deliver a dumpster, there may be a lot of things throughout the house that needs to be tossed.”

“Um… yeah, okay. I’ll see you in a bit then, and we’ll just put the stuff on the back porch,” Farrah agreed, then they hung up.

Farrah headed for the kitchen, and after propping the back door open, she began looking for garbage bags. Once she’d found them, she began tossing the items from the refrigerator into one. She then took the bag out onto the back porch and left it.

“There were a couple of glass containers that at one time had leftovers in them,” Melba mentioned as Farrah walked back inside. “Do we try and clean them, or toss them?”

Farrah nibbled on her lower lip, thinking. She then answered, “It’s glass, so I think we should at least try and clean it. While I was looking for bags, I noticed an almost full bottle of bleach under the sink. We’ll make up some bleach water and soak them. We also need to wash all the other dishes and bake-ware.”

“There’s a dishwasher,” Melba mentioned as she pointed.

“If it works, we’ll use it,” Farrah said. “I saw Jenny head into the laundry room with a load of sheets and towels. When the towels are washed and dried, we’ll put a couple of them on the table to hold the bakeware after they’ve been washed. For now, I’ll empty the cabinets, fill the dishwasher and clean the shelves of dust.”

Melba nodded and went back to scrubbing the refrigerator out.

Farrah had all the cabinets empty and was standing on a chair wiping down the inside of them when a knock sounded at the door. Without turning she listened and heard the front door open.

“Beta Owen,” Bethany said loudly.

Farrah turned and began to get off the chair.

“The Alpha asked me to come by,” Beta Owen said. “Is he where I can talk to him?”

Farrah stepped into the hallway, wiping her damp hands on her dress as she said, “He should be back soon, please, come in.”

Beta Owen stepped inside as Bethany stepped back and opened the door wider. Beta Mason stepped in right behind him.

Farrah raised an eyebrow, but only said, “Beta Mason, good to see you.”

“I was with Beta Owen when the warrior came to tell him he was needed here,” Mason stoically told her.

“I heard the alarm go out, is everything alright?” Beta Owen asked.

Farrah sighed, “It is now, but there was an attack by rogues.”

The door was still open, and they turned at the sound of Brenton’s truck coming up the drive. So, Farrah said, “I’ll let Alpha Phillips explain everything.”

Mason turned back to look at her, a frown on his face as he asked, “Where is Alpha Steward? You didn’t mention him, but I know he was with the two of you this morning.”

Farrah was silent for a moment. She wasn’t sure whose side Mason was on, but she felt as if she needed to talk to him. So, instead of answering his question, she walked out onto the porch and waited for Brenton to join them.

Brenton walked up the steps and wrapped an arm around her as he asked, “Is he awake yet?”

Farrah shook her head saying, “No. I feel he’ll sleep most of the day, but the women are making headway on the bedroom, so you should be able to move him soon.”

Brenton nodded and turned to the two betas “Owen, Mason, we’ll go into my father’s—” he stopped and swallowed his body stiff. Clearing his throat, he continued, “We’ll talk in the office.”

Farrah laid a hand on Brenton’s chest, drawing his attention. “I’d like to talk to Beta Mason first if that’s okay?”

Brenton studied her for a moment before giving her a nod. He mentioned, “The men will be bringing a dumpster soon. We’ll talk about some of the things I want to get rid of later.”

Farrah nodded and watched him, and Beta Owen walks inside, closing the door behind them. She turned to face Everard’s beta with a heavy heart, saying, “Follow me, please.”

Mason gave her a nod and followed her off the porch and down the driveway several feet.

Farrah stopped next to the spot where Everard had fallen, next to the spot on the ground stained with his blood. Once there, she turned to look Mason in the eye, saying, “This is where he fell.”

“What?” Mason asked, his brows furrowed in confusion as he stared down at the blood-stained ground.

“Your Alpha. You see, he was attacked by two rogues and injured badly,” Farrah answered.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mason’s head come back up and he stared at her with wide eyes.

“He could have died today Mason and I have to wonder if you would have even cared.” She turned to face him fully and watched him carefully. “Ever since I met you, I’ve been on the fence as to whether you should be trusted or not. Some of the things that Everard has told me about you doesn’t help with the feeling either.”

Mason’s lip turned up in a snarl as he said, “He is my Alpha, why would I not be trustworthy?”

At his response, she crossed her arms and answered, “Let us count the ways, Mason. You have argued with him from day one about the way he leads the Pack. You never let him forget that his brother was the better alpha. You have talked to anyone who would listen to you about how he should never have been alpha. Should I go on?”

Mason growled at her.

“Okay, now I want you to think about something for me, and I want you to think long and hard,” Farrah told him. “From the moment he was born, Warren knew he was going to be the alpha of the Steward pack and was groomed to do just that. In most packs when the alpha has a second child, that child is usually groomed to be the beta. However, sometimes a little alpha training is thrown in as a precaution, just in case something was to happen to the alpha and the second born must step up. This is the way it’s done, correct?”

Mason nodded.

“So, for whatever reason, Warren took a disliking to his younger brother and told him in no uncertain terms he would never be his beta, much less be alpha,” Farrah continued. “Luckily, Everard had a good friend in Brenton who, at ten years old, told him he would make him his beta when he became alpha. Brenton then took Everard under his wing and as he was being trained as alpha, he made sure Everard had beta training. Everard was content with this, happy even because he knew if he stayed in the Steward Pack, once his parents were gone, Warren would make his life as miserable as possible. Of course, you knew this because you were Warren’s best friend.”

Mason looked away from her with a belligerent look on his face.

“Then came the pack wars and Everard lost not only his parents but his brother,” Farrah continued. “Now, they may not have gotten on well, but Everard was shaken by the loss of his brother and Alpha. Despite that, he manned up and stepped in as the alpha, but he had no alpha training. So, he called on his best friend to keep him from drowning in the unknown.

"His beta though, that would be you, was no help because he didn’t want Everard to be his Alpha. The fact is, I believe you resented it and you resented another alpha stepping in to help. I also know, that instead of helping, you have tried to undermine everything Everard has tried to do to try and keep the pack together. You never let Everard forget your feelings that Warren was a much better alpha than he would ever be. Do I have it right so far, Mason?”

Mason’s face became covered with guilt, but still, he said nothing.

“Then along comes Fiona, Everard’s mate,” Farrah mentions after taking a deep breath to keep her annoyance at Mason at bay. “Everard is so excited because he now has an alpha female to help him. He finally sees a light at the end of his very dark tunnel. Brenton has his suspicions about Everard’s mate though, and his parents have reservations about her also. This upsets Everard, but he pushes it from his mind and tries to be happy despite that niggling of doubt that slowly creeps up and hovers over his happiness.

"However, those reservations were for a good reason because suddenly the rogues are attacking his pack. A call for help goes out and being good allies, the Phillips’ alpha and his mate come to help along with some of their warriors. The Phillips end up losing their lives and Everard loses his best friend. Brenton, the only family he has left is ripped away from him and now he’s truly alone.”

Mason returned his gaze to her.

Farrah sees the sadness in his eyes as he finally understands.

“So, for four years Everard has had no one but you to rely upon Mason,” Farrah tells him. “Did you lift him up after he literally lost everything? Or did you continue to only do what suited you? Everard lost his family, his mate, his best friend, and now he’s almost lost his life. Do you know why he almost lost his life today?”

Mason shook his head.

“Because he’s weak. His wolf is so malnourished that it’s been almost two years since Everard has been able to sift into his fur side,” Farrah informed him. “He has been working extra hours to make enough money to support those in the pack who can’t work. He goes without food to make sure every one of his pack has a full stomach. I honestly don’t know how much longer he would have been able to go on Mason because his body was slowly giving out on him.”

“I- I didn’t know it was that bad,” Mason whispered.

“Well, it was,” Farrah said. “Brenton and I have been trying to feed him up, get him healthy, but today was a setback. He gives everything for his pack, even his health, and his beta can’t even have his back. Shame on you, Mason. Shame. On. You.”

Then, Farrah turned and walked away from him and back into the house.