🤌🏾🤌🏾🤌🏾

________________________________

DYLAN ||

I hated how quickly Raiden shut down my idea to punish myself and my family, but I hated what happened afterwards even more.

Another fucking message.

Who could I have possibly pissed off this much to go to such extremes to make a fucking point!

I mean Goddess, hanging a rogue wolf by it's neck from a tree right outside my border?

The gates aren't even complete and the eastern side of my territory where the message was left, is an area that hadn't even been started.

If whoever this was wanted to come and hurt me or hurt my pack, they could have simply just walked onto my territory because apparently my border patrols were all so busy staring at the fucking hanging wolf, nobody was guarding the area.

I WILL NEVER FORGET

What have I done that would make someone never forget it?

Besides my breathtaking mate, I haven't hurt anyone or caused pain to anyone. I haven't taken anything from anyone, I haven't gotten into any fights with other packs, I haven't used or abused anyone, I haven't killed any rogues that hadn't attacked us first.

This whole thing is driving me nuts!

• • •

Feeling my mate's comforting touch pulled me out of my dreaded thoughts as I looked over at him. Babe was sitting next to me behind the desk and gently rubbing my lower back.

"Thank you." I tell him as I try to fight the urge to smile at his kindness. He's just too fucking perfect for words anymore.

Raiden blinked once as he tilted his head to the side, even his fucking blink is sexy. This doesn't make any sense. The man is an illegal amount of attractive.

A knock on the door completely ruins the mood with my mate.

"Come in." I call out, letting out a frustrated breath.

Gabe, Hunter, Roman and another man I recognize as one of the new Beta transfers enters my office.

"Hey Alpha, this is Taj." Gabe gestures towards the new guy. I raise my eyebrow, I'm now confused as to why Gabe brought the man in here.

"You asked me to bring the strongest Beta when their transfers arrived." Gabe explains, I shake my head before mentally face palming myself.

I completely forgot about that.

I wanted to get to know the Beta blood transfers from the shadow pack because the sheer amount of them that wanted to get into my pack, was a little off putting. So I asked Gabe to bring one of the Betas from their rank that arrived today, so that I could learn more.

"Thank you Gabe, I forgot all about that. When did the Beta transfers arrive?" I ask.

"About 20 minutes ago Alpha." I nod then gesture for everyone to take a seat around the office.

Roman and Hunter take a seat on the couch and cuddle into each other, well more like Hunter cuddled into Roman, as the Lion was a lot bigger than my Gamma.

Gabe takes one of the chairs in front of my desk and Taj, one of the new Beta transfers takes the other chair.

"So your name is Taj?" I ask and the man nods.

"Yes Alpha."

"And you're Beta blood?"

"Yes Alpha."

"Why would you and so many other beta blood members want to leave your pack?"

"Our Alphas we're obsessed with starting a war with a neighboring pack. They thought the other pack had caused the recent rogue attacks and because we were the strongest members, they were using us to fight their battles, we just didn't want to be around the chaos anymore, so we put in transfers to the other neighboring packs and Goddess blessed, you responded and accepted us." Taj explains.

"You said your Alphas? As in more than one?" I ask, he nods.

"Yes Alpha, we had two Alphas back in the Shadow pack."

"What's their names?" I ask, not missing the moment when Taj swallows nervously.

"Ohh umm, Alpha Luke and his son..." He pauses before looking at Raiden then back at me. "His son, Alpha Benjamin."

I was skeptical.

I've never heard of either one of them, but then again, I've never heard of the Shadow pack either, so I didn't really have any indication to believe Taj was lying.

"Maddox, do you trust him?"

"I don't have distrust him yet, but be cautious Dylan. We don't know anything about him or the wolves he came with. You should do some research on the Shadow pack. Find out everything you can, but before that, make sure the wolves you invited in rejects their previous Alphas and pledge to you."

Damn! I'm so thankful for my wolf most of the time, I swear he's a life saver in big moments. I didn't even think about making sure the new transfers pledge their life and loyalty to me.

"Taj, I hope you don't mind, but being as I don't know much about you or the wolves you came with, I have to take necessary precautions so that I can ensure the safety of my pack."

"Whatever you need from me is yours Alpha."

"Great because I need you to reject your previous Alphas, completely severing your ties to your old pack and then I need you to pledge your life and loyalty to me."

I saw the hesitation in his eyes, his fear that accompanied the pause in his heart flooded the entire room. Then his eyes glazed over for a few minutes before flickering to that of his wolfs.

We all sat quietly and watched Taj battle with his wolf to bring himself to follow what I've instructed of him.

Minutes tick by before his eyes return back to his normal brown color and he lets out a deep sigh.

"I, Taj Haller, reject Alpha Luke and Alpha Benjamin of the Shadow pack, as my Alphas now and forever, severing all ties to the pack and those within it."

He clenched his eyes shut and clutched his chest as it rose and fell heavily, sucking in much needed air before his body started to tremble.

I've never seen someone reject their pack or their Alpha, so I didn't know the extent of the pain Taj was feeling, but watching it was enough to tell me that I was glad I would never have to go through it.

"I need your name and pack name to pledge to you Alpha." He breathed out as the pain of his pack rejection started to subside.

"Alpha Dylan Harris of the White Claw pack." I tell him, he nods before taking another deep breath.

"I, Taj Haller, pledge my life and loyalty to you, Alpha Dylan Harris of the White Claw pack, claiming you as my Alpha, forever and always, joining my life with your pack and all those within it."

"Ahhh!" Taj cries out as I clutch my head alongside his pain.

I could feel the pack tether stretching, making room for Taj, every fiber of our pack tie was working in tandem to process how to join ends with his.

Every emotion he felt, I shared as he shared mine. Every heartache, fear, joyful moment and period of despair my pack has felt in the past, would now be apart of his emotions.

His link to the pack binds into place, causing me to flinch at the sudden snap.

"Breathe pups."

My mate's voice invades my senses as I try to control my breathing, the unfamiliar pain of bringing in another pack member was intense and not something I'm looking forward to doing with the other 29 transfers!

After maybe 5 minutes or 30 minutes, I don't know which because the headache I'm now nursing was still pulsating to it's own beat, I opened my eyes and took a deep breath.

My gaze finds Taj as he sits upright in his chair.

"I hope to to serve you well, Alpha."

_____________________________