Welcome,
Amari learns about Vince's past. Ares and Benny bring their mates home to meet the pack. Geraldo talks with pack members in the newly formed Cortez Pack. BJ and Jules make a decision.
All characters in this story are above the age of consent.
Happy reading. IR2R
*****
Iyoka asked for a wheelchair and went to David's room. He was awake and smiled when she entered. He was not ashamed. Iyoka knew of his ailments and she did everything she could to help.
"Hey, you talked to the specialist this morning?" she asked.
"Yes, and Iyoka he has me scheduled for scans. He thinks he might be able to fix the damage they caused." David explained.
"Blaze should be locked up for what he did to you. Maybe Alpha Javon will leave him in the holding cells." Iyoka said out loud. She missed the pained look that crossed David's face at her words.
"They are dead. Blaze attacked the alpha and threatened his mate. Alpha Javon killed all of them. The alpha was magnificent, Iyoka. He snapped and ripped each and every wolf in that room apart. I knew he would kill me. But he stopped and let me live." David explained.
Iyoka was silent for a moment. The nurse walked in with a wheelchair and asked David if he wanted to go outside. He did and he and Iyoka wheeled themselves out to the pavilion in front of the medical center. ' He had not seen Amari today so he asked about her. Iyoka said she was spending time with Vince. He asked her to accompany him this morning on his rounds. Amari and Vince stopped by and saw her before going out. She smiled; the dark-haired wolf was so handsome, and so shy. They made such a cute couple.
David laughed, and then he spoke candidly. "That's good. I like it here. For once it seems as if things are going in our favor." He paused as he thought of home. "I'm glad they are gone Iyoka, Joe and the Alphas needed to be destroyed, and I'm just happy I lived to see it happen. Now, tell me about our new alpha. He is your new mate."
Iyoka sighed, "I don't know much about him. I've met his children, and they are nice. He didn't raise them because he just recently came back into their lives. I actually plan to meet with his oldest daughter, Marisol later today. I'm a bit nervous, but I've met her before so I'm sure it's fine."
David grinned, "You'll be fine. Now, let's move around a bit. This place is beautiful. I want to look around."
The two wheeled themselves over to the courtyard of the medical center. They were treated to a scenic view, and the sight of pack members milling about.
David and Iyoka sat outside and talked some more. As they talked, Iyoka paused. Amari sent a hug to her mother and Iyoka returned the embrace. She smiled and David said. "You were never her sister. You were always her Mom."
Iyoka laughed, "Well I guess that made you her Dad. How many times did you run interference?"
They laughed and David went silent. Iyoka would never know what it really cost him to try and protect the two of them. She hated the betas, everyone did. Not all of the betas were evil, only a few.
He thought of Blaze. He was torn, because Blaze was gone and he was not supposed to grieve for him. Blaze was a phony. He was not what he pretended to be. David closed his eyes as he recalled the last time he was alone with him before they came here.
"David," he paused. "Joe is sending out more scouts. I'm adding you to the team." Blaze stated. David trembled. He hated being alone with the males.
"OK, who else is going? Will Sander and Griff be with the team?" David asked timidly. Those two men hated him. They took great pleasure in tormenting him and Iyoka.
Blaze continued, "Yes, but they won't touch you. I promise you David. I won't allow it. I promised Momma I'd look out for you and I will. I may have fucked up in the past, but this time I'm getting you out of here. I'll never forgive myself. I wish I had turned the gun on him."
Blaze gave a dead stare as he relived the awful memory. "Joe demanded that I kill one of you. The pack before blood, he called it. Momma knew he would do that, so she told me to take care of you. He came over with several men." David saw his brother quiver. "Momma begged me to kill her. She had put you to bed and Joe stood there challenging me. I did what I had to do to survive, and shot her. They laughed as you screamed and ran into the room. I secured myself in his circle, and he left you alone. I tried to make sure you had what you needed because as an older brother I failed." He stopped.
"Blaze, I was there. You thought I was sleeping, but I heard everything you two talked about. She told you to do it. She told you to gain Joe's trust. I was five, but I knew she was sick. She understood Blaze and never blamed you." David explained.
"Tell no one that we are brothers. Does Iyoka know? Have you told her?" Blaze asked. David shook his head no. "Good." Blaze answered.
"What about Iyoka, Blaze? I can't leave Iyoka here. Madam Alpha is..." David whispered.
"I know. Iyoka will be safe. She's going with us." Blaze explained. He stood and walked to the side of the room where David was sitting. He kneeled beside his brother, noting that he seemed flushed. He'd never forgive himself for allowing the other males to use him the way they had. He should have done something to stop it. "How are you feeling? Any more pain?" he queried.
"No, not much, I'm fine. Blaze, what they did was not your fault. You couldn't control a whole group, but you helped me after. That counts." David answered trying to absolve his brother of his guilt.
"Just hold on. I know of a pack, if I can get you to them, maybe they can help you. I never intended for you to be hurt that badly, but Joe... Look, just hold on and we'll head out soon. I have to treat you like shit, but I need you to know it's to keep you from being hurt anymore." Blaze explained softly.
"Blaze, you can challenge him. If you beat Joe..." David suggested,
Blaze spoke solemnly. "Joe cheats. No one will beat him, not unless they can catch him off guard. He has too many loyalists, and he also controls the alphas. Besides, with the shit I've done. I can never lead. The pack fears me, but they don't respect me. Iyoka hates me. They love her, and her hatred alone seals my fate where the pack is concerned. That's a good thing. She will protect you and I don't mind the hate as long as I can get you out of here right now." Blaze explained.
Soon they heard voices, and Blaze had to go before they were seen together. He moved to David and held him close. "David," he whispered then he let go. He left leading the other betas away. David waited and then he went in search of Iyoka. She was worried and he needed to make sure she was OK.
The memory ended and Iyoka was waiting. "I'm glad the alpha killed them." Iyoka swore.
David looked hurt and Iyoka noticed. "David, were you and Blaze..." she cut the question.
"I don't want to talk about him. He was a Jael beta and he was evil, ok. Let's leave it at that." David stated finally.
"No, tell me. You have never kept a secret from me David. Through it all, you've been right with me. You never told me what they did to you. You don't have to, because I can guess. But what was the deal with Blaze? Why are you still protecting him? Was he your lover?" Iyoka demanded.
Iyoka felt strange. David was hiding something. Blaze was horrible to them, but his death affected David profoundly. He was his main tormentor. He often came for David and when they decided to punish him. Blaze insisted that only he would mete out his punishments. She also recalled some strange moments with the two men. Sometimes, Blaze would watch David and something in his eyes would be different.
David was silent and she had to ask again. "Was there something between you and Blaze?"
David cried, "Yes, he was my brother. He killed mother to protect me because Joe demanded that he show his loyalty to the pack." Iyoka gasped. She heard the stories, but never knew David was his brother. "He was my heart, and now he's gone. He protected me the best that he could. After the men, forced me... Blaze got me to one of the Omegas who cared for me until I healed. Sometimes, I get sick and it hurts. It's gotten worse and he wanted to find help for me. He planned to find me sanctuary here with you and Amari. He was going back to challenge Joe, but he challenged Javon instead. He did it for me. He did it to help the pack. Now I have to learn to live without him."
Iyoka hugged her friend. David kept a secret from her. She never expected anything like this. She hated Blaze. He was as bad as Joe, but it made sense. To survive you had to adapt. David cried and she whispered that she was so sorry and she wished she could take away his pain.
Soon he stopped and asked that she not say anything. "Blaze never wanted anyone to know. Not because he was ashamed, but because they preyed on weaknesses." Iyoka agreed, but she worried.
Would David be OK? I thought Blaze was a monster. How many others lived a lie to protect their loved ones? How can I help my pack recover? How can I help my friend?
*****
Amari was out for a walk with Vince. They spent so much time together, but never really talked. She knew so much about him. He was smart, and funny. In class when they had assignments. She always wanted Vince as her partner. The truth was that her wolf knew who he was the moment they walked into that class several months ago.
His father asked him to patrol the pack boundaries and he asked that Amari accompany him. His mother smiled and said of course. So here they were alone at last. Vince was nervous. He wasn't like Benny, Ares, Paul, or Kevin. They were tall, handsome, and girls flocked to them. Women saw him as Ares dumpy younger brother.
Amari didn't see him that way. She saw something else. When she was frightened he was determined to be whatever she needed to be safe. When Geraldo left to face Jael, he was ready to go, but Elise asked him to stay. Amari needed him here, so he stayed. A part of him feared she might see him as a coward, but that wasn't so.
