The Alpha’s Contract

Damien

"How about a drink?" I mutter as I watch Brax's gaze drift to Ryken's place.

"Might as well," he tuts, "She's not going to speak to me for a while."

He follows me to my place and settles on the kitchen worktop.

"Dottie is changing," I mutter as I slide a glass towards Brax. "She's growing up. Where is she?"

"At a friend's house, she will be home soon." I sigh as I stare at him, "It's more than her growing up, Brax. I know you are a Hunter, and that is what is developing in her. Yet, she always surprises me. Dottie sees things differently from the rest of us; she feels things differently. And a lot happened while you were away."

He cocks a brow at me. "Has she talked about souls? Can she see them properly?"

"Not exactly," I shake my head. "It seems like it is more than that. She was the one who figured Silas had another mate that wasn't Thalia. She knew that his mind was clouded." I pause, weighing up whether I should mention the next bit. "And?"

"She heard you! Dottie knew you were trapped by some kind of fire, and she knew you were in the ocean. She said something about turning on a light."

"A light?"

"She said something similar to Silas. Is she talking about the darkness that lives within us?"

He slowly shakes his head, and a crease forms between his eyebrows, "Doubtful, but I did tell her I loved her and to be good for you." He frowns, which matches what Dottie said. "Our chances of survival were limited. I wasn't sure if she would hear me, but I had to say it anyway."

"Did you tell her about the fire or the water?"

He shakes his head

"Then how did she know?"

"It's who she is."

"That's your answer? The whole thing sent her into full-blown panic mode. I was called into the school to help while all the other kids were sent home."

He jumps off the worktop, drags a chair out from the table and slumps down. Drumming his fingers on the wooden table, he stares into space.

"You were expecting this, weren't you?" I ask

"I wasn't sure what to expect. It

wasn't that long ago that I thought I would never see my daughter again, and I'm not talking about being in White Cliffs. But it was bound to happen at some point. Being around all thèse Lycans probably triggered it. Just like it triggered me when I was younger." Ccontent © exclusive by Nô/vel(D)ra/ma.Org.

"And yet she doesn't have a problem with most of us. Is this to do with her mother? You said Dottie's mother was a Hunter like you, but you never talk about her. Was she the same as you? A Rogue Hunter? Could she see souls like you, or was she more like Dottie? Or was there something else?"

"It's complicated."

"Right. And I guess you will not share that information with me either?"

He slams his lips together, making it clear that he isn't sharing anything.

"Brax, I don't even know the name of your first mate, and Dottie has questions I can't answer. Answers that only you can give her."

His hazel eyes flicker up to me. I had touched a nerve, or maybe a little more than a nerve.

"You can't ignore it forever. She isn't a Lycan, and she isn't a standard Wolf. You are the only one here in this pack who can explain that side of her. You can't ignore that forever." "Don't you think I know that?" he frowns.

""You don't act like it."

He rolls his eyes at me. "You don't get to lecture me."

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"I do when she calls me Daddy!" I snap in irritation. "I invited you here so we could clear the air and find way to help that little girl. But for some reason, when it comes to her, you bury your head in the sand."

"I do not!"

"Oh really?"

"I know what I'm doing," he tells me.

"Is she broken? Is that why you try to stay away from her? You are afraid to lose her."

He glares at me with so much hate.

"She had a really shitty start to her life, Brax. She has seen things that most don't see until their teen years. So it would make sense that her soul is cracked."

"Our souls don't break."

"What?" I scoff, "What the hell are you talking about? You have made it quite clear that they do. You have said that too many cracks can tear someone apart, like what almost happened to Neah."