The Broken Wolf
Chapter 114

We walk into the training room to find Stephen already there waiting for us. The door has barely even closed before Seth has his shirt off and both men are standing before each other, sizing each other up.

“Thomas is bigger than you,” Seth tells him and he nods. “You’ll have to be faster. He’s old, but he’s more experienced at fighting. Only one wolf has ever taken him down that we know of.”

“Who?” he asks and Seth tilts his head at me.

“My mate’s father,” he tells him.

Stephen’s eyes become wide. “Alpha Randall fought him before?”

“No,” I tell him with a smile. “My biological father. Alpha Benjamin.”

Stephen just stares at me a moment, glancing to Seth a time or two. “I’ve only heard stories of him. He was supposed to be a good fighter.”

“One of the best,” Seth tells him. “I linked him earlier. He said that he’s weak on his right side, which is good, because you’re left-handed.”

“So I might actually have a chance?” Stephen asks, seeming a bit more hopeful now.

“Yes. Here’s hoping he doesn’t know, so you can catch him off guard. First though, can you link your cook and have them bring something up for Molly to eat?” Seth asks him and he nods. “What can you handle, Molly? You’ve got to eat something.”

“I don’t know. Maybe some wilted spinach? With goat cheese and cranberries? And Pecans?” I ask, feeling a little ridiculous but it does actually sound good.

Stephen chuckles, but his eyes glass as he links them. “They’ll have it here in a bit for you, Princess.”

Without warning, Seth tackles him to the ground. Stephen scrambles, trying hard to get free of his hold, but Seth is substantially stronger than him. He lets up just enough that Stephen can get a good grip, but he continues to fight him, pushing him hard to get himself loose. Finally, Seth lets him go and stands.

“You’ve got to be able to free yourself,” Seth tells him.

Stephen’s shoulders sag. “I know. I’m trying. It’s just difficult.”

Seth nods at him. “He’s not going to take it easy on you. He may be acting cool, but he knows you have the advantage with your age. He’s going to come out forceful and you’re going to have to find his weakness and capitalize on it.”

Seth moves him to stand in the middle and stands behind him, wrapping his arm around his neck. “If he’s got you like this, you’ve got to reach back and move like this,” he tells him, moving his hand for him and showing him how to free himself from the hold.

“And at the very least,” I interject. “You can always claw his eyes.”

“That’s against the rules,” Stephen says to me.

“It’s a challenge,” I tell him seriously. “There are not really any rules. If you get into a dangerous situation, then you have to fight dirty. The alternative is dying and your pack being turned over.”

“She’s right,” Seth tells him with a nod. “I’ve watched Alphas die to keep their ‘honor’ in a challenge, but for what? They’re dead and their pack is no longer theirs. What’s the point?”

“So you want me to fight dirty?” Stephen asks, clearly bothered about being told this.

Seth shakes his head. “I want you to do whatever it takes to stay alive.”

There’s a knock on the door of the training room and when told to enter, the door cracks open. Katie-May walks in carrying a tray with my food and a glass of water. She bows and looks around, clearly trying to figure out where to place the food since there are no tables.

“I’ll take it,” I tell her with a smile and reach out to her. It smells so good and my stomach growls at the thought of food. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. Is there anything else that you need?” she asks and I shake my head, taking a bite, closing my eyes and savoring the delicious flavor. “OK. I”ll leave then,” she says, glancing at the shirtless men and blushing a little as she scampers out of the door.

“See?” I ask Seth. “That’s why you had to wear a shirt.”

He rolls his eyes and turns back to Stephen, dropping and taking his legs out from under him. “You’ve got to be prepared, even before it actually starts. There are no rules. He could attack early.”

They continue for a while, Seth taking him down, but then showing him how to get out next time. To his credit, he seems to be learning quickly. Some of these were techniques Robbie insisted that I learn, but I was never strong enough to actually take him, or anyone, down.

I finish my food, thankful that it’s not making me feel as terrible as dinner did, as the men decide to take a break from training. Seth walks over and places his hand on my leg.

“Are you alright, Love?” he asks me and I nod. “Just let me know if we need to go upstairs.”

“I’m fine,” I tell him. “I’m going to lay down here. Please, don’t worry about me. Stephen is all you should worry about right now. We need him to win.”

He nods and k****s me on the forehead. “It will all be fine.”

“I know,” I tell him with a smile. “You should have let him call Benjamin, let him get some tips. I think it would make him feel better.”

He smiles at me, gently running his fingers along my jaw. “I plan to let them speak in the morning. It was the best time for your father. You sure you’re OK over here?”

I nod at him with an encouraging smile. “I’ll be just fine. Go. Teach him everything you can.”

With that, Seth walks off and motions for Stephen to join him. I can’t help but admire just how absolutely perfect my mate is as he walks off, covered in sweat and his muscles rippling with his hair pulled back. The goddess really did try to make up for all those years I didn’t have my wolf by giving me this perfect man.

I lay down on the stack of mats I’ve been sitting on and curl up, falling asleep as I watch my mate teach an Alpha everything he can. The safety of our baby is in this man’s hands.

I wake to the overwhelming smell of my mate and turn my head into his hard chest. “Huh?” I ask, cracking my eyes open.

“Go back to sleep. Love,” he tells me with a smile. “We’re almost to the room. You can go right back to sleep.”

I nod into his chest and let him carry me, tucking me in as he said. He crawls into bed and pulls me to him, his arm across me, hand over my belly.

“Sleep, Love. I set an alarm for the morning. We need to get downstairs a little early so we can greet my parents,” he says, kissing just below my ear, and I fall right back asleep, comfortably encircled in his arms.

There’s a loud blaring sound and the warmth around me leaves, leaving me alone. It’s the alarm. Ugh. I still feel so tired. I was hoping I’d be able to get to the meadow in my dreams, but I didn’t dream at all. From how I’m feeling, I’m not even sure I actually slept.

I hear Seth’s gravelly, morning voice in my ear as he places his hand over my belly. “Good Morning, Love. How are you feeling?”

I turn to him with a sigh. “I don’t feel like I even slept at all. Six whole months like this?”

“Six short months and then we’ll have a pup,” he says with a smile and k****s me on the cheek. “You can try to nap after breakfast, and after the challenge. We’ll stay up here unless we have to be somewhere.”

I nod to him and roll over, climbing out of bed and going to the restroom. Once I’m done, I walk over to the sink and wash my face, Seth walking in and peeing while I’m still in here. I guess that’s something I’ll just have to get over, because he seems very unbothered by it.

“How am I supposed to dress for breakfast?” I ask, feeling very unsure about the entire day.

He walks over, and k****s me on the cheek. “Whatever you want, Love.”

“I want to just put on yoga pants and go for a jog after we eat. Sleeping didn’t help me feel better, maybe a run will,” I say, looking at my tired eyes in the mirror.

He smiles at me. “We can do that, but not too fast,” he tells me, wrapping his arms around me and placing his hand over my stomach. “You’re carrying the most precious cargo. You have to be careful.”

“I will,” I tell him, rolling my eyes. He lets me go and I walk back to the room, pulling out some yoga pants and a loose shirt, quickly putting them on and a pair of running shoes. “I wasn’t thinking about meeting your parents. I should probably change into something nicer.”

“Stop,” he says, pulling on some sweatpants. “It’s fine. Besides, they won’t care about anything as soon as they smell our pup.”

“They’ll know?” I ask, feeling my heart beat faster at the thought that someone will be able to tell.

He walks over to me and takes my hands, looking at me with a smile. “Just the strongest wolves will. They’ll know. Your dad and Benjamin would probably be able to now. I doubt anyone else would, though.”

“OK,” I whisper, feeling a little better about it, but still very nervous. I should probably try to keep a bit of distance between me and everyone else to be safe, though.

“You ready, Love?” he asks with a smile, holding out his hand to me. “I have a surprise for you.”

“What is it?” I ask excitedly, taking his hand and walking out with him.

“Just wait, they’re almost here.”

He leads me out and down the stairs. We pass a few people working in the pack house who bow and smile at us.

Stephen and Daphne are waiting for us at the front doors. “Good morning,” Stephen greets us with a nervous smile. Judging from the way they’re dressed, Seth filled them in on his parents arrival. They’re dressed even nicer than when we arrived. “I couldn’t get Lydia here without Reginald finding out. I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Seth says. “Hopefully today we’ll have this whole situation taken care of.”

We start to walk outside when Daphne grabs my hand, stopping me. “Am I dressed alright?”

I laugh a little. “You look great,” I tell her, looking at her beautiful black dress. “Honestly, I’m not dressed alright. I think I’ll be forgiven, though.”

We walk out just as four large SUV’s pull up. The passenger in the first car jumps out and opens the door to the back, completely surprising me.

“Benjamin!” I exclaim.