The Unclaimed Human Luna
Chapter 12

Conner POV

Conner stood on the fifth floor hallway and heard Eliza remind her mother of what spousal abuse looked like. They had seen it first hand. Lost her aunt to it, killed by her husband, he now understood her reaction to his father’s anger, wouldn’t bow down to a bully and be a victim.

It was too late for his father, he thought, she’d seen his temper, been bruised by him and then he and his wolf had roared at her. She was never going to believe he wasn’t a monster, or at least not anytime soon. Also accounted for her threats to call the police, she actually did fear for her safety. Likely also feared for her mother.

It was not going to help that she’d not been allowed to leave. In her eyes it was likely everything she was seeing had been soured by that one tragedy with her aunt. She was never going to settle down here and be happy here. Did not in fact want to be here.

Watched the way she looked right at his father, and then spoke only to her mother. She was not willing to be a victim of domestic violence. He was leaning on a wall down the hall behind both his father and Brittney. Their happy, smooth life was no more. They’d brought a human teenager into a pack of wolves, and didn’t want to tell her the truth about what they were.

Not that he would recommend it now either. He saw her just go to her room and sighed, he’d likely not helped the situation, been a real a*****e to her, when she was already likely just scared and in pain, he’d thought she was just a brat. When in all likelihood, she’d just closed herself off to hide her feelings from everyone.

Hell, he should have recognised it himself. He had done just that when his mother had left, turned into a surly, unpredictable child with a temper and had hated the world around him for his mother leaving him. It was only slightly different. Her comments about her father not even being dead a year, she was still grieving as well. She had a lot going on.

“Father, may I have a word about what happened to set you off?”

“Told me she was a prisoner, yelled it at me. In fact, locked away in solitary confinement.”

Conner moved his eyes down the hall they were standing in. “Hmm, I can see why. Though she already voiced that to me the other night.”

“And you didn’t think to say anything?”

“What do you want me to do? I told you not to bring her here. It was not a good idea. That she was 18 and old enough to live as an adult. Hell, father, did I not tell you to let her go to Italy?”

“Enough, Conner.”

“Do you say that to her? Just like you do me. Because it’s more than annoying, ticks me off some days. I can only imagine it ticks her right off. Being locked in here, up here, away from everyone else. I see why she thinks that she is a prisoner. You made her that.”

“It’s for her own safety.”

“No, it’s not. It so she won’t hear wolves f*****g.” he stated flatly, “Won’t accidently hear her own mother when you’re f*****g her.”

“Conner, you will show respect.”

“Yes, of course I will. Till you get an heir from Brittney and pass me over.” He grated out and turned and stalked away from the man himself.

“What the hell are you talking about?” He could hear his father following him, they were probably about to punch it out. Wouldn’t be the first time.

“I heard you state, your heir with Brittney would be even stronger than I am. I also know you’ve cancelled all the foreseeable mating balls inside this pack.”

“I cancelled those because Eliza is here, not to hinder you finding your Mate. Son, I want you to find your Mate, to be happy. I want that for all our wolves, but Eliza is human and to see what happens on a Mating ball, she’ll not understand it. Likely scare the hell out of her.”

“Well, you already did that, didn’t you? She’s terrified of you now, thinks you’re going to beat her or her mother to death, with that temper of yours. You can’t ask her to respect you, and then demand it, when she has no idea what you are or why she has to.”

“You seem to know her pretty well, Conner.”

“I am the one you send after her, make watch her. You ditched her as your responsibility the minute she got here. That wouldn’t be lost on her considering she didn’t want to come here, and doesn’t want to be here either. You should send her back to where she belongs, the human world.” Conner ignored his wolfs snarling at him. They’d not scented her, and he didn’t intend to either.

“I will take myself and my unit to other packs for Mating balls. When I find my Mate and take over, I will release your prisoner, give her back her freedom and maybe, she’ll come visit her own mother at times of her choosing. Not think so badly of this place.”

“She will come around, Conner.”

“I doubt it, no one here has endeared themselves to the girl.”

“Then you do that.”

“Not going to happen, I don’t want humans in the pack.” Dodged the fist that came at him. He knew it was going to come, because it was an insult to the current Luna. She was, after all, human. He needed the fight with his father, had picked it on purpose.

He wanted the distraction from thinking about Eliza and how she must feel, it was starting to not sit well with him, his wolf’s obsession with her was starting to affect his own thoughts. He did not want that, he needed her gone and the sooner the better. What Conner was not expecting was for Atlas to surge forward and really try and take a piece of their father.

Atlas was all claws out and snarling at him, within a minute of them punching it out, his wolf was really trying to injure him. Waves of anger were coming off of his wolf that he’d not ever felt before, and were directed at his father. He was a bit confused as to why, until his wolf ripped out of him and launched himself right at his father with all his Alpha aggression on display.

Then it dawned on Conner, that Atlas was trying to make his father and his wolf feel fear. This was not about Conner picking a fight anymore, it may have started that way, but now this was about the fact that his father and his wolf had terrified Eliza. Atlas wanted to return the favour.

Couldn’t reign in his beast and calm him or control him, not even telling him he’d be nice to Eliza worked. His wolf was in a rage over her fearful state, over her feeling like a prisoner. Then they were ripping into each other all teeth and claws, an Alpha Wolf fight right here in the packhouse for all to hear.

Conner heard Brittney scream for help as their wolves fought it out in a hallway not that far from Eliza’s room. If she came out of that room it was not going to be good, she’d hear it. See it. If she even walked down here during the night or in the morning, the destruction their beasts wrought on the place would be clear for her to see. Including the claw marks in the carpets and on the walls as their wolves rolled about and bounced off the walls attacking each other. Both their wolves were evenly matched in a fight.

Conner felt the sting in his side and then the pain and burn of wolfsbane flooded through Atlas, and then darkness claimed both him and his beast.

Conner woke up on the floor in that hallway, with a splitting headache and sat himself up. He found his father sitting on a chair looking at him. G*****d internally, he could still see the man was being healed by his wolf. Hadn’t been out long, dosed him only with enough for it to stop Atlas, for his beast to be pushed away and stop the actual fight, nothing more. Sighed and shifted himself to lean on the wall.

He wasn’t the only one in the hallway now either. His father’s unit was there, and so was his own. They were all standing looking at him. He cursed his wolf internally, if any of them picked it from that fight he was royally screwed. He was handed pants and dropped them across his lap as he inspected himself, was as torn up as his own father was. Only he wasn’t healing yet. Atlas was still not back yet, didn’t think it would take long, though, if he was awake, it was only likely to be a matter of minutes before Atlas was up as well.

“What the hell Conner?” His father grated out at him, anger etched every word.

“I don’t f*****g know.” He muttered “I just wanted a real fight, Atlas just kind of lost it. Thinks you’re trying to stop us from finding our Mate I guess.” Took the opportunity to cover up the actual reason while his wolf was not there. “Doesn’t like it. We are of the opinion you want your and Brittney’s child to take over when she has one.”

Heard his father sigh, he knew no Alpha Wolf liked being passed over for another, it could make sense to him that Atlas was pissed off about it. Considering how bloody hard his father pushed him, double freaking degrees and courses through summer. He was relentless about it, in fact.

“Is he awake yet?”

“Is he attacking you?” Conner muttered right back.

“Conner, I’m not passing you over. I’m just excited about having a baby with my Mate, that is all. You’ll understand that one day yourself.”

Conner closed his eyes and leaned his head back on the wall. He was really beginning to doubt that. With Atlas’s relentless obsession with his human stepsister, and the rejection that was coming from him. Or him making damn certain he never scents her out, if she is their human Mate. He scrubbed a hand over his face and got up off the floor and pulled those pants on as he could finally feel Atlas waking up. “Leave it father, I don’t want him pissed off anymore than you do. I couldn’t stop him, I did try.”

Saw the man nodding, “We can discuss the mating balls Conner, I’ll try to get you and the boys off to other packs. I do want you all to find your Mates.”

Nodded at him and walked away, this fight was not something he wanted to happen again, especially if it always came about around Eliza. His father was not a stupid man, neither were the current Alpha Unit. Hell, his own would pick it quicker than his father. Needed to keep them off of that and keep them thinking this was about Mating Balls or being passed over. It’s the only way he’d get away with a rejection of the girl without anyone knowing about it.

Conner stood under the hot, steady stream of water in his shower and let it wash all the b***d off him, once he was fully healed by Atlas. His wolf was quiet and didn’t want to talk to him, felt him just curl up in the back of his mind and close his eyes. He was keeping his thoughts to himself, probably a very good idea. Conner could only handle so much of his wolf’s attention on Eliza at the best of times.

Dressed and called the boys to him, it had been a long day but they still had to go and test the pack boundaries. The best way to do that was to scent mask themselves and head out in human form. They were lighter on their feet that way.

Atlas didn’t seem to care at all. It almost felt as if his wolf was moping back there inside his mind. He didn’t know if it was about the fact that he’d taken on his own father? or if he’d been dosed with wolfsbane by his own pack? or if it was because Eliza felt trapped here? and wanted away from him, from all of them.

Spend the rest of the night trying to sneak out of his own pack, testing the patrollers, surprised a few of them, got surprised by two himself, who’d seen him coming and hid from him only to jump him, “not on my watch Alpha.” One had laughed at him softly. Another had been leaning up against a large outcrop and murmured “Where do you think you’re going boy?” his most fatherly tone, though it was laced with a little amusement. They all knew that with his and his unit scent masked, they were either testing the border’s weaknesses or actually trying to sneak out.

Most thought it was just funny to catch them, others just stated, “I know how to do my job.” Only Cameron got through one section of the western border in one of the more mountainous regions and that was because their roaming patrol had too big of a gap, due to the terrain, when they’d seen him on the other side apparently had g*****d.

That patrol route was extended for the night. They would fix it up and likely add another patroller out there starting tomorrow, so that there was no gap in the future. Not that he thought Eliza was about to go running off into the mountains to get away, the last time she’d been out doing that she’d been down near the gate itself, likely trying to get around it and then would head back to where the road was. That was the logical conclusion he’d made.

He was going to sleep like the dead all day long, didn’t really like pulling all-nighter’s enjoyed at least a few hours of sleep each night. Showered and crashed out in his bed after pulling all the drapes closed, did enjoy having block out drapes in his room so that daytime could feel like night-time. Set and alarm to get up by 1pm or he was going to miss his afternoon classes at the university which started at 3pm today, was only going to get 5 hours sleep but that he could live with. Would make for easy sleeping when he got back home tonight.