An Alpha's Duty

Chapter 4

"You and Dad are true mates, aren't you?" Ryan already felt the truth in his heart but he needed to know. He needed his mother to confirm what he had guessed.

A small smile broke over his mother's face and a wistful look entered her eyes. It was then he knew he'd been right. It made him feel alone knowing that both his parents and his sister had found their true mates and yet he had never felt that way about anyone.

"The first time I saw your father was at the banquet a few days before his choosing ceremony. I had travelled down with my father and younger brothers from our territory high in the north. My father had hoped that I would be chosen to open up a new alliance with such a powerful Alpha. Even then your father had built a strong reputation that other Alphas respected and some feared."

It was the first time his mother had told him about her life before this pack. He'd known that she was part of a Canadian pack before the choosing and yet he'd never realised just how brave she must have been to leave everything she knew behind.

Pride for his what his mother had done had him walking back over to her and wrapping his arms around her shoulders. She laughed and pushed him away whilst she carried on with her story.

"The moment I saw him, I knew the rumours were true and that he was my mate. At the choosing he picked me without hesitation and when I looked into his eyes, I knew he felt the same aching longing that I'd been feeling." The dreamy expression on his mother's face dissolved as she regarded her son.

"I never told you but that day I was challenged for the right to be your father's mate by another Alpha's daughter."

Ryan stared at his sweet, devoted mother in shock. Challenges weren't uncommon but there hadn't been one in many years because of the brutality involved; sometimes it even resulted in the deaths of the two women.

The rules of a choosing were clear; once an Alpha picked his mate, the other candidates could challenge her. To prove her strength to the pack and prove herself worthy of the Alpha, she would have to battle the challenger until they backed down or until there was only one of them left standing.

"If I hadn't had your father supporting me and the bond of true mates, I don't think I would have been able to beat her. I'll always remember that day, the love shining in your father's eyes as he bandaged my wounds and the pack's acceptance as they brought me food whilst I healed."

His mother mentioned nothing more about the challenger and Ryan knew better than to ask. Whatever his mother had gone through that day, what she had to say and do to beat her challenger were better off remaining in the past. Ryan knew his mother was strong but her kind heart would have felt every blow and scar she left on her opponent.

The brutality of the challenge was vital according to most packs. It was proof the Alpha's new mate would fight for them but Ryan loathed putting his future mate through anything like that.

Not all Alphas relied on a choosing ceremony to pick their mates, some would just accept a female from their pack but even in these circumstances the other pack females could challenge her. It was why Alphas always chose dominant females to mate with.

"Why wouldn't you tell me this before? Why are you telling me now?" Ryan couldn't understand why his parents would keep all of this secret, why his sister also did the same.

It made no sense to him why they wouldn't be celebrating and telling everyone they had found their true mate, a person created by the Goddess herself specifically for them. No one would challenge the match if the Goddess had preordained it.

His mother's expression shuttered at his question and she looked out of the windows, watching the wind weaving through the trees.

"You have to understand the panic people would feel if they knew the stories were true. For years pack elders have maintained there is no such thing as true mates and people have believed this. They've mated, had families and been happy. Imagine if you then told everyone their true mate is out there but they're already mated to another. Imagine the heartbreak and loneliness that could bring to so many."