Beta's Second Chance

Anger

Iris, Jessica, Maverick, and the boys ate in peace. Maverick and Waylen commented on how good the food was. When Asher was asked if he liked the food, he nodded. However, Iris wanted him to gain self-confidence, so she taught him the hand sign for 'good,' which was having both his hands upward. Then, the right hand would be lifted; the fingers would touch the lips and then be put back down on the left hand. Asher was instructed to imitate the hand sign, which he did so. "Wow, Iris, you know sign language?"

"A bit, yes. I took some classes since I wanted to work as a speech therapist but since school is so expensive, I decided to learn braille sign language. I actually worked for the Department of Rehabiliation to assist people with disabilities to find employment. After you know...everything that happened with my ex, I quit my job and I'm trying to find my next line of employment."

"Wow, I didn't know that. Well, I can help you find employment with our pack. I think sign language is a good tool for us to communicate and assist us if our pack ever gets in danger."

Iris finished eating the last piece of her parmesan chicken. "So that means I can be your teacher then?" she asked suggestively.

Maverick picked up on it and noticed the flirtatious smile on her face; he let out a low growl. 

Then, Jessica cleared her throat, making them both flinch and realize what they were doing in front of the boys. "Sorry," they said in unison. Jessica noticed Iris and Maverick looking and smiling at one another. She couldn't help but feel slightly jealous of their happiness. Jessica didn't have the best of luck in her love life, but when meeting Rickon, she held hope. However, Rickon lied to her and used another woman for his pleasure. It made her feel that she couldn't trust any man. Then, Waylen's words echoed in her mind: if one gets stuck in anger and sadness, one can't move on. She wanted to hate Rickon, but her heart didn't let her. It was as if her heart and spirit were connected to Rickon.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the living room door. Maverick stood and went to open the door; it was Laura and Matthias. When Waylen saw them, his expression became excited, and he ran toward them. "Mom, Dad! You're back!" He ran to his mother first, who held onto him.

"Waylen! My goodness, you should know better than to run to me so quick! You're getting heavy!" said Laura.

"Sorry, Mom." Laura smiled as she hugged her son tightly and then gave him a quick peck on the head.

Matthias then held on to his son and hugged him tightly. "Have you been good?"

"Yup! I even made a new friend! His name is Asher!" Waylen said as he pointed to Asher, who eyed the couple with caution and curiosity. 

Iris stood and walked toward the couple. "Hello, welcome back. We have extra Spaghetti. Would you like some?"

"No, thank you, Iris. We appreciate it a lot, but Matthias and I went to the pack's village to eat." While Iris and Laura were speaking, Matthias and Maverick eyed one another and then walked outside the house. The door was closed behind them, and Matthias paced back and forth, his hands on his waist. 

Maverick noticed the Alpha's expression and knew it wasn't good news. "What happened in the meeting, Alpha?"

Matthias stopped pacing as he focused on Maverick. "The enemy was closer to us, than I thought. More specifically, closer to Iris."

This caught the Beta off-guard, and his expression became serious. "What do you mean? Are you saying Iris knows who the culprit is? Who is it?"

It was quiet momentarily, but Matthias sighed. "It's Xenon's son, Derek."

The mention of Derek made Maverick still. His mind was trying to comprehend what he was told. The only Derek that he and Iris knew was her cheating ex. The Beta thought it could be any other Derek, but since Matthias said it was someone that Iris knew, there were no other suspects. "Wait a minute. The only Derek I know is Iris's ex. So you're saying he is a hunter and Xenon's son?"

Matthias slowly nodded; even he had difficulties comprehending what he was told. He never would have imagined that Iris's ex was a hunter. With that, he knew that Iris was in danger. "I know it's hard to believe, but it makes sense why many of these murders happened in the pack's territory." He eyed Maverick, who was still trying to process the information. The Alpha didn't want to tell his Beta what he was about to say, but there was no other option. "There is a possibility that Derek is doing all of this to get Iris back."

A low growl escaped Maverick's lips; his eyes turned black. His anger was apparent. "That cheating bastard betrayed her and wants her back! He's out of his mind! Yet, why kill those rogues if he's after Iris!?"

"It's not completely certain but I think he's trying to send a message. He knows who we are. I also think he wanted us to find out who he was and what he can do. I also think that he wants you to leave Iris."

Maverick growled as his anger was getting the best of him. He had the urge to kill. "NO ONE WILL TAKE IRIS AWAY FROM ME! I WON'T ALLOW HIM! SHE'S MINE!"

Matthias understood Maverick's anger but couldn't allow him to get out of control! "I know, Maverick! Calm down right now! It's my command as your Alpha!" He noticed that Maverick was trying his best to calm down. Matthias went to him and gently patted him. "Maverick, right now, we have to think of a plan to capture him. The good news is that we have the Atrim Family's support, and they will assist us in looking for him."

The Beta slowly calmed himself down, but he was still seething. Iris was in danger, and he was determined to keep her safe from her crazy ex. "I should've known something was off about him when we first met! I can't believe that I missed it! Do you have any plans so far?"

"Not at the moment. I was thinking of getting Priestess Hecate and the pack's police force for a meeting."

Maverick was about to speak but was interrupted. "I volunteer to help."

The Alpha and Beta cringed as they saw Iris, Jessica, and Laura standing by the house's door. To Maverick's horror, Iris heard everything. She now knew who her ex indeed was.