ALPHA: Heir Of The Four

Chapter Nine | Part II*

Chapter Notes: Caleb's POV

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- 'Your rescue; my undo. I'm not the one to save you. . .' -

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She loved me.

     My wolf stirred at the memory of Ava-Rain's admittance of her feelings the previous night. As I ventured into the den's backyard, my eyes remained glued on her figure off in the distance. About a mile or so away from the house, Ava-Rain was being kept occupied by Rickon and Declan, both of whom were in wolf form. We had returned to the den several hours ago, and upon our arrival I had made sure that Ava-Rain was settled inside of our bedroom—it was just after midnight at that point—before calling yet another pack meeting to discuss Angelie's warning. The discussion had carried on throughout the early hours of the morning and had not adjourned until well after dawn. But despite the lengthy meeting and its importance, my mind, every now and then, always travelled back to Ava-Rain's earlier words: 'I guess I've sort of been in love with you for months.'

     She loved me.

     After the hour I had given her to make a decision was up, I certainly did not think I would have returned to her confession of love. That hour had not been kind; it had almost driven both my wolf and I to insanity. Living in secrecy for twenty-three years, having to watch your back every minute of every day and fighting to maintain a balance between all four of the elements that dwelled inside of me, none of that had ever been as horrible or as torturous as that one solemn hour had been.

     A part of me had reasoned that Ava-Rain would choose me. That it would be impossible for her to walk away. That, despite me not being completely honest and truthful, she would choose me regardless. I was quite convinced that our fight would be easily forgotten, that we could put it behind us and move forward. But that light of hope had faded as quickly as the end of the hour neared. Doubt after doubt began to cloud my thoughts and judgment as fear overruled my emotions. Eventually, I became convinced, not that I was going to lose her but that I had already done so. That the protection I thought I was providing her with was, in fact, pushing her away. That I had, once again, deluded myself into believing that I deserved love.

     But, above all else, what I had feared the most was not her decision to walk away, but, in all honesty, her choice to stay. That hour had made me realize that keeping her at arms length, keeping secrets hidden in the dark, was not entirely done for the protection of my pack as I had said, but done for self-preservation purposes. I feared her decision to choose me because, if she did, I knew I could no longer keep the doors to who I truly was shut and locked. It would mean laying myself bare, allowing her entry into my flaws and faults, and giving her a front row view of the mental and emotional scars that blemished my mind, body and soul.

     'I choose you,' she had said.

     And just like that, my biggest fear had indeed come true. But it was Ava-Rain's confession of love along with my love for her that, together, turned that fear into power. I am Caleb Brandt. I am an heir of the four, and alpha of my pack. But it was not those titles that made me powerful. Titles did not equate to power. Sacrifice fueled power. Forgiveness fueled power. Friendship, trust, and loyalty fueled power. Desire and intellect. Acceptance. Happiness. All of those equated to power and every single one of those things had been offered to me, wrapped in the love—the ultimate and most powerful power—that my mate harboured for me.

     It wasn't until she had uttered the words that I realized it had been a missing piece of my incomplete puzzle. And if I ever hoped to complete that puzzle in this lifetime, I needed to hold on tightly to my newfound power and, for once in my life, take a backseat to control and allow myself to be guided. And, right now, I was being led to my mate, bearing the only gift I could offer her: truth.