When I Find You (Completed) (Not Edited)

Chapter 24

"Adriane?! Oh my god! Where have you been? Why did you leave?" Jake questioned in a rush. There were some sounds of shuffling on the other end.

"Didn't Uncle John tell you? There was a lead about Amber in Chicago. I went to follow it. I've been all over a few states, Jake. I'm currently in North Dakota." Her eyes met briefly with Nathaniel's before they glanced down at the phone she had moved away from her ear. She pressed the speaker button.

"Jake... Amber's dead." There was a harsh sound of air being sucked in.

"What? H-how do you know?"

"I saw it happen right in front of me." Adriane muttered quietly, her voice grew thick as her eyes welled with tears, blurring her vision.

"Did you kill the son of a bitch that  murdered her?" Jake bit out coldly. There was a low growl on the other side of the line as something was smashed.

"No." Adriane answered quietly, wincing away from the phone as a loud roar deafened through the speaker. Nathaniel quickly wrapped his arms around Adriane, dragging her into his lap. She tensed greatly, ignoring the warm liquid that spilled from her tear ducts. Nathaniel gently tugged the phone out of her hand. He pressed the speaker phone button before pressing the phone up to his ear.

"Jake." He spoke evenly. Adriane hesitantly tugged on his shirt. 'Let me hear' she mouthed to him. He stared at her a bit before nodding.

"I'll ask again! Who the fuck is this?" Jake growled out angrily. Adriane tension slowly leaked out of her as she laid back, resting her head on his chest.

"This is Adriane's mate. My name's Nathaniel." There was a long silence. Both Adriane and Nathaniel knew that Jake was still there though due to his heavy breathing.

"Mate? My baby cousin found her mate? How do you fit into all of this?"

"I'm the one who killed Amber." Jake's snarls picked up again. "Listen to me!" Nathaniel demanded, an authoritative tone ringing clear. "Amber was trying to kill Adriane. Her death was to ensure my mate's safety."

"Lies! Amber wouldn't try to kill Adriane! They're practically sisters." Jake spat into the speaker. "You're not my cousin's mate. Don't you fucking lay a finger on her!"

"He's speaking the truth, Jake." Adriane croaked in, "he's my mate. It was self defense." With that, she pressed her nose into her mate's chest more so, thinking back over all the memories she had with Amber. She's want me to celebrate her life, not mourn her. Nathaniel filled Jake in on the details.

"Those messed up motherfuckers." Jake grit out. "Don't think your out of the woods, Nathaniel. You killed my little sister. You're lucky I don't hunt you down and slit your throat." Adriane whimpered slightly at the thought.

"Jake, Amber would want us to celebrate her life, not mourn her death." Adriane defended her mate weakly. Jake let out a frustrated sigh. The sounded sound similar to that of her uncle's, which made her perk up a bit.

"Jake, where is Uncle John?" She questioned again, remembering she had asked earlier. Another silence followed.

"Dad has, uh, given his position to me." Adriane sat up a bit more, a frown marring her features.

"Tell me the truth."

"I challenged him. He was going to kick you out of the pack! I couldn't allow that. So, I challenged him, and I won." Adriane's mouth opened and closed.

"You risked getting kicked out of the pack for me?" When a wolf challenges the Alpha, there are two outcomes. They lose, and they are kicked out of the pack. The other outcome is they win. The new Alpha is instated and the old one becomes a regular member of the pack. A humorless chuckle came from his end.