Just a random authors tangent, you can ignore it, (except read the bottom)
I am suffering from a bit of writer's block at the moment and it's the worst! I had to sit down and force myself to write this chapter. I spend way more time and brain power and just in general, effort writing chapters for this book. My other book has pre-written chapters, which definitely helps me not stress (and the chapters are a lot shorter.)This book is tough because
1) I want to maintain the quality of my writing throughout the whole book and that means lots of revisions and edits before I feel comfortable enough to post them.
2) I care sooo much about the characters and the story and I know they're fictional but, don't want to disappoint them...does that even make sense? idk I'm probably way too attached.
3) The main plot points of this book were planned before I even started writing, but know with the story being well underway, I need to try and work all these ideas in without making things seem too crazy and rushed, which is a major challenge. I know I need to do this book justice.
Read this:
Even though these are the things I have floating in the back of my mind. The biggest motivator for me writing is you guys. Every word I write is because of you. If I could dedicate my book to every single person who takes the time to read, comment and vote- I would. Even though there are probably a million other books that are better or more popular, you are taking the time to read mine. That means the world to me. Thank you for being a part of my tiny little corner of Wattpad. It's everything.
Chapter 18:
A sharp knock on the door made Liam jolt upright in his chair. His eyes scanned around the room, vision blurry, mind disorientated before they settled on a concerned face standing at his door.
His tired eyes flitted to the silver, hexagonal clock that had been knocked over and was lying flat on his desk, flush against his half-eaten dinner plate from the night before. Late night butter chicken deliveries were a godsend these days. It read 8:00 am and it took his mind a few moments to register that is was the next day. And that he had spent the night asleep on his laptop. He couldn't see it, but the keys had left their square imprints on the side of his cheek and his laptop had turned itself off, giving up after having random characters pressed on for six hours straight.
He involuntary stretched his arms upwards, trying to tug his body awake. He Knocked the lapis lazuli abstract sculpture that was suspended from the ceiling with his fingertips. Carter's brilliant idea of course. Liam was constantly was reminded of its presence. Despite it residing there for years, he always disrupted it, or hit it, or bumped it... Although complaints about it had become part of the regular office routine he couldn't bear to take it down. Not now. Not when it was his only friend during the long days and the even longer nights.
Rubbing his overworked hands over his eyes he was suddenly reminded of the other person in the room. He immediately cleared his throat and ran his fingers through his hair, in an attempt to look like he had shit together. Judging by the furrowed eyebrow and look of worry on Nicks's face, it didn't work.
"Hi, Nick. What's been happening?"
Nick shook the expression off his face. After seeing the bowl of food on the desk, the neutrality was weakened by his disgust. Liam didn't care. Nick had seen worse in the last few weeks. Last week Liam had stupidly gotten electrocuted by his desk lamp and of course, Nick saw the whole thing.
He was a recent college graduate that had returned to the pack after a brief stint as an international student. In the interim of finding a decent paying job to fit his non-specific degree, he had been filling the role of an assistant. His mother had practically kicked him into Liam's office, sick of him sitting on the couch watching Netflix all day, swiping through werewolf dating apps. Although it didn't pay brilliantly, it was a comfortable way to pass time and the fact that Nick could ogle the alpha while doing it – he was happy. He looked at the dark rings under his eyes and the shy beginnings of a beard on Liam's face. Even though these days the alpha looked like such a sad tortured soul, beta-less, mate-less and ultimately love-less, Nick was more than into it.
"So Liam, today these are all the appointments you have." He placed a list in front of him. Liam nodded in thanks.
It was particularly long today and usually, he and Carter would split it right down the middle. Divide and conquer. Even though it would have been more than justified to give up due to the the inequality of it all. To simply let the stress drown him, the notion never crossed his mind. He was the Alpha and he needed to run the pack. He fought for this role and he would do it, complaint-free- even if it meant late nights alone, permanent butt cheek marks pressed into the memory foam of his office chair and stretching one change of clothes to last the week. He would embrace the peaks and the troughs of the job and take one day at a time.
He thought of Cassidy. How she had changed him. He almost could hear her voice on the phone telling him the same thing when she had to go on trips or cancel dates- sometimes you did things because you simply didn't have a choice. People counted on you. He briefly wondered how she was doing. Even though his heart ached from the distance She texted every now and again. It was enough for him.
So, Liam would suck it up and press on because that's what everyone needed him to do. And was the most fundamental premise of being an Alpha was, it was something he could never allow himself to forget. Not to be power hungry, not to be a dictator. But to put the love of Pack above anything else.
"Thanks, Nick. I appreciate it." Usually, he would be answering his own calls and making his own appointments, but he knew better than most that sometimes one had to accept their limitations. He was better than Cassidy in that area at least.
"No problem Liam...Oh and one more thing, your father called."
That comment had Liam wide awake. "My father called? From Africa?"
Nick nodded as he turned to exit the office. You were sleep talking about your mate so I decided to leave you. He said he will call you back in about 30 minutes.
Liam took a deep breath and gulped audibly.
---
Liam's relationship with his mother and father was a typical one. A standard, fond parent-child connection influenced by busyness, differing time zones and opposing climates. Fortunately, love could travel over any distance. And although he often missed the warmth that only his family could kindle when they were together, he always felt their love for him, from all the way across the world.
A negative side effect of the distance was that Liam could be very particular about what he did and did not tell his family. Which came in handy when he could leave out that he hardly cleaned his apartment or that he didn't have wolf-health insurance... I mean he was an adult, the boundaries were only fair...but the bad side of the coin was that he could get away with murder and they'd be none the wiser. For instance, he didn't dare tell his mother that he had been living solely on takeaways because he barely left his office. Or even that Carter had left. And he even chose to omit the fact that he had found his mate. Which Cassidy had oh, so correctly called him out on.
The last time he had spoken to his mother on facetime he had come clean in the last five second of the conversation. He blurted it out amidst the lagging waves and delayed "bye's" so he hadn't even known if they'd heard. It probably looked like he had been avoiding their calls since, but he'd just been busy. However, he had used that excuse too many times in the past and needed to come up with a new one. And quickly. Before his father called him again.
The fact that his father was the one that called made all the difference. Even though he had been the Alpha for years, his parents, specifically his father could still make him want to pee in his pants.
He cursed as he saw the familiar photo of his parents pop up on his laptop screen. It was a very blurry and very unattractively angled photo that showcased his parent's selfie-taking ineptness. He tried to plaster a smile on his face as he answered the video call. He was greeted by his mother's smiling face and his father's stoic one. He could hear the gurgling and chatter of his nephew in the background.
"Hi ma, hey dad!"
Immediately the smiling face of his nephew filled the screen. He talked to him and listened to his sweet child-like giggles before the moment was interrupted by his father.
"Look, Liam we need to talk about something..."
Liam's mother placed a gentle but silencing hand on his father's shoulder and lightly scolded him, "let's just wait a minute before we get too serious. I want to find out how my baby boy is doing." His mother moved her face close, a few millimetres away from the screen as if that would make her see him better. "You look a bit too skinny Liam. And please tell me you aren't growing a beard...Are you trying to be a hipster, like what all the humans are doing these days?"
Despite her teasing, his mother was the literal embodiment of a warm hug. That was the only way to describe her. And his father...was closer to a wooden plank.
Liam's nephew who had the cutest afro growing in, began to crawl all over his father. Sticking his fingers in his ears and nose, pulling the hairs of his moustache. Liam saw his father's eyes soften. Only that baby boy seemed to have the power to weaken his resolve.
His father placed the baby down and distracted him by giving him a singing, moving toy. Liam watched as he became mesmerized with it. He crawled after it and off the screen.
"No, I think we need to talk about this now." He shot a concerned look between his parents. His mother sat back against the couch and even though the screen was slightly pixelated, he could see her face pale.
His mother leaned into his father's shoulder.
Growing up he knew his parents loved each other, but he never quite understood it. His mother was gentle and soft-spoken and his father had never pandered to her fragility. His mother doted on all her boys but especially on her mate. Always giving him the biggest piece of chicken. Always fixing his unruly hair, helping him find his car keys.
His father was a good man, one of the greatest Liam had ever known. He was just never the overly affectionate type. He never wrote his mate long cards and never bought her flowers, just because he could. His father kept the yard clean and always did the dishes, but still...He never understood it. But then there was a moment where the blurry picture became crystal clear. As Liam navigated the world of adolescence, the opposite sex became something he was actually interested in. He couldn't help but be excited about the prospect of meeting his own soulmate.
One day they were all sitting watching a movie and even before his mother had even inhaled sharply to sneeze his father had already handed her a tissue.
He never kissed her in front of the kids. Never did grand romantic gestures. But as Liam looked between his parents and saw the way his mother looked at his father. The simple act of him anticipating her needs before she even knew them herself. How could what they had be called anything less than true love. That moment, it showed him that love could take all forms, all shapes. It didn't need to be loud and in your face. It was shared between two people and each love was different to another's. It reminded him that even though it may never be smooth sailing with Cassidy. Her love would be worth every effort. Because her love was made for him and him alone.
Just as he was about to ask his parents what was so urgent when a solemn-looking Brayden walked into the room. His brother gave him a half wave.
"Hey Bray, I can see your dad bod is coming in just in time for Christmas."
Liam's mother looked at him in horror and he could just make out the smile that his father quickly suppressed. Liam knew this was a serious conversation when Brayden didn't even retaliate.
His relationship with his brother had never been the greatest. Even though they had their differences, they shared a mutual respect for one another. They could have a laugh and they knew they could count on each other for anything, but Liam constantly felt like he had to live up to an expectation and Brayden could never see Liam as anything more than his 'little bro.' He had taken after their father with his tough exterior, and Liam was the tender jovial one who their mum had more of a hand in raising. Fifty years ago Brayden, with his broad shoulders, insensitivity and inability to adopt the skills of successful conflict resolution, would have made a great Alpha. Though now in recent years, fatherhood had made the man a huge softie.
Everyone was more than surprised when Liam and Carter were deemed the winning candidates, out of everyone else in the pack who was put through the trials. Thankfully the previous Alpha had the good sense to see a leader that could grow with the future in Liam's eyes. Even though he could never hope to beat his brother in arm wrestling, Liam had a heart of gold and a good head on his shoulders. He was the natural leader. And despite what his brother would never see, he was doing a damn good job of it.
He sat down in-between his parents. Liam's mother took the lead, "honey, why don't you get Carter, he might want to hear this."
Just before Liam could make an excuse, Cindi walked in with her sleepy son resting against her shoulder. His brother and Cindi had met when Brayden was on a solo safari trip in the heart of the African savannah. The story went that Brayden had antagonised a mother elephant (which Liam believed because Brayden antagonised everyone,) and just as it was about to decapitate him with its Ivory tusks, an African princess stepped in and saved the unsuspecting 'white man' within an inch of his life. After a world wind romance, they got married under the African sun and Liam's parents, after living a life serving the pack they decided to use their retirement fund to live a life of daring adventure. They left him to lead the pack, while they helped Cindi and Bray with their rambunctious son. He couldn't resent them for it, not when they texted him photos of them running with Lion packs and not when they sent him an authentic African drum for his Birthday. He still didn't know how it had passed customs.
Cindi smiled at him with her sparkling white teeth and greeted him with accented English, "Hello Liam."
"Hey, Cindi."
He paused and looked at everyone's now serious faces...What's wrong?"
The tension settled over the room and could be sensed over the screen. Cindi, being a typical Alpha, only waited a moment for someone else to spill and when nobody did, she took charge.
"We wouldn't be calling you if it wasn't an emergency. But we are at war. And we need you to come here and fight with us."
---
Every time Liam needed to make trips to the African continent, there was no hesitation. Whether it was to help with trade facilitation, to spend time with his family, or to disband uprising rebellions, he would pack his bags and just go. Sometimes even Carter came. That pack was also his family. He knew them each by name and by story. But at that moment, the first thought, the first person that came to mind was Cassidy. Before it didn't matter if he lived or died on the battlefield. But now he couldn't be selfish. He had someone to live for, a future to look forward to.
They didn't need to tell him who they were at war with. The group of radicals had been at odds with the wolves for decades. Despite being peaceful creatures, the government wanted them gone. And they would give funding to whoever promised to make that possible. Claws and fangs could not hope to compete with guns and grenades. Cindi's pack must be in trouble for them to be calling favours from their international allies.
Without taking her eyes off him, Cindi said to his mother, "You are right He found her."
Cindi could fight but tactics and strategy were both their strong suits. And with that came the ability to read people like picture books. The hesitant expression on his face must have been too foreign to hide from her intelligent eyes. She would get along great with Cass.
Liam looked away. Avoiding their scrutinizing gazes. He had two distinct options. Tell them about Cassidy, which would most likely end in them convincing him to stay where he would do nothing, while all his friends and family fought on the front line...Tell them about Cassidy and risk any rebels finding out she was alone- Not a good option when she was so easily accessible and unprotected in the human world. All they needed was her social media account and they would come for her. It was that easy. It was unlikely to happen but he couldn't help but be paranoid.
And the second, lie. Make up an excuse, push his fears aside and just go. He looked at the innocent face of his nephew, who was now bouncing on his mother's lap and laughing his heart out. Oblivious and unaware of the situation he was in. One look at the boy's chocolate brown eyes and the choice was made.
The love of pack first before anything else. Even his mate.
"Don't worry. I'm coming."
Liam ended the call and opened a group chat that he hadn't used in a while. He sent a simple but effective, "Pack your thing's wolves, Cindi and Bray need us to go."
At least it would be nice to get the gang back together again.
--
Hope you guys liked that chapter! I always intended to bring these characters in, I mentioned them in the first or second chapter – I'm sure some of you forgot they existed lol.
I don't intend to write too much about Liam's time away, but if it's in popular demand then I will deliver. I'm sure everyone is also dying to see Liam, Cass and Carter back together again, they've been apart for a while. I honestly don't know when a reunion will be, but when I do get there I'm sure it will be an epic one. Please continue to vote, comment and share, your support pushes me to write.
Thank you
-Jasmine