Innocence

17 Father

"Has anyone come yet?" I ask the same question I've asked for the last three days.

"Not yet." Unk tells me and I sigh.

I don't want to meet the man... but a part of me wants to know. Why did he do it? How is he an Alpha if he is so horrible? How has his pack not killed off such an evil man?

"They're here." A warrior tells us as he enters the office and we both jump up.

"Time to meet your father." Unk sighs.

"Alpha Edmund?" Unk says as we get to the common area. I look past him to see the man that fathered me. He doesn't look as vilnius as I'd expect.

"Hey, Ray... it's been a while." He responds awkwardly.

"Whyd ya do it Ed?" Unk asks. I know he is angry but he also sounds hurt. Like he knows this man.

"I didn't mean too. Danny got us all whores..." three growls cut him off.

"My Ma was not a whore!" I yell pushing past my dad and uncle. I Storm over to the map and punch him in the face as I go for another hit Unk grabs ahold of me.

"Control yourself nipote!" He growls.

"Please son let me explain." The man pleads and I get even more angry.

"You have no right to call me that! You are not my dad! You are an abuser! You are a sick and twisted man that I'm sorry to say I share DNA with!" I growl and my dad grabs my shoulders and pulls me away from him.

"I want to kill him just as much as you do Cedric but you know we can't. She was my mate remember? You need to calm down. Take a breath for me." He tells me and I take a deep breath.

"Let me explain please." The man begs again and I growl.

"I don't need your explanation. I lived it. You are just like the man that killed her! The ones that broke my brother!... I don't want him here any more Unk. He can keep his pack. If they follow him they are no better and can rot in hell." I growl and go to leave but am stopped when the man has the nerve to grab my arm.

"Listen to me, boy. My pack has nothing to do with this. Kill me if you want but they need an Alpha and that Alpha is you... I don't know what you've been through. I don't know why your Mother was in that brothel... you guys called me a rapist... I didn't know it wasn't her choice. I'm sorry I hurt you but I didn't know..." he tells me but I shake him off.

"Liar!" I yell but my voice squeaks like a 12 year old boy's I'm so emotional.

"Nipote." My uncle says grabbing my shoulders and making me face him. "Take a breath and listen. Do you remember how to tell if someone is lying?"

"Listen to the heart rate, monitor breathing, watch for fidgeting, watch their eyes for pupil dilation." I answer.

"You are like a human lie detector. Look at him and tell me is he lying?" Unk says and I look at the man.

"I didn't know and I'm sorry." He says and I look away.

"I can't do this." I whisper before leaving.

~'~'~'~'~

Down the hall I run into two men I don't recognize. As soon as they see me they drop to one knee with their heads bowed.

"Alpha!" They say simultaneously.

"Ummm... Hi." I say waiting for them to get up. What's wrong with these guys?

"They are from your new pack." A voice says behind me. I look to see the Beta had followed me.

"Why are they bowing?" I ask.

"First time meeting their new Alpha... it's a natural response. Usually it happens at an introduction ceremony and the whole pack bows to their new leader. It's a beautiful ceremony... I gotta admit tho it's weird to see it happen in the middle of a hallway." He chuckles at the men.

"Why haven't they gotten up?" I ask and he full on laughs.

"Tell them to rise. You have to acknowledge them." He tells me.

"Oh right... you guys can get up or rise or what ever." I tell them and they stand grinning at me trying not to laugh at my awkwardness.

"Smooth, Alpha." The Beta says.

"Shut it Beta!" I growl back. He starts to laugh and I can't help but join in. As our laughter dies he nods to the door that leads outside.

"Walk with me." He says and I shrug following him out.

"You should give your father a chance." He tells me and u stop.

"That man is not my father." I growl.

"He is whether you like it is not... it doesn't make him your dad. You called Beta Zane that. He's a good man I'm glad a man like him raised my Alpha." He says.

"Unlike your former Alpha." I grumble.

"Edmund is a good man. He was an idiot in his teens and early twenties but he is a good man." The Beta argues.

"He raped my Ma... that makes him not a good man." I respond.

"I wish you'd stop saying that. He didn't know it wasn't consensual. I've known your father all my life. He was a player before he met his mate but he never would have slept with someone he knew didn't want to." He tells me.

"My ma wouldn't have agreed to it!" I argue.

"Not even to save her pup?" He asks and I get quiet. "I asked around about you while your father panicked about your meeting. You had an older brother... tell me hypothetically if a man grabbed your big brother and told her to play the whore in a brothel or he'd kill her pup what would your ma do?"

"She'd do anything to protect us." I whisper.

"So your father's story isn't so far fetched after all?" He asks and I groan.

"I hate him! It's his fault! If he hadn't come Ma would be alive!" I yell.

"If he hadn't come you wouldn't be alive to hate him." He responds.

"Exactly." I mumble.

"Listen... you don't have to like him. He hates himself fo not being there for you. That hatred in your eyes probably broke him. Even if you do forgive him I don't think he'll ever forgive himself... but you should forgive." He tells me.

"I won't say it's all okay! Even if he didn't know she was forced to be there he still knew she wasn't his mate!" I growl.

"Then isn't it his mate who should punish him? She nearly rejected him for it. Said she couldn't trust him... but she gave him a chance and now they have 6 pups." He says.

"It's still not okay!" I growl I don't like this Beta! He's so hard to argue with!

"Never said it was... it's honestly my biggest pet peeve when someone apologizes and the person responds 'it's okay' an apology doesn't make it okay and forgiving someone isn't condoning their actions. It is simply saying even tho you've done wrong I choose not to be angry and bitter about it. I choose to let it go because holding on is hurting me... I think you should forgive your father for your own sake not his." The Beta says and I am stunned.

Let go of the anger. I don't have to even like him... forgiveness... is it really that easy? Just choose not to hold on to the past? Just choose not to be angry?

But he could have saved us. If he even cared to see if she had a kid. He would have known something was wrong. If he is a good man he could have saved us all... but he didn't... can I forgive him? Choose not to be angry?

"I'm going back in... care to join me Alpha?"