The Rejected Alpha (Book 1 of the Rejected Series)

Chapter 96

I sighed with relief and moved a hand through my hair and across my face, trying but failing to relieve whatever stress that I was feeling, even though I knew that it wasn't going to work because Levi wasn't safe and out of their grasp yet.

And not just him but all of us...

"I am going to need you all to take care of all the training with everyone in the pack," I said, looking at the Eliest and then at Miguel and Aaron. "I can not do it because I do not know when they will try to contact me and have to do something else that I won't be able to break free from. I do not want to be stuck in the middle of training, get "called" or whatever the fuck is going to happen to me, and then for them to know that it has been happening behind their backs."

"Where have these training sessions been taking place?" Levi asked and furrowed his brows, looking perplexed. He looked between all of us and bit back a small frown before he looked at me. "I hadn't noticed that a group of people had been disappearing all at once, and I know that the gym is now off limits because I, well he, caught you using the gym." He looked at me when he said that.

"And it sucks that the gym is now closed," Miguel said and folded his arms across his chest. He scowled and narrowed his eyes, pouting playfully, and Levi grew tense and looked away from us with a small grimace on his face. "I hate not being able t-"

"Shut up, Miguel," I said and shook my head, interrupting him. I glared at him and pressed my lips into a thin line, hating that my mate had started to feel bad, even though it wasn't his fault that the gym had been closed, to begin with.

He wasn't able to disobey their orders...

"This is not the time nor place to discuss this, especially since we are in the presence of the one that had done it because of him being controlled. I am not going to have him feel terrible about himself because you can not keep your mouth shut." I bared my teeth in warning and growled, narrowing my eyes. "He also doesn't know if you are joking or not at the moment, and I hope that you are."

Miguel looked between the two of us before he grimaced and rubbed the back of his neck, and his cheeks turned red. "Ya, I am just joking, Alpha," he said and looked at him, submitting to him ever so slightly with a small whine. "I am sorry, and I hope that you can forgive me because I didn't mean anything bad about it."

Levi didn't say a word and shrugged, biting back a small grimace. He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against me, and pain and guilt flashed through his eyes while he looked between the ones who had to move up ranks because he had not been doing what he could do to provide for his pack and keep us where we were "meant" to be.

"We've been using somewhere else, Alpha," Aaron said and bowed his head. He shot Miguel an annoyed look before he looked at my mate. "I am not going to say where because I do not want Lex's scary look on me, but I can assure you that we have been able to train and keep up with everything that is needed from us."

Levi sighed and slowly nodded, moving a hand through his hair and across his face. "I am sorry," he said and cleared his throat while he shifted in his seat. "I know that it isn't my fault, but it does feel like my fault, even though I had no way of knowing that this was going to happen, nor have I been able to stop it."

"It is ok, for none of us did, Levi," my grandmother said and shook her head, smiling sadly. "However, we plan what we can and then worry about the rest later. There is no need to feel so guilty about it." She offered him a warm smile and tucked her head closer to her chest, and Levi offered her a tired smile, even though it didn't reach his eyes.

"What else do you want us to do?" another of the members asked, breaking the tense silence that had fallen on us while they turned their attention to me. "Do you need us to worry about any of the paperwork?"