That's Amore

Chapter 22

Hello! 
This is a rather important chapter. That's Amore has now dipped into a bit of history and let me warn you, it plays a crucial part in the following chapters.

P.S; Thank you again for all the love! 

Chapter 22 

Zachary inhaled the deeply from his cigar and watched as the smoky cloud engulfed him in a hazy hug. The smell was fouler, richer than the cigarettes he usually puffed on . 

The room was littered with paper, shards of glass and broken furniture but Zachary paid them no heed as he sat on his chair, thinking about Zola as always.

Ian was back from dropping Zola off at his Cabin and now, The Alpha felt as if a piece of him had been chipped away while the rest of him was deteriorating in its own excruciating way. 

The Cabin was a thirty minute drive away from his Pack boundaries. He needed her to be close to home yet far enough so that she does not become suspicious. All he wanted to do now was to bring her back, lock her in his room and never leave.

As Zachary sat there, looking at the trees on his vast estate, a memory struck him. He didn't know what triggered it but it made him think of his past. Something he was very keen on forgetting and taking with him to his grave.

Maybe it was the sky outside that painted a hue similar to that day. 

Zachary remembered it as if it was yesterday. He was just seven years old,  jogging up to the stairs of their Pack House which was unusually quiet. He had been sent to live with his grandparents down South but something so ghastly had happened that he was brought back with his devastated uncle. Everyone was grieving, crying and hugging him with the repeated worn out line of '...you are such a dear boy. You didn't deserve it,' and 'give it time, all will be alright.' 

Zachary had no clue what or whom he had to give his time to.

Being a young boy, none of this made sense to him; he was more worried about his Father who had not left his study for five consecutive days now. 

He vividly recalled pushing the door to the study open, a room that held an uncanny resemblance to Zachary's current study. 
The figure on the brown chair spoke without turning back as his Father recognized his scent before the timid boy had even entered. 

"I told everyone I do not wish for you to see me like this." He said plainly.

"Father, I wa-was afraid. There is so much patrolling around th-the borders and nob-nobody is ready to tell me where Mother i-is." Zachary stammered from the doorway.

"She's gone! They took her away! That motherf*cking b*tch took my darling from me!" His Father screamed and threw the bottle of whiskey against a wall. 

Zachary took a step back, tears welling up in his eyes. The door to the study opened and his Uncle Roger stepped in. 

"Hey little buddy. Let's go out, okay? We'll go get ice-cream!" He smiled down him, his long brown hair pulled into a ponytail.

"It's time he knows the truth, Roger!" Zachary's Father shrieked, "your Mother was kidnapped and yesterday, we found parts of her body strewn about casually in our yard !" 

"Stop this now!" Uncle Roger yelled, his voice matching Zachary's Father. "Let's go. Your Father needs to stay alone for a while." 

Just like that, everything in his life changed. His Father became his worst enemy and Zachary's perfect family was destroyed forever. 

Filling another glass with bourbon, he revelled at the feel of the warmth hitting his throat and sat there swirling the drink in his hand when the phone of the study rung. Zachary knew it was not someone from his Pack calling, they knew The Alpha was in a foul mood, there was no need to piss him off any more which meant it was either the marketing people or a wrong number.