Gray Valley

s e v e n t y

I WAS DONE.

I was done with pretending to be an Alpha like my father.

I was done with how weak I was.

Genesee remained in the forest with an unconscious Bryan and I decided to return to the members of the Pack, at the Safe Place, after Blayze was taken by Lucian.

I detected the familiar scent of shifted wolves as I reached the entrance of the caves.

"Martyn."

He emerged from the caves, his black hair tousled and his eyes blackened from him fighting in his Wolf form.

"Where is Bryan?"

I recognised the panic in his voice.

"He is in the forest with Genesee."

"And is he safe?"

"She is in her Wolf form. So... Yes. Bryan is safe with her."

He let out a breath.

"Alright."

I followed him into the Safe Place, where I noticed Michael and the shifted Brown Wolves restrained against the wall.

"The Brown Wolves stopped fighting after I gagged and restrained Michael. As they were not dangerous, I commanded for them to be restrained, by the Pack, so you could decide what to do with them."

"You can decide, Martyn."

He turned to me.

"What?"

"You can decide what to do with them."

He made his decisions... Like he was a leader.

No.

He was not like a leader.

He was a leader.

"Martyn... Could you take over command for me?"

He was unlike me.

"I'm the Gamma... Weslyn."

"And?"

"You do what you do because you're the Alpha."

I laughed at him.

"Do you believe I'm a good Alpha, Martyn?"

"You are my Alpha."

"You didn't answer my question."

"It doesn't matter. You may be a good Alpha. And... You may be a bad Alpha. But you're Weslyn Grayson. We want you as our Alpha. And... We need you as our Alpha. So... It doesn't matter if you're a good Alpha."

"It's not me that you need. It's not me that you want. Do not lie to me... Martyn. It's Alpha Weslyn Grayson. It's an Alpha of the Grayson Family."

There was silence.

"But, Martyn, I'm not like my Father."

"Weslyn."

"The Alpha that you need and want is not me. And..."

"Please... Weslyn."

"I'm done... Martyn. An Alpha who couldn't protect their Soulmate is not an Alpha at all. I'm done."

A laugh resonated throughout the cave.

It was Michael, who was still restrained, against the wall.

Before I could stop him, Martyn moved from beside me and punched the side of his face.

"Don't you dare laugh, Michael." His eyes darkened in anger. "It is because of you that we couldn't protect our mates. Don't you dare laugh!"

But, even as I watched his son speak to him, Michael eyes were fixated on me, as though I was the one he wanted to speak with.

"His gag... Take off his gag."

"Alpha-"

It was one of the members of the Pack who I recognised as Luis.

"He can't command them if the Brown Wolves are restrained. Luis... Take off his gag. "

He hesitated before reaching down to take off the gag.

"Pathetic," he remarked the instant he could. "Like him, you're so pathetic, Alpha Grayson."

"What?"

"Wesley, too, was pathetic, after he couldn't protect his mate."

"His mate?"

My father could protect my mother.

It was she who couldn't protect him.

"Not... Liana. It was his Brown Wolf mate who he couldn't protect... Mikayla."

I was silent.

I did not know how to respond because I did not know about Mikayla.

"You say that you're not like your father... Don't make me laugh. You're like him... Your father."

I stared at him.

"You wanted Martyn to take over command so that you could run and hide from the Pack you can't protect. Wesley was the same. He wanted Graham to take over command. To take over as Alpha. But he couldn't run and hide. "

Martyn moved from beside me to stand in front of Michael.

"You can't run. And... You can't hide."

"Stop that, Father."

I noticed him smile at his son.

"You're like me, too, Martyn."

"No," he whispered. "I am nothing like you at all. No."

"Children are like their parents."

"No!"

"You do everything to be with your Soulmate." He glanced at him. "We are the same."

"No... We're not. You did nothing to be with your mate."

"It is as if you are my reflection."

"We are not the same!" His dagger was at Michael's throat. "You didn't even try to protect my mother! She was killed because of you... Michael. And she was your mate!"

His face fell.

"Lucia?" he asked as though the name was unfamiliar to him. "You're talking about Lucia?"

"Yes... Lucia Grant."

He let out a breath.

"Lucia wasn't my Soulmate."

His hand trembled but his dagger remained at his father's throat.

I could tell that he did not know that before.

"You let West k-kill her."

"I'm sorry, Martyn."

"You're sorry? So what if you're sorry?"

He remained silent.

"She was my mother! And you're sorry?"

"No."

"What?"

"She was not your mother... Martyn."

The dagger fell to the ground.

Martyn was staring at his father.

"Your mother is Gabriela Bane."