Fallen Alpha

-04- 🥀 Rescue Me

^ Picture of Mateo Pérez

"If I was dying on my knees, you would be the one to rescue me. And if you were drowned at sea, I'd give you my lungs so you could breathe. I've got you brother."
~Kodaline, 'Brother'

~~~

*Easton's POV*

"How has training been going with the new set of warriors?" I ask Mateo as I ruffle through a stack of paperwork.

"No problems so far," Mateo shrugs. "A few of them have struggled a bit, but it's nothing we can't handle. I think they just lack confidence."

"Do you have the list of names?"

He nods, pulling out a piece of paper from his pocket and unfolding it. I glance down at the wrinkled page before raising an eyebrow.

"I didn't have anywhere else to put it," Mateo raises his hands defensively. Shaking my head, a snatch the list and let my eyes roam over the names. One name in the middle stands out to me, and I furrow my brows.

"Enzo Grey is one of our newest warriors?" I question. While it's only been a few days since my talk with Landon, we've managed to see each other daily. He hadn't mentioned that his older brother was becoming a warrior.

Mateo nods his head. "He shows a lot of promise. Very bright and determined. Pays attention to detail. I have high hopes for him."

I hum in approval, setting the paper aside. "I'm glad to hear he's doing well."

"Why are you curious about him in particular?" Mateo asks while tilting his head, and I pause. I haven't told anyone about Landon being my mate. I'm not sure if I should yet. Do I tell people now, even though Landon won't feel the bond for two more years?

"I met him the night of my coronation," I answer slowly. It's not technically a lie, since I did meet him at my coronation. I'm just... leaving out the part of being mated to his brother.

Mateo shrugs, seeming to accept that answer. "Well, he's a keeper. Give him a few years and I wouldn't be surprised if he is the new head of the warriors."

I raise my eyebrows, extremely impressed. That's a high compliment coming from my Beta, especially since Mateo has been known to be very picky when it comes to the warriors. After all, he was the head warrior before becoming my Beta.

"Oh, I've been meaning to ask," he starts, leaning against my desk. "What have you been up to these past few days?"

"Besides being Alpha?" I chuckle, and Mateo shakes his head.

"You've been randomly disappearing over the past few days," he points out, and I freeze. "And I know it isn't Alpha business, because I would've been told about it. What's going on with you?"

Trying to play it off, I shrug nonchalantly. "Nothing you need to worry about."

"Easton," Mateo says firmly, his dark eyes hardening. "The last time you started disappearing, you were—"

"I know," I quickly cut him off, not needing to hear a recap of how weak I was back then. In middle school, I started feeling a tad... anxious. There was too much pressure as the next Alpha to be the smartest in school, and whenever I felt short, I would have minor panic attacks. I started disappearing randomly whenever I felt panicky, slipping deep into the woods to... well, let's just say that Mateo freaked out when he saw the scars on my arms. He basically rescued me from that dark period of my life, and I swore to never show that kind of weakness again. "This is nothing like that. This is... I found my mate."