Page 11 of Destined Mate

I bit my tongue. The more I pushed, the worse the punishment would be.

“It’s hard enough to make sure they don’t try to take my territory, but then you had to go do something likethis. It’s unacceptable, and you’ll be punished.”

That had been his plan all along. He wouldn’t punish me for the attack but rather for being out there and getting the alpha advisers involved.

Like usual, I bit the inside of my cheek, and blood filled my mouth. This little tic had become somewhat comforting.

“Here’s what’s going to happen.” Zeke pushed off the countertop and slammed his hand on the table, and the loudthumpechoed off the kitchen’s cream walls. The table cracked but didn’t splinter. This was an intimidation tactic he used frequently with me, and Ihatedit—not because it worked but because it made me want to fight back harder. I tried to school my expression despite the anger churning through me.

Whatever look crossed my face, Zeke must have approved because he smirked, thinking it was fear instead of barely bridled rage. “You’re going to work for Charles in the morning. You’ll do whatever he requests. Then you’re going to cycle through the other four, your sister being last. Whatever they want, for however long they want.” He nodded and locked eyes with me.

My cheek was throbbing, so to stop myself from telling him exactly where he could go, I switched to biting my tongue.

“Do you understand?” Zeke demanded.

“I do.” Of course he wouldn’t give me a few days to heal. “But I need to leave by five to get to work on time. I already missed my shift tonight when you had me clean your bathrooms.” Which hadn’t needed to be done, but I couldn’t refuse my alpha.

He shook his head. “You will stay as late as required to finish whatever they ask of you. If it’s after five, you’ll have to miss work again. Besides, you don’t need a job outside of the pack. We provide you with a home, food, and everything you need.”

That was the kicker. For whatever reason, he made it difficult for me to work outside of the pack. Even my parents worked for an outside company, although their jobs were remote and they worked from home. Still, there were plenty of pack members who owned businesses and held jobs in Halfway, a town thirty minutes away. “By accepting the job, I made a commitment. I can’t keep missing shifts.”

Zeke leaned across the table, his face inches from mine. His foul garlic breath hit my face, and I damn near gagged. “You’re notlistening,” he breathed. “You’ll do what I say, and if you lose your job, so be it. That’s not my problem.”

My hands fisted, and the urge to punch the prick surged within. I bit my other cheek, giving my tongue a reprieve. Remaining quiet, I didn’t falter, keeping my gaze steady as I stared right back at him.

His nose wrinkled. “You’re lucky you’ve survived this long. You’d better watch it. Not only is the entire pack tired of your attitude, but you can’t shift. You’re lucky we haven’t kicked you out. You’re worthless, and we tolerate you because we took you in, but even that goodwill is fraying. Learn your place, or I’ll be forced to teach it to you, no matter the cost.”

A chill ran down my spine. If that wasn’t a threat, I didn’t know what was. There was no doubt he was insinuating death. Maybe I should cut my losses and run away.

“Dad,” Theo said, “I think she got the point.”

“She better have. My tolerance is over, and if you leave, your family will pay the price for that, too.” He stood again and pointed at me as he continued. “You will be at Charles’s house by eight in the morning. Got it?”

I glanced at the clock on the black stove across the room. It read two a.m.

By the time I cleaned up and got myself in bed, I’d have less than five and a half hours of sleep. That wasn’t enough time for my injuries to even halfway heal, but that was the point. Gods, I hated this asshole. “Got it,” I said bitterly.

“Good.” Zeke grinned and crossed his arms. “I’ll be there to see you arrive. And if those alpha advisers try to contact you, you’ll say nothing of this. Otherwise, life will get worse for you and your entire family.”

Every time I thought I couldn’t dislike him more, he proved me wrong. I’d better stop tempting Fate. I had to get the hell out of here without causing too many more problems.

Zeke turned on his heel and left via the front door.

When it closed, Theo hung his head. “What did you get yourself into?”

“Clearly, not a good time.” These were the moments when he irritated me and reminded me of his father.

“Cal,” he said tenderly, his expression softening. “You know better than to go out there. I’ve told you to stop.”

I unclenched my teeth, and the taste of copper had my stomach gurgling. “I needed to be outside and alone. With the full moon, I knew most of our pack would be running around here, and I didn’t want to deal with any judgment because I can’t shift. I wasn’t trying to disobey. I just needed some peace and silence. That’s it.”

“We need to find you a better place to go.” He pushed up the sleeve of Bodey’s shirt high enough to see the first set of claw marks. “They got you good.”

“I’m well aware.” I tried not to wince. Having him see me like this made me feel too vulnerable, which pissed me off. “Theo, I’m telling you, those five weren’t out there hunting me. They were playing, wanting to get away until they caught my scent and decided to have some fun.”

“Maybe, but it doesn’t matter.” Theo’s face hardened, his expression slightly cold again. “All of them, including your sister, are stronger wolves than you. You can’t keep stumbling into these confrontational situations and disrespecting them.”

“Now you sound just like your dad.” Even though he was my best friend, one of the few I could count on, he still tended to anger me.

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