Chosen by Fate, Rejected by the Alpha

1058 Chapter 43- Reagan – Surprise Party Part 1 (VOLUME 6)

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Reagan

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It had been really nice of Talia to plan a party for Rika and I this morning. It was unexpected, but just what we needed. Both Rika and I had decided that we didn’t want to have a party this year. We were adults now, turning nineteen, and there was a lot going on. We didn’t want to take the focus off of things that were important and put it on us. This was for the best.

Still, I understood that the others wanted to spend time with us as well. That was why I was OK with Talia going behind our backs and planning a breakfast birthday party. It was really sweet of her, and it allowed them all to get that whole celebration thing out of their system.

Now, with it over with, I was able to focus on school, and later I would be able to get to work in my mom’s office. I have been working with her and Dad pretty much every day since this all started. Rika and I were the ones that were there the most often, aside from Mom and Dad, that is.

The others were there most of the time too, so that was good. We had a lot of people helping, and that was making things a lot easier. And that was why we were walking toward Levi and Luka’s car and Alyssa and Alexa’s car at the end of our day. They had picked us up, separately, this morning and then brought us to school. We would of course be riding home with them as well, since we were all going to the same place, it just made sense.

As I looked at the small group of our friends, I didn’t initially think that there was anything up. I mean, I was used to seeing them all the time. And even with Elias, Ashle, Cypress, Beech, Ilana and Rowan all there, nothing seemed off. I mean, they were supposed to be going with us to the office to work like they usually did.

I did start to get suspicious a little bit when I saw that the others were next to the cars as well. When I saw CJ, Kaede, Sophia and Isabella, I felt like there was something off. I mean, they didn’t go to school here. And there was no reason for them to be there. Not unless they came to help with the work that we needed to do. And well, it was also our birthday, so that could be a part of it.

.....

I was starting to think that just maybe they hadn’t gotten the memo that we had decided not to celebrate. And that they were here for our party that wasn’t going to happen. Though, that feeling didn’t last for long. I saw that they were all staring at us and watching Rika and I walk closer to them. The closer that I got, the more that I felt that something was wrong.

“Rika?” I whispered to her.

“I sense it too.” She said as we walked steadily. “What is going on here?”

“I don’t know. Let’s just get them back to the castle and find out what they want, alright. I mean, they are family, so there is nothing to be worried about.”

“Yeah, that is true.” She nodded in response. “Come on, let’s go.”

I think that both Rika and I were being a little na?ve at that point. I knew that something was a little off, but I just let it go and ignored it. I don’t think that I will ever be making that mistake again.

The moment that I sat in Luka’s car, the doors were locked. CJ got into the car behind me and that was when things started to turn bad. He threw a belt around my arms and buckled me to the seat. While I was struggling to get free, he threw over another, and another, and another. And all of this was happening while Luka sped away from the campus, in the wrong direction.

“What is going on?” I yelled as I tore at the bindings around me. “What the hell are you doing?” I was getting mad, but I also knew that these were my friends and family. They shouldn’t be hurting me.

“We’re taking you somewhere special. Someone convinced us to kidnap you.”

“What the hell? Kidnap me? Who the hell wants me kidnapped?” I was roaring at them, my voice loud and filled with anger.

“Oh, someone that is powerful and scary when they want to be.” CJ laughed behind me. “Here, take a look.”

At that, CJ leaned forward and put his phone in front of me. He pressed play on a video that was waiting for me to watch it. On the screen, talking in her calm and sweet voice, was Talia. She had planned this whole kidnapping so that I was forced to celebrate my birthday.

“Hey there, big brother. Now, don’t hate me for this.” She giggled. “I wanted you and Rika to have some fun this weekend. You deserve it and I didn’t want you thinking that just because you are adults now you need to stop celebrating your birthday. You are special and you matter. Now, I want you to have some fun with everyone.” She was smiling as if she were really talking to me rather than this being a prerecorded video. “Now, I want you to understand that you can’t get out of this. And if they tell me that you were a spoilsport all weekend, I will make your next week of life at home miserable.” She was wicked, but I still laughed at her words. She could literally make me miserable if she wanted to. “Now come on, this won’t be that bad. It’s just you and your closest friends, Reagan. There is nothing to worry about. And the work that you need to do will still be waiting for you when you get back. Don’t worry. All is fine. Just go out there, have some fun, and for goddess’s sake, Reagan, relax a little OK. I love you. Happy birthday.”

“DAMMIT!” I snarled at the video. “I said no parties.”

“Yeah, but we all agreed with Talia, you need this man. You’re wound so tightly right now that you need to relax. Come on, let us just relax and see what happens from here on out, OK.”

“Hahh.” I sighed dramatically. “Do I have much of a choice?” I glared at them.

“Not really. We’re all working together here.” CJ’s voice was filled with laughter.

“Where are we going?” I resigned myself to the party that I didn’t really want.

“The mountains. It’s still nice, and there isn’t that much snow on the ground yet. So, we’re staying in a cabin for the weekend. We’re going hunting and blowing off some steam in our wolf forms.

They continued to drive out of the city and toward the mountains as they explained what was going on. They had the cabin fully stocked, Talia had given them a bag for me for the weekend. And I was not allowed to leave until Sunday. Those were the major points, apparently. And I have to say, I was starting to get a little more excited about this whole thing the closer that we got to the cabin. Maybe I did need some time away. Maybe Talia knew better than I did about this.

The cabin was one of the ones that my parents owned. When thinking about a cabin, most people didn’t envision a huge luxury mansion that was done in a log cabin style. It had all the modern amenities with the added benefit of being away from everything and everyone. This was a place that I would actually like to be right now. With everything that had been happening lately, I needed to take the time to relax. Talia had been right. And just walking into the cabin was enough to take an immense amount of pressure off of my shoulders.

Initially, we all selected our rooms and put our things away. There were eight of us in the cabin, and we all still had our own room. That alone put into perspective just how big the place was. After we chose our rooms, we decided to just shift right into our wolf forms. I fully intended to spend most of the night in this form. I wanted to be able to get rid of as much stress as I possibly could.

The moment that we were all in our wolf forms, we started to run through the forests and mountains that were around us. This time, unlike when we had the full moon hunt, we had to be careful of running into humans. And we weren’t going to take down any large game either. That would be too suspicious for the humans when they came through this area next. We needed to be conscientious about it all. Even if this was private property, I knew that there were a lot of humans that came through here.

I was content with all of that. I really was. I knew that just running in this form was going to be enough to make me feel better. And there wasn’t going to be anything that could take that away from me. I mean, it was my birthday after all. And this was why I was here.

I started to run through the forest. I was fast, one of the fastest among us. The others all ran in a group around me. They weren’t protecting me, and they weren’t stopping me from running away. They were running as if they were intent on following my lead. Like I was the Alpha, and they were my pack. And in a way, that was how we were. That was how we had always been.

For a little while, the eight of us just ran, jumped, and climbed through the forest and mountains. We were going further and further away from the cabin, and deeper into the parts of the forest that the humans weren’t usually found in. This was the part of the mountains that could get dangerous. At least, it was dangerous for the humans. We weren’t human, and that meant that we had less to worry about.

I could smell the trails of different animals as we ran, but the trails were almost overpowered by the scent of excitement coming from all of the others. We were excited to be here right now, together and having fun. I don’t know what it was, but our group almost always had fun when we were together. Talia was right to choose guys to go with me. Especially CJ. He was one of the major goofballs among us and made all the situations funny. I loved him and the others so much. They were my family, my pack, and my best friends. I wouldn’t trade this group of guys for anything in the world.

Before I knew it, it was time for us to start hunting. There was a massive herd of moose that cut across our path. I remember learning in school that at one point in time, their numbers were really low in Colorado, but not anymore. There are thousands of them statewide, and others in the states around us as well. The benefit of that was that these moose were fair game for us. We were allowed to hunt them with no worries.

I felt the excitement course through me and allowed the others to start their hunt first. If I was acting as the Alpha here, then I should see to it that my pack had their fill first. Wasn’t that what it meant to be in charge? Taking care of others. I knew that there were Alphas out there that were selfish and wanted to focus on being the first in everything. However, my dad had taught me to put my family and my people first. And that was what I was doing here and now. I was putting them before me. I was showing them the respect that they deserved. I was being the proper Alpha, just like I intended to do in the future.