The Rejected Alpha's Vengeance

[JER]

When he had agreed to take up the mighty Alpha position when his mate was banished, Jer had been glad. If anything, he had felt like it was the greatest honor of his life. He had pride, love, and the loyalty of his people. They relied on him and trusted him.

However fast forward three years later, Jer wasn't sure what was what anymore. He had spent the past year of his life obsessing over the woman he loved choosing her over and over even when everything was chaotic. He loved her with all he had and didn't have.

Perhaps that was the kind of love he had wanted from Hawi and now he could only give it, to let Malika know what love was. Or maybe that was what he had wanted the whole time, to be in a seat of power and make the decisions.

Even then, why did it seem like all his decisions were wrong?

"All I wanted was to make it better for us," Jer whispered sadly, as he looked for survivors. His warriors were furious with him. They disapproved of him and there was no doubt their allegiance was slowly changing.

Jer should have expected that from the moment the wolves saw Hawi alive. Maybe it was a long stretch, and maybe he needed to be hopeful, but the result of it all wasn't worth it.

Soon enough Razia Greyson would be coming and he knew that he couldn't get out of this without scratches. A price had to be paid, and he sure hoped it wasn't the life of the woman he loved.

He was selfish, but for her, he would be selfless.

For hours on end, the Sicario warriors helped their survivors home. The camp they had attacked may have been in the free lands, but it was a little farther from Sicario, which meant that the road back would be long and hellish for them.

Everyone would see them for the failures they were. They had been beaten to a pulp and without mercy. Most of them had broken knees while some had all their bones completely broken. It would take at least a month for them to be healed but was that enough time for them?

"This is bullshit. If this is the Alpha we must be with, then I would rather be a rogue."

"We were supposed to have the best strategist, but we got our asses handed to us because of an incompetent Alpha. I refuse to be a part of that mess."

"The sicarios are dead. We can always choose another Alpha."

"Alpha Awuor is still alive. She still has the right to the seat."

"She can't come back because she was banished."

"Her father is dead. No one is going to uphold the banishment. Even the council elders know the riff-raff we have for an Alpha is as useless as they come. Hell, even the luna seems wiser than the bastard."

The Sicario warriors were venting and it wasn't pretty. They were done with Jeremiah Warner and wanted to bring him to the books. To most of them, Jer wasn't the leader to follow into a war. He wasn't the kind to lead the well and they were slowly learning that.

"Warrior Kane, you are our current beta. Do you think you can lead us well?" one of the wolves asked and Elodie, who had been silent in the training room, looked at them with shock on her face.

She had expected them to be mad at Jer, but she hadn't expected that they would want him as soon as they got home. It wasn't like them to make cush decisions, but then Elodie understood them.

She had no conscience in the Alpha and seemingly the entire Sicairos line of defense was against him. If the situation would have been different if they hadn't been misused by the Alpha, and if they all didn't want him gone.

"Oh, come on, warrior Kane. You know he is fit to lead us. Just say the word. If you want to lead us to the next war, which is definitely coming, we will support you. The entire battalion will be on your side.

"If you want us to help you oust that useless fuck we have for an Alpha, then we will be there for you. You will have Sicario military support. All you have to do is simply say yes," Theo said angrily as he looked at Elodie.

He was mad that shit had gone like this and how their Alpha was acting wasn't even pretty. Any Alpha would always check on his warriors after the war, and here they were a little into the morning of the day after the war and none of them had seen Jerimiah Warner.

It was like the man had forgotten he had an army he had blindly led into an unwinnable war, and he needed to talk to them. He should have understood the dynamics of power, but bit by bit, he was praying to them just how useless he was. That was unacceptable.

"Plotting against the Alpha is treason, and the punishment is death," Kane softly said to the warriors who let out groans. What part of their unconditional support was the beta not understanding?

Of course, Elodie understood them. They were angry and rightfully so, but then filling Jer's shoes wasn't going to be easy, not when he had created such a huge mess and not when the net in line for power was his luna. Perhaps they could try the Luna, right?

"Not plotting against useless ones. The man couldn't even lead us well, no wonder he had resorted to some magic to get us to leave our home and attack a camp. If I had the power, I would have strangled him with my hands," another warrior said and the rest cheered on.

The morning was a dangerous one in Sicario and maybe Jer had long figured that out because he wasn't seen for the rest of the day, not even the second day, row the third. It was almost like the Alpha had gone into hibernation.

He refused to come out, fueling more unrest in Sicario. Time wasn't a thing they had, and their Alpha had locked the mind link, so he had no clue what they wanted from him. He was in his world.

"Are you serious right now?" Elodie asked on the fifth day, when she had checked the entire pack house for the man and didn't find him, only to get him hurdled up against the door to Hawi's suite, like some monk praying for the impossible.

It didn't make any sense, that everything was going awry against him outside, and all he could do was wait at Hawi's suite. It was not logical and if Elodie didn't know that Malika was supposed to be in there she would have throat the Alpha was losing his mind.

"Is this it for you? Do you think you will get my sister's brains transferred into your empty one if you lean on her door like some clueless wimp? Your people need you and you're here wallowing in pity. The people need their Luna and you have yet to answer any of the questions.

"What is going on with you? Are you stepping down from the Alpha position?" Elodie asked given she was done pestering him.

"The warriors want you for them. Why don't you step up? We both know you can do better than a wallowing pathetic Alpha, right?"