#8 The Archer and her Wolf

Xaiver

“What’s going on, X?” My Beta, Francis, asked as he entered my office. My Gamma, Lional, was with him also.

“I met my mate.” I grumbled, slumped in the chair behind my desk. Lion and Frankie exchanged glances.

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Lion asked. They sat down on two of the overstuffed chairs, making themselves comfortable.

Frankie and Lion weren’t just my second and third in command, they were also my best friends. The three of us were raised like brothers, since I didn’t have any siblings of my own. Their mates, Shay and Yasmine, were also close friends of ours, so it came at no surprise when the four of them were mated the second they all turned 18. There were no four people in the world with whom I was closer to.

“She’s the Archer who saved Logan’s life.” I replied. Frankie and Lion looked at me in shock.

“An Archer?” Frankie gasped.

“A lady Archer, that’s hot, man.” Lion winked at me and I growled in response.

Lion started laughing hysterically before Frankie threw something at him. I wasn’t sure what it was since Lion snatched it out of the air and shoved it behind his chair, too far out of reach for Frankie to throw again.

“Where is she now?” Frankie asked.

“Gone. I don’t know.” I mumbled, running my hand through my hair in frustration.

“Is she coming back?” He asked and I gave him a pointed look, “Guess that’s a no, then.”

“So, what now?” Lion asked.

“I guess nothing. I mean, honestly, how would that have even worked anyway? An Archer as a mate, a Luna, a mother to Logan? There’s no way.” I snapped.

“So, you’re just giving up, then?” Lion crossed his legs over each other and looked at me smugly. I resisted the urge to punch him across the face.

“Do you have another suggestion?” I dared him to reply.

Of course, he was too much of a moran to heed my warnings. He was the only person who could get away with challenging me, mostly because he usually ended up being right in some shape or form. But, I would never admit that to his face.

“Fight for her. Make her realize that you are too amazing to choose being an Archer over being your mate. Woo her, man.” Lion grinned. I rolled my eyes at him and looked at Frankie, expecting him to be my back up. Instead, he shrugged.

“I don’t know, X, I think I agree with Lion here.” He said. I groaned loudly and smacked my head down on the desk. I was in deep shit when Lion and Frankie agreed with each other.

My office door opened then and I heard the sound of little feet running across the floor. I looked up just in time to see Logan flinging himself towards me. I snatched him out of the air and sat him on my lap. Shay and Yasmine were standing in the doorway, frowning.

“What’s wrong?” I asked them. Shay and Yasmine walked over to their mates and sat down on their laps.

“Auntie Shay and Auntie Yaya won’t let me see Crimson!” Logan cried.

“I don’t even know who that is.” Yasmine, who my son affectionately nicknamed Yaya, said, throwing her hands up in the air in defeat.

“She’s the Archer who saved his life. She shot that man at the park.” I explained. Their eyes widened.

“You met her?” Shay asked.

“She was injured after the attack at the camp and Thomas brought her to the hospital. I went down to thank her and found out she was my mate.” I explained in one breath.

“I want to see her!” Logan yelled again.

“She’s gone, Lo. She went back to work, remember?” I sighed.

I hated disappointing my son. I’ll admit, I spoiled him rotten. He had a bad start to life and I didn’t want him to miss out on anything. I gave him whatever he wanted, but I couldn’t give him this.

“I’ve never seen him this way with a stranger.” Yaya said.

“I know. I convinced her to have dinner with us last night and he jumped on her lap.” I said and the four of them shared a collective gasp.

“Is her name really Crimson?” Shay asked. I shrugged,

“It’s her codename, I guess. She wouldn’t tell me her real name, but I know she comes from an Alpha bloodline on both sides of her family.” I said.

“So, she’s a wolf.” Frankie said and I shook my head at him,

“No, she’s human. She was born human.” I confessed, still shocked at that fact myself.

“That’s rare. It shouldn’t be too hard to hunt down a human girl born to two Alpha families.” Lion said and I sensed a plan brewing.

“You want to try and find her family?” I felt my eyes widen.

“Sure, then you’ll know her real name and how to find her.” Lion said.

“But, what if that puts her family in danger? Archer’s hide their true identities for a reason.” I said, not wanting to hurt my mate or her family.

“It won’t if you don’t tell anyone.” Shay added. I sat back in my chair and thought about it carefully.

“Just hold off, for now. I’m not sure. I need to think about it.” I grumbled.

“I want to see her!” Logan was relentless.

“Why do you want to see her so much, Lo?” I asked him.

“She’s supposed to be my mommy!” He cried. I sat up straight, feeling my face pale.

“Wh…what?” I stammered. I looked up and saw the four astonished faces of my best friends. They were also speechless.

“I love her, she’s supposed to be with us, Daddy. She’s supposed to be with you and me. That makes her my mommy.” Logan said. I opened my mouth to speak but had no words, so I closed it. A minute later, I tried again,

“Logan, your mom….”

“My mom left me.” Logan frowned, “But, Crimson is my mommy!” He cheered up again.

Logan jumped off my lap then and ran out of the office. Shay and Yaya stood up and followed him after giving me one last shocked look.

“What was that about?” Lion asked.

“I don’t know. I mean, he knows that his mother left, I’ve always been honest about that. I told him that she was scared and sad, and that she had to leave but that it wasn’t his fault. He always seemed to take it well, but he’s only three, I figured he just didn’t understand.” I raked my hand through my hair again.

“Do you think he thinks that Crimson is his real mom?” Frankie asked.

“No, man, he said mom and mommy like they were two different people.” Lion answered for me. I nodded in agreement.

“Kids are crazy, they sense things that we don’t. Maybe he senses that she’s your mate and he knows that you’re all supposed to be together.” Frankie shrugged.

“He was drawn to her from the first moment they met.” I replied thoughtfully.

“Well, a pack is drawn to their Luna from the moment an Alpha discovers she’s his mate, even before the ceremony. Maybe it’s the same for your son.” Frankie said.

“Maybe he’s getting dreams from the Moon Goddess and she’s speaking to him.” Lion said with wide eyes. I glared at him and Frankie shoved him off his chair.

“Why do you have to be such a jackass all the time?” Frankie snapped.

“I was being serious!” Lion huffed from the floor.

“Yeah, right.” Frankie rolled his eyes just as Lion started laughing again.

“You really need to learn that there’s a time and a place. I swear to the Goddess, I have no idea why you’re my Gamma.” I glared at Lion who jumped up off the floor.

“I’m your Gamma because you knew that you needed a sense of humor in your life. Goddess knows it’s not going to come from doom and gloom.” He jabbed a thumb between Frankie and I, mocking us with, what he thought, was a clever nickname for the pair of us.

What he pinned down as doom and gloom was really just a seriousness that Lion was incapable of. But, he was also right. I was drawn to him from an early age because he was a jokester, a wise guy, and he never took himself seriously. I, on the other hand, always walked around with the weight of the world on my shoulder which is what drew me to Frankie, who was just as serious and stiff as I was. I needed Lion to balance me out and remind me to relax from time to time.

I needed a serious Beta, someone who could be me if I wasn’t available. But, my Gamma needed to be softer and more personable to safeguard my Luna. He needed to be someone that my Luna could trust and rely on. Lion might be a total mess, but he was extremely reliable and one of my fiercest warriors, even more so than Frankie.

And I needed both of them now more than ever. I had no idea how I was going to survive without my mate and Luna. The hole was already forming in my heart and I knew only Crimson could fill it. I didn’t even know her real name yet, but I already loved her with everything inside me.

Worst yet, so did my son. How could I explain to my son that the woman he already saw as his mother left him just like his biological mother did three years ago? This wasn’t Crimson’s fault, I couldn’t put the blame on her, but I wanted her like I wanted air to breathe.

I had no idea how I was going to learn to live without breathing.