4

~Onyx

My mother paces in front of me, a murderous tension lengthening between us.

"My response was perfectly reasonable,” I insist.

Her face shifts between at least three different expressions. Shock, anger and frustration.

"Reasonable?"

I shrug. "I didn't kill him."

Were I not so concerned about Sienna's presence, and so pleased at the hospital's official opening, I would have gutted him right there.

"That shopkeeper went and blurted out the whole story to the entire town!" Her face tints slightly red in her anger.

I’ve lived with this woman long enough to inure me to her tendencies. What did she expect me to do? Simply let the man call my friend a whore?

"They don't know it's true."

"Of course they do. Your reputation precedes you, Alpha." Strands of hair drift around her face, having fallen from her intricate braided hairstyle. It’s enough of an implication to suggest her stress and frustration.

"I was protecting a member of my Pack," I note simply, folding my arms over my chest. "He called her a whore."

This entire scene reminds me so greatly of childhood.

I’m banished to a chair while my mother rants and raves in front of me, scolding me for one thing or the other. She’s changed absolutely nothing about her office too, which sinks me deeply into such memories.

"This is what I was talking about. This behaviour is unacceptable," she seethes, her heeled feet clicking against the wood floor as she paces. "Any more of this and your proclivity for protecting this girl will get out to all the other Alpha's who are currently salivating at our borders, looking for a weakness."

I supply her with a bland smile, trying to comply.

"It won't happen again,” I assure her.

Chances are it will. I’m no Saint.

"I don't believe that to be true.” Her stare chills my skin. "We are announcing her as your mistress in three days, then I am bringing the marriage candidates here until you pick one."

I rise to my feet, my mother entirely unfazed by my towering height.

"By exposing Sienna to the whole Pack, you're putting more of a target on her back,” I growl.

"Her face is plastered over every newspaper in your Pack. The amount of shared renditions of her is absurd. Everyone wants to know who the Alpha's best friend is."

"I'm certain this won't protect her." My fingers tighten into fists at the thought of anyone harming her. Today was bad enough. He’s lucky he didn’t lay a hand on her, otherwise he would lose what could cause him to make that mistake again.

"People respect mistresses more than friends. We've been over this,” mother exasperates, tossing her hands up.

I wipe my hand down my face, frustrating eating away at my calm façade.

"I just...give me more time."

Seeing her look of disgust, hearing her rejection is too much for me to bear right now. Once I offer this to her, there is no going back.

Our friendship will never be the same again…

Mother’s mouth opens, ready to spew some kind of protest when her office door opens.

Sienna walks in, staring down at a tiny blue glass bottle in her palm.

"Lucia, I retrieved that herbal ointment for your face..." She glances up. "Oh, hey Onyx.”

Fuck.

"Come in dear." My mother smooths the frustration from her face, sweeping her arm to encourage Sienna to join us.

She looks between us, sensing the residual tension."Am I interrupting something?"

"Of course not.” Lucia grabs her arm, tugging her to her side. "This is excellent timing."

"It is?"

"Mother, don't,” I want quietly.

Sienna’s deep brown eyes look to me for answers that I can’t give her right now. She is well aware that being pulled into a heated meeting with my mother and I isn’t a good thing.

"I'm assuming my son hasn't spoken to you about the changes that will be going on around here?" Mother asks lightly, glaring at me in a way that warns me not to manoeuvre out of this conversation.

"He's told me that women may be brought in for him to select a wife," she says warily. "I mean, you told me that too."

My mothers smile is cold. "No, not that."

"What then?"

I shift uncomfortably. I hate feeling cornered, especially by my own mother.

It’s not like this is an easy conversation to have. I have no idea how Sienna is going to act. Were I in her position, I don’t think I would take this well at all.

"Go on Onyx. I believe this is your news to share,” mother prompts.

There’s absolutely no room for me to sidle out of this conversation. It must be done.

"It looks like my mother will not be needing you to work for her any longer," I tell her uneasily. "I mean, we are ready to offer you a...promotion, of sorts, that will replace your job."

"Wait, what?" She looks a little panicked.

I rub the back of my neck, grimacing. "I've made some mistakes, Sienna."

"Get on with it, son,” mother prompts, her eyes narrowing slightly.

Sienna takes a wary step back. "What's going on?"

"Too many people know about you, about how important you are to me," I tell her tightly. "You're in danger."

Her eyes widen and she looks to Lucia for help. Unfortunately my mother has no interest in fishing her out of this one.

"From who?"

"Everyone, but mostly those beyond my Pack borders who are looking to exploit me,” I explain steadily.

This needs to be as professional as possible, because feelings are going to be very quickly involved. In a normal circumstance, I would have just had my way with her and would be rolling over in bed to offer her the position.

"Has threats been made against me?" The urgency in her eyes has my stomach twisting.

"Not yet, although we anticipate that at any moment you may be targeted for being my friend. For being close to me,” I tell her gently.

"I'm safe here though, right?"

"To an extent.” I close my eyes. "I want you to be my mistress."

When they open again, Sienna is staring at me in cold silence, her mouth parted in shock.

My mother looks at me, unsure of how to act. She’s not very good with overwhelming emotions.

"Your what?" Sienna breathes.

I step forward, taking her hands into mine. They are clammy and limp, the shock still stunning her stiff.

"The title will offer you much more protection. You'll have far stronger guards both inside and outside of the manor and it will be assumed that you will be in my room at night, that you will be by my side often. This limits any attempts for assassination," I explain to her slowly, so she can understand every word.

Sienna is reasonable, but I can tell she is struggling to comprehend this offer.

"I don't understand..."

My mother smooths her hair away from her face before brushing me away so she can hold Sienna's hands herself.

"Most importantly, dear, you will be less of a target. Both male and female Alpha's are often forced to marry for wealth or power, so they keep someone close who they love, who they confide in. This person has a title, who is protected," she explains gently. "There has been an unspoken rule throughout history that mistresses are safeguarded against being targets of political upheaval."

"What if I say no?" She asks.

I feel my stomach twist in dismay. My fear is that she would rather leave here than accept this meaningless title change.

"Well, why would you?" Lucia asks.

"Because...I mean, Onyx and I are not romantically involved." She gestures between the two of us, the urgency in her eyes digging into my heart, causing an ache. "He's just my friend."

"What goes on behind the scenes means very little. It's just a title," I assure her firmly. "This title doesn't mean you are obliged to do anything a mistress usually would."

Her shoulders slump as she exhales slowly.

Ouch. I didn't expect her relief at not having to sleep with me to hurt so bad.

"That being said, you will have to keep up appearances in public. This is a ruse that cannot be exposed without risking making yourself more of a target," mother adds.

I glare at her. Now is not the time.

"So what, I can never marry?" Sienna wraps her arms around herself, disturbed at the thought.

"Of course you can." Mother squeezes her hand assuredly. "If you happen to find someone, we will dissolve the title and send you on the way. This is just an arrangement for however long you want to stay close to Onyx."

Sienna and I haven't talked much about her plans recently. It's just been assumed she would stay here for as long as possible.

It's my fault. I didn't allow myself to imagine her moving on with some other guy.

Sienna pulls her hands out of my mothers grasp, backing up. "I can't..."

She darts out the room at an unbelievable amount of speed that makes it feel like we were physically restraining her.

I start off after her. "Sienna!"

My mother grabs my arm, pulling my attention to her.

"Give her some time to think, son," she exclaims. "But not too much. You must convince her, son."

"Look how mortified she was." I point after her, nausea having rooted itself securely in my stomach. "I will not force her."

"You don't need to force her. But if she does not accept this, I will chop off her hair, change her identity and have her sent off to some remote village," she snaps.

Ever the more experienced, reasonable one, my mother is doing what is right for Sienna. My friend is in danger, and I can't allow myself to become too immersed in my emotions.

"Mother..."

"You will never see her again, Onyx," she insists coldly. "Do you understand?"

My jaw tightens, my teeth protesting but I hardly care.

"Okay. I'll talk to her."