Filed To Story: Their Bullied and Broken Mate by Teri Petry
“Asteria?” I said. Her head faced the floor, and she started to fidget with her fingers. She didn’t answer me, and I had to raise my voice. “Asteria!” I bellowed. Tears started to fill her eyes, and I knew she had knowledge of everything.
“I’m sorry, Mads. I feel like this is my fault. I’ve tried to talk them out of it,” she cried. I got down on her level, and made her look at me. “Talk them out of what, Asteria?” I asked.
“I have tried to talk Miles and Simon out of attacking Blood Moon. They left to go back to our pack so that Miles could challenge his father for the Alpha title. Simon had broken my trust when he told Miles about you not being my blood brother. Miles thinks that us girls should be rightful heir to the Alpha title of Blood Moon, and he has convinced Simon that we should be in Alpha and Luna of Blood Moon. Not you,” she started to explain. She was telling the truth.
Adelina jumped to her feet and screamed at her to shut up, and I knew right then that I had been betrayed by at least one of my sisters and two of their mates. “Shut up, Asteria! You are putting all of us in danger!” she screamed. Asteria straightened her back and said, “No, Addie. I can’t be quiet anymore. He may be my mate, but this is the family we are speaking about. How could you let them hurt our pack we grew up in, and our family? I…I just can’t!” she said.
I asked Asteria to excuse me and Addie, and she quickly left the room. When it was just Addie and I, I stared at my sister. “Why Addie? Why are you alright with him betraying us like this?” I asked softly.
She sat there for a moment, and finally looked me right in the eyes and answered,”Because Maddix. That title shouldn’t have gone to you. Mom and Dads were wrong in giving it to you. It should have gone to Phoenix, or one of us girls. Stayed in the Young family bloodline. I personally don’t want it, and Alette doesn’t need it. However, Asteria wasn’t even given a choice, “she spat.
I sat back in shock, and the pain I felt was deep. “Adelina, do you think I truly wanted this? Do you think I was given a choice? I wasn’t. My fate was set by our parents when I was only 2 years old. TWO! I was always treated differently, and my priorities were always different from the day THEY chose to pass this on to me. I would give it all up in a heartbeat if I knew that any of my siblings wanted this title more than me. You could have come to me Addie, any of you could have. Instead, you have chosen to conspire with your mate and his Beta to overthrow me and take over a pack that has been in our family for centuries. How do you think mom and dads are going to take this?” I asked.
She kept a straight face, but remained silent. I yelled for Asteria, and she came rushing back in. “Asteria, I am going to ask only once, and remember, I will know if you lie. Do you want the title of Alpha of Blood Moon pack?” I asked. She quickly shook her head and told me that she never wanted the title, and the only reason Simon did was because Miles had talked him into it.
I had really been duped by Miles. I thought he was a stand-up guy, but he turned out to be a bigger piece of shit. After Asteria told me her choice, I started towards the door. I turned back and looked at Adelina. “Tell your mate and his Beta that it’s war. They will never get MY family’s pack, and as far as you and I are concerned, I think it’s best you never contact me again.” I exclaimed as I walked out the door.
*MADDIX POV*
I cannot believe this bullshit! To say that I am livid is a complete understatement. My own damn sisters. Sure, Asteria says she didn’t want to be a part of all of this, but how can I believe her when it’s her mate that wants my title and pack.
I know I need to speak to my parents about this, but with just losing grandma I’m not sure how to approach it. I guess the only way is to rip off the band-aid and do it. I took out my phone and dialed my dad, Liam’s number, and he quickly answered. “Hey son, you alright?” he asked. I paused a moment before answering and told him the truth. “No, dad. I’m far from alright. Can both you and Loki meet me somewhere to talk? Privately, without mom?” I asked. He agreed and said they would meet me at the horse stables. Loki was already there tending to one of Alette’s horses. I told him I was on my way, and took off towards the stable.
When I got there, both of my dads were sitting at a picnic table talking. They stood and shook my hand, and we all sat back down. “Look, dads, I’m not going to sugar coat this, but I have some big trouble happening. Blood Moon as well. I don’t know if you have heard, but Miles left here to go and challenge his dad for his Alpha title. He told everyone that his dad was going to just hand over the title after their babies were born, but I think that was a ruse for what he already had planned,” I started.
“Henry received a letter of declaration earlier, and well, they are threatening war against Blood Moon if I don’t hand over my title and our pack to Simon and Asteria. Asteria swore she didn’t want the pack or title, and that Miles was putting things in Simon’s head. I honestly don’t know what to believe, dad.” I continued.
I could see the look on their faces drop. The internal conflict was evident, and I felt bad for putting them in the middle. Loki ran his hands down his face and said, “Well, that is something. I called it though. I told your mom and Liam that something felt off about this Miles kid. He is too over-eager to please us. He asked very intricate details about Alpha duties, and was being rather weird at the ceremony. So, I guess the question is, where do we go from there?”
“I kind of sent a message through Addie to tell him it would be war before I would give over our pack. Honestly, dads, I don’t care about the title. If any of the siblings wanted it, they could have it. I wouldn’t put up a fight. If Asteria had confirmed to me when I asked her that she wanted to take over Blood Moon, I would have handed it to her. No questions asked. You guys and mom chose this for me, and I love my role. However, I would never want resentment from my siblings because of bloodline rights. Yet, here we are,” I explained.
Liam leaned towards me and looked me right in the eyes. He spoke clearly and matter-of-factly, and said, “Listen to me right now, Maddix. You are part of the Young bloodline. You are your mother’s blood, and just because you don’t carry Loki or mine’s blood doesn’t make you any less part of the Young bloodline. We have stressed that to all of you over the years. The same goes for River, and he carries no blood from any of us. I am going to make sure this never gets brought up again. I am far from happy with my girls, and even more unhappy with their mates. I trust you to handle things the way you see fit, and the two of us will support you 100%. This shouldn’t be happening.”
Loki agreed with him, and asked me to wait before doing anything irrational. They wanted to speak to the girls and find out what they were thinking. I asked if I could be a part of that conversation, and they said after they spoke to them one on one, then they would bring us all together.
New Book: Returned To Make Them Pay
On her wedding anniversary, Alicia is drugged and stumbles into the wrong room—straight into the arms of the powerful Caden Ward, a man rumored never to touch women. Their night of passion shocks even him, especially when he discovers she’s still a virgin after two years of marriage to Joshua Yates.