The defiant mate by Fennifer Francis

Chapter 7

Jay-la POV

She was walked into the once familiar packhouse. It smelled the same. Cedar and coffee as well as the

delicious smell of many foods wafted to her from where she knew the kitchen and pack dining room

was, it was likely dinner time, the sun was low in the sky but not dark out side, most of the wolves

would come to the pack house dinning room to eat and be social with each other at the end of the day.

Jay-la did not look up, did not care to see the stares she would receive as they judged her on her very

bloody and dishevelled appearance, nor did she wish to see the looks on anyone’s face as they

realised who she was or that she was the traitor who had attacked their Luna years ago.

She was walked into the Alpha’s office, her heart beat rapidly and heavily inside her chest, as she felt

eyes on her, she knew who’s they were. She had always known when he was looking right at her. Now

it was no different from before.

He didn’t say a single word, just stared at her, she could feel the anger pouring off of him, so much

anger at just the sight of her. He clearly still hated her, nothing would ever change that it seemed. Again

that familiar tinge of pain spread through her chest, only with her hands cuffed behind her she couldn’t

rub her heart to ease it away like she would normally do.

Jackson walked her all the way across the room and pushed her gently into the chair directly in front of

his desk, which he was either sitting or standing behind. She did not care to look at him.

“Look at me!” he demanded of her. She could hear how he was trying to control the anger in his voice,

but failing, his rage for her 1 mistake all those years ago, but could not ignore the command he had

issued her. Jay-la did not want to look at this man, did not want to have to nearly feel like she was

drowning in the depth of his dark blue eyes, so dark they were like looking at the ocean.

Her tear-filled eyes moved in an upward direction, he was wearing a charcoal grey suit, unbuttoned

with a crisp white shirt underneath, the top three buttons also undone, exposing the smooth tanned

skin beneath. His lips were pressed together in a tightly thin line, his blond hair styled just like it used to

be, short on the sides, long on the top, looked as though he’d been running his hands through it. No…

she told herself, likely his Luna had probably been with him recently.

Her eyes met his deep dark blue ones, so filled with anger were they, at just looking at her, that she

couldn’t help it, more tears spilled from her green eyes. He’d never look at her the way he used to. She

could not hold his angry gaze for more than a few seconds, it hurt her way too much, her eyes fell away

to look at the floor.

This man, the father of her children, hated her so much, his rage was barely contained.

She heard his office door open with a loud bang as it bounced into the wall with the force it had be

shoved open with and her eyes were drawn to it. Alpha Blaine strode into the room, his eyes fell on her

a look of utter shock crossed his face, as he looked over her from head to toe and then back again.

“There is trouble son!” he stated flatly, though his eyes never moved from her “you’re mother just

recorded this.”

Both Alpha Nathan and his Beta Jackson’s attention were shifted away from her and to Alpha Blaine,

Jay-la took the moment to rush up from her seat and run over to him. Her former Alpha, he had not

banished her, had not severed her from the pack, he must feel something, some compassion for her.

She had to beg him for help, it was not beneath her to beg, not at this point, nothing was beneath her

when it came to her children and she would beg him for help to get back to them. Her children, his

grandchildren, not that he knew that. But still she had to try, had to beg and plead, he was probably the

only one who could help her now.

She fell to her knees right at his feet, bearing the pain from aggravating her already wounded knees,

“Alpha Blaine please, I beg you. Help me” tears streamed from her eyes as she looked up at him and

sobbed out her plea.

He looked down at her, she thought she could see genuine concern and pity for her, but her eyes were

blurry with tears, she couldn’t be certain, he would help her. He knew both her parents and she had

made just 1 error in her life. Could forgiveness be granted “please.” she sobbed again when he did not

answer her “I have 3 children, a family” she didn’t care at this point who knew about her children, she

did not have to say who their father was, he just needed to believe her.

His eyes widened in shock. She had not misread that at all, she heard a gasp and a growl fill the room,

Alpha Blaine knelt down and touched his forehead to hers. “ Show me child”. She knew he had a

unique ability to see into someone’s mind if the other was willing, should she? Yes, she didn’t care at

this point, she had to make him believe her.

She closed her eyes and pulled a mental image of her children into her mind, them playing in the living

room like they did every day. She felt his mind reach out and grab it, pull it towards him to see for

himself. It took less than a few seconds, and then he let the image go and stood up.

“ Please.” she begged him again, bowing her head so low that her head touched the floor before his

feet. “don’t let them become motherless.”

“Get her up.” She heard Alpha Nathan roar so filled with anger that she had turned to the previous

alpha for help.

She felt hands on her arms as she was picked up off the floor and moved to a standing position. Beta

Jackson’s touch had been gentle when he had gotten her up.

The wall-mounted TV turned on as Jackson brushed her blood-soaked hair from her face, she looked

up into his grey eyes pleadingly and mouthed ‘please’. It was no use…Unless Nathan told him to

release her she was going nowhere it seemed. She would remain his prisoner, regardless that she had

just proved she did have children, until he saw fit.

Her attention was drawn to the voice on the TV. She saw one Eric Stanton standing before the

company’s press conference podium. He looked very pissed off and unhappy. A shiver ran through her

body, for even he was a scary man when he was angry. A human force to be reckoned with he was, not

many in the human world would go up against him.

What he said next shocked her, he was talking about her, that she had been kidnapped, then grainy

footage of her being grabbed by two men outside of her apartment building, a cloth shoved over her

face and something injected into her neck with a large syringe before she had been dragged off into a

dark coloured unmarked van. It was clearly her she recognised the clothes she was wearing, although

now her white chiffon blouse was filthy dirty, ripped and blood-stained as was her light pink pencil skirt,

the stockings she was wearing were laddered and holey, and her once neat french rolled hair was now

hanging loosely about her in a blood stained and messy state.

The screen flashed back to Eric, more anger could be seen in his expression. “I believe I know who

took Miss Freeman, I have provided the details to the Federal Police and an investigation is under way

at this very moment.”

Eric raised his hand and there in it was the Black Envelope that she had been sent by Alpha Nathan.

Eric went on to read the contents of the letter to the press and then gave the author’s name, turned it

around and showed it to the camera which zoomed in on it so anyone watching the broadcast could

read it for themselves.

He continued “Mr Nathan Browning of Browning Corporation, I believe this letter is a threat directed at

my employee Jay-la, I am informing you that I have used my skill and authority as a prosecutor to make

it known that I believe you are the number 1 suspect in her kg, that you have taken her against her will

and when I find out the truth, and I will. My entire team will be coming for you and your corporation.

No harm must come to Miss Freeman and you will return her at once. Do not orphan her 3 children.”

Thank the goddess for Eric Stanton and his damned stubborn streak, the man thought he was

untouchable and therefore could say what he liked when he liked, for once, she was glad he was not

only her boss, but a familiar person to her. She couldn’t be more happy about his need to control

everything and everyone around him and take charge attitude. She was going to hug him if she ever

got back to work.

Jay-la also sent up a silent prayer to the goddess that she had not had the presence of mind to pick up

that letter when she left, she hadn’t left it on purpose, she had simply left her office in a state of fear

and distress that she had not thought to pick it up.

Now here was Eric using that letter as evidence and he had hit the nail right on the head, she was

exactly where he thought she was and with who he claimed had her. Though how the human federal

police would retrieve her from wolfen society, she had no idea.

The room went silent, the TV had been turned off, she heard Alpha Nathan curse out loud, Jackson

huffed a moment later, they were all talking via their mind link about what she didn’t know, probably

what they needed to do about the press conference. Jay-la was curious but would just have to stand

and wait.

Her tears had stopped falling with the hope that Eric could save her. She had worked for him her whole

career. She’d interned at his law firm the entire last 2 years of her degree, never allowing the

pregnancy or the birth of her triplets to interfere in her work. He’d been more than shocked when he’d

found out how pregnant she was and the long hours she was putting in anyway, working so hard to be

his intern, she worked late into the nights determined not to be weak in front of him. Determined not to

loose her career, she needed it to support her children.

Her dogged determination had intrigued him, she’d finished her degree at the top of her class, even

after giving birth to the triplets, she’d studied hard and continuously. He’d been more than surprised to

know she could speak fluent Mandarin, French and Korean. She had a knack for languages and was

currently learning German in her spare time.

Eric now knew that Tony and Lauren had stepped in to help her out, seeing as she didn’t appear to

have any family, kind of took her in as their own. Jay-la had passed the Bar Exam, Aced it actually and

he’d offered her a job as soon as the results were in. Now here he was trying to help her again.

“Get the cuffs off of her” she heard Alpha Nathan snap, dragging her attention back to the present from

her memories of Eric. Jackson produced a small key and turned her around to release the cuffs. The

moment they were off, the burning of her skin stopped and she rubbed her wrists to ease the pain. The

only part of her not injured her hands, due to them being bound behind her the whole time.

Jackson turned her face him and Jay-la watched his grey eyes glaze over again. She glanced at the 2

alpha’s in the room and noted they were all in a mind-link conversation, she was not bound and no one

was currently with eyes on her. Now or never, she thought to herself.

Death wish it is. Jay-la took a long slow breath and steeled herself for the fight of her life.

She slammed her knee into Jackson’s groin as hard as she could, it caused her pain too, due to her

injuries, and then she turned and ran as fast as she could from the office. The door was still open from

when Alpha Blaine had burst into the room and she knew from past experience the packhouse front

door was likely open as well, only ever closed when they locked up for the night. She ran as fast as she

could for the front gates, praying they were still open.

In her mind as she ran for her life she was screaming for Kora to wake up. She could finally feel her on

the edge of her mind, way in the back buried in the darkness. She needed her wolf more than ever, her

speed, her strength and stamina, her fierceness and determination to protect her and get her out of

here and back to their pups.

“KORA” she screamed over and over, trying desperately to wake her beast within, until finally she felt

her wolf wake up “HELP ME” Jay-la screamed into her mind at her wolf so she would feel the urgency.

Kora rushed forward and to take stock of the situation at hand and her surroundings, looking behind

her, she saw Jackson and Stephen running after her and gaining ground quickly, their wolves, Apollo

and Rafe lending all their speed. A snarl ripped from her and then she surged forward giving all her

speed, power and strength to their shared body. They shot forward fast. Kora was always fast, not

many could catch her out in the open.

A part of Kora felt excited and exhilarated about using everything she had, another part of her felt

happy about being chased by two she knew would never catch her, she actually chortled in happiness

at being free to run as fast as she could. Something she had not been able to do in years, to run at full

force and be at the forefront and mostly in control, really made her excited and happy.

Being chased by wolves from her own pack on the other hand did not impress her ‘how?’ she queried

as she raced down the road.

‘drugged, wolfs-bane and silver, kidnapped.’ Jay-la informed her.

A massive growl emerged from within her as anger filled her wolf ‘pups?’

‘Home, just us. They didn’t seem to know about them, til now.’

‘til now?’

‘I had to beg Alpha Blaine, tell him we had children, he insisted on seeing with his gift.’

Kora was quiet, but spurred on by the need to know her pups were safe, she increased her speed even

more. She had gotten faster over the years, even though only let out every 3 or 4 months she had

grown with Jay-la.

The pack gate finally came into view and to her surprise it was open and there was a human federal

police car parked right there on the driveway. She watched as a man got out dressed in a simple black

suit, he was staring right at her, completely shocked to actually see her, probably never thought she

was actually here, or had been informed as much by the gate guards.

She screamed for help. Saw him get out his gun and raise it in his hand, it was aimed not at her but

behind her, to her relief she heard the foot fall of Jackson and Steven slow and stop altogether, they

would not give chase to her while human FEDs were in sight. Not after that press conference Eric had

given, May the Goddess bless you Eric.

‘Kora don’t heal us when we stop.’

‘Evidence.’ Kora agreed. They were both smart, what Jay-la had studied so had Kora, their interests

aligned. She ran right into the arms of the other human who had gotten out of the car and collapsed

into his chest, sobbing like a good terrified young lady running for her life from her kidnappers into the

arms of a rescuer.

As she got into the car she turned her eyes on the pack road, Jackson and Steven were both standing

there watching her. She didn’t hesitate to get in the car’s back seat. She just hoped they wouldn’t hunt

and kill the humans with her to get her back, the minute they drove away.

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