Chapter Twenty

His pulse raced as he walked out of Victor's large house. The information in the folder was crippling. How long had he run from his past? Since he was nothing more than a pup himself.

He let out a shaky breath and got into his car, his body throbbing for time with Sonya naked and sweaty below him. He would fuck her long and hard that night, but for now, he had some decisions to make.

Dax would recover from his ass whooping and the male would want a proper fight. The fight would be with Sonya if he didn't move fast. The way of their people wouldn't allow for Alec to fight on her behalf for the pack.

Dax would take the girl down and he would be left with murderous intent to fuck him up and anyone else that came near them. It wasn't a good set up for a healthy future.

He growled loudly in the car and hit his hands on the wheel, the metal denting slightly. He would talk things over with Jared and then call a council meeting. The time to lay his plans out in front of his people had arrived. They could agree with him and back him, or they could cower in the corner. Nothing was changing his mind.

The sweet look on Sonya's face melted him completely when he told her that he loved her. She hadn't repeated the words, but he knew she felt them. It was only a matter of time. Words were fleeting and her actions spoke volumes.

He trusted her completely, something that most people that knew their recent history would be appalled by. He smiled at the thought and turned up the music on his radio, letting everything go but the words of the song.

Jared was waiting in the house when he got back and for the first time in a long time, he was grateful for the company. The thought of digging into his past left him on edge. He climbed out of the car and walked into the house, not needing to call out to Jared. He could smell the other male as if he were right in front of him.

"Alec?" Jared walked out of the kitchen. "Hope you don't mind. This place was starting to look like shit, so I had some of the girls come over and clean it up."

"Did you pay them for their time?" Alec asked, dropping his keys on the kitchen table before walking to the refrigerator.

"No?" Jared laughed and sat down at the table. "They're part of the pack. Pack life means sharing in common duties and giving of yourself to others in your pack."

"Oh." Alec pulled out a Tupperware of leftover steak and opened it, eating it cold from the container. "I'm not used to pack life, remember?"

"No, actually you've yet to tell any of us about your past. We're not a people that need a resume, remember? You're strong enough to take down the last Alpha, so the pack belongs to you now."

Alec nodded and extended the container toward Jared. "I'm a lone bear. I don't know who my parents are and I've spent my whole life roaming the world in search of something to make me complete."

"Have you found it?" Jared took a large chunk of the meat and started to tear at it with his teeth.

"Yeah. At first the pack felt like it might be a part of that need inside of me, and it was – it is, really. Sonya is the rest of it. I need her by my side and then I'll be complete." Alec shrugged and sat down at the table. "Call a meeting today. I'm going to take ownership of the brown bears from Victor's daughter. Dax isn't going to relent and I'll not have him attacking my mate."

"Oh shit. That's huge." Jared picked up his phone and started pressing buttons.

Alec admired that quality in the other man above all else. He might not understand or agree with what Alec was up to, but he didn't question it. He simply did it.

"Done." Jared looked up and shrugged. "Not sure how that's going to go over, but I'll be there with you. The ultimate decision lies with you, so whatever you say goes."

"Yeah, but this is big. I'm hoping that I can convince them. I'm not ready to throw caution to the wind and dominate them in everything yet. I enjoy the idea of a collection of voices in decision making. I don't want a dictatorship like Victor had. He was a different type of man and it worked for him, but I'm not that humble. The power of being the supreme decision maker would corrupt me fast."

"But you are already." Jared took another piece of meat and leaned back. "The supreme decision maker, I mean."

"I don't see it like that." Alec crossed his arms over his chest. "Victor had a file on me that most likely tells all of my history, including who birthed me. I'm not ready to know that yet."

"That's heavy. I can't imagine how that would feel." Jared picked up his phone as it buzzed. "Drago is pulling together the others. We need to be there in two hours."

"Good. I'm going to take a shower." Alec stood and picked up the last piece of meat, popping it in his mouth and walking languidly toward his bathroom.

"Hey, did you whoop Dax's ass today?" Jared's voice followed him.

"Him and three of his biggest guys."

"No shit? In bear form?"

"Nope. In this puny human body. He's pissed, so I'm not sure I did us any good." Alec walked into his bedroom, Jared's comments lost in the distance between them.

It didn't matter what anyone thought about it. Dax was a threat to Sonya and had to be beaten back or taken out. The bastard was out of warnings.

"Why are we here, Sir?" One of the younger council members stopped beside Alec as the others took their seats.

"I'll discuss it shortly, Marcus. Take your seat please."

"Of course, it's just that Leah is going into labor today. I want to make sure..."

Alec cut the other man off, reaching out and squeezing his shoulder. "Then get out of here. This is nothing compared to your pup being born today."

"I have a responsibility, Sir."

"Yes, to your mate. Jared will call you later and update you. There's not a vote being taken today. I'm letting everyone in on my plans and we're moving forward. It might be better if you're not here." Alec grinned and pulled his hand back.

"Go, Marcus. Tell Leah we're rooting for her." Jared walked up and put an arm around Marcus.

Alec turned his attention to the room and left Jared to deal with the younger male.

"Sit, please, and let's get this over with. I called you all here because we need to discuss two things." He paused while the room grew louder around him. He checked his phone quickly to see a text from Sonya. She would be heading over in an hour to spend the evening with him. He would be done by then and at home, waiting on her.

"Have you met with the threat from Europe yet, Alpha?" a voice called out and Alec slipped his phone back into his slacks pocket before clearing his throat. He stood before them, wanting complete attention from everyone.

"Yes, I have. He brought three of his thugs with him. I would assume he's on his way back to Europe to gather more bears to come back with him or plotting my death. He needed to be taught a lesson, and I was glad to do it." Alec paused and narrowed his eyes, the thought of the punk-ass souring his mood quickly. "They will not be on our lands again or his blood will be on my hands."

"Excellent." Drago nodded and the others joined in behind him. The older man had power and Alec knew without a doubt that he was slowly winning the old bear over.

"Let's move to the next topic, which is the threat to Victor's pack."

"Sonya's pack," Jared spoke from his chair and Alec nodded.

"I stand corrected. Dax is a huge threat to Sonya's pack and I will tell you here and now that I'm not willing to stand by and let the bastard take the North American brown bears. He would be a constant thorn in my side. In our sides. I'm not willing to let us suffer that."

"What are you proposing?" Lance, a grandfatherly figure to the council, stood slowly and lifted his chin.

"I will be taking control of the brown bears. Sonya is brilliant and capable of changing the course of history, but she wouldn't survive a fight against Dax. He's cunning and unwilling to relent. I will take control from her and fight him on her behalf."

"No. That's suicide. This is not our fight." Lance sat down, shaking his head. "The brown bears aren't our pack and this isn't our way."

"I think there is validity to what our Alpha says. Dax isn't just a threat to the Browns, but to us as well. He knows the rules and traditions and he still ran across our land as if none of that mattered. We are left with only a few choices." Jared tapped his hand on the desk before him.

"I would much rather snuff out the threat while it's only a few bears. If he takes over Sonya's pack and causes havoc to us or disrespects us, war will break out. All of Victor's bears will be across the line from us. I know I didn't know the old man well, but many of you did. He wouldn't want this and I think tradition calls us to honor him."

"I agree." Drago stood and all eyes turned toward him. "We need to vote on moving this forward. You're a man of the voice, Alec. Let us take a poll as to whether we agree with you taking on the brown bears for a time."

"For a time? He's talking about taking them on forever, Drago." Lance stood from his place, his brow drawing too.

Alec lifted his hands into the air. "This isn't up for a vote. I will be moving forward with it because, as your leader, we have no choice. I will not leave a treat at our door. If that means the future looks different from the past, then so be it. Dax will be snuffed out and my only means of doing that is as Alpha of the Browns."

"We agree with your plans, but not with anything beyond that." Drago nodded and took his seat.

"I'm sorry? Anything beyond that?" Alec let his eyebrow raise as he took a step toward the council. Many of the members shrunk back in their seats.

"Yes. Take the position and eliminate the threat. We support that fully." Drago crossed his arms over his chest and glanced around as everyone nodded.

"What exactly is it that you don't support?"

"We will not watch you take a brown bear as your mate. You are a full-blooded black bear and your line will remain that way. We're here to protect you too, even if it's from yourself."