When He's An Alpha (The Olympus Pride #2) - Suzanne Wright Page 0,97
life. Setting it aside for a while sounded good to her. But how could she and Tate ever build anything if she didn’t let him in? The answer was … they couldn’t.
She took in a preparatory breath that was a lot shakier than she’d have liked. “Our Alpha was an asshole. Yasiel either didn’t know the difference between leading and bullying, or he just didn’t care. My older brother, Rolando, dated Yasiel’s daughter, Neoma.”
Thinking of Rolando made a sad smile pluck at Havana’s mouth. He’d been an overly protective big brother. Oh, he’d teased and pushed her buttons at times like only a sibling would, but he’d never let anyone say a bad word to or about her. She’d adored and looked up to him.
“Neoma was a sweet girl,” Havana went on. “Rolando fell hard for her. So when her father declared he was entering her into an arranged mating, Rolando was devastated. Neoma begged her mother to intervene, but the Alpha female rarely contradicted Yasiel. Rolando had been so sure she’d stand up for her daughter.”
“But she didn’t, did she?”
Havana shook her head. She’d always wondered if the rest of what happened could have been prevented if Neoma’s mother had just spoken up for her only child. “Rolando tried convincing Yasiel to change his mind. But the Alpha didn’t give a shit what my brother or Neoma wanted. He was determined to solidify his alliance with another clan, and he had no compunction about using Neoma to do so.”
Tate rubbed her thigh. “Sad as it is, it’s not an uncommon practice.”
“No, it isn’t. No one should ever be used as a bargaining chip. Neoma was terrified of the male she’d been promised to. He was like her father, only worse. Rolando was determined to save her, but Yasiel wouldn’t budge. So … Rolando challenged him.”
Tate’s brows hitched up. “Your brother had a shitload of courage and honor.”
“He did, but those traits didn’t help him during the duel. Rolando was strong, but he was no alpha. Yasiel outmatched him in every way.” As she’d watched it play out that night with the rest of the crowd, she’d flinched at every bite, scratch, and blow he’d received. His cries of pain had been like red-hot knives stabbing her chest. “Rolando submitted when it was clear he had no prayer of winning the duel. But Yasiel killed him anyway.”
A thunderous expression twisted Tate’s face. “The fuck?”
She understood his shock and outrage. If a shifter submitted during a duel, their opponent backed off—that was how it worked. Or how it should work. But, unlike her brother, Yasiel possessed no integrity. He’d wanted to punish Rolando for challenging him. He’d wanted to scare the rest of the clan into towing the line.
A muscle in his cheek ticking, Tate curved his hand around her nape and gave it a comforting squeeze. “You don’t have to tell me anything else. I can guess the rest anyway. You and your parents abandoned the clan, but you tragically lost them at some point over the years,” he said, his voice humming with anger.
She appreciated the “out” he’d offered, but she’d rather tell the full story now than revisit it later. “I wish it had happened that way. But it was so much worse than that. My dad, Manuel, was so furious and devastated in his grief, he attacked Yasiel the moment Rolando stopped breathing. Then it was a huge pile-on—enforcers jumped in to protect Yasiel, my relatives jumped in to defend my father and avenge my brother. My mother stayed with me, crying and yelling warnings at Manuel to duck or watch his back or move aside.
“It was just … chaos. Pure chaos.” The air had stank of blood, anger, fear, and pain. She’d never forget the screams. Never. “Yasiel and his enforcers tore my father and extended family members apart right there in front of everyone.”
Tate’s eyes fell closed for a brief moment. He tugged her closer and slid his hand around to cup her face. “Baby,” he said simply, the word laced with so much warmth and compassion it almost brought tears to her eyes.
Ignoring the ache in her throat, she went on, “Me and my mother were branded traitors and shunned. She tried to hold on, but she couldn’t. I don’t think it was just the breaking of the true-mate bond that ate at her strength. I think she was just so heartbroken. She died a few weeks later. Then I was alone.”