13 Chapter 13

Gerard owned most everything he wanted and then some. He knew he had the power and the ability to obtain anything he'd need down the road even. So why was this woman such a pain? Rarities were something he obsessed over and she was one of them; one of those rarities that he needed to grasp in his hands. Other women would be throwing themselves at him if he had offered what he did for her.

Gerard rubbed his head as he stared in the scrying mirror, watching the auburn head of hers follow her teacher into a study hall. He wasn't worried because Bernard was with her, he was just trying to think of ways to get her to live him. He needed her to so he could keep her around. He ran over the list of moves he had made in his head repeatedly as he looked over her every feature to commit it to memory. Was it so hard?

He locked her in with obligations by her pack's well being. He treated her as some fragile doll when they were alone together and kept their so called 'affections' my private from any audience. He took her out more often than he would any other potential mate he'd look into and only get the run around when she answered his questions. His tone was precious and he gave her free counseling sessions to help her with control. What more could he do?

The sigh that left his mouth had mixed with a growl and he scowled. She was even making his own condition act up and she wasn't even here. The old woman across from him sighed and looked at her nails in boredom, "I still don't understand why you're being so nice to it."

"Catherine, I swear," he snapped.

"Shut up half breed and listen," she sniffed. "Your little necessity for this kind of crap is running you into a corner. We could have kept the entire pack out of this drama. The Pillar's aren't even worth their salt." She flicked the blonde hair back, putting her feet on the table, "Not to mention she isn't even pretty. She looks like a bitten with all those horrendous scars."

"Scars are stories," Gerard touched his own scars on his lip. He remembered getting them and it only started to rule him up more. "And as it stands, her stories are just playing out. I think you're just upset you lost even in human form."

She glared at him, slamming her fist into the table, "Don't you dare talk to me like that! After all I did for your weak hide you have the audacity-"

"Shut up," Gerard groaned. "Congratulations, you raised me. That little guilt trip doesn't work anymore, Catherine."

"Why did you even reach out. You could have just taken her," Catherine sniffed. "Or had Lukas take her. You know he'd let you do what you want."

"Are you done? I think I asked you here for a reason," Gerard growled. Catherine sighed, standing up dramatically and pulling out a thumb drive.

"This is the information you wanted. My pack may be good at this sort of thing but Scotty-boy has some good people covering his tracks," she informed him.

"Good. Is there any way for us to slowly move into the Pillar's territory? This one is getting cramped," Gerard snorted.

"Not unless you want to kill it Tyrone but you're little pet would be upset," Catherine sang and waved her finger. He scowled and sat back, glaring at her. "This is going to turn into an Allyssia incident if you keep it up," Catherine's voice got low, her eyes boring into Gerard's. It made him flinch, claws on his hands digging into the wood of the chair's armrests.

"Don't bring her name up," Gerard snapped quietly. There was little bite behind it though and he knew she could tell when Catherine smirked.

"The bitten are so fragile, Gerard. You're lucky this one's a purebred. Maybe it'll wash out the human in you," Catherine turned and hummed, walking out of the office. He waited a moment, his mind running faster than a bullet train for the first time in a while. He hated that woman but he could never find the will to end her.

His thoughts became dominated, the images of the pretty blonde in his mind with her sweet smile. Allyssia has been everything he wanted. She was obedient, patient, and kind to him. She even so far as loved him even when he lost control and became angry. It was the only reason he had bitten her; to keep her by his side for the rest of his life. Who knew that twisted father of his would take her from him.

Took her, mated with her, and then killed her as she smiled up at the alpha of the pack and all for what? Because she agreed that Gerard couldn't be changed? Because she knew he was overly possessive and obsessive of what he held dear? He could admit to that but the betrayal was more than enough to send him over the edge. He had killed his father in a heartbeat, gaining the pack as his own and donning the scars his father left behind like a trophy.

Shera didn't trust blindly like Allissia had. She didn't show random acts of kindness or affection even when there was no immediate threat. The fact she was still loyal to her pack was proof enough she was not easily changed or swayed. He wanted that. He wanted someone that he could potentially love that wouldn't turn and stab him in the back.

He was met with so much verbal opposition from this one wolf, yet every time she surprised him. She broke his predictions as if they were twigs in her fingers. The torturing, the agreement to face the Right of Passage, the willingness to stay even when she could have asked for her freedom. He had been joking with her when he said he'd take the card front heir pack. He would have left it and demanded the money be payed back in installments when they were on their feet. It would be a different kind of alliance for the two packs.

He couldn't help but compare Shera to Allissia, his jaw growing tense and sore from gritting his teeth. He put the mirror away as he heard the door open, placing one of his journals in front of him as the familiar footsteps came close to his office. He glanced to the packed camping supplies in the corner of the office and smirked as the door opened again. Shera stared, slight confusion ever present on her rounded, delicate face.

"Sorry, you seem busy," she sighed.

"No, no," he waved his hand quickly, the smile seeming almost natural as he took her in. The clothes shopping they had done after her first day turned out quite revealing. Most of her clothes were practical and easy to move in, cheap things that could be torn and thrown away with little regret. Of course, he knew she'd value her shifting more than anything. It was all she knew up until now and he was always amazed at how good she was with the speed of it. "Are you ready to go? I've had everything packed."

"Huh," she turned a bit, staring at the camping supplies and her face lit up slightly in some hidden joy. There was something sad to taking her to see the stars. He couldn't really relate but it always absorbed the woman when they went to the roof. "Oh. Yeah, I'm ready."

"Great," he stood up and stretched. "What did you need from me?"

She stared for a moment before frowning suddenly, the wrinkles between her eyebrows knitting together, "It's nothing. I have to figure it out on my own."

"If it's about school, than you have up to two years before you have to-"

"I caught up," Shera said quickly. Gerard stopped short as he was moving around his desk and stared at her.

"Excuse me," he asked. Why did this woman have to be this way? She had barely been there for two months, how could she have gotten through the general education? He sighed and nodded. "We can talk about it while we're out if you want. I think a subject change would benefit you."

"Maybe," there was slight distaste in her voice and Gerard internally groaned. She was so difficult to read. What about him made her so uncomfortable? Was it that he could subdue her even when she tried her hardest to fend him off? When he felt he had gained something out of her, she turned around and squashed it all away.

It was like she wasn't giving either of them a chance to feel anything for one another. Why couldn't she have been more like Allissia?

"Well," he chirped. "Let's get going then, shall we?"

"We're staying in the city right? Not the city city part but you know what I mean," she quickly blurted. There was worry in her voice and he kept his eyes from narrowing. She was hiding something. Something happened and she was keeping it to herself.

"Yes, we're going just into your old pack's territory," he nodded. She nodded back to him as he lifted the bag and she turned from him.

"I'll- I'll go pack some things," she quickly made her way down the hall, Gerard eyeing her back. Why, of all things, did she seem scared? If she trusted him she'd tell him what it was wouldn't she? Or was she one of those people that hid everything in order to make people happy? He found himself watching her from the doorway, a frown on his face as she moved about.

This was one of those times when Shera was incomparable with Allissia; her actions more practiced and knowledgeable. It took Shera mere minutes to pack a bag fully with what she needed and she had done so in a content silence. Upon the two making eye contact, she squealed, "Don't do that!"

"Do what? I'm just watching," Gerard hummed. She pouted and Gerard smirked at the view she often gave him. It was cute in its own way even if it shouldn't have been on an alpha's face. He'd have to teach her just how to hold back her expressive face.

"That's creepy," she muttered.

"Creepy? I enjoy watching you do your thing," Gerard chuckled. Only a few things so he technically wasn't lying to the woman. He would watch her think, her change, and he'd watch her eat; those were what he found enjoyable.

"You're weird," Shera commenter again. "I'm ready to go."

"Did something happen at school," Gerard suddenly asked.

"No," her reply was quick, the smile on her little face tight. Gerard scowled, grabbing her cheeks as he tried to decide what to do with her. She flinched when her phone rang, Gerard's eyes widening slightly as she just turned it off.

"Who was that," he asked.

"No one," she muttered. He reached into her pocket quickly, pulling her phone out and staring at it. It irked him; he didn't want someone else making her uncomfortable. It wasn't as enjoyable to witness if it wasn't from his own doing.

"Who is it," he asked again. Of course, at this point he could see who the missed call notification was from, he just wanted to give her a chance. The nervous silence from her began to make him angry. "Why is he calling you when you're the one who kicked him from your pack?"

"Gerard, he's still my-"

"You know, in my pack, the new alpha kills the old," Gerard nodded. "That is, if he loses the fight. It's the same way for the challenger. This way, neither has to deal with the challenge from the same person. Saves everyone a headache." He knew it struck a nerve for Shera and that's why he had said something.

A single betrayal was enough for Gerard. Scott has betrayed Shera in two different ways in his opinion and he couldn't believe how lenient she was being. First he had sold her off without considering her opinion, and then he took what she was sold off for and spent it on weapons against their own kind? He would have killed Scott to be heard, to have Gerard's voice heard. Shera was Scott's daughter for crying out loud; he should have been treasuring her.

"I can't just not talk to him, right," she muttered. Gerard saw the hurt and he wished it didn't raise nostalgic pain from his own memories.

"What did he want before," Gerard asked. She looked up at him and Gerard could see her torn psyche.

"He wanted me to run and be free while in his new pack but he just," she choked and Gerard subtly shut the door to her room behind him. "He's just going to marry me off again isn't he? He knows we aren't mates yet I just don't know- he could sell me off again. I'm not just an item." Gerard carefully pulled Shera into his chest, rubbing her back as he huffed her tightly.

Scott didn't have any right to give her away, even Shera couldn't give herself away now and that's because she belonged to Gerard. It wouldn't be allowed. Gerard would tear anyone down if they came between him and what he wanted.

"Don't worry," Gerard hummed softly. He pet the back of her head, smiling a bit as she wrapped her arms around him hesitantly. "He doesn't get to have you back. You beat him once, you can do it again."