The Delta's Daughter Chapter 189

Day 20 of The Games

TALA

Oliver had placed me in a warm bath and after checking to make sure I was ok, left me to wash the evidence of Jack’s horror off of me. I sat in the tub, after refilling the water twice, scrubbing my limbs free of the red stains that had coated my body.

The bath helped to soothe my aches and shakes and after replaying what happened to Kellen and Jack over and over like the nightmare it was, I began to feel my mind calm and sense my wolf getting stronger. I hadn’t by any means, come to terms with the fact my mate had died at the hands of Vargr or that Jack almost raped me and of all people, it was Oliver who saved me.

Oliver. He saved me. Without collecting his end of the bargain. I palmed my face, trying to wash away the everlasting tension that was still wracking my body. As much as I appreciate Oliver’s heroic rescue, I could help but wonder why Why would Oliver save me Maybe because he hadn’t collected his sacks of diamonds That had to be it right because otherwise, he had no use for me.

Dawn had broken a few hours ago, I had had no concept of time, how long I had been sitting in this bathtub, or how many times I had refilled it. Making sure I washed every ounce of Jack from my skin.

As the wolfsbane began to wear off, my head started clearing and Eloise’s voice filled my head *Tala, are you ok* Her gentle voice was like music to my ears.

*Yes, I am in the old nursery, can you get here* I asked her and added *Can you bring me some clothes*

She replied she would be with me in a few minutes and true to her words she came sliding through the bathroom door only a few minutes later with undergarments and a fresh dress. I climbed out of the tub, dried myself, and put on the clothes. My hands still shaking slightly as I smoothed them over the cotton blue dress. My eyes began to well up as the color of the dress matched perfectly with the color of Kellen’s eyes. A deep swimming blue that reminded me of the crystal clear oceans I had seen in books.

Eloise wrapped her arms around me, pulling me close, one hand stroking my hair in a motherly way like she was trying to stroke the sadness from me. “I got you, girl, you are ok now. He can’t hurt you again.” She whispered comfortingly to me.

“I’m not crying because of that monster,” I sobbed. I couldn’t care less about Jack, he was dead now. He may have shaken me up, but he would have never broken me. “Kellen” was all I had to say.

“I know, I know, but trust your best friend, everything will be ok.” She stepped back and held me at arm’s length. “Now for fucks sake, Tala, you are stronger than this. You will hide your heartbreak and hold your head up high, do you hear me” I cocked my head at my best friend, not used to her being the stronger one and certainly not used to hearing her curse. She would make a wonderful Luna if she and Jasper were ever able to complete the bond. “I know about Teal,” she gave me a sympathetic look.

“I’m going to kill him” I whispered to her, knowing she knew I was talking about Vargr. And I meant it. I would see his end and look into his eyes and laugh when he took his last breath. That man had taken everything from me, my childhood, my mother, my real father, my mate. And after reading Shayna’s diaries, I had come to understand, that he had taken everything from her too. Turning her into a dark and vengeful soul.

Vargr had so much to answer for. He used and abused his pack for decades, making omegas, hybrids, and human's slaves. Putting them into the mines to dig up his greed while they got nothing but scraps of leftover scraps. There were hundreds of pack members enslaved below the surface, forced to work down there and not see the light of day, for days, starving.

Once dressed and calmed down, Eloise led me out of the bathroom. I looked around the pale blue nursery, my eyes landing on the side of the bed where Jack’s body had now been removed but the stain of his sins remained on the marbled tile. Although cleaned up, I could still see the caked red essence of his life ingrained into the grooves of the white tile.

Oliver was nowhere to be seen and I wondered where he had gone.

“Who…” I wanted to ask who removed Jack's body, who cleaned up the blood and where Oliver had gone. I felt safe with him. An annoyed growl came from my wolf.

‘calm down Mora, he saved us, nothing else.’ I chided my wolf, she thought I harbored some other feelings for the sly rogue. I definitely did not. I may feel safe with him around because of what happened, but I still didn’t quite trust him and I certainly wouldn’t and couldn’t look at him or feel anything more for him. My heart still belonged to Kellen. It always would.

“Don’t worry about it, we have other things we need to deal with. Jasper and Cameron are waiting for us.” Patting my back as we headed out of the room. I gave it a quick once over before shutting the door behind me, wondering why this room even existed. Who was it meant for

“I want to see my mother first. Jasper can wait.” I declared taking off toward her suite. As we approached we could hear shouting from her room. Eloise and I quickened our steps hurrying towards the growing heated words of two women in the midst of an argument.

“Oh princess, thank the gods you are ok!” Mildred, one of my mother’s maids and a trusted ally, came rushing from my mother’s room as I heard the crash and shattering of a glass object. I pushed past her “I tried to stop them, but…” Her words fell short as I took in the scene before me.

Alice, Jasper's mother, the Beta’s wife, and my own mother were throwing curse words and objects at each other, the room destroyed.

“For years I have kept you safe, for years I have helped you through everything your mate has done.” Alice was seething at my mother, her face red and finger pointed towards the Luna. “You knew Jasper was his, he has a right to the Alpha title.

“He has no rights!” My mother yelled, her tone just as volatile “The only reason he came to you was because I lost Adam! And don’t you think I don’t know it was you who poisoned me! It was you who drove him away in the first place! You and your goddess damned jealousy, you tried to steal my life. Never happy with your mate, so you tried to take mine. Tell me, Alice, how did that work out for you”

“What in Aodh’s name is going on here” I yelled, my voice louder and more prominent than either of theirs. A rush of adrenaline reared up, making the blood in my veins heat as I witnessed the two women stare each other down.

“You want to know You really want to know” Alice screeched like a banshee, her brown eyes flicking to me with a blaze of heat. “Your pathetic mother couldn’t hold on to her mate or child. Vargr came to a real a woman, a she-wolf that could give him an heir.” Her words were like poison, dripping from her tongue like a drooling dog.

“Jasper may be an heir, but it was you who killed Adam, it was because of you my wolf abandoned me. You killed my child and my wolf all in the name of greed, you shit on your mate by taking his Alpha into your bed…”

“And your revenge was fucking a slave and having her” Alice pointed in my direction.

My mother shook her head “No, that was not revenge that was beautiful. When Adam died, a piece of my soul died too. When you conceived Jasper, I was lost still mourning the death of my son. When I woke up from my grief I found the most beautiful man hidden amongst evil. His aura was strong and vibrant, everything I wanted Vargr to be. So I took him and he gave me a princess, a she-wolf who would become powerful, a daughter who would right all Vargr's wrongs and save the people of Bhakhil.”

The Luna took a step toward the Beta’s wife “You poisoned me, don’t deny it. And when I shared my drink with Adam, you poisoned him too.” My mother’s blue-grey eyes stilled on Alice, daring her to deny her claim. “you almost killed me when you took Vargr into your bed, but when that didn’t work and Jasper was born, I became so ill my wolf died. Poisoned again by you. Tell me, Alice, oh great friend of mine, how does your mate cope, does your son know Does Jasper know Baron is not his father”

I flicked my eyes to Eloise, who looked just as confused as I felt. Their argument wasn’t making sense. I had missed something. What had I missed “THAT IS ENOUGH!” I yelled, both women halting as the aura of my wolf came through and gave them pause, surprising them and myself at the command I rolled off to them.

How had I never noticed the hatred and animosity between these two women before Their disdain for each other was so deep, that years of unraveled tension had just surfaced, plowing up from the depths of the ground and rising like the mountains of Mint.

Jasper was not Beta Baron's son… He was Vargr’s. How much more could our lives be fucked up So many secrets so many lies. And why Why keep any of this hidden Why not claim Jasper as his heir from the get-go and why not have me banished or aborted when he found out I wasn’t his Why, why, why

The three-letter question was making me dizzy, the more the question whirled around in my head the more it spun, faster and faster until I wanted to scream, to release the overflowing anger that would have people crawling on their hands and knees, begging me to stop.

“Alice! Leave this room immediately DO NOT hassle Luna Mila again!” The command rolled off my tongue easily, my wolf coming to the forefront showing her dominant side and her abhorrence of how she had treated our mother.

I watched as Alice, Jasper's mother stomp her foot, not being able to fight my wolf's command, my Alpha aura pouring out in waves before she turned on her heel and reluctantly left the room in a fit of rage.

“Tala,” My mother called to me in a voice full of regret and grief. I held my hand up and at the same time bent over and grabbed my knee with my other hand, trying to steady the influx of emotions that were bombarding me.

I felt all this energy, power, and strength rearing up inside of me. I had never felt this before, this all-consuming desire to control and exert my dominance. I know it was coming from my wolf, why now though Why this sudden change today Was it the trauma I experienced from Jack, the upheaval of my life as I find out Jasper and I had been lied to our entire life Or was it the heartache and misery of losing my mate

Either way, I couldn’t place it. Eloise and my mother stood silently until I righted myself and pushed my shoulders back. Placing everything I felt into a mental box and locked it up. Vargr had destroyed everything he had touched, every person he was responsible for. Destroyed the lives of people he had snatched from the streets.

“Who is Adam” I ask my mother, not allowing her gaze to shift from mine as I held her captive with my stare.

“Adam would have been your brother” Tears welling in her eyes, my mother choked the words out. “When he died, it changed everything, your father, Vargr became distant, mean. That’s when he started to take others to bed.” She said with shame in her eyes. “I was poisoned but it didn’t kill me, I let him have a sip of my tea before my wolf realized what had happened. It was too late. He died in my arms.” She began to sob and I moved toward her, engulfing her in the tightest hug I could without harming her.

“When Alice became pregnant with Jasper, I was poisoned again, that and the fact Vargr had been betraying the mate bond, killed my wolf. I’m so sorry for the lies. I thought… I thought your real father would be the one to bring him down. I was so miserable, I wanted to be loved, to have a child. So I took it from him.” She turned in my arms and went to stand by the window, looking out over the barren land outside of the walls of Bhakhil. She took a shuddering breath and crossed her arms “Vargr only ever wanted the wealth, my father’s mines. Mate or not, he never loved me. If you married Jasper he would have the mines and the kingdom.” She suddenly turned, her red and puffy eyes, now hard with determination. “Those mines are your's Tala, They belong to me, not Vargr, not Jasper. You will inherit them. You hold the riches to this kingdom.”

“Teal is dead,” I told her in a matter-of-fact tone and watched her gasp, eyes widening in shock and then softening in the same breath.

“I am so sorry my daughter, but fate is on your side. I cannot help you, but you… you can cut the head off the snake. Your real father was no ordinary wolf, he was powerful, his wolf ancient of an old bloodline. A red wolf, built to protect, built to fight. You are the same, you will see.”

Teal's words came back to me ‘My name is Teal Mac-Tier, Alpha of the Sea Dogs pack and knight of the Red Branch, my wolf is Cuchulinn, who lives to serve his king, Conri and he will be reborn. Tala Mac-Tier you are my daughter and I love you.’

“I am a Mac-Tire, not a Phelan.” I looked to my mother for confirmation and she nodded, again tears sprang from her eyes.

“Yes my dear girl, you are a Mac-Tire and when you find your mate, you will feel that power, that ancient blood that courses through those red veins of yours.”

“My mate is dead,” I replied, choking on the words. They didn’t feel right, even saying them. Mora growled in my head she too felt like the words were lies. Neither of us was able to come to terms with Kellen’s death, or at least we refused to acknowledge it. If we did, it would make it all too real.

“Tala,” Eloise caught my attention, I had forgotten she was even in the room, to be honest. “Jasper needs to see us. He said it was urgent.” El pulled her lips in tight, looking from her Luna to me.

“Go dear, Today is a good day. The fates will smile upon you. Of this I am sure.” I bobbed my head agreeing with my mother. After the showdown I just witnessed, I definitely needed to see Jasper. “Eloise,” my mother called out as we crossed the threshold of the door, we both turned back to look at her. “Mark your mate before it’s too late, complete the bond. We have no idea what Vargr and Baron will do next.”

“Yes, Luna.” She replied hesitantly, wondering if my mother knew her mate was Jasper.