Page 53 of The Alpha's Chosen Fate

And if that weren’t enough, it took a tiny, precious life—and that was the true injustice of it all.

It was so awful I choked up.Sadness and grief could easily be turned into resentment, something I was rather good at doing.

“You should not judge the Alpha so harshly.The burden has been heavy for him to carry, especially with the loss of the child.Nothing in my visions hinted at that tragedy.But I can tell you, had he not taken a mate, Darkwood, the entire pack, would have suffered greatly.”

Most of the fight drained out of me, leaving behind nothing but the cold truth of her words.Briggs had shouldered so much.

Being left in the dark, unable to help him carry some of the load, added to the discord between my head and my heart.

"Knowing one's fate can be a curse," Theia murmured.

I hadn’t said a word.

The Seer patted my knee.“Some truths are too heavy for the soul to bear.Plus, your wolf would never have stayed away.Now it is you who is left with the choice.”

Forgive him,Rieka pleaded.

Shh, Rieka.Not now.

“No visions to point in any particular direction?”I joked lamely.

“Not today, my dear.But come back to me before the winter solstice and we shall see.”

Theia rose and went over to her herbs, effectively dismissing me.

“Thank you,” I said on my way out.

Once Colten had his SUV turned around, he started dropping little bombs on me.“I barely spoke to Briggs for a year after you left.”

I twisted to look at him.Really look at him.He was Beta to the Alpha, Briggs’s best friend since they were toddlers.

“I’d never been disappointed in him before.He was—ismy best friend.He was pissing all over fate and I just knew there’d be some horrendous price to pay.”

“Like losing his mate?”

“If you mean Ruby, no.Losing you temporarily was part of the plan, at least in terms of choosing a mate.The price, though, the real one?Wasn’t losing a mate.”

He was referring to Briggs’s child.I felt like crying again.For the babe.For Briggs’s suffering.

“He told me that he eventually let you know what he’d done,” I said.

Colten nodded.“I suspected something was off but not to the degree it was.He was a miserable sack of shit and I couldn’t do anything about it.When he got around to letting me in, he was already in terrible fucking shape.He put up a good front.Led the pack, made tough decisions, settled things like he always did.But Briggs and Onyx?They were not okay.They were so out of sync and unhappy I worried he might do something crazy.”

I thought about that for a bit, hoping Briggs and his wolf had found common ground again.

“Would you have done the same, if it were your mate?”I blurted without thinking.“Shit.Sorry.You don’t have to answer that.”

A frown creased his brow."I'd like to think that I'd be strong enough to do what he did.To save my true mate, even if it meant she hated me."

"Even if it destroyed you both?Ended with the death of innocents?”

"Especially then," he answered quietly.“It’s completely fucked up, but male wolves?Our base instincts will always be to protect the one on the other side of that bond, no matter the cost.The prospect of offspring isn’t tangible, not until they come screaming into the world and our wolves get their first whiff of their pup’s scent.It’s different for females.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can feel that life inside you.Your wolf’s instinct will always be to protect your young first.Your mate’s instinct will always be to protectyoufirst.It’s a hierarchy designed by nature, like everything else with wolves.”

“I’ve never heard it put quite like that.”

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