Page 63 of A Chance at Redemption for the Alpha
His eyes grow wide, and he gets that deer-in-the-headlight look again.
Silas tosses me a death glare.Are you serious?He snarls through our shared link.You are an alpha like his father was. You trigger his PTSD in moments like these!
Oh fuck! He wasn’t attacked or anything; he is panicking because of us.
Or rather, because of me.
“I didn’t mean to sound like there is a problem,” I hurry to explain. “I was just worried something happened, because you came running in like that. You are young, enjoy your parties and your freedom.”
My explanation comes too late, though, because Benjamin has shut down completely. His body is tense, and his hands are shivering slightly, but the worst part is the defeated look in his eyes. They are void of any emotion, like he is just accepting his fate… whatever it will be.
Sudden fury fills me. That asshole of an alpha who called himself a father… he abused his kid, until almost only a shell remained.
Silas hasn’t uttered a word so far.You need to solve this,he links me all of a sudden.
Me… but I suck at this. Just look!
You were making decent progress with him,he points out.
Yes, but his PTSD is triggered, he is truly terrified of me!
That’s exactly why it needs to be you,Silas explains.He is not scared of me, not as much at least. You being an alpha is his trigger. Prove to him that there is nothing to fear from you.
Benjamin still has his signature look of defeat, his face devoid of any emotion when he bows his head. “I will accept any punishment.”
Silas is right. I need to get to the bottom of this. “Okay,” I say, spontaneously deciding on a whole new approach. “Come with me.” I turn to my mate. “Sorry for leaving you with all the work.”
“That’s not an issue,” he says, nodding at me encouragingly.You got this.
He has more faith in me than I have.
Benjamin has completely resigned to his fate. He doesn’t look scared anymore. His expression is just motionless and blank, while he follows me. He waits for me to grab something from the new dining room in our packhouse – or the one that’s going to be the pack house with office buildings and the like – before he follows me into the forest.
There is a hint of dread on his face when we reach our destination – a beautiful clearing with a soft, green meadow. He probably thinks I will tie him down here and whip him bloody. We are amidst the forest, no one can see us. Fuck his father! I don’t even want to know what he did to him.
I am not sure what to say. I know he has a fight or flight response whenever he feels threatened. It kicks off his PTSD. When he was new to the pack, Alpha Liam sent his psychiatrist to us and had him diagnosed properly.
I don’t know much about this kind of stuff, but I am well aware that me telling him right now that he just has an episode, isn’t going to help.
“Here,” I say instead, and open my bag, retrieving the can of coffee I grabbed from the dining room. I pour us both a cup each before I hand him a sandwich. “You must be starving.”
Benjamin looks at me, anxiety all over his face, and I wonder what he is thinking now. He takes the items, though, and when I sit down on the warm forest ground, he follows me, stillcautious. I grab a sandwich for myself, taking a bite from it. “Tuna!” I beam. “Sheila is an angel.”
“Sheila made these?” he asks quietly.
“Yes, with her new kitchen crew,” I say. “The pack is growing, and it’s better to have a neat organization before we have more pack members joining. Silas and I also decided to finally turn the big building in the center into our actual pack house.”
“Are you going to move in there?” Benjamin asks.
“No, we like to stay at our place.”
He looks relieved at hearing that. “What are you going to do with me?” he asks nervously.
“Well, clearly, your punishment is to spend the day with me,” I point out with a bright grin. “That is, if you are not going to fall asleep after clubbing all night.”
Benjamin looks shocked at my words. “What… but…”
I ignore his shock. “I wish I could drag Silas to a club,” I confess. “I bet he would look hot dancing.” Actually, the more I think about it, the better the idea sounds. I hate clubbing and partying, but just to see Silas dance, I would spend the whole night out with him.
