Chapter 186: You’re Late
After a few more minutes, Farkas left Rhett’s office.
Now Rhett had to come up with a plan for tonight. He would be seeing Isleen tonight and, if the moon so desires, they’d finally take the next step as mates.
Everything had to be perfect. So, Rhett called a hotel within their pack, booking a reservation. It was run by fey and known for its attention to customer privacy. Rhett wanted Isleen to feel as comfortable as possible.
They had a lot to discuss and rarely had the time to because of his tasking job. If they really wanted to go on as mates, they needed to come to an understanding. Rhett wanted them to come to an understanding.
The Isleen who came to the precinct today didn’t have a satisfying understanding of him. Saying he didn’t care about his son...hmph! If only she knew just what lengths he was willing to take to protect those he loved. And now that she was one of those few people, she was bound to find out sooner rather than later.
.
.
Rhett remained in the precinct till it was nighttime. He was exhausted, but unrelenting. There were lots of papers to sign and preparations to be made before civilians could be enlisted into the military. And they had to be fast about it too. There could be no mistakes, if not, the pack wouldn’t stand much of a chance if the vampires attacked again.
Rhett looked at the time. It was almost 8 o’clock. They’d arranged to meet just outside the precinct. That’s if Isleen chose to show up tonight. If she didn’t, Rhett wouldn’t take being stood up lightly.
He got up, stepping out of his office. A few soldiers saluted him on his way out and as usual, he only acknowledged them with a simple wave or nod.
Just when he was close to the exit, however, trouble came walking in.
Darius.
"Rhett, how’s the patrol of the woods looking?" Darius was escorted by two soldiers, who both completely ignored Rhett’s existence. What was the meaning of this?
Rhett managed to feign a smile, replying the Beta’s question. "Good so far, Beta."
However, Darius scoffed, ticking something inside Rhett.
"Good? Tell me, Rhett, what’s good about any of this? Your men have become far too laid back and it’s most likely due to your incompetence. The precinct was under attack and they were all like sitting ducks to the vampires. The precinct is supposed to be their territory. How pathetic is that?" Darius hollered, managing to draw the bitter stares of many soldiers on himself.
What. The. Fuck?
Rhett clenched his fists until he felt blood draw out. The slight pain was a necessary distraction if he wanted to avoid dislocating the Beta’s jaw.
The air grew tense, as both men stood tall, glaring at each other. But soon, Rhett managed to get his composure back, flashing a smile that didn’t extend to his eyes.
"We’re working hard to do better, Darius. It’s not our fault that there weren’t enough men available here that night." Rhett’s voice oozed with contempt, his eyes brimming with an anger that threatened to explode.
This man dared insult his men? Did he dare to look down on them? He dared to act tough when he and his son-in-law kept themselves hidden in the comfort of that mansion, taking more than half his men to protect them while his soldiers and innocent civilians suffered losses. 𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑝𝘶𝘣.𝑐𝘰𝘮
Darius deserved a fate worse than death in Rhett’s eyes.
"There you go again with your excuses. We–" Darius was about to rant on again, but Rhett had neither the time nor patience. It was already a few minutes before eight.
"We’ll talk tomorrow, Darius. You can drop whatever ’relevant’ information you have with my military advisor. Good night." And with that, Rhett brushed past the Beta, who stood there looking bewildered but also pissed.
"You dare walk out on me, Rhett?" Darius bellowed from behind him, not caring about his image under the scrutiny of the officers at the precinct.
Rhett finally got outside, leaning on his car which was parked about ten meters away from the precinct. He breathed in and out, trying to quell his anger.
"Here." A voice called beside him. Rhett opened his eyes, his gaze meeting Farkas who held out a small bottle of alcohol to him. "You deserve a drink, Rhett."
Rhett sighed, trying to ignore the drink at first. But eventually, he snatched it off Farkas’s hands, chugging it all down in one gulp.
"Woah, slow down there." Farkas chuckled. "Darius is just doing what he does best... being a jackass. You can’t let him get into your head. You’re stronger than that. Smarter."
Rhett smiled wryly. Trust Farkas to throw words of encouragement when he was on edge. Another reason why he considered the man one of his only friends, if not the only one right now.
"I know, I know." Rhett shook his head, trying to dismiss Farkas’s worries. "What’re you doing out here? I told the bastard to relay any information he has for me to you."
Farkas didn’t seem to take the news well, as he grumbled. "Seriously? I thought you had my back, brother?"
"Oh, relax. I thought you were the one advising me not to let the bastard get into my head just now?" Rhett shrugged sluggishly.
Farkas began to rant on something about trust and how his night would be ruined If he had to spend more than a few seconds close to the Beta, but Rhett went into a trance.
He caught a smell, one which made his wolf jump with excitement. His mate was close. She’d kept to her word despite everything.
Trying to search for her in the distance, Rhett was finally able to spot her amongst all the people on the road. To him, she was the only one who existed at that moment. Everything and everyone else was just noise and blurs which his brain filtered out. Including Farkas...
"Hello?" Farkas snapped his fingers in front of his face, drawing him out of his trance. "Whoa, you must be really exhausted. You didn’t even listen to a single word I just said."
Rhett arched an eyebrow at first but decided to go with that. "Yeah...I think I’ll head home to get some rest. You hold the forte while I’m gone, Farkas."
Farkas nodded his understanding, patting Rhett on the shoulder. "Take care of yourself, Rhett. You need your strength for the coming days."
With that, Farkas finally went into the precinct, causing Rhett to smile to himself. Farkas always knew when he needed his space.
By now, Isleen had spotted him too, and increased her pace a little. There was something about the way she walked tonight that made her seem confident. Something Rhett didn’t associate his mate with.
"You’re ten minutes late." Rhett blurted out the first sentence that came into his head, almost cursing himself for his brashness.