Chapter 43: Hero

It's the second Thursday in December.

In the evening in Oklahoma, Ezekiel, Richard, and his mate are inside the Alpha's office where they are told the news of what happened earlier that day. The whole operation of taking Charles from Regency Falls, only to be blackmailed into returning him later on.

The Alpha slammed his desk in pure rage after he learned that...

"He threatened my mate!" He screamed at his Beta, fuming after Ezekiel reported to him that he had to return Charles to Regency Falls because I told him that I had his Luna at gunpoint. And I was very convincing!

"Are you sure he wasn't bluffing, Beta?" Luna double checked with him, sounding doubtful.

"He told me where you were and what you were wearing today, down to the fabric and color of your shirt. I don't think he was bluffing Luna. Unless you Instagrammed a photo of yourself today." Ezekiel replied, rather spiteful at her doubting him.

The Alpha couple gasped in shock as they heard this, but Richard was furious about it. Threatening his Luna is one step too far in his book, which is why it worked like a charm. It is the one person in the entire pack that he can never afford to lose, even if she can't get pregnant. Not that this has anything to do with her value as a mate.

"How could he know the fabric of my shirt?" She raised an eyebrow at Ezekiel, intrigued by this.

"I don't know, Luna, I don't understand fashion. But when someone says my Luna is wearing a red, satin shirt, I pay attention. If you were killed, my Alpha would never have forgiven me and the leadership of our pack would implode." He replied, rather annoyed at her doubt.

Ezekiel spoke the truth. For one, I would have her killed without any remorse. That would undoubtedly cause a rift between the Alpha and Beta; Richard would lose what is left of his grip on humanity. This was a calculated strike and I never play to lose. No one does.

"How the hell did he even think about that? How could he plant snipers in my pack?" Richard was livid, impossibly mad at the whole thing.

"We have twenty thousand werewolves living in this town. It is impossible to control who they are and where they go. He took advantage of that and probably planted sleeper agents in case we managed to successfully remove your son from Regency Falls." Ezekiel conjectured, impressed by this stunt.

"It's embarrassing that this guy who is younger than both of us is always one step ahead this whole time! Unless he was trained by the Navy Seals, I fail to see how he's getting the upper hand..." Richard whined, looking at his Beta to do better.

"He is a third-generation Beta! He is invested in keeping your son in Regency Falls because he is mated to Carlisle. They love each other! He has incredible resources at his disposal." Zeke argued, not wanting to admit this but backed into a wall.

"You sound like you admire the guy!" Richard's eyes glowed in rage at him.

"I don't! I just can't seem to see a way out of this for us!" He defended himself, feeling cornered. He was afraid of his friend's reaction after yet another failure.

"Well, this time he went too far. It's past time we show these people we are not to be messed with. Prepare for war. We are coming to Regency Falls and we are not going to stop until my son is safely in my arms!" The Alpha declared, possessed by rage.

* * * * * * * *

"You are my hero, daddy Stephano!" Charlie told me before his father took him to school on Friday morning. He could stay home, but decided he wanted to go to school to see Clarissa, his 'mate'.

I am not going to lie, I cried after I was left alone inside my house. Nobody has ever called me a hero before, but most of all no one has ever called me 'daddy'. My eyes are filled with emotional tears that are completely overwhelming me right now.

This is what I have always wanted, to make someone feel for me what my father made me feel growing up. He is absolutely my hero and all I ever wanted was to mirror myself in his image. He was an amazing Beta and father to his two sons.

If I am half the man he is, I am good with that.

This is really messing me up this morning. I am glad to be alone because I am so emotional. I already was as soon as my mate started getting morning sickness from his pregnancy. But now that my stepson called me 'daddy Stephano', I am in awe.

I don't care if I have to fight Richard a thousand times, this is what I fight for. I fight for my family and my loving mate. I fight for the right to be happy and fulfilled. But most of all, I fight for Carlisle's right to raise his son in peace.

I finished off my breakfast before Lupe walked in because I didn't want her to see me crying and explain myself to her. I am not ashamed of being vulnerable, I just don't want to do so now.

Today I had a much harder mission on my plate.

I never told Phillip of the sleeper agents and their mission, but now that Richard tried again - and succeeded - in kidnapping Charlie, I have to tell him of what happened. I can not keep secrets from my Alpha. I never have.

I walked inside the pack house a few minutes past nine and went straight to the Alpha's office. By now he would have already heard of what happened yesterday, I just need to explain to him what happened and what I set in motion.

"Good morning, Alpha. How are you doing?" I greeted him as I entered his office. He was looking at his laptop screen.

"I am anxious to find out how the hell you managed to have the kidnappers come back to Regency Falls and deliver Charles back to his father." He spoke, looking at me with a curious stare. After I got closer to him, I noticed that his laptop was playing the CCTV footage of the kidnapping.

As Alpha, Phillip not only has access to all the footage of our security cameras, but he also has access to the city's traffic cameras. He can see everywhere in town but only public spaces, obviously.

"After the first kidnap attempt, I had a distinct feeling that the next time they'd try, it would be something unpredictable and therefore impossible for me to protect Charlie from." I started my explanation, tentatively. I took my seat on the chair opposite from his desk.

"Fearing this outcome, I sent two of our warriors to Oklahoma on a special assignment. Their mission was to shadow Richard's mate, but not to reveal their presence over there. It was only in the eventuality that something happened to Charlie that I would activate them." I continued, explaining the situation to him as it unfolded.

My tone was respectful and my voice serene. I would never dream of antagonizing my Alpha, I just could not wait around to get permission. I mean, I did not want to risk a denial.

"I see. So, you threatened their Luna, that's why they brought back Charles?" He spoke in a calm voice.

"I did, Alpha. I could not afford to let them have him. That would have destroyed my mate. In fact, it did for a while." I replied, honestly.

"And you never thought to run this mission by me? Usually sending our people into another pack is an Alpha's decision. Or am I mistaken?" He raised his tone now, challenging me.

"No, you are not mistaken. I feared you'd say no if I asked you. Or you'd think it'd be an overkill on my part." I clarified, not really doing a good job of defending myself because there is no excuse. I just could not afford to lose.

"Basically, you chose not to trust my judgment. Do you think I am unsympathetic to your mate and his ply? Do you think I would not do everything in my power to keep his son here in our pack?" He was getting angrier by the minute.

"I know how great of an Alpha you are. I do believe you'd have his best interest at heart, I was just afraid you'd deny me and I would have no recourse left when Charles was to be taken. I knew they would try again, it was just a matter of time." I explained myself, fearfully.

Outside of my father and Phillip's fathers, there is no man in the world I respect more than him. I just was afraid he'd say no. Terrified even. I could not risk it.

"Well, congratulations. Your plan worked. Of course, now they are coming for us with everything they got. You threatened their Luna, if I were Richard I would be preparing myself for war." He sneered, displeased with me.

"With all due respect, I have already been preparing for war ever since the day I was mated, Alpha. Why do you think I raised the number of warriors? It certainly wasn't because I wanted to stretch our budget and get angry calls from the Wolf Council." I spoke sarcastically.

I have to keep in mind that we are paid for by the pack and any money we spend has to be accounted for by the Wolf Council. It's no different than a government and the management of public funds. We have some discretion, but we are held accountable.

"This is not the time for sarcasm, you put my pack in the path of war. I have grounds to ask for your impeachment." He threatened me, annoyed. This is a serious offense nevertheless.

"We already were on the path of war ever since they sent three men with guns into our middle school! All I did was to prepare myself for the eventuality. All I have been doing as Beta is to prepare our defenses for war. All I ever do is protect my pack and that includes my stepson." I ranted, feeling overwhelmed with the pressure to do good. Failure means death. Or to lose Charlie.

"If you want to sit back and pretend I was the one who put us on the warpath, that's fine. If you want to impeach me, that is within your right as my superior officer. I do apologize for going behind your back and not trusting your decision. I really do. I let my fear speak louder and that should never happen as Beta of the pack. I do apologize for breaking your trust in me." I bear my soul to him, holding nothing back.

"For the record, I would never say no to anything that would prevent Charles from being kidnapped. You underestimated me as your Alpha and friend." He stated, irritated with me.

"With that being said, I am a father so I can understand fear sometimes speaking louder than what our brain tells us. I can only imagine the terror Carlisle must have felt when his son was taken and he had no hope of ever getting him back. I would be destroyed if I were in his shoes. I have only been a father for five years, though I don't think the duration of fatherhood has anything to do with the intensity of our love for our children." Phillip declared, softening his expression.

"You don't need to hide your strategies from me. I am not going to tell you what you are doing is too much, if it means your stepson is safe here with his father. Good on you for thinking outside of the box, I would never have thought of that. I didn't even suspect there were warriors working far away from Regency Falls. Don't they have to clock in to get paid?" He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion.

"I told Tommy - my best friend who works in the pack's H. R. - I was sending two warriors on a mission, so I filed some paperwork to approve the extra expense and the lack of time cards." I replied, mentioning the bureaucracy part of being Beta.

"Crafty. Your father could not have raised a better Beta, it's staggering!" He complimented me, though still peeved at me.

"Thank you, Alpha. I do my very best. Can you believe Charlie told me I was his hero? And then he called me 'daddy Stephano' this morning!" I could not help but brag about it.

"Aw! He called you 'daddy Stephano'? That is so sweet!" Philip melted as he learned this.

"It is. I honestly am not afraid to admit that I cried earlier. It is all I ever wanted." I admitted and Phillip got up from his chair to give me a massive hug, proud of me.

"Congratulations, Steph! You deserve it!" He celebrated me, despite his anger with me for that stunt, it serves to prove how great of a man the Alpha is.

"Thank you, Phill. And again, I am sorry. You have to know I hold you in the highest regard. The only Alpha I like more than you is your father." I said, humorously.

"Traitor!" He snickered, laughing at the comment.

"You are my Beta, not his." He sulked.

"But you are the better Alpha." I winked at him. He smiled at me boastfully.

"Thanks for lying." He remarked, grinning at me.

After I left the pack house, I drove to the training center where I was yet to talk to Iris about yesterday's events. As Phillip said, we need to prepare ourselves for war. I know it's coming.

I talked to my top warriors - Iris and Clarkson - for a while as I dispatched orders and created new protocols. I am glad patrols are already more frequent than ever after the last shake up I did in the force.

Later that day, I returned to my house to find my mate watching TV and our son inside his bedroom playing video games. This is my life and I will stop at nothing to protect our way of life.

"Good afternoon, daddy Stephano." He smiled at me and I swooned.

"It's not the same when you say it." I snickered.

"You really are our hero, mate." He kissed my lips and I was in heaven as if it was happening for the very first time.

"You inspire me to be better. You raise me up to be the best man that I can be." I told him, feeling emotional.

"Trust me, you were pretty great to begin with." He spoke, humorously. Then we kissed again. And again... <3

A|N: I love this song. It could have been featured in the previous chapter, but here we are.

It's the final countdown to war. Richard is coming with everything he has.

There will be blood.

OFF: I wish I could write as many chapters of this book as I have pictures of "Stephano" to include. He is so gorgeous! Woof! *swoons*

Love,

Léo.