Page 40 of Knot All Is Ruined: Part 2

Toma reached out, turning Cris to face him. “Where is this coming from? None of this is making any sense, babe. I’m gonna need you to help me out here.”

“I was never supposed to tell. No one was to know the truth,” Cris muttered, his jaw clenched with anger. “Hell, I wasn’t ever supposed to learn the truth, but what can you do when you’re caught red-handed by your own son.”

This was about his father?Now I was even more confused because I couldn’t figure out any connection between what was happening and Cris’ reaction to things.

“Are you talking about your father?” Toma asked, having come to the same conclusion.

“Yes, if I dare call the bastard that,” Cris spat. “Do you know why he marked my mother? The real reason?”

“No…” Toma hedged.

“Well, we all know she’s a rescued Omega from the North, and supposedly my parents fell in love on the way back to headquarters. In fact, they were so in love they couldn’t wait until they were back. Father marked her the moment she admitted her feelings to him,” Cris shared. “At least, this is the story I was told growing up. Yet how do you explain away the fact that this man who was supposed to be a doting lover and father is never the fuck around? A strong sense of duty and the need to protect this country and our people. Well then, imagine when I arrive at a base where my father has no reason to be at fucking the brains out of some Beta bitch behind a building.”

While it did not surprise me to hear this, it still hurt my heart knowing how Cris had looked up to his father.

“When I interrupted their tryst, I told him I would tell Mother about it. The bastard just laughed at me and told me to feel free since she knew all about his vulgar habits. Then I found out he bonded with my mother because she knew the truth, that he was a Northerner. They had stationed him at a base that was attacked, then he assumed the identity of a fallen Southern soldier and returned with the battalion. I have no idea how he pulled it off or who he manipulated to keep his secret, but it was almost ruined when my mother remembered him. He’d been one of the Alphas to frequent the breeding house on base. So to keep her quiet, he marked her so if she ever went to the Southern Military and told them the truth, they’d kill her too.

That’s why he’s never around. He doesn’t give two fucks about my mother. All that bastard cares about is living a comfortable life and ordering people around. He manipulated his way to the rank he’s at now, digging up dirt for blackmail, using his knowledge of the North to get ahead, and I’m sure doing whatever favors needed to be done, no questions asked. I think the only reason he got my mother pregnant was just to add another accomplishment to his life he could brag about. Too bad for him I ended up being a Beta, not an Alpha like him, so I ruined his entire plan,” Cris finished bitterly.

I could feel his pain, the tears he was fighting back, and the rage that blazed within him. How Toma and I never realized our third had been dealt such a blow, I don’t know, but it killed me to know he’d been carrying this around for some time. Wrapping my arms around Toma, I sandwiched Cris between us, trying to help him hold it all together.

“I’m so sorry,” I whispered, resting my cheek on his shoulder. “I’m so sorry you’ve had to deal with this alone. We should have noticed. There’s no excuse for you to shoulder this all alone.”

That’s when the soft sobs started and I heard the other two leave. I didn’t love the idea of them wandering around the base without one of us. However, dealing with this was crucial. Hopefully, they would try to find Sorin and Victor soon, and everything would be fine. Right now, I needed to be here for Cris, and a soft echo in my bond with Dani told me she understood. I let her use me as a conduit to share her feelings with Cris since she couldn’t do it directly.

“Cris, when did you find this out?” Toma asked.

“Right before we attacked the Northern outpost,” he croaked. “So much has happened since then. I simply kept ignoring that anything was wrong. Then he showed up and took Dani from us, forced his mark on her, and now he’s just using us to get what he wants.”

“What do you think that is?” I inquired, trying to understand his mindset.

“Power,” he stated. “He’s using Dani as leverage against us to manipulate the situation. Lucian is the Northern heir with a father who’s batshit crazy and refuses to give up power, so now he’s using us to kill him and take over. Now he’s even got Oscad on his side with those fancy lies he keeps telling everyone.”

Lifting my head, I looked at Toma, who seemed to have the same concerned expression I did. His anger and hurt towards his father were clearly being put on Lucian as a surrogate. I was at a loss to know how to help in this situation, but it needed to be settled before we entered into the last part of this journey. If our pack divided, there was no hope of saving the rest of the country. Especially when everyone would be thinking like Cris, assuming the worst and being blinded from the possibility of change.

“What would he have to do to prove himself to you? Is there even a chance of that happening?” I asked, praying he would have some sort of answer for me.

Cris pushed away from Toma and I stepped back, giving him the room he wanted. Rubbing his face with both hands in an effort to wipe away his tears as he took a deep, shaky breath. “I honestly don’t know. How can you trust someone you’ve been taught all your life to hate?”

“Are you saying what we’re trying to do is pointless, then?” Toma challenged, as he leaned against the bunk, trying to keep this conversation as relaxed as possible.

The room fell silent as we waited, hoping Cris would have an answer for us. I watched as he sank onto the bunk, hanging his head as he clutched his hands tightly. “I don’t want it to be pointless,” he rasped.

There were a few moments in my life when I didn’t know how to move forward. With all that I’d suffered growing up, along with the loss of my parents, there wasn’t an option of getting stuck. It wasn’t just myself I was looking after. Three other people depended on me, forcing me to find a way through whatever difficulty we faced. Cris had never been faced with a dilemma that didn’t have a clear-cut answer, and I believe that’s what he was struggling with the most right now. If he couldn’t trust his own father, how could anyone else in the North be?

Heavy footsteps approaching alerted me that Dani had found Sorin. Our leader charged into the room and squared up to Cris, hands on his hips, Alpha energy crackling around him. Cris’ head snapped up to look at the man, unable to ignore his presence.

“Do we have a problem, corporal?” Sorin demanded.

Cris started to say something, then slowly shook his head.

“Good answer,” Sorin commented. “Whatever issue you seem to be dealing with right now must stop. Put it on the back burner to deal with when we’re not in a Southern Military base surrounded by people who would shoot us on sight if they knew who we’d brought in. My first priority is to keep my unit safe and alive. To do that, I’m gonna need you to keep your thoughts and emotions to yourself until we leave. That’s an order, understand?”

“Yes, sir,” Cris answered, getting to his feet and offering a salute.

“I fucking hope so,” Sorin muttered. “Everyone down to the mess hall. It’s dinner time, and I don’t plan on wasting the chance to eat my fill.”

Turning on his heel, Sorin left as swiftly as he arrived, having accomplished what he needed to do. I watched Cris cautiously out of the corner of my eye, although it seemed the Major had snapped him out of whatever melancholy he’d fallen into.