BACK AT THE HOTEL

20 FEBRUARY, SATURDAY, BEFORE DINNER

My footsteps slowed as we approached the Alpha Suite. Even though I didn't think Alpha Solomon or Alpha Gunter had anything to worry about regarding my dad, I had lots to worry about - but for good reasons:

Dad had probably seen the news. The news was always playing in the background. I'm not sure how he could not see it.

He probably saw me facing off Alpha Solomon in his metal wolf form.

He also probably saw Bell and Ki expose his family's Twin Wolf technique to the entire world, or at least the entire continent.

Normally, I would be anxious because Mum was definitely going to overreact, and when Mum got upset enough, Dad would always step in.

Then again, my parents hadn't been quite themselves regarding my repeated offenses this year. I hadn't been grounded at all this year. Not even when I started that fight with Alpha Jude, which was the only incident that I confess was mostly my bad. (The others weren't my fault!)

I guess I just didn't like to see my Mum or Dad upset. It made me feel like I had let them down or messed up in some way. Like a good daughter should never upset her parents right?

But good daughter responsibility aside, I think I was more anxious than usual because of Bell. I was really anxious about how Dad would feel about Bell now. I remembered how Dad had been gruff about my mate after valentines day, I'm not sure what that was about, but it just proved that Dad had limits. And if Bell's relationship with his own dad, Alpha James, was anything to go by, I had the feeling that Bell liked to push his limits. Unlike me. I always tried to stay in the safe zone. Really. (The key word here is "tried".)

I stopped in front on my door and took a deep breath. Okay, here goes nothing.

Ben raised his hand to knock, but I grabbed his fist, "No, wait."

I turned to brief the guys, "Don't say anything unnecessary. I'll do the talking."

There was a pause, my betas were nonplussed, but then Harvey nodded, "Yes, Alpha."

It wasn't because he understood quicker than the others though. It was more like just now when he had tackled my luna to the ground. He didn't know what he was doing - he was just obeying my order and trusting me to know what I was ordering. I'm sure you could see how dangerous that was. Whatever made him think I knew what I was doing?

"Okay, you're the alpha." Ben shrugged. He sounded wholly unconvinced. He was obeying my order even though he didn't believe I knew what I was doing at all. I'm not sure which way was more dangerous.

I looked at Ki who merely smiled, his usual beautiful smile, "As you please, Alpha."

I didn't even know how to decipher what that meant.

Whatever, I let go of Ben's fist and he knocked two smart raps on the door and Ki let us in with the keycard.

"Look who's back!" Beta Lucas commented loudly from his seat across Dad. Just as I feared, the TV was on.

"Alpha Princess is here." Ben said pointedly to his Dad.

Beta Lucas got up and nodded his bow, "Quite right, quite right, that was a good show there, Alpha Princess."

"Sam!" Mum grabbed me in a hug, "Oh, thank goddess you're back! Are you hurt anywhere? Ohhhh that Alpha Solomon! I want to give him a piece of my mind!"

Dad stood up too, but only to gently put his large hands on Mum's shoulder to restrain her, "Sam's strong. She's fine. Calm down, darling."

"How can I calm down? That old dog! How could he pick on my cute defenseless puppy?" Mum protested.

Beta Lucas shook his head, "That Alpha Solomon really angered your mum. Hoo man, it wasn't easy keeping her from running out there."

I was too shock to speak. It was like being boxed in the ears too many times.

First, I was being praised for getting into trouble.

Second, Dad and Beta Lucas saw me running for my life out there and just sat here in the comfort of the hotel and watched?

Third, Mum wanted to run out there... and do what? Give the great big metal eating alpha a tongue lashing? Actually, just the thought of my mum running out there into the broken up ice encrusted road already made my blood run cold.

"No, Mum. You should NEVER EVER run out when Alphas are fighting." I told her sternly.

"There, you go." Beta Lucas nodded smugly, "Alpha was right. Sam wouldn't want you to interfere."

I shook my head, "It's not that! I mean, you're my parents, its your job to interfere with my life. But it's just really dangerous, okay Mum?"

Now it was Mum's turn to look smug, "I told you. Sam is still our puppy."

Dad's eyes softened and he placed his hand on top of my head, "Yeah. Our puppy saved a lot of lives today."

Eh? I shook my head.

"Hoo yeah, man. Our Sam's a hero." Beta Lucas said.

Now that Dad didn't have both hands on her, Mum pulled out of his grasp and grabbed me into another bear hug, "I'm so proud of you, Sam. BUT DON'T EVER DO THAT AGAIN! Do you have any idea how worried I was? What were you thinking? It was a good thing Bell and your betas were there! I would really have run down and dragged you back home! 24 hours! All I asked was for you to not get into a fight for 24 hours! Do you have any idea how horrible it was to have to watch your puppy face off a big old alpha wolf on her own?"

Okay, now this was more like the Mum I knew.

"I wasn't alone, Mum." I tried to reassure her, "Bell and my betas were with me, right? And Alpha Gunter and his Beta too."

"Fat lot he did." Mum huffed.

My mum wasn't the type who got angry easily, but when she did, she liked to say funny things like that.

"I have a feeling he did quite a lot, Luna." Ki smiled gently, "In fact, he probably did more than he should."

"What do you mean, Ki?" Dad frowned.

"Alpha Gunter and Alpha Solomon had left the welcome reception together." Ki explained, "All we saw was Alpha Solomon already in his metallic wolf form, and then Alpha Gunter and his Beta appearing soon after attempting to stop him, but one has to ask what provoked Alpha Solomon in the first place."

"You're saying Alpha Gunter was the one who provoked Alpha Solomon's wolf?" Harvey asked.

Ki waved his hand, "Not at all, I'm just pointing out the possibility."

"So Alpha Gunter provoked Alpha Solomon's wolf... these things happen. Alphas disagree and then one of them pop their wolf out." Ben

Dad was still frowning his thinking frown.

It was Bell who spoke, "Unless Gunter provoked Solomon on purpose."

"But why?" Ben asked. Exactly! Why would Alpha Gunter do such a thing? These two were old friends - good friends too, it seemed. Alpha Gunter would have known provoking Alpha Solomon would had led to dangerous consequences in a crowded space like Gold City...

"Good question, beta." Ki smiled at Ben, "Why."

Ben growled, "Don't patronize me, dog."

These two were always like that. It's like they enjoyed provoking each other... oh...

"Maybe they're just playing." I suggested.

"What?" Ben said.

"Like you and Ki, maybe they just like provoking each other." I said.

No one looked very convinced.

"Sam," Ben sounded like he was trying to be patient, "Does Alpha Gunter strike you as the kind of guy who doesn't have an ulterior motive?"

I huffed at that, "Ben, to you, everyone has an ulterior motive - you thought Big Bird had an ulterior motive!"

"I was six!" Ben retorted, "I didn't know it wasn't real."

"Hn." Ki smiled, "So beta used to be innocent after all."

"SHUT UP, DOG." Ben snapped.

Harvey cleared his throat and looked pointedly at Dad and Beta Lucas, and my other two betas shut up and looked down.

"Let's put it on KIV." Bell decided, "In the meantime, keep my princess away from either of them."

Dad nodded, his thinking frown finally uncreasing, "I think that would be the best course of action for us now. By the way, son, your twin wolf technique was executed perfectly."

Executed perfectly in front of the whole world!

"Yeah, man." Beta Lucas nodded, "Alpha Solomon didn't even know what hit him."

Technically, I hit him, but technical issues aside, "I thought this was supposed to be a secret technique that no one ever saw and lived to tell?"

Okay, I realize I was shooting myself in the foot here, but I'm fed up with getting praised every time we were supposed to be disciplined. Its not that I was a big fan of discipline or anything like that, but I really just needed to understand why the basic foundation of cause and effect in my life had been thrown out of the window.

"That's the Twin Soul-Devouring Wolves Technique." Beta Lucas clarified, "You can't expect that to happen with the Twin Soul-Restoring Technique."

Oh. I guess that was true. Bell and Ki's technique healed, not killed... duh. I don't know why I didn't figure that out myself.

"What's a Twin Soul-Devouring Wolves Technique, Dad?" Ben asked.

Oh. Uh oh. I looked at Beta Lucas.

Unlike me, Ben was much better at figuring things out himself, "Dad... you're keeping something important from me, aren't you?"