Marcus tries not to show any emotion as he asks Emily why she visited his uncle's cell."I wanted to find out a few things," she invites herself to sit down on the chair, then gives him a levelled stare."And what did you find out?" Marcus asks incredulously. She has been snooping around in places she shouldn't be lately, and it's becoming irritating."Enough to know that you did not do as well as you tried to make everyone believe on the case of that man and Tara. You tossed your uncle in that place just to give the impression that you did something. Which is starting to raise red flags.""What red flags?" Marcus is annoyed now and he fails to mask it. It is hard having to grant as many of the woman's wishes as possible but he tries to do it anyway, but she still won't leave him alone. He is not used to such treatment. And the rate at which she is begining to make herself a part of his job is alarming. He has to put her in her place. "Let's not forget who is the Alpha here. I have not

"You know, I don't feel like an Alpha at all. I expected to feel a certain way after becoming the Alpha, but I feel nothing." Emily and Mathew are walking back to his house and she is chattering away. "I am also kind of anxious about my performance as the new Alpha. People seem to be so excited about me becoming their leader, and I am scared of disappointing them.""Don't worry, you will do just fine. I believe in you.""Well, don't raise your hopes too high because you might get disappointed along with the rest of them.""You will do fine, don't be so negative. Have more faith in yourself, baby, have confidence in yourself.""If I show signs of failing, will you help me?""There's no chance..."She stops and grabs his arm, forcing him to stop too. "Promise me, Mathew. I need a backup plan."He smiles, shaking his head slightly."Alright, I will always be ready to help whenever I can. That is why we are a pack, to work together and support each other. You are just the leader it's not

Soon, Emily realizes that there was no reason for her to fear leading the pack. She is doing pretty well; the pack members are happy with her and keep regretting that she hadn't come to the pack earlier. She loves being the Alpha, she loves serving the wolves that her father entrusted to her, and she gets a sense of satisfaction every time she accomplishes something and sees the happy faces of the wolves.Thanks to her brilliant wolf, she has avoided making a lot of mistakes and always seems to do the right thing at the right time. The Alpha job is addictive; Emily now understands the rage Marcus displayed when he learned that he had been replaced as the Alpha.She got to see a lot of things differently after she got the job, and she has to agree that Mathew was a bit too clumsy to be the Alpha, and when confronted, he blames his Beta or Gamma, or any wolf connected to that particular department. In the end, she had to replace several people with the ones she appointed. She appointed B

She clearly made the wrong choice when she chose Mathew, and she regrets it. She should not have allowed feelings to control her, because the signs were there from the beginning and she kept hoping he would change.In a situation like this, she misses Marcus's friendship. He may have been a horrible leader, but the truth is that, as a person, he is not that bad and talks with him left her refreshed most of the time. Well, if he didn't talk about his intention to marry her, that is. She already had enough pressures having to deal with all the issues in the pack, and can't afford to have a relationship that adds more stress to her life, or else her performance will be pathetic.She angrily steps out of the house, carrying the dried flowers and the ring, needing some fresh air even though it is chilly outside.She sits by the swimming pool, staring into the water and feeling depressed.She hates to break things with Mathew, but she knows this is for the best, for both of them. The two of

Grateful, Emily goes to her room to rest.She is mentally exhausted, and sleeps the entire morning away, only waking up when someone knocks at the door.It is Marcus, who has a tray of food in his hands for her."I figured you'd want to have lunch in your room."She forces a smile on her face, her muscles feeling stiff as she does so."Thanks, but really, you don't have to do this. You've already done so much as it is.""I don't mind. Like I I told you, I've always loved you. I lost all hope of ever being with you but I will always be there for you when you need me. Because, Emily, the love I have for you is deep."No, she doesn't believe his words. She will never believe any man when he talks about love, she has been made a fool enough times to learn her lesson.She only smiles, then eats the food he has brought. All of it. Which should say something; she is begining to feel a little better. She is bound to heal completely with time, but she doubts she will ever forget Mathew, that a