Chapter 181: The Book
Andros's POV
I steeled myself as I made my way through the silent halls of the Packhouse with the monthly report of our Pack business weighing in my hand.
My heart pounded nervously inside my chest, thinking of how I was going to present all these to him while hoping that he wouldn't be disappointed with me this time.
Lost in my thoughts of preparation and mustering my confidence, I rounded the corner, heading towards my father's office. And that's when I saw him - Beta Alek, whom I hadn't seen for three long years.
A genuine smile tugged at my lips as our eyes met, a warmth spreading through me at the unexpected encounter.
"Andros, it's good to see you," Beta Alek spoke, returning my smile and giving a respectful bow of his head. "How have you been? And how is the business faring?"
I let out a sigh. I was just on my way to visit my father and explain exactly what was going on with the business. The weight of my father's mounting demands is evident in my expression.
"You know how it is with my father," I muttered with a rueful chuckle escaping my lips. I wanted to say more, but I couldn't.
Still, I'm sure he would understand. He worked closely with him ever since he became the Alpha
My father is hard to please. He has high expectations that are hard to reach. Even though the business was improving little by little under my leadership, he was never satisfied. He is always looking at my faults, focusing on the little mistakes I made instead of the progress I had made.
Beta Alek is fully aware of this. He had witnessed how my father has been difficult towards me ever since I was little, but he has no idea how things became harder ever since he left.
Before, I used to visit here only once a year to present the yearly reports of the business that he entrusted to me, but then my father changed it into a monthly presentation of reports to closely monitor my progress.
This meant monthly facing his wrath because of his unreachable expectations.
Beta Alek nodded, his features softening with understanding. "I can only imagine," he replied.
He reached out to give my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "But keep your chin up. I know you got this. You know that your father places a lot of expectations on you because he wanted you to be a better Alpha than him in the future. Even though he points a lot in your mistakes, he still sees the potential in you,"
I felt a surge of gratitude towards his words. Beta Alek always knew exactly what to say. His words of encouragement hit me directly into my heart.
"How about you, Beta? How have you been?" I asked him. I've missed his presence around here so much.
Beta Alek sighed, showing the amount of relief he had that his mission was finally done. "I'm just glad that it's done," he muttered and then laughed.
"By the way, Andros. How is Astrid doing? I mean, is he doing alright recently?" Beta Alek asks, his expression suddenly turning serious.
I licked my lips and nodded my head
as I thought back. "Yeah, I heard she's doing well, her health is
improving day by day
ла
casually, pushing back the suspicions I felt from his sudden question.
It's weird that he is asking me this question. "I'm not around here often. I only come here once a week," I answered truthfully. "Is there anything that bothers you?" I asked. "Oh nothing," Beta Alek quips and shakes it off like it was truly nothing.Copyright by Nôv/elDrama.Org.
My eyes fell on the old, rugged book that he was holding, which seemed interesting. "What is that?" I asked him.
He instantly hid it behind his back when he heard my question, forcing me to look into his face.
"Oh nothing," he answered again with the same tone of voice that he used last time.
"Can I see it?" I asked him innocently.
"Alpha ordered me to burn this book—"
"I can do that for you," I spoke interrupting him.
Hearing that my father ordered him to burn this book made me more interested in it.
"No, it's okay. I'm on my way to do it already," Beta Alek walked past me to end our conversation, but I was too determined to know what was in that book, so I refused to give up.
"Beta Alek, do you not trust me?” I questioned him, stopping him in his tracks. "Alpha Theron is my father, he trusts me so much as his son that he entrusted the Pack business to me. As the future Alpha of this Pack, I will find out about this thing eventually anyway."
Beta Alek stood rooted on his spot when he heard my words, so I approached and faced him instead. "Beta Alek, you can trust me. Don't worry, I'll burn this book for you."
Beta Alek stared at me in silence for a long time as if weighing in his thoughts if he should trust me or not. Eventually, he gave in and handed me the book.
"Andros, no one must know about this," he told me in a whisper as he entrusted the book to me.
"Yes," I whispered back. "No one will know except the two of us."
"Alpha Theron is your father and Astrid is your sister. Soon, you'll be the Alpha of this Pack soon that's why I gave you this," he replied.
"What's exactly inside this book, Beta?" I asked him.
Beta Alek opened his mouth; it's
clear he wanted to say more, but, "I trust your judgment, Andros. Your father had made his decision, but in the future, once you became the Alpha you will need to make that selfless decision. You need this book to guide you."
With questions still running in my head, Beta Alek suddenly left, leaving the book to me.