A gentle hand laid on his arm brought him out of his thoughts, and he turned to see the focus of those thoughts beside him, concern clear on her beautiful face.

"Are you ok Zack? I know that must have been difficult for you. For it to have come out that way." Sophie said softly.

It was a marvel to Zack that even after everything that had been done to her, everything she had gone through, she could still have sympathy and empathy for anyone, let alone him. And the bastard he was, he was going to take those soft emotions of hers and hold them tight to him.

"I'm fine. It might not have been what I wanted, or at least the way I wanted the pack to find out what my parents did but Rose was right in that it was past time. I just hope they......". Zack paused looking at his mate.

"What? You hope they can forgive them? Well you might not believe this but I hope they can forgive them too. Not for your parents sake but for theirs. A unsettled pack is not a stable strong pack. And from what I can see, apart from a few trouble makers this is a strong united pack. I don't want to see that change." Sophie looked deep into Zack's eyes. "Are there any other secrets still to come out Zack? Is there anything else they should know?"

Zack tensed, unease slithered up his spine. What did Sophie know? Had she guessed his parents had gave her uncle the scent suppressors? "What else could there be?" He asked carefully.

"I don't know Zack, you tell me!"

In that moment Zack realised this was his chance. He could come clean. He could tell his mate what his parents had done and pray she could find it in herself to forgive him for keeping it from her and keep it from the council. Indecision warred inside him. He knew he had been silent too long, but he couldn't bring himself to lie to his mate. But he also couldn't take the chance that she would go to the council if he told her.

"There is!" Sophie exclaimed quietly. "What else did they do Zack?"

Zack found he could not get any words passed the lump of dread wedged firmly in the center of his chest.

"Oh my Goddess! What the hell did they do Zack? What could they possibly have done that is worse than interfering in a mating?" Sophie demanded.

Zack swallowed repeatedly, and when he finally managed to find his voice he could only croak out a stumbling string of almost unintelligible words. He could almost taste the fear he was feeling. He swallowed once again and finally managed to string a coherent sentence together. "Please Sophie, I don't want to lie to you. But I can't tell you what you are asking. They are my parents and they were good parents. They made mistakes but they do not deserve to....."

"Deserve to what Zack? What are you worried is going to happen. The council knows now they interfered with our mating. They will probably find themselves banished for that. They only thing worse than banishment is execution and for that they would have to have committed the most heinous of crimes. Did they murder someone? A pack member? I can't even think of anything else bad enough to warrant execution!"

"Please Sophie I'm begging you, please let this go. I promise you they know what they did was wrong. They are sorry! But I'm asking you please, let this go!" Zack pleaded urgently.

Sophie studied her mate, trying to read him. Trying to work out what had him so worried that he, an alpha, would beg for her compliance. Sophie realised something. In the short time she had been with him, she had come to care deeply for her mate. Against her will her heart had opened enough to begin to let him in. And more surprising than even that, Sophie found that she was not unhappy with it.

Oh she knew it was the mate bond hard at work. That was the way it was. Ensuring the continuation of the species and all that. Mates were supposed to love each other unconditionally. They were perfectly designed for each other. Two souls separated even before conception just waiting to be reunited in life.

But Sophie was very different from most female wolves. Her horrific childhood had shaped her. It had hardened her. She knew most females would be compelled almost to bend to their mates will. But that wasn't her.

The more she looked at and studied Zack standing so still before her, the more worried she became. He mind started racing. What could they have done? She didn't think they had killed anyone. That would have been to hard to hide from the pack. But Zack was obviously terrified for his parents. Her mind raced. She went over and over everything that had happened. But the only thing she kept coming back to, the only unanswered question, was the scent suppressors. Were had he got them from?

But that couldn't be it! Even the alpha and his mate could not have gotten hold of those. It was impossible! Wasn't it?

Zack felt a growing horror as he watched the expressions fly across his mates face, quicker sometimes that he could decipher. He saw it then! The moment she realised what it was he was hiding. His heart sank like a stone.

"The suppressors!" She gasped out, barely able to squeeze the words out. "That's it isn't it? It was your parents that gave them to him wasn't it?" Tears filled her eyes. She could scarcely believe it. "How? How did they have them? Why would they do that to me? To anyone?" The question poured out of her one after the other.

She always believed that after everything she had went through, there was nothing else anyone could do to her that hadn't already been done. She was wrong!

Zack finally snapped himself from the dazed horror that had gripped him. He quickly looked around, remembering they were standing in the middle of the street, which thankfully was quiet now. Everyone, believing the earlier excitement was over, had gone. He stepped closer to his mate reaching out to grasp her hand tightly in his. "It's not what you think Sophie!" He chocked out. "They thought they were doing the right......."

"Don't you dare Zack! Don't you fucking dare tell me they thought they were doing the right thing! Because they weren't doing the right thing for me!" She screamed, not caring who heard. "Was it the right thing for you? To deny you the opportunity to sense and claim your mate! To leave me with that monster believing you didn't want me? Who was it the right thing for Zack? Me? You? Them?" She scoffed scornfully. "That's who it was best for wasn't it Zack? Them! They stood back for years and allowed my abuse to continue, then when they discovered I was your mate decided I wasn't good enough for them or you!"

Sophie let the tears run unchecked, down her flushed with rage cheeks.

"Sophie please understand, they know what they did was wrong! They understand how wrong they were to hid you from me. But they swore to me they did not know what you uncle was doing to you. They thought it was just physical violence......"

"Just physical violence? Oh well that's ok then! If he was just beating the shit out of me EVERY FUCKING DAY that was ok is that what you are telling me?"

"No Sophie that's not what I'm saying!" Zack said still holding on tight to her hand. "Violence against a child of any description is wrong! But he was blackmailing them, you know that, but they swore to me they didn't know he was hurting you.....that way!"

"Raping me Zack! He was raping me! And they did nothing! Then they gave him the drugs to hid me from you! On top of allowing him to hurt me for years, when I finally could have gotten away from him. When I finally could have been free they gave him the means to keep me locked away, to keep me as his sex slave! Because that's what I was! A slave to his sick perversions. Your parents are just as guilty for what he did to me as he is! More so because when they could have helped me, should have saved me, they did nothing......well that's not quite true is it? They did do something, they gave him the means to continue!" Sophie's eyes widened as a something else occurred to her. "When did you find out Zack?"

"Find out about what?" Zack asked unsure what she meant.

"That it was them who gave him the drugs! When did you know? Did you know all along?"

"What? No of course I didn't! How could you even think that?" Zack growled, his wolf angry his mate could think that of him.

"What am I supposed to think Zack, how am I supposed to know you knew nothing let alone believe you! So go on tell me when did you find out about the drugs they were giving to him?"

"Does it really matter when? What difference will it make to know?" Zack asked.

"Oh it makes all the difference in the world to me Zack!" Sophie looked away, her shoulders dropping and her head hanging low. "But you are not gonna answer me are you? Because you know when you tell me it will be the end! Well that's ok Zack, you don't have to tell me anything else!"

Sophie straightened her shoulders and pulled her head up high. "Are you going to tell the council about this or am I?"

"Sophie please, if you tell them you are signing their death warrant!" He stepped close reaching as if to touch he face. "They are my parents! I know what they did was wrong, terrible but they are not evil. Do you really believe they deserve to die because they made the wrong decision, made a terrible mistake?"

Sophie looked into Zack's beautiful eyes. She knew with her next action, her next words, it was over for them. Truly over. That small kernel of hope that had been slowly growing over the last couple of weeks, that they may have had a chance of a future together was no more.

"You have twenty four hours Zack! If in that time you have not informed the council of your parents involvement in giving him those drugs I will!"

She took a step back. "Your parents and that monster deserve to rot in hell for what they did to me! I will never forgive them! And I will never forgive you for covering for them, no matter how long you knew for. No matter how long it was, it was too long!"

With that, Sophie turned her back and walked away.

Zack felt his heart break. As his mate walked away from him, for probably the last time, it was as if a veil had finally lifted. She was right. She had always been right. And just when he finally realised it, it was too late. He knew he had lost her. Forever this time.