Charles wasn't looking forward to explaining to his father how his mission went. He did his job but it had been difficult. He looked in on SeoHyun as she slept and felt better about himself. She kept him going when he felt he had nothing left to give. She believed in him and he wanted desperately to protect her from the killer he was forced to be.

He wasn't aware that she knew everything about what he had to do that she could possibly learn and didn't think ill of him, far from it, she did everything in her power to help him deal with the bad jobs like the one he just finished. Though it wasn't all fake, she loved him dearly and enjoyed spending time with him. She had never been particularly close to her biological father and this was like a second chance to have a good father-daughter bond. She often played it up for his benefit and he realized this but the fact that she needed him was enough for him to accept that.

Charles arrived at his father's house to see him sitting on the porch.

"Da, is everything okay?" Charles asked.

"It's fine, I was just wondering what you had planned for SeoHyun's sixteenth birthday." He asked.

"I was thinking we would have a small party with family and friends around to celebrate." Charles replied.

Charles showed his father the cross he bought her to replace the plain one she had gotten from a pack mate. This one was more ornate and would be more significant since it came from him and would actually be hers.

"That's beautiful, she'll love it, but then again coming from you I'm sure she'll love it no matter what it is." Bran commented. "She looks up to you, and values anything you give her."

The next day Asil was tending to his roses when the door to the hothouse slammed open filling the room with the scent of pain and fear. When the door initially opened Asil had been ready to yell at the intruder, but yelling at SeoHyun, especially when she was in this condition was as rewarding as kicking a wounded puppy. The little submissive was so damaged already and Asil knew it was far too easy to do more damage to her.

Asil looked the girl he couldn't determine how she got her injuries so he called Bran.

Bran and Charles arrived within minutes.

"What happened, SeoHyun?" Charles asked as he held SeoHyun in his lap "Why didn't you come home or go to Da's house?" he asked.

"She... she told me not to"

"Who?" Bran asked

"I can't say, she said... she ordered me to stay away from your house, grandda." Her voice slightly unsteady

Bran sighed "I am the alpha, you can tell me" Bran said gently.

"No... it'll ruin everything." She cried out surprising the elder wolves.

"Who was it."

"I think I know" Charles said in Welsh pulling his father's attention to himself "the only one that could ruin so much is your mate, she ordered my daughter not to say anything and me not be able to override it."

Bran squeezed SeoHyun's hand and she looked in his eyes and she felt that the next words were an order that would override an order from anyone else in the country. "Tell me who gave you that order."

"Leah..." she said hiding her face in Charles' neck in fear.

SeoHyun didn't call Leah 'Grandma" she had never referred to Leah by anything other than her name.

"Why, what happened to you?" Charles asked.

"He... he didn't mean it... he lost control, but Leah... she told me not to tell you." SeoHyun told them.

There was a knock at the door and Bran stepped outside to see Leah at the porch just as he had requested via his mental tie to her as one of his pack.

SeoHyun flinched as she heard her Grandda yelling at his mate. This was her fault if she had just obeyed Leah's order things would be fine, but then it was Bran, her alpha and no matter what Leah said he outranked her.

Charles could smell the shame, guilt and renewed fear coming off of SeoHyun and began to speak to her softly, reminding her that nothing Leah did was her fault and the bad ties in Bran's relationship with Leah was not her fault either.

Bran returned to the house and informed them that Leah was no longer his mate or part of the pack, she would be leaving for Manhattan first thing in the morning to join that pack.

"I'm sorry, grandda, had I not said anything you would still have a mate." SeoHyun said meekly hiding her face in the side of Charles' neck. Her voice shaking as if she would cry at any moment.

"That wasn't your fault, little wolf, don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise, I want you to always feel like you can tell me anything, I am your grandda now and forever no matter what pack you join or what you decide to do. What happened to Leah was no one's fault but her own." Bran said kneeling down so he could look at her face.

"You... You mean it, grandda?" She asked.

"Yes, SeoHyun, I mean it." Bran replied with a warm smile

Asil kept quiet through this conversation between SeoHyun, her father, and grandfather. He knew why Bran was the one who spoke, his clever tongue made short work of pulling the information from SeoHyun while Charles kept her feeling calm and safe.

The smell of fear at Leah's arrival wasn't surprising, what did surprise him was the smell of her guilt as Bran announced that he and Leah were split up and due to get a divorce. She blamed herself for that when it was Leah's fault, she had brought it upon herself by letting SeoHyun get hurt then ordering her not to tell that she had watched. It only made things worse that she ordered SeoHyun to stay away from her own grandfather's home.

Asil handed SeoHyun a glass of water to sip on as she calmed down. She could feel the love through the pack bonds from her father and grandfather and Asil watched as she cuddled with Charles. This was something he never thought he would see.

Asil knew that sooner or later SeoHyun would leave Aspen Creek, it was just a fact of life that if she ever wanted to go to college she would have to leave home. He knew the banishment ceremony would be extremely hard on SeoHyun, it was always hard on submissive wolves, but that wouldn't be for a minimum of two years yet, but the fact was he couldn't help worry about it.

Bran had a good idea what Asil was thinking when he looked at the old wolf's expression. He knew that SeoHyun was talking about going to pastry school, which would require leaving Aspen Creek and his pack. He was trying to figure out how to direct her into a safe pack with a good pastry school within its territory. He knew that a lot of the good schools for that subject were in California but he wasn't sure if any of those Alphas would take care of her. Then he remembered that he had two years to figure out how to handle this so he pushed the thought aside to focus on this moment with his son and granddaughter.

"Just think, SeoHyun, with Leah gone you can spend weekends at my house like you've always wanted to." Bran pointed out as Samuel entered the house.

"Where is Leah going, Da?" He asked.

"To pack and mentally prepare for the banishment ceremony she will endure in the morning." Bran replied

"I'm sorry, grandda." SeoHyun whimpered.

"Why is she apologizing to you, da?" Samuel asked in confusion.

Bran explained to his son the events of the past half hour and Samuel gasped in shock. He couldn't believe that Leah was leaving.

"SeoHyun don't worry, nothing Leah does is, was or ever will be your fault, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise." Samuel said to SeoHyun.

Bran started to ask SeoHyun to stay with him that weekend then he remembered that Charles had planned a weekend hike/camping trip for him and her for her birthday, apparently not even Anna was going on that trip, it was just going to be SeoHyun and Charles. It was looking like it was becoming a tradition for them to camp the weekend of her birthday as it was in the early summer and perfect Camping weather.

"Are we still going on the hike this weekend?" she asked weakly.

"Of course we are, I wouldn't miss it." Charles replied.

They left Asil's house and started home so she could do her homework and eat supper.

To be Continued...