Ethan
Maze wears annoyance on his face until Kiara threads her fingers through his, and he settles. We step forward together, but I take the lead as I am the oldest.
"Welco Alpha Ethan, Alpha Ezra and Alpha Elijah." Kiara smiles, making us look at her. I swallow and keep it polite as we shake hands. Elijah grins wide, complints Kiara, and teases Maze, to which Maze rolls his eyes.
"I am happy you could make it, cousins, but I didn’t think you would co. You usually do not bother with trivial stuff like this?" Maze says. I sigh. So he is going to do it this way.
Kiara cocks her head, then scents sothing and pushes through us to the rear door of our car. I tense up, because I know who she scented, and I really don’t need this right off the bat. She opens it and smiles. "Hi! Welco to our pack. Co on out, we will not hurt you!"
Maze stays back and starts his questions, which starts with who is she, and ends with why isn’t she marked? "We need your help, Maze." Elijah says, opening the door on the other side of the car and helping Allison out. I keep my composure, although all I want is to go to her.
’Wanting her and saying nothing is still a choice,’ Blake says.
"She is your mate?" Kiara asks, arms crossing. Elijah and Ezra nod, Elijah pulls Allison closer. "And she is a fox?!" Kiara says, more statent than question. They nod again, while I cross my arms.
"We want her as our Luna, but our parents. Mom is not thrilled by the idea, but she is willing to do anything for baby boy Elijah. Dad and Ethan are the real trouble." Ezra explains, sending an annoyed look.
I growl before I catch it, and straighten imdiately. I do not need this kind of trouble, and never thought my brothers would betray us like this.
Kiara’s patience snaps clean. "I will say this one ti Alpha Ethan, you behave while you on my pack grounds or so help Goddesses I will kick your ass from here to the divine realms and back! I am done with arrogant asshole Alpha’s!" She points straight at .
I raise both hands and take a step back. "I would never harm her. But I am not sure she is fit to be our Luna, is all." The bond hits, I wince and take it.
’You felt that land on her. Adjust,’ Blake snaps, angry on our behalf and on Allison’s.
"You can sleep in a room on the Oga floor in the packhouse. And you three will have a townho." Kiara mindlinks soone, while I try to get a policy sentence out. I don’t get far as she closes the distance, grabs my ear, and drags my head down to her eye line. Winter rides up in her eyes, the aura presses straight through muscle.
"I am done playing nice with entitled Alpha assholes such as yourself, sir. So either you thank for a room, or you can sleep outside on the fucking ground! That woman is a gift from not one but two fucking Goddeses and you don’t know if she will be a fit Luna. Well fuck that and fuck you!"
I hold her gaze until the only smart answer clicks. I nod once. She releases when she feels it land. From the packhouse the soone Kiara mindlinked cos out with a small smirk, he’s seen enough. I start to test the last line. "Will you let your woman.."
Maze cuts it off. "Have you forgotten what my mother is like?" he asks. I wince. "Yeah, I didn’t think so. Kiara is like her but with smaller patience for idiots and she has powers too."
"Alpha Ethan," the soone, introduced as Jas, says, crisp. "Follow ." I look once at Allison and my brothers, then move.
Behind us Kiara keeps control. "Do any of you have any problems with her or ?" she asks, aggressive. Maze wraps his arms around her as Elijah and Ezra both shake their heads.
"Right! Now that I have dealt with Alpha idiot, may I ask what your na is sweetheart?" Kiara says, voice easing.
"My na is Allison, my Queen. My fox is called Ruby."
"Well Allison, I am delighted to et you! And I hope to et Ruby before you go ho. As for your situation, it will have to wait until morning. Right now we need to update you on a threat to our packs and then there’s an outdoor dinner tonight. I think Maze and the boys can update each other actually. I have soone I want you to et!" She takes Allison’s hand and walks her off, ignoring my brothers entirely.
Jas waits for at the front door, a small smirk playing on his lips.
"A small pro tip for you Alpha, if you’re willing to listen?" I nod, clipped. "Kiara is wonderful, caring and everything we need in a Queen. The one thing, well there are others, but the one major thing she does not tolerate is ignorance written as law. The way you acted and spoke of your mate, I would change that tune quickly."
"We can’t claim her publicly. The pack would riot."
"And?" He asks, lifting his eyebrows, and I swallow. What does he an ’and’?
Jas stops at the open room and gestures in. It has a bed, a sink and clean linens. Nothing fancy. "You’re set," he says. "Think about it. What is a pack worth if they deny you your mate, even if she is a fox. She is a mber of your pack, and even if she wasn’t.. She is your gift."
"Thank you for the room," I say, because I learn fast when pain is involved, but I don’t want to have this conversation with a stranger. He nods once, cautions again and goes.
He doesn’t get very far before he turns around with a thought on his mind. "Oh. Your things will be brought here. Don’t worry about it, and the key is only handled by myself or my mate Ryan." He bows his head a little and leaves, this ti actually disappearing.
I stand there a second with the sting in my ear, the ache in my chest and the rule as simple as it needs to be; I’m on their ground, and Allison isn’t here to be my test. I will make the argunt where it belongs, in a room with paper and votes, and until then I will keep my brothers from turning her into a scene.
’Fix it with actions and clean nouns. No more flinching,’ Blake says, and he is right.
I walk down the hallway to find my brothers and Maze waiting for just inside the hall, they’ve been joined by my aunt Abby and uncle Matthew. I walk up to them, and the first thing aunt Abby does is walk over and smack on the back of the head. From the sheepish looks on my brother’s faces it looks like she did it to them as well.
"That is for being an asshole to your mate, IN FRONT OF HER ETHAN BLUE!" Aunt Abby says, raising her voice. I rub my head.
"Hello to you too." I greet, locking eyes with my uncle.
"Let guess," he says, "this is all because my brother thinks ’purity’ is law, and ’wolves like us’ make a pack alone." I look at Ezra and Elijah, but they look just as baffled as I do.
"How did you?"
"My brother took your mother as his chosen mate, because she was from a powerful Alpha line, and he could take over her pack. They even renad it Blue Ridge to match our surna. Jack has always been jealous of , especially after I found Abigail. He had left the pack so years before, and we did not have any contact." Aunt Abby squeezes his hand, and Maze his father’s shoulder. "When he found out Abby was half witch he cussed out and said I was dooming out pack to failure. But then she went to be of Royal and divine descent, and the cliff beca even greater."
"What do you an chosen mate?" I ask, before Elijah can make a scene out of it.
"Luna Ella was not his fated mate." Uncle Matthew deadpans.
"Who was she?" Elijah asks, quite.
"She was a witch. She killed herself after he toyed with her, and broke the bond by mating and marking your mother." Aunt Abby growls fiercely.
"Father knows? About everything you just said? About his mate?" Ezra asks, baffled. Uncle Matthew nods.
"Oh he knows everything. He didn’t care that she died, he was glad she wasn’t around anymore to complicate things. We have contact with Luna Ella, the sweetheart. But Jack.. Do not reject your mate because of him! He.." He trails off. Shakes his head. "Just take care of her, and break the tradition he has built. If you lose the pack, then build a new one. A tolerant one." They leave us with Maze, and I must admit I got a lot to think about. Ezra looks puzzled and crushed, while Elijah looks murderous.
"Now where were we? Oh yeah. War. And your mate troubles." Maze says, gesturing for us to follow him.
Reviews
All reviews (0)