Chapter 8
1123 Words
A knock at the door jolted me awake. I blinked, disoriented. My muscles were stiff, my shirt rumpled. I must’ve passed out the moment I sat down, and the dimness in the room told me evening had already arrived. The trip had taken more out of me than I thought. “Come in,” I called, rubbing my eyes and sitting upright. The door creaked open and Cole stepped in. “Alpha Alexander, the elders are waiting,” he said evenly. I glanced at my watch. Shit…I’d meant to rest for ten minutes. Apparently, my body had other plans. “Let them know I’m on my way,” I said, pushing myself off the couch. Cole gave a small nod and exited, closing the door behind him. I stood for a second, willing my thoughts to align. Then I headed to the bathroom, turned on the faucet, and splashed cold water on my face. I stared at my reflection for a moment, the water dripping down my jaw. No time to dwell on anything now. The elders would be waiting with their arms crossed and their judgments sharpened like blades. The Blood Crescent elders had to be the most petty, paranoid, and power-hungry council members you can imagine. Even my father, the previous Alpha—gods rest him—struggled to maintain control over them. But I wasn’t my father. I had my own way of keeping wolves in line. By the time I made it down the corridor and entered the council chamber, I could already hear the low, agitated murmurs, and I wondered if gossip had already reached them that I returned alone. The moment the door opened and they saw me, the noise died as if someone had flipped a switch. “Alpha Alexander,” one of them greeted formally. “Elders,” I acknowledged with a curt nod and walked to my seat at the head of the long table, and the rest of them took their seats too. I didn’t waste time. “You all know the reason for my trip to Silver Hollow,” I began, leveling a hard gaze across the room. “I went to claim the mate promised to me since the alliance agreement.” A few of them leaned forward, while others stilled, waiting. “Upon my arrival,” I continued, “I was informed that the girl, Sage…had already given herself to another, which meant she was no longer qualified.” The reaction was immediate. “What?” “How dare they!” “That’s an insult to our pack!” “So Alpha Damian spat on the agreement and thinks we’ll just accept it?” I raised my hand. “Let me finish.” The noise died, though I could see the tension, tightening jaws and clenching fists. “In response,” I said, “they offered me the twin sister, Faye.” An elder, Brayden, scoffed. “So we were insulted, then mocked. They offered the spare…what a joke!” “They dared assume we’d accept a lesser offering?” snarled another. I remained composed. I’d predicted this word for word, so I wasn’t even surprised, or bothered in the real sense of it. “This is beyond disrespect,” Brayden added, his voice rising. “This severs the alliance.” Cole, standing just behind me, spoke up, his tone even. “Perhaps the Alpha should be allowed to finish.” “Unless he’s about to say he burned Silver Hollow to the ground, I don’t want to hear it,” muttered a wolf named Garrick. I’d had enough. “There will be no war,” I said sharply. The room went quiet. “No retaliation,” I added. “Because I accepted the offer.” Silence took over the entire room. “I was mated to Faye,” I continued. “The ceremony was completed successfully.” For a moment, the chamber was frozen in stunned disbelief, and I knew it was just the calm before the storm. No one moved, no one breathed out loud. Brayden’s face contorted first, eyebrows furrowing in confusion, then twisting into disbelief again. “You what?” “I accepted Faye, Sage’s twin as my mate,” I said again. “She is now Luna of the Blood Crescent, and she’ll be joining the pack tomorrow.” The uproar was worse than before. “That’s impossible—” “You dishonor your title—” “We were played! You can’t possibly mean to let this stand!” “You should have consulted the elders.” “Enough,” I snapped. They went quiet again, though the anger in the room was obvious. I stood slowly, leaning my hands on the table. “This council doesn’t tell me who I take as mate, the gods chose her. The success of the mating ceremony confirmed it, and she bares the mark now.” “The gods chose Sage,” Garrick argued. “She was promised.” “Promises made by men can be broken by men. The gods made no such vow. Faye is my mate and your Luna. And that’s final,” I said. “Alpha Alexander, that was not the right way to handle the situation. The elders of this council were supposed to be consulted first,” Garrick said. “I understand that I should have informed you before taking the decision, but even though I didn’t, I believe I took the right step by giving the alliance another chance,” I said. They probably hate me more than they hate Alpha Damian right now, but I don’t really care. “I expect you all to extend full recognition to Luna Faye,” I said, voice hard. “She will be introduced formally to the pack in the coming days.” Brayden opened his mouth but I cut him off. “This discussion is over.” Brayden never lacks a comeback, he always has something to say. He fancies himself the wisest of them all, and it makes me sick. I turned and walked out of the chamber before they could protest again. Cole caught up with me in the hallway. “That went well,” he said dryly. “They’ll fall in line…they always do,” I said. He arched a brow. “Don’t be so fast to assume that. Did you see their faces when you said the discussion was over?” “I’ve done well to let them know the latest development, anyone of them is free to do their worst. Then I’ll remind them what happens to wolves who forget their place.” Cole gave a short, sharp nod. “I’ll see you later,” he said before turning towards another hallway. As I moved down the corridor, my mind wasn’t on the council. It was on Faye. On the way her eyes narrowed when she was angry. The way her mouth curved, not quite into a smile, but something wittier…sharper. The way she stood toe-to-toe with me when I pushed her. I told the elders I accepted her because I wanted to give the alliance another chance. That was true. But there was more…she challenged me, confused me, got under my skin. And I hated how much I didn’t really hate it.