The next day I left looking for the witch, and when I came home, I told your mother she could rest easy, that it was all taking care of.
The truth is, Sandra laughed in my face. She said she was in the business of making deals, not breaking or canceling them.
I tried everything. Bribery, threats, offering my life as a new deal just so your mother and you could be guaranteed to live.
I really hated her condescending look. I was so furious I attacked her. I wanted her dead.
- page 3 -
>
<
She just raised one hand, and I couldn't move. I had never felt so helpless in my life up to that moment and what scared me the most was the fact she said she would see me the next time I really wanted to see her.
I was still naive enough to hope you were not the heir. That maybe, the witch had no actual power.
Your mother thought everything was good, and she felt like there was no reason not to try to have another child since it worked naturally the first time.
But I was afraid. I had doubts.
And I thought that if the next child were a boy, either I or your mother would die soon after. So I... I did something.
I started taking a tea that helped me alter all of my sexual energy and through meditation and communing with the Moons, I would transfer all of it into the other forms of energy an individual possesses.
I was making sure you would be an only child.
Time passed and even I relaxed.
But then...
That stupid landslide happened that killed your mother.
And I knew. I KNEW it was because of that deal. And I knew I was wrong the whole time. YOU were destined to be my heir!
>
"Destined my ass! More like forced and forged in shady deals with crazy witches."
"I'm sorry, I had no idea..."
"That because of your suggestion, my parents would make a deal with the devil? That because they had me, they are both dead? Even more so with my father?"
"But it doesn't say that..."
"Just read on. You will see what I mean," Jena cuts her off.
<
I could say the witch tricked me. But the truth is I let myself believe only a son would be able to take my place as Alpha of the Pack. It was easier. And that makes me feel so ashamed!
Look at you, baby girl! You are such a wonder! No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't change pack law to make you the heir to my title after that. Yet the first chance you got, you went out there, in the unknown, and you came home an Alpha. Who cares it was a pride and a small one at that? You are a freaking Alpha all on your own! I don't think you realize just how proud I am of you! You are so much more than I could have ever hoped for!
-Page 4-
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<
But I was still worried. Especially after I heard you made Alpha. I know you were hoping to find your mate, your happiness when you left; yet you were coming back with a pack and responsibilities that would no longer allow you much travel time.
And with your title, not many men would be able to stand by your side and accept you are an Alpha. I'm ashamed to say I, personally, can't even name one.
So I was thinking that night, about mates, and your mother, happiness, and children and I thought of Sandra.
I mean, in the end, she really did uphold her part of the deal. Which probably means you will find a way to become Alpha of the Oasis Pack and since you are reading this letter, I'm quite sure I'm not in your way anymore.
>
"Damn fool was never in my way! Just read, please," she adds with tears in her eyes.
<
But what I wanted most, what I want most even now and probably will even after I'm dead, is for you to be happy.
So I went to see the witch.
She was waiting for me, you know? There was even hot tea in a cup ready. She knew exactly when I was going to get there.
And I went, sat and sipped.
She didn't say a word.
But I told her I want you to be happy. I told her I wanted complete happiness for you.
She said that would include a mate and I was like, of course, so?
She said there was nobody on Calla for you, 'but for a small price' - damn her and that stupid phrase of hers - you will get your complete happiness, even if some time will have to pass for you to be ready for it.
She only asked for one little thing in return, which I gladly agreed to give even before she named it.
A small price to pay for my baby's happiness.
Just my life.
Couldn't take it back when she said it. Not that I would have wanted to anyway.
Well, your mom got to be by your side for 17 years before that landslide took her life. If I get to watch you grow into the amazing leader I now know you can be even for half that time, I'll consider myself lucky.
- page 5 -
>
"Guess he wasn't that lucky, huh?" Jena says, the tears streaming down her cheeks.
Amisha can certainly understand Jena's sadness, but holds back her own tears, and keeps reading without being asked to.
<
I don't know how much time has passed when you read this. As I am now sitting and writing it, I'm about to go meet some very dubious people that claim to have you hostage, and I suspect they may be lying.
But I love you.
And I can't take the chance of you being in their clutches when I could do something about it.
Anyway, I was of course in need of more clarification when the witch asked for my life as payment for the deal.
She said that because you were conceived as a result of a deal, your soul was pulled into this life before it was ready, or rather before the world was ready to receive it. The Moons didn't have a soul prepared to be your mate, not even a compatible one, at least not on Calla.
I know we, your mother and I, were selfish to force you to come to us ahead of your time, but damn it! It's the happiest I've seen your mother in all our time spent together. And I don't regret it. Not one bit.
Only thing I wish is that I was the one caught in that landslide so you could have your mother beside you. I bet she'd be a much better parent than I ever was.
And so the witch said that she'd make sure that once you visit her, she will have you take a trip to a place where you will meet a soul compatible with yours.
Can you believe that? Your soulmate is one trip away!
Her name is Sandra. Lindator knows where she is, he was with me the first time I went, before you were born.
I know you are sad because I just died, but I assume Amisha came to you with this letter as soon as it happened.
- page 6 –
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<
Think of it this way: there is no reason for you to just stay there and grieve and bury yourself in work, tempting however that maybe be (I'm sarcastic here).
I say leave your Beta in charge for a while. Your pack will still be there when you get back.
And go!
Go find yourself a mate!
Find that happiness that makes every were complete, and bring that man back home with you and you will get a friend and a partner for life.
There is no greater joy!
Remember baby girl,
I love you!
Always and forever,
Daddy
>
As the letter ends, neither of the two women speaks for a long time.
"I..."
"Save it! Save it for someone who cares what you have to say! He gave you a task! ONE TASK! To give me the DAMN LETTER immediately if he fcuking died! Does he look alive to you? Well? Look at the damn pot with his remains! Do you think he's always had that ashy complexion to his entire fcuking body? Would he hug me if I asked him?"
"No."
"Damn right, no! Cause he is extremely and excruciatingly dead. Just answer me straight! Why? Why couldn't you just give me the letter sooner?"
"I wante
d to. A couple of times. I had it with me," Jena gasps at how close she had been to the truth and that letter the entire time since she got back, "but you were so determined and focused on going after your father's killer, I never quite found the time. Then it was the burial procession and right after were the duels and now... well, here we are. I understand if, in light of this, you wish to repudiate me. I'll leave with the others and search for a different pack."
"You should know better than to put something like that on the table, tempting me when I'm this angry. For now, just go back to your place and stay there. Find out everything you can about Sandra. I'll summon you when my mind has cleared. As of this moment, consider yourself on probation."
"Understandable. As you have commanded Alpha, I will retire to the library to start on the task. I assume that is allowed?"
"Obviously; now go!"
A few moments after Amisha leaves, Jena abruptly stands, flipping the desk over and across the room against the opposing wall, causing the bookshelf there to topple over scattering books everywhere.
"You know there aren't enough buildings in the entire settlement for you to dump your rage on, right?" Conall says, leaning a shoulder against the door frame.
"What the fcuk do you know, old man?"
"What, no deference to your teacher? No Master at Arms title spoken with reverence?"
"Didn't think I needed any with a family member. One that I had no idea existed, no less."
"That's all pish-posh anyway. Don't think you are in the mood for a story right now, so why don't you go for a run?"
"How the hell would you know?"
"Cause I'm old, and I've been there already but say that again in that tone, and I'll beat you to a pulp. You should shift and also talk to your wolf while you run. I'll push the Oath swearing to tomorrow morning. Now go and run 'till you blackout. And when you come back to your senses, change to human form and walk back slowly and sleep. The pack will wait."
"You and I need to really talk one day!"
"Yup. But not now since I'm going to eat," he says right before turning to leave.
***
In the twilight hours of the night before the actual pledging is set to take place, elsewhere in the compound in the designated area for visiting parties and guests:
"But you said I had a high ranking place in your pack, Alpha Sorin!"
"Actually, I did no such thing."
"You..."
"Did nothing of the sort. My son did. But he is not an Alpha. He would have been able to do that for you, had he become an Alpha. Apparently, you lied to us about how much influence you hold within the Oasis Pack."
"I did everything I could and..."
"And it didn't count for shite. I care about results and only results. And you failed to provide what was promised. I should kill you."
"What? Wait, wait I can still be of use to you!"
"More empty promises?"
"No, no! I SWEAR, I will get close to Alpha Jena and make her trust me! I will be your spy! You will know everything she does! That is pretty big if you ask me! I should get a reward even!"
"Your reward will be you get to keep your life for a little while longer. Don't you think I'm generous?"
"Y-yes, Alpha Sorin, of course!"
"Father, perhaps we should give some carrot to the horse, not just the whip. To help motivate him."
"Hmm, perhaps. Well, Elder, provided you actually prove your worth this time, you will receive great privileges any time you visit us in your 'vacations'. The accommodations fit for a visiting Alpha, the best foods and wines, your pick of any of the unranked and unmated she-wolves or perhaps you prefer boys, hmm? It can be arranged."
"I am humbly honored by the magnitude of your generosity!"
"Of course you are. But fail to deliver, and you'll wish I killed you. I've got an especially brutal Gamma wolf, who's very much into torture. An artist really. He'd make you sing like a soprano before the day is over."
"Of course, Alpha, I understand."
"Well, if you understand, stop wasting my time! Don't you have to pledge your undying love to a bitch? I mean loyalty. But Elder? Never forget who your master is now!"
Chapter 20 - Rectifications
"I'm so glad we took Conall's advice and went for this run; feels like exhaustion helped clear the mind."
"So what do you think of this, Jena?"
"Other than it sucks to be us right now? How come we feel so miserable when we are about to get the thing we've always wanted – to lead the pack? We are literally hours away from achieving that, and yet I feel no joy."
"It's because of him. Because neither of us expected getting our mate to be impossibly harder than becoming the Alpha of the Oasis Pack, which was both daring and crazy to wish for in the first place. And yet," Lana answers knowingly.
"I hate him so much!"
"If only that were true, maybe it would be easier to forget. How wonderful it felt, how perfect he seemed in those moments. Doubt we ever will, though."
"Well picturing his hand through your fur half the time we are awake and even more while we're dreaming is not helping."
"Honey, those dreams are all you. Your subconscious is what many would call a pervert."
"Worst thing is I can't even deny that. And we BARELY FCUKING TOUCHED!"
"That's because you hesitated for too long."
"Sure, blame me for it! You could have taken over sooner, you know?"
"Yeah well, I was afraid."
"Of what?"
"That he might not like us. That he might think we are one of the monsters in those movies they had on his world."
"Yeah, I know, me too. I felt paralyzed. This love and mate thing is a bitch. So what should we do now?"
"Try to focus on what we have and can do. For the good of the pack. Be grateful for everything?"
"Easier said than done. Maybe burying ourselves in work will help numb the pain."
"And save lives. Remember we are preparing for war."
"That stupid Master is to blame for all of this. He and his stupid holy freaking war."
"At least you're not blaming Amisha anymore."
"Hey, I was right you know?"
"How the hell was she supposed to know what was written in the letter? Be reasonable!"
"Reasonable? Dad died so I can get to meet my freaking non-were mate and I blew it. I rushed a deal with that stupid witch and lost my chance to bring him back!"
"So now you're blaming yourself?"
"Yeah, because I was so gung-ho to catch father's killer that I lost perspective over anything else."
"Only because you loved your father so much."
"And how does that help me now?"
"It doesn't. But you aren't thinking of this objectively."
"OF COURSE I'm not! I'm hurting! I wonder how you aren't feeling the same?"
"I am. But you need to grieve more than I do. So I'll have to be the strong one for the moment."
"I'm sorry. I know exactly how you feel."
"Of course. We are one."
"So, any suggestions?"
"Let's get through the ceremony of accepting all our new members and then have another meeting with our high ranking wolves and see where we stand. After that or maybe before, talk to Amisha."
"I don't want to."
"Do it for me? Please?"
"OK."
The run is long and exhausting, and if nothing else, it helps Jena collapse into a dreamless sleep as soon as her body touches her bed.
"JENA!"
"What? Go away; I wanna sleep."
"So the fact an entire pack is on their knees in the plaza and around it, waiting for you to come and accept their pledges of loyalty, doesn't bother your sleep?"
"Oh shit! What time is it?"
"Past noon."
"Damn it, why didn't anybody come wake me up earlier?"
"Conall said you needed the rest. Oh, he may have said you tend to bite off the head of the person waking you u
p. Probably trying to convince people to leave you alone, but hey, it worked."
"So how come you came?"
"Well, I trained with you, remember? I'm used to waking up the monster."
"Thanks, Alastair! You are too kind!"
"You're welcome. You may not look like a monster, but you reek like one. What the hell did you do?"
"I ran."
"For how long? All the way back to the canyon where we fought the warhogs?"
"Probably could have gotten there if I tried."
"Really? What did you do? Run five hours at full speed?"
"More like nine. But I tried to stay close, so I could walk back in human form like Conall said. It really helped clear my mind."
"Well, we have another problem besides the plaza full of wolves waiting for you, but perhaps we should shower while I tell you about it."
"No thanks, I'll handle the shower by myself, but keep talking."
"Did I just say that? Sorry, I meant... never mind. We've had reports of several wolves testing the perimeter of the territory. They would cross in, go over patrol routes, then go back out."
"How many?"
"Well, there is only one set of tracks, but it's all over the place. I asked Nazih to also check it out, and he went to see for himself. He said he couldn't follow the tracks fast enough to the owner. Just told me to tell you.
"So is it the same scent?"
"Yeah, the scent is the same, but I can't quite place it. It's like they are wearing a masking agent or something."
"Because we wanted to be alone."
"Are you serious, Lana?"
"You weren't paying too much attention last night, were you?"
"Not really, that's why I let you lead, remember. So why couldn't they smell you?"
"They did..."
"You know what I mean."
"Our scent changed once when you defeated Mahli, becoming an Alpha. But everyone was around you, and then joined your pack. They didn't realize it had changed."
"So what?"
"Well, the way you smell changed again after the duel, once you gained the bonds over Oasis Pack."
"Don't they have to pledge for that to happen?"
"That is to complete the forming of said bonds. By dueling, Brayden got them from Lindator, and you got them from him. For simplicity, call them the conqueror's bonds. Once the members swear loyalty to you, they become pack bonds."
Rise of an Alpha Female (Two Moons Book 1) Page 24
