Chapter 5

—Sienna’s POV—

I woke in a fog the next morning, the events of the day before a total whirlwind.

Asher and I had briefly spoken about our terms, but I was truthfully in such a haze that I hardly remembered any of it. There was a lot more that needed to be said, and I knew it wouldn’t happen all at once.

The bigger problem for me now was that while my inheritance rights were restored…my wolf was still gone. If the Elder’s knew of its absence, they’d probably find me unfit to inherit the pack.

So they could, under no circumstance, find out about it.

A rap on the front door pulled me from my thoughts, and I came face to face with the Beta Simon, who smiled at me nervously.

“Alpha,” he bowed his head for a beat. “An Elder has arrived to see you.”

They’d be here for the final confirmation that my pack was mine.

Simon looked unnecessarily anxious, and it set me on edge.

“Is something - ” I started, but Simon ushered me towards the main square of the pack, my nerves spiking.

When we arrived at the square, I immediately realized why Simon was uneasy.

Next to the Elder stood Julian, and I could literally see his hackles raised on his back. He was mad.

Less mad, more power hungry.

“Elder,” I nodded in respect to the Council member, sparing Julian only a brief glance. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“I brought him,” Julian cut in, an icy expression on his face. “Because I’m worried for the health of your pack.”

He turned towards the Elder, his arrogance showing in the high tilt of his chin.

“I believe her inheritance ceremony was not in compliance, sir.” The Elder glanced to me curiously, an eyebrow raising, as Julian continued. “She chose a husband - a gamma she found last minute - and I don’t believe there’s ever been a precedent for a gamma and an alpha daughter to marry.”

I really wanted to find his off button, because he kept going.

“Sienna is vastly inexperienced in pack leadership, and I fear a gamma won’t be the appropriate partner to help her and Nightwind succeed.” Julian sounded so sincere, I almost believed him.

“She needs an experienced alpha - such as myself - to help her learn. Throwing tantrums like she did the night before our ceremony doesn’t bode well for a pack leader.”

That was enough.

“If I may,” I began, directing my attention to the Elder. “Julian betrayed my trust the night before our ceremony, so I was forced into the situation of finding someone else before the deadline.”

The Elder glanced back to Julian, seemingly at a loss for words.

“I value honesty and especially loyalty in my mate, and Julian is neither of those things.” I was amazed at how calm I sounded, proud of the way I handled such a tense situation.

The veins at Julian’s temples were swelling again, bloating his face.

“This gamma husband of hers appears to be a nobody. He has no record of any notable accomplishments and clearly isn’t fit to handle the responsibility of leading a pack,” Julian snapped, quickly beginning to lose his cool.

“What matters more to me, sir,” I said, my attention on the Elder, “is trust between two mates. That leads to strong leadership. Asher and I have that trust.”

A bit of a white lie, there, but I certainly trusted Asher more than I trusted Julian.

“It seems you two have quite a lot of unresolved tension,” the Elder observed, his eyes narrowing.

“I’m perfectly fine with Julian, sir,” I countered. “I broke things off because of our lack of trust. In the end, that was what was better for my pack.”

My eyes flitted over Julian’s for a brief second. “Julian seems to be the one holding onto the past.”

“I warned you, sir, that she was a bit out of her right mind. The grief has been getting to her,” Julian said with such an earnest tone, one might really believe he cared about me.

“You did just lose your parents. Quite suddenly,” the Elder commented, and I ignored the pang of sorrow that hit me.

“I assure you, I’ve got a great support system, and I’m ready to attend to my duties, sir.” I glanced to Julian, willing him to stop.

“Your spirits do seem to be high, even in the aftermath of such tragedy,” the Elder noted, appearing impressed.

“I promise my choice of mate is not wrong,” I spoke up, bowing slightly. “And I would love for you to meet him personally and judge for yourself.”

Julian sneered in response. “You’ll see he doesn’t have the qualifications for this role, sir.”

The Elder held up a hand, shushing him, and I almost couldn’t hold back my laugh. “I would very much like to meet him.”

“This way,” I smiled, leading them towards where Asher resided - for now. Soon, he’d have to move in with me, especially to keep appearances up.

As I led the Elder - and a very grumpy Julian - closer to Asher, I thought back to the way my parents had always praised him.

Those compliments couldn’t have been without reason. If my parents trusted him, there was a valid reason for it.

So by extension, I should trust him too. Maybe he was one of the only people I could really trust right now.

“Asher?” I called out as we approached the wooden box he claimed to be his home.

He popped his head out the curtained front door, glancing over Julian like he was nobody, his eyes landing on the Elder.

Something weird happened.

The Elder’s expression froze entirely in what looked like fear.

And then he spluttered out, “If he’s not fit for the position, then no one is!”

What was going on?

“Excuse me?” Julian choked in surprise, confused at the Elder’s behavior. It was hard for me to hold back a snicker. “Sir, do you seriously think - ”

“Quiet.” The Elder held up his hand in front of Julian, silencing him. “You may leave, alpha Julian. The slander against this union must cease, or you will face proper punishment for such an offense.”

“Punishment?” Julian gaped, and I had to refrain from doing so as well.

“I will only ask one more time,” the Elder warned cooly, his eyes still trained on Asher and I. Once again, Julian was being dismissed.

Without another protest, Julian stormed off, leaving the startled looking Elder alone with Asher and I.

Asher had straightened up and taken his place beside me, his back rigid, and I could hardly hold back the questions sitting at the edge of my tongue.

I could have sworn the Elder and Asher knew each other as more than just acquaintances.

“P-p-pri…nce,” the Elder stammered something unintelligible, only confusing me further.

What did he just say?

But then Asher’s arm was locked around my waist, his tension clear in the way he grasped me.

“It’s a pleasure to see you, sir,” Asher interrupted in greeting. “I’m Sienna’s husband, and while I am a gamma, I assure you that I’m fully capable of taking on this role.”

I could literally smell the Elder’s fear wafting off of him.