Chapter Two

Ronin placed his family emblem and seal flat on the table so his fellow council members could see it. There was no mistaking the brilliant white gold plaque featuring a formidable wolf. It seemed frozen in time as it charged forth from the image.

It was a symbol that he, Ronin Ashenthorn, was the helm of not just Pack Arcadia, but the entire Order of Lycaon. His bloodline was a legacy of warriors who paved the way for all the many privileges that the elite werewolf society now had.

Privileges that allowed even his council to be bold enough to dictate to him what to do. 

With the seal out in the open, everyone paled. Obviously, they had crossed the line with the suggestion, but it was too late to take it back now.

“What did you just say to me, Thad?” Ronin stroked the light stubble on his chin, “Did you just tell me that I ‘need’ to get a party pup?”

“The absence of your Luna counterpart for so long has caused your wolf to become more unstable,” Thad leaned forward, resting his elbows on the wooden table, “You need a mate, and since you have none, an omega will just have to do.”

Ronin laughed in mockery, turning to his second-in-command and best friend, “Did you hear him, Caius? He said I’m unstable-- and need balance.”

Caius narrowed his golden eyes, “Are you seriously objecting to getting laid right now? What is wrong with you?”

“He needs to get laid, obviously.” Delta Lucien quipped, nudging Merrick, his second. 

“Shut the fuck up, Ironvale,” Ronin growled, “What I need, is my council to keep their noses out of my personal life.”

There were twelve people in total gathered in the large conference room. That included Ronin, six other bloodline members, and their accompanying seconds in command. One person was missing.

“Where’s Nerissa?” Caius questioned, looking at Maia Shadowcrest. She was a gamma wolf who helped to manage all the young pups in the pack. 

“She’s training an omega class today,” Maia said absentmindedly, making chaotic scribbles in the notebook in front of her, “Shouldn’t you be focused on your Alpha and his sexual plights?”

“Enough!” Ronin roared, pushing himself out of his leather chair. His fingers curled into the fine finish of the red oak, scratching the surface with his claws. His eyes shifted from red to black, then red again. Everyone fell silent. Ronin usually tolerated their light banter, but more and more every day his patience wore thin.

Ronin looked up when Caius touched his arm, “You almost killed your maid. The whole staff is afraid of you. Whether you like to hear it or not, your wolf is getting out of control.”

“What if I end up killing this omega? What then?”

“We’ll get you another. As many as it takes.”

Maia scoffed, “Okay, I know the omegas have no status here, but they are wolves too. We can’t just endanger their lives so carelessly. What he really needs is a Luna. I’m not going to lose all my party pups to this crazy experiment.”

“Then just start with one, see what happens,” Nikolai Blackmoor, their head of security- was a Delta of few words. When he did speak people were inclined to listen. 

“I can put security measures in place to protect the omega if you have a severe episode. No matter what, this situation needs to be resolved as soon as possible. If word gets out that Arcadia has become weak, we’ll have a war on our hands.”

Ronin raked a hand through his silky black hair. Nikolai was right. If other packs started to question their strength, it would only be a matter of time before they came to challenge him. 

‘No one can challenge us.’ His wolf hissed, ‘We’ll rip them to shreds and feed them to the mindless beasts.’

Goddess, he was so fucked in the head. No wonder he didn’t have a mate. Not that he really cared for having one. He was better off alone. If only his wolf shared the same sentiment. 

Wolves. Always aching to get their dicks wet. Thank Goddess he had self-restraint or he would’ve been the biggest whore in Arcadia. Since he couldn’t get laid, the spiteful beast found other ways to blow off steam.

Like terrorizing his poor, undeserving house staff.

“Okay.” Ronin said abruptly, straightening his shoulders and fixing his crooked tie, “Do whatever you have to do.”

“Yes!” Lucien punched the air, “The birthday boy is gonna get laid.” He ducked as Ronin sent a pen flying at his head. He gaped at the drywall in protest. The pen went clean through, “Were you really gonna kill your little cousin?!”

“I really don’t see why you have to attend these meetings,” Maia deadpanned, “All you do is run your mouth.”

Lucien smirked, “My mouth can do other things too. Wanna see?”

“Oh for fucks sake shut it you two,” Thaddeus threw his hands up. “Ronin, I’m really glad you agreed, because I already went to see Nerissa and the pups. We’re gonna choose an omega later tonight.”

A flare of anger rose up in his chest and Ronin squashed it. This was Thad we’re talking about. Of course, he went ahead and did whatever the fuck he liked. His intuition never failed. 

He was the Alpha, he could say no. He could tell them all to shove it. However, for some reason, he wanted to see how his wolf would react to an omega. If she was able to calm his wolf down, he’d be one step closer to absolution.

Absolution from the dark stain on his soul.

                                                  ⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜⚜

Many hours later after the meeting ended, Ronin was still thinking about that dark stain. He leaned back against his headboard, putting his work diary on the nightstand. He didn’t understand why the Goddess gave him the mark all those years ago. 

Back then, he’d killed a mindless beast that killed his entire family before his eyes, while they were on a camping trip. 

Mindless beasts were wild wolves that had no pack and stayed too long in beast form until there was no shred of humanity left. They were empty, ruthless monsters. Killing for the sole pleasure of it.

It was a large red wolf with white empty eyes. It foamed at the mouth, gnashing its teeth. Three times the size of an average wolf, Ronin’s little sister didn’t stand a chance when it pounced on her and ripped out her throat.

His parents fought valiantly but they just weren’t strong enough. They were long past their prime. As for Ronin, he stood watching- frozen in terror until something snapped inside him.

He couldn’t remember much about the fight, just that he came to himself while sitting in a pool of blood, pieces of skin covered with red fur scattered around him. When the perimeter guards were finally able to pry him away from the bodies, his soul was already stained, his eyes black and void.

Ronin pinched the bridge of his nose and squeezed his brows together, trying to be rid of the memory.  

He was about to give in to the exhaustion and go to sleep when a shrill scream jolted him to clarity. Ronin sprang off the bed and stalked towards the incessant knocking on his door.

He yanked it open, “What is it?”

Two maids were standing there, trembling like leaves, their green eyes wide with fear. “There’s been a fire in one of the omega cabins.”

Before they finished babbling over each other, he walked past them, gesturing for them to follow behind. He followed the scent of smoke and the general sound of chaos. By the time he arrived on the scene, the Delta warriors were in the process of outing the fire. 

Thaddeus was in the yard towering over an omega, “Why’d you set the fire?!” He roared. 

“Thad,” Ronin called quietly, “What’s this I hear about a fire?”

“Alpha.” He bowed in acknowledgment then used his boot to nudge Callie, who was kneeling in submission, “This one here set a fire in the store room. The reason why is yet to be told.”

Callie kept her head down, chewing at her bottom lip. She prayed in her heart to the Goddess that Liora managed to get away. If not, they both will be greatly punished. Maybe even killed for this act of betrayal.

“Why did you set the fire,” Ronin barked, “Speak up girl!”

Callie shrieked at the sound of Ronin’s deep, aggressive voice. Her tongue loosened and she started to babble the whole truth. Once anyone of higher designation pulled rank, they simply had to obey.

“I set the fire to help my friend escape. She wanted to leave, therefore I lit the store room on fire so she could go while everyone was distracted.”

Thaddeus laughed. He had an inkling of who the fugitive was. So she really did prefer to become a monster than to be chosen for their Alpha? “Alpha, don’t you worry about this. I’ll find her and bring her back.”

Ronin huffed, narrowing his eyes at Thad. Why was the idiot grinning from ear to ear? None of this was something to laugh about. Desertion was a serious offense. “When you find the pup, bring her to me to be punished. Also, put that one in detention. I will not tolerate this sort of nonsense in my pack.”

As Ronin walked away with his two maids in tow, Thaddeus' eyes glinted with mischief. ‘Oh yes, Alpha’, he thought, ‘I’ll be bringing her straight to you.’