I looked around at the giggling werewolves I called my family. My eyes were wide as I looked at all of them. It was hard trying to keep a straight face as I pictured a chubby wolf bounding through the forest. Squeezing my eyes shut, I struggled and finally succumbed to the laughter. Naresh was already roaring in my head and I joined him. “How much weight have they all gained?” Hector cleared his throat. “Some…more than others.” “Alpha Týr is absolutely the worst. His beta is a close second.” Lucy’s nose wrinkled and I watched as Bryan put a protective arm around his daughter. “Then Logan is probably third with the rest following in varying degrees of severity.” Bryan added, smirking. “It helps he wasn’t at the pack house full time until the last few weeks.” Shaking my head, I gulped in some air. “But you can’t be putting that much in.” “Until you see the portions that they eat.” Hector giggled. 'That was added in by your Grandpa. It hightens their appetite as well. So the normal
Hector drove through the city and dropped off Bryan, with Lucy, at a small home just on the outskirts of Kirk. He turned around and headed back into the city, south toward the pack house. I moved to the front seat as soon as Bryan had gotten out. It was a quiet ride until we got closer to the pack house. “Vale, you need to remember. You aren’t just your mother’s son. You are also the Alpha King and by extension, the High Council.” “Can’t I just be a son? Worried about what the hell is going on in my family?” I looked over at him but his face was hard. He shook his head. “No, you can’t. Not here. With your mom, with us, you can. But the moment you step outside of this car or her house, every action you take is as the Alpha King. More eyes are on you than you know.” “Hector, come on. I just want to talk to Dad and Týr.” We pulled up and Hector parked the Jeep. “Your Dad and Týr aren’t an exception. Speak to them as Alpha’s because that’s who they have decided to be.” “But I’m the A
I could see the anger rise through his face as he clenched his fists on the desk. Our eyes locked as I leaned against the desk. Shaking my head, I tore my eyes away and paced back into the office. “Fix it, Dad.” “She’s been a rogue before, Vale. Auri will be fine.” I stopped and looked at him. “And fine is good enough for you? For your mate?” “Vale, stop. Let it go. I’m glad you’re here. I’m glad you’re spending time with your mom. But you shouldn’t be on territory without permission.” Barking out a laugh, I crossed my arms over my chest. “I don’t need permission to cross the territory.” “You do. When you come into an Alpha’s territory…” Naresh stepped forward before I could stop him. “They should be so grateful that their Alpha King has decided to grace them with our presence. We need no permission. All packs, are our packs. While you may not have come to that conclusion during your reign, we know our place. It’s time you learned yours.” Dad stood up and I laughed. I was lucky
The next couple of weeks, I threw myself into training with my mom. She meal prepped all our food, even including two extra portions for Bryan or Hector when they would come by. Hector came around more, both helping me train as well as training with Mom. He said it was good to get your ass kicked because it reminded you there were still things you needed to work on. For Mom, that was Grandpa. She could beat him, but not every time. My Dad and Týr still hadn’t been by to see us. At first, I was annoyed when they didn’t show up the first week but my mom wasn’t bothered by it or at least didn’t let it show. So, I let it go. Days became a routine. Get up early, have breakfast, help in the garden, tea, training, lunch, more training, dinner and then reading or talking with Mom about different issues with the High Council. Today though, I had landed my first hit on her. It had taken seventeen days but I finally was able to hit her shoulder. Of course, she wasn’t at one hundred percent but
Date: Lunar Phase, Full Moon Time: Night I am writing this by the moons light. After the chaos of the vampires, it has been eight cycles. To set the record straight, I did not lose the journal this time. In fact, multiple times I sat with it open. It pained me though, to continuously writing the corruption that has woven its way into our way of life. I had never thought humans would corrupt our traditions so fully as they started to expand through the world. Yet here I was, wolves being slaves to one another. Mates turning their backs. Greed and entitlement taking over. It pains me and I do not know if I have taken on an impossible task. Word has spread that the Alpha King has been on a campaign to take over packs now and so my group has decided to lay low for the time being. We chose to stay within one of the founding packs, the Silver Sun. They have been warm and welcoming. For the first time since starting this journey, we have a pack who has sided with tradition rather than the
“I’m checking in. What else would I be doing, Vale?” I crossed my arms over my chest. “At this time of night? Sleeping, actually. Or you know, you could have checked in weeks ago.” “I was busy. Auri, do you mind if I get something to eat? I’m starving.” Snorting, I rolled my eyes. “You don’t need to eat anything else.” My mom came over and elbowed me. She started to sign but my dad turned his back and disappeared into the kitchen. Her hands fell to her side and I heard her sigh. Kissing her head, I nodded up the stairs. “Go to bed. I’ll make sure he doesn’t eat the sink while he is in there.” She smiled and kissed me on the cheek. 'Goodnight, Vale. Don’t get into a fight with him, please.' 'I promise. Go.' “Auri, do you have tea made?” I shook my head and headed into the kitchen. “Auri…oh, Vale, where is your mom?” Pulling out the cold container of tea, I grabbed two glasses and poured him one. I poured one for myself and sat down at the kitchen island. “She went to bed.” “
“We will need to air out the place. Probably wipe down the ceiling.” She didn’t say anything as she cut a slice of cake and set it on a plate. Cutting another half the size, she placed the big slice in front of me, and took up the seat next to me. Taking the fork, she cut into the corner and took a bite. As she chewed, I watched the tears fall down her cheeks. Morgan might be right. 'It might be time for me to move on. I can’t protect people when they are fighting against me.' With her thoughts, more tears fell down her cheeks. “Let me talk to Týr first. Please. Let me try to figure out what the hell is going on.” She shook her head. 'They will probably will be by to check for life.' I grabbed my fork tightly before digging into my cake. This whole situation infuriating me. Dad should have been out here immediately. So should her son. Checking to see if she was okay. Going on a witch hunt to find out who did it. She was the Luna of this pack. She fought in wars, sacrificed herself
Naresh and I lapsed onto silence for a minute or two before I hauled up the bag of potatoes. She didn’t specify what she wanted so I would just bring the bag back in. When I went out, Danger was in the middle of the burnt pile with a shovel. “Mom, you didn’t call him all the way out here to roast your pig, did you?” The smile she showed me told me that’s exactly what she did. Danger though, seemed all too eager to be helping her out with this. She placed the potatoes in the ground and then Danger helped prep the pig in his trunk before they put it in the smoldering pile. Between the two of them, they finished in just under an hour. He came in for a slice of cake but headed out soon after, saying that his mate had such a tight leash on him, he started to yell their safe word every time she wouldn’t let him go. I realized, at that moment, all my mom’s friends were as shameless as she was. She asked him to come by later when it was done cooking and he said he would text her later if he