Here is a bit of backstory for werewolves, white wolves, and silver wolves. I have no idea what Dane was thinking, but he's not gaining any allies that way.
ARIA.“You can sheath your daggers, Sir Jory. It’s Alpha Dane of the Shadow Vale pack. As it turns out, he’s my fated mate. There are things that we’re working through, but I don’t plan on going anywhere. This is an amazing pack, one that I’m proud to be a part of. Plus, Piper has already made friends, and she just got here.”His eyes widened when he heard Alpha Dane’s name. I could understand why.Alpha Dane Holden was notorious. Bex was right that his reputation helped to protect the pack. Only idiots would try to go against him. That reputation was fought for and won.I remembered Bex sharing that he’d taken over as the Alpha shortly before the whole shit with Sam went down. Then his parents left not too long after that. I could understand the benefit of having a strong reputation like his.“Well, damn. I definitely didn’t expect that. I bet you’re a kickass Luna.”“I’m learning as I go and enjoy helping out. I don’t know about kickass though.”I blushed when he snorted and stuck m
ARIA.I felt lighter than I had in a long time. There had been this tight band around my heart, constricting it ever since I was given the contract to sign. The expectations, pain, and lying weighed heavily upon my shoulders. It made me feel like I was drowning.Lying by omission was still lying. Pretending that everything was A-Okay when, in reality, I felt like slowly dying was still in a way lying.I’d honestly thought that Bex would’ve hated me if she ever figured out the truth about what was going on between Alpha Dane and me. She, however, just reminded me that she was here for me. Day or night, come rain or come shine.The same went for Adam and Finch. It was still very awkward to forgo using their titles. It did, however, make me feel like I was actually wanted here.It was a nice change of pace after the past five years.All three of them were easygoing. Adam was a sarcastic flirt but knew boundaries that he would never cross. He was able to bring a smile to your face without
ANGELINA. I felt sparks along my arms but stepped away from Don, pinning him with a glare that I reserved for assholes and idiots. He was both of those things right now.I don’t understand how he could’ve acted this way to our son.First of all, accusing him of fabricating the account about Samuel. Yes, it was very hard to believe, but I knew that Dane wouldn’t have called us all of the way back here unless there had been a reason to do so. He sure as hell wouldn’t claim something like that unless there was even a shred of truth to it.Secondly, demanding to know why we weren’t informed of the fact that he found his Luna. Granted, I had the same brief thought but wasn’t about to voice that. We hadn’t gone out of our way to keep up with him. I should’ve told Don to take his hurt ego elsewhere and reached out to Dane myself after Don had horribly blown up on him over that tabloid incident. Yet, I didn’t.Goddess, how had I not realized how much damage we were doing to our boy?Dane had
FINCH. I followed Aria at a distance when she left the office. I had an inkling of where she was heading, or should I say who she was heading, to see.There were two reasons for this. One, I didn’t want her to be alone. Two, because I didn’t trust Dane. Not after hearing about what he’d done. It was only a drop in the bucket. That was an understated certainty. I couldn’t remember a time when I didn’t trust Dane as my best friend or as my Alpha. That just went to show how fucked-up this entire situation was.I knew that he was hurting because of his father’s words – which, still shocked me by the way – and knew that he was unpredictable when he was hurting. I had no idea if he’d lash out at her, so I wasn’t taking any chances.Don’s words and accusation were really fucking harsh when he heard that Sam had attacked our pack. Don even accused Dane of making all of this shit up without even hearing his son out. I knew how hard it was for me to accept it when I first saw him, and that was
DANE.What did I expect would happen when I called them back here? Especially when it concerned their precious Samuel, the golden boy who could never do any wrong. His heightened intelligence began showing when he was still a pup. He kept to himself and was always busy building things or taking them apart just to see how they ticked. Knowledge was something that he soaked up like a sponge. Always observing. Always cataloguing.Then the hyperfocus on technology came when he turned eight and got a laptop for his birthday. It was the one that he had begged our parents for. Well, it didn’t take much convincing for them to shell out thousands of dollars on the white box laptop that was custom-built for him.Through it all, I was there, cheering him on. I supported him however I could. Why wouldn't I? He was my little brother, someone that I was always really fucking proud of. I encouraged him to aim high and to go for his dreams no matter how difficult they might seem. I knew that he was
ARIA.I hadn’t realized that Mrs. Holden was Luna Angelina Holden, former Luna of the Shadow Vale pack. Seeing both mother and son, I couldn’t believe I hadn’t put two and two together once I met him.It was amazing that both former Alpha and Luna remembered me. She from being the one to grant the award to me. Him from being told about my submission. Their words held a lot of weight, especially coming from the person who had developed the scholarship in the first place. It made me feel like maybe, just maybe, I had what it took to succeed.Honestly, I was worried that they were going to find out about the contract because I wasn't sure about what their reactions might be like.Alpha Dane had claimed me as the future Luna, which came with expectations. Typically, mates lived with each other. They had a true relationship – one that was physical, emotional, and spiritual. Alpha Dane and I had none of those things.“What do you mean that it’s about Sam?” his father asked him, leaning his e