Chapter 2: We Do Not Take Without Divine Permission

Alpha Callahan paced his packhouse driveway as he waited for King Reginald to come up the drive. After the attack on Stone Hill Creek last night, the King was sure to hand over the pack to him, the loss of the heirless Alpha all but ensured that for him. He had been waiting for this day since Kevin, Alpha James' only son had died twenty-six years ago. Once upon a time he thought he would have the youngest Prescott girl, Korrine, as his Luna, but she proved to be too insolent, so he and the other wardens had no choice but to get rid of her. Afterall, they couldn't have her interfering in their plans and ruining everything they were working so hard for. Now, once he took over, he would take the older of the babies of the Prescott girls, the one that her parents had conceived after she had been exiled from the Kingdom.

Alpha Callahan had called Beta Caldwell as soon as he scented the blood on the wind. Of course, he wasn't going to send his men over to help, not when he knew that his pack would be safe behind the perimeter wards that his witch, Maura, had set when they had mated. Unfortunately, Maura couldn't provide him with Alpha pups, so he would take the older baby of the Prescott girls to mate and give him pups. Maura understood that, and was quite welcoming of the idea, especially since the girl would only be his mate in theory, she wouldn't have an official title or role within his pack, except to breed him healthy Alpha pups. She most certainly would never take Maura's role as his pack's Luna. And as long as that was the case, Maura was fine with him taking the young she-wolf to bear him pups.

Beta Caldwell was busy in the Royal packlands, ensuring that Alpha Week would go off without a hitch. Unfortunately, that was always necessary since the other Alphas frequently disagreed with the way that Beta Caldwell and all of the Royal Wardens had chosen to lead the Kingdom. These days, King Reginald, Queen Melody and Prince Alexander were merely figureheads for the institution of the Royal Pack and leading the Kingdom. It was Beta Caldwell that made all the decisions for the Kingdom now. He'd been making them for years now, ever since the Kingdom had gone bankrupt two decades ago. Caldwell had swept in to save the Kingdom from falling into poverty, since he was a big oil heir and rich as sin. Fortunately for those who were friends with his son and daughter, they got to enjoy the benefits of the change of power.

When Caldwell offered to help, he made his terms simple. He would become the Royal Beta, and Old Man Prescott would step down. His daughter, Amber, as the Royal Beta's daughter, would mate Prince Alexander, instead of Korrine Prescott, and the Royal Wardens would be replaced by the Beta's right hand men, which included Alpha Callahan, his own son, Alpha Caldwell, Alpha Morrison, Alpha Staley, and Alpha Wright. There had been a few hiccups in their plans initially, thanks to Korrine Prescott, but once they had successfully gotten her out of the equation, their plans had gone on flawlessly. Now, the six of them ran the kingdom in their own image and King Reginald, Queen Melody and Prince Alexander were merely just figureheads, atleast for now.

Which was exactly why Beta Caldwell had sent Reginald out here after Callahan had called him to tell him about the vampire attack on Stone Hill Creek. The King had his orders, since Beta Caldwell was the one giving them, so Callahan wasn't too worried about things not going his way. By the end of the evening, he would finally be able to call himself the Alpha that reunited the Stone Hill packs. By the end of the summer, he would have a Prescott girl to bear him strong Alpha heirs. He could barely contain his excitement as the black SUV rolled to a stop and the doors began to open.

"Alpha Callahan, I wish I could say this was a pleasure, but under the circumstances, I'm afraid I can't say so." King Reginald announced as he stepped from his vehicle.

"No, Your Majesty, it isn't, is it. By the time we were alerted of the attack, the attackers had already started retreating so there was nothing for us to do." Alpha Callahan spoke calmly as he approached the King.

King Reginald knew that Alpha Callahan hadn't even tried to help, aid, or console the Stone Hill Creek pack. He knew that the Alpha had probably kept his pack warriors safe behind their perimeter wards during the attack and even after, leaving the neighboring pack helpless and defenseless. That was who his Royal Wardens were. They didn't care about the rest of the kingdom, only about the power they held over the kingdom. He was disappointed and disgusted with himself for allowing his kingdom to fall so far. But, even so, Caldwell was the one with all the money, so his choices were limited, especially since many of the packs lacked the resources, jobs, and education to make them independently financially stable. They relied on the help they received from the Kingdom, well, from Beta Caldwell's account, to get them through year after year, even if the amount of support they received dwindled year after year.

"Well, if you haven't been over there yet to scope out the damage, I suppose that should have been my first stop. So, I'll head over there and find out how bad this situation is, and I'll be back over to chat with you." King Reginald told the Alpha as he stepped back towards his vehicle.

"Shouldn't I go with you, Your Majesty? If I'm going to take over as their Alpha, I'll need to assess the damage myself and prepare a plan to unite the packs under one perimeter so that we can all be safe behind wards." Alpha Callahan spoke as he stepped closer to the vehicle as though he might hop in.

"No, no. Your presence will only upset the survivors. Besides, we don't even know for sure that Alpha Rodney was lost in the battle. You stay here, and I'll go evaluate the situation. I'll return this evening and give you an update, Callahan." King Reginal told him before shutting the back door of the black SUV.

He didn't want to be bothered with the boy any more than he had to. Sure, Caldwell would be pissed that he didn't just automatically declare Callahan the new Alpha of Stone Hill Creek, but as they drove along that curvy dirt driveway back to the main road, King Reginald was almost certain that Stone Hill Creek had an Alpha still. He had felt the life force of the Alpha go cold, but it was only for the briefest moment before it came back glowing warm, fuller and brighter than it had before. He wasn't quite sure what that meant, and had half expected for Callahan to have answers for him, but he knew better than to assume that his Royal Warden of the Midwest would actually serve the packs he reigned over as his title states. No, the Royal Beta and Royal Wardens had become nothing more than a nuisance over the past two decades. Always throwing their titles around to bully or boss the other wolves around as they saw fit.

It was despicable and disgusting, and it made King Reginald ashamed of the legacy that he would leave in his wake. The only thing he had ever wanted to be was a good King. But now, he wouldn't be known as the King that did whatever was necessary to save his people from poverty. No, he would be known for putting a misogynistic Royal Court in place that stole the lives of young she-wolves and forced them into being breeders. He would be known for being the King that sent the Kingdom into bankruptcy, and allowed an Authoritarian Royal Court to take over. He was completely disgraced, and now he had to face down his old life long best friend that he hadn't seen or spoken to in almost two decades. Even as ashamed as he was, and as much anxiety as he felt about seeing his old friend, still, he prayed to the Moon Goddess that his friend would be there to speak with, and not among the dead.