Three

Not being able to take the constant stares and whispers from those around her, Isaac disappearing shortly after to speak with his father in private, Amira retreats to his bedroom for the night, having no other way home and no cabs coming to this area of the city due to pack territory. Though she knows the city of Morrowfalls like the back of her hand, she isn’t an idiot to know bad people exist everywhere, and it’s never safe to wander around in the middle of the night in a city full of all sorts of creatures. 

She is also hoping this is where Isaac will return once the party is over, with the small shred of hope she still has. 

A short while after the door of his room opens and he thankfully walks in alone, looking frustrated after the talk with his father but also shocked to see her there. 

“Why did you leave the party so early?” he asks. 

She scoffs. “What did you expect me to do? Another girl told me straight to my face that you’re going to leave me for her and I need to be understanding of it, it’s the right thing to do.” 

“She didn’t say it like that,” he mutters. 

“Unbelievable, you’re defending her now. I’ll only ask this once, Isaac – do you actually want to reject Eris?” 

Isaac groans and seems irritated by her question, which only makes her heart sink further. He undoes the tie around his neck and tosses it on the floor before kicking his shoes off lazily. 

“I have bigger things to worry about than that right now, Amira. My father told me the Alpha of the Highmoon Pack will be visiting tomorrow and we need to prepare for it, his pack has been the strongest amongst us all for decades and it’s going to be my first time meeting with the Alpha.” 

She rolls her eyes. “You’re going to be the next Alpha of your pack, why is that such a big deal?” 

“Because he isn’t just some Alpha of another pack, he owns half the city and we all practically answer to him like he’s a king, it’s ridiculous!” Isaac swats at one of the bedside lamps, tossing it across the room. 

“Okay, calm down, there’s no need to break things,” Amira cries out, getting up to turn the bedroom light on to clean up the mess. 

“He always has my father squished under his thumb, doing anything and everything he commands but never offering any help in return. We’re all scraping by every day yet he sits in a castle of luxury and just makes demands. How am I going to work alongside a man like that? He’s going to crush me the moment he lays his eyes on me.”

Isaac slumps over in the bed with his head in his hands. Amira can see how much this is stressing him out and although she can’t seem to let go of her anxiety over their own situation, she has no idea what else he is fighting. 

“Can we please talk about this after the meeting tomorrow? Right now, I really just want to lie down in bed with you and sleep,” he asks in a small voice. It is the voice he uses often when he is overwhelmed and just wants to be coddled by Amira like a child. She always found it a little silly, but at the same time adorable that when he is sad or upset, she is his safe space. 

Her hope may be fading that he will uphold his promise and choose her in the end, but for right now all he wants is her comfort and presence, which is enough to keep her shadows at bay for the night. 

 

~*~ 

 

“Ugh, why does it always smell worse on this side of the city?” Malachi, Beta of the Highmoon Pack, whines as they approach the pack house of Alpha Lund. 

“Hush Malachi, we are here for a short while and should be on our way again,” Alpha Calix grumbles, shooting his Beta a quick glare. “Let’s just get this meeting over with.” 

It is the monthly meeting between pack Alpha situated in Morrowfalls, where they discuss issues that they are facing and any disputes between packs, useless things as such. To Calix, it is just a meeting where aid is constantly requested from the Highmoon Pack by snakes in wolf skins. He is well aware of what the Greybane and Silverhowl Packs think of them, the vicious words they whisper about them behind their backs, only to ask for their help like scoundrels because they can’t help their own greed. 

Alpha Lund is all smiles when he greets Calix at the door, though his bloodshot eyes and sunken shadows beneath them tell him the coming-of-age ceremony for his son was a success, and hopefully, chances are he isn’t up for much speaking today. 

“This will be the first time my son joins in my place for the meeting, I hope you can help guide him so he can have a strong voice at the table, though my usual Beta will still be sitting by his side.” Alpha Lund rambles on as they make their way to the meeting room, Alpha Morin of the Silverhowl Pack already waiting outside. 

“The man of the hour has finally arrived,” he says in a booming voice. “How are you, my friend? It has been too long since our last encounter.” He holds out his arms to bring Calix in for a hug that isn’t returned, but as always the brute of a man doesn’t seem bothered. 

“It has only been a mere month, you make it sound so lonely over at the Silverhowl Pack.” 

Alpha Morin lets out a howl of laughter, patting Calix roughly on the back and going out of his way to make a large display of their connection for the others awaiting in the room, telling Calix he has a favour to ask before entering the room himself. 

“Shall we get started?” Calix asks and directs everyone inside. 

“Hold on, my son should be here any second,” Alpha Lund says nervously. He stands outside of the door and waits, Isaac turning the corner minutes after looking like she just rolled out of bed. He stops short when the scent of Calix finally hits him and he meets his gaze with an icy glare, displaying his dislike outright. 

“Nice of you to make it, we can finally start the meet–” Calix is cut off when an extremely sweet and alluring scene hits his nose, coming directly from Isaac. He moves closer and the smell indeed gets stronger, his wolf going wild within him. 

“Where did you just come from?” he asks Isaac. 

“What the hell kind of question is that?” he responds, backing away slightly. He brushes off his shirt after buttoning it off, the smell wafting like waves against Calix now and stirring his wolf into a thirsty rage. 

“Isn’t there a meeting we have to get to?” Isaac adds and walks past Calix into the room, taking his seat with an irritated look. 

Calix clears his throat and tries to shake off his wolf, calming him for the time being. He gets the meeting started so the others can finally voice their concerns and ask their favours to get this over with. 

Halfway through the first hour, the smell hits him once again, this time rather faint and far away but coming from somewhere within the house. As Alpha Morin continues his rant about his issues with the running water pipes on his land constantly clogging, an issue that can be blamed on his pack members for flushing any sort of food down any drain they find, Calix tries to focus on the scent. 

It seems to be moving closer to his location until it is almost right outside the door, his wolf once again going wild, but he isn’t sure why, his whispers ringing clear from deep within. 

Mate. 

That scent is clearly that of his mate, they are standing right outside the door about to pass by if he doesn’t act fast enough. 

“Everyone – get out, now.”