Most of the pressure was on Sebastian’s shoulders. He was the one who would be expected to interact with other Alphas, to say the right thing during the meeting. All it would take is one bad joke to the wrong Alpha to end an alliance or make an enemy.
Lily was in the line of fire too. Every single Alpha child above the age of thirteen was going to be here, and there was a decent chance Lily would meet her mate. That would be at least thirty different kids, and since most of them would probably be men, that gave her nearly thirty opportunities to meet her mate. C
As much as I was anxious, the real burden lay on Seb and Lily. Whatever my stakes were, theirs were ten times higher.
With that thought in mind, I tried to push the anxious feelings away and focus on something else – like the gorgeous Canadian scenery.
I’d never been outside of Washington in my life, and while the circumstances might not have been my favorite, I couldn’t deny how beautiful this place was.
The afternoon sky was covered in thick, dark clouds and it was snowing. As far as the eye could see, there were large Evergreen trees that led into a forest. It was snowing too hard for me to see beyond that, but I could tell it was expansive. We it hadn’t made it to the mountains yet, but judging by how rural the area was, couldn’t have been far.
As I watched the scenery blur by, I felt a sudden pressure on my shoulder.
I glanced down – it was Lily. She was passed out, her eyes screwed shut and her hair splayed in her face. I guess my shoulder made a more comfortable position. than her travel pillow did. Beside us, Sebastian was shuffling through some sort of folder about pack business that he brought from home.
Gently, so as to not wake her, I brushed some of the hair out of her face and used my other hand to pull my earbuds out of my pocket. She might’ve turned me into her designated pillow, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t entertain myself with music.
Seeing the castle for the first time left me speechless.
As the driver pulled up to a large iron gate with several security guards, I must’ve looked like an idiot my eyes were wide and my jaw had gone slack. It was massive, bigger than I thought it would ever be.
It looked like the kind of castle you’d see in a Fairytale – it was situated on a literal mountaintop, and the actual castle was all white stone and stained glass windows. The entire palace was coated in snow, but from a distance, it almost looked like powdered sugar.
Below the castle and all down the mountain, there was a forest covered in
Evergreen trees. It was beautiful and secluded. For a moment, my brain.
registered just how isolated this place was. The last hour of the drive had just been windy mountain roads under the thick cover of clouds, snow, and trees. No wonder the Alpha King wanted to live in the middle of the Canadian mountains. Nob*dy was going to be able to leave without his say-so.
Stop being paranoid, Clark. This place is probably easier to navigate if you’re a wolf. These people actually like the outdoors, they’re not indoor hermits like
you.
All three of us sat in the back seat in silence as the driver spoke with a brawny security guard or what I assumed was a security guard. He was one of many large men that stood in front a massive, closed iron gate. “I’m transporting three guests from the Blacktooth Pack,” our driver said.
“Names?”
“Sebastian Bellevue, Lily Bellevue, and Clark Bellevue, son and daughters of Alpha Marcus Bellevue.”
I could only peer at him from the window, but I saw the security guard nod before he looked away and his eyes glazed over. It looked like he was just zoning out, but I’d been around werewolves long enough to know better he was communicating through a mind link. Pack members could communicate telepathically with each other in both human and wolf forms.
That had always fascinated me, but from what I understood, the mind link was only used for communicating pack orders or business not casual conservation.
“Alright,” the guard finally responded, “You’re all set to go through. Your escort has been notified of your arrival, and they’ll be waiting for you at the south entrance.” The driver nodded, and I watched as the large iron gates creaked open. Not only was the gate massive, but it was elaborate too. Intricate designs covered the top of each bar, although it was hard to make them out since they were coated in snow.
Beside me, Lily and Sebastian were just as in awe as I was. Lily had woken up twenty minutes ago from her power nap.
As soon as the gates opened completely, the SUV was entering the castle grounds. The gates clanged shut behind us.
Even though everything was hidden beneath a layer of thick snow, I could tell the castle lawn was beautiful and well-kept. There was a large fountain that was frozen on one side and an elaborate garden on the other.
The Alpha King really took the monarch thing a little too literally, this place makes me feel like I time-traveled back to the middle ages.
It took us close to twenty minutes just to reach the south entrance of the castle. Up close, the baroque architecture was even more incredible. The battlements felt like sky-scrapers and the towers were so tall that they disappeared into the clouds.
“This place is really something, huh?” Sebastian commented.
Lily nodded, still taking everything in, and I made some sort of noise of agreement.
The SUV stopped in front of what must’ve been the south entrance a wide, arched wooden door that must’ve been at least ten feet tall.
“Welcome to Lupine Castle,” the driver said, “You can get out here.”
“Thank you for the ride, we appreciate it,” Sebastian replied, but the driver merely grunted in reply.
Not a big talker, this guy.
It took us a few minutes to grab our luggage and clamor out of the car. After spending two hours in a heated SUV, the bitter Canadian cold felt like a slap in the face.
I definitely should have worn my thicker jacket.
I pulled my jacket closer and tried not to shiver. Almost immediately, Lily latched. onto my arm, her teeth chattering.
“Geez, this place is fuh-reezing,” she ground out. She was even less dressed for the cold than I was just a pair of ripped jeans and one of her favorite designer hoodies.
“Tell me about it,” I muttered back, trying to absorb as much of her b*dy heat as possible.
I might’ve been from Washington, but Canada was an entirely new level of freezing – especially during this time of year.
“You kids are certainly not used to the cold, are you?”
All three of us whipped our heads around to see a middle-aged woman approaching us. I’m not sure if she came from the castle, but I hadn’t heard any doors open.
She was tall with fair skin and dark hair that was just starting to grey. She wore a kind smile a maroon wrap dress with no jacket. If she was cold, she certainly didn’t show it. Everything about her screamed dignified. Her back was straight and she heid her head high.
“I’m Esther,” she said, smiling at us, “I’ll be your escort during your stay in the castle. Why don’t we get out of this cold and move inside?”
None of us needed to be convinced. Esther used the intricate iron knocker to open the large wooden door, and all three of us immediately scurried inside.
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