“There’s every need,” I said blithely “From what I hear, Liandra has been through half the men in your pack, give or take Alpha Callum? She’s easy, she’s stupid, and she has no business being a Luna of any pack. Just because she’s from your Alpha bloodline, doesn’t mean that anybody is going to be naive enough to take her as their chosen mate, unless they are desperate or broke. I’m neither” I informed him with a low growl “and quite frankly I find your daughter revolting” I added for good measure.
Liandra’s eyes filled with tears. Her father shot daggers at me. “I came here, to offer Liandra as a way to forge an alliance and a treaty between our two packs,” he said in a scornful tone “I do not see that you have to forcefully take my pack when Liandra could be the bridge between the two. Wouldn’t you rather find a peaceful solution,” he said angrily.
He was grasping at straws. His pack was small, only a third of the size of mine, if that. While I was willing to sign a treaty to avoid bloodshed, I was not willing to take his daughter as my Luna. That felt more like a punishment than a prize.
Alpha Rowan was weak. His pack was dwindling, rogues were easily picking him and his warriors off. He needed me. He couldn’t afford to offend me. I was more than willing to forcefully take his pack instead of dealing with this nonsense and extending my boundaries.
“Alpha Rowan, listen to me and listen carefully. Your pack numbers are reducing each and every day as the rogues continue to pick you off, one by one. Your warrior’s fighting skills are pathetic and weak. You cannot continue to defend your pack without losing a considerable amount of men and pack members. Your women and children are at risk of losing their lives. Your pride is getting in the way” I told him steadily as he leaned back and listened, his jaw clenching in anger “you want my help? That much is clear” I said with a certain amount of satisfaction “because without it, your pack will vanish within a couple of weeks and that’s the best-case scenario.”
He tightened his jaw. A treaty would ensure that his pack survived and that I ran the rogues off, but he had offended me beyond repair. Liandra was still crying in the chair. “Either willingly submit your pack and merge it with mine,” I told him coldly “or I will forcibly take it after killing off the rogues. Your pack will blame you for the bloodshed and loss of lives.”
“The treaty” he protested.
I shook my head “the treaty is off the table. I am not willing to defend such a weak pack. Let alone one that insults me by bringing such a pathetic suggestion as this girl to me” I nodded at Liandra, disgusted at her crying and whimpering.
“But what about me?” he stammered, no longer looking like an Alpha but rather a defeated and resigned old man.
I raised a brow “I have no need for a Beta or a Gamma. You would be merely another pack member, the same as everybody else from your pack.”
“I can’t do that” he continued to protest, looking annoyed and slightly panicked “I wouldn’t be respected by the pack if I just did as you asked.”
I chuckled and cocked my head “Alpha Rowan, you are fooling yourself if you think that your pack respects you now. It’s only a matter of time before your people rebel or seek sanctuary away from your pack.”
I swiftly stood. I was tired of this conversation. My eyes darkened as my wolf surged to the surface, making Alpha Rowan and his daughter tremble. “You have two days to decide the matter. After that, I’m coming for your pack” I told him calmly “I trust that you’ll give me your answer. For now, I respectfully ask you to leave and consider your options.”
Alpha Rowan tiredly nodded and then stood, grabbing Liandra by the arm. He turned and stormed from the room. I watched them go, feeling detached.His pack would not be the first weak one to merge with mine. My pack, the Blood Moon Pack had become one of the largest and strongest in the country. I had a reputation for being ruthless. Of being a monster. Perhaps I was. But I refused to allow others to make the decisions for me. I did not need a Luna. I never would. That subject would remain firmly closed. Women could continue to throw themselves at me, it happened often, but I would never take any of them as a chosen mate. Love was a weakness. Love made you vulnerable. It had the ability to bring you to your knees and make reckless decisions. As long as I lived, I would never take a Luna and expose myself to being vulnerable or put my pack at risk.
Riley POV
I was shoved, hit, ridiculed, spat on, and kicked whenever I passed by someone. My father was blind to all of this, or he condoned it. I didn’t try to go to him with complaints, after all, why would he care? As it was, I lived each day in fear that I would be told that he had sold me off to be a breeder or to an Alpha that required an heir. Sometimes I thought it would be preferable to living in this pack. Other times I contemplated leaving this pack, the only way I could see out, staring down at my wrists and wondering how much it would hurt to cut them, wondering how deep the cut would have to be in order to end my life without healing myself first. It was morbid, it was dark, but it was the only way I could see the pain and torture ending.Today, my brother and father had left to visit another pack. One that was being targeted by rogues and growing weaker by the day. I had heard rumors that the pack, was being forced to make a decision. To join the Blood Moon Pack or have the pack taken by the Alpha himself. My father was going to see if the rumors were true. I didn’t care. It meant that he and my brother weren’t around to abuse me and while the pack members and patrol would keep a close eye, I was free to wander around and do what I wanted. A day of freedom, without the freedom.
I chose to go to the lake. Set a little ways in the forest, it was far enough from the pack house to give the illusion of privacy, while still being under careful watch of patrol. I could sense eyes on me, but I ignored them. The water called to me, as it always did. I could never get enough of the lake and the coolness of the water as it touched my skin. I stripped down to my underwear and then slowly walked into the shallow end, shivering slightly. I closed my eyes. I jumped and dived into the deep end. I swam. For hours.
There was something about swimming in the water that soothed my soul. I had never had swimming lessons but I had been coming to the lake since I was small and I had taught myself. I swam like a mermaid. It was like I got a new burst of energy when I went swimming. I could hold my breath for an extraordinary length of time beneath the water and all my wounds would begin to heal even quicker. I loved the water. I didn’t get to visit the lake as much as I liked, but when I did, it was like nothing else existed. Just me and the water. Hours could pass and I would have no notion of time.
I surged to the surface, my hair flipping back, water droplets spraying the air. I felt exhilarated. My pain was gone. The cold was gone. I tread the water and look around me, disconcerted to discover that hours have passed. I hear the sound of footsteps approaching and cringe. But they aren’t as loud or as hard as my father’s and I glance upwards as a member of patrol approaches with a scowl on their face.
“Your father is approaching the border” he snarled “if I were you I would go and change before he sees me” he added.
Was he warning me? Was this a gesture of kindness? My lips parted, but the patrol member shook his head and strode off before I could sign the word for thank you. I hastily got out of the water, feeling goosebumps ripple across my skin, and grabbed my clothes, donning them quickly. My hair was smooth and long down my back. For a moment, I could have sworn that it glimmered, but that had to be my imagination. I began to trudge back to the pack house, making it to the grounds, just in time to see my father striding out of the forest, a pissed expression on his face, my brother following behind silently. Both were just wearing a pair of pants, that had been passed to them by patrol.
“That Alpha Jaxon has some nerve” my father hissed, running a hand through his hair and giving a low growl “impudent son of a bitch. Thinking that he can just take over a pack like it’s nothing.”
My brother looked nervous. “But father, he does have a reputation for being ruthless and he is one of the strongest Alphas in the country” he pointed out as my father turned and glared at him “so he isn’t bluffing. Even if we offered assistance to the other pack, there’s no chance that we’ll win” he added.
My father snorted “I have no intention of offering any assistance” he practically shouted at my brother, stunning him into silence “I just wanted to confirm the rumors for myself. That Alpha Rowan is a moron. He’s always been weak” he scoffed “he’s lazy, his patrol is weak at best, his warriors are not prepared for a fight and he has no Luna. Don’t even mention that infuriating daughter of his” he exhaled.
“But shouldn’t we do something?” my brother said as they stopped in the middle of the grounds.
“What do you propose we do Damien?” My father asked with a heavy dose of sarcasm “put ourselves in the firing line? Has it not occurred to you that if Alpha Rowan’s pack is taken, ours might be next? We have our own problems to deal with. Besides” he pointed out gravely, his eyes glittering, his face scowling “what has Alpha Rowan ever done for us?”
My brother fell silent. I stared at the two of them, disgusted with their attitudes. They only cared about themselves, but it was not unexpected. I had met Alpha Rowan before and did not like him, so I felt no sympathy for the man losing his pack. But I thought my father might at least show some compassion towards the man who was facing a difficult decision.
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