Chapter 35
Owen turned to the table. His wolf still forward. "I hereby instate Kaden Locke as my Beta and Cory Thomas as my Gamma." His voice was gruff and I smiled, happy that he took my advice in bringing Cory in as his Gamma. They would do well for the pack. Bringing the pack into more modern times, just as my older brother wanted to do.Exclusive content © by Nô(v)el/Dr/ama.Org.
"Cory, you should go to Rose. She would have felt the Luna power be removed." I looked at Owen, his eyes had gone back to their normal color. "If that is okay with your Alpha."
Owen nodded and Cory came forward, holding out his hand to me. Smiling, I shook it. "You were the best Gamma I could have asked for over the years. Take care of Rose. Make sure she has everything she could possibly want and take care of that kiddo of yours."
"I'm sorry...what?" My mother's voice rose.
Cory turned and headed out of the room. The whole group still seemed to be in shock over what had just happened. The Elders were sitting in their seats, staring at each other. My mother and Owen's mother were looking at the two of us, shock written on their faces.
"Cory is Rose's mate. While she has been my Luna, she has been mated with Cory for five years now. They had their child yesterday." I answered my mother.
She slammed her hands down on the table. "You were always a disappointment and now...you can't even have an heir? What the hell are you supposed to do now?"
Turning to Owen, he looked at me and nodded.
"I, Ezekiel Silver, reject the bond to the Silver Sun pack." Owen's eyes flashed as he felt my bond break to the pack.
I, however, fell forward, the pain excruciating for a moment. Inhaling sharply, I turned to get a handle on my breathing before I stood up straight. My hand out, I shook Owen's hand. "Good luck, nephew. I always had faith in you. I knew you would be the Alpha my brother always wanted to be. You already do him so proud and I expect great things from you moving forward."
Owen smiled, gripping my hand tight. "You know there is always a place for you. If you need anything, don't hesitate to contact us. We will stand by the Alpha King with you."
Turning, I looked at Hector and Auri. She was glaring into the room but Hector had a smile playing on his lips. He tapped her forward. Walking forward, she did a quick slice of her hand while also reaching out to slice my again since it already healed.
She took my hand and I felt an incredible power fill me. Hector grabbed me under my arm so I didn't fall. It was shocking the amount of power that I felt. It was more than even when I was Alpha.
'I, Alpha Auri Meadows accept Ezekiel Silver into the Golden Moon pack.' Her voice rang through my head and I smiled.
'Welcome, Ezekiel.' Morgan was the first to welcome me through the mind link.
'Nice to have another Alpha in the group.' Lucy grumbled.
'Good to have you, Zeke.' Jax came next.
'It will be nice to have someone else to spar with now.' AJ after him.
'We welcome you to our little family, Ezekiel.' Bryan sounded like he was laughing.
Hector squeezed my shoulder. 'Welcome, Zeke, to your new family. Be prepared. We aren't your normal family and we have high expectations of you.'
The entire group ran out in laughter, including Auri. She pulled me into a hug and held me tight. 'Welcome, sweetheart. You can call me Mom now. I won't answer to anything else from you.'
I laughed and it broke the silence of the meeting room. "Thank you, Mom." Kissing her forehead, I took my hand from hers.
Hector wrapped her hand for her and I turned to the table who were mostly white, the shock now moved to a completely new level. "I will be leaving with them now. I hope you all find blessings under the moon goddesses light."
Taking my new Alpha's hand and looping it around my arm. I started to escort her out of the room. There was nothing further I needed to do other than grab my bag from my room. Walking Auri and Hector into the kitchen, I unhooked her arm from mine.
"I have my bag packed on the bed, I'm just going to grab it real fast and we can go."
I didn't wait for them to answer as I took the stairs two at a time. Going down to the end of the hall, I opened the door and looked around. I had came in while everyone was sleeping last night to avoid any issues. There were some photos and albums I decided to take with me, but mostly it was clothes. I had a duffle bag filled with my favorite clothes, toiletries and a couple more personal effects. This room had been mine for seventeen years. It had served me well, but now, it would be Owen's.
The door opened and I turned to see my mother in the doorway. She looked mad.
"Ezekiel Silver, what the hell do you think you are doing? Leaving with a fucking group of misfits? That Alpha, she's not only a woman but she is..." "She is the mother of my mate. Mother of the Alpha King. Not to mention she is The Huntress and was the one who just destroyed the entire camp of the Darkry pack singlehandedly."
Her eyes wide. "You're mated to someone within the Alpha King's family?"
"No mother, I'm mated to the Alpha King himself."
A look of disgust crossed her face. "You. I knew when I gave birth to you, you were small and weak and you would always be that. You were never meant to take the position of Alpha. It should have been you that died, not your brother."
As soon as she said it, she turned to leave but I heard a sap resound through the room. Auri was standing in front of my mother, her hand in the air, showing that she had followed through the swing. My mother clutched her cheek.
"Who the hell do you think you are?" My mother screeched.
I stepped forward, between her and Auri. "She is my mom and I am her son, just as my mate is." Auri was smiling up at me and I smiled down at her. “She has shown me a love and a kindness that I never received from you. I wonder if I had, how much stronger I would have been but now you will never know. Because you've lost your first son and now you've lost your only son."
Throwing my bag over my shoulder, I took Auri's hand and dragged her away from my mother. Down the hall and the stairs, back into the kitchen. 'I could give her a couple more slaps. It would make me feel better.'
Shaking my head, I sighed. "She's not worth it. Not now, not ever."
Leading the way out of the pack house, I saw the Humvee pulled into the driveway. Morgan was sitting in the drivers seat, Bryan in the passenger seat with the other three in the back.
'Get out, Morgan. You lost your right to drive when you nearly overheated the engine by going too fast.' Auri opened up the back of the military vehicle for me to place my bag in it.
"I'll drive." Hector swapped places with Morgan as he huffed.
"It's not my fault you got a slow ass vehicle. We could have gotten a limo that would have been faster than this and more comfortable."
Auri laughed through the link. 'God forbid we only got twenty miles over the speed limit.'
Morgan scoffed and grumbled as he climbed in the back. "I'm too old for this."
"You're younger body-wise when four of us here! You don't get to say shit, vamp." Bryan called back to him.
I climbed in after Morgan, surprised that the military vehicle could fit so many people. Auri sat between Hector and Bryan in the front bench seat. Hector started the engine and pulled out of the driveway of the pack house. My head looked out the window as I saw Rose and Cory standing outside the front door. She was holding her little pup and I turned my head away. It was better this way. She wouldn't be with her brothers murderer and she would be home, where she belonged.
Behind them, I could see the smoke from the pyre still burning. My heart clenched and I took a deep breath. I wouldn't let Leo look down on me and question if he put his faith in me incorrectly. I would show all of them that I could be stronger than they ever expected. My place would be next to the Alpha King and I would prove to them I was meant to be there. My age didn't matter, Auri and Hector proved that. Strength could be gained, as could wisdom.
"So, where are we going?" I asked after we had been on the road for about thirty minutes, looked around at Morgan.
"Home, for now. We need to reconviene after that disappointing mission." Bryan grumbled, leaning his head back against the headrest.
AJ laughed. “Lucy and I will go to the High Council from there. Grab the paperwork and the other shit from them."
"Don't stay too long. Ask Vale if there is anything new we need to get started on." Hector piped up.
"I could go with you to the High Council." I looked at AJ and Lucy.
'Not yet, Ezekiel. I know you are excited to see him, but you need to be patient.' Auri mind linked.
"Why not? I mean..."
'The High Council, if in session, can take up to three months. If you went there, I have no doubt you and Vale would end up marking each other. They would end up sending you away if your heat came due to all the werewolves that have to be there. Vale wouldn't be able to go with you.'
My eyes widened. "I would go into heat?"
Auri nodded from the front. 'According to the journals from Alpha King Killian, that's what happened to Alpha Eros after they mated. That was really the only thing that broke their silent treatment of each other. But I don't want you to go through that without having a safe space for the two of you to
stay.'
I looked down, knitting my hands together. "Alright." Following up through the mind link; 'I'm sorry. I didn't know.'
'Oh, sweetheart, don't worry about it. We will have plenty of things to do in the mean time. Getting you stronger, making sure you can help protect him. Also making sure you are caught up with what is going on in the world. It's going to be a lot for you at first but I know you can do it.'
I chuckled. She really was the mother I always wanted. Faris purred and I felt his happiness at our new pack. He actually had never felt this happy and this comfortable before and it made me feel like Faris had been waiting for this to happen the whole time.
Hector pulled into a private airport and I looked around at the large planes. This would only be my third time flying. The trip to and from the High Council being the first. Driving past a few of the hangers, a garage opened and my eyes widened. A plane with the name 'Golden Sun' on the side of it with a painted sun on the tail was parked in the hanger.
"You have your own plane?"
"Well, the pack does. Really it was Morgan's present to Auri for becoming Alpha." Bryan chuckled and got out. "Fuck, I am not going to miss this weather. I've never had to use my cane this much in years."
Everyone seemed to pile out and I watched as attendants came out, loading the plane up with the items in the Humvee. No one seemed to even acknowledge them as they all headed up the stairs to the plane. Quickly, I followed after them and my jaw dropped as I stared at the interior of the plane. AJ put his hand on my shoulder behind me, grinning from ear to ear.
"Welcome to the Golden Sun pack, Zeke."