Chapter 91: Chapter 91

Archibald

A knock echoed through my study. “Come on in,” I invited, and watched as Mateo, one of the Silver Moon’s mid-rank fighters, stepped inside. “What can I do for you, Mateo?” I asked, focusing my attention on him.

“I’ve been wanting to talk to you, Alpha,” he began, positioning himself in front of my desk. He didn’t beat around the bush. “I’ve found my mate,” he revealed.

“That’s fantastic!” I responded, but his expression didn’t mirror my enthusiasm. “Where’s she from?” I inquired, hoping she wasn’t from Kairos’s pack.

“Well, she was just passing through when we met. She lives far from here. I can’t remember the name of her pack, but…”

How could he forget the name of his mate’s pack?

“But she’s there. I’ve written to her, told her I’d move to be with her,” he continued.

Was he being truthful? His words didn’t ring true to me. But maybe this was all fallout from yesterday’s upheaval in the pack, thanks to Delilah’s meltdown.

“Mateo, if what your Luna said has frightened you…don’t worry. She’s not well.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, but I…I need to be with my mate.” Could he be telling the truth? And if he wasn’t? I had other wolves to consider.

“When are you planning to leave?” I asked. He wasn’t my main concern at the moment. I had bigger issues to tackle.

“Today.” I nodded in response.

“I’ll have Beta process your departure. Just remember, you’ll be missed. And we’ll need confirmation from your new pack that everything’s above board,” I explained.

Finally, he looked happy.

Adelie

Some pack members had already voiced their displeasure about the changes. I observed their performance during training.

We didn’t typically segregate trainees based on rank, but they always ended up dividing themselves.

Even now, some new mid-ranks were in that section, earning them the ire of the lower ranks.

Every now and then, I’d catch someone hurling an insult at another. Kairos was there to maintain order, but he seemed at a loss.

I spotted a young man emerging from the woods. He wasn’t one of ours, but he looked familiar. He approached Kairos directly. I was too far to catch their conversation.

Kairos signaled for me to keep an eye on the pack’s squabbles while he stepped away with the stranger.

A few pack members decided to approach me. They didn’t respect me as much as they did Kairos.

“Luna, it’s obvious these Omegas can’t keep up with our fighting style. I’ve been watching, and I’ve outperformed every one of them.

“With all due respect, Luna, your plan might be a failure,” one man stated, earning nods of agreement from the others.

I moved closer to him. “Would you tell your Alpha his plan was a failure? Because right now, it feels like you don’t respect me enough to trust in me.”

I pulled a sad face, trying to look like a lost puppy. “And that makes me a little sad. And when I’m sad…”

My voice grew harsher with each word, my expression blanker.

“I remember things like that, and I make sure they don’t happen twice. So, how about this? I can ask you to respect my decisions now, or you can regret your words later.”

I couldn’t afford to waste any more time. I had to prove to them that I was genuine. I was their Luna. And as harsh as it may sound, a leader needs to be tough.

He shared a glance with the others, but they remained silent. “I respect you, Luna, but Alpha has never once dismissed our views.”

“I’m not dismissing your views. I’m dismissing your attitude. Both your personal issues with Omegas and your issues with me.

“You’ve barely given it a day, and you’re already complaining instead of assisting them. Help them grow. Educate them. I’m not expecting anyone to change overnight.

“Only when I see that they haven’t improved despite trying will I demote them. But that decision won’t be yours to make.”

He cleared his throat, but didn’t utter another word before he left to train.

Archibald’s pack was absent from training today. According to Kairos, they had a ‘pack situation’ to resolve. I wasn’t sure what that meant, but he assured me it was a one-day thing.

After training, I headed to Kairos’s study. He wasn’t there. Instead, Maeve was at the Beta table, going through some documents. “Hey,” I greeted her.

She looked up. “Luna, we have a new pack member.”

“Is it the man I saw emerging from the woods?” She nodded. “Who is he?”

“His name is Mateo, and he’s from the Silver Moon pack.”

“What?” I asked, puzzled. “Why is he here then?”

“He heard about your new ranking system and wanted to be a part of it,” she explained.

“But what’s intriguing is that he’s already a mid-rank. I just can’t figure out what he stands to gain from this.”

“What did Archibald say?”

“That’s just it. He knew Mateo left, but he doesn’t know Mateo is here. Mateo asked us to keep this confidential. He didn’t elaborate. He just asked Kairos for protection.”

“Protection from what?” I asked, and she just shrugged. “How could Kairos betray his ally? Where is he?”

“He’s somewhere around the pack, I’m not sure. But he said he’ll handle the Mateo situation.”

“Okay,” I said. I couldn’t help but marvel at how well Maeve fit in here. She was born to be a Beta, even if she didn’t want the role.

“By the way, Maeve, have you seen Delilah? I haven’t seen her for the past week.”

She shook her head. “I haven’t seen her either.”

I was about to leave, but I couldn’t ignore her formal address. “You know, I don’t want it to be like this,” I said, looking down.

“What do you mean, Luna?” She looked at me, seemingly clueless.

“I can’t see anyone else as Beta here. And you might not want to admit it, but in this pack, there isn’t much choice.

“I’m grateful for the pack members we have now, but they’re not you. They can’t do what you do. You deserve to be Beta, and I want you to be.”

“And have you thought about what I want? What I ~told~ you I wanted?” Now she was raising her voice at me.

“Maeve, you have connections that none of us have. You know about things that we don’t. Like that time I went to the vampire coven, you had that damned light rock that guided me there.

“You’re the one who summoned the vampires. You knew exactly what you were doing every time,” I accused.

“How do you think I managed that?” she retorted. “I’m not proud of my actions. But don’t ask me to explain. Just understand that I can’t be your Beta.”

“Why have you been an Omega all your life, Adelie? Because you needed to hide. I need to do the same, now more than ever.”

“Hide from what? What kind of mess have you gotten yourself into?” I demanded.

“There are things you won’t understand, Adelie,” she replied, returning her attention to her paperwork. “Now, if you don’t mind, I have work to do.”

“I may serve my Alpha with all my heart, but I can only serve you in name. I can’t truly be your Beta after you’ve betrayed me like this.”

“A friend?” I questioned.

“Friends don’t act like this, Luna. Friends understand and support each other.”

“I can’t support you if you don’t tell me what’s going on.”

“I’m telling you I need to hide. So help me,” she challenged.

“I can protect you. The pack can protect you. You’re in a position now where your ideas can be heard. You can influence the protection you need.”

“As an Omega, you had no voice. But as a Beta, you do. Use it to help yourself.” I tried to make her see the benefits of her new position.

“It won’t help!” she snapped.

“Why?” I asked, but she fell silent.

“I need to get back to work.” Her gaze returned to her papers.

She wasn’t going to tell me anything.

I went to find Kairos, but instead found Death wandering around my house. “Hey!” I called out to him.

He rushed towards me without even a greeting. “Bring Kairos here. I need to see him immediately.”

“Why? Is it about his sickness?” I asked.

“Adelie!” he barked, and I hurried off to find Kairos. It didn’t take long to locate him and relay my father’s message.

Kairos looked nervous. I took his hand and led him upstairs to the room where Death was waiting.

As soon as he saw Kairos, Death’s gaze didn’t waver.

“Sit down,” Death instructed Kairos, but of course, Kairos couldn’t hear him.

“He wants you to sit on the couch,” I translated for Kairos. He looked at me suspiciously, but my expression must have told him I was just as in the dark as he was.

Death turned to me. “Take off your ring.” I glanced down at the ring Death had given me to connect with my soul. I removed it and held it out to him. “Kairos needs to wear it,” he instructed.

I took Kairos’s hand and slid the ring onto his finger. Once the ring was on, I stepped back to stand next to Death. I watched as my father began to concentrate.

He just stared at Kairos, not uttering a word. Kairos’s eyes focused on one spot.

Death was silent for a long moment, then suddenly his gaze snapped to me. He shook his head. “Get out,” he ordered, still shaking his head.

“What?” I asked, looking at Kairos, who was now also staring blankly.

“Get out!” Death yelled, pulling me towards the door.

“No!” I protested, gripping the door frame.

“Adelie!” my father shouted, and I saw Kairos’s gaze slowly shift to me. He sat up straighter than I’d ever seen him. His eyes were a stark white, devoid of any color.

My grip on the door frame loosened. I watched as he rose and lunged at me. But I saw nothing more as the door was slammed shut in my face.

I heard a scream from Kairos and a loud thud.

Then there was silence…