Chapter 423

Chapter 0423

My heart stops when I see Alpha Edgar stab Grace with a knife. I know she’s strong, but a knife wound is still serious. We could all tell that he had lost it. He looks and is acting like a crazed wolf. Even if we weren’t here for the challenge, he’d have to be put down. He’s a liability.

When Grace pulls his heart from his chest, I run up to her, pulling the knife from her stomach. I expect her to fall, but instead, she turns around to face the pack. As much as I want to take care of my mate, I know she needs to do this. I step back, staying close in case she needs me.

“Does anyone here contest my rank as your new Alpha?” She asks in a voice that rings with strength and power, making me even more proud of her. You’d never know she’s bleeding and was just stabbed in the stomach. She raises her father’s heart, still in her hand, before crushing it and tossing it to the ground.

No one speaks, but everyone in the Laurel River Pack bends the knee, showing their necks in submission to my mate. “Anyone that does not wish to follow me and my mate may leave. But these lands no longer belong to Laurel River. The council has traded these lands for an extension to our existing pack. Anyone who chooses to become part of the Safe Haven Pack will be provided transportation to your new pack and given lodging and food until you can get on your feet.”

I’m thankful we brought Noah and Sirona with us, leaving Carlos and Amber to run the pack in our absence. When Grace finishes her speech, I scoop her up, unable to wait to look after her any longer. I take her to Sirona, who immediately begins cleaning the wound.

“You did great baby. I’m so proud of you.” I tell her.

“These people are hungry and don’t seem to have sufficient housing or clothing. As usual, Alpha, we have our work cut out for us.” She says, as Sirona finishes looking her over.

“Well, Luna, you are already healing. It’s a good thing you have that immunity, or that could have been a lot worse.”

“Let’s go around and talk to people. Sirona, I want you to come along as well, in case anyone needs medical treatment.” Grace says, before turning to me. “How many can we take back today?”

I look back at our vans. “Forty to fifty. We’ll have to triage and take the ones that most need assistance, the elderly and those with young pups.”

We spend the rest of the day deciding who will go to Safe Haven today. Several pack members are malnourished. The omegas seem the most impacted, which is not uncommon. We load up the ones that need medical attention first and send them back with Sirona. The second and third vans take groups of elderly that look frail and starved and young pups that need food and baby

supplies. I send Noah and Anders back with those vans. Anders was here to assist with the

challenge and while I appreciate his assistance, he has his own work to do.

+15 RONDS

Grace and I plan to stay overnight in order to allow a couple more individuals to go to our pack. with the expectation that our teams will be sending the vans back again tomorrow. After getting everyone settled for the night or sent back to Safe Haven, we set out to see what is still

salvageable from the packhouse.

The kitchen has been demolished. The refrigerator and freezers ruined causing food to spoil. I send out some of our warriors to hunt and they bring back a couple of deer. We start a fire and with the help of some pack members, we’re able to at least have some meat for dinner. Grace and I wait until the pack has eaten their fill before eating. They need it more than we do. Tomorrow when our vans arrive, they will be bringing food and clothing for our new pack members.

That night, we go through the Alpha’s room and offices. We find stashes of money, hordes of food that we prepare to set out tomorrow and the files of the pack members. All of that will have to come back with us to go through as we have time.

“There must be over $100,000 stuffed in different places. What was he doing? Why wouldn’t he use this to help his pack? It makes no sense.”

“Baby, your father wasn’t himself. I don’t know how long he was this way, or if he always was. but at least now, we can correct his wrongs.”

It’s early morning before I find some bedding that I lay on the floor and try to create a place for us to rest for a few hours. “Grace, come lay down. We need some sleep before another long day tomorrow.”

Grace comes and curls up against me, laying her head on my chest. “Is there anything here that you want to take with us?” I ask her, rubbing her shoulders and back.

“No. There is nothing here for me. Nothing of my mother or me.”

She sighs heavily. “Will we always be working this hard? Always taking on so much at one time? It feels like the mountain we are climbing is never–ending.”

I kiss the top of her head. “No, I don’t think so. We’ve overcome so much already. Look at what we’ve done, baby. We’ve created a new pack. Our pack members are happy and healthy which hasn’t always been their life. We are building homes and businesses so our pack can thrive. We’re helping our pack members find their mates, so they can start families and have the lives they’ve always wanted. Does it sometimes look different than what I expected? Definitely. I would never have thought sprites would be a part of my life or my pack. Did I expect that we would acquire a second pack within months of confirming our own pack? No, but here we are.”

I pull her chin up so she’s looking at me. “But we can do anything together. We ARE doing all of

−15 BONOS

this together. We aren’t just making a better life for ourselves, we’re making a better life for our pack, and our future pups. It’s hard now, but it will be so worth it in the end. And with you by my

side, I know we can never fail.”

I kiss her nose as she smiles up at me. “How did you get to be so smart?”

I smirk down at her. “Well, according to my beautiful mate, I’m old. And, with age, comes

knowledge.”

And my sweet mate bursts out laughing just as I’d hoped she would.

Cooper Author

Do you love these moments between Grace and Eli as much as I do?

?

US KAKA

Chapter 0424