Page 11 of Ascendant Moon (Gladstone Shifters #6)

Wednesday, Eagle River WI

Three days had passed without a sign of Lincoln.

Bruce’s flimsy excuse of protecting him from a cougar that no one had actually seen left people shaking their heads.

Whenever he left his house, it was guarded by pack enforcers, which meant no one could get close enough to see or scent anything.

People were too afraid to confront the pack’s Second, and fewer still would dare question Alpha Richmond when he returned from Montana.

As their Omega’s housemate and closest friend, the pack had hoped that Melva would be able to keep them informed.

Unfortunately, she, too, was being watched carefully and anyone seen speaking to her was looked at with suspicion.

The woman bristled with anger and frustration, growling to herself and flashing amber eyes at anyone that looked her way.

Her pain was obvious, yet what could be done?

The pack had never faced a situation like this before, and the concern for Lincoln left an anxious stench in the air.

At home, Melva cursed her own stupidity.

If only they had escaped earlier instead of waiting!

Unfortunately, the enforcers had disabled her car, but even so, she couldn’t leave Lincoln all alone here in the hands of a beast. On top of that, Melva hadn’t thought of acquiring contact information for Alpha Sheppard’s office or Gladstone, and so couldn’t alert them of the situation.

The closest packs were miles away and they had no reason to believe her story or get involved, so that wasn’t an option either.

The only thing to do was wait and watch for an opportunity to set Lincoln free, even if it cost her everything. She’d find a way. She had to.

############

That evening, Missoula

Weary from a long day of teaching, Jack showered and changed for bed before calling his mate. They ended each day apart with a phone conversation, and inadequate as it was, they both clung to the connection like a lifeline. William picked up on the second ring.

“Hello, Beloved! It’s later than usual, so I assume you had another long day.”

Jack’s warm growl could be clearly heard over the line.

“I have, my mate. The sound of your voice excites my wolf, yet I must admit to being very tired. Tell me, were you able to complete your business with Walter’s attorney?”

“Yes, just this morning. His will is now in order and he can rest easy knowing his wishes will be followed in the event of his death. This evening, Gray showed me where the Lobo pack dens are located, and I paid them a short visit in wolf form. He is fascinated with our people and wants to know everything I’m willing to share.

For some reason, he is particularly intrigued with Gladstone, and I suspect you’re responsible for that. ”

Jack acknowledged the statement with a grunt.

“Yes, my love. My dreams have revealed something important will happen to Gray at Gladstone, though exactly what and when is unclear. When the time comes, he may need the added impetus to join us for a visit. Until Luna reveals more, say nothing about it, beloved.”

Jack could almost hear William’s eye-roll over the phone line.

“Oh, all right! We seem to have plenty of things to discuss as it is, and Gray can’t wait to compare notes with Walter. It’s impossible for them to talk with Tayen in the room, though I’m planning an outing for the two of us so they can chat privately.”

Jack spent a few minutes giving William a quick review of happenings at the conference, including his impressions of recently met brothers.

They were making good progress on bringing everyone up to speed, and Jack himself had learned much through the teaching dreams. His yawns finally ended their conversation, and William bade him goodnight.

“I love and miss you so, mate. Give Ben, Evan, and the others my greetings.”

Jack ended the call, turned out the lights, and fell asleep within moments.

############

Some hours later

Despite Jack’s need for rest, his slumber was interrupted by the familiar swirling mists of a dream.

When the scene cleared, he found himself walking the empty streets of an unfamiliar Mexican city, rather than the wooded settings he was used to.

Approaching from the opposite direction was a fellow Lobo True Elder, dressed in a suit and tie.

Upon meeting, they scented one another and the stranger extended his hand.

“Hola, mi hermano (hello, my brother). I am Hector Alvarez.”

The Spanish greeting brought back fond memories.

“Hola, Hector. My name is Jack Eby. I surmise this is León?”

Hector smiled broadly and nodded.

“It is, and your scent tells me that you must be related to some in our pack.”

Unsurprised, Jack explained the connection.

“My mother’s name was Juana Lopez Delgado.

She mated Samuel Eby, and in 1847, they settled in what eventually became New Mexico.

I was their only child, and a century later, I traveled to Mexico in search of her sister Teresa’s descendants, but found no one.

Until the team located you in León, I had assumed that she and her pack had perished during the Lobo purge. ”

Hector’s scent took on an edge of excitement and good will.

“I’m pleased to tell you that Teresa and her pack found safety here, and some of her descendants are alive and well today.

It will be quite a surprise for them to hear that they have relatives in the States.

I doubt that we’ve been brought together for this particular news, however, and I suspect you may know something about the changes our pack is facing. Come and share them with me.”

Hector guided Jack to a nearby street bench, where they sat down, joined hands, and exchanged information given to them in their dreams. Though they each had a lifetime of memories, time constraints required selectivity and haste in sharing only what was necessary for the moment.

Jack brought Hector up to date on the role of the shifter councils, the recent surge in True Elders, and the current state of shifter affairs in Mexico and beyond.

Lastly, he explained the upcoming mission to León.

“I will be traveling to Mexico on Monday, and the team should arrive in León within a day or two. We have not yet discussed the smaller details, but there will be at least six of us, including myself, Santiago Cruz, and another of our brothers, Juan Ortega. The purpose of the mission is to offer your pack whatever assistance you may need, including relocation north where your wolves will no longer have to hide.”

A surge of emotion from Hector swamped the link, and Jack gently soothed his troubled brother. At length, the man spoke.

“We truly are the “lost pack,” and I thank Luna for guiding Juan and the others to search for us. We have discussed the very possibilities you’ve shared with me, and most of our people are open to leaving León.

It will be difficult to start over in a new place, but Alpha Navarro and I agree that it’s time to make a change.

Unless I’m mistaken, our people will embrace the offer of help.

Some will be hesitant, perhaps suspicious, but my dreams have shown that our future lies elsewhere. ”

While they still had time, Hector shared the size and composition of the pack, along with the questions and concerns his people had voiced at their last meeting. Jack was certain that it would help the team fine-tune the plans before they arrived.

“Assure your people that we only wish to help. You will not be told what you must do or where to go. As I understand it, the northern packs are prepared to be very generous in providing whatever you need to make a move, if that is your choice. If not, at least your pack will have a connection to the other shifters in Mexico. I look forward to meeting all of you very soon.”

By the time they ended the teaching dream and exchanged phone numbers, the enshrouding mists swallowed them up and they awakened in their beds.

Despite being the middle of the night, Jack set an alarm to rise earlier than he’d planned and sent a text to his bodyguards and Juan Ortega, asking them to meet him an hour before mealtime.

Another text went to Alpha Cruz to request a private breakfast meeting with him and Juan.

The mission now had the information and direction needed to proceed with confidence, and there were preparations to be made.

############

León Mexico, Friday evening

There were certain advantages, and a few disadvantages, to being a male Omega.

Nicolas (Nick) Garcia gave his latest conquest a blistering farewell kiss and left the hotel room with a satisfied smile on his handsome face.

His job as a waiter in an upscale restaurant frequented by tourists not only provided a good income, it brought a constant stream of beautiful men across his path.

All human, of course, but they couldn’t resist the sexy pheromones his tight, muscular body naturally exuded.

He already enjoyed an advantage simply by being a shifter—a wolf among sheep, as he liked to think of it.

Some pack members gave him grief for lack of self-control, while others found his busy nightlife amusing.

Omegas were born bisexual, though most had a definite preference by the time puberty set in.

For Nick, there was no question that he was attracted to men, and at twenty-six, he’d hoped that Luna would have brought him a mate by now.

With their pack stuck in León, and no new shifter candidates in sight, Nick turned to human men to scratch his itch.

The fact that his one-night lovers thought he was something special certainly boosted his ego.

Among humans, his dick was above average in comparison, and he knew exactly what to do with it—so he was told.

Bedding human men put him on equal footing with them, giving him a confidence and swagger he could never have among shifters.

And since they knew nothing of his Omega status, they judged him only by what their limited senses revealed.

Among his own kind, he was just another Omega who happened to have a talent for calming packmates and providing a compassionate listening ear.

Unfortunately, he was shorter and less impressive than even his Beta or Delta friends, let alone Alphas.

Add to that his seasonal heats, and the whole package was, in his opinion, depressingly underwhelming.

The only packmates who seemed to understand him were Sergio and Dante, the “extra” True Elder and Alpha among them.

They, at least, knew what being a third-wheel felt like—specially gifted, but without a pack who needed them.

Nick’s thoughts carried him to Hector’s apartment on the other side of town, where he was to meet with the leadership team.

Hector was the older of the pack’s two True Elders, having served for at least a hundred years.

His mate had died before Nick was born, and with no children, he lived alone.

Sergio, on the other hand, wanted to put his Luna-given skills to better use, ideally in a different pack.

In his early thirties, his perspective and goals were not quite aligned with Hector’s, and he was eager to find his mate, settle down, and produce pups.

As for their pack Alphas, Javier and Dante Navarro were a father and son pair.

Javier was well-liked and led the pack with strength and compassion.

Dante was Nick’s age and longed to lead his own pack, as he was destined to do.

He was respectful of his father’s position, and Javier tried to include him in all pack business as part of his training.

They didn’t agree on everything, as expected, and the relationship was strained at times by Dante’s frustration.

Running just a little late, Nick was the last to arrive for the meeting—called by Hector, rather than Alpha Navarro.

That was unusual in itself, but there was also some urgency attached to the request that they meet as soon as possible.

Nick had no idea what might be so important or why they needed him, but he went along like a good Omega and did what he was told.

Once he took his seat in the small living room, Hector revealed the news they’d all been waiting for.

“I received a visitor in my dreams the other night named Jack Eby.

He lives in the States and will be part of a group from Chihuahua who plan to visit us early next week.

These are the same people whose scents we detected back in June, and they were guided by Luna to search for what they have been calling the “lost pack.” It seems, my friends, that we were never completely forgotten after all.

“When our ancestors escaped the purge by fleeing to León, one of the original pack members, Teresa Lopez Delgado, was among them. Her sister, Juana, was Jack Eby’s mother, and is a distant relation to several of us, including you, Sergio.

Because of that connection, Jack will be part of the team sent to contact us.

They intend to offer whatever type of support we need, including relocation to the north, if we wish, where our wolves may finally run free. ”

The room nearly burst with exclamations of joy, surprise and relief.

Hope, missing for generations, now had the opportunity to blossom in hearts unprepared to accept it.

Nick, Sergio, and Javier all became teary-eyed, and Nick’s Omega nature compelled him to comfort his friends.

Alpha Navarro was the only one in the room who’d known what Hector was going to say, for the True Elder hadn’t enough time to gather them together until tonight.

Now that the initial excitement had ebbed, Hector fielded many questions.

“Jack promised to contact me by phone with more information before the team leaves Chihuahua. They expect to arrive on Tuesday or Wednesday of next week, and we must be ready to meet with them. I was told that the Lobo have been brought back from extinction and are found in both Chihuahua and Sonora, and there are thriving packs of Lobo shifters living there. My friends, Luna has not only prepared the way, but has handed us the key to our freedom.”

With instructions to spread the word among the pack, the meeting ended.

Nick, Dante, and Sergio gathered in the moonlight to talk excitedly among themselves, thrilled by the possibilities of a real future.

None suspected that Luna had been preparing the three of them for something no one had foreseen or imagined.