Page 78

78

Kaylee

Sitting across from Amos, I watch him take a sip from the coffee mug Sarah handed to him. Breakfast had just ended, and as we waited for Amelia and David to join us in this meeting, Lucas and I decided to bring Amos into his office while asking Sarah—one of the few wolves we could trust at this early stage—to bring refreshments for us.

“Sorry we’re late.”

The door opens, and David walks in, followed by a tired-looking Amelia. I know they’re packing and preparing to return to Ivory Fangs tomorrow morning, and I feel guilty for asking them to be here.

“No need to apologize, Luan David,” Amos states, waving his hand with a smile. “I see you also brought in a friend.”

Stiffening in my seat, I sniff the air and confirm an unknown wolf’s scent. Blackberries and pine reach my nose, and I wonder who it is that Amelia decided to allow onto Oak Fur territory without telling me.

“Hey, Amos, long time no see.”

A dark-haired, green-eyed man walks through the door, his large frame taking up more space than I feel comfortable with. Amelia rolls her eyes at this, comes to my side, and sits on the sofa Lucas and I share.

“Alpha Nox of Night Moon, glad to see you’ve made it,” Amos greets, his eyes narrowing. “I thought you were on a mission with the Council.”

Alpha Nox scoffs at Amos as he moves towards the loveseat the Council Representative sits on and plops down beside him. Shocked by the interaction, I wrack my brain to remember who Alpha Nox is.

“Stop working your brain so hard,” Alpha Nox calls out with a yawn, leaning back onto the loveseat and closing his eyes. “Night Moon are the Council’s attack dogs. We take out packs on their orders and only reveal ourselves when needed,” the man continues, his deep voice rumbling around the room. I look at Amelia, shocked to see she knows such a man, and she just smiles, giving me a small wink.

“Nox and I went to school together,” she states.

“We were in the same art classes,” Alpha Nox adds.

“So why are you here then?” I decide to ask, getting straight to the point.

“Yes, even I would like to know that,” Amos echoes, gazing at the large man beside him.

“Because we took Blood Oath down early, and I decided to rush over here to see Amelia and give her pup the good news,” Alpha Nox says nonchalantly, opening one eye to look at Amos. “Besides, my men don’t need me for clean up.”

Lucas lets out a chuckle beside me as I continue to try and wrap my head around this Alpha Nox person. Contrary to his dark appearance, Alpha Nox seems easygoing.

“You took art?” I blurt out, not knowing what else to say.

“Out of everything I have said since coming into this office, what surprises you is my taking art classes?” Alpha Nox asks with wide eyes, his attention completely on me.

“I mean, I expected the Council to step in and deal with Blood Oath. It was part of our plan when coming to Oak Fur,” I shrug, getting a chuckle from Alpha Nox.

“I like this pup, Amelia. She’s a lot like her mother, Joan,” Alpha Nox smiles, turning to look at Amelia for a brief moment. “Call me Uncle Nox, Kaylee. I can’t wait for the two of you to become alphas so we can sign a treaty.”

I smile, feeling happy to know another wolf who knew my mother. Lucas stares at Uncle Nox, his eyes narrowed as he pulls me closer to his side. I roll my eyes, noticing his jealousy at how friendly Uncle Nox is being towards me.

“Calm down, little wolf. I have a mate of my own,” Uncle Nox says to my mate, his green eyes watching Lucas with a mischievous twinkle to them. Lucas scoffs, turning his face to nuzzle my hair, and I realize he’s breathing in my scent.

“In three days’ time, when we become alphas of Oak Fur, Kaylee and I will gladly sign a treaty with all the wolves here,” Lucas states, his face still hiding in my hair as he continues to breathe in my scent.

I smiled helplessly, deciding to stay held like this by Lucas. He isn’t snarling jealously at Uncle Nox, which surprises me. It seems he’s definitely changed from the overtly possessive man he used to be to someone who can read the room and understand that neither of us is in danger.

“Glad to hear that. But there’s more to what we must say about Blood Oath being destroyed.”

Lucas lets out a deep sigh, carefully pulling away from me to turn to Amos. The Council Representative looks at each one of us in turn, his eyes feeling like deep oceans.

“When Nox and his men disbanded Blood Oath, Nathaniel’s pregnant mate managed to escape,” Amos explains, shocking all of us in the room. To think Nathaniel Cross had mated another she-wolf, this time getting her pregnant. “From what we found in their medical facility, this she-wolf is carrying a son. We believe there may be trouble in the future either because of her or her pup.”

I shiver, realizing the implications of Amos’ warning. If this mate of Nathaniel’s tells her pup about their pack being disbanded because of Lucas’ email, we may have another battle ahead of us.

“Will she be a threat now?” Lucas asks, his fingers tightening against my side.

“We don’t think so. The she-wolf is a rogue right now and will need to worry about the pup inside her.”

I close my eyes and place a hand on my stomach. The bump grows with each passing day, and I think about my pup, Aspen. We’ll need to create a strong pack and provide a safe home for her so she can grow up without too much fear or worry.

“If you don’t think they’re something to worry about for now, then we won’t focus on the threat they might pose,” I state, looking towards Amos with a determined gaze. “Right now, we’re rebuilding a pack from the ground up. By the time Nathaniel’s son and mate are a threat, we’ll be ready for them.”

Amos looks me in the eyes, his brows furrowed. After a brief pause, he smiles and nods his head.

“I understand, Alpha Kaylee.” With these words, Amos informs us that he will be in his room for the rest of the day, completing his own work.

Uncle Nox asks if he can stay to give Lucas and me some guidance and get to know me. Lucas doesn’t like this idea but complies.

After the meeting, I decided to walk around Oak Fur with Amelia and Uncle Nox. I wanted to hear stories about my mom from this new wolf while noting how the changes to Oak Fur are progressing. Apparently, Lucas and David had taken control of planning where greenhouses and new vegetable fields would go yesterday when I had fallen asleep from grieving the loss of my childhood home. I’m curious to see how things are going in that area.