Demonic Regime

Chapter 26: Deep Snow

"Mom, Mom, it's fine." I batted her hands away. "I'll live."

"Sasha, Drake, let's go," called my dad. "We need to meet up with the others."

A light brown werewolf faced from the bedroom and let into our dad's arms. "Are we really going deep into the mountain?" asked Sasha. "Like real werewolves?"

"We are real werewolves," said Drake.

She rolled her eyes. "Traditional."

"Most of the pack is civil." My dad set her down.

I glanced at the solid black werewolf and touched my hair. Maybe I had black markings because I was not going to let my little brother outdo me. Drake stood at my side, and I sunk into my shoulders. Too bad he was already out doing me when it came to height.

***

I sat huddled between my dad and my grandpa. It was freezing! My thin slipper-like shoes were doing nothing to keep the snow out. The snow-coach was taking us deeper and deeper into the woods.

"Why couldn't this be held in the Creek Stadium?" asked Andreas. "Northern Ridge has to be so extreme about everything."

Sunny eyed her mate. "It's their tradition so don't be complaining about it in front of them.

"So, Max," said my grandpa. "Any luck finding a mate?"

I turned to my cousin, who was staring out the window.

"Work in progress," he muttered.

My grandpa's gaze went to Andreas. "Progress?"

The alpha shrugged. "I'm not forcing the issue. He's twenty-three, not forty."

The retired alpha nodded. "Oh, that reminds me, Jet is coming."

"What?" My mother snatched my siblings.

"Why the hell is he here?" said my dad.

"Faye is also his grandchild," said my grandpa. "Bloodhound and Hidden Peak are a bit messy when it comes to NRR and Wolfsbane. Bloodhound is also Jet's birth pack. Faye invited him so Gael couldn't do much about it."

"He doesn't need to be here," muttered my father, tightening his hold on me.

"The man isn't the greatest, but his children turned out fine—most of them. We'll see how Judah turns out." My grandpa shrugged. "Jagger and Keith are Jet's sons, remember that?" He lifted his finger. "If Titus can get over it, so can we. Insulting Jet will reflect on a lot of people. The man had his fair share of pups."

Sasha perked up. "Is he a bad man?"

"Not bad, just strict," our grandpa replied. "There are going to be a lot of strange werewolves here so stay close to us. No wandering off, understand?"

All three of us nodded. I wasn't going anywhere. Being mistaken as a human was enough motivation for me to never leave my father's side.

***

I was last to get out of the vehicle—a thick layer of snow-covered everything. My dad was waiting for me. The alpha was carrying Sasha up the path to the cave. My dad held out his arms and I put mine around his neck.

My mom quickly adjusted my robe, so my chest was exposed. "Your poor ears, we should have gotten you a hat."

"Let's worry about that once we're inside." My dad carried me up the path.

All the werewolves around us were putting me on edge. These weren't middle or lower ranks. It was a gathering of dominants. Andreas was immediately noticed and a light brown werewolf led him into the cave. We simply fell in line behind the alpha.

"Do you want me to put you down?"

I shook my head. "No."

My dad laughed. "It's a lot for anyone."

Drake was tightly holding our mom's hand and as he chewed on a claw.

"Welcome!" A large red werewolf lifted his arms into the air. "Andreas." He hugged the alpha. "And these must be the pups I've been so excited to see again."

My sister smiled slightly.

"I'm Gael. I remember when you were a tiny pup. And look at your brothers. They've grown up. Drake and Rudy." His eyes landed on me. "My fellow red werewolf."

I touched my hair and tried not to smile.

"We're happy we could have all of you. Go on in. Some of the other Midfield werewolves are here so that'll be your section."

"Sounds good." Andreas led the way.

"Fallon, hold up," said Gael. "I have someone I want to introduce you to."

My dad stopped and watched my mom and siblings leave. "What for?"

The red werewolf sighed. "One of the pups will mate into Northern Ridge and I have a couple suitors that I'm deciding between. One happens to be Faye's son."

My dad looked at me. "Do you want to go with your mom?"

I glanced at the mass of werewolves blocking the path I would have to walk through. "No."

Gael chuckled. "No one is going to hurt you, pup. I reminded everyone that if they saw a human boy running around in werewolf attire, he's Hector's grandson. That's enough to keep anyone from even looking at you wrong."

Nodding, I slid to the ground and grabbed my dad's hand. "I don't want to go alone."

"That's fine." He put an arm around my shoulders. "We'll go together in a minute." He motioned to Northern Ridge alpha. "Lead the way."

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