Sleeping, especially since Dante had tried to force me into it, was not something I had planned to do. I didn't even realize that I had fallen asleep on the plane until I woke up in a car in a lush, beautiful forest.
I lifted my head up off the window to see endless expanses of green. The trees were immensely tall and filled everything in sight, save for the long, winding road we drove on.
"You almost made it all the way to the pack house." Dante told me, glancing over at me from the drivers seat.
A yawn escaped me, which I tried to cover with my hand. "I didn't mean to fall asleep."
"You'll be happy you did later. We won't be able to get to my house until midnight, at the earliest."
I glanced at the clock on the car's dash, finding it was only about six. We had left France at around four. "What time will the challenge happen?" I was guessing that's why we were staying up so late.
"Right at moonrise. It's custom. Magnus and his beta will probably show up before then, though, but only an hour at the most."
Moonrise? That was a thing? "When is moonrise?"
"It should be around eleven tonight."
Alright, so Magnus would show up around ten, and there'd be a two hour period where a fight went on and Dante had to deal with it all. He'd probably have to order the cleanup or whatever happened after.
Out of questions, I turned back to look at our surroundings. The sun was still up, although closer to sunset now, as it shone through the trees. The woods here were so different from at home, but still so beautiful. I thought it might even be more beautiful than at home. I certainly understood why Dante did most of his shifting here than at the palace. The Palace's forest was a park compared to this expanse of trees.
A few wolves flashed through the forest, two brown and one auburn, chasing each other. The darkest brown wolf nipped at the auburn wolf's tail, and then the third wolf tackled the other two. All too quickly, the heaping mass of fur disappeared from view as Dante made a slight turn.
Eventually, buildings popped up. At first they were sparse, but then more and more appeared it was clear we were in a tiny civilization, hidden in all the foliage. The main road stayed clear of buildings, with everything being connected by smaller roads that branched off of the main one. A good amount of forest still separated the two areas, but the houses and stores remained visible through the trees.
"It's so pretty here." I said to Dante, still unable to take my eyes off of the landscape.
"I thought you'd like it. I was hoping to give you a full tour of the pack tomorrow, if you'd like."
I bit my lip to hide my smile. "I'd like that."
"Good." He brought those eyes to me again. "It'll be a nice birthday thing."
My face fell. "No. Nothing about that."
"You're going to be very busy tomorrow. Just warning you now."
Goddess. I hadn't let him do or give me anything for Christmas, nor had I let my parents and family do anything, either. My birthday was no different. I frowned at him, annoyed at his decision to ignore my wishes. "I told you I didn't want to cele—"
"And we're here." Dante turned the wheel to the right, and up ahead an enormous, palatial pack house sat. The trees around it had been cleared to leave ample field space, and I'm sure the backyard was clear, too. Fields were necessary for training purposes, as well as pack gatherings and such.
The pack house was buzzing with wolves, both inside and on the lawn. A few black SUVs similar to the one we were in sat on the circular front drive, which surrounded a gorgeous stone fountain. Beautiful flowers were planted all over, circling both the fountain and the driveway and lining the house.
I couldn't help the 'wow' that fell out of my mouth. Goddess, Dante clearly only lived in palaces. Whereas the actual Werewolf castle was an extravagant feat of ancient European architecture and glamour, this was a beautiful work of much cozier navy paneling, and light gray stones, with a dark roof and white trim. The front entryway jutted out from the rest of the house, with a beautiful, big porch and huge columns holding up the roof at least three stories up.
This place was grand. Each side of the house went far back, and then further back behind them, more house poked out.
I could only stare as Dante pulled into the drive and parked the car at the opposite end of the circle, nearest to the door.
My staring had led to me not noticing we were parked until Dante was at my door, and I had to blink back into focus. This allowed me to remember his comments, and I frowned at him, refusing his hand as I hopped out of the huge car.
He sighed, but dropped it. "Come on. Be excited."
I crossed my arms and refused to acknowledge any more of this.
A man came running up to us, smiling. "Welcome back, Alpha, Miss. May I help you with any bags or anything?"
Dante turned around, offering a smile. "Hey. Nice to see you, Chuck." His head swiveled to me. "I'll send your bags with mine to my house unless you want to shower in the next few hours."
Shower here, in the pack house? I'd bet the bathroom would be gorgeous. And the long plane ride left me feeling grimy. "I'll shower here."
Dante nodded, turning back to Chuck. He handed him the keys. "Can you just park this in the garage and have the black duffel bag sent to my house?"
Chuck nodded, taking the keys quickly. "Of course, sir. Will that be all?"
"Yes. Thanks, Chuck." Dante moved to the trunk and grabbed the small, blue bag containing Sapphire's borrowed clothes before he closed it again.
"You ready?" He asked me, nudging his head towards the house.
I stepped away from the car and towards the house, doing my best to ignore Dante while also taking in as much of the decor as possible.
Dante tried to put his free hand on my back to guide me, but I quickly side stepped and climbed the few stairs to the porch.
"Florence, you should've expected something. Don't be mad at me."
I shot a glare at him as we approached the front doors, made up of dark wood and beautiful glass panes. Two guards opened them, and we stepped into the warm, vibrant entry.
"I told everyone I didn't want anything to do with that and you're the only one that has to ignore me."
"I'm the only one that can ignore you, first off. They're not here. Max would've tried something. Birthdays are easier than Christmas, and he had more time. Besides, you don't even know what I'm planning."
There were a few wolves that were in the large space, stretching up with huge staircases leading to the many floors above. Their eyes darted to us immediately, and I noticed their conversations become quiet.
Dante came closer, and we both stopped a foot away from each other in the middle of the room. The guards closed the doors behind us, finally. "Don't be mad at this. It's not diamonds or maseratis or anything. You shouldn't be overwhelmed."
I did my best to keep my dark look at him, but those blue-greens quickly pierced my resolve. I crumbled, letting out a huff. "I'm not looking forward to it."
Dante's hand found the small of my back, and he brought us under the stairwell and into a long hallway, taking us left. "It's a good start to getting back into celebrations."
I would be the judge of that, and anything Dante wanted to give would be too much. "Where are we going right now?" I asked as we took another quick turn and approached a silver elevator.
Of course this place had an elevator.
"My office. My Beta, Shane, and a few other people will be there. I need to check in for a bit and then I'll get you to a shower."
The elevator dinged. "Wait, I'm meeting these people right now?" We stepped into the elevator and I immediately checked my appearance. My hair was a little weird from the bed, or maybe all that time with Dante, so I rushed to try and make it look less messed up.
"Briefly. They know you're coming."
Another ding signaled the end of our ascending, and the silver doors slid open, revealing a well-lit hallway.
"I feel like you should've told me I was meeting these important people upon arrival."
Dante rolled his eyes. "You look great. They won't bother you more than trying to get gossip about me."
"What gossip would I have about you?" I asked as we walked down the hallway. Large windows showed the backyard, and I could clearly see a huge pool right in the back courtyard, with an endless field behind it.
"You know, embarrassing stuff only a mate would know."
A huge set of dark brown doors were at the end of the hallway, with strong guards on either side. When we got close enough, they opened the doors for us with a nod to Dante, and a quiet, "Alpha."
Dante led me inside and set my bag by the doors.
"Finally," A dark-skinned female said from on top of a table, running a knife against a metal rod. "Thought you might've been getting your nails done while you were at it."
"Shane, he's fifteen minutes past the time he gave us. Chill the fuck out." Said the man standing by the window.
"I don't know why I leave and you think you have the authority to speak like that, warrior, but I'd cut it the fuck out now." Dante snapped, saying her title like an insult.
"Nice to have you back, Dante." The man said, walking over to shake Dante's hand.
Dante nodded. "Is it just you two?"
Shane jumped off the table, walking over to us. "Yes. Everyone else is preparing the field."
Whenever Dante spoke about Shane, I had pictured a huge man. More muscular than Dante, given Shane's head warrior position. But Shane, in her shorter-than-me frame, was a total surprise. She had a great build, very athletic and it showed in her tight workout leggings and tank top, and her arms were clearly defined. She had striking green eyes, and black hair cropped closely to her head.
She was beautiful, in a bad-ass way.
"Your mate's cute, but she's staring."
I blinked, realizing that I had been paying too close attention to her appearance. "Sorry." I said sheepishly.
"This is Florence. Florence, this is Shane, the jackass, and Andrew, my Beta."
Andrew stuck out a hand for me to shake. "Lovely to meet you, Florence."
I took his hand, feeling Dante's own on my back twitch at me touching another man.
Ooh, I did not know that simple touch would make him annoyed like that.
This whole mate thing might come in handy for payback.
"You too." I replied. I never knew how to greet people, and I always felt weird doing it.
Shane eyed me some more, probably looking exactly like I had been to her earlier. "You're from France?" She finally asked me, sticking out her own hand to shake mine.
"Yeah, but my parents are Americans."
She breathed out a sigh of relief as I took her hand. "Good. European wolves get on my nerves. So high maintenance."
"Thank you for always being pleasant, Shane. Show me what you needed me to see." Dante's sarcasm was thick, but it didn't phase Shane.
Andrew quickly went back to the desk and picked up a manilla folder that had been laying on top. "Magnus has become hell-bent on having that land for himself, and I can't figure out why. There's nothing significant economically there, no wolves he would want to take on that land, and no identifiable gain from acquiring it. If he did get it, the only thing we'd lose would be some pride and the quicker route to the Sanders' Pack, but we'd still have the other two."
Dante went over to a glass table near the side of the room and placed his palm on it. A light ran down his hand, scanning it, before an insane map hologram rose from the table, with three dimensional satellite image.
Woah. That definitely didn't exist eleven years ago.
Dante moved his hands, pinching and swiping and get the hologram to move, until it was perfect. "What is it, three hundred acres?"
"Three hundred and seven. It's nothing substantial at all. I think Magnus wants it for what it symbolizes." Andrew answered.
Dante growled lowly at that, annoyed. "Which is exactly why he won't get it. Thinking he can seem more powerful than this pack?" He growled again.
I glanced around the huge office, completely awed. The room was one big, beautiful circle, and there was another two floors above us, all open in the middle. Those floors were made up of solely bookcases lining the room, with walkways circling to provide access. The room was a deep gray, with dark blue accents and silver furniture. Screens were everywhere, and I'm sure more gadgets were hidden, like the hologram table map had been. It all seemed so modern and high-tech.
A huge wooden desk sat across from the doors, with floor to ceiling windows stretching all the way up. Deep blue curtains rested on either side of the window, but I hoped the view was never covered. Everything was visible from here, and it was breathtaking.
Dante glanced over at me as I was taking in the expansive space. "Do you want to see what we're talking about?"
I froze for a second, unsure. He wanted to show me secret alpha stuff that was the cause for tension between him and an evil alpha?
I wasn't sure I should be involved in that, let alone if I wanted to. But curiosity got the best of me, and I tiptoed over to the hologram table.
Dante flattened his palm and moved it towards the table, never actually touching. The hologram flattened, revealing a very two dimensional map. He pinched some more, and the map zoomed out, showing almost all of Georgia.
Rigid, colorful shapes stood out against the gray of the map, with each of the shapes connecting to each other.
"The black zone is this pack." Dante explained, and I noticed the largest shape on the map, the large black one, stretched all the way to the ocean, but still had a larger majority of the pack more westward. There were probably fewer trees out east. Wolves didn't usually tend to settle too close to the coasts, or in plains. Mountains and forests were ideal.
"The white is the Valentino pack, so all of this," he gestured to the huge expanse, as the white nearly doubled all of his pack land. "Is my family's. The green is Finn's, and the red is Magnus's pack." Finns pack sat to the west of Dante's packs, a long rectangular piece of land that bordered both the Valentino and Lancaster packs, and continued to stretch up, touching Magnus's land. The red zone was an odd oval shape, touching both the Lancaster pack to the north and Finn's pack to the west. It wasn't nearly as large as the black shape or the green shape, but it was just bigger than the white one.
In between the northwest corner of the Lancaster pack, the east side of Finn's pack, and the southwest corner of Magnus's pack, there was a small, circular expanse of gray land. Dante pointed to it, and then made more motions with his fingers, and the map zoomed in on the gray area.
"This is the land Magnus wants." Little dots of black, green, and red popped up in the space as Dante zoomed. "Two hundred years ago, this land still hadn't been claimed by any of the nearby Alphas, but it was time they defined their borders and set up a clear pack system here. They all tried to claim it, which created needless fights between them. To keep the peace, they decided to leave it as a free space, unclaimed by any one Alpha. The land was not worth the fighting, so they let it be." Dante explained.
"Still not worth it." Andrew spoke up from his position near the window.
"But a war would be fun." Shane added, a dark grin on her face.
Looking at the land, it was clear why. It wasn't anything compared to the size of the packs already created here, and the river that ran through this area also ran through the other packs, so there wasn't a need for water.
"We will not be fighting unnecessarily." Dante shot a look to Shane, who frowned, and then looked back to the map. "The dots are the wolves settled on the land from each pack. The majority of the wolves living there are from my pack, and most of them have been living there for decades, if not more than a century. They have long enjoyed the peace and quiet out there, and the Alphas of this pack have always supported them. Magnus wanting to claim this area has been the only problem we've ever had with this land, and it's very recent."
I stared some more at the small area, seeing just how many black dots were there. It was like it's own little community of wolves out there, with only a few wolves from Finn's pack, and even less from Magnus.
"If anyone were to claim the land, shouldn't it be you? Magnus barely has anyone there." I asked.
"I have no interest in it. It's such a small amount of land that trying to take it would be a waste of energy and resources." Dante shook his head. "We know there's nothing worth mining there. That would be the only hidden secret this place could offer us."
So if Magnus wasn't in it for the resources, he had to be in it to anger Dante. "Why is Magnus trying to piss you off?"
"Because that's what Magnus does. He also really didn't like you visiting your friends in France. Called a number of times expressing that." Shane replied.
Dante turned to glare, clearly not liking the information she gave. But my intrigue, and also my fear, were piqued. "He was that mad about that?"
"Florence—" Dante tried to cut in and stop my probing of this, but I was desperate to hear from someone else how Magnus felt about my family, so many years after trying to kill my parents and brother and banishing us.
"Oh, he was pissed. He said something about knowing you hung around with that 'filthy family', but that he didn't know you were, what was it?" She turned to Andrew for a response, who looked equally as displeased as Dante at the topic.
"He 'didn't realize you were in bed with them, too.'" Andrew's hazel eyes darkened to a deep brown.
I blinked, stepping away from Dante. "How does he know about me?" That was clearly a comment about our relationship. Goddess, he knew about me. I was as good as dead.
Dante grabbed my wrist before I could get any further away from him, and those damn sparks calmed my racing heart the slightest. "He doesn't. It's just an expression."
I shook my head. "He knows about me, and he's going to—"
"No, he doesn't, and he can't touch you."
"Can I ask what we're missing?" Shane questioned, glancing between the two of us.
Dante growled quietly at her, and she raised her hands in defense. "Just wanted to know why your mate might have problems with an Alpha that's coming to this pack in a few hours. Felt like it would be relevant."
"Drop it, Shane." Dante replied, his eyes dark. His hand was still on me, and I tried shaking it off.
"It is relevant, and you lied to me. He knows."
"He doesn't, Florence. If he did know, he wouldn't waste the opportunity to expose your family like that. It would be a PR nightmare if this were to come out about your family on his terms."
"So me being back is going to hurt my family?" The thought tore through my chest. Of course it would hurt my family. That was all I seemed to do.
"They'll seem dishonest. But it's not a huge deal. They're well-liked. I can promise you he doesn't know, alright?"
I tugged my wrist back, being reminded of when he had restrained me on the plane. That was under completely different circumstances, and while I had been hot then, now the heat was from anger, not whatever other emotion Dante always brought out of me.
"Let go, Dante."
He obliged, but those eyes stared into mine with an intensity just as capturing. "Don't worry about Magnus."
Magnus literally said Dante was in bed with my family. No way was that a coincidence.
Before I could say anything more, the office doors opened again, and three large men strolled in.
The frontmost one, around my height but with biceps the size of watermelons, with dark brown hair and eyes, was the first to speak. "Welcome back, Alpha." His eyes regarded me, and he smiled. "This must be our Lu—"
My annoyance towards Dante only increased at the title I knew was coming. I cut the man off before I had even realized it. "Not Luna."
Behind me, Shane let out a 'me-ow'. I turned to glare at her, and she winked.
"We can do pleasantries later, Justin. What's up?"
The man nodded, his smile faltering, but still offering me a small one. "The field is prepared, as well as the doctors."
"No faith in me, I see." Andrew joked from his spot the window, leaning against the sill.
"Call Magnus's Gamma and ask for their ETA. Tell them they're not being let into my pack until at least ten." Dante ignored Andrew's comment and moved straight on with the Alpha business.
"Got it."
"Do you need anything for this, Andrew?" Dante asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
He shook his head. "No. Unless you want to try and calm down Cora."
"There is no way she's worried for you." Shane spoke up.
"No, but we were supposed to have dinner tonight. She's mad, not worried."
Cora must be his mate. "Is she going to come, then?" Justin asked.
Andrew's lip lifted up in an unhappy snarl. "No. I don't want her near that piece of shit mutt. It'll be quick and clean and I'll be right back home."
"Bit cocky, aren't we?" Shane asked, picking at her nails from her spot on a metal cabinet.
"Magnus's strength lies purely in his numbers. There's not a stand-out wolf in that pack. Not anymore." Andrew shook his head.
Not anymore? My interest was piqued. I was desperate to know everything I could about what had happened with my parents and what they had done to Magnus to make him so out for their blood. There was a possibility that Andrew was referring to it now.
But the very idea of speaking up—in this room full of strong, powerful wolves, all prepared for a fight and far more impressive than I could ever hope to be—crushed me. I retracted back, realizing where I was. I had no place with these wolves, especially not with Dante, and yet I was here in what must be the strongest pack on this continent.
Goddess, I was over here arguing with Dante in front of them like I mattered. I was nothing to these wolves, a mere rogue-smelling, malnourished human.
I should leave, right? This was an important meeting between an Alpha, Beta, Head Warrior, and whoever else.
I should definitely leave.
My eyes flitted around the room, looking for a subtle way out. If I just up and left, Dante would draw all sorts of attention to me, and I'd continue interrupting their discussion. I needed to shower, too, so I could get that done.
The two men who had arrived with Justin still stood quietly by the door, almost guarding it. It was unnecessary, as I knew two more guards stood in the same spot on the other side of the doors.
Mulling over my methods of escape, I found no simple options. Honestly, the only thing I could do was really just grab my bag and go. It wouldn't go smoothly, but it was my sole option in this situation.
I could also just ask Dante quickly and then leave. But Dante had lied to me about this whole thing, and I wasn't too keen on asking for his approval for anything right now.
So I went with the more awkward option, and just up and walked to the door.
I got about two steps towards it before conversation ceased and Dante's eyes were tangible on my back. "What are you doing?"
"I'm going to shower." My legs kept me moving, and I bent down to grab the steps of my duffel bag.
"You don't even know where my room is. I'll show you to it in five minutes."
Spinning around, I did my best to seem completely calm and not nervous of what all these other wolves thought of me. "I'll figure it out."
"Florence, please just wait."
I turned back around and got within two steps of the door, reaching out to open it, when it was opened by the guards near me.
"Thank you," I bid, leaving that fancy office full of seriously powerful wolves and walking down the hallway opposite where I knew the elevator sat.
I was maybe fifteen feet away from the office when I heard one of them speak up.
"You're kidding." Shane complained.
"I'm not. Go." Dante replied.
She huffed, and I heard her jump off her desk. I kept moving, and I was almost far enough to miss her last comment.
"Fine. Only because I am wildly intrigued by your feisty mate."
She received a low growl in response before I heard her footsteps follow my path out of the office, and finally the heavy doors shut.
Goddess, please don't have her follow me. Please please please.
Shane was intimidating, and she seemed amused by any and all resistance I gave Dante. This was supposed to be me getting away from the important people.
Just as I rounded the first hallway I approached, she fell into step next to me, grabbing the bag out of my hands. "You're going the wrong way."
I stopped, turning to her, exasperation rolling off of me. "I could've carried that."
"I mean, if you're going to lead us all over this place, I might as well carry this bag. We'll be hours, and you seem a little thin to be carrying anything for that long."
I could scream. I completely understood Dante's annoyance. And how many people were going to comment on my weight until they realized it's not helping anyone?
But instead of exploding, which I had far too little energy for—and honestly this warrior wolf would probably snap me in half if I flipped—I sighed, closing my eyes and trying to reel all my emotions in. "Could you just tell me where to go so you can go back to Dante's office?"
"No can do. Dante will just send me right back. Why aren't you two mated yet?"
Goddess.
Don't focus on her words. Just get to his room and let her return to Dante.
"Are we at least on the right floor?"
She shook her head. "Two more up."
We were already on the third floor. Dante's pack room was on the highest floor, and probably had a magnificent view of the entire pack.
And he didn't even live here.
Will I ever understand his life?
Probably not. Nor would I be in it for much longer.
"Can you lead us?"
She quirked an eyebrow, stared at me for a long second, and then spun around, rounding the hallway faster than I could realize. I had to jog for a moment to catch up, which was far more exercise than I had done in at least a week. I had sprinted to sneak out with the twins, but that was the most I've done since I escaped.
"So, back to the mating."
Not a word came from me in response.
"Dante let us know back in November that he had found his mate, so I know you guys have been together awhile."
A month wasn't awhile. Right? Not when the first week was spent with me in and out of hospitals and even longer mute. And I've been an emotional wreck this whole time. Who'd be interested in that?
Dante and I had only just started not being so weird, and that was mostly—completely—my own fault for the wait. I don't even know if we were friends. We couldn't be, because I wasn't involved with the royals like that. So we weren't even friends. We were only mates by title.
But even without all our—my—problems, was a month a long time to wait for mating? What was the average period of time?
I was driving myself insane with stupid stuff. None of this mattered, and Shane was just teasing me because to her, I was an extension of Dante and it was clear she enjoyed riling him up.
"So you're not going to give me anything?"
She made a sharp turn down another hall, and then another one soon after.
"We really haven't been together that long. Er, not together, but just like," My face heated with my insinuation. "We haven't known each other that long."
"Oh, please. Some wolves are already pregnant by the end of a week. And I'm talking planned, wanted pregnancies."
That was a problem I'd never have.
"I don't think it's that long." I replied, and finally, an enormous staircase came into view. Almost there. Had to be. At least it was clear progress.
Shane shook her head. "It's a long time. And just so you know, I'll get all these answers out of you eventually. I'm very persuasive."
"I'm not really withholding anything." I wasn't lying to her, and the only question she had asked was invasive.
We made it up the two flights of stairs and then down another window-illuminated hallway, looking out over the front lawn, with its gorgeous fountain and pristine circle driveway, lined with beautiful flowers and shrubs.
"Mm-hm. Whatever you say, Luna."
I twisted my head to glare at her as we walked, narrowing my eyes at her grin.
She turned to look at me, and upon seeing my annoyance with her, her grin widened even further. "Just so you know, Dante's not going to be cool with you not liking that title. He's proper, like, full stick up the ass sometimes. He's going to demand you get the respect you are owed, so you better get used to it."
And before I could get anything out—mostly a million questions and angry comments about how she knows exactly what Dante will demand of his pack when she knows nothing about me and our circumstances, or why she is so aggravating to someone she's just met, or why she couldn't have just led me to the room without getting on my nerves. But Shane stopped abruptly, and we stood in front of thick, ornate mahogany doors, with smooth bronze door handles. Shane nodded towards the doors, letting me do the honors.
We got to his room. I didn't need to blow up at Shane. She would just leave.
My thoughts cooled me down, and I regained my composure. I was far too weak to go up against this wolf, anyway, and I'd probably crack under the pressure of her stare. Besides, she was only with me for a few minutes. She couldn't possibly be around me longer than that from now on.
So I quickly thanked her, opened the doors to the huge, beautiful Alpha suite, and closed them behind me.
Goddess. Things were going to be different here. If the switch of continents and move into a pack didn't already promise that, this past hour only confirmed it.
DANTE:
The door shut behind them, and a sigh escaped me. Goddess. It was always one minute of her being okay, and then the next she shrunk back up and wouldn't let me near.
My hand ran through my hair, my frustration becoming physically clear in doing so. I wanted nothing more than to help her and have her let me do so, but she pushed me away every chance she got.
"She's a rogue?" Andrew asked, asking about facts rather than assumptions. "Did she fight mating with royalty?"
More than any other wolves, rogues tended to disagree with my family's power. But Florence hadn't fought the power at all, she had just fought me. Us, more than me. "No, she didn't fight it. Her family are rogues by banishment." I didn't wish to expose Florence's secrets, but this was information my Beta and Gamma should know.
"Shit, really?" Justin spoke up now.
A title lower than omega, and of course Florence would be stuck with it. She was dealt the shittiest hand. I could curse out the Goddess. I might, the next time I see my mother. I'd get her to use her niveus ability to speak to the Goddess and just let it all out.
"How do you think the pack will react to that?" Andrew asked.
"The pack won't care. The entirety of werewolves will." Justin pointed out.
I glared. "Thank you both. She and her entire family were banished by Magnus nearly twenty-five years ago, but please, continue elaborating for me what her status will mean."
Justin's eyes widened. "Fuck, Dante. Are you going to try and get Magnus to undo it?"
"I'm not letting him know I'm housing an Abernathy when I bring it up—"
"An Abernathy? You're fucking kidding."
Justin was always the most animated of my officials. His surprise was certainly understandable, as I had had the same reaction weeks ago, but I knew Florence wouldn't appreciate anyone knowing in the slightest.
"You aren't to say a word about that to anyone. Especially Florence."
"Is she a cousin of theirs, or..." Andrew left any other possibility out in disbelief.
"She's their sister." For as many years as I had known Max, and become good friends with him, I had never so much as heard a whisper about him having a sister. Florence probably could guess that, but I wouldn't spell it out to her unless she asked.
Justin shook his head. "There's no way there's another sibling in that family. Not to mention a secret one."
"Everything about that family is public knowledge. How does no one know about this? How did you not know about this?" Andrew shook his head, staring at the door Florence had left minutes earlier.
"I don't want to get too into this." Florence wouldn't want her past becoming public knowledge. "I am confiding in you two because her parents were the Betas that set Magnus off so many years ago after Christine died. They gave me vague information about what happened, but Magnus was pissed enough to banish them. Magnus cannot be let near her." For Florence's sake, and my own. If Magnus so much as breathed near her, I'd have his head, and that would cause a mess I wanted nothing to do with.
There was a pause in which they both stared at me, and then Justin sighed. "You sure know how to pick 'em."
"Where will she be tonight when he's here?" My Beta asked.
"Right here. She needs to be near enough to me when he's here, but out of his reach. I'll have Shane stay with her."
Just then, the office doors opened, and in walked a grinning Shane, only a few minutes after she'd left. "What about me?"
"You're keeping the Luna company." Justin answered.
Shane raised an eyebrow, returning to her spot on the chest on the opposite wall. "When?"
"While Magnus is here, you and Florence will remain in this office."
Her eyes bulged. "You are not having me—"
"It wasn't a request, Shane. You are not to so much as leave the room while he is here."
She groaned, rubbing her temples. "You know I belong down there. I'm a Goddess-damned warrior, not a guard."
"Which means you'll protect Florence better than any guard could if you need to. I'm not risking anything happening with Magnus."
"Why do you need anyone with her? The guards—"
"Because she's reckless. Left alone, she'd get herself in some sort of trouble." Just like she did back in Gilette in that shed, just like she did when I flew here and she visited Batilda on her own, and just like when she joined the twins and went to Rennes.
"So I'm babysitting."
I narrowed my eyes at that. "You're keeping my mate safe. And if you call it babysitting in front of Florence, you will be seeing the insides of the cells."
"Justin should be put as her guard before me."
Justin rubbed the collar of his shirt, grimacing at the idea. My wolf was snarling at the idea of leaving my unmarked mate with the biggest man whore in this pack. Justin was reliable and a great Gamma, but he wasn't going to be left alone with Florence for awhile, maybe ever.
But there were far more rational reasons to keep Shane with Florence. "If Andrew dies in anything other than a challenge, Justin steps up. You're a better warrior and you're further down in command."
A huff escaped her. "I'm getting revenge for this. Even if I have to hit on her. Don't think I won't. It's been so damn long since I've seen a challenge, and you think you can keep me from this one? I'm going to get back at you."
I rolled my eyes. Shane probably would hit on Florence, but Shane was mated, and Florence would be clueless to any of it. She barely even noticed when men looked at her. It wouldn't even cross her mind that a woman might. "She won't notice. Honestly, she is probably just going to pass out up here or read a book. You can watch it all from the window and pretend you're down there."
"I will make her think you're ugly."
"That's fine."
"I will tell her you have a small penis."
Justin and Andrew laughed at that one, and I almost did, too. Some lies are just too outrageous that you had to laugh. "Go right ahead." Florence would probably blush and pretend like she hadn't heard that if Shane did tell her.
Shane's eyes narrowed with anger. "What? No 'she already knows differently' or some other cocky bullshit to that one?" She imitated a lower voice as she tried to mock me, but it was a poor job.
Florence didn't know differently as far as I could tell, but I wasn't trying to rush Florence into any of that.
Although, her behavior on the plane told me I should definitely be doing more. Once Magnus was gone, I'd try to further explore just how much she felt I was holding back.
Well, once Magnus was gone and Florence calmed down. That second part was just as important.
"Try whatever you want, but Florence won't care too much." She was as far from superficial as one could get, and while it was certainly a desirable trait, she was almost too far from superficial. She hated the crown so much, and no amount of jewels or grandiose seemed to convince her into liking it. And I needed her to like it, or she'd leave.
Shane narrowed her eyes. "You should be upset with me. I should be dealing with the macho Alpha Prince right now." She seemed suspicious of me. "Something is up."
"Yes. Magnus decided to crash our trip to Florence's parents' home, and today is going to be a thirty-five hour day. Please excuse me if I'm not wasting my energy on you."
"Oof," Justin breathed out.
Shaking her head, Shane's eyes remained narrowed. "No. You're far too calm. You should be pissed with me, and far more pissed with Magnus."
Oh, I was pissed at Magnus. Ready to rip his head off and end what would be a charade of keeping Florence as far away from him as I could. He would unbanish her family, or I'd go after him.
"I refuse to entertain your childish behaviors. Can we move on to how tonight's going to work?"
With one last glare my way, she shut up, and we all got back to work perfecting the rest of the protocol. Andrew was to fight Magnus's beta at moonrise. If he wished to kill the other wolf, it would be his prerogative. Magnus would be pissed and attempt to get my attention, but the fight would end and we'd send them home.
Then, I'd finally get to take my mate home and sleep.
We spent fifteen minutes going over the challenge, and then an hour reviewing everything that had happened in my absence. I was rarely ever gone this long, and while I had reasons for being away from my pack for an extended period of time, it'd be difficult to appease all the worried pack members when Florence wouldn't want her status as my mate being public knowledge.
Shane did everything in her power to delve into the specifics of my relationship and everything about Florence, but I ignored her. I was not exposing my mate's secrets to Shane.
Finally, I felt satisfied with all the information I had gained, and I fell back into the normal Alpha lifestyle. No palaces or crowns here.
So with a goodbye to my closest pack members, I made my way to the Alpha's chambers in this pack house, smelling Florence's sweet scent the entire way there.