Chapter Three
Elle's POV
A hard knock against the car window woke me up the next afternoon, and I felt, more than heard, Kaden's laughter as he fluttered velveteen fingers through my hair. 'Welcome to a week of bureaucracy.'
'Sounds like hell.' I said it as a grumble in the back of my chest, my eyes flickering to catch the perpetrator in the window.
'We're ready to go.'
I groaned, careful not to rub my eyes, avoiding smudging my mascara. I was already going to walk into the hotel lobby as the only human, and I didn't want any more unwanted attention on myself. 'You know, I can't stop picturing her as the only girl in our first year of high school to complete a Bobby Davis dare.'
Kaden's face twisted in confusion. 'He wasn't in your year.'
'No, which is what made it even more memorable.'
'She's good at her job, Elle.'
'I know. I just don't like it when she calls me Ma'am.'
He snickered, 'You'll get used to it.'
'I don't want to get used to it. Can't I just tell them to call me by my name?'
'Sure, you'll be Luna in a couple of weeks.'
'It'll be an honorary title. Your Aunt will still be entitled to the position.'
'That won't always be the case.'
'No,' I tensed, unbuckling my seatbelt. 'It'll just be until I agree to the mating ceremony.'
'Elle.' With a taut tone, he reached out, his fingers grazing my wrist as I pulled myself from the car.
We'd been dropped off at the front of the hotel, and I wouldn't ask how long we'd sat in the cul-de-sac as I'd slept. But as I looked around, I noticed the long line of cars behind us and another three in front of us moving to delve into the underground parking, letting me know it hadn't been long. We would have sat in traffic, and Fallyn would have been waiting for us at the hotel.
She'd left an hour early and hadn't stopped with us to get breakfast. I knew from the hotel staff flanking her sides that she'd spent the morning conversing with security and updating the staff members who managed the welcome.
'I hope the drive up was pleasant, Ma'am.'
'Cut it out, Fallyn.' I muttered, watching as Kaden followed after me, a half-beat behind. 'We took advanced English together, for goodness sake.'
'Sorry, Ma'am, but it's my responsibility to lead by example while on duty.'
'Of course.' I held my hands behind my back, gripping one wrist as I pressed my lips into a thin white slash.
Now visible to everyone around us, I had the upper hand, narrowly avoiding whatever Kaden would have said. I already regretted the snarky comment. It wasn't his fault.
'I've explained the conditions to the hotel staff, who are willing to accommodate our needs. However, my discussions with the council's board were not so productive. In regards to conference meetings, they have pulled rank. They are not prepared to allow me to sit in on them, and there's talk about whether they'll even let Ms Clarke attend.'
Kaden nodded. We had known it was a possibility. 'I have already scheduled a meeting for tomorrow morning to discuss the matter.'
'The lobby is secure, so I think Ms Clarke and I should move to the waiting lounge while you and Alpha Delossa check in.'
'Sounds good.'
My head was spinning with the way they were talking over me, apprehension balling in the pit of my stomach. Fallyn swept the heavy hotel doors open, guiding me through them and away from reception.
'Is this necessary?'
'We are surrounded by rival packs who view the Vermiculo pack as either friends or foes. It's subject to change at any time. I doubt any of the individuals here today would be senseless enough to order an attack on you in light of your affiliation to the pack, but there has been no time to review each of their files.'
'You have files on them?'
'No, but the pack does. We have kept records of tensions and threats against the pack dating back to the early 1900s.'
'Oh.'
It was all I could say.
What did one say when someone tells them their life was still at risk, even after everything they had faced?
It had been easy when Jacobi had been my guard since I hadn't known, and the reality had been kept from me. Jacobi made it feel like a friendship, even though it was just his job, which hurt more than I cared to admit. Fallyn was making it clear that her objective was different. This time I knew she planned to keep my safety her top priority. There was no offering olive branches of friendship. Surprisingly, I was disappointed.
'Is this how it is now?'
'What do you mean?'
I thought about my words carefully, not wanting to come across as anything less than I should. 'I know we weren't close friends in high school, but we still had fun.'
'As I said, Ma'am, while I'm on the job, I am responsible for keeping you safe. We'll see how that affects our non-working relationship later.' She turned to survey the area as she sat me down in the corner of the room.
She'd picked the darkest corner of the room, though, with three grand floor-to-ceiling bay windows, there weren't many shadows lurking in the room. The windows, with thick white panes and delicate gold trim, let in more light than the gold light crystal chandelier dangling overhead.
A tapestry of gold and green carpet stretched the room's length, complementing the emerald green of the velvet chair cushions.
It was a neutral twenty-two degrees inside the lounge, warm compared to outside, and three waiters worked the room, greeting guests and presenting them with golden platters. I had always considered the Moritz Hotel, an old job of mine, a luxury hotel, but it felt more like a motel than this hotel's extravagance.
'I need to discuss the security of your house.'
'What about it?'
'There is none. You are still living with your grandparents on neutral territory. It would be challenging to present a case to the council that will allow Vermiculo pack members to be out patrolling that land. As a courtesy to you, I have not yet brought this up with Kaden, though I have no doubts that he has had similar thoughts.'
'I-'
'I am not saying you have to live with him. Though I am sorry, I don't understand why you haven't already,' Fallyn, having finally settled across from me, had her back to the wall. 'I am, however, saying that you should consider moving onto pack lands. The land is patrolled, and it is much harder for non-pack members to enter, as trespassing laws forbid the intrusion onto another pack's land without express consent from an alpha.'
'I'll think about it.'
'That's all I'm asking.'
The room started to fill with dignitaries from other packs. I couldn't tell which were Alpha's and Luna's or just Gamma's by looking at them, but as the leaders entered the room, the atmosphere shifted, and I began watching others to see who they respected more amongst the newcomers.
'Do you know much about the Alphas and Lunas in attendance?'
'Only what I could learn in a month.' I admitted.
Fallyn turned her head, following a couple as they walked across the room. 'My father once held a position quite similar to mine, and after my mother fell ill, he would often bring me along.'
She must have noticed the look on my face because she shook her head softly.
'She got better, but the pattern stuck.'
'I'm glad.'
'So at a conference like this, you'll find the Alphas and Lunas, the leaders of a pack, and the Gammas. Do you understand what role a gamma plays?'
'They are the head of warriors and pack protection. That's the role Jacobi took over last year.'
'Yes, and unlike the Beta position, they can take the job irrespective of who is alpha.'
I nodded, knowing as much. 'And where are the Betas?'
'Much like our Beta, they have been left in charge of the packs. While the Alpha is away, it is their role to make sure the pack runs smoothly and to keep the Alpha updated on any activity.'
'There are Elders, Warriors, Kappas and Omegas, right?'
'Of course. Elders are respected members of the community who have contributed to our growth and the forward movement of the pack. Warriors are self-explanatory. They protect the pack, run patrols, that sort of thing. Kappas are just regular werewolves, and Omegas are wolves deemed not to contribute to pack life or participate in our traditions. Because of this lack of participation, they are held with little regard. Is any of this new?'
'No, but confirming that my thoughts aren't wrong is nice.'
'Jacobi told me you've always been interested in werewolf history.'
I nodded, 'Ever since I was a little girl. My grandparents supported the inquisitive mind of a five-year-old, but my parents abhorred the idea.'
Distracted, she broke away from the conversation and then pointed across the room. 'That couple walking in now, the man and woman with matching yellow and grey saches. They're from the Flavo Calendis pack. Yellow and grey are their pack colours. Tomorrow you'll see those saches on everyone here, though Laurel and Richard Dounald were always known for their extravagance.'
I watched them momentarily, then turned my eyes back towards the room, watching as they reacted to the new guests. They didn't warrant more than a flick of the eyes as they passed.
Suddenly though, something settled over the room, and people sat up straighter, their eyes all caught on the same thing across the room. I watched bemused as the whispers quelled, and people began to pass out their greetings. Whoever had come through the door was the first to warrant such greetings.
I turned, intrigued, and froze when I saw Kaden and his father had been the ones to warrant such reactions. They made the room stop in its tracks as they walked past alphas and lunas, and I recognised gammas bowing their heads as they passed.
'What was that?' I asked, gazing across the room in awe.
Fallyn smirked, watching the reactions just as I had. 'That,' she laughed, 'was the leader of the biggest pack entering the room. You'd better get used to it. It'll get worse once news breaks that his mate is human.'
'When will that news get out.'
'I'll give it another two minutes. They'll stop to talk to the leaders of the Alismatales pack. Our biggest threat should they choose to turn against us, though they don't amass close to our numbers. It's all in the civility of things.'