New Beginnings

CHAPTER 5

“Jacob and Avon, please meet us in conference room one. The rest of you may take your new pack members and head to your territories’. Arrangements have been made for transportation; there are travels buses already waiting outside,” Elder Felix commanded, and we all began moving quickly up the stairs out of the dungeon. Jake and I went up the stairs to the second floor to the first conference room, while the other three sets of future pack leaders went to gather their new members.

“I was told by Alpha Bill that you would like Eden to come back to your pack. She will be transported via ambulance to your new territory, as she is still sedated. Doc will be riding with her and joining your pack. Eden is being loaded up as we speak.”

“Is Eden the name her parents gave her,” I asked, saddened that this girl may never know her real name.

“Before she was murdered, her mom pleaded with Alpha Maxwell to not hurt Eden, which we can only assume she meant the daughter she died trying to protect.”

“How long will she need to remain sedated?” I asked.

“Once you reach your territory, she can be woken up slowly, carefully. Obviously, Doc and your doctors will know how to help her.”

I nodded in understanding. This innocent girl would have a long road ahead of her.

“She turned 15 today, gaining her wolf. If she finds her mate in your pack… that would be the best tool to help her overcome the trauma she’s been through.”

I nodded again. “I understand. A mate isn’t just the one made for us by the Moon Goddess; she pairs us together to complement each other. A mate can help calm the other, soothe them…” my voice trailed off.

“Everyone else has already left the territory to begin their drive to their respective territories. Your buses are waiting for you, along with your new pack members. As for Shae not being your mom…”

“My father rejected my mom, his true mate, for Shae, after he knocked my mom up and she gave birth to me. Then they raised me as if I were Shae’s. When I found out the truth, my mom and I… we left. We went to Blue Moon who welcomed us with open arms. My mom found her second-chance mate there, Beta John. She is also his second-chance mate. I don’t know that story.”

The Elders nodded. “Well, we’re sorry your father had to be sentenced to death.”

“For the crimes he knew about and helped cover up? And then misleading me my whole life? I feel nothing but contempt for him,” I scoffed.

“Well, get on your way. You all have a very long drive home,” Elder Raven said, her voice soft.

We nodded and left the conference room, descending the stairs before leaving the packhouse only to find our new members had already boarded the several buses that would transport us across the country to our home.

*TWO DAYS LATER*

We arrived back in Blue Moon territory. All four buses and the ambulance slowed down on the gravel road leading up to the packhouse. Alpha Bill and Luna Sally were waiting on the porch for our arrival, along with Beta John and my mom.

Jake and I exited the bus and walked up to the porch.

“We have just over 200 new members. Most are the newborns. Eden is included, she’s in the ambulance with Dr. James. Some of the Silver Moon pack members came as well,” I spoke.

“They had no idea what was being done right under their noses?” Alpha Bill asked.

I shook my head. “They’re all just as disgusted with Alpha Maxwell and company, who, by the way, were already put to death for their crimes, along with the guards.”

“Well, let’s get started by convening a meeting with this lot.”

I nodded and turned toward the buses, motioning for them to release the members on the bus. Each buses doors hissed open and everyone began filing out.

Dr. Fields, one of the Blue Moon pack doctors and also the psychologist appeared on the porch before descending the stairs towards the ambulance behind the buses.

There were Blue Moon pack members milling about, mostly unmated wolves, having been informed we were gaining a significant number of members. Tristan approached me and stood by my side.

Doc and Dr. Fields pulled Eden out on the stretcher carefully, with her still sedated and hooked up to various machines. They wheeled her past us towards the pack hospital, attached to the packhouse. Tristan took a deep breath as she was wheeled past, then he growled.

“Mate,” he said, running over to her unconscious form. Despite being sedated, her body jerked at his hesitant touch. “What happened to her?” he growled out.

Doc sighed heavily. “Follow us and we’ll explain.”

“Who is that?” Jake asked me.

“Tristan. My only friend from Silver Moon, and what would have been the next in line for Alpha of that pack.”

“He’s Maxwell’s son?! How do you know he didn’t know what was going on, what they were doing?”

“Because I read his thoughts. He was appalled at his father’s actions. Appalled and disgusted. He did find out before we got there. He’s the one that reported them to the Elders. He didn’t know, however, about Eden. Clearly. Even though she was raised with him for 8 years…”

“But he doesn’t come from two Alpha bloodlines, right?”

I shook my head. “No, which means she’s probably a silver wolf, not a Primordial.”

“How is he going to react to taking orders from another Alpha?”

“He’s respectful, always has been. He even submitted to me, bowing to us when we were “mingling” with all the pack members and newborns. I don’t think he’s going to cause issues, especially since my Alpha bloodline is much stronger than his, and so is yours. But I do think he’d make a good Delta,” I added that last bit, hopeful.

Jake nodded, thinking it over as Alpha Bill motioned for everyone to follow him, which we did. Some of the Blue Moon pack members joined us, having found their mates in the newborns or my former now current pack members.

We ascended the stairs to the second floor, with Alpha Bill explaining that anything above the second floor was off-limits except to the higher-ranked members.

We followed the long hallway down to the end and Alpha Bill opened the door to conference room 4, the largest in the packhouse. It spanned the entire righthand side of the second floor. There were multiple wooden tables adjacent to one another to span almost the entirety of the room, giving plenty of room for everyone have a seat.

Jake and I stood at the head of the table with Alpha Bill and Luna Sally and the Betas. Everyone else found a seat and sat, waiting expectantly.

“Alright, let me start by introducing myself and the fine wolves beside me. You already know my son, Jacob, the future Alpha, and his mate, Avon, the Future Luna. I am Alpha Bill, and this is my mate, Luna Sally. This is Beta John and his mate, Beta Jessi.

“For you former members of Silver Moon, obviously you already know how all about this life of ours. Omegas will show you to your new cottages; after that, you may feel free to make yourselves at home, explore, and mingle with our pack members. I notice many of you are unmated. You may very well find your mates here in my pack. This is the largest pack of werewolves because we take in refugees.

“Meet in the courtyard at 6 PM for the welcoming ceremony. The ceremony for Jacob and Avon to take over as Alpha and Luna will be held in a weeks’ time.”

All 75 of my packmates stood up, bowing before following the Omegas that had appeared.

“Now, for the newborns, you have been told what you are. I’m so sorry for what you have had to go through. None of you deserved it, but unfortunately there is nothing that can be done to undo it,” his voice was filled with sadness.

“I’m sure you asked many questions while still at Silver Moon, but are there any questions you still have?”

“What is a mate? Why do I feel this pull to my supposed mate?” One of the males asked.

“What’s your name?” I asked.

“Flynn Woods.”

“Well, Flynn, that pull you feel is the mate bond. Those sparks when you touch each other? The mate bond. A mate is the other half to you, literally your soulmate. They complement you; they complete you. They are your gift from the Moon Goddess herself. You aren’t allowed to fully mate until both are 18 years old, but after we gain our wolves at 15, we are able to find our mate – if they are within scenting distance and have gained their wolf. Sometimes you can detect your mate before they reach 15, but it is rare.”

“Why can’t we mate until 18?” a female questioned.

“It’s one of the laws made by the Elders. In some packs, the age is higher.”

“What is mating?” another female asked, blushing. “Is it just… having s*x?”

“It is having s*x, but it’s also marking each other in the hollow of your mate’s neck by extending your canines and biting them.”

The female nodded.

“Any more questions?” no one spoke up, so I continued, “Now, even though this is about females, you males need to hear it, too. Females go into heat twice a year starting any time after their 18th birthday and after meeting their mate. That is the time a female’s chances to conceive and get pregnant are at its highest. Werewolf pregnancies last 20 weeks, not 40 like human pregnancies.

“If a female does not conceive after her heat, which does happen if protection is used, or sometimes even without protection, she will bleed for a couple days or so like a normal human period.

“Any mated female in heat is obviously clearly off limits. Heats can last anywhere from two to five days. They are painful for the female, unless she has a mate to help ease the pain of feeling like she is on fire. There are telltale signs of an impending heat: hot flashes, fainting spells, dizziness, lightheadedness, fuller breasts, and slight cramping,” I finished my explanation.

“Each pack has a different set of laws. I will go over our laws with you, some of them have only just been created recently,” Alpha Bill spoke. He then went over the laws of our pack, which was my first time hearing them in full, though they weren’t much different than Silver Moon’s laws.

When no one had any questions, the Gammas appeared in the conference room. After being introduced, they were told the meet in the packhouse courtyard at 6 PM and then the Gammas led them to the vacant cottages.

“Can I go check on Tristan and Eden?” I asked Alpha Bill, who nodded in response.

I made my way out of the conference room and down the stairs. I followed the long hallways that connected the pack hospital to the packhouse before coming to the double doors. I pushed them open swiftly, breathing in the bleach and ammonia scent, the sterile white walls surrounding me as I stepped into the waiting room.

Dr. Brigham was sitting at the desk with his nurses.

“How can I help you, Luna Avon?” he asked, and I gaped at the title but regained my composure quickly.

“I’m not Luna yet,” I replied, a joking tone in my voice before becoming serious. “I’m here to see Tristan… and Eden.”

“Follow me,” he led me down the hall to a room at the end.

He knocked gently before opening the door, revealing Tristan with his unruly hair and worry etched on his face, sitting in a chair next to her bed. Eden was asleep, but not sedated, but she was still hooked up to all kinds of machines.

Dr. Brigham let me in the room, shutting the door behind himself as he left us alone. Tristan held his finger up to his lips, telling me to not be too loud for fear of waking her up.

“How is she?” I whispered.

He sighed, running a hand through his unruly hair which he had probably been doing a lot of the last couple hours. “She’s better with me around. She didn’t freak out when they woke her up from her sedated state because I was here. She uttered the word, “Mate,” before falling asleep. Her physical condition is better… and she’s healing quickly from the physical trauma she went through now that she has her wolf. But mentally… it’s going to be a long road. I’m glad Dr. Fields is the best psychologist in the werewolf world. She’s going to need it.”

Tristan was two years my junior, putting him at 16. Without the mate bond fully completed, it was going to be hard for her, but I also knew it would be a long road.

“We have the initiation ceremony at 6 PM; you’ll be required to attend,” I informed him.

“I can’t leave her. She’ll have to be sedated again if I do,” he said, rubbing circles on the back of her hand with his thumb.

“I’m sorry. It’s mandatory.”

He hung his head in defeat. “I’ll be there, then.”

“It will be in the packhouse courtyard.”

He nodded and looked at the clock before pressing the call button. Dr. Fields appeared almost immediately.

“What’s wrong?” she asked, rushing in the room.

“She’s going to have to be sedated again I’m guessing. I have a mandatory ceremony to attend in an hour and a half,” Tristan’s voice was defeated, anxiety rolling off him in waves.

I let my power of emotional control take over, pulling his free hand in mine as he calmed down significantly.

“Is it you doing that?” he asked, confused.

I nodded. “I can control the emotions of those around me. Your anxiety was palpable. I figured you could use some calm.”

“So. you’re a Primordial, huh? What other powers do you have?”

“So far, I have the speed, strength, quicker healing ability, stronger senses and… I can read minds. On top of the emotional control.”

“Wow,” he said. “So, you can read anyone’s mind?”

“When I want to. I put up a mental block to block everyone’s thoughts out. I used my heightened sense of hearing and then my mind-reading to find the bunker the newborns were being hidden in. But when I gained my wolf 3 years ago, I realized I was hearing things people weren’t saying. I was answering questions that weren’t verbally asked.

“It took some research to find out what was going on: that I could read minds. And I had to teach myself how to build that mental wall to shut out everyone’s thoughts. Now I can listen to thoughts as I please, but I don’t unless necessary.”

“How did you never realize before that Shae wasn’t your birth mom. You could have read her mind, right?”

“I could have, but I didn’t want to, didn’t think I needed to. Do you remember the two days I disappeared after I had my first shift? I had put up a mental block so none of you could reach me. I was spending that time researching and learning to put up the mental block. It took a lot of effort and energy to do it, but I finally did.

“Now it’s a lot easier, and I can listen to an individual’s mind at will without listening to everyone. That is, if I wanted to. Which I know I will need to, at least sometimes, but only in dire situations.”

“Avon, why did I not sense Eden before? How could I have missed it? Even at Silver Moon, when we were boarding the buses and she was being loaded onto the ambulance I didn’t sense her.”

“Where were you when she was being loaded up?”

“I was already on the bus. They didn’t load her up until right before we left. But all us wolves were on the bus, talking and answering the newborns’ questions with the doors closed.”

“She just turned 15 today, Tristan. That’s why you couldn’t sense her as your mate. There is nothing you did wrong. Don’t beat yourself up. You’re here now. That alone is going to help her immensely.

“She’s calm and relaxed. I can sense her wolf. Her wolf is helping her heal physically now. Mentally… that’s a different story. She was beaten for 5 years. She’s going to need all the help and support she can get, including from you.”

“I’m not leaving her if I can help it. She’s my one and only, the other half of my soul. She will be the love of my life and I will spend every second of every day showing her how a real man should treat her,” he growled out the last part.

He began to quiver, his shape blurring. I placed my hand on his arm, calming him instantly. “Not here,” I told him gently.

“Avon, can I… can I ask something about the guards that… that did those things to her?”

“You can ask. I don’t have all the answers.”