Fire Moon

Chapter 8

Gemma DeLucca’s POV

“Gemma, I love you very much.” My father croaked out to me. His voice is so weak I can barely hear him. He’s been like this for 6 weeks and has been in the pack hospital, confined to bed. There isn’t anything more the medical team can do for him but keep him comfortable. It is devastating to lose my father like this, knowing I’m alone in this world now. My mother passed away when I was a child. My father, Alpha Simon and Luna Anna helped raise me.

“I love you too Daddy. You're a wonderful father. I couldn’t have asked for anything better. I’ll be OK, you can let go. Tell Mommy I said hi.” I cried to him, stroking his face and watching his color change before my eyes. I kissed him on the cheek and held his hand. About 5 minutes later, I knew he was gone and called the nurse.

“Gemma, I am so very sorry.” She says, rubbing my shoulders.

“I want to talk to Dr. Nelson. Get him in here now.” I notice how scary my voice sounds right now. Dr. Nelson came in, his face pained at seeing my father.

“Gemma please accept my condolences on Beta Tom’s passing. If there is anything I can do…” I held up my hand to cut him off.

“You can start by getting me a complete record of my father’s treatment in this hospital as well as his lab testing. You said you completed a toxins test; I want the results of it now.” I’ve been sad for weeks and I have no more tears to cry. I want to know what happened to my father.

“Rest assured Gemma we did everything we could do for him. I understand you are angry…” This doctor has no idea just how angry I am.

“I WANT HIS RECORDS NOW!!” I yelled in my Beta tone, surprised at how strong it was. This is the first time I have ever used it. Dr. Nelson leaves the room and comes back with a printout.

“Here you go Gemma.” I flip to the page that has his toxin test results, seeing that all toxins like arsenic, cyanide and wolfsbane are negative. But that doesn’t mean anything. At this point, I didn’t trust the hospital at all.

“Do you still have the blood that was drawn when this test was run?” I asked.

Dr. Nelson sighs. “It was disposed of.” I got my cellphone out and called Elder Franklin. “Elder Franklin this is Gemma DeLucca.”

“Gemma good to hear from you. How is your father?”

“He passed away a few minutes ago. I am sending his body out of this pack and to Fire Moon for an autopsy.” I firmly said. I have done research these last few weeks at my father’s bedside. While our pack has never had an alliance with Fire Moon, it is said Alpha Amos is a fair Alpha who follows our laws exactly by the book. At this point, I knew the only chance of finding out what happened to my father was to get him to another pack to do a proper autopsy that Lena had no control over. I had already contacted Alpha Amos’s Beta and offered to pay the pack a fee if they could do the autopsy, and made the arrangements to have my father’s body transported there.

“I hardly think that is necessary. I have the utmost confidence Dr. Nelson and his staff did everything possible to save your father.”

“That I don’t deny, but I want to know what killed him and possibly who. Elder Franklin, my father confided in you about a certain someone repeatedly. You understand why I don't trust Dr. Nelson to do this autopsy, as that certain someone is in a position of authority to taint what Dr. Nelson may find."

As if on cue, Lena made her presence in my dead father’s room. She looked at my father’s dead body and I swear I caught a glimmer of a smile. It is taking everything I have in me to keep my wolf Hosa from taking over and ripping Lena apart.

In the last 3 months, so much has changed. Alpha Simon passed away suddenly three months ago of what our pack doctor said was a heart attack, right after he banished Ryan Smith. We weren’t all that surprised. Simon was an older wolf with known heart trouble. But my father was convinced something more was at play and, based on what he confided in me right after Simon’s funeral and now my father passed away, I knew he was right.

My father went to another trusted Alpha off the record and relayed what Simon had told him before he died. Lena made a false allegation against Ryan and Simon was about to go to our Chief Elder Franklin to have her rights as Alpha relinquished. Simon had told my father he was going to nominate me to lead. I’m my father’s only child. Our Gamma has no children. Because Simon died before he could officially make these changes, the pack was turned over to Lena. As daunting as it is to think about being an Alpha to any pack, I wouldn’t have hesitated to accept the role, if only to spare everyone the horror I’ve seen unfold the last three months.

Since Lena has been Alpha, morale in our pack has been at an all-time low. Lena has banished wolves left and right and many have voluntarily left the pack. Lena is selfish, and she is cruel. She has ordered food rations, saying it’s due to rising costs, but I know better. She has turned the castle into her own nightly party, sleeping with wolves whether they are mated or not. You look at Lena the wrong way and you’re in the dungeons for days. She sent a young boy there last month just for running in her path accidentally. Lena ordered the guards to give the boy ten l*shes with a silver whip. Since he’s underage and his wolf is not present to heal him yet, his back will be scarred forever. That one finally got her in trouble, but Elder Franklin only monitored her for a month, brushing the incident off as a new Alpha carried away. They sent her to the werewolf version of anger management, but the damage was done. The boy and his family left right after he was well enough to travel.

My father relentlessly documented the things other pack members have told him, what he has observed, and has relayed concerns multiple times to Elder Franklin about Lena’s capacity as an Alpha. Nothing has been done. The day before my father became ill, he and Lena had a huge argument over her charging rent to the Omegas living in houses throughout the territory. And now, he’s dead. It’s no coincidence.

“Gemma, I am so sorry about Tom.” There is absolutely no emotion in Lena’s voice at all.

“I’m sending his body to Fire Moon for an autopsy.” I said, watching Lena’s facial expression turn dark.

“WHAT! YOU CAN’T DO THIS WITHOUT MY APPROVAL!” Lena shrieks. I stay calm as I still have Elder Franklin on the phone.

“You need to check the law again, Alpha. As my father’s sole blood next of kin, I have the authority to make these decisions. You have no say. Tom DeLucca is my father, and I am paying for the cost of it myself. Elder Franklin is on the phone with me now, so if you want to run this by him, feel free.” I put the Elder on speakerphone.

“Alpha Lena, Gemma is correct. She can choose to have an outside autopsy done if the other Alpha approves. I just received an email from Alpha Rainwater about this matter and he has given his agreement for his pack doctor to do the autopsy.” Elder Franklin says firmly.

“Well in that case Gemma, wherever you are sending his body to is where they can lay him to rest. There will be no funeral here for him since you don’t trust that we took care of him!!” Lena says with spite in her voice.

“That’s just what I had in mind. My father was murdered by someone in this pack and that murderer is being protected at all levels! I didn’t want a funeral where the people responsible could pay their fake respects anyway! I will NOT EVER rest until I find out what happened to him!” I was shocked by the venom in my own voice. Me and Lena square off, her blue eyes looking at mine with pure hatred. The tension in the room is suffocating.

“Alpha Lena, this is a matter that does not concern you. The hospital must release Beta Tom’s body to his daughter.” Elder Franklin commands on the phone.

“F*CK THIS AND F*CK YOU GEMMA!” Lena shrieked, running out of the room. Dr. Nelson, the nurse and I looked at each other, absolutely speechless. I then realized I still had Elder Franklin on speakerphone.

“Elder Franklin, I hope you heard that. Know that if Fire Moon’s doctor finds anything that indicates my father was murdered, I will not stop until his murderers and those who protected them are held accountable.” I do not give him a chance to reply and hang up. In my mind, he’s as culpable as Lena.

“Dr. Nelson, two guards from Fire Moon are on the way and are bringing a specialized casket to transport my father. Can you let the Omega guarding the gate know? I am also going to need a couple of orderlies to help me transport him to the gate. I know Lena won’t let the guards from Fire Moon inside the territory.”

“Of course Gemma.” The doctor and nurse left. I stayed with my father’s body, not wanting to leave him alone. I had already packed a suitcase for the trip to Fire Moon to make sure I could stay with my father, but what the pack doesn’t know is that I am leaving for good.

Beta Gemma, the guards are here from Fire Moon. Dr. Nelson mind-linked me. A couple of minutes later, two orderlies arrived and placed my father in a green bag. They both picked him up, and I walked behind them.

Outside the hospital entrance, a line of pack members was gathered, their heads bowed to show respect. The guards walked my father to the front gate where the guards from Fire Moon waited. I watched as the guards put my father in his casket and loaded it into the van waiting.

I turned and faced the members gathered, many with tears in their eyes. “Crescent Moon, today is a dark day. While I am assured the staff here in our hospital did all that they could to save my father, his death is suspicious and we do not have the capability here for a thorough autopsy. I am sending his body to another pack to find out exactly what killed my father. Your Beta Tom was fair, kind, respected the laws and most of all, our pack. We owe it to him to find out what really happened to him.” I said through the mind-link, tears flowing from my eyes. Howls of despair and agreement erupt from the pack.

“GEMMA DELUCCA!” Lena ran out of the castle towards the crowd. “HOW DARE YOU SEND THAT MIND LINK THAT WAY! YOU HAVE CROSSED ME FOR THE LAST TIME!” I knew what was coming and was way ahead of her. I stepped over the boundary.

“Fellow pack members, I am so very sorry to leave you this way. Please stay safe and know you are loved and I will welcome you with open arms wherever I end up. I, Gemma DeLucca, daughter of Tom and Jennifer DeLucca, hereby reject and rescind my ties to Crescent Moon.” I felt my bond to the back break and the pained howls from many wolves. I looked at Lena, pure rage radiating from her. I got in the backseat of the van that carried my father.

“Allow us to tell you how sorry we are about your father. He’s in good hands. Dr. Rhodes is an amazing doctor.” The guard driving the van says to me, pity in his eyes.

“Thank you, and thank you for helping me.” I replied. I stared out the window and prayed to Goddess that I'm doing the right thing.