The Pack

Chapter 16

When they walked out, some people had went back to their daily routines, some were speaking with the elder wolves, and some were speaking among themselves. Anika caught sight of Atepa, Howi, and Etu all talking off to the side and decided to head that way first.

“What’s up you guys? Crazy stuff huh?” Anika tried sounding relaxed, joyous almost; she didn’t want her friends to be worried, “So, do any of you have any questions?” Etu was the first to speak out.

“If you guys wouldn’t of been out in the woods alone so close to night, this probably wouldn’t of happened.” Anika was taken aback by his statement but refused to back down.

“If I remember correctly, it was you who called me out to the river in the first place.” His eyes widened with a sly smirk on his face.

“Yea well maybe if it were me and you out there, this wouldn’t be happening in the first place. Now there’s a chance that more of our people have to go through some ancient change because Kono couldn’t control himself.” 

Hearing him speak about Kono with such distaste was aggravating both her and her wolf. How dare he disrespect her mate in such a manner, his Alpha. She began feeling a tingling sensation all over her body. All of their eyes widened and turned to look behind her as she felt someone’s arms slowly wrap around her waist and lightly kiss the mark on her neck. She inhaled the scent of him and immediately felt herself calm down as her wolf began whimpering at the touch of their mate.

“What’s going on here?” he asked, looking up at each of them and his gaze falling on Etu. His eyes weren’t his usual brown, they were the black of his wolf and she sensed that he had heard the conversation. It was Atepa who tried to lighten the mood.

“Nothing. We were just talking about what happened while you guys were in the woods. Etu is just nervous about the possibility of change and was just having difficulty understanding what happened out there."

Kono’s eyes went back to his normal brown when he looked over to speak to Atepa, afterall, she wasn’t the one disrespecting his mate, their Luna.

“What happened, was the only thing that could happen in order to save myself and Anika” his grip tightened around her waist, “There were too many of them for us to try and run, and their intentions toward Anika were very clear” she shuddered, remembering the way the one man looked at her with a disgusting want in his eyes. “I changed and took care of them all, the one that was holding Anika threw her down and took off running”

“Did you not chase him?” Etu interrupted. 

Konos eyes shifted back in a second as his eyes met the eyes of Etu again. When he spoke, Anika could hear a deeper voice combined with his own and assumed it was his wolf joining him. It made her heart flutter and her stomach filled with butterflies.

“You will learn to watch your mouth in things that you know nothing about. I chased him, but before I could catch him...something else needed my immediate attention.”

“What was it?” Now it was Howi’s turn to speak up. He didn’t appear to be disrespecting Kono, more of a curiousness. Anika decided to answer this time.

“It was me.” They all looked at her, including Kono. She heard him in her mind.

“It was not your fault, my love” she smiled up at him before continuing.

“He came back for me. Before the attack, we had been talking about the change and I told him that I was scared and that I was worried about being alone. He promised me that I wouldn’t be, and that he would be right by my side. My wolf decided it was time to change at the moment that he was chasing the other man. He said he felt it and had to come back to me.” She  glared over at Etu, “I’m tired of your jealous antics toward me and my mate!” She felt this was her wolf speaking, “If you knew what was best for you, you would learn your place and have more respect for your Alpha and Luna! If you don’t change your tune, you will be cast out, or worse.” She could see his eyes widen as she felt her eyes shift color and heard a low growl creep up from the pit of her stomach. She turned towards Kono, inhaling his scent to calm her.

“Of course.” All three of them said together, Etu hesitant but compliant for the time being, before they walked away, Atepa giving her a small smile before going. She heard her wolf come through once more.

“Later, discuss that one with Kono. You both need to watch him and keep your guard up around him. I can sense that he will change. I do not know when, but I do know that he will either line up with his Alpha or become a rouge and turn on you both.” Anika wasn’t sure what to think about what her wolf just told her, but she would talk to her mate about it later. They began walking around to other tribe members, discussing the change and answering any questions they may have.