The Lost Rogue Heiress

FOUR - Coincidence

Home? Whoa whoa whoa, I said I trusted him, not that we were going to come live here. Grandpa over here is getting a little ahead of himself, don’t ya think?... I feel like I’m dreaming, Athena. Are we staring at a castle right now?

We are, and I agree. Who would want to live in this gorgeous castle? Way too fairy tale for me, personally. I prefer the closet that we’re currently living in, much cozier. Nice stiff bed to curl up on every night too.

Olivia rolled her eyes at her wolf’s sarcasm before realizing Grayson was still looking at her intently.

“I think I’m going to like Athena. I think I’m going to like her very much,” he said.

“How did you know?”

“Call it a hunch.”

“Smart ass wolves a family trait to go along with the purple eyes or something like that?”

“Or something like that.”

I think I’m going to like him very much too, Liv. At least he’s got a sense of humor. Guess not all of him was destroyed when he defected. Shows how much we don’t know.

Athena’s comment brought Olivia back to the present. She pulled her eyes away from the stunning architecture and turned to face Grayson, her grandfather.

“So, you wanna fill me in on the ‘something like that’ part of the story anytime soon? I’ve gotta be back for morning assignments ridiculously early and I’m kind of past my days of pulling all nighters. Come to think of it, I never actually had those days…Point being, I need some sleep at some point.”

Morning assignments? You’re really worried about morning assignments at a time like this?

Yes, Athena. I’m not going to just abandon Lizzie. I have to process. We can’t just drop everything and rearrange our whole lives overnight.

Sure we can. I know you want to take care of everyone, Liv, but we need to see this through. Hear him out at least, okay? Just trust me. My instincts haven’t failed us yet, have they?

We’ll listen, but as of right now, we’re back by roll call.

“How about we grab a cup of coffee in the kitchen and I can answer your questions. Do you drink coffee?” Grayson asked.

“I’d inject it if I could. Lead the way.”

Grayson walked straight through the open foyer and through the archway created by two grand staircases that met in the middle of the room, creating an open balcony over the enormous entryway. Olivia followed behind, quietly soaking up all of the intricate details of the place. Past the archway, they turned left down a wide hallway that was adorned with several pieces of black and white photography. Most of it was landscape, but there were a few candid shots of people, other family, she assumed, but no one she would recognize.

At the end of the hall there was a smaller archway that took them into a large kitchen with an open floor plan. Olivia wasn’t talented in any kitchen, but this one looked to be the kind of thing you’d find in a chef’s dream.

Grayson walked to a corner where several coffee makers were located. They were the industrial-sized kind you’d find in restaurant kitchens, and there were six lined up side by side. Four were turned off, but two were on with near full pots of black gold.

“Is there always coffee available at…what time is it?” Olivia asked.

“One o’clock. And yes, there’s always coffee made. The place never fully shuts down, unfortunately. Someone is always awake and on duty.”

“Speaking of the place, where are we again? Certainly, I would remember there being a castle this big if we were anywhere near the Jadewood pack.

“We’re not far. You wouldn’t have noticed. There’s…well…let’s call it an enchantment protecting the place.”

“An enchantment?” Olivia wrinkled her brow in confusion.

“Yes. An enchantment. Magic isn’t always bad, Olivia. Despite what many wolf packs believe.”

“But, you’re a shifter. I was under the impression that only witches and fae possessed magic.”

“They do. And typically it is very strong. But all supernatural creatures possess some form of magic, which makes sense if you think about it. There has to be some magic involved for us to shift from human to wolf, no?”

“Well…” Olivia paused to think about it. “Yes, I suppose that’s true. But you’re talking about another level of magic. Being able to hide yourself in the woods, disappearing and then reappearing here, being able to hide a whole damn castle? That’s a lot more than just shifting.”

“It is, for sure. That’s the misconception though; magic doesn’t really work on levels like that. It’s more like…think of it like a giant ball of energy. If you know how to siphon this energy and manipulate it properly, there are so many more things that we’re capable of. All wolves have this ability. They’ve just forgotten.”

“How does an entire species just forget something like that?”

“Well…not an entire species. I’m a wolf, remember?” The sarcasm was definitely a family trait it seemed. “Really though, I’m not entirely sure how it happened. Slowly, over time, I imagine. As magic began to be associated with negative events and evil individuals, I imagine it started dwindling from the realm of ‘acceptable’ in our societies. Before you know it, you’ve got whole generations who have never seen magic, let alone wielded it.

“Then how did you learn?”

“That’s a long story, and not one we have time for tonight. Let’s just say that I was lucky for now. Tell me what you really want to know.”

What do I really want to know? Olivia asked Athena through their bond.

Only you can answer that, Liv. What do you really want?

There was a long pause as Olivia pondered her words. What was she missing? What was making her incomplete? What was the key to her finding real and honest joy in her life?

A family. My family. I want my family.

Okay. So what do you need to know? Athena pressed again.

Everything.

“Everything.” Olivia said verbally, so Grayson could hear her as well.

“Everything might take a while,” he replied with his signature chuckle and grin.

“We’ve got time. What happened to my parents? Was my mother really a warrior? I was always told she was an Omega servant. What about your son, my father? Were they a good match? Why…why did they have to die? Why did they both go into a battle when they had a newborn child? Did no one think that might be a bad idea? And what about you? Why, if you’re my grandfather, did you leave me to rot in that hell for the last twenty-six years?”

Olivia’s questions started flowing rapid fire style and her frustration, anger and a little bit of hurt seeped to the surface. She hadn’t realized how much resentment she had over the subject until the words came spewing out of her.

“Olivia…I truly am so sorry. If I could take certain things back, I would. The last thing I would ever do is intentionally hurt you. You’re the only family I have left. I…I don’t—” he paused, scratching the stubble on his face, “I don’t even know where to start, Liv.”

A deep sigh escaped him as he stared at the floor in shame. Olivia felt a tinge of guilt so she laid her hand on his shoulder so he would look at her before she responded.

“How about the beginning?”

He turned and looked her in the eye before his mischievous grin returned.

“I can do that. So, long, long ago, before there were shifters, humans or any—”

“Not the beginning of time! My beginning! You can tell me that other stuff later—”

“Okay, okay. Only teasing. You’re too easy. Let’s go into the next room so we can be more comfortable.”

Grayson led the way into an adjoining space that included several sofas and recliner-type seating. He walked over to a gray sofa big enough for four and sat on one end while gesturing for her to take the opposite side. She sank into the worn cushions and folded her legs underneath her, turning herself to face him. Any minute she was going to wake up and discover this was all a dream.

“Well…let’s see…I guess we’ll start with the war. That’s how your folks met, after all. Do you mind if we use the bond? I think it’ll help you understand.”

“Are you going to show me memories again?”

“I can, if you like.”

Olivia only nodded in response. This might be the only way she ever saw her mother and father.

If it starts to be too much, just let me know and we’ll stop. Sometimes communicating like this can be draining. It takes a lot more energy to share memories with one another than just verbal communication. It might help if you close your eyes, sensory overload and all that. You don’t have to if it makes you uncomfortable though, okay?

Again, Olivia simply nodded in agreement.

Alright. The Last Rogue War started about 27 years ago, before you were born. We can get into politics later, but basically Rogues have slowly been increasing in numbers in this area for the last century, and that wasn’t something the surrounding packs felt very comfortable with, so they were already on alert. When things get like that, it doesn’t take much of an event to become a catalyst for a declaration of war. This time was no exception. I’m not sure how they’ve spun the story over in Jadewood, but your current Alpha wasn’t the firstborn son. He had an older brother, Alexander. I think Andrew named one of his sons after him. Anyways…Alexander was a lot different than Andrew; or at least the version that Andrew is nowadays. He was about your father’s age, maybe a couple of years older. He had a kinder spirit than Andrew. Alexander genuinely cared about people.

I don’t know the exact details, but one day Alexander found his mate and she was a Rogue. As with most mate bonds, the pull was very strong and Alexander couldn’t stay away from her. He wanted her to join the Jadewood pack. Here’s where the story splits and we’ve got several versions of what happened. Some say that she agreed to join, but the former Alpha, Alexander and Andrew’s father Adrian, refused to accept that a Rogue would be the Luna of their pack one day. He demanded that Alexander reject her and find a chosen mate.

Then again, some say that Alexander’s mate refused to join the Jadewoods, that she had been a Rogue too long and she had no desire to assimilate back into that type of pack lifestyle. In both stories, their father’s reaction was the same: reject your mate and find a chosen one that is more suitable to be the Luna of a large–

Olivia couldn’t help herself and interrupted Grayson’s story through their bond.

Wait, hang on a sec. Why would their father demand such a high price? The Moon Goddess chooses our mates. Wouldn’t it stand to reason that one she chose to be the mate of a future Alpha could handle being Luna?

Well…I guess that would depend on what you believe. For me, there was no other. My mate was exactly what I needed.

A somber look overtook Grayson’s face and Olivia could see the pain of losing her was still there. Not wanting to pry, she remained silent and allowed him to continue.

Anyways…Alexander refused to reject his mate, and they left. There was an escort of warriors to take them to the border where Alexander would officially sever ties with the Jadewood pack. Things came to a head in the meadow by the river. Some say that the Rogues attacked Alexander first, and some say the Jadewoods attacked Alexander’s mate. I`m more inclined to believe the latter. There was no reason for the Rogue’s to attack him, he would have been welcomed. Regardless, the couple was attacked when they were trying to escape and all hell broke loose. Most consider that the first battle.

How the war started is important because it’s why your parents chose to keep their bond a secret. Your father…your grandmother named him Tristan…found your mother in the middle of one of the very first battles. Sara was a warrior, a strong one too. I was much younger then, and we were fighting side by side when he found her. He was terrified. I’ve never seen my son so scared. He was…our strongest warrior, our prince, and he was ready to die for what he thought was right. Death didn’t scare him. Your mother did, though. All of a sudden, death, her death specifically, scared him so much he couldn’t breathe.

I remember getting angry about the cruel timing. I wanted nothing but happiness for my son, but he was going to get himself killed because he wasn’t focused. I snapped him out of it and when he came back to reality, his eyes showed purpose. He found the quickest route to your mother and didn’t get more than ten feet away from her during the battle. Neither said a word aloud to the other, there was too much going on, too much death.

I’ve never seen a dance like that though. Tristan was our best, but your mother was a formidable warrior as well. Somehow they managed to dance around each other, protect each other's blind spots and defeat their opponents all without raising any suspicion whatsoever.

My son told me later the only reason he didn’t take her arm and run was because he wasn’t sure he would have made it through the battlefield and back to the woods without her being injured. They probably wouldn’t have. That was a pretty rough day. But they stayed and danced, so they lived…At least long enough to bring you into the world.

Olivia could see the pain on her grandfather’s face as he told the story. It was obviously something he still carried with him over two decades later, and the thought made her sad. She had always known something was missing from her life; there was a void that could never be filled because those that should have were no longer of this world. Olivia realized that pain was probably more dull for her, however, because she never truly knew what she was missing.

“Well, that’s a whole lot more interesting than my mother being a maid who got knocked up randomly,” Olivia said, trying to ease the tension in the moment.

“A maid?” Grayson asked as he burst into laughter. “Your mother’s only use for a broom was to turn it into a spear. A maid. That’s funny.” His smile had returned but she could still sense the weight of grief that he carried.

“So what happened? I mean how did their cover get blown?”

“Well… their cover wasn’t entirely blown. If it had been, the Jadewoods would have immediately made it known that they had you and tried to use you as a bartering chip. Or execute you. I wouldn’t have put it past Adrian to murder a child. They were betrayed though.

Tristan’s Beta was the only one, other than myself, that knew about your mother. He had never actually met her, but he knew she existed, and had covered for Tristan when they would meet in secret. Later I learned that Tristan walked into an ambush based off of information his Beta leaked to the enemy. I’m sure that your mother wasn’t mentioned because none of the Jadewood pack tried to attack or apprehend her until after she lost control.”

“She lost control?”

“Well, not Sara. Aries, her wolf, lost control.”

Olivia suddenly felt very nauseous and her face turned milk white. She felt Athena’s energy awaken through the bond.

Aries lost control? Aries, like Lizzie’s wolf Aries?

Olivia just looked at her grandfather, who had no idea why she suddenly looked like she’d seen a ghost.

That has to be a coincidence, Liv. Wolves are never reborn so close to their previous life.

Athena, how many wolves do you know of that share names?

There was silence through the bond for what seemed to be minutes but was actually only seconds.

None.

Still think it’s a coincidence?