David's boots crunched on the gravel path leading to the pack house. Towering pines loomed like silent sentinels behind the massive structure he, his family and some other essential pack members called home. It was alive with activity. Voices echoed in the great hall, laughter and murmurs weaving through the heavy oak walls. Yet, beneath the surface, tension simmered.
He was greeted by all he passed as the current Alpha of the Crescent Hollow pack. His father, Alpha Tanner Holloway, a revered and respected alpha in his time, ruled with strength but carried the burden of wars and politics for several centuries until David was ready to take on the mantle of Alpha, leader, protector and nucleus of the bustling instinctive hive that made up a pack. His mother, Luna Philippa, still the acting Luna was regal and elegant. A Luna to rival any Luna, always a nurturing and graceful presence by her husband's side. If the Alpha was the brawn the Luna was certainly the brains. Luna's wore a thousand different hats in the pack, a position of reverence, honor and respect.
David paused at the door to his office, memories flooding back: the distance, the fights, the silence, the desperate hope that one day Chris would return.
Now Chris was back. His fated.
His Beta, Chasen, had already sent him the rundown of the situation at the border, giving time for the Alpha to steel himself before the briefing. David squared his shoulders and stepped inside.