Chapter Three
1234 Words
Shadow
(Jennifer's POV)
"Who is that?" I yelled, walking towards the door.
The latch opened as I stiffened. I was certain I had turned the key when we both got in. Emily's eyes flew to mine, wide as the door swung inward.
A guard stepped into the storeroom, whom I quickly recognised, William. He was half panting and sweaty.
"Were you trying to break the door?" I scolded him, half relieved it was not someone else.
"My lady," he said quickly, breathing loudly and bowing his head. "Forgive me. Alpha Brendan requests your presence at once. He said it is urgent."
"Very well," I told the guard. "I will be there soon."
"Okay, Ma," he said before swiftly leaving the room, closing the door behind him.
Emily sneezed. "I'm sorry, mum," squinting almost immediately. The dust must be affecting her here, I guessed.
"But why would he send for you now?" she asked, voice trembling, trying not to annoy me further.
Silence pressed in on us for some seconds. "Is it me or is he…"
"Hush." I cupped her cheek, cutting her off from speaking further.
"Look at me. This is not about you and nobody knows about this, so get a grip on yourself," I said firmly.
"You don't know that, Mum!" Her voice cracked. She could be stubborn sometimes, which was infuriating, but I needed her to be calm.
I pressed a finger to her lips before drawing her close into a tight hug. "Listen to me, dear. Everything will be explained, I promise, but not here. Not now. The walls have ears, and tonight is too dangerous. After the Blood Moon ceremony, I will tell you everything and why all this is happening," I said softly.
Emily was a late bloomer, which was what I had hoped, and hadn't transformed yet. Wolves got their first taste of transformation at fifteen years, and she was already seventeen with no signs of wolfing out except these recent dreams. But these green eyes were new, it could be her powers awakening, I thought.
"Ma, I'm scared." Emily's voice jolted me back to reality, looking at me straight in the eyes as if searching for answers.
"I'm here, baby. It's going to be alright," I patted her before kissing her forehead softly, holding her just long enough to feel her calm.
She was calm.
"Good girl. Now let's go."
I left the storeroom with different thoughts tumbling through my mind as my heart felt heavy with what was coming. I doubted whether she was ready, and it scared me.
Alpha Brendan's rooms were lit with exquisite lighting and had a fireplace which kept them warm. The walls were shiny, giving the space an ebullient feel. Pictures of him and his family adorned the walls amidst antique decorations.
He was standing by the chimney piece, his broad shoulders tight, the cane lightly gripped in one hand.
As soon as I came in, his eyes softened, the hard edges of Alpha authority melting away to reveal the man beneath. "Jennifer."
"Alpha," I replied, shutting the door behind me.
His brow arched. "Alpha? Must you be so formal? How many years have we known each other? How many nights..." His voice dropped. "How many nights have you come to me and still called me Alpha?"
Heat rushed to my cheeks. "You summoned me. I thought this was business."
"It is." He set the cane aside, limping toward me. "But you forget you are more to me than any councillor, any servant, any soldier. You've been more since the day fate stole my Luna."
My chest tightened as he said those words. He rarely spoke of her, Sophia, his late wife who died during childbirth. He fell into depression after the incident and gradually lost his grip on the pack. His grief took a lot from him until we found comfort together.
Holding my hands gently, he walked me towards his bed. "I called you here because I think I am losing grip on the council. They look at me and see a man weakened by his limp, a leader who cannot command the way he once did."
"You are their Alpha still," I whispered.
His hand lingered against my cheek. "You say that because you see me through different eyes. Through your eyes, I am more than this broken leg."
I swallowed hard, my heart thundering. "You are more to everyone in the pack. They'd follow you with no legs at all," I said briskly.
His lips released a smile. "And still, the only one I want by my side. I would not be here without you, and I'm grateful," he continued.
His words undid me. Before I could say anything, his mouth met mine, tentative at first, as if searching, then confident, a kiss of all the desire we had hidden. Shaking fingers brushed his shoulders while his cane fell softly to the rug.
His kiss made my feet tingle. "Brendan..." I whispered as he loosened my apron.
"Say it again," he moaned.
"Brendan." My voice cracked under the weight of it.
For a heartbeat, I tried to lose myself in his touch, to let his warmth chase away the cold fear coiling around my heart.
But even as his hands traced familiar paths along my skin, Emily's terrified face flashed behind my closed eyes. Those green eyes. The danger waits just beyond tonight.
I couldn't escape it. Not even here. Not even in his arms.
"What troubles you?" he asked, half clad on the bed, his eyes gazing into my face. "Don't tell me it's nothing. I know that face. I've known it for years."
I hesitated. "It's eh... nothing to worry about," I whispered, trying to get up and dress.
He softly pulled me back into the bed while keeping his gaze locked on my eyes. "Please share with me. What is it?"
Taking a deep breath, "Okay, it's Emily," I exclaimed. "She's experiencing the dreams once more."
His eyes darkened. "She's begun to show signs?"
I nodded. "This morning she said her eyes turned green after waking up from the dream she had. She's terrified."
Brendan's jaw tightened, though his voice stayed steady. "I knew this day would come after all. She's truly a Greenhill. That is why I agreed to your plan from the start. Why I swear to keep her secret." he said calmly.
"I have doubts about her transformation," I whispered.
"C'mon, Jenni, she carries her father's fire and her mother's gift hidden in plain sight. I saw it in her from the first day"He laid a hand gently on my shoulder.
"She will wolf out soon. I'm sure of it,” he smiled.
"I like your enthusiasm for her, but we have to be more careful," I retorted.. "If Varek even suspects her bloodline, she will not live to see another dawn." I shuddered.
"We've kept it from her all these years to keep her safe. But ho. Ggg much longer can we hide the truth? The girl deserves to know who she is." Brendan said.
"And she will," I said firmly. "But not until the time is right. Until she is strong enough.”
“Jenni, tell her tonight, don't wait any longer. Tell her,” Brendan whispered.
“Okay, I will.”
“It's going to be alright, we will protect her,” he said, kissing my cheeks.
- Writer
