The Golden Millionaire

The Cabin

I ran back down to my truck thinking all the time. I vaguely remembered Maddox from my childhood, before my father tried to kill me, but we didn't play together, because my father said that he came from tainted blood, due to his mother not being born in the pack.

As I got to the truck, I put my thumb to the panel and withdrew my keys, unlocking the truck and getting dressed. I had sent Maddox to go and call Seira. They were to meet me at the cabin. Meanwhile, I drove my truck faster than I would have liked towards the cabin. My pizza was already cold, and I would need to reheat it, but that was not the reason for my speed. I was getting hungry, it seemed as though the run had been good for my appetite.

Smiling to myself, I drove around the curve and pressed the button on the remote that opened the garage doors. Driving in and killing the engine, I could hear the door to the pantry opening, and Maddox stepped out, walking towards the backdoor.

“I’ll help you to unpack everything,” he said, again not quite meeting my eyes.

As he stepped up to the door and wanted to open it, I put my hand on his shoulder, “I am not my father,” I said to him in steady tones. “I value life, no matter where it came from, all life has purpose and value,” I assured him, realizing that he must have finally recognized me, as I look a lot like my father, the only difference was our personalities and our eyes.

Looking up, he said, “I can feel that you are nothing like him, he has an aura of hate pulsing around him, it's just that everyone thought you were dead. That's what he said, said you and your mother were killed in a raid by rogues, outsiders,”

Smiling, I answered sadly, “You can clearly see that I am not dead, and I listened as my father and two others ripped my mother to pieces. There was no raid. My mother tried to hide me when she found out what he was up to, and she sacrificed herself to give me life. My father was trying to kill me, because he didn't want me to become Alpha.”

I couldn’t tell him that I knew the whole truth, because I didn't know whether anyone else knew of my significant future, of why we were called the Golden Moon Pack. We unpacked the truck in silence, then walked through to the lounge where Seira was sitting, almost huddled into a ball.

“Seira, we have nothing to fear, Cole is not like Jerome. You felt that too, when we saw him at the store, right?” Maddox told her as he sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulder.

I sat down across from them, “Seira, my father tried to kill me when I was eight, he did kill my mother. I listened as she was torn apart. I'm sorry if it sounds harsh, but I need you to understand that I am nothing like him,” I reassured her gently, yet firmly.

She looked up at me with red-rimmed eyes and nodded, “I know, I can feel that you are nothing like him, he always had this aura of hate around him, and around you there is only an aura of love and peace,” she whispered.

“We have both been so scared the last few months, and it's kind of scary knowing you are the Alpha that will take over from your father,” he said, talking to Seira's shoulder as though he thought I would be insulted, or maybe lash out.

I sighed, “I can clearly see that it will take time for you to come to trust me completely. How about we start with supper? There is a perfectly good pizza in the kitchen that is probably ice cold now. I'm going to light the fire in the clay oven outside so that we can warm it up and put extra toppings on,” I informed them, standing up. I gave Maddox a nod as I walked past them and went outside to the patio.

I hummed as I got the fire going, glad that there was a large garlic roll I could warm up with the pizza. This would be their chance to leave if they didn't trust me. It would be Seira's call. Either way, I had changed my mind, I would get myself ready to take over the Golden Moon Pack. My father would finally pay for all those shifters and people that he had hurt and killed over the years, including my mother, with his life.

I heard Maddox walking out towards me, “Seira said she would make some salad, she doesn't eat many carbs,” he quirked a smile as he came to stand next to me.

"So, you're staying,” I stated, quirking my own eyebrow in question.

“Yes, it didn't take much reasoning with Seira, she's tired of being scared and she knows that there's safety in numbers, besides,” he chuckled, “now we have permission to be here.”

We both chuckled, “That you do, brother, that you do.” I said putting my hand on his shoulder and squeesing lightly.

With the fire crackling nicely, we went inside to fetch the pizza and the garlic bread. Walking into the kitchen, I saw that everything that I had bought had been packed away, the salad made, and the counters tidied.

Whistling, I said, “Wow, Seira, you work fast,” and smiled.

She looked rather shy about how well she had done. I mean, we were just outside talking and getting the fire going, and she had done a considerable amount of work. I found the pizza sitting to the side of the counter, the garlic roll next to it.

“How did you know I wanted the garlic roll out?” I asked, a shocked expression on my face.

“I know how hungry you male shifters get,” she said with a sassy tilt of her hip.

Both Maddox and I packed up laughing at this, and grabbed the pizza and garlic, “Won't you bring out the extra ham, crumbed steak pieces, and sausages? I want to add them on the pizza, and we can snack on the rest of them while we wait,” I ended, walking towards the patio.

As I slid the garlic bread into the clay oven, I saw Seira walking out with a platter, filled with the meats I had asked for. “Now that looks appetizing,” I said to her, taking the platter, “Thank you, Seira.”

She opened the pizza box and I had fun adding a lot of extra toppings.

“There is no way that you are going to be able to pick that up and put it in the oven, there will be toppings all over the floor,” Seira laughed, shocked at how many toppings were actually going on the pizza.

“Aha, but I have this!” I said, reaching next to the clay oven and pulling out a wooden pizza paddle to lift the pizza. It was thin on the front end, so that I could easily slide it under my topping laden pizza.

“Wow, you have it all going for you,” she said, smiling.

As soon as the pizza was also in the oven, we sat down around the table and started snacking, by which I mean that Maddox and I took handfuls of the meat and ate, and Seira took a few pieces and chewed slowly.

I stopped eating as an idea came to me, “I would like to offer both of you jobs, as I know you would like to make your own way in the world,” I started, hoping to get their interest with the offer of payment for their work.

They shared a look, and I could see Seira give a miniscule nod.

“Let’s hear what you have to offer, though I know it will be fair,” Maddox said, smiling at Seira.

“Alright, Seira, I would like you to help around the house, some cleaning and stuff, maybe cooking and Maddox, I need someone to spar with,” I said to them, gauging their reaction to what I was saying, “I will pay you triple what you earned in a month at the store,” I ended.

Both their jaws dropped at the offer, sounds of disbelief at the amount I was offering, then Seira came to her senses.

“How long is the job offer for, I mean, how long do you want us working for you?” she asked, being the sensible female that she was. I was sure that Maddox would have taken the job because he was impulsive and it would be a lot of money, but for how long, was the good question to ask. It wouldn't help them if I was only offering this for two months, because then they would leave their jobs and have nothing to go back to after they had finished working for me.

“For as long as you want them,” I said to her. I can have my secretary draw up the contracts and you can read through them before you decide if that's what you would like. Of course, you, Maddox, would be signed as a personal trainer, and Seira, you would be managing the household, to justify the amount being paid. If you know of another shifter that we could bring in, maybe she could help you out a little, as this cabin is quite big,” I suggested.

“I actually do have someone in mind. Her mother recently died, and she is afraid that she might be forced out and become a rogue as well. I will speak to her and then let you know,” she said with a smile.

“That's settled then, I will have the contracts set and sent through first thing in the morning, with an extra one for help, just in case your friend decides to help out,” I smiled, “but, for now, it's time to eat.”