Mark You in This Life

5: The Meeting

5: The Meeting

TRIGGER WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS DISCUSSIONS OF LOSS OF PREGNANCY / INFANT DEATH. PLEASE READ WITH CAUTION.

Freya's POV

I made my way to what was now Darius's Alpha office, following behind Darius and Mei. Kai held my hand, running his thumb along my palm to put me at ease. Sergei followed, as did Darius' Beta, Roland, and his Gamma, Wyatt. The knot in my chest only grew. I'd never seen my father look more serious in my life, and I certainly didn't expect him to be like this after I had found my mate. If anything, this was the exact opposite of what I had expected.

I'd ask if you were good, but I know you're not right now.> Darius mind-linked me, as we entered the second floor where the offices were.

I'm confused, Darius,> I sent back, I thought Dad of all people would be happy to see me mated. Especially to the Alpha of Silver Mountain.>

Maybe he's just nervous about you leaving the pack after all of this time?>

He turned to give me a small smile as we reached his office.

I couldn't help but sigh as we filed into his office.

I took a seat in one of the chairs in front of Darius's desk, Kai taking the seat next to me. Surprisingly, Darius took the seat on the other side of me, Mei next to him. I turned my head to him, raising an eyebrow. "Not taking your seat the head of the room, Alpha?" There was a slightly teasing tone in my voice.

Darius shrugged. "It's Dad's meeting," he said, putting his arm around Mei. "He leads it. I'm just as clueless as you."

There was an awkward silence for a couple of moments before Dad walked into the room, Mom at his side, her hand gripping his, her face pale with fear. The pack elders, Marius and Edwina, followed with him. To my surprise, the former Beta, Roland's father, Franco, and the former Gamma, Wyatt's mother, Kendra, were there as well. My head was spinning. Me finding my mate was enough to call a meeting with not only all of the ranked members present, but the pack elders, and the former Gamma and Beta, as well?

As if he could sense my anxiety, Kai squeezed my hand, leaning over to whisper in my ear. "No matter what happens, we will face it together," he said, and I was put at ease. "I have found you now, your burdens are also mine."

Dad took a moment to compose himself, before looking at us. "Thank you for meeting on such short notice," he said, still holding all of the bearing and composure of an Alpha, despite being newly retired. "I would like to take a moment to apologize for my reaction at breakfast. I meant no disrespect, Alpha Kai, and apologize if it came across as such. As a father, I could not be happier that my daughter found her destined mate, and that it is an Alpha that I know will take care of her, as well as treat her as an equal in the pack. A pack is nothing without its Luna, as I am sure you know, having spent the past seven years since taking the Alpha title without one. Though an Alpha can certainly lead on his own, it is that bond between Alpha and Luna that drives the pack forward, taking them to new heights."

Dad looked at me, then at Darius. "However, while I am happy that this day came, there is also a small part of me, that as a father, was wishing that I had more time." His eyes were full of sadness and remorse as he looked between Darius and me. "You see, I have not always been honest with my children about the circumstances regarding their birth."

Dad hadn't been honest with us about Darius and I's birth? What the hell did that mean? I squeezed Kai's hand, involuntarily digging my nails into his skin a little bit. Crap. I looked over at Kai. If he had been bothered or pained by it at all, it didn't show on his face. If anything, he gave me a soothing smile, before looking at Dad, speaking on my behalf, as the words couldn't quite come to my lips.

"Alpha James," he said, his tone even and diplomatic. "I am sure you are going to explain to us in time what this means, but I will state my confusion. What does Freya and Alpha Darius' birth have to do with our mate bond?"

Dad sighed, rubbing his temples a bit, and Mom rubbed his shoulders. "I will get there, Alpha Kai," he said, "Though I've had five years to prepare for this...it's caught me a little off-guard. In order for all of this to make sense, I have to go back to before Darius and Freya were born. You see, before the twins were born, Sylvia and I had previously conceived a child, shortly after our first meeting, after we mated and marked each other."

Kai nodded. "My father told me," he said, his face softening a bit. "I remember the baby was stillborn, correct?" His tone was gentle, as though the knowledge of my mother's first pregnancy was public knowledge, it was still a very soft subject.

A sad smile crossed Dad's face, and he pulled Mom closer to him. "That is correct," he said, looking down at his desk briefly. "We conceived a son, Leo, after my father, and unfortunately, he was a stillbirth. However, what most people don't know is that a rival Alpha, who did not want my bloodline to continue, cursed Sylvia while she was pregnant, causing Leo to be a stillbirth, and placing a curse on Slyvia's womb so that she could not have any other children."

There was a moment of rage in the room, as behind Dad, Franco and Kendra snarled, and I could feel my blood boil, and next to me, Darius' eyes flashed in rage, as he instinctively placed a protectively across Mei's pregnant belly. Darius and I had always known that Mom had been pregnant once before and that our older brother had not survived the pregnancy, but we had never known before that someone had so cruelly taken him away.

"So, someone cursed Mom?" I asked, words coming to me finally. "So she could no longer give birth? But she still gave birth to us, right?" I had seen the pictures of Mom and Dad with Darius and me in the pack hospital, and pictures of Mom pregnant with us. Had that been a lie somehow?

Mom looked at us, tears forming around her eyes. My heart sank a bit. I had avoided talking about Leo as often as I could, knowing that this could upset her. "You see," she said, taking Dad's hand, as he pulled her into his lap, "After I lost Leo, I became obsessed with trying to regain my ability to conceive again. I prayed to the Moon Goddess constantly, begging her for another chance. I felt like somehow, I had failed as a mate, and as a Luna, if I couldn't bring an heir to the pack. Though James was very understanding and supportive of me, and assured me that there were other means that we could have an heir, I wanted nothing more than to be pregnant with a child of my own. I...even considered rejecting your father, so that he could find a chosen mate, someone who could give him a proper heir to the pack."

Dad held her close to him, his hand running through her red hair soothingly. "I told her that was out of the question. Though it was upsetting that she considered that, I didn't care that she had been cursed. She was still my mate, and my Luna, and I would find any way for us to have a family. After we had that argument, where she told me that she was considering rejecting me so that I could find a chosen mate, and I told her that all I needed was her, we found ourselves visited by Selene, the Moon Goddess herself."

There was a collective gasp in the room from everyone except Mom and Dad, the Elders, and the former ranked members. How had we not ever been told that the Moon Goddess herself had graced our parents with her presence? That seemed like something that was such a huge deal, they shouldn't keep it a secret.

"The Moon Goddess visited you and Mom?" Darius asked, leaning forward in his seat, his mouth agape. I'd have sworn his jaw was going to hit the floor.

Mom nodded. "We were just as surprised as you all are right now," she said, "I had no idea that she had heard all of our prayers, and apparently, had been keeping an eye on James and me since we first found each other. She told us that losing our baby had never been in her plan, and she understood our pain, having lost children of her own before. She told us that she could lift my curse, and bless us with children if we were to mate under the next full moon and mark each other again, as our bond had drifted since losing Leo. Of course, we followed her instructions, and just as she said, I found myself pregnant again, this time with twins. And of course, after my previous pregnancy, we took every precaution, asking a Light Witch friend of mine that I went to college with to hide my pregnancy, and only the ranked members and the pack doctor knew of my pregnancy."

I leaned back in my chair, my head spinning. Darius and I were a blessing from the Moon Goddess herself? And Mom and Dad waited twenty-three years to tell us?

"Why are you telling us this now?" I asked, my tone more than a little agitated. "Did you not trust Darius and I? And what does this have to do with me finding my mate? Why couldn't you have told us when we first gained our wolves and shifted? Or when Darius and Mei discovered that they were mates?"

Elder Marius, who had remained silent, stepped forward. "I am afraid, Freya, that the reason we remained silent all of these years was because we were waiting for you to find your mate." There was a silence in the room, as he looked at me, then Kai, then Darius, and then back at me again.

"You see," he said, clearing his throat, "We have every reason to believe that the three of you are tied to an ancient prophecy."