Blessed by the Moon Goddess

Chapter 11

Abel spent most of yesterday sleeping, but it felt good having him near. I hated watching him leave for work again this afternoon knowing he won’t be home until early tomorrow morning, but he needs to do what he’s ordered to do. I make my way downstairs stopping in the laundry room to start a load in the washer of our sheets, then go find Helga. She’s in the nursery changing Sadie’s diaper when I find her. “Serge is going to speak with Vinny about Abel’s punishment being reckless and dangerous.” She announces when I enter the room.

“How so?”

“I’m not entirely sure, as I know Abel is well trained and can do the job that’s required. I think Serge is just trying to protect his son from a harsh punishment that he caused to happen.”

“Abel thinks it’s almost over.”

“I think Abel is banking on Vinny taking pity on him. Serge thinks Vinny is going to go to the extreme because Abel is mated to you on top of him disobeying Vinny’s order to remain in this house under guard.”

“I think…” I lick my lips contemplating my words. I know I can speak candidly with Abel, but I still hesitate with Helga. “I think Abel is correct. Vinny is not done punishing Serge for letting me live.”

“What are you saying? If he’s not done punishing Serge, why would Abel be correct with the punishment easing in the next week?”

“I have a feeling…”

“Well, tell me, what are you thinking?”

“I don’t want to say anything that will upset you.”

“The last time you had a feeling, you saved my daughter. I think we can agree that I trust your feeling.”

“I don’t know how, and I don’t have any proof. But I think the poisoning was either ordered by Vinny or he had lost control of more than just Serge in this pack.”

“I’m worried the poisoning was a different person than the guy you killed. I truly believe this pack is in serious trouble since Vinny ordered the slaughter and annihilation of your entire pack. Vinny made it so I can never go home to my birth pack when I moved here by launching a war shortly after. It takes a certain type of person to order the murder of children, much less to carry out the order.”

“Glad you and I are on the same wavelength. We just don’t have any proof.”

“Serge doesn’t think it’ll happen again, I’m keeping the kids home until next Monday to give the message that I’m still not convinced it’s over. I’m not as dumb as Vinny presumes me to be, but I allow Serge to handle everything like a diligent wife. Vinny believes women should be more seen than heard. His Luna isn’t allowed to speak unless she reads a written speech he made for her. He doesn’t think we know about that, but Serge has seen the evidence. She plays her part well.”

“That must be an interesting relationship.” I comment recalling the fact that Vinny’s Luna isn’t his true mate.

“I’ve never had the pleasure of hosting her here. Only Vinny, and Serge has said very little about her.”

“Abel has met her.”

“I’m sure he has. After all, Vinny is training Abel to work within the packhouse though it is unclear the exact role Vinny is planning on having Abel play. Abel has always been Vinny’s favorite. As the oldest heir of the Vilkas family, maybe Vinny plans to name Abel the future Alpha, but wants to make sure Abel will follow orders blindly.” Helga speculated. “I don’t see Abel blindly following orders. He is way to much like his father, always challenging and thinking for himself. He asks questions when he wants a better explanation behind an action or plan.”

“Part of his charm.”

“He’s a good boy. I hope the two of you have a long and happy life together.”

“We both have our flaws but we are doing better communicating. I’m hopeful.” I reply. “We came to an agreement that we both feel will help our relationship succeed.”

“Serge was difficult when we first got together, but by the time Abel was born I knew everything was going to be alright. I just needed to learn how to approach things with him, and he needed to learn to listen without getting defensive.”

“So there is hope that Abel will learn?” I smirk.

“I don’t know, he does take after his father and sometimes Serge needs to be retrained.” Helga chuckles

“Retrained?”

Helga gives me a smile and winks. “This little one is ready to go explore. I cannot believe she’s walking now. The last one to skip the crawling stage was Quil.”

“My mom told me I scooted on my bottom around the house until one day I stood up holding onto the couch and began walking.”

“Gus, and Masey both did that. Abel did the cute little army crawl. When he started that, Serge was so proud, he kept telling me that Abel would be the strongest wolf in the pack. I guess it’s a sign within the family.” Helga explained as she brought Sadie out of the room.

I set to work moving the diapers in the closet of the changing table, followed by the packages of wipes to restock. I take the trash out and start a clean new bag before bringing the trash bag out to the garbage can on the patio. When I step back through the sliding door, I see the cook enter the kitchen. She hasn’t been here since the lockdown. I never was told her name, and she talks less than I do. I pick up the dirty dishes from the table and bring them into the kitchen. “Just leave them in the sink.” She snaps at me without looking up from her chopping board.

“Okay.” I drop the plates into the sink of soapy water. I turn and leave. I’m only trying to be nice and help her, I guess she doesn’t want the help or thinks I’m a threat to her job. I leave the dining room, looking for something to do. I’m going stir-crazy sitting around doing nothing, but there’s not much I can do with all the kids home and Helga being free to clean up after her children. I feel useless. I check the laundry and switch over everything.

The realization that my services are not needed today settles in, I make my way up the stairs and find a book to read. I hate sitting around doing nothing, but I'm not too fond of this feeling of not being needed more. I thought these feelings had passed last week, but I feel them creeping back. Why did the Moon Goddess spare to become a prisoner?

I feel the tears stream down my cheeks. All I want to do is curl up in a ball and disappear. I know I’m Abel’s mate, but he’s so busy with work that he won’t miss me too much. I also know he’s more than capable of finding someone to satisfy his needs. I’m an orphan and packless rogue. I’m a nobody now. I was going to be something within my pack, helping others, but now I’m here, trapped inside a house unable to do anything. It’s pointless to pretend to be happy or remotely content here.

This family is being targeted and punished because of my existence. More innocent children are being harmed in retaliation for my capture instead of death. Serge must know this truth by now, I could sense Helga was thinking it. Abel is turning a blind eye to it for selfish reasons. Would these attacks on this family stop if I leave or die?

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Abel

“I’m getting f*****g sick of this bullshit,” I grumble as I finish tossing the last of the garbage bag into the incinerator. “Running patrol is nothing, but picking up garbage all day from the entire pack is pushing my buttons.”

“Son, if you complain, he’ll come up with something worse. Keep your head down and keep your thoughts to yourself.” My dad warns as he tosses his collection into the incinerator.

“Janielle isn’t sleeping, and I’m worried about her mental state.” I sigh finally admitting my concerns out loud.

“Your mother will help her find ways to sleep better, but what are you concerned about with her mental state?”

“She feels trapped. She’s depressed, and suffering from a mix of survivor guilt and anger. I worry she’ll do something that will get herself killed.”

“Your mother is watching her. You have nothing to worry about.”

“Dad, what did Vinny mean when he said he demoted you for not listening to him about Mom?”

“If I tell you, you can never tell your mom, understand?”

“Dad, how many times have we had conversations, and I’ve kept it to myself?” My dad nods and then begins to walk away knowing it’s better to be moving when speaking of things that shouldn’t be overheard.

“While I was Gamma, I was tasked with going to different packs and overseeing all transactions between their pack and ours. In other words, I drafted any treaties that needed to be made, oversaw all trading, and I was Vinny’s eyes and ears.” Dad explained as we walked toward home, both of us in need of a shower. “One day, I was sent to Sunrise Valley, to meet with the Alpha to establish a trading agreement. I spent almost a week trying to fine-tune the best trade that would be mutually beneficial. I was leaving the packhouse from one of my final meetings with the Alpha who refused to budge on a fair trade, he wanted more products and resources from us but gave little in return. I was angry and lost in my head trying to come up with a new idea when I walked into this young lady coming up the stairs to the packhouse. I knocked her clean over, everything she was carrying went flying as she tried to steady herself, I grabbed her arm to keep her from falling and it hit me as soon as our eyes met.”

“That’s how you and mom met?” I was shocked, they never talked about how they met.

“It was. I spent every moment I possibly could with her for the remainder of my visit. The week I was scheduled to leave, she went into heat.”

“Dad, gross. Can we fast forward to what happened with your position within the pack? I don’t want to know about your s*x life.”

“It’s when you were conceived, son.” He said flatly. “I returned home requesting that I could bring Helga here. Vinny told me not unless I can seal the trading deal with the Alpha of Sunrise Valley. I went back once more, to try again. After all, he wasn’t the first stubborn Alpha I had dealt with. When I saw your mom, she told me she was pregnant. I was over the moon and brought her home with me. I never did get the deal.”

“I’m confused. Why were you punished?”

“Vinny declared war on Sunrise Valley and ordered me to reject Helga. He had no idea she was already here and pregnant. I told him I would never reject her, and that I had already brought her home with me. I left out the pregnancy part, he didn’t find out about you until you were born. My punishment for disobeying and undermining his authority as my Alpha, I was demoted from Gamma to Head General of the military.”

“A bit harsh of a punishment just for refusing to reject your mate.”

“He was also angry about the trade deal never passing. He wanted resources that the Sunrise Valley Alpha would never give us. Your uncle has never truly been a reasonable guy, even as kids his retaliation for any insult was extreme.”

“I never saw that side of him,” I admit feeling stupid.

“He hides it well, but his brothers know. I tried to reason with Clayton when you were teens, then once our father died, but he said it made this pack stronger to have an unpredictable Alpha. Many fear our pack because of Vinny’s unpredictability, others like Sunrise Valley refused to align themselves with us because of Vinny.” My dad explained.

“She wants to kill him.”

“As she should. What he did to her pack is unspeakable. I went there with the order to start a war, but someone else got and gave the order through our pack mind link to kill everyone. I have no idea who it was.”

“I hate that damn mind link. All the voices get muddled, and nothing is clear.”

“Oh, that order was. I don’t know how she survived like she did.”

“You spared her.”

“She could have escaped had she not let panic take over. She was spotted during the second sweep exiting a house. They called out a description of a girl through the mind link. I was running the territory border, patrolling for any surprise alliances, when I caught a glimpse of a shadow moving fast on the other side of a stream. I followed not knowing what I was facing. Had she not stopped in the cave, she would have been gone and never found. I only caught a faint hint of her scent when I passed the cave. In the cave, I shifted to speak to the wolf who was cornered. I hate to admit it, but she almost escaped my grasp.”

“Why didn’t you just let her go?”

“She would have been spotted and killed. Something told me I needed to spare her. I grabbed the very end of her tail and pulled her back to me where I knocked her out, grabbed her bag she was carrying, and took her to my car. I tossed her in the trunk, then dragged the corpse of another wolf towards the disposal site telling everyone the wolf didn’t get away. She’s fast, I give her that much.”

“She’s smart, I think she’s smarter than I am.”

“In wolf form, she can hold her own. Honestly, I think the reason she got the jump on that asshole in the house was she’s quick. I spoke to Masey about everything. She said one minute Janielle was peering around the corner with her finger to her lips, the next she was on the man’s back and blood was spraying everywhere.”

“Masey views everything as too slow, and she’s impatient.”

“She told me that she was sorry she blinked and can’t tell me what she missed.”

“We should do it when Selma and Chloe take the children out of the pack to visit their home packs,” I state. “We know the routine.”

“I know he has a mate. Selma has been in a foul mood for over a year now, muttering how he’s disrespecting her and thinks she doesn’t know.” My dad replies.

“I’m not sure how much longer Janielle will wait. With me gone all hours, and mom being busy with the kids, she has the chance to leave without being seen.” I whisper.

“You need to convince her that she needs to wait to do this correctly. I agree not to harm mothers or children, but we need to be smart here. Do it in a way that can’t be traced back to us.” Dad insists.

“Mom and Janielle fear the attacks are not over.”

“We both know they are not. We didn’t catch the person poisoning the kids.”

“Vinny says we did.”

“Vinny wants us to let our guards down, and we are going to play along.” My dad responded. He hates his brothers, and I’m starting to understand why, it only took me 25 years to learn the truth about my uncles. I’d want to kill my brothers if they did this to me. “Clayton is a fool and a puppet. When the time comes, you will take her to get her revenge, I will handle Clayton.”

“I hope that’s enough to satisfy her for now.”

“Son, she’s hurting emotionally. You are all she has left in this world, treat her as if she’s all you have. In the end, our mates are our strength and reasons to live. The Moon Goddess chose her for you for a reason, trust in the path.” He opens the back door to the house and we leave our muddy, trash-covered boots on the patio before entering.

I go upstairs to take a much-needed shower and find her making the bed. “Seeing you bend over the bed like that is turning me on,” I state.

She stands up and turns around with a look of confusion. “Seeing me make the bed excites you? How strange.”

“Not making the bed, I could care less about the sheets. I just meant the position you were in.” I reply pulling my clothes off and tossing them in the hamper.

“I’m not in the mood for s*x, please put your clothes back on.” She retorts.

“Well then, it’s a good thing I’m only planning on taking a shower. I was picking up the trash all day and reek to high heaven.” I reply walking into the bathroom. She seems more agitated than she was yesterday. I thought she enjoyed herself yesterday, but it seems I was wrong. Great, another week or more with no s*x on top of the loss of sleep.

I finish with my shower and exit the bathroom with a towel wrapped around my waist. She’s sitting on the couch reading, or pretending to read as the book is in her lap and she quietly sobbing in her hands. I sit down next to her and pull her onto my lap to hold her in my arms. “It’s okay, I’m here,” I whisper as I kiss her head.

“I’m not needed here.”

“I need you here.”

“You can find someone else to satisfy your needs better than I can.”

“I don’t want anyone else, Jani. I only want you.”

“You’re just saying that because of the mate bond.”

“I’m falling in love with you. I think about you all day long. I hate this shitty schedule, and I told you it’s not going to last forever. Maybe the mate bond brought us together, and maybe it plays a part in driving my wolf crazy without you near, but I know in my heart what I want. I want you by my side forever, Janielle. I don’t want to lose you.” I tilt her chin to kiss her lips and feel her melt into my touch.

“These feelings…” She took a shaky breath. “The thoughts, I can’t shake. It’s a lot of work to pretend to be happy and content here.”

“I don’t want you to pretend about anything.”

“Abel, I’m not happy. I want to be, I do, I’m just not.”

“It’s only been a month, please…”

“It’s only been a few weeks. I’m not rushing anything; I’m just being honest with you.”

“I spoke with my dad more. When the time comes, I’ll take you to Vinny’s and you will have your revenge.” I whisper. She looked up at me with wide eyes. I nod and kiss her lips. “We have a plan, just need one more piece to the puzzle before we can act.”

“His mate.” She whispered back. I nod knowing she remembers our conversation yesterday. “You should sleep, it’s been a long day for you.”

“Can I hold you?”

“Yes, but no s*x today. I fear you didn’t get enough sleep yesterday because we had s*x. I want you to sleep.” She instructed as she got off my lap and walked to the bed.

“Yes, ma’am.” I smile and climb into bed with her, curl up with my head on her chest. She sighs and wraps her arms around me as I drift off to sleep inhaling her scent.