Ever Cynical

Chapter 21- Sad Alpha, New Besties

Kieran POV

Monday was spent in a mad dash to clean everything and ensure Anais could not be scented. For me, it was depressing as hell. It was like her presence had been erased, and my only consolation was frequent texting with her. I needed reassurance she was not going to disappear. Given everything I knew, I could not squash this, to quote my mother, "feeling." Ugh. Anyway, at least I knew what the feeling was, fear of her leaving to save the rest of us. She had not directly promised to stay no matter what. She may not have thought I caught that, but I did.

As I sat in the kitchen just before lunch, nursing probably my fifth coffee, Helga patted my shoulder.

"Don't worry, Alpha Kieran, our Luna will understand she can't leave you after the full moon." I stared at her. Was she psychic? "I'm not psychic, I just see many things. The Luna is the kind of person who doesn't fear sacrifice. She's lived too long and seen too much. When you've had nothing and you suddenly gain things you never hoped for, you tend to value yourself less. We are all trying to make sure she knows we value her."

I nodded and continued drinking my coffee. The pack had all been given an abridged version of their Luna's background. While she had been madly installing and setting up our new system, every pack member except for the children had made an effort to strategically meet her at random. I doubt she realized the effort they had made, but I appreciated how much they already respected and cared for her. The kids would meet her as a group once the envoy was out of our hair. Everyone knew to say nothing about her, and we were damned good at keeping secrets.

I was itching to reach out to my allies, but I knew I needed to wait until the envoy came and went. I may know for certain I have no leaks in my pack, but that did not mean the same for others. While I had a great deal of faith in them, I could not risk even an accidental leak that could make its way to Ludolf or Donato, or the Dark Witches for that matter. Mating and marking her, declaring her my Luna publicly, would likely protect her from her... suitors? Can you really call them that when they just want to entrap and breed with her? Anyway, they could not dispute my claim or the elder council would exile them, never to have the same power again.

The Dark Witches were unpredictable at best. Nobody knew much about them, other than the fact that their leader was likely over a millennia old. Anais was the oldest known to us within the supernatural world, but that didn't mean there weren't more that remained unknown. The idea that Dark Witches worked with exiled demons was staggeringly intimidating. We're talking the baddest of the bad. I sighed, and Helga patted my shoulder again as she whisked herself around the kitchen in preparation for lunch.

It was time to refocus my thoughts on the imminent envoy visit. Goddess the man was annoying. They always sent the same wolf. Graehm Pflumer. Pretentious fucker. The kind of person that makes your skin crawl if you are simply next to him, even worse if he speaks. Nobody seemed to know where Ludofl's team- his Beta, Gamma, and Delta- were, but this man seemed to have been given all three roles without an ounce of strength, intelligence, or ability to back it up. It seemed to me that Ludolf actually liked him that way.

I smiled at Helga and stood.

"Did you want lunch in your office today, Alpha?" She called to me. I nodded, and she gave me a thumbs up. Helga was just awesome. I hope she finds her mate one day. I plopped into my office chair, still feeling despondent. I'd left the door open, so Geoff swept in and sat in the chair across from mine, his elbows propped on the desk as he eyed me. I raised a brow, wondering what was bothering him. He pointed at me and spun his finger in a circle, indicating my whole self... I think?

Ri'dubh was pouting in the back corner of my mind, inconsolable that he had to be away from his unmarked Luna. Had we been able to mark her, I'd bet that he wouldn't be quite as anxious, but we all knew until she was, capture was a possibility. Once captured, it would be damned hard to get her back.

Not that any person, supernatural, or law... not even the gods could stop me if such a thing happened.

"This." He said derisively. "This whole vibe you got going, bro? It's not going to work. Everyone can read you like a book. You look depressed as f**k. If you want this guy to think nothing here has changed and nothing is amiss, you have got to get your head out of your mate bond and focus on getting Graehm out of here fast." He barked, all seriousness. I sighed, again. I knew he was right, I just could not help how much I missed her already. My energy was f*****g sapped. At least normally, I could smell her a little, but with all the cleaning it was like she'd never existed. "That pout right there. It has got to go, Kier. I'm serious. All of this is for nothing if you can't get it together." I pushed my hand into my hair, frustrated. I couldn't help it.

"I know, Geoff, I just... When you find your mate, trust me, you'll understand." I told him. "I'm working on it."

"Good. We all need you to be the Iron Alpha as everyone calls you." He said, making air quotes. I rolled my eyes. Why'd he have to bring up that awful nickname? Who even thought that up, anyway? "Graehm is persistent, slimy, and unfortunately, street smart. We can't give him anything to grab onto and extend his stay. It's bad enough he keeps trying to make us send women to his chambers." He said with a low growl. Yeah, the man's awful. Invites himself to our pack, demands fancy meals, and even tries to demand women. I've put a hard stop on that one, but it doesn't stop him from trying. Ugh.

"You made sure that all the unmated women are assigned elsewhere, right?" I asked, and he nodded.

"Only one exception. Helga. She's the only one that has the proper skills to meet his demands for food." He insisted. I stood and pointed at him. Absolutely no way was Helga going within sniffing distance of that man.

"No way. I don't care if the food is the worst we've ever eaten, She's not going near that bastard. He will try to demand her in his bed and I swear to the goddess if he tries that with a woman I consider immediate family, I will kill him." I declared angrily. "You make it happen, Beta, even if she goes to the huts with Anais."

"Oookay. Sure. No problem, Alpha." He said sharply and full of contention, before exiting my office. I sat back down abruptly. Dammit! I didn't mean to be so fierce with him, but none of my pack members were going to potentially be cornered and made to do anything they didn't want. I could deal with bad food to make it safe for even one person.

Sorry Geoff, I linked him, contrite. The man was doing the best he could, and did not deserve me being an ass to him. He sighed through the link.

I understand Kier, I really do. Just remember I'm your friend, okay? He laughed ironically, and the muscles that had knotted in my shoulders relaxed.

I settled in and worked on getting more familiar with everything Anais had taught me on my PC. I would need a clear schedule to deal with Graehm's shenanigans.

We would get through this.

We had to.

Anais POV

Damn I was bored. Bored- bored. Really f*****g bored. I could not leave the cabin until the envoy came and left, and in less than twenty-four hours I felt stir-crazy. I had just finished making a somewhat exciting ham and Swiss sandwich with spicy Dijon for lunch when there was a knock at the door. My brow furrowed. The envoy wasn't even here yet. Had something happened? I looked out the peephole and saw Geoff's face distorted by the lens. I giggled at the sight and opened the door. He stood there with Helga, who smiled and waved. She had a travel bag in her hand.

"Luna, the Alpha wants Helga to hide here with you during the envoy's stay, if you don't mind?" He said stiffly. I patted his shoulder.

"Relax Geoff, buddy. No need to title me into agreeing to have my friend Helga stay with me." I grinned and his shoulders dropped as the tension left him. "You okay?" I asked as Helga cheerfully slid into the hut. "Who is going to cook if not Helga, anyway?"

"Other people can cook, just not as well. Problem is, if Graehm Pflumer scents an unmated female, he'll try to make us let her... entertain him privately whether she wants it or not. We've managed to keep our members safe so far, but Helga joined us after his last visit, and Kier is afraid he will corner her." Geoff lamented. Wow, what a douche canoe. How on earth have they tolerated this piece of s**t trying to hurt their pack members this long? A surge of protectiveness nearly sent me to my knees. Whoa. "You okay, Luna? You look pale." He gently held my elbow to steady me. Why couldn't all wolves be like the ones in this pack?

"If this Pflumer or whatever, sorry his name gives me the creeps already, touches any of our she-wolves, you come get me. I don't even care what happens, I will personally and painfully castrate him. Got it?" I growled, Claire making herself known. Geoff's eyes widened.

"Yes Luna. Understood." He said and weirdly, bowed? His grin was a mile wide as he walked to his SUV and drove off.

I turned and closed the door, looking at a beaming Helga. Her gray eyes twinkled with mirth.

"Well, Helga, it's a sleepover!" I giggled as I hugged her and ushered her further into the cottage. Ugh, huts just don't do these buildings any justice!

That Pflumer even tries to lay hands on Helga or me I just might cut them off. Make an example of this apparent predator. He needs to learn that women have rights, and he's not going to abuse anyone else on my watch.