The Beta's Blood: Rewritten

Chapter Twenty

The walk back into Kai’s office felt different this time. Before, she’d entered as a hopeful guest. Now, she crossed the threshold as something claimed. Chosen. The leather-bound box still sat on the desk like a watchful elder, and the soft lamplight cast everything in a golden, intimate glow.

The tension from earlier hadn’t vanished; it had settled, coiled low in the room, like the energy after a storm. Nick was the first to speak.

“I owe you an apology, Beta Ace,” he said, his voice rougher than before, guilt lining the edges. “I didn’t express my surprise in the most… appropriate way. I promise mine and my wife’s lips are sealed.”

Jeannie nodded quickly, contrite. “We won’t breathe a word.” Ace let out a light laugh too soft to be carefree, but genuine enough to ease everyone. “Please don’t take it to heart. I was… impatient too. And I appreciate your discretion.”

Kai watched her the entire time. Not like an Alpha judging his subordinate, but like a man watching a choice he was proud of. “Are you ready?” he asked, stepping forward. His tone was all Alpha now, resolute, sure, but his eyes softened on her.

Ace swallowed. Her pulse was a drum in her throat. “Yes, Alpha.” “Then let us begin.” Nick stood taller, lifting his chin as he recited the formal words that untethered him from the position he had carried for years.

He didn’t stumble. Didn’t falter. But there was finality in his eyes, the awareness of a man passing a torch he had burned himself to hold. Then it was Ace’s turn. She took one breath. Then another.

“I, Ace Harbor…” Her voice trembled. She knew what came next. The hard part. The part she had dreaded since Kai made the offer. “…renounce my allegiance to Red Forest Pack.” The moment the words left her, pain exploded behind her eyes.

She gasped, hand shooting to her temple as a searing, invisible blade cut through the tether that had once held her spirit bound to her birth pack. It wasn’t just physical—it was spiritual. It was history tearing. It was roots being wrenched from old soil.

Her chest went hollow. A strange, echoing emptiness yawned open inside her, and for one terrible heartbeat she couldn’t breathe. Her grandmother stepped forward on instinct, eyes glistening. “Ace...”

But Ace straightened. She refused to break. Refused to let the past keep its grip. “I request… with full heart and full spirit… to be accepted into the Winter Moon Pack.” This time when she spoke, her voice rang clear. Powerful.

Kai’s acceptance hit her like sunlight. “I, Alpha Kai of Winter Moon Pack,” he said, voice deep, resonant,, “receive you, Ace Harbor, under my protection, my authority, and my name. You will be defended as my own. You will be judged as my own. You will be honored as my own.”

Warmth surged through her. It wasn’t like the hollow promises of political alliances. It wasn’t like the fragile ties broken by another Alpha’s cruelty. This was… real. A warmth that started at her heart and poured through her veins like molten silver.

He stepped closer, eyes never leaving hers. “Do you swear to guide this pack with wisdom, to protect it with courage, and to serve it with loyalty?” “I swear,” she whispered, voice thick. “Then rise,” Kai said, his mouth lifting the faintest bit, “Beta of Winter Moon.”

She hadn’t realized she’d dropped to one knee until her grandmother’s hand was on her shoulder, steady and proud, and Kai’s power rolled through her like wind over mountains. She rose. “How do you feel?” Grandma Jean asked, eyes bright with tears.

Ace let out a breathy, disbelieving laugh. “Very alive.” Her lips trembled into a grin. “And… capable.” Kai looked satisfied in a way she hadn’t seen on him before. Like a missing piece had finally slid into place. “Good,” he said, stepping back. “Then let’s celebrate.”

The dining room felt like something out of a royal drama. Candles flickered in elegant wrought-iron stands, flames dancing golden against cream walls. The long table had been set with polished silver, crystal glasses, linen folded into tidy triangles. The scent of roasted lamb, buttered vegetables, fresh bread and herbs filled the air like an embrace.

“Come,” Kai said, hand hovering gently at the small of her back, just near enough to guide, not near enough to claim. “I had the chefs prepare something special. We’ll hold a larger pack celebration later once you’ve settled.”

“So now I’m official,” she teased softly. “You were official the moment you walked back up those stairs,” he said under his breath.

Her grandmother took the seat to her right, Nick and Jeannie across from her, already chatting as if nothing monumental had just happened. That was how wolves survived; they celebrated in the same breath they carried burdens.

Kai settled at the head of the table. He picked up his glass, gaze fixed on Ace. “To Beta Ace,” he said, the title ringing like music. “May her courage, wisdom and heart always guide us.” Glasses lifted. “To Beta Ace,” they echoed, her grandmother smiling so proudly Ace thought her chest might burst.

They ate. Not rushed, not stiff but together. Ace let herself savor it. The buttery flake of the vegetable tart, the tender lamb, the honey dessert that melted on her tongue. Warm voices hazed the room.

Kai watched her sometimes, a small smile touching his mouth when he caught her looking back. Not possessive. Not overbearing. Just… a man deeply pleased by the woman sitting at his table. She’d been rejected, humiliated, threatened. Tonight, she was celebrated.

When dinner ended, Nick and Jeannie embraced her again. “We’re proud to hand this over to you,” Nick said. “Don’t let him work you too hard.” “Oh, she will,” Jeannie chuckled. “That girl’s got Beta blood written all over her.”

They left hand-in-hand, heading for their home on packland, looking more like aging lovers than retiring officials. Ace turned to leave with her grandmother when Kai’s voice stopped her. “Stay for a while. Let me show you around.”

Jean’s eyes twinkled. “I’ll be in my bed, watching my stories,” she said, kissing Ace’s cheek. “Enjoy this, baby. You earned it.” Outside, under the soft amber light of the parking posts, Kai turned to her with a rare, almost boyish smile.

“Ready, Beta Ace?” Her heart flipped at the sound of it. “Yes, Alpha.” He led her through quieter corridors now, where the hum of the pack fell away to faint echoes. Here, everything felt… sacred. Not in a religious way, but in the way that important things had happened here. Decisions. Oaths. History.

They stopped in a sunken lounge where leather chairs surrounded a crackling fire. Kai motioned for her to sit. “This,” he said, lowering himself into the seat across from her, “is where most real conversations happen. Where people tell me things they can’t in the office. Where we plan. Where we argue. Where we keep secrets.”

Ace folded her hands in her lap, the fire warm on her skin. “I can see why,” she murmured. “It feels… safe.” “It is.” His gaze held hers. “And I want you to know, about the tablet, about your gift, only those in my office will know. I won’t parade you around or send you off unless you want that. We protect our own.”

Relief washed through her. “Thank you,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to be… taken.” His eyes softened. “You won’t be. Not while I’m Alpha.” She believed him. They rose a few minutes later, and he took her upstairs.

When he opened the door to the Beta suite, Ace stopped in the doorway. “Oh,” she breathed. It was beautiful.

Marble counters gleamed in a full kitchen. A plush leather sectional curved around a stone fireplace. A huge screen sat above it, ready for movie nights she hadn’t even imagined having. Cream walls, honey wood, low lighting. It was cozy without losing its grandeur.

“This is… for me?” she asked, stunned. “It was for whoever wore the title,” Kai said. “Now it’s for you.”

He led her through a short hall to a bedroom that made her inhale sharply. A four-poster bed, thick comforter, fur throw draped over the end, windows that looked out over the mountain treeline. The closet was large enough to be its own room.

She pressed a hand to the glass terrace door, letting the cool air sneak in. “This is too much.” “It’s what you’ve earned,” he said quietly. “You were born to serve at this level, Ace. You were just born in the wrong place to be allowed to.” Her throat tightened.

He gestured to the second bedroom. “Make this whatever you want. Guestroom, office… or leave it for the future.” A part of her, the quiet and secret part, imagined pup toys scattered across that floor. Laughter in those walls. A mate behind her.

Jameson. The thought stung. But not like it used too.

“It’s beautiful,” she whispered. “I don’t know if I’m ready for all of it.” “No one ever is,” Kai said, stepping a little closer. “But you won’t do any of it alone. You have your grandmother, your new friends, this pack… and me. I won’t throw you into the fire and leave.”

Her eyes met his. Steady. Grateful. “I trust you, Alpha.” “Good,” he said, a warmth flickering in his eyes. “That’s all I ask.” Silence wrapped around them, easy, not awkward. Then her phone buzzed.

She frowned, digging it from the small clutch at her hip. Aaron. Her stomach dropped. “Excuse me for a second,” she said. Kai only nodded, stepping toward the window to give her space.

She answered. “Hey-” “Ace.” Aaron’s voice was sharp, crackling with frustration. “What the hell were you thinking?” Her spine stiffened. “Aaron-” “No. No, don’t ‘Aaron’ me. You joined another pack? You took a Beta position? That position was supposed to go to a male wolf. Do you plan on never being mated? Who would marry you now?”

She flinched. “I-” “Jameson is furious with his father, Felix is-” “Felix and Jameson... they don’t have anything to do with my choice,” she snapped, hurt cracking through.

“They have to do with me, Ace!” Aaron shot back. “He’s still my Alpha. Kaine is still Dad’s. And now you go and pull this? You take a rank higher than mine in another pack? Do you have any idea how this makes us look?”

His words hit like slaps. Sharp and fast. “I’m not trying to compete with you,” she said, voice trembling despite her best efforts. “I just-” “You just wanted to prove you could outlead a male wolf?” Aaron scoffed, bitterness dripping. “You’re making us into a joke. Dad is furious!”

Her eyes burned. “No,” she whispered. “I wanted to do something meaningful. I wanted to belong.” There was a long pause. His breathing was ragged. “I’m still angry,” he said finally. “I don’t understand. But I still love you. You probably wont hear from me for a while I try to clean up the mess you made here. Again. Take care of yourself.”

The call ended. She stood there, phone pressed to her chest, eyes burning. Kai hadn’t moved. “Family?” he asked softly. She huffed a weak laugh. “Family.” He didn’t hesitate. He closed the distance and pulled her into his arms.

She didn’t fight it and let herself fold against his chest, let the solid heat of him steady her. His hand came up to the back of her head, cradling, protective. “They’ll come around,” he murmured into her hair. “Or they won’t. Either way, you’re not alone.”

Her voice was small when she answered. “I just wanted to belong somewhere.” “You do,” he said, pulling back just enough to meet her eyes. “Here. Tonight proved that. Don’t let anyone, even your own blood, make you forget it.”

A slow smile curved her mouth. “Yes, Alpha.” His eyes flashed with amusement. “Come on. Before you can officially stress about paperwork, we need to talk about your pay.” “Oh, so now we get to the real Alpha business,” she teased, wiping her eyes. “You never even asked what you’d get,” Kai said, shaking his head like she was a fascinating disaster. “Most would’ve led with that.” “I don’t need much.”

He laughed, low and warm. “You’re going to learn very quickly, Beta Ace, that this pack is very well resourced. Tomorrow I’m sending you shopping with your grandmother. Clothes for the office. Winter gear. Personal things. Cards, ID, full access. You’ll have what you need.”

She raised a brow. “Wealthy, huh?” “Wealthy,” he confirmed. Then, with a slow smirk, “or just very good at showing off.” She laughed, the sound lighter than anything she’d let out all day. And for the first time since she’d been forced to accept a rejection that never should’ve happened, Ace Harbor felt it settle deep in her bones... She was exactly where she was supposed to be.