Jude and Gale united in a private ceremony, with few guests: Yosi and Callum, Keon and Milo, Leo and Weston, Janet, Isaac, and Haley. Understated, and beautiful. They chose not to invite their families, due to the tension between them, and Keon supported the decision. As Alpha, they couldn’t argue when he insisted they stay away. The bonus, though it was cruel for the Alpha to say, was that Gale’s parents had requested Farley move them to Katarina’s pack to escape their sons’ gay unions. A request he and Farley were happy to grant.
Farley thumped the table to gain everyone’s attention—the whole pack attending, as tradition dictated—and waited for the hush. “Let us walk to the sacred tree,” he announced, gesturing for everyone to rise.
Sitting at a table beside Milo, Keon kissed his cheek and left to follow Farley. He had a specific role to play, unable to follow Milo and the others to the sacred tree.
Separating from the pack, Farley walked him to the Pack-House and into the grand garden. While he knelt on the ground and used a hand spade to shovel a hole in the centre of the pristine lawn, Keon removed his shirt to hang inside the rear door.
Squaring his shoulders, he walked to Farley and knelt opposite. Bowing his head, Keon sat and waited for the pre-ceremony.
“As the people of your pack have given their blood to sanctify your union—” Farley pulled a vial of blood from the leather thong around his neck. “—the Alpha must be willing to give his blood for his people.” Farley tipped the vial contents into the shallow hole. One drop of blood from every member of the pack, collected by Weston and offered willingly. “Will you bleed for your pack?” he asked, laying the empty vial at his side and pulling a knife from his waistband.
“I will,” Keon promised, head respectfully low. He didn’t flinch when his hand was held over the hole, wrist secured in Farley’s steady grip. The tip of the knife cut into the flesh of his palm, sinking deep. He hissed but didn’t pull away. This was the sacrifice of every Alpha who took a mate and promised to be the father and leader to the pack.
Farley lifted Keon’s free hand and pressed a finger to the wound. “We shall seal the pack as one. The father and his children. If this family is to grow and prosper, as will the seed of your blood. If the pack is destined to wither and die because of an untrue Alpha, the tree will show your people the way,” he explained, reciting the ceremonial words. Farley covered the hole with the soil he’d taken from the earth.
It sealed instantly, healing the hurt to the earth.
“The Mother has accepted your pledge to your people. We shall see if She believes in you,” the Meskli said, warning him the pain of the wound had been healed, in acceptance of his place as Alpha.
Keon had no idea what would happen if She believed, but prayed She gave him the chance to prove himself. Pressing on his wound to stop the bleeding, he waited for a sign. When nothing happened, Keon closed his eyes, begging the Mother not to take Milo away. He loved him.
Farley whispered, the hushed tone sending a throb of fear through Keon’s veins, “The Mother has shown us the way.”
Keon knew he should open his eyes to witness the miracle or forever not know. He braved a glimpse with one eye, and the second shot open as a blood-red shoot emerged from the earth. It grew to one inch, three, and ten, continuing to twist and wind its way from the soil and into the sky. When it approached a foot, Keon rushed to his feet, the twisting branches dancing and swaying in the breeze, rustling as the shoot became a bare tree.
After ten minutes, a twelve-foot-tall tree blossomed. Beautiful red leaves and red bark moved to the rhythm of the wind, displaying a canopy of cover to shade this place in summer months.
Keon plucked one of the red fruits from a branch. “What is it?” he asked, waiting for Farley to explain.
“Proof of what you’ll accomplish, with your chosen mate by your side.” He placed a hand on Keon’s and met his gaze, eyes wet with the onset of tears. “Your reign, like the great, long shadow of this tree, will offer your pack protection. Like the fruits it has given you, your reign will offer your people sustenance, victories, and benefits to last the test of time.”
Lifting the fruit from Keon’s hand, Farley studied it and took a bite of the flower-shaped fruit. “The flavour is subtle but sweet, like the rains about to descend. Your reign shall give this to your people, Keon. By taking Milo as your mate, you have given your people the ability to form strong family ties. You have created a family.”
Keon wanted to cry. He’d never known this was possible, but it was beautiful and he wanted to share it with Milo.Mikha, can you come here?he asked, not sure how far away he was, if he’d followed the others to the sacred tree.
Are you okay?Milo replied, the image of a spinning wheel suggesting he was on his way—proof their mate bond was growing, beyond sharing emotions and thoughts.
Yeah.He wasn’t sure how to explain, not wanting to ruin the surprise. Instinct made him turn, relieved Milo pushed his wheelchair into the garden from the path by the side of the house. “Come see this. This is our truth,” he explained, gazing at the beautiful tree in awe.
As soon as Milo was by his side, Keon handed him a fruit and explained what it represented, how it had come into being.
They had been accepted by the Mother.
Although he wished Milo could have shared the joy, he understood it wasn’t the way. The tree was made from Alpha blood and his pack, mixed to create a union as strong as his mating. It had to be the Alpha, alone, or he wouldn’t be accepting sole responsibility for the pack. Though Milo would be his mate, at his side, helping him make important decisions for the pack, it was Keon who shouldered the responsibility for every life and soul.
“We are ready to bind you as mates,” Farley said, interrupting the moment.
Keon smiled at Milo, who stared back with the same awe he’d given the tree.
*
THEY WALKED TOthe sacred tree as they would do everything from this moment on: together. Keon was proud to walk by Milo’s side and see the smiles and welcome on the faces of his pack, as they arrived at the sacred tree. Canopy extending to the sky, the sacred tree stood in the centre of their land, beyond his personal clearing, deep in the heart of the forest. The heart of their pack. The first tree planted by the first Alpha of their people.
This was where they would pledge their lives. Where they would dedicate their lives to each other and the pack. Once the ceremony was complete, their guests would retreat to Keon’s clearing to continue the feast, while he and Milo tolerated hours of mingling when they wanted time to be alone.
Approaching the sacred tree, where the gathered crowd had left a ring of three feet for the ceremony, Milo wheeled into the space beside Keon and flipped the brakes.
Farley raised his hands and waited for everyone to settle in a half circle around them, facing the tree. “Thank you for joining us. I am privileged to oversee this mating. As a pack, you have accepted Keon as your Alpha and Milo as his mate. It is time to unite them, with the Mother’s blessing,” he recited, giving them the cue they’d been waiting for.
