Another cuts in, “An Alpha needs a proper bloodline… a Luna capable of producing the strong heirs needed to protect the pack. She’s—”
The voices start to drown each other out, facing me with direct opposition.
Every instinct in me sharpens, thrumming with the need to defend my choices and to remind the others that I know what I’m doing.
Even while some of them bare their teeth, objecting in every meaningful way they can, Varic doesn’t step in, and I don’t stop them.
I anticipated this, and as aggravating as it is, this is part of the process. The chaos and the outcry are par for the course. And as the Alpha-to-be, this is where I prove myself, where I stand my ground.
From across the mill, I feel as Lila tries not to shrink, breath going shallow with embarrassment and fear. Her heart races loud enough for me to sense from my place.
This is familiar to her, and something she has long avoided for a reason. I see it now, clearer than I ever had.
Before, I stood among these wolves and allowed this to happen. I allowed her to be mocked and ostracized, and in ways, I encouraged it.
But that thought alone is enough to awaken something entirely new in my chest.
“If you have something to say about my future mate, then say it to me. Not to her,” I say, tone dangerously calm despite the onslaught of backlash. My challenge hangs heavily in the air, and many of them are tense. With a bristle of authority, I raise my chin, voice snapping through the wood mill, “If anyone objects, say it now!”
At that, several other males grit their teeth, flashing them as if prepared to take me up on that offer. This is one of the only times the others are allowed to step out of line for the sake of the pack, to be as unruly as they want to allow me to prove my point. To solidify my decision.
“This is a mistake,” one of them says, moving closer as he puts a hand on my shoulder, nails digging into my skin. “She’s barely a wolf. There are stronger females, better choices—”
“She is my choice,” I snap back, slapping his hand away as I step forward through the crowd, slow and deliberate.
“She’s easy!” someone else calls while the others flock to me, reaching and grabbing while I move through the gauntlet. “She can’t guide us. She can barely shift.”
Even as their claws scratch at me, eyes wild and instincts flaring, I push forward, snarling when some get too brave, showing my own teeth in return. Many flinch back, some scrambling to get out of the way, while others move in to take their place.
“The outcast has a child from someone else. She has no integrity—”
My eyes flash as I pinpoint the male who said it, hand shooting forward to grip his neck, not to cause pain, but to serve as a warning. I lean in, letting a low growl resonate in my chest.
“Finish that sentence… I dare you.”
Fear emanates from him at once, and he swallows hard, immediately wavering.
Smart.
Releasing him with a snarl, I shove him back into the crowd before continuing on my path, enduring the scrutiny. Enduring the initial refusal to accept my decision for both of us.
“You want a strong Luna? You want someone resilient, someone to provide stability and protection?” I ask, feeling the surge of adrenaline and conviction coursing through me. I look around, taking in their faces, which are beginning to shift into more uncertainty than outright objection. “I assure you, no one is stronger than my mate. My chosen!”
At my show of determination, the others begin to splinter, shaking the preconceived notions they’ve been holding. Perhaps not through a rational lens just yet, but with the help of my energy cutting through theirs.
“She has endured. She has faced hardships greater than most of you, and yet, here she stands. Brave, unmovable, and with more instincts to protect than she has ever received credit for,” I continue, looking over at her from across the room, the distance between us shrinking as I slowly approach. “This is not a whim, not a last-minute decision. Even I am not bigger than fate.”
The outrage begins to wane as I move closer, and the claws pull back, less willing to mark my skin while I pass them by. I don’t even feel the stinging from those scratches as I gaze at her.
“Lila belongs under my protection, and by extension, yours,” I say, allowing every wolf in the place to hear me clearly as the shock starts to dissolve into quiet calculation. “Any wolf here who touches her, threatens her, or challenges her place will deal with me directly. And I promise this… You will not survive it.”
At that, nobody speaks. Nobody even breathes too loudly.
The remaining wolves standing between us part, moving like a single organism to get out of the way. At last, I see her staring at me in complete disbelief, eyes revealing so many emotions at once that I can’t even begin to decipher them.
“I’ve made my decision, and it won’t change.”
The air shifts, and the pack’s resistance buckles under the force of my conviction. It doesn’t come from a love for Lila, but an instinct to recognize the very fact that has been ingrained in their minds for some time now:
