Chapter Seventy-Five

Regan’s POV

When I returned from my run, I had expected to see Luke waiting for me, as I suspected he would.

What I had not expected however, was to see the Luna of Nighthowl pack waiting for me instead.

I hastily pulled on my clothes after shifting behind a tree, not wanting to keep her waiting longer.

“My Lady”, I said as greeting to her as I approached her. “Is there something I can do for you?” I asked, somewhat confused about her presence.

She gave that affectionate smile.

“Walk with me, Alpha Regan”, she said, and began to lead the way.

I followed closely and fell into step beside her, putting a respectable distance between us.

We walked silently for a while before she began to speak.

“I was wrong”, she said all of a sudden.

I turned to glance at her, confused as to what she was talking about.

“Wrong about what, Luna?” I asked her.

She turned to glance briefly at me before facing forward again.

“I had thought you were too young to have remembered his visit”, she said. “The first time my mate had come to your pack”, she clarified. “I had assumed that you had been too young to still recall his visit”, she said.

I contemplated on the wisdom of being honest with the Luna, and decided that I had nothing to loose in being truthful.

“It is not that I recall his visit so well, my Lady”, I told her as we walked. “It is that I recall my father’s reaction to his visit”, I confessed.

She remained quiet to allow me continue.

“I remember some things about my father even up until now”, I told her. “And one of the things I remember is seeing him so joyful over your mate’s visit”, I told her. “I had never seen my father so obviously happy before. It was as though he could not contain his joy even if he wished to”, I said. “He also spoke very highly of him even prior to his visit”, I said. “I had heard many things about the powerful Alpha I had been named after even before I had met him. That is how high in esteem my father held your mate”, I told her.

She remained silent.

So, I continued.

“I had thought…” my words trailed off and I tried to find the right words before trying again. “…hoped that he held my father in equally high regard enough to at least come for his funeral”, I finally confessed.

All was silent except for the sounds of our footsteps and the distant sounds from the creatures of the night, until I heard her sniff.

My eyes immediately snapped around to look at her only to see her wiping at her tears.

“My Lady”, I called softly. “I did not intend to upset you”, I said.

She shook her head.

“You have done nothing of the sort”, she told me. “But it is not all as you thought”, she told me.

We stopped at a large space with a large stone that she led us over to, before sitting down on the stone and patting the space beside her for me to do the same.

I obliged and sat beside her.

She looked out into the night as she continued.

“I am sure you do not completely understand the relationship between my mate and your father”, she said, and I slowly shook my head.

She nodded, probably knowing as much.

“You see”, she began. “We once had a daughter”, she said, sadness already coating her words. “She was the only child the Moon Goddess had blessed us with and she was our Joy”, she said. “When she was young, she, alongside other young werewolves around her age, had wandered to the edge of our borders”, a smile curved her lips when she spoke again. “She was very stubborn and willful you see, very much like her father”, she said. “They had wandered too far just outside our borders and there was a sudden rogue attack. At the time, rogues abducted any young werewolves and pups that they came across. They had been attacked”, she told me. “By the time we had been alerted and made our way there, we were able to drive the rogues off and managed to save all of them. None was badly injured, except one”, she said and turned to me. “There was a strange young wolf who had saved our daughter’s life at the risk of his own. It was your father”, she said.

My eyes widened in surprise at the news.

“He had been abducted from his pack but had still managed to save our daughter’s life”, she said, turning back to face forward. “Rhaia, our daughter, would not let us have peace until he was taken back to our pack and treated. When he finally woke up days later”, she said. “He had lost his memory as a result of his injury, and Rhaia had decided that he was sent to us by the Goddess. We had been left with no choice but to take him in as our own. After all, we had always wanted another child”, she said.

“Your father was the son we never had and we adored him, Rhaia especially”, she said. “So when his father showed up a few years later with proof, after hearing rumors that his missing son was in our pack, we had been left with very little choice but to release him to his rightful family”, she said.

A tear trailed down her cheek but she did not bother to wipe it away.

“It broke our hearts to let him go”, she said. “But he was not ours to keep”, she said with a sad sigh. “Rhaia would not eat for days after he left, neither could my mate. That was how much we all missed him. And despite how many times we had tried, we were denied the request of seeing him”, she said.

“After many years”, she went on. “He finally became Alpha and we started to send messages to communicate with him. He replied and we set a date to meet”, she let out another sigh. “He had finally come to visit with your mother just when she was pregnant with you”, she informed me. “It was a happy day for all of us to be finally reunited. Rhaia had just found her mate as well”, she said with a sad smile.

“He visited alone and with your mother a few more times”, she said turning to me. “You were too young to make the long journey, especially as you did not have a wolf at the time”, she told me. “We had planned to all visit your pack to finally meet you before a tragic incident took Rhaia’s mate from us”, she said. “That was why Regan had taken the journey alone”.

“That was when he visited us”, I said, understanding of the situation dawning on me.

She nodded.

“He had planned to stay longer”, she said. “But the loss of Rhaia’s mate had made a huge impact on her health. She had fallen gravely ill”, she told me. “That was why he had to come back sooner. Her condition had worsened drastically”, she said.

This time, the tears were falling without stopping and she did not seem to care enough to hide her grief from me.

“He had just arrived back here when we had gotten word on the attack on your pack”, she said, obviously trying not to burst into sobs as she took in deep breaths.

“He made ready to return, not that it would have made a difference by the time he would have gotten to your pack”, she said. “But Rhaia, as soon as she heard the news of what had happened to your father and your pack, finally gave up the fight”, she told me. “She died that very night”, she said, a sob finally escaping her.

I felt the tears I had been fighting to hold back slide down my cheek.

“When Regan heard it”, she went on despite her sobs. “His heart could not take loosing both of his children. He suffered a shock that left him in the state you saw him earlier”, she told me.

Unwillingly to hear any longer before the guilt consumed me, I pulled her into my arms and hugged her tightly.

She returned my hug as she sobbed in my arms.

“We did not mean to abandon you”, she sobbed. “We were convinced that you blamed us and wanted nothing to do with us”, she cried. “Oh we loved your father very much”, she cried. “You are so much like him”.

I held her the whole while she cried, shedding a few tears of my own until she finally stopped crying.

I released her and she pulled away.

“Forgive me, Alpha”, she said in a voice weak from crying.

“Please”, I said before she could continue. “Call me Regan”, I told her. “You were like a mother to my father. That would mean that you are like a grandmother to me”, I said. “So please, call me Regan”.

Slowly, a small smile made its way unto her face.

“Very well, Regan”, she said. “I did not mean to trouble you”, she said. “I simply needed you to understand Regan”, she said.

An amused smile twitched at the corner of my lips, one she saw that made her laugh softly.

“You even smile like him”, she observed.

I decided to take that as a compliment.

“Please do not be too hard on him”, she pleaded. “He had suffered very much with the loss of his children”, she said. “We both have”.

I looked to the ground, feeling very ashamed of my earlier behavior and for resenting him all those years.

Considering what he had been going through at the time, it was beyond god-like of him to have still sent help and messages regularly as often as he had. Also considering the distance between our packs.

He had not attended my father’s funeral to pay his respects because he had been in mourning, mourning both his children who had died within a few days.

Not to mention his health.

“Could he ever forgive me?” I asked her, sure she knew what I was talking about.

Her smile told me she did.

“He has never resented you”, she said. “You did not see how happy he was when he received the message that you were here”, she told me. “He has smiled more today than he has in many days”, she said. “So to answer your question, he already has”, she told me, bringing a hand to pat my arm affectionately.

I nodded at her words.

“And you?” I asked.

She smiled again.

“There is nothing to forgive, my dear”, she told me, her eyes holding the truth of her words.

I returned her smile with a grateful one of my own.

“Thank you, my Lady”, I said to her.

She waved my thanks away.

“You do not have to be so formal with me”, she said.

I smiled and looked at her.

“I’m afraid you would have to be patient with me on that, my Lady”, I said.

“Vey well”, she said with a forgiving smile.

We settled into comfortable silence before she spoke again.

“Regan”, she called gently and I turned to look at her. “You do know that you do not have to ask us to pledge to fight with you”, she said. “We will always be on your side whenever you need us”, she said.

I smiled in gratitude and nodded.

Suddenly remembering that I did not tell them and wondering if they already knew.

“My mate is pregnant”, I told her.

By the way her eyes turned wide in surprise and delight, it was safe to conclude that she had not known.