Chapter Sixty-Five

Regan’s POV

It did not take us long to arrive at Redclaw pack once my request to be accepted into the pack was granted.

A part of me had thought it would have been rejected and was quite satisfied with that since it meant Luke would be spared the emotional torture the meeting might turn out to be for him.

All the same, he rode beside me with a straight face, obviously deep in his thoughts that I did not dare intrude upon.

A part of me suddenly wished we had not come with horses. It meant our quest would have been faster in a sense.

We could have run in our wolf forms to arrive at the packs we had to visit.

However, three concerns had made me decide otherwise.

The first was that we had planned to visit several packs, which meant we had to come with a lot of gifts for each pack we visited, hence why we had to bring along two carts.

Running in our wolf form meant we would have had to carry all those tributes and gifts and would have left us exhausted very quickly, especially given the length of our journey.

The second was that we were preparing for a war, so it would not do to tire or exhaust my warriors.

The last reason was quite simple. It was often seen as an act of war to arrive at a pack in one’s wolf form and in large numbers.

Our purpose was a peaceful one and I did not wish my actions to be misinterpreted in any way.

Hence, the horses.

We arrived at Redclaw pack and were ushered in by some of their warriors who led us to their pack house where, as expected, their Alpha and pack members waited outside to give us the customary welcome greeting.

I had heard Luke mind link our warriors to be on alert and I agreed with him.

He motioned for Emry, who was the youngest of our party, to stay close to him as we dismounted from our horses.

I led the way to the pack members and Alpha that waited on us.

As soon as we approached, I looked around to observe who had the Alpha energy and was quite surprised when a she-wolf stepped forward.

Although she did not give off the full Alpha energy, it was clear to see that she was related to the Alpha.

I felt that familiar aura around her.

She stood proud with her flaming red hair and forest green eyes, giving me a wary look before bowing her head in respect.

“Greetings, Alpha and warriors of the Midnight Wolves pack”, she said and lifted her head, her gaze barely leaving mine.

I felt the corner of my lips curve into a smile at her obvious suspicion. A part of me admired how she did not try to hide the fact that she was suspicious of us.

Her eyes narrowed in on the smile on my lips but she did not comment.

“I welcome you to Redclaw pack”, she said. “Unfortunately, our Alpha cannot be here to welcome you and has sent me in his stead. However, he will join us for supper”, she said.

I nodded at her words before deciding to needle her.

“We thank you for your welcome”, I said. “Although, I fear we have no idea as to whom you are”, I said, pointing out her mistake.

She blushed a bright red to her roots and turned to look over my shoulder before freezing in place.

At the sight of whoever it was she had seen behind me, she turned pale.

Noticing her strange reaction, I turned around to see what had made her react like that.

Of all the possibilities I could have come up with, never in a million years would I have thought of the scene taking place before me.

The person who had caught her eye was Luke, and he was looking at her with the same horrified, though besotted, look on his face.

The look was one I knew all too well, but I needed to confirm it.

‘Luke?’ I mind linked him. ‘Is all well?’ I asked.

He did not take his eyes off her at first, simply continued staring for a while before forcing himself to break eye contact with her and turn to me.

‘She’s my bloody mate’, he cursed in reply to my enquiry through our mind link.

My eyebrow lifted in surprise.

The Moon Goddess and Fates certainly had a twisted sense of humor.

What were the odds that the mate Luke had searched for and longed for all his life was a pretty red head who was a relative of the Alpha of the pack that was responsible for the death of his brother?

Shaking my head in wonder, I turned back to face the redhead.

She had torn her gaze away from Luke and was already looking at me.

“My name is Zara”, she said, recovering quite well and doing an admirable job of hiding her emotions behind a blank expression.

For a moment, I wondered how often she had to do that to become quite good at it.

“I am the daughter of Alpha Zolan of the Redclaw pack”, she introduced herself with a brief bow.

“I am Alpha Regan of the Midnight Wolves pack”, I said to her, before turning to bring Luke forward to stand beside me.

“And this is my Beta and friend”, I said, holding Luke firmly in place when he would have resisted. “Beta Luke”, I introduced.

Luke kept his eyes to the floor even as he bowed in greeting to her.

I saw a look of hurt flash across her face so fast that I would have missed it if I had blinked, before her expression returned to its practiced blankness.

She returned his nod with a stiff one of hers before continuing with the introductions.

By the time we were done with the introductions and had presented our gifts, she had some pack members show us to the rooms we would be staying in during our short visit.

“You should clean yourselves and rest for a short while”, she said, letting her eyes sweep across us all with an unimpressed look before continuing. “I will send some one to come and fetch you once it is time for supper”, she said with that same look before turning around and walking away.

I couldn’t control the smile that came onto my lips at her obvious disapproval of our presence.

Personally, with the terrible history aside, I thought she was quite perfect for Luke.

I kept that thought to myself however, at least for the moment.

As we made our way into our rooms, I placed my luggage on the floor beside my bed before leaving the room to go to the one across from it, knocking just once before pushing the door open.

Emry was inside already.

“What are you doing here?” I asked him simply because I had not expected to see him there.

“As most of the warriors are sharing rooms”, Luke responded in his stead. “The room he was to stay in was crowded enough. Since we both get our personal rooms due to our ranks, I thought it would harm no one to have him share my room with me”, he said.

I nodded at his words as they made a lot of sense before turning to Emry who watched on.

“Leave us alone for a while, Pup”, I told him. “I have something to discuss with Luke”, I told him. “You can rest in my room for the time being”, I said to him.

He nodded at once. “Yes, Alpha”, he said before making his way to the door.

As the door shut after him and he walked away, I could have sworn I heard him murmur, “I am not a pup”, before I heard my room door open and close after him.

I smiled at his antics before turning to face Luke.

He was busy unpacking the few necessities he would need for his stay.

I stood there in silence until he finally let out a breath and turned around.

“I do not wish to talk about it”, he said, once he turned to face me.

“I’m afraid you have no choice in the matter”, I told him, bringing my arms to fold them across my chest.

“She’s your mate”, I reminded him, just in case he had forgotten. “And it was simply not right how you treated her”, I told him.

He looked away in guilt. “I know”, he said. “But how in the name of the Goddess was I supposed to react to finding out my mate is from Redclaw pack?” He asked. “And worst of all, that she’s the daughter of its Alpha?” He asked.

I said nothing. He had a point.

“What do you plan to do now?” I asked him.

“There is only one thing to do”, he said.

Before he said the words, I already say them on his face.

“I will reject her”, he said.

“Luke, do not be a fool!” I said with a heated glare. “She has done nothing to deserve that”, I told him.

He glared back at me. “Have you suddenly forgotten that her pack is responsible for the death of my brother?” He asked.

“Her pack”, I pointed out. “Not her”, I said. “I am sure that she was no older than us when that unfortunate incident took place. You cannot blame her for something she took no part in”, I told him.

He looked at me for a moment, eyes narrowed.

“Do you also think this way when it involves members of Blackmoon pack?” He asked. “Or is this thought meant only for my mate and her pack?”

I knew he was trying to get a rise out of me, but I truly did not wish to fight with him again.

“All I am saying is”, I said instead of rising to the bait. “You have waited your whole life just to find her. Do not make a mistake you may live to regret forever, simply because you think you have to”, I told him.

I saw the immediate regret of his earlier words on his face.

“I apologize for saying those words”, he said. “Forgive me”, he pleaded.

I nodded. “You are forgiven”, I told him then went on when I saw the torment on his face. “This might be an opportunity to finally discover what happened those years ago”, I told him.

He looked up at my words.

“To be fair”, I said. “All we know is that Redclaw pack was responsible for Lane’s death. But we do not even know how he died”.

I could see his mind quick at work, already on the same path as me. That was why no one could ever replace Luke for me, no one could understand me or how I thought, better than him.

“And I have always wondered”, he said. “Why was it that our father’s never tried to avenge his death?” He asked, voicing his thoughts aloud.

“I have wondered the same thing, time and time again”, I said. “And now, fate has brought us to the place it all took place”, I said.

“It is the perfect opportunity to find the answers we seek”, he said.

“And it has so happened that you are in a position to find out the truth”, I told him.

Granted, I had an ulterior motive for enticing my friend with this plan.

He looked at me, as though already knowing where I was going.

“And what opportunity might that be?” He asked anyway.

I took a step closer.

“Your mate”, I said. “She’s the daughter of the Alpha”, I reminded. “If there is anyone that can help you find the answers we seek, it is her”, I told him.

He nodded his agreement. “I agree”, he said. “But I believe she already hates me”, he said.

“Impossible”, I said immediately. “I watched her closely”, I reported. “She could barely keep her eyes off you”, I caught the twitch at the corner of his lips but pretended not to notice. “And she looked quite hurt when you did not look at her during your introduction”, I said.

He was quiet for a while and I knew my plan would work even before he nodded.

“Very well”, he said. “I will pay her attention”, he said.

“Good”, I said with a nod. “We would need her to fall in love with you for our plan to work”, I said to him.

And I would need you to fall in love with her for my plan to work, I thought with a smile.