After Lacey was safely inside, Julien and the rest of the Harvest Moon Pack checked to make sure that the rogues had fled. And through it all, he noticed that everyone had pulled their weight.Scar walked purposefully out of the castle in her human form, assessing the damage, dressed in a pack robe that one of the maids must have given her. "Report," Julien said."Well, it looks like there were no casualties on either side," Scarlett said. "But there's damage to the south wall and other parts of the perimeter. The castle is still intact."Julien nodded. "Thank you for following orders, Scarlett.""It was my honor, Alpha.""Go ahead and help with cleanup."Scarlett nodded once. "May I say something… as a friend?" Julien nodded once. "Make it quick.""Don't be too hard on Lacey," Scarlett said. "She was doing what she thought was her job." Then Scarlett turned and headed toward Rock to start on cleanup, as ordered.With that, Julien headed into the castle to check on Lacey. He walked t
As instructed, Lacey had the staff move her things into the spare room in Julien's suite, and she spent the afternoon organizing everything. Madame Pomeroy had also brought a lot of the wardrobe to the wedding that she had shown Lacey. Luckily, there was a double closet for her to put everything in, and her new bedroom was much bigger. Between the wardrobe Julien had bought her at Aurora and now the clothes from Madame Pomeroy, Lacey had more clothes and shoes than she knew what to do with. She also had a private bathroom off her new bedroom. After everything was organized, she took a shower and dressed in a casual outfit and waited for Julien. It was their wedding night, after all.While she was waiting, Lacey had the unsettling urge to want to help with the cleanup and the possible interrogation of any Wildclaws that were caught. But from what she saw, it was more of a hit and run. The Wildclaws came in long enough to wreak havoc and then left just as quickly. It was strange. Why wo
The next morning, she woke in Julien's bed, curled up next to her mate. Lacey watched him sleep, enjoying the peaceful look on his beatific face. Then he opened an eye, giving her a cocky grin. "Morning.""Morning." She laid her head in the crook of his arm, enjoying waking up to the sight of this powerful, beautiful man. "How did you sleep?""Like a baby." Then he rolled over and kissed her neck, and whispered into her ear, "How about you?""Good." Then she sat up, pulling the sheets around her. "The attack was kind of like a hit and run. Wasn't it?" Lacey raised an eyebrow."Exactly." He bit his lower lip, moving her hair away from her neck and planted a kiss there. "Must we talk business… now?""I've been thinking about something.""Of course you have." He plopped back down onto the pillow, pulling the other one over his face and groaned.Lacey laughed. Not being deterred, she took the pillow away. "Julien, now that we're married, I can help run the pack."He rolled his eyes. "Lacey
When she arrived in the practice ring, a few shifters were already there, sparing in their human forms. Watching Car standing off to the side, talking to another shifter, Lacey had mixed emotions about her. Why would Scar stand up for her to Julien? Was it for Lacey's benefit, or for her own? But Lacey figured that the truth would come out eventually. "Yeah, you should have seen me during the attack!" Scar said to the other shifter. "I scared off those Wildclaws! Once they saw my moves, they headed for the hills!"The shifter she was talking to just listened but said nothing, obviously afraid of her. "Oh, yeah?" Lacey said, slipping on her MMA fighting gloves. "During the attack when I was fighting alongside the Alpha, I didn't see you at all.""You probably just didn't see me," Scar interjected.Lacey shook her head, smiling. "I don't think so." When she was ready, she walked into the practice ring, barefoot, and ready to work off some steam. "You mind?" She was asking the shifters
After Scar left, Lacey spent the rest of the afternoon working with the Pack Warriors on strategy, coordinating them, teaching them to work together. Just before the sun started fading from the sky, Julien came out and stood to the side, watching the warriors practice. After a while, he said, "Lacey, may I have a word?"Lacey looked up and nodded. "Yes, of course." Then she turned to the pack. "Okay. That's enough for today. Let's call it a day, but we'll start again first thing in the morning.""Yes, Alpha Queen." Some headed toward the forest to hunt, while others headed toward the castle. However, there was a camaraderie that wasn't there before."Good practice," Raye said to Lacey, and then nodded. "See you tomorrow." Then he nodded toward Julien. "Alpha."Julien nodded, giving him a slight smile as he passed.When they were alone, Lacey phased and dressed in her workout clothes. Then she zipped up her bag and headed over to Julien. Lacey leaned over and gave him a peck on the lips
Lacey pushed herself harder through the mountains, needing to run. Then she caught the scent of a herd of elk and slowed. Lacey crouched low, eyeing her prey, but then caught the scent of something else. Something big. "Grrrowwwaaallll!" She knew that sound well... and it was right behind her. Lacey's head snapped up as a low, guttural growl erupted from deep inside her chest. For behind her was a huge, black bear. "Why not?" Lacey thought, knowing she needed to work off some steam. The black bear rose on its hind legs and growled loudly again, staking its claim on the territory. However, when Lacey rose to her feet, revealing her massive size, the bear turned and started to run... but Lacey was faster. In two bounds, Lacey tackled the bear to the ground and sank her teeth into its neck, snapping it at the same time, not wanting to cause the bear any more pain than necessary. She angrily tore off slabs of steaming, hot meat until she had eaten her fill, and then left the rest
The next morning, Lacey woke early, wanting to get to the practice ring. Raye wanted to meet with her early, so she thought it was best to find out what he wanted.Lacey thought about her conversation with Julien and was glad that he had agreed to train the Pack Warriors. He was the best one for the job and had more experience than everyone else in the pack. And with experience came knowledge and years of strategy. Also, coordinating the warriors to work together as a team would be their best shot at defeating another Wildclaw attack, which was inevitable.The Wildclaws were rogue warriors without a pack. Each of them had been thrown out of their own packs or assimilated from other packs after theirs was decimated, so they formed their own pack. But it was known that they were nomadic and needed property of their own. So, instead of earning the money and building a base legitimately, it was easier to overtake an established one. Over the past several months, they had launched one unsuc
Julien was nearly to the practice ring as if nothing were amiss and began unpacking his things. Then he walked over and stood beside Lacey in the center of the ring. Scar walked out and stood on the other side of Julien as his Beta."Everyone, gather around," Julien instructed. "Since the attack the other day, the Alpha Queen and I have discussed tactics to better defend the castle and the pack. That said, we have decided that I will take over the training of the more experienced warriors, and the Alpha Queen will take over the training of the young wolves. The Beta will work with you on drills and strategies." He looked around the pack. "Understood?"There was a rumble of agreement. Julien went on to explain how he and Lacey planned to train them, and how they planned to have them work together for the good of the pack. "So, no matter what event is transpiring that day, we will not be caught off guard again." Then he looked over at Lacey. "Alpha Queen, where would you like your men t