Chapter Nine Author: Alicia S. Rivers Last Updated: 2024-09-26 02:05:23

“There are my two favorite girls.” My dad walked into my room just as we got back.

“Hi Daddy.” I walked over and hugged him, and [Cassie] bowed her head. “Hi Alpha Devlin.” “None of that Cassie, when it’s just us. I’ve told you just to call me Dev.” Cas blushed and nodded. “Can I speak with my daughter alone for a minute?” “Of course, Alpha.” Cas looked at me with a tiny bit of panic in her eyes as she turned away. I tried to reassure her, but I couldn’t do much. She knew exactly what this conversation was about. I followed my father to his office and sat down with Ronnie and him. “Talk.” “What is going on in this pack, Dad?” “What do you mean?” “Why are unranked she-wolves lording their power over the weaker wolves?” I looked over at Ronnie, and he looked away. “You obviously know what I am talking about. What exactly are the beta and gamma females doing?” “Hey!” Ronnie looked at me. “That isn’t fair.” “I’m not saying it’s fair.” I looked back at my father. “You are letting your pack crumble from within, and I want to know why.” I stared my father in the eye until Loki was growling back at me, but Nix growled right back.

I refused to back down when a pack I loved was falling apart. The rumble of his threat got louder, but I held firm. My dad finally smiled, and Nix receded. “You have grown up.” I nodded, but I raised my eyebrow, and my father huffed. “It wasn’t supposed to fall so quickly.” “What are you even talking about?” “It was Ronnie’s plan.” My father started, and I glanced at my uncle, who went a little pale. “Look, I thought it would work.” “What exactly?” “I thought if your mother saw her friends and family falling apart, she would come back.” My father’s voice grew quiet with each word. I threw up my hands in frustration. “She doesn’t speak to anyone here anymore. She asked the Alpha to forbid anyone from speaking to her about your pack so she could have peace.” I shook my head. “What were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t.” My dad put his head in his hands. “It’s been years, Amy. Years without my mate.” “I know.” I got up and hugged him from the side. “Mom thinks you betrayed her, and she is still pretty broken up about it.” “I know. But I thought her Luna duties would override the betrayal.” My dad looked up at me, and I laughed at his face. “You are a stupid man, Dad.” I just shook my head and sat back down. I turned on Ronnie. “And so are you, Uncle.” “Hey!” He called out, but I just looked at him until he nodded. “We have to fix your pack this summer, too. I won’t be able to go back to Mom’s pack without knowing this bullshit has stopped.” “Okay, sugar. We can fix it.” “No, no, you can’t.” I felt Nix agree with my thoughts before I voiced them. “This is for the women to fix. I want the beta and gamma to meet with me before the party tonight.” My dad jolted back in surprise, and I laughed. “You asked my best friend to keep a surprise from me, Dad. First off, stupid move. You know she can’t keep a secret. Second, even if she hadn’t blurted out the truth, I would have figured out something from Aurora.” I glanced at my father, and I watched his expression cloud over. “Ugh, now you’ve done it.” Ronnie huffed out a breath before sitting back. “What?” “Any time someone says her name, or he sees her, his eyes glaze over, and he won’t shut the heck up about her.” “She is so beautiful. The most beautiful woman I have ever seen.” “Even prettier than my mom?” I threw it out without a thought, knowing he would say no, but to my surprise, without even hesitating, he said yes. “Of course, your mother doesn’t even hold a candle to the beauty of Aurora.” I got to my feet and walked over, grabbing my dad’s face as I felt something was amiss.

His eyes were still unfocused. “Is it always like this when her name is mentioned?” “Yup. For at least five minutes, then he goes back to being normal like nothing happened.” Ronnie rolled his eyes. “And this is normal to you?” I looked at Ronnie over my shoulder and noticed his eyes were unfocused as well. “Yeah, why wouldn’t it be?” Ronnie’s eyes looked through me. And I knew something was wrong. “Dad?” I pulled his face to mine and swiped my cheek against his, sending a little of my aura out at the same time, and my dad pulled away. “Sweetie, how did you get over here?” My dad smiled, and I felt my knees go weak. Something was horribly wrong here, and I didn’t have long to figure it out.