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WHEN WE GOT HOME, WE decided to have a big breakfast. We were going to meet the pack later. For now, we were going to feast. We all worked together to make it. I was still riding the high of defeating Decker. Everything felt surreal. It was like I had stepped into another life. A life that I wanted to live. No more doing stupid shit that put my life in jeopardy.
I set the table, and soon we were all seated. “Guys, I want to tell you I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry for the deception. I’m sorry I left the house when I told you I wouldn’t. This is something you are going to hate, but I have to say it. I would do it again.”
“Why would you do that?” Sky asked. “Why would you do something so damn stupid?”
I wasn’t insulted. “Because while I love all of you and I promise I don’t have a death wish, I am the alpha. My pack has to come first. That is something I learned from my father. He made difficult decisions, but his compass was always on doing what was best for the pack. He was a damn good father and an even better alpha. I want to be like him. I want to emulate him. I don’t think I got nearly long enough to learn from him, but I am going to take what I did learn and use it.”
That seemed to give them pause. “I get it,” Ares said. “I understand loyalty, but I think you need to start looking at us as the other part of you. We are the other half to your whole. None of us would tell you to do anything that put the pack at risk, but our ultimate goal is to keep you alive. That is our job. Your job is to keep the pack safe, and our job is to keep you safe. Do you understand that?”
I nodded. “I do. When you put it like that, I get it. I’m really sorry that things went down the way they did. Once again, I regretted my decision the moment I faced him. I realized how badly I’d screwed up.”
“We heard your pleas for help,” Sky said. “It tore my heart out to be so far away.”
I blinked back tears. “I’m sorry. I cannot tell you how sorry I am.”
“Apology accepted,” Ares said. “But I swear, woman, if you do that shit again, I will spank you. I will put you over my knee and spank your bare ass. You will not be able to sit down for a week.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Well, that’s rather violent.”
“It’s a promise.”
“I won’t do it again, but if there is another situation like this, you have to know I will put the pack first.”
“Just talk to us,” Hawk said. “Talk to us about what you want to do. I know it might be hard for you to understand, but we will work together. We can come up with a plan that keeps you safe and accomplishes your goal to keep the pack safe.”
“It’s a deal. I’ll do it. You have my word.”
“Can we eat now?” Berrion asked. “I’m starving.”
We all laughed. “Eat,” I said. “We are going to need our strength to handle this day.”
“Do you think people are going to be upset about Winter taking over the pack?” Sky asked.
I looked at Kya and smiled. “No, not at all. I think this is the best of both worlds. We get to have our mother close but not on top of us. The Ironclaw are getting a great alpha. She will be a good leader. She has a nurturing instinct, and even if it doesn’t always shine through, it’s there.”
“She’s definitely a force to be reckoned with,” Ares said. “I got to clean up her aftermath. That was no joke.”
“She was protecting her baby,” Kya said with a proud smile. “Decker’s lucky she didn’t rip his balls off.”
The guys choked. “We’re trying to eat.”
“You were just talking about ripping a man’s throat out but ripping his balls off is not suitable for the breakfast table?” I teased.
“Stop,” Radolf groaned. “My balls are shrinking as we speak.”
Kya and I burst into laughter. I was glad the mood had been lightened. We finished our breakfast, deciding to leave the bulk of the cleanup until after our day with the pack. I was only a little nervous as we approached the gathering at the park.
“Is he dead?” Nia asked as she ran up to me.
I smiled. “He is.”
She clapped her hands and jumped up and down. “That is too crazy. I can’t believe he is really gone.”
“I better make the announcement to everyone else. Are the rumors flying?”
She nodded. “You have no idea. I can’t wait to hear this story. By the way, I’m going to kick your ass if I hear you really did what I’ve heard.”
“I’ll apologize now.”
I took my usual spot on the stage and laid everything out. No one spoke as I told the story. I heard some gasps when I got to the part about my mother ripping Decker’s throat out. When I was finished, I stood in front of my pack and waited for the response. I had no idea how they were going to take it.
Nia started to clap. Before I knew it, they were all clapping. I looked to my left and then my right. The guys looked satisfied with the way things were going. “Thank you. Thank you all. I promise I’m going to keep busting my ass to do right by all of you.”
I stepped off the stage and was immediately surrounded. I shook hands with everyone and accepted countless hugs. I was glad they were all happy with the way things went. I was forever grateful for them all.
Nia came up to me again. “Okay, first, I’m so pissed at you. Second, I’m so pissed at your guys. How did I keep my eyes on you all day, but they lost you in the first few hours? But all of that aside, my mom and some of the other ladies organized a potluck. Word got around earlier today about Decker. The celebration has already been planned.”
“Really?”
“Please don’t act like you are surprised that everyone found out about Decker. You know this place is a hive of gossip.”
“True. A potluck?”
“Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if they made this day a national holiday.”
“I think my mom should be here for this,” I said. “This is really about her. I would have been dead if it wasn’t for her. There wouldn’t be a celebration at all.”
Nia waved a hand. “Her role will be celebrated later. Everyone will pat her on the back and give her kudos. Hell, she’ll get two celebrations once the Ironclaw have their heads on straight.”
“That’s not nice.”
“I’m just saying, you don’t have to give up your glory. Take this day for yourself. I want to celebrate. We haven’t been able to truly celebrate your position as alpha. Fucking Decker has been an albatross since, well forever. I for one would not mind stomping all over his grave.”
“You are one harsh woman. Remind me to never piss you off.”
“Sorry, but it’s true. That man is disgusting.”
Mrs. Lincoln made her way over to us. I quickly grabbed a chair. “Sit, sit.”
“I’m fine. I’m not completely handicapped.”
“Of course not.”
“You did good,” she said and patted my arm. “You did real good, and when I see your mama again, I’ll thank her for saving you for all of us. She saved you, and you saved us.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Lincoln. It means a lot to me. I’m glad everyone is safe. I hated the idea of everyone being in danger. The danger is gone. We can go back to our normal lives.”
“I’m very happy to hear that. I made some of my famous, or maybe infamous, chili and cornbread for the potluck. I need to go make sure those kids don’t spill it.”
I hugged her again. “Thank you, Mrs. Lincoln. Your advice always means a lot to me. I am glad I get to be here to hear more of it.”
“Don’t you pull that nonsense again, young lady.”
“Understood.”
“I want you to meet someone,” Nia said and put up her arm. A very tall blond man made his way toward us.
“Is that—?” I asked.
“It is. Daniel, I would like you to meet Azalea. She’s my best friend, but she’s also the alpha.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Azalea. I think we’ve met a few times before at various pack celebrations. I’m sorry about your father.”
I studied his face. “Thank you, and it’s nice to meet you Daniel. I do recognize you. I think your dad and my dad hung out.”
He nodded. “They did. In fact, I think you were about five and we got lost in the forest together.”
“We did?”
“Oh, we did. I’m a little older than you, and I was the one that suffered the consequences.”
“I’m sorry. My dad could be overprotective.”
“Hey, it’s all good.”
“Daniel is going to be in town for a while,” Nia said with obvious excitement.
“Good. Stick around. You make this girl happy.”
“She makes me happy.”
“Come on,” Nia said and grabbed his arm. “I want to introduce you to some other people.”
I winked and gave her a thumbs-up when they turned to walk away. Her smile was huge. I was so happy for her.
“She looks happy,” Berrion said.
“She is.”
“Who’s the guy?”
“Daniel. Her boyfriend.”
“Do we need to have a talk with him?”
I punched his shoulder. “No, you don’t need to have a talk with him. He’s a good guy, and he makes her very happy.”
“Are you sure?”
“Back off, buddy. When it’s time for you to make a move, I’ll let you know. She is very happy, and Nia doesn’t date just anyone. This guy is good for her.”
“I heard Kya’s dating a guy. Maybe we should have a talk with him.”
“Settle down, big boy,” I told him and patted his arm. “Let’s go find everyone.”
We spent the next several hours mingling with the others. Eventually, it was me and my guys with Nia and Kya and their boyfriends. It took a little warming up, but the guys seemed to welcome Caden and Daniel into their circle. Because boys will be boys, they headed off into the forest to do some running.
“They like them,” I said.
“Thank goodness,” Nia said. “Ares is one intimidating dude. I thought for sure he was going to eat Daniel.”
I laughed. “He really enjoys being intimidating.”
“Love what you do,” Nia said.
“How do your parents like him?” I asked.
“They love him.”
“Good,” I said before leaning over to look at Kya. “When are you going to introduce Mom to Caden?”
“It’s a work in progress. I have to admit he’s a little afraid of her after hearing the story of Decker’s death.”
Nia and I burst into laughter. “That is a bit of an intimidating factor. Not exactly the mom who offers milk and cookies.”
“Definitely not. Mom is going to give him the third degree. I almost feel bad for him. She says she is happy for me, but there is no hiding her fierceness. I keep expecting her to materialize next to me and tell me she caught me doing the nasty. Having an invisible mom is no joke.”
“I think she will like him. He’s a good guy, and I doubt she wants to get an up close and personal view of you doing the nasty with your man.”
“Damn, I hope not,” she groaned. “That would be so wrong.”
“Look at us,” Nia said with a satisfied smile. “We’re a bunch of old ladies.”
“Woah, speak for yourself,” I said. “I am not old.”
“But you are an old lady.”
“I suppose I am. I’m an old lady times five.”
“I can’t believe everything has worked out so well,” Kya said. “This is what I always wanted.”
“A boyfriend?” I teased.
“The whole package. A sister. A friend. A pack. And definitely a boyfriend.”
“I’m very happy for you. I’m happy we get to go on this journey together.”
“Thank you for accepting me,” she said. “You’ve changed my life.”
We settled in by the lake, listening to the occasional wolf howls coming from the trees beyond. The boys were having a good time. I was glad they were getting to run off some of the frustration they’d been feeling after the little incident last night.
When they returned, they looked refreshed. We left the gathering and headed for home. Kya was once again staying the night with Caden. It was just me and my guys. We were all tired and looking forward to getting some real sleep. It had been too long. We’d been sleeping with one eye open for weeks. Getting to fully succumb to sleep was going to be good for all of us.
“Thank you, guys, for being so supportive,” I said to them all before going up to bed. “I am the luckiest woman in the world to get to have all of you in my life. I hope you all know that.”
“Goodnight and no sneaking out,” Hawk warned. “I’m going to put alarms on the doors and windows. I never thought I would know what it was like to have a naughty daughter, but I do now.”
I laughed. “Very funny. Go to bed. You look like hell. Everyone needs to sleep. Do not come knocking on my door. This girl is closed for business.”
“Party pooper,” Berrion called out.
“Go to bed!” I shouted before closing my bedroom door.
I smiled as I undressed and crawled under my covers. The bed my mom had delivered was very nice. Tonight, I would sleep alone, but I had a feeling it would be one of the last nights I did. Why would I ever choose to sleep alone when I had five gorgeous hunks eager to fill the spot next to me?
I drifted off to sleep feeling content and secure. The safe and secure thing was huge. I never realized how important it was to feel that way until right now. Ever since my dad died, there had been an emptiness that made me feel like I wasn’t safe. That emptiness was slowly being knitted closed with the people that had come into my life since he’d left me.
I poured my coffee, staring out the kitchen window and wondering where everyone was. When I awoke, the house had been quiet. I assumed they were running errands. Maybe they were out getting stuff to make a big breakfast.
I sat down at the table and thought about what I needed to do for the day. I needed to get myself on a schedule. I knew there was stuff at the town hall I needed to address. Stuff that had been ignored for too long. I would do that. I needed to check in on my mom as well. Maybe that could wait until tomorrow.
I was running down my mental to-do list when I heard the back door open. I turned around with a smile to greet whomever it was that was returning home. I shrieked, my cup of coffee dropping to the floor as I scrambled out of the chair.
“No!” I shouted. “You can’t be here!”
Decker was smiling at me. That same evil smile that made my skin crawl. “You didn’t keep up your end of the deal,” he sneered.
“I—”
I didn’t know what to say. I couldn’t run. I couldn’t fight. I was frozen to the spot. I tried to call out for help, but the words wouldn’t come out of my mouth.
“I’m going to kill you,” he said and held up his hands that were covered in blood. “I told you I would kill everyone else first and then you.”
My heart broke. “You killed them?” I whispered.
He grinned. “That was a lot of fun. Ares put up a challenge, but I’ve got this,” he said and tapped his head. “His size doesn’t mean shit when it comes to my power. He got on his knees and let me slice his throat. It was everything I hoped it would be. They are dead. Your pack is dead and now you will die.”
I cried out. It was a low keening sound as my heart shattered in my chest. My entire world was gone. Everything I worked to prevent had happened.
