A Tale of Three Lunas-Completed

Chapter 43

Kaipo's POV

So. Much. Groundwork. To be in this car with this girl today.

We had to send some pack members ahead of us to covertly gauge if the West Moontrail Pack was hostile since their Alpha went missing. Since we could not speak with Zinnia, we had to dig up notes on what she had said about the West Moontrail Pack when she first got here and study them. I had to keep Lorenzo here for extra time and make sure none of the Council tried to go after his mate since she was unconscious. I had to keep Lorenzo and Topaz from seeing each other so Topaz would believe that Zinnia had left. The direct route we were going to take to get to West Moontrail had to be vetted early this morning before we took it. Yesterday I was in more meetings for hours to come up with a plan to help me convince my people that I could go visit the pack alone. They wanted to meet and speak about it more today, but I just left and I had to leave it to my Beta and Gamma to make sure we weren't followed. There is a countdown clock of when Luneria plans to blow up the forest, so we don't have time to sit in meetings for weeks on end and discuss it. I had to start taking pills to suppress my Alpha aura to hide who I am from the Alpha of the West Moontrail Pack, pills that weaken my wolf. I had already been feeling guilty because I had just found out that one of my men had almost become a rogue while dealing with the Lavishlands situation. Everett and Roman were instructed to filter the information about what's going on in New Moon, then inform me of anything important by mindlink in the morning on the second day only. They will be on call until I got back.

I've barely gotten any sleep in the last few days, but once I found out that my mate's sick wolf was coming back, all my troubles melted away.

Once her wolf gets better, she will know that I am her mate. I wanted to sit next to her and speak to her wolf after she stirred while we were in the restaurant, but Akamu was already doing that. Topaz couldn't feel it, but I could. It was going to be difficult for me to stay a respectable distance away from her now that she made me so happy. It ended up being impossible.

Once I paid for our meals and we got up from our seats, I picked her up and carried her to the car. I want to kiss her so badly, but I know she is still unsure of me. Its nice just being a regular person with her and not a King of the Alphas.

We hide some of our personal things across from the restaurant so we can pick it up after we leave.

"Okay, we'll be there soon. Ready?" I ask as we pull off. She nods her head, still smiling.

We talk more about the game plan to get the necklace as we continue forward and we make it there a bit before the evening.

In the moments that we pull up towards the pack, Akamu immediately wakes up from his pill-induced slumber, sensing danger. There is a sinister force that I feel here and it gets more obvious to me and Akamu the further we drive. I have to ask Topaz to take the unmarked pills from my pocket and put some of them into my mouth as I am driving to put Akamu back to sleep. We stop in front of a building that we are directed to park in front of and pack warriors are on us in a second. We are told to get out of the car by the final person who comes out of what I'm guessing is the packhouse.

"What is your business here?" he asks.

Topaz isn't fazed at all.

"Hi, my name is Topaz. I am an Archivist and I have come from the Lunaria Kingdom in search of a missing obelisk shard. We are here to speak with Alpha Shawn about a proposition from the New Moon Pack. We are hoping to meet with him to discuss it."

The guy looks at me and tilts his chin, wordlessly asking what I'm doing there. I show him the official Lunaria paperwork and the official-looking Goodwill paperwork.

"I am Ford, Lunaria palace messenger. These are for your Alpha."

We are brought into the packhouse without our bags and searched. Afterward, we are brought to the room that Lorenzo had described. Lorenzo said that whenever he was in this room, he was confronted by Alpha El and threatened not to return.

We are left with one guard and Topaz sets up her presentation, contently humming to herself as we wait for way too long.

Two men enter, one looking like a younger version of the Alpha who had to be killed in my custody. Once we all make our introductions, his identity is confirmed.

"What is this about? he asks.

"I had gone through birth and death records for all of the packs under the Goodwill Kingdom. We are going from pack to pack searching for a woman named Brenda Dodge. Any help or information about her would be appreciated." Topaz says, motioning to me.

He takes the Obelisk Unification Agreement from me and looks it all over. It is a letter signed by the King of the Goodwill Kingdom stating that the matter of destroying the Ihowtons was the top priority and that any pack that was able to help locate this person would receive wealth and any gift its Alpha asked for (pending review) from the Kingdom.

Once he is finished reading, he goes over to the man that came in with him and the man leaves briefly. After a while, he opens the door, letting in a girl.

"Hi. My name is Coral and my mother's name was Brenda Dodge. I heard you were asking about her. What is this about?" she says, meekly.

"Hi! My name is Topaz. I'm from the Winter Trail Pack in the Lunaria Kingdom. My mother's name was Sandra. She grew up with your mother in Lunaria. They were close. My mother died a few years ago, but she left me this."

Topaz pulls her necklace out of her shirt. Coral gasps and runs out of the room. She comes back soon with her own beaten-up, yellowish stringed necklace. She hands Topaz the necklace as she looks over Topaz'. I can't help but lean over to check out the piece in Topaz' hand as I had already examined Topaz' own piece extensively. Reality is starting to set in. It's not like I didn't believe her or anything, but this is a massive deal. Topaz takes the center stones of the two necklaces and pieces them together like a puzzle. They fit perfectly, although there is an obvious missing piece. White dust comes from the union when the pieces touch, but it quickly dissipates.

The girl gasps, everyone in the room looks at each other and begins murmuring and I almost s**t myself.

"It fits! Are there more pieces? Where are they? Can we get them?" she asks excitedly as Topaz hands the girl her necklace back.

"Whoa, whoa." Shawn, the Alpha, who has also been looking at the two pieces up until now, takes Coral aside. I take the chance to ask Topaz how she is feeling.

"This is perfect. I'm so happy. I always believed in it, but seeing it here in my hands makes it real."

"I agree. I'm so proud of you." I give her a hug and she hugs me back tightly.

The couple comes over and the man finally speaks.

"What is your plan here?" he asks Topaz. Topaz, however, directs her comments to Coral instead of the rude Alpha.

"Well, I wanted to make contact and explain the situation. When our moms were kids, a large obelisk fell from the sky and broke into three pieces. Our moms and another woman each took a piece and made a necklace for themselves. I was hoping to unite the three pieces since this missing obelisk is what is causing the Ihowtons to come over here."

The murmuring people go back to murmuring.

"I want to help." Coral says meekly. "But," she pauses, and the Alpha puts a hand on her back, encouraging her, "but I don't want to give it up."

"We'll go with you, we're not giving up the necklace." Shawn says.

"Wait, wait you're the expert on this, right?" Coral asks.

"Well, I am an Archivist and this is my life's work, but I wouldn't call myself an expert." My mate is so modest.

"I think, um, I think there is another one, like my mother had another piece, but I don't know if it is. I'd be embarrassed if I was wrong." She rubs her arm shyly.

The murmurs float through the crowd again.

"Do you have it?"

She nods.

"Yes. Follow me."