Return to Wisteria (Book Three of the Wisteria Chronicles)

CHAPTER 4~Temporarily~

August

    My world was falling apart. It felt like someone knocked the wind out of me. I wanted to shout and faint at the same time. How could they take my title? Nova gasped next me, the panic on her face must’ve matched my own. Autumn started to cry from her bed. “Are you f*****g serious?! A whole hour to talk this out and that is what you f*****g decide?!” Summer roared. “Summer.” Dad barked. Summer clenched her fists and marched over to his side. “Let him finish.” Elder Bruce said.

    “As I was saying, August Frost will be stripped from his title, temporarily. The title will be reassigned to Devlin Frost. We cannot and will not condone your behavior. The Assembly understands why your family reacted this way, however, you should have done it properly. As an Alpha, you should’ve gotten permission to enter their territory, then notified the Assembly.” Elder Benjamin explained.

    “Because of the dire circumstances and the fact that there was a peace treaty between the packs, the Assembly has been lenient. They have decided that the Frost Triplets need proper guidance. For the next six months, the three of you will be training with the Council. As royals, you should’ve been sent to them when you turned 18. We know your situation has been different since the loss of Wisteria, but it's time to restore things.” Elder Thomas added. 

    “You expect me to be away from my pack for six months?” I growled. Elder Benjamin looked unbothered, “Yes.” I closed my eyes, trying to understand. I had to do what was best for my pack. Maybe this would be a good thing. Over the past four years I’ve felt inadequate as the Alpha. I mean, look what happened tonight. I studied my sisters. This would be good for them too. Autumn has been restless and Summer always finds trouble. Maybe the Council will help them find their place.

    I sighed, “We accept your terms.” “August! You can’t be serious!?” Summer shouted. I made eye contact with her, “I am. We need to learn how to act. We are the descendants of Celeste, but here we are, bringing shame to her name. If going to the Council will help me be a better Alpha, I will go. If they will help me protect my family and my people, I will go and so will you.”

   Summer was livid, the look in her eyes told me that she was going to give me an earful later. “Yes, Alpha.” she growled. Autumn stared at me through her swollen eyes, “Yes, Alpha.” “Great, now let’s wrap this up. Since two juvenile members of Black Pines were present but did not directly interfere, the Assembly has decided that there will be no penalties.” Elder Thomas noted. “Thank goddess.” Mom murmured.

   “What will happen to Quincy?” Dimitri asked. Elder Benjamin sighed, “Alpha Quincy will have his ceremony postponed. When he wakes, he will be placed within the Assembly to train and learn the laws of our people.” I frowned, “When he wakes?” “Quincy has been hospitalized and is currently in a coma. He suffered severe brain swelling, but should be fine within the next month or two.” Elder Henry advised.   

      Holy s**t. Summer covered a smug smirk with her hand. “What will happen if he or someone else from Silver Valley retaliates?” Dimitri asked, eyeing Alpha Rodney. “Then it means war.” Elder Bruce answered. “A member of the Council will be here later on tonight to guide you back to headquarters.” Elder Thomas said. “Tonight?” mom squeaked. He nodded, “Dr. Chambers advised us that Autumn should be ready to be released by the end of today. Your training with the Council starts immediately.” 

Summer

     “We will be taking our leave now. We have high hopes for the three of you.” Elder Benjamin said. Elder Bruce opened the door and followed our guests out. “You got off easy.” Dad grunted. “The hell they did. How could they take August’s title away?” Nova fumed. I tilted my head to the side; she was so cute when she was mad. I frowned, she kind of reminded me of Auntie Phoebe.

     “I’m so sorry, August. If I had just warped back like how we originally planned, none of this would be happening.” Nova’s voice was thick with guilt. He shook his head and pulled her into a warm hug. “I wouldn’t have been home anyway.” he reassured her. She chuckled into his chest, “I guess you’re right.” True, he must’ve warped over a few minutes after us. I quickly turned and pointed a finger, “Nova! You told me Dimitri was nowhere close to you in training!” 

    Nova looked confused. “Yeah, because he’s not.” she stated, her eyebrow raised. “Then how was he able to warp twice and use a gravity spell?” I demanded. Nova shrugged, “He’s a demon lord. Of course, he can do all of that. He runs circles around me in training.” I breathed an exasperated sigh. 

    She beats me at chest and Dimitri beats her with magic; balance. A very annoying and slightly embarrassing balance. Nova suddenly lunged at me. She grabbed my shirt tightly, trying to hide herself. “Nova, what are-” my question was cut short as her parents materialized. “I can see you young lady.” her father said gruffly. 

     Nova hesitantly came out of hiding and moved towards Titus, “Daddy, are you mad at me?” Titus cleared his throat, “Yes.” Nova’s face fell, her eyes on the brink of tears. “I understand that you’re upset. But I don’t regret it.” she stated. Titus pursed his lips; Phoebe raised her eyebrows and smiled. “I know I’m not supposed to use my magic in front of others, but this was an emergency. I refuse to be ashamed.” Nova declared, straightening her back.

      “Did you hear what your daughter just said?” Phoebe asked Titus. He continued to give Nova a hard look. Nova lifted her head in defiance and crossed her arms, tears rolling down her cheeks. I covered my mouth to hide my smile. You could always count on Nova to be honest, no matter how dire the situation was. Phoebe elbowed her husband, “Titus.” He rolled his eyes and opened his arms. “I’m happy you were able to help our family. You did good, kid.”

     Nova gave him a bright smile as she ran over to him. “I did my best.” she said, her parents enveloping her into a hug. “Just because Black Pines isn’t being charged with anything doesn’t mean you’re getting off easy. We’ll go over your punishment later.” Phoebe warned. Nova poked out her bottom lip but knew better than to try and argue.

   Titus walked over to us with wide arms. “I’m sorry, Uncle Titi. I wouldn’t have involved her if it wasn’t necessary.” I tried to explain. “I know, Teeny.” he murmured, giving me a big hug. “I’m sorry too, Uncle. I shouldn’t have brought Dimitri with me.” August apologized. Titus let out a loud laugh, “It’s ok nephew, Summer did it first.” I frowned while they laughed. 

        “Where’s Idris?” Nova asked. “Your brother is pouting in the waiting room with Auntie Tiana. He’s very upset that you had a whole adventure without him.” Phoebe answered. I chuckled, the last thing we needed to happen tonight was for there to be three trespassing juveniles running around Silver Valley. Titus gave August a hug before he made his way over to the bed.

     “Hey, Tiny. How are you feeling?” he asked Autumn. “I’ve b-been better.” she groaned and giggled at the same time. Titus laughed again, “If you’re making jokes then I know you’ll be fine.” Phoebe stood next to him and sighed. “Blair wanted me to give this to you.” she said, holding up a vial. Autumn gave her a skeptical look, “What is it?” Phoebe shrugged, “I’m not sure, but she said it will help.” 

    Autumn hesitantly accepted the bottle. Dr. Chambers tsked from the doorway. “No dubious potions until we get you cleaned up.” Autumn smiled, her busted lip was almost healed. After Dr. Chambers examined Autumn, I helped her to the bathroom. There was an awkward tension between us as I helped undress her. I spent the next few minutes picking out rotten food from our hair. 

     Autumn broke the silence first, “You must think I’m stupid.” I sighed, tossing a piece of tomato from her hair. “No, sis. I-I just don’t understand you.” She didn’t respond while I washed her hair. “I thought he loved me. I wanted it to be true.” she said when I started to wash her bruised back. “He started off so sweet. He seemed heartbroken and told me that all he wanted was someone by his side. I thought we were on the same page.” she whispered. 

    “Why didn’t you let him mark you?” I asked. “Because it didn’t feel right. Duchess really liked him, but when he tried to mark us, she freaked out.” she explained. I shook my head, not understanding. Her wolf, Duchess, was saddened when her wolf half hadn’t appeared. She was just as eager to find her mate as Autumn was. I’m surprised that she rejected the chance to be claimed. 

     “I f****d everything up. I knew Q-Quincy was dangerous but I ignored all the signs.” Autumn began to cry. I didn’t blame her and in a weird way, I understood where she was coming from. I was lonely too. If an attractive man approached me and bared his heart out then made efforts to cherish me; I’d fall head over heels too. But being the prime suspect in a murder case wasn’t a character trait I’d be thrilled about.

    I looked her in the eyes, “You made a mistake in choosing a partner. Everything else that happened was not your fault. Quincy made the choice to harm you. Do you understand me?” She bobbed her head. The rest of the shower was silent as I scrubbed our bodies clean. Nova knocked on the door then entered. “Hey, I brought something for the both of you to change into.” she said, putting down a pile of clothes. We murmured our thanks and got out. 

   Once dressed, I helped Autumn back to the bed. “I called Blair and verified that the potion isn’t dangerous. She said it should help with the pain and let you get some sleep.” Dr. Chambers confirmed. Autumn drank the potion in one go then immediately fell asleep. I hovered over her relaxed form, open mouthed. Her battered body was healing at a fast pace, it was amazing to witness. Phoebe grunted, “That closet deviant could’ve just said it was a healing potion.”      

     Dr. Chambers giggled, “Where’s the fun in that? Autumn will be released sooner than expected. I recommend you get some rest and a little packing done. The Council will not let you loiter for long.” Her words made my blood run cold. The Council was coming for us. I’m afraid. We’ve never been away from home like this and now August was going to have to step down. There was nothing I could do to change the Assembly’s decision, I hated it.  

    August grabbed my hand. “Come on. Let’s sleep in our beds one last time.” He tugged me out of the room and into the pack house. I could tell he wanted to speak to me but I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear it. He pulled us to a stop once we were on the third floor. He studied me with an unreadable gaze. “Goddess, just spit out.” I groaned. August rubbed his face, letting out a weary sigh. “Look, I know you don’t want to go to the Council. But I need you to cooperate. We have so much to learn.”

      Seriously? “You’ve been the Alpha for four years! We’ve mastered our training, studied our laws and know how to run the pack. What more do we possibly need to learn?!” I struggled to hold back my anger. August shook his head, “Responsibility.” “What?” I asked, not understanding. “You’re so proud to call yourself an Alpha, but you refuse to take responsibility for your actions.” “I do not!” I tried to defend myself. 

     “You do. The fact that you’re denying it is proof.” he said. I scoffed, “What do you want me to do? Apologize? Because I won’t. I made the right decision.” August looked at me with disappointed eyes. “I never expected an apology, Summer. I just want you to take this seriously. Take the training seriously and behave. I’m tired and I don’t want to fight. I’ll see you in the morning.” he said before disappearing down the hall.