Alpha's Claim_ His Unbroken Luna Warrior

Chapter 4

Diana Collins

The Pack Matron, Mrs. Haggis, is such a b***h. No, she's a miserable old hag. She actually told on us, like we were a bunch of kindergarteners who had stolen some extra packets of juice. She told my father that my friends and I had not contributed any help in the preparations for The Claiming.

Well, she was right, but she didn't have to tell on us. Goddess knew we would have just messed s**t up if we helped make paper mach cranes or whatever the hell she asked the other wolves to do. My father, not wanting anything to do with me at all, left it up to Mrs. Haggis to punish us. The punishment?

We were now in charge of music for the celebratory dinner, which usually took place before The Claiming Ceremony. Since The Claiming could only start once the moon was up, dinner usually started at like four in the afternoon.

Most importantly, the dinner was where most eligible wolves mingled to see if they could meet suitable mates. A lot of wolves could claim that their love stories began during the dinner.

When Mrs. Haggis doled out the punishment, I could hear the other wolves sniggering if we were in charge of music, that meant we couldn't do so much mingling. I just bet the other she-wolves were happy. I could swear a lot of them saw me as a threat since I was probably the most eligible she-wolf for this year. Eligible my ass.

My friends and I tried not to look so happy. If they wanted music, we'd give them music. I mean, my friends and I had pretty great voices didn't I mention that we joined the human town's community theater productions? We also did a lot of karaoke. Paolo knew how to play the piano, Melanie could play the guitar, and I could rock the stage with my tambourine we could become a band if we wanted to. Mrs. Haggis had just given us our first gig. We all agreed to meet in the basement of the pack house to rehearse. That place had great acoustics, and no one would bother us since most of them were in the pack hall anyway helping to decorate.

They were already there waiting for me. I had gone into town to pick up some sheet music and some cupcakes for all of us. I felt the grass crunching under my feet as I walked towards the pack house carrying a big box of cupcakes with a folder stuffed with sheet music on top of it. Already I could see and smell new faces—wolves from other packs who had come to join The Claiming. A lot of them were walking around, admiring the lovely fall foliage. Once in a while I'd encounter a few who'd gawk at my bracelet, even some males who openly leered at me. I resisted the urge to run for the hills.

Taking the shortcut to the pack house, I walked through a small orchard of trees whose orange leaves were softly falling. That was when I heard a sweet, gentle laugh. I stopped and turned to see Erica walking the path. Her arm was looped around a male wolf's. Curiously, I took a few steps toward them and gasped. The gold bracelet in the male wolf's arm could only mean that he was Prince Joan. My breath hitched as I registered the presence of the royal. I heard that he was quite a looker, but I was not prepared for how strikingly handsome he was.

He was tall, very tall at around 6'4. He had a broad, angular face, a sharp jaw with stubble, and thick brows that framed his cold gray eyes. His hair was black, thick and curly bunned tightly at the base of his neck. His frame was muscular, accentuated by his black leather jacket and his trunks of legs were encased in black jeans. I swear my mouth watered. He looked so serious, though. I could see him nod occasionally to something Erica said. I could see she was beginning to feel frustrated it appeared he wasn't much of a talker even thought Erica must've tried to charm him. She just kept on yapping about how the woods behind the pack house were very protected, and the trails were slightly dangerous. If it weren't for the occasional slight nod, I would think Erica was talking to a statue.

Curiosity getting the better of me, and of course coupled with the desire to piss Erica off, I took a deep breath and confidently strolled over to them. "Hey, cuz!" I chirruped in my brightest, happiest voice. I made sure to adjust my cardigan sleeve so that my golden bracelet would show. The prince tilted his head to look at me. Erica's big brown eyes narrowed and her nostrils flared. It took all of my self-control not to double down in laughter, but I didn't because I was holding cupcakes.

"Aren't you supposed to be making sure we have music for tomorrow?" Erica hissed. "Yeah. I was just in town picking up some stuff we needed. So what's up?" I asked, smiling at her. Erica sighed.

"Prince Joan, this is Diana. Diana, the Prince is here for a meeting with the Alpha." Erica said. I flashed the prince a bright smile and gave a playful curtsy.

"Nice to meet you, your highness. How do you like Eastern Claw so far?" I asked.

The Prince looked me in the eye and I swear I froze. "Your terrain is very well-kept." He said, his husky voice betraying no emotion.

"Oh, it is. The trails over there are a bit uneven, though, so be careful." I said, placing the box of cupcakes in one arm so I could point with my other hand to the west. The Prince's eyes flashed amber when he saw my bracelet, but it was gone as quickly as it had come. I let out a smirk of triumph.

"So you're the Alpha's daughter, the famous Gold Ranked female from Eastern Claw." Prince Joan calmly said. I could find no underlying tone in his voice he was merely stating a fact.

"Ah, so you have heard of me." I demurely said, looking down. I glanced at Erica, who looked like she had swallowed a lemon.

"There hasn't been a Gold Ranked female in a while." Prince Joan said, his eyes boring into mine.

"We could use you in the fight against the rogues."

Excusez-moi?