Bonded

Chapter 7

After dinner with David and a very lengthy conversation, I agreed to step into the role of the Luna of the Pink Moon Pack. It wasn’t really a difficult decision, as it’s pretty much the only decision available, but I feel better about it after asking a plethora of questions. He’d offered to just let me join the pack as a member, but as his Luna, I would receive more protection, especially with the laws in place for other Alphas. If anything happens to me at the hands of another wolf, they would face the death penalty. The thought of that made me feel much safer.

It’s funny, really, how few laws there are protecting anyone. Wolves are aggressive and territorial. Attacks and murders are not uncommon, and there are no rules against it. You can do pretty much anything to anyone else, following your wolf’s base instincts and not really face any repercussions. The Luna, though, a Luna is the most sacred thing to a pack and an Alpha. If anyone were to hurt a Luna, her Alpha could kill him and take his entire pack. There's a large risk to yourself and your pack for attacking a Luna, making it not worth the risk.

After dinner, Audrey helped me pack my new clothes into a box and carry them to my new room in the packhouse. We pass David as we go up the stairs and he frowns at us, but he doesn’t say anything, leaving me worried that I had already done something wrong.

I open the white door to the bedroom, just across the hall from David’s room, to find a huge space with cream walls and an enormous window on the outside wall overlooking the front lawn of the packhouse. The setting sun casts a gorgeous red-orange tint to the room, making it feel like home and I can’t contain the smile it brings to my face. There was a large, dark wood, four poster bed with pale blue linen drapes hanging from it and tan furniture throughout the room to match.

There's a bookshelf on a wall, though there's not anything on it yet. Just down from the bookshelf is a tan sofa with white pillows and a light blue blanket thrown over the arm that makes it look so inviting. Near the wall, closest to the door we entered, there is a small dining room table with four chairs.

“This is nicer than I deserve,” I say to Audrey in surprise.

“No, it’s not,” she tells me with a smile. “You deserve every bit of it.”

I walk towards the door to the right and find a bathroom with an enormous bathtub just waiting for me. I continue my search through the room and find a closet with empty hangers and much more space than I can fill, but it’s nice to have a place that’s mine.

My father didn’t believe in living too high above his pack. Sure, the packhouse was nice, but while I was lucky enough to have my own bedroom, I had to share a bathroom with my brothers. The three of them shared a room to make enough space for others in the packhouse, which left them placing things in my small closet all the time because theirs wasn’t big enough for three large sons of an Alpha.

“I’ll see you at breakfast, alright?” Audrey asks and I nod, still taking in everything in the room. “Are you sure you’re OK here alone?”

“Yeah,” I tell her, finally looking at her with a smile. “David will be across the hall. I’ll be safe.”

“Good night, friend,” she says, pulling me into a hug that I return.

“Good night and thank you. For everything.”

Audrey closes the door behind her, leaving me all alone. I unpack the clothes that David had sent for me and place them in the closet. When I pass by the bathroom I realize that he had placed shampoo, soap and even a toothbrush inside for me and it makes me smile. He may not be my mate, but he’s taking his role as Alpha very seriously and making sure I have what I need.

I turn back to the bedroom and take a seat on the couch, pulling my knees up to my chest and sitting in a ball. This is the first time since it happened that I’ve been alone, truly alone, with nowhere to be. I sigh and take a deep breath. It's the first time I’ve had a moment to truly process everything on my own. If I’m being honest, it’s terrifying.

All three of my brothers are dead. My mom is dead. My dad, one of the strongest Alphas around, is dead. I’m all alone. I hug my knees against me just a little tighter as I let the tears flow. The arrangement I’ve made here is the best thing for me, at least, I think that it is. I’m only 15 and I’ve never even visited another pack without someone from my family being there with me. I know that there are many, many Alphas who would view me as property and Alpha David doesn’t seem to be that way.

A knock at the door breaks me from my thoughts and I stand, walking across the room to open it. The Alpha is standing there, a warm smile on his face, but it quickly falls as he sees me.

“Oh, Celeste,” he says and reaches into his pocket to reveal a handkerchief that he passes to me. “May I come in?”

I nod and step back, allowing him to enter before closing the door behind him. I follow him over to the couch and take a seat on the opposite end.

“I’ve spoken with my friend's dad, Alpha Randall. I’m prepared to make you a part of the pack tomorrow evening if you’re ready.”

I nod and sniffle as I wipe tears away. “It’s what is best for me.”

“I had thought that, perhaps, you would have to renounce your former pack,” he says hesitantly. “Randall said that as the Alpha’s daughter, your bond would not have been passed down to the new Alpha as the pack members would.”

I think about that for a moment as I hadn’t even considered there being a bond to my pack. “I felt the bond with my Dad fall when he was killed. I never felt anything form in it’s place.”

He nods at me sadly. “It’s why when someone takes over a pack, they usually kill the Alpha’s surviving family. Alpha Robert’s connection to you as his daughter was stronger than the connection he had as a member of his pack.”

There’s something oddly comforting about hearing him say the connection to my father was stronger, but it’s not really that much comfort.

“My dad was the strongest Alpha I’ve ever met,” I say, looking at David with a sad smile. “And so were my brothers. There was never, not one single moment, where I ever felt unsafe. What if you can’t protect me?”

“I’ll do everything in my power to protect you,” he tells me and I can feel how strongly he believes that. “You will be my Luna. Remember, no one will be able to take you from me without serious repercussions. It wouldn't make sense for them to even try.”

I nod, knowing that he’s reassured me of this before. “It’s just terrifying.”

“I know, Celeste. I’ll do my absolute best to protect you just as I do for the rest of my pack.”

“So, tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow night. It has to be under the full moon.”

“Does the whole pack have to be there?”

He chuckles a little bit. “Thankfully, no. It will just be us, which is great, because I’m very nervous. Remember, I haven’t done this before.”

I can’t help but smile at him a little. He seems to be as nervous as I am and I find that oddly comforting.

“Celeste, I truly don’t know what I’m doing. My dad focused so much on making sure that I was physically ready to take over the pack that he didn’t spend much time teaching me how to actually run it. I’m fumbling through this, hoping I don’t mess things up and hoping that no one notices that I’m completely lost most of the time. Honestly, I’m really glad you’ll be here with me. We can figure this out together.”

“So you need me to help be Alpha, too?” I ask him with a mischievous grin, making him laugh.

“Probably,” he says, leaning forward and resting his knees on his elbows, clasping his hands together. “I find you to be relaxing to be around. Perhaps it’s just because I’m not your Alpha yet, but I feel at ease with you, like you see who I really am and can support me. Like you aren’t judging me for not being good enough. There’s something truly special about you, Celeste. I’m sure that we’re going to make a great team.”