Chapter 26: Lunch
It was the most uncomfortable lunch I have ever sat through. There was Rex, Ignis, Aqua, Inundo, Nimbus, Viola, and Indicum. Oh joy... too bad Indicum's little sister Undo wasn't here. She is a sweet little wolf.
Thankfully our chef made Mexican food. It was delicious!
Rex had his hand on the back of my chair. His thumb gently stroking the open back of my sundress. Flames ignited where he touched my skin. It was distracting from the conversation.
"Aqua's next task is to design our new pack house." Rex announced.
Aqua almost spit out her water.
"Wait, what?" She gasped in surprise.
"We've decided to combine our two clans to become one. Regina is my mate and we want to reign together."
From the weak bond, I could sense Indicum's confusion and Ignis' despair.
"It is what is best for our clans." I agree.
"Congratulations!" Luna Viola smiles.
"Welcome to the family." Alpha Nimbus extends his hand to Rex.
After lunch, Rex and I leave to tour the grounds.
"Your lavender farm is amazing." He smiles. "I'm impressed with the little town vibe your community and pack give off. It feels very much like a family."
"We are." I said before thinking. "My pack is my family."
He holds my hand and kisses my knuckle. "I'd love to meet your sister."
I gulp. "She's in the hospital. In a couple days she can be released."
"I'm so sorry, is she okay? What happened?"
"She's fine now. Stella is having twins so they're being extremely cautious."
He nods accepting my non-answer.
*Alpha, one of your agenda items today was interrogate the rogue we captured.*
*Give me some time.*
*Yes, Alpha* Ignis emotions were clear in his tone. He was breaking.
"If you want, we can visit her in the hospital. I promised I'd stop by again tonight."
"Cool." He says and squeezes my arm.
When we arrive, I bypass the front desk and head straight to her room. She's sitting up reading a magazine and drinking a smoothie.
"Gin! I thought you weren't coming - oh my goddess! Who is this fine specimen of a wolf?"
I face palm, "Stella, get it together. This is Alpha Basileus Rex, my mate."
Her mouth drops but immediately she recovers with a wide grin.
"Come here and give your sister a hug!" She pulls me to her and squeezes with a strength I didn't know she had.
*Oh my Goddess! I'm going to kill you for letting our first meeting be like this!*
*Let go, you brat.* She released me and smiled at Rex.
"It's so nice to meet you, Alpha." She cooed and I rolled my eyes.
"The pleasure is all mine."
"Regina, give us some time alone will you? Come back in like an hour?"
Rex gives me a look and I nod, "Whatever you say, sister."
I head straight for the dungeons. Ignis is nowhere in sight.
*At the dungeons, let's make this quick.* He appeared a few minutes later.
"He's in the last cell." Ignis carried his signature wolfsbane concoction.
I walked briskly down the to the cell. A man sat unconcerned, chained in silver to the wall.
"Why did you take Stella Lux of Clan Solis?"
He spits at me and reveals his fangs. Attached to the silver, he couldn't phase.
I nod to Ignis. He enters the cell carefully and plugs the man's nose. The man's face turns blue then he gasps for air and Ignis tosses the wolfsbane drink in his mouth. He chokes and spits but only a drop needs to enter his system.
"Answer me." I use an Alpha tone.
"Me." He laughs.
"Why did you take Stella Lux of Clan Solis?" This time I put all my authority behind the question.
He twists and writhes under my command. "She had something we needed."
Every word he spoke was paused by 20 second intervals, it was excruciating. His pain and desire to stay loyal must have been counteracting one another.
"What did Stella have that you and your people needed?"
Again a long wait time. "A memory."
"Of what?"
"Not what, who."
"A memory of who?"
"The girl with the necklace."
I used all my will power not to reach for the necklace that was no longer there.
"Who is this 'we' you mentioned before?"
"A league."
"A league of?"
"Misfits, rebels, we don't discriminate."
"What is your purpose?"
"To fulfill the prophecy."
"What prophecy?"
He seized on the ground, "To attain all the elements to make our magic the strongest ever known."
With that he started to bleed from his eyes and ears. Clearly he was under an oath not to tell this privileged information. Not that it could've helped, an Alpha command can out rank everything and anything in a werewolf.
"Clean this shit up." I tell Ignis and return to the hospital.
My sister and Rex are in full blown discussion when I return.
"I was telling Rex about when I phased for the first time and you -"
I groaned, "Not this awful story again. Goddess help me, I just heard it at my birthday party!"
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