Chapter 29
Nyah
Daddy and Bryant side eye each other and remain silent. Are the suspicions true? Have I mated with the enemy? Truly the God’s wouldn’t be that cruel. And if they are, then we’ll just have to figure out a way to make this work with the families.
“Daddy,” I sigh, becoming nervous of what his answer will be. Braxton senses my uneasiness and pats my thigh.
He leans over and whispers in my ear, “No matter what they say, you are my mate. We can move somewhere and build our own Pack. I won’t have my future children in the middle of some type of Hatfield’s and McCoy’s dispute.”
He must have forgotten that we have a keen sense of hearing because daddy and Bryant start to laugh.
“Luckily for us, it won’t come to that,” daddy chuckles. “To put your mind at ease, Bryant and I have known each other for a very long time. Yes, we are Ancients and yes, we are on the same side.” Daddy and Bryant bow their heads to one another. “We are soldiers of Vidar which is why we are able to speak in wolf form and other abilities that we haven’t shown to others.”
Intrigued, I ask, “But daddy, you have given us bits and pieces of your history, why not tell me and Kenia the whole story?”
“Because, after so long without any incidents, I didn’t think that I needed to,” he replies. “Things have been relatively peaceful for centuries now, and I hope it stays that way.”
“I concur,” Bryant agrees. “We wiped out most of what was left of Fenrir’s followers during our last war. Only a few were able to escape, but we have tabs on them.” Bryant taps his chin, asking daddy, “How many were there at the last count, Noah?”
“Originally, there were one hundred. As of today, there’s only sixty-five left. They have their own Pack outside of Tucson, Arizona. They mainly stay to themselves, but there have been a few in the past that have left the Pack.”
Braxton asks, “Do you not fear they might try and build another army to come at you again?”
Good question, I think to myself.
“Not at all,” Bryant answers, moving his head from side to side. “Our numbers are vastly greater than theirs. It would be a suicide mission if they tried to go to war with us again.”
Curious, I asked daddy, “Did momma know about this?”
A heartfelt smile spreads across his face. “Not only did she know about it, but your momma was one of the fiercest Wolf Maidens. Male or female, my Willa feared no one. I see her in you girls everyday with your stubbornness, sharp minds, and the ability to love those closest to you. If only she was here to see the fine women, the two of you turned out to be.”
My daddy may be a lot of things like Ancient, Alpha, provider, and many more but one thing I knew he wasn’t is a crier. He has never cried in front of Kenia and I, not even when momma passed away. We knew he did, but he didn’t do it in front of us. We always got the nurturing and protective side of him. While he grieved on the inside, daddy helped us work through ours. So, to see that lone tear cascade down his cheek, has Kenia and I out of our seats. Daddy steps back from the table with his arms spread to hug us together.
“I love you, daddy,” I sobbed as my own tears saturated his shirt.
“I love you too, daddy,” Kenia’s muffled words come out as she weeps. I’m sure she’s making the other side of his shirt wet.
Daddy holds us tighter, responding, “I love you girls too. Never forget that as you start to create your own lives with your mates. I will always be here for you. Midnight Pack will always be your home.”
This part was starting to make sense. Daddy lost momma and now he won’t come out and say it, but he fears that he will lose us too.
My eyes are probably swollen by now, but I look up at daddy and tell him, “Braxton and I are going to rebuild grandma’s cabin. He has a house in Texas, so we will be living between each residence. Don’t think I’m going to leave you here by yourself, old man.”
Daddy laughs.
Kenia informs. “After the mating ceremony, we will be heading to Arkansas where his family is originally from. He needs answers and as his mate, I will be by his side. I won’t let time pass like before when I came home sporadically during the year. I promise to come home at least once or twice a month. And we plan on building a cabin on the six acres you gave me.”
“That’s all I ask for,” daddy says, kissing Kenia’s forehead, then mine.
At that happy moment, we’re distracted by Pack members fussing, coming from the barn. As we turn that way, we see Crown using his good leg to kick at some of the members and biting at others.
“Leave him alone,” daddy booms, causing them to move away.
I try to leave daddy’s embrace, but he holds me back. “He needs to do this on his own. You can’t coddle him, Nyah.”
I knew he was right but to see Crown stumble and fall a few times, I wanted to run to him and pick him up in my arms. Begging daddy to let me go fell on deaf ears. I had to stand there and endure watching Crown make his way to us.
After several attempts, he’s finally close enough for me to bend down and delicately scoop him up. I giggled as Crown licked my nose. I guess he must have been missing me as much as I did him.
Rubbing behind his ears, I tell daddy, “We’ll be going back to the hotel tonight and I want Crown to come with us.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” daddy counters. “Crown is where he can get the best medical attention.” He looks down at Kenia. “Isn’t that right, Kenia?”
Kenia frowns at me before replying, “Yes, daddy.” She wickedly smiles at me, telling daddy, “But of course since Crown has a better relationship with you and Nyah, I think it would be beneficial if both of you were around.” She shrugs her shoulders. “You know just in case one isn’t around for when I need to redress his bandages or give him another antibiotic shot.”
I frown at Kenia as she bats her eyes at me. What she just told daddy could be done at the hotel. By doing this, I guess it’s going to be a family affair at my daddy’s the rest of the weekend.
After breakfast, Daddy gathered some men to go with him to tear down a few beaver dams that were partially obstructing two of our waterways. Of course, Braxton and Levi volunteered to help but I was surprised when Bryant and James turned in their expensive tailored suits for t-shirts, Dungarees, and work boots. Kenia and I were staying with the ladies to get everything ready for the fish fry later and for me to have some time with Crown.
I kissed Braxton goodbye, joking with him to not act like a baby if he got a splinter in his finger. My teasing cost me a swat on the ass, and a whispered promise of more to come later tonight. He laughed as my eyes widened before walking off, joining the others.
“Bring your hot ass on,” Kenia laughed, pulling me towards the house.
It was nice spending time with my sister and the women of our Pack. Especially the elder ladies who were like surrogate mothers to Kenia and I growing up. If it weren’t for them, I don’t know how daddy would have gotten through Kenia having her first visit from Mother Nature. He was so good at teaching us other things, but that one major aspect of a young girl’s life, he was in a fog. Luckily, the Elders stepped in and not only explained to Kenia what her body was going through, they informed daddy on what she was going to need and to not take her hormonal mood swings personally.
When the time came for my meet and greet with Mother Nature, daddy was ready. That is. He made sure I had every feminine product under the Sun before sending me to the Elder women to have our talk. I didn’t think it was necessary because Kenia had already told me what to expect but I respected the Elder women and listened to what they had to say which was pretty much everything Kenia had already told me but in simpler words.
As the Elder women were cleaning the fish, Kenia and a few of the other young ladies, and I prepared the sides, Elder Lelah joined us. She is the Pack’s midwife and Shaman who has been around long before I was born. Like daddy, no one knows her true age, but her features show a woman who is well in her prime mentally and physically. Her brown skin radiates time and wisdom.
She comes to stand next to me, picks up a knife and begins to shred cabbage for the cole slaw. Without looking at me, Elder Lelah asked, “So, Nyah since you’re mated now, will we be expecting another announcement of you being with child soon?”
I fumbled the potato I was peeling in my hands as the question caught me off guard. The Elder woman laughed at my reaction.
Elder Lelah sniffs the air around me, then says, “You’re not with child yet, but your fertile time is approaching.” She reaches over and places her hand over my lower stomach, smiling. “You will bear strong cubs and will make both sides of your families very proud.”
I smile back, happy to hear her words, but I couldn’t help telling her, “Thank you Elder Lelah for your knowledge but Braxton and I will take some time to really get to know each other before bringing life into the world.”
She removes her hand from my stomach, glancing at the other Elder women. They stared back at her with astonishment.
Did I offend her in some type of way? I wasn’t trying to do that. I honestly know why she and the other Elders responded the way they did. In their time, when a female wolf was mated with an Alpha, they got pregnant quickly to secure their status in case he chose to take on other mates. That wasn’t going to happen with me and Braxton, so I stated with absolute confidence, “I will be the only one who will carry Braxton’s children. As for him taking another mate, that ship has sailed off and sank.” I politely take her hand in mine, shaking it. “Trust me, within two to three years from now, this backyard will be filled with Lightfeather babies. The way daddy is acting with Crown, I know he will be just as protective with his grandchildren.”
Elder Lelah laughs, pulling me into a hug. She leans back, responding, “If Alpha Lightfeather has his way, his grandchildren will never leave this Pack. You and Kenia are going to have a fight on your hands.”
Rolling my eyes, I move my head from side to side, giggling. “I hope not, but I guess we’ll have to deal with it when the time comes.”
“Good luck with that,” she sings, letting me go. We pick up the conversation with the other ladies as we continue to prepare the food.
Almost four hours later, pans of tossed salad, cole slaw, pinto beans, homemade hushpuppies ( ready for the hot grease ), and condiments were finished. The men arrived back to the cabin shortly after with Bryant carrying a wild boar over his shoulders.
Daddy waved over two male members that were with them and pointed to the dangling hooks on the device he created to skin and clean game. They nodded before one of them took the boar from Bryant.
If daddy was tired, he never showed it as he went into his shed and pulled out two large fish cookers. Once he had them in place, he walked over to the water hose and turned it on, washing his hands and face. Braxton, Levi, Bryant, and James came to the table that we were sitting at.
Braxton flops in the chair next to me and Levi does the same by Kenia. Braxton leans over and whispers, “Now, I know why you all eat so much meat. I hope the fish we’re about to consume comes close to the equivalent amount of red meat I would consume.”
I snorted, bumping my shoulder with his. “The fish and everything else will have you full in no time. There’s plenty, so you can have fourths or fifths.”
“Haha, you got jokes,” he returns. “I hope you’re right because it’s been a long time since I did work like this, and I am starving.”
Kenia jumps in, saying, “Okay, so the four of you go inside and get cleaned up. By the time you return, daddy will have the first batches of fish frying.”
Braxton kisses my cheek before getting out of his chair. Levi does the same with Kenia as Bryant points to the men who now have the boar hanging from the hooks. “Will you please make sure they get everything bagged up. Noah said I could store the meat in one of his deep freezers. I’m going to take it all back to Texas with me. The boar is my first take down in Oklahoma.”
“I will,” I reply. “But I’m sure they will still be working on it when you return.”
“Okay,” he says as they head towards the house.
Minutes after they went inside, a black four door Lexus drives up to the backyard and parks. The driver gets out, goes to the back passenger door, then opens it. I didn’t have to wonder long who was inside when Ramona appeared.