Chapter 19 A Walk Down Memory Lane
nineteen
A Walk Down Memory Lane
*MARCELLUS*
Silas and I fortunately manage to meet briefly with Juniper before we head back home.
She is a quirky woman with freckles around her nose, wavy hair and always with a smile on her lips.
“Marc,” she exclaims when she sees me, greeting me with a fist bump.
“And Lord Silas. I am honored we get a couple of minutes to meet.”
“Why do you get addressed so friendly, while I am still Lord Silas?” Silas mutters towards me.
“Must be my charisma,” I grin.
“I can’t possibly,” Juniper admits. “It would be a disgrace to call you anything other than by your title, especially after everything you did for me.”
Silas sighs. “At least tell me you are somewhat safe, Juni?”
“I am,” she says. “As safe as someone in Aloysius’s vicinity can be.”
“And he truly doesn’t suspect anything?”
“He didn’t after he fought you. He killed everyone who couldn’t run. I was the only one he didn’t suspect, and believe me, I have done everything so he would trust me. I have kissed up to him constantly, and I know exactly how to push his buttons, in a good way.”
“Just don’t overdo it,” Silas says. “Be careful, Juniper.”
“I will,” she promises. “I can’t disappoint you. Please have faith in me.”
Unfortunately, we don’t have much more time to chat.
Juniper needs to return before Aloysius suspects anything, and Silas and I have more than enough work ahead of us.
Silas wants to be there when the two vampires and their beloveds arrive tonight.
Meanwhile, I get in touch with both Alpha Liam and Alpha Ezra.
I set a meeting with Liam for the coming week.
As for Alpha Ezra, he spontaneously invites me to have dinner at his pack.
By car, it’s not too far from Sunset Hills, so I agree to meet him and take off together with Micah.
It’s not a long drive, though. We are pretty far away from any bigger towns here, so there is hardly any traffic. Ninety minutes later, we arrive at the pack, already expected by a tall, broad-shouldered young man with a serious expression. I wonder if he is the alpha.
Once I get out of the car, he approaches me. “I am Callum,” he says. “Alpha Ezra’s brother. Welcome to the pack.”
I shake his hand. “I’m Marcellus. Thank you for having us on such short notice.”
“We are really happy,” he says. “Actually, the fate of these two wolves has been lying heavily on our minds. Honestly, we were about to keep them and integrate them into the pack, but we’ve gone through a lot of changes recently. For everyone involved, it’s better that they join you.”
“I fully understand,” I assure him. “There is no need to defend your decision.”
“Come,” Callum says, leading me towards the pack house. “My brother is already expecting you.”
He is right. Ezra and his luna are waiting for me, both of them greeting me kindly. Luna seems to be a tough and strong person, tall and regal. Alpha Ezra himself has a welcoming and open-minded feel to him. He resembles Callum a lot, but is a little taller and less serious.
He reminds me of Cassian, and I am glad that there are more and more alphas like them around.
“I see, you have met my brother already,” Ezra smiles. “Thanks for bringing him here, Callum. Are you staying?”
“No,” Callum says. “My queen expects me. We have a couple of pride-related businesses to discuss.” With that, he nods at me and retreats.
“Don’t worry,” Ezra says. “He can be a bit curt, but he is a very friendly and fair person.”
“His mate is a werecat?” I ask curiously. “I noticed he was talking about his queen.”
“Good catch,” Ezra chuckles. “But his mate is actually the queen.”
“What?” I exclaim. “Doesn’t that make him royalty? He was acting like a normal pack member.”
“Callum has always been too modest for his own good,” Ezra groans. “He is actually leading the pride with her.”
“I thought he would be your beta,” I say. “He looks strong. It certainly makes sense that he is a leader as well.”
“The goddess has her ways,” Ezra says. “You might have heard about our story. How our father betrayed the pack and tried to double-cross Alpha Liam. He is currently being held by the council.”
The wheels in my head keep turning. “Don’t tell me your father is the former Alpha Troi?”
“That’s his name, yes,” Ezra says.
I can’t believe this coincidence and luck! Both Liam and Ezra are allied to me. It’s going to make everything so much easier.
“My father made a mess out of this pack,” Ezra says quietly. “He actually never wanted me. I was the son of his fated mate, you know? Meanwhile, Callum is from his chosen mate, the woman he deemed good enough to be his luna.”
Something about his story rings a bell. I had heard Liam talk about it once.
About two half-brothers who grew up in the same pack without being allowed to meet.
One of them was the firstborn from the fated mate, but he was kept hidden, and his birthright was stripped from him.
Instead, the son by the chosen mate was made the official heir.
“Forgive my curiosity,” I say. “But is it true that your father wanted to make Callum his heir?”
“Exactly, I see you have heard the story,” Ezra says. “I think Callum would have been an amazing alpha,” he points out. “Just to make that clear. But he stepped back by his own will for me to take over.”
Something in my chest clenches. There is no animosity between these two brothers, despite them being pitted against each other.
Ezra should have hated Callum for getting all the attention from their father, for being made the heir, while he was disowned.
And vice versa, Callum should detest Ezra for taking over the pack that was promised to him.
Yet their whole interaction is warm and without any bitter feelings.
In fact, they even rule next to each other.
Eugene and I are twins; we grew up with the promise to both become alphas, yet we failed each other. And none of us went through the kind of hardship Ezra and Callum did.
Something about this thought saddens me deeply.
“You are so quiet,” Ezra says.
“I am sorry.” I shake my head. “I just took a walk down memory lane.”
Ezra gazes at me wordlessly, his expression enough for me to know that he heard a bit about my story, also. “I didn’t mean to,“ he starts awkwardly.
“You didn’t,” I reassure him before he can finish his sentence. “It’s just a mirror for me to see what could have been. You and your brother are truly amazing.”
“Callum is,” Ezra says. “It’s really mostly due to him that things worked out so well.”
I doubt that’s true, because if it weren’t a mutual effort, it wouldn’t pay off like it does. I don’t say it out loud, though. “Let’s focus on the task ahead,” I say.
“I was about to say the same,” he chuckles. “So, there are two wolves we took in, as you already know. Percy is the male wolf. You know about the gambling story? Actually, he was tricked into it by some kids of high-ranking members of the pack.”
“You are kidding me?”
“Unfortunately not,” he says. “Percy took the fall. Poor kid.”
“Kid? How old is he?”
“Seventeen,” Ezra says.
“You are fucking kidding me?” I blurt out again. “He is a kid.”
“Yeah, it’s not a beautiful story,” Ezra says bitterly. “Alpha Liam and his father are investigating it at least, so there’s that. As for Percy, no matter the outcome of the investigation, it’s better for him to start anew somewhere else.”
“Does he have any family?”
“No, he is orphaned, which made it easier for them to make him a scapegoat,” Ezra explains.
“Then, the second wolf is actually half wolf, half human. Her name is Dolores, nineteen years old. She hasn’t shared all of her past yet, but from what we know, she was assaulted and used by her alpha’s son, the heir to the pack.
One of his enemies turned out to be her mate.
He used her to get back at the other guy, then rejected her because she was an unworthy hybrid. ”
“That’s pretty messed up, too,” I remark. “Are the stories verified?”
“Yes, Callum and Cassiopeia, the queen of the pride here, verified it. The werecat queen is a fantastic spy, just so you know. Alpha Elden did his own research and verified it, too.”
“Then, it’s set,” I say. “Silas and I will take them in.”
“Oh, the vampire prince,” Ezra says. “I wish I could have met him today.”
I remember the talk Silas and I had recently, and with a happiness I didn’t know I could feel, I find myself smiling. “My mate,“ I say, emphasizing the word ‘mate’, “is very busy, unfortunately, but he sends his greetings and is looking forward to meeting you the next time.”
Ezra looks at me, his eyes lighting up when he catches on. “That’s amazing news,” he says, not clarifying which news he is talking about. But he doesn’t need to. We both know what he is talking about.