Chapter Thirteen
Nyx
"I have a strange favor to ask."
Maverick looks up from his laptop, cocking an eyebrow. “Should I be concerned?”
“Probably,” I laugh, switching seats to move closer to him along the dinner table. “But in all seriousness, before you rip my head off, let me explain my reasoning.”
He closes the laptop. “Well now I’m intrigued. Especially if you think this favor may result in death.”
Taking a breath, I test the words in my head first before voicing them out loud. “I want to contact Alpha Kingston.”
It’s clear by the bewilderment on his face that this was nowhere near what he was expecting. But with the look of surprise also comes the hesitation and suspicion.
“Now I understand your comment about needing to explain reasons. Because I’m struggling to figure out why you’d want or need to do that.”
Well, at least Maverick doesn’t look pissed or say no immediately. That’s definitely progress.
“This is going to sound… stupid.”
“You’re not selling this very well.”
“Well stop cutting me off and let me keep trying,” I grumble.
Maverick waves his hand, a signal for me to continue.
I lean forward, cupping my hands together like the bad business boss bitch I am. "I've been doing a lot of reflecting about Ophelia. And after the… meeting with her, I've been trying to figure out ways to help."
His eyebrow twitches but says nothing, letting me have the floor uninterrupted. I explained to the guys about the weird dream slash astral plane experience I had, and while they also agreed it seemed real, I can tell Maverick was struggling to grasp a reality we couldn't see or understand.
To be fair, I don't understand it either. But I have to believe it was real. It felt like it. Surely if I was going to have a dream while unconscious, it would be something completely different—like drinking coffee while naked and being ravaged by my mates.
"Ophelia said she couldn't give me any advice, that our circumstances were different to hers. But I remember reading that during the Great War, she travelled to different packs, to negotiate with them. I started to wonder if I could perhaps do something similar, but for our situation."
"What did you have in mind?" He asks cautiously. "Kingston doesn't negotiate."
"That's where it will be different," I tell him.
"Not negotiate, because there's nothing we need or want to trade.
But to have allies. He might have more information too.
It seemed like he knew pretty well what was happening when you spoke to him on the phone.
Especially since he had a relationship with Alpha Thom.
Maybe that information is the key to solving the missing pieces.
Plus, it never hurts to have allies, especially for when Orson decides to attack. "
Maverick pulls a look of concentration. "I honestly don't think it will be worth it," he says, in a disappointed tone. "I fully agree. But Kingston does not like associating with other packs."
"Maybe not, but he was friends with Alpha Thom. That would make them allies. So, we know it's possible."
He pauses, staring at me intensely. Finally, he relaxes slightly, a small smile appearing. "It won't hurt to try. Just try not to piss him off. He gets irritated easily and I'd hate to have to kill him if he lashed out at you."
We're sitting in Alpha Daxton's office, waiting for Kingston to call when Lex suddenly lets out a low whistle.
"You'll never believe it, but I finally accessed that laptop we retrieved from the Celestial Pack."
I look up in interest. Cade tilts his head in confusion, but although he doesn't ask, I see him unscramble the puzzle.
"What does it say?" Maverick asks impatiently.
Lex turns the laptop to face us. "Emails from Orson. Pleasant banter at first, making small talk. Or so it would seem. He asked a lot of pressing questions such as whether the neighboring packs were problematic, how big their land was—things like that."
"Not suss at all," I point out sarcastically. "What did the alpha say?"
"Alpha Ford answered at first, but when he didn't give the exact information Orson wanted, their exchanges became a little more hostile."
"That makes sense," Cade agrees. "We'd all react the same way if someone was trying to find out our business."
They all nod, Lex pointing his finger at a particular section. "Then here, Orson started bringing up talks about expansion. As you can imagine, Ford didn't take too kindly to that. He started making threats toward Orson."
"Wait," I interject, confused. "If Orson was the one who started it, then why did the Celestial Pack vanish and not him?"
Lex sighs. "Because Orson seemingly backed down. Though he made a comment about sending his pack to source out females."
I scoff in disgust. "Using that as bait is horrible, especially since it was actually happening."
Maverick pauses. "Wait—is that why packs started sending out hunters? Orson was baiting them. He had no intention of doing it, but by making the threat—"
"The other packs sent their own hunters first, to try to beat him," Alpha Daxton finishes. "And it caused their demise."
Cade taps his pen against his knee in thought. "Orson could have been the one who started the entire hunter situation. He was playing the long game."
"What do you mean?" I ask.
He glances over at me, face all serious. "Thom was planning to forcefully take land. The White Pack vanished due to their actions. Orson then sat back, allowed the information to spread and incited fear about a war repeat. He then baited other packs, threatening to send hunters."
"So, when they'd send hunters, it would continue to trigger the cosmic imbalance," Maverick adds. "Then, once they were gone, Orson could just swoop in and claim the land. He was setting them up by telling them exactly what to do, knowing it would wipe them out and he'd get the land lawfully."
"Lawfully is a stretch," I remark. "This is dodgy."
"But not enough to trigger their own disappearance. He made sure the other packs did it themselves."
Shaking my head, I sigh. "That's horrible."
"He's smart," Alpha Daxton says dryly. "He manipulated other alphas with ease. They are just as much to blame by acting irrationally."
The rest of the conversation is suddenly cut short by Maverick's cell ringing. He goes to answer it but I stop him.
"Wait, do you trust me?"
Maverick frowns. "What kind of bullshit question is that?"
Without giving a reply, I quickly snatch his cell and dart out of the room, their loud voices booming with questions as I close the door for privacy.
Sneaking into an empty office down the hallway, I quickly hit the accept button on the cell before it stops ringing.
"Alpha Kingston? My name is Nyx. I'd like to talk to you if you have a minute."
"I can't believe you got him to agree to come to Shadow Creek," Maverick says amused.
We're standing by the town edge with the other alphas and betas, waiting for Kingston to arrive. The boundary monitor just sent word that they had crossed into our territory.
"I'm really likeable," I quip back, smirking.
“Sure,” Maverick replies teasingly. “Keep telling yourself that.”
“Well she won you over,” Cade says from our right.
Maverick glares at him. “She’s definitely more likeable than you.”
A few minutes later, we spot the group of wolves heading our way. I’m waiting patiently, standing straight with perfect posture when there’s a gasp from the other side of Maverick.
The wolves exit the treeline, the tall, gigantic ginger wolf mirroring a harsh expression that is expected from the notorious Alpha Kingston.
“What is it?” I whisper quietly to Maverick, sneaking a glance at Darius as his mouth hangs agape.
His brows are furrowed, pure confusion and astonishment on his face. “It’s Delilah—Darius’ sister.”
Not only did I somehow convince Alpha Kingston to come, but I also managed to get them to stay the night so we could circle back to important discussions in the morning.
Luna Grace had to do more rearranging, shifting room in the guest houses so Alpha Kingston and the Artemis Pack had somewhere to stay. He was even happy for Delilah to spend time with Darius freely.
I was worried that Maverick might be in too much shock so I offered to stay with him tonight.
The two of us have just returned from brief discussions with the new alpha in the office, and frankly, I don't see the problem.
Alpha Kingston seems friendly enough. Sure, he's a bit blunt and has no idea how to crack a smile, but we get along well.
The whole development appears to have Maverick in a spin. He's been eerily quiet the entire walk back, lost in deep thought.
"Do you want to take a shower?" I offer, kicking off my shoes by the door,
"Soon," he answers.
A part of me feels a little offended that he's not immediately jumping at the idea of seeing me naked and wet. He stalks off toward the bedroom and I follow hesitantly, wondering if I should just give him space.
I hover in the doorway, watching as he goes over to the bedside drawer, pulling out a small box.
"Come here," he says.
Slowly, I walk over, my eyes locked on the small box. When I reach him, he gestures for me to turn around.
Frowning, I stand awkwardly with my back to him. "Everything okay?"
The sound of the box closing is my only reply, before something dangles in my face.
It's the most gorgeous necklace I've ever laid eyes on.
The teardrop pendant holds a black opal, sparkling brilliant colors of green and blue.
He pauses, letting it hang in my direct line of sight for a few seconds before he strings it around my neck.
"Maverick?" I whisper.
"This was my mother's," he says quietly, clasping it and running his fingers down the back of my neck. "My father gave it to her when they met. I want you to have it."
Words get caught in my throat. "I can't take it."
"Yes, you can. Because against all odds you gave me hope again. You let me love you. You fought for us. And despite everything, you managed to do the one thing for Darius that even I couldn't. My parents would have loved you."
Spinning around, my eyes are full of tears. "I love you," I murmur, gently touching the opal.
"I love you too, my pain in the ass."
I let out a laugh, tackling him on the bed as I crash my lips into his.
We do eventually get to the shower.
Eventually.