Chapter 23 - Lola
The moon hung low and wide above Pine Shadow Grove, casting a silver sheen over the ancient clearing nestled deep within the woods.
The trees whispered with the wind, leaves rustling like voices of old, and soft lights strung through the branches lent the place a reverent glow.
Everything smelled of earth and pine, wildflowers and woodsmoke.
And somewhere in all of that, beneath the quiet hush of the gathered pack and the weight of tradition pressing down like a blanket, Lola stood, draped in white, crowned in blossoms, and trembling from head to toe.
Her dress, simple yet flowing, was the exact style Daisy had insisted would suit her, long, modest, with bell sleeves that moved like water when she walked.
Her flower crown, woven that morning by Eva and Thea, sat delicately atop her dark hair, tangling with the soft curls she hadn’t had time to smooth.
She felt like a fraud in it. Regal, reverent, pure…
those weren’t words she’d ever used to describe herself.
But tonight, she didn’t just feel like she was wearing them. She felt like she had to become them.
Everyone was watching. The entire pack.
Her hands were clammy. She tried to keep her breathing even as she stood before Felix.
The alpha looked strong and composed, as he always did.
Cassie stood just off to the side, smiling reassuringly, her sons sitting near her feet like impatient little sentinels.
Nicolas and Daisy watched from the edge of the circle with their children, and Rick, ever quiet, leaned against one of the larger stones, arms crossed, eyes unreadable.
But it was Dane she felt the most.
He stood at the edge of the crowd, eyes locked on her like she was the moon itself.
That unreadable, stormy stare of his, piercing, possessive, protective.
No longer shying away from her. Not since the attack five days ago.
Not since she'd woken up bloodied and bruised in his arms and he'd whispered that he'd never leave her again.
Now she was joining the pack. Officially. Irrevocably.
It was so soon after the battle. She had hoped to wait, hadn’t wanted so much attention on her when everyone was still recovering.
But the alpha had insisted.
“You’re one of us now, Lola. And I would thank you as a member of my pack, not as an outsider. Besides. We need something to celebrate now more than ever. It’s time to let old things die and move forward into the future.”
Lola had accepted his words with all the grace she could muster.
Felix stepped forward, voice deep and steady.
“Lola Devereaux,” he said, the clearing falling into solemn silence, “you stand before the Iron Walkers of your own free will, asking to be sworn into our ranks. Do you come with loyalty in your heart, and the strength to stand beside us in times of peace and war alike?”
Lola swallowed, her throat dry. “I do.”
Felix nodded. “Then kneel.”
She sank to one knee, pressing her hand to the earth as she’d been instructed, feeling the cold dew sink through the thin fabric of her dress.
“Repeat after me,” Felix said, his voice a low echo through the grove, “I pledge myself to the Iron Walkers.”
“I pledge myself to the Iron Walkers,” she echoed.
“To their safety, their strength, and their future.”
“To their safety, their strength, and their future.”
“I offer my knowledge, my loyalty, and my blood.”
She hesitated for just a breath, heart thudding. Then, “I offer my knowledge, my loyalty, and my blood.”
“And in return,” Felix said, placing a hand on her head, “we offer you our name, our protection, and our bond. Rise, Lola of the Iron Walkers. You are one of us now.”
A soft gasp swept through the crowd, followed by a smattering of cheers, then rising applause. Lola stood slowly, dizzy with the weight of it all, her knees shaky. She met Felix’s eyes, kind yet serious, and nodded once.
Then she turned, and Dane was already moving toward her.
He didn’t rush. He didn’t grin. But the moment he reached her, his hand found hers and squeezed.
“You okay?” he asked, voice low.
Lola nodded, eyes still wide. “I think so.”
He brushed a strand of hair from her cheek, the back of his knuckle grazing her skin with reverence. “You were perfect.”
She wanted to believe him. But her heart hadn’t stopped pounding since she’d stepped into the clearing. It wasn’t just nerves. It was everything. The ceremony. The pack. The weight of being bound to this place and these people…not just legally or formally, but spiritually.
Dane's hand found the small of her back, guiding her gently toward the crowd.
People were stepping forward to congratulate her, Cassie with a hug, Daisy with teary eyes and a bouquet of fresh clover and thyme.
Even Nicolas gave her a polite nod and a rare smile, holding Thea on one hip and keeping Gracie from running underfoot.
Rick simply offered, “Welcome to the wolves, Miss Devereaux,” with the faintest of smirks.
Ethel pushed past him with a sharp elbow, ignoring his hiss of displeasure. “Lola, my dear! I knew you’d come to your senses eventually. I didn’t think it would take the destruction of pack property to do so, but that’s all by the by.”
“Ethel,” Lola said, leaning down to pull the older woman into a tight hug, “thank you. Thank you so much. For taking a chance on me.”
Ethel sputtered for a moment before slowly returning her embrace, her voice warm as she replied, “Not at all, my dear. It’s been my pleasure.”
The mingling started soon after. Someone uncorked a bottle of wine. Someone else brought out food. It wasn’t meant to be a party, but the air turned lighter, warmer, as the pack gathered closer together. Laughter filtered through the trees. The children ran, barefoot and wild, through the ferns.
But Lola couldn’t quite shake her nerves.
Not until Dane leaned in and murmured, “Ready to go home?”
She turned to him, heart skittering, “Home?”
“Ours,” he said softly.
And just like that, the weight shifted. Became something sweeter. He didn't press. Just offered his arm.
She took it.
And together, they left the grove behind.
***
Sam was staying with Nicolas and Daisy for the night, leaving the two of them completely alone in his apartment.
In their apartment.
Lola had been anxious to let the baby go, fretting over him, the terror of being separated from him still so new, so recent. But Daisy had reassured her a hundred times over that they’d drop him off first thing in the morning. Nicolas’s eyes had been narrow and watchful.
He hadn’t said a word as he guided Daisy and the children to the car, not taking his gaze off them.
Lola swallowed, glancing up at Dane as the car drove away. “Is he…mad about something?”
Dane glanced down at her, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish expression, “He…he’s still reeling a bit. From everything. I think we all are.”
“Is it something I did? The fact that I joined the pack?” Lola asked, fiddling with her fingers.
Dane sighed. “Give him some time. Watching you press that detonator…he knows you would never do anything to hurt Daisy, or any of the others. His…instincts are just gonna be a bit hard for him to brush off.”
“Oh, God,” Lola clapped her hands to her mouth, “I hadn’t even thought about it like that. The explosion. You must have thought that I…I…”
He pulled her in close, pressing a kiss to her forehead, “We know now that you saved us. That explosion injured Red Teeth’s alphas enough that we were able to take them out with minimal casualties on our end. Rick’s actually pretty impressed with your quick thinking.”
“He is?”
Dane chuckled low in his chest, “Don’t worry, he’ll never tell ya. He’ll just keep brooding over the destruction to the club.”
Lola winced. “Again, I’m really sorry about that.”
Dane shrugged, tucking her against his side and dropping another kiss to the top of her head. “That old place was getting a bit cramped anyway. It was high time we sized up. Created new memories instead of gathering in the shadow of…”
“Of old ones,” Lola finished for him with a small, sad smile. “I can’t say I’m sorry that I will never see those cellars again.”
Dane’s jaw worked for a moment, something dark and angry flitting across his eyes, “Felix told me…Cassie told him about…about what you all went through. Down there.”
Lola sighed. “I won’t pretend it wasn’t terrifying.
But Cassie told me about what happened when she and Rick were taken, and you had to go after those bounty hunters.
I can’t imagine going through something like that alone.
I had Cassie and Daisy and Marsha, and all the others. We looked after each other.”
“But you were alone,” he snarled, “when the others left. You were alone with them. With him.”
“Not for long,” she whispered, taking his hand, “you were coming for me. I knew you’d come for me. I couldn’t bear to have you walk into a trap to save us, knowing that we’d found a way out. I had to do something.”
The muscle in his jaw pulsed as he worked through his rage, and Lola just stood, letting him scent her, letting him hold her close.
It seemed that Nicolas wasn’t the only one struggling with animalistic tendencies.
She didn’t mind. It soothed something in her, something that still hadn’t quite recovered since facing down Red Teeth. Something small and scared.
But she didn’t have to be scared, not with Dane holding her tight. He would protect her. He would always protect her. And she would do her best to remind him every single day that he was worth loving. That he wasn’t the monster he was scared to be.
That he was a good male.
“Yanno,” he said, a slight sardonic twist to his voice, “you may not miss the cellars, but the archives, on the other hand…”
She pulled back abruptly, utterly horrified. “There were archives in the club?!”