27. Orion
ORION
Watching the mate of my dream gliding through the dining hall and talking with her pack made me glow with pride.
She was more than I could have imagined.
My visions hadn’t shown me much about her other than she was mine to protect with my life.
Change was coming for the werewolves of our time, and she was the catalyst to make it all happen.
Do you think she will be able to love us after we marked her without consent?
Our mate is strong and fearless, she will come around. Do not let your emotions rule you in this. They are dangerous for us.
I bristled at my wolf’s reminder. I know what happens if I don’t maintain control.
If we lose her because of your weakness, I will never let you live it down. She must never know that side of you.
Go the fuck back to sleep if you’re not going to be helpful.
One more thing—stop listening in to her conversations with her wolf, or I will teach her how to do it with us.
I growled, slamming the mental door on my wolf, putting him back in his corner of my brain. Why I even bothered to talk to him was beyond me. He never had anything helpful to say.
“Hey, kiddo, I’ve got some questions,” Koit, our fellow mate brother said, jabbing me with his elbow.
Turning to him, I flashed him a smile and cocked my head. “I’m sure you do, but I don’t have the time or the crayons to explain everything you need to know.”
Koit blinked at me before he burst out laughing. He laughed so hard he almost fell out of his chair, but his brother Rikkart grabbed him before it could happen.
“Oh man, that was a good one. I think I’m gonna like having you around. These grumpy old men don’t know how to have a good time,” Koit said, grinning at me.
“What makes you so certain that I am any better? After all, I am over four hundred years old,” I questioned, genuinely curious.
Koit gave me a wolfish smile. “You have your talents, I have mine. Being able to sniff out a good time is one of them.”
“Don’t believe a word this idiotic brother of mine has to say,” Rik said. “What he has a talent for is finding trouble.”
Koit shrugged his shoulders, not at all bothered by the accusation. “I see no difference.”
Rik just groaned and rolled his eyes before turning to seek out his mate. Unable to help myself, I too looked over my shoulder, finding Viv sitting at a table and chatting with a smile on her face.
“To think that woman doesn’t believe she will be a good Alpha,” Tav said, causing me to glance at him and see the tenderness in his eyes.
“I don’t like her being out there on her own like that,” Darius grumbled, arms crossed, constantly scanning the room for any trouble. “One of them is who we are after.”
Snapping my attention to him, I growled, my protectiveness pushing at my control. “What do you mean?”
“I thought the problem was over since Thomas was killed,” Tristan said, confused.
The most surprising thing about this whole venture was seeing him here.
Tristan had been hiding from the werewolf world all his life, and now here he was, center stage, vying for the Dama to be his mate.
What changed? It wasn’t like we really knew each other, but when you have been around as long as we have, you’re bound to interact from time to time.
The Collective had been keeping tabs on us for years, and seeing as we were both the last of our kind, I guess it made sense.
I wouldn’t have been found, though, if it hadn’t been for Tristan and that talent of his.
I hired him to spread my wealth around since I couldn’t have the government find out how many aliases I’ve had.
Tristan didn’t always work on the right side of the law, but he always worked to help out his fellow werewolf brethren.
He refused to work with me through email, so I had to meet him in person to verify that I was who I claimed to be.
That had been the first time he touched me, when we gripped forearms in greeting.
When he discovered who I truly was, he informed The Collective, knowing that I was a wildcard.
“We can’t talk about it here. To be frank, I’m not sure we can even trust you or Orion,” Darius said, narrowing his eyes at the both of us.
Watching him throughout most of the evening, I knew he couldn’t take much more getting thrown at him.
He craved control, and Viv had stripped him of that—for good reason—but adding in three new potential mates might just push him over the edge.
My dearest needed to finish the mating so he could get his feet under him. He was no good to her if he lost it.
“Rik, Orion, gather the guys and meet me back in our rooms. We have some work to do,” Viv’s voice said, filtering through my mind.
Before I could stop myself, a wolfish grin crossed my face—it was time to start hunting.