Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
Hunter sighed and leaned his head on his father’s shoulder, soaking in a minute of his father’s solace. “How—”
“Chasen sent us a letter explaining everything. Why didn’t you tell us when you visited?” Asher held his boy tightly in his arms. He could only imagine the amount of pain he’d been in.
“You guys have enough to worry about with Reiya. I didn’t need to bother you over something small like this,” Hunter said as he pulled away from his dad. He noticed his Uncle Grayson and Chasen walking away from them, giving him some privacy with his father.
Asher scoffed loudly and furrowed his brows at his son.
“Something small like this? There’s nothing small about this.
It’s okay to be crushed and angry. That was your mate who betrayed you, Hunter.
This is a big deal. You need to tell us.
You’re our child, too, and just as important.
We want to know about everything that’s going on in your life. Do I need to move back here?”
Now it was Hunter’s time to scoff. “Don’t treat me like a child, Dad. I’m the alpha of this pack now.”
“Then act like it. An alpha doesn’t have to hold his feelings in.
You have a support system. Use it. You can be strong for the pack but still utilize those around you.
From now on, you make sure you tell me what’s going on, or I promise I will move right back into the pack house and hover over your shoulder. ”
Hunter shook his head and chuckled. “Alright, Dad. I get it. But remember, I’m the alpha here, not you. You’re the fairy king now.”
“Right. But I am still your father. And father trumps you being the alpha.” Asher chuckled and patted his son on the shoulder. “Now, honestly. How are you doing?”
Hunter heaved out a sigh and looked upward.
“It still stings, to be honest. I’m a bit bitter over it.
And I feel like … well, I feel like there’s an emptiness inside of me.
Blaze has gone quiet. He rarely speaks now.
Even when shifting, he keeps his personality dormant.
He’s hurting, too. I’m going to keep moving forward, though.
I’ve got the pack to worry about, and these demon wolves are keeping me busy.
Eventually, I’ll have to try to find my own luna, but I don’t have the time for that now. ”
Asher looked into his son’s gray eyes. It was like looking into his own. His eyes looked a bit tired and had lost some of their shine, but he was strong. He would get past this. “Your wolf will get better in time. So will you. Who knows? You may have a second-chance mate out there.”
He was proud of his son and how well he was handling the rejection.
Some wolves went mad. Hearing about the demon wolves had him a bit apprehensive, though.
Their leader, Abaas, had been after his mate, Lita, twenty years ago, and now he was after their daughter, Reiya.
“Tell me about these demon wolves you’re having trouble with. Do you think any of them were Abaas?”
“No, but I think they’re part of his pack.
They must have been checking to see if Reiya was here, but we took care of them.
I do think this put us on his radar, though, because since then, demon wolves have been caught patrolling the area.
” Hunter rubbed his temple. “It’s only a matter of time before we have another run-in.
I upped the training sessions among the pack. We’ll be ready for them.”
“Just be careful. Remember, Abaas has wolfsbane venom. I’m sure he isn’t the only demon wolf with that.” Asher was taking on his fatherly role, trying to guide his son.
Hunter chuckled. “Dad, don’t worry. I have things taken care of. Remember … I am part fairy, too. I’ve been testing my tolerance to wolfsbane, and I’m pretty sure I’m immune to it.”
“That’s great news, son. That’s wonderful to hear!”
Hunter looked back and saw Grayson and Chasen talking seriously in the distance. He felt a weird pit in his stomach as he looked back at his dad. “How is Reiya?”
Asher took in a breath of air and rubbed the back of his neck. “You’re not going to like hearing this.”
“What?” Hunter’s voice came out in a low growl. What happened to his sister?
“Reiya isn’t in Elysia anymore. She’s living in the West Dragon Kingdom.”
“WHAT?! WHY? I’m bringing her back here!” Hunter growled angrily, glaring at his father.
“Calm down. I don’t like it either, but your mother insisted on this. It’s one of the safest places for her. They don’t want to give her back, and … well, there’s another thing, too. Her mate is there.” Asher hesitated to bring the last part up, knowing Hunter had just lost his.
“Wait, what? A dragon mate?”
Asher chuckled. “She doesn’t know it yet. They’re hoping her wolf will come out to see if she also recognizes him as her mate. You know some mates are not mutual. It happens.”
“Who is her mate?” Hunter felt irritated at the idea of Reiya being in a strange place with dragons he didn’t know. It was different when she was with their parents.
“Keep this secret for now. Leviathan claims she is his mate.”
Hunter stood there with wide eyes. His sister’s summon was her mate?
He at least knew Leviathan, having met him often since he was his sister’s summon.
He was also very considerate of Reiya and very protective.
Thinking back, his reactions made sense, especially if he was her mate.
“Is she there all alone? What about Brody?”
“Brody and Chelsie are there with her. You know Brody isn’t leaving her side, just like Chasen would never leave yours.
Honestly, because Brody is there, I’m able to relax a bit over it.
And knowing that Leviathan is with her …
I know she’s well protected. Still, I wish I could keep all my kids with me.
I worry about all of you,” Asher admitted with a half grin.
No matter what, they were his children. They would always be his little kids.
“You don’t have to worry, Dad. We’re doing good here. I’m taking great care of the pack, too. And I’m okay … I’m going to be okay. I'm still not happy about Reiya, though. I want her back here, where I can watch over her.”
“Don’t worry. Brody won’t let anything happen to her,” Chasen said as he and Grayson walked back up to them.
“Asher!” Caden sprinted into the clearing and collided with him. “What are you doing here?”
“Hey! I thought you were going with Sam and Susan,” Chasen said, seeing the old beta there.
“As soon as I heard Sam was going, I ditched out. I didn’t want to go shopping anyway.” Caden smiled, patting Asher hard on the back. “It’s great to see you.”
“How is my son handling things here? Be truthful. Does he need roughed up some?” Asher winked over at his son as he smiled at the man who was his beta and best friend.
“He’s doing a great job, Asher. It’s really good to see you. Garrett and Caspian are back at the pack house. They’ll be stoked.” Caden then reached out and patted Grayson on the arm. “You taking care of our troublemakers?”
“The best I can. You know how Asher and Lita are, though. Always a handful.” Grayson smirked at Asher, who only chuckled in response.
“Let’s go back to the pack house. I’m hungry again anyway.” Chasen shrugged.
“Me too. What are you feeding us, Hunter?” Caden asked with a big toothy grin.
“Wait. How did I get stuck cooking? We have a pack cook for that.” Hunter chuckled as the guys all walked back to the pack house together.
“Asher! Where’s Lita? How’s my fairy queen?” Caspian asked the moment Asher walked in the door, while Garrett walked up and patted Asher heavily on the back.
“Lita is still in Elysia, and she’s doing good. I’m good too, by the way.” Asher gave him a wry smile.
“Well, I can see you’re good.” Caspian chuckled and shook his head.
“Merida and I have decided to make the move to Elysia. Now that Renee has Sam as her mate, we feel it’s time for us to make our move back to the fairy kingdom.
Merida has been away from her home for so long, and we know it’s easy to visit.
So let Lita know we’ll be seeing her soon. ”
“That’s great! I’m sure Lita will be thrilled to hear this news!” Asher said excitedly.
“Rosa and I want to wait a bit longer. Susan still needs to find her mate, and it doesn’t hurt to have a couple of experienced, past-ranking wolves around just in case.” Caden winked at Hunter.
Hunter respected Caden. He respected all of them.
Garrett and Caspian, too. He might be the alpha, but he grew up with these men.
He trusted them, and he didn’t mind listening to any advice they might have to offer.
He leaned back against the wall and smiled as he watched the older men laughing and teasing each other.
It was interesting watching the past leaders of his pack.
The cycle had continued, and he now had his own officers, who were like family.
He watched his father laughing as Grayson and Caden had an arm-wrestling match. Caden seemed to think that Grayson had lost his touch. Hunter smirked, already knowing how this match would end.
“You want to arm wrestle with me, Hunter?” Chasen poked at his brother’s side as he rested his back against the wall beside him.
“Person against person, or are we bringing our animals out in this?” Hunter raised an eyebrow as he asked.
“Doesn’t matter how we do it. I’ll still be the winner.”
“Is that so?” Hunter turned, looking at his brother, ready to rise to his challenge.
The door to the pack house suddenly opened. They all turned their attention to the dark-haired, green-eyed beauty who opened the door.
“Chelsie? What are you doing here?” Hunter asked with concern.
Chelsie was his sister’s best friend. She was a kelpie, a dark fairy who could shift into a water horse and could travel instantly through one body of water to another.
She was staying with Reiya in the West Dragon Kingdom, so her visit definitely wasn’t social.
“Chelsie?” Asher met her halfway, with Hunter right by his side.
“The queen sent me here. She wanted me to let you know that she went to visit Reiya, but she would meet you back in Elysia, so there’s no need to worry.”
Asher and Grayson both growled lowly. “She shouldn’t have left without us. What happened? Why did she go to the dragon kingdom?” Asher sighed in irritation as his gray eyes pinned the kelpie.
“I don’t know exactly. Reiya was so upset that she was crying. I think she had a vision. She needed her mother.” Chelsie squeezed her hands together and looked into Asher’s eyes. “I’ve never seen Reiya that upset before.”
Hunter’s knuckles turned white from clenching his hands. “We need to bring her back here.” He turned his head and looked at his father’s taut face.
“What do you want to do, Asher?” Grayson asked as he walked up to Asher’s side.
“Well, Lita’s already there by now. Let’s continue with our visit here.
I’m sure Brody will make sure she makes it back alright.
” Asher rubbed his forehead and sighed. He wanted to race off to the dragon kingdom to be by Lita’s side, but he came to visit with Hunter.
Hunter needed him, too. Just this once, he was going to fight the urge to run to Lita’s side.
He turned and looked at his son. “Try to relax. Reiya’s okay.
Your mom will talk to her and get things sorted out. ”
Hunter scowled and let out a low growl. He felt a warm hand lay on his shoulder, and the two sets of gray eyes stared back at each other. His father gave him a small smile and nodded his head. “I understand, son. Believe me, I do.”
“Chelsie, why don’t you stick around for a little bit?
I want to write a letter to Reiya and Brody.
We were about to eat dinner, too. Plus, I want you to tell me about Reiya and Brody …
how they’re doing and how they’re being treated there.
” Hunter figured, since he couldn’t see them, the next best thing would be to get information from Chelsie.
“I can do that. I know Reiya and Brody would be very happy to get a letter from the both of you.”
“You and Brody still picking on each other?” Chasen gave Chelsie a side smile as he watched her roll her eyes.
“He lives to infuriate me.” Chelsie snorted as she crossed her arms.
“Make yourself at home, Chelsie. We’ll talk in a bit.” Hunter watched Chelsie walk over and sit on one of the couches. He turned to look at his father. “If anything seems off, anything at all, I’m bringing her back here. If Reiya wants to leave, I will bring her here, no matter what.”
Asher smiled. “I know you will, son.”