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“Oh gods,” I breathed out as I fought tears. No matter how often they told me that this wasn’t my fault, I couldn’t shake the guilt. I’d led the tracker right to them, but if it wasn’t our pack, it would’ve been another. And at least we had the resources to fight back, to track them right back.
The Grave Pack had gotten back at us for fighting back in the one way they knew how. Destroying our home. We’d gone from thirty wolves to over a hundred and fifty and now we didn’t have the ability to house everyone.
The only building still standing was the pavilion but it definitely wasn’t untouched. Every dish was shattered, the pots and pans banged up. They’d even flipped our ovens and refrigerators.
“My babies,” Emma whimpered at the sight. It was both of our safe place here in town and now it was unusable. Callum’s mansion still stood along with one more, but from the broken windows, I had a strong feeling they were just as unusable.
“They were trying to hit us where it would hurt. For our pack it’s our community,” I said. My voice broke and Leven pulled me in for a hug. “It was my first real home.” This was where I found out what being a pack truly meant, where I found most of my mates.
“And it will be still,” Callum said. Even Garren had joined us, but he looked much calmer than the rest. Then again, his nomadic past made him better equipped than most to get a camp set up.
“We’ll rebuild stronger than ever. This is just a new beginning. We need more homes now than ever,” Garren said.
“Tomorrow I’ll call out for every construction company in the area—” Callum started but it was Hades who cut him off with a laugh.
“And drain every scent you have in your pack funds?” he countered. Callum shifted and glared at him, but Nyx clapped him on the shoulder.
“He’s right, Alpha,” Nyx said as gently as possible. “We’re a big group, we can build up again ourselves. Make this home again.”
“Then let’s get started,” Torryn said. “I’ll start clearing debris and adding it to the fire.”
“We’ve got the rest of the kitchen, Emma,” Brent and Waylen promised their sister, heading back inside with a few others.
“I’ll go shopping with whoever is getting tents. We’ll need food and dishes,” Emma said firmly. The determination was spreading like wildfire.
Our alpha looked proud and sad at the same time as he sent off a group for tents and supplies, then joined us. We worked side by side for hours, clearing the lots that we could. The flames grew to the point it looked like they’d take over the Bluffs, but the fire was hot enough it reduced everything to ashes in mere minutes. Having witches around to keep the fire in check was nice.
The others returned just before nightfall. There was enough grass left untouched that we started putting up the tents. Of course our extra pack couldn’t just go for ordinary tents, they’d ensured we were borderline glamping instead. After a day of physical labor and being around a blazing fire, I was ready for a cold shower and a decent bed, so I wasn’t going to complain. Though any other day, I’d be complaining about taking camp showers in the woods.
The tents were set up within an hour and I had just gotten out of the shower when Emma came in like an angel with arms full of pizza boxes. I wasn’t sure if it was lack of time or divine intervention that left the pavilion’s tables intact, but I was grateful for it as the entire pack sat down to eat. Even the weaker witches and wolves had joined us, conversation flowing easily between everyone.
“All right, pack,” Callum called out, gathering attention. He’d at least waited this time until everyone had eaten and the energy had settled. “We’ve all been through hell and back again, some having had it harder than others, but we will build this place up stronger than ever. We’ve proven today that with some hard work and community, they can’t keep us down. With any luck, we can have our home back in a few short months.”
Deafening cheers rang out and I hoped they were fucking watching us now, seeing that they didn’t take us down as they’d hoped. We were rebuilding, but also still looking, doing everything we could to find them. They were going to find out what it was like to be hunted and we would not forgive and forget.
Callum wrapped up his speech with a few more encouraging words, looking far more settled as he sat back down.
“While we’re handling all the intense stuff,” I said, figuring now was better than later. “I wanted to talk to you guys about something.”
“Oh god,” Leven joked, laughing when I flipped him my middle finger.
“I want to do the ceremony. With all six of us,” I said in a casual voice. The three guys who had been in the archives with me all gaped, while Torryn and Holt looked confused.
“Uh, ceremony? Do you wolves sacrifice new members or what?” he demanded.
“No, we have our own version of a fated mate ceremony,” I explained. “We took a trip to the archives when we were searching for leads on the Grave Pack. There’s a fated mate ceremony that is performed under a full moon, a way for fate to tell us if we’re fated or chosen.”
“The full moon is in two days,” Nyx said excitedly.
My eyes drifted to Holt, and I pleaded for him to know this wasn’t about their mating bond. “I want to do this to make us stronger, to fix this rift but also give us an edge. I promise it doesn’t have anything to do with you bonding already.”
He shrugged and gave a sad smile. “I’ll never have the history you all have, or the camaraderie, I’m the epitome of an outsider. So I wouldn’t blame you if it was. But I’m glad you guys have a way to figure it out as well.”
“You’d be doing it with us,” I told him when he completely missed that portion.
“I’m not a wolf,” he argued.
“But you’re pack, and not just Bluff Pack, but our pack,” Leven said.
