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"Wasn't that hard to figure out," I bit out.
"Exactly. You knew what would happen if you came back to get Pierce, but you held you ground and pushed forward. I know it couldn't have been easy for you."
If only he knew how many times I felt like I was going to crack. The staggering need to chase after Joaquin. The gut-wrenching absence of my connection to him. The piercing guilt of knowing he was brutally tortured because of me. I hugged myself, my fingers curling as I clutched at my arms. "When I could barely feel his presence anymore, it felt like I couldn't breathe. I was suffocating, needing to get to Joaquin like he was the air my lungs needed to breathe. I honestly thought I'd never see him again. I thought that Pierce would..."
I didn't want to finish that sentence. I didn't want to think about the how close Pierce was to killing Joaquin. And to think, this was the man whom Fate deemed to be a perfect match for me. Me, fated to a psychopath who was okay with killing innocent lives in pursuit of power. What the hell was Fate smoking when they decided I'd be a perfect match for Pierce?
"I know," Byron said. "But try not to think about that anymore. What's important is that Joaquin is in our care now, and that soon enough, we'll put a stop to Pierce."
"He's right, Rosa." I looked up to see Javier and Del joining us. "And you'll have us to help you."
I arched an eyebrow at him. "But our pack laws state that you can't interfere in personal pack matters."
"This isn't a personal conflict within the pack anymore. You're part of your own pack now, and you're fighting to stake a permanent claim onto this territory. This is different now. If you'd like, we can form an alliance between your pack and mine, and together, we can fend off Pierce and his rogue army."
"An alliance?"
"It's always good to form treaties with other packs, for emergency circumstances like this one," Byron said. "Since you're the new alpha, it's your right to decide whether or not to form an alliance with your brother's pack."
I'd never seen an alliance form between two packs before. Now I was regretting never being around to watch my brother act as pack alpha. That kind of knowledge would've come in handy right about now. "How does that work, exactly?" I asked shyly.
Javier grinned. "Like any other business deal. I can write up a contract for us both to sign, and aside from that, we'd only need a bloody thumb print to make it binding."
That didn't sound too bad, I guess. Wait, did he say a bloody thumb print?
I groaned and started running circles along my temples, feeling a migraine coming on. "This is a lot to digest."
"It's really not that complicated," Del said. "My father made business deals all the time. Once you get the hang of it, it'll become second-hand nature to you. Plus, considering there are other Moon Gifted beings out there, it'll be a good idea to form alliances with their packs as well. You know, as soon as we find them all."
"Other what?" Byron asked in confusion.
Right, Byron didn't know about the Moon Chosen. We'd have to bring him up to speed on that, but first, I had to figure out how to plan my first official meeting.
"I'll tell you later," I said, patting Byron's bicep. Feeling antsy from standing around in one place, I started moving up the steps and into the lodge. Before I even reached inside, I could already hear Abuelita barking orders from the kitchen, preparing meals for the meeting tonight. Several other people were huddling around to get the lodge spotless. Even though I was gone for a couple of weeks, it was nice to see the lodge looking the same way as I remembered. Well, minus the lack of rails on the stairs. But I could tell there used to be one.
Before I could ask someone about it, I heard Del behind me, saying, "That was my doing." She, Javier and Byron came up from behind. Byron glaring down at Del, whose hands were clasped in Javier’s.
Looking from Byron to Del, I asked, "Do I want to know?"
"Probably not," Byron said in a clipped tone. "I'm just glad all my bruises are healed."
That alone told me that a lot more happened outside of Del trying to shoot Byron, but he was right, I didn't want to know. Looking around, I did ask the question I wanted to know more. "Where's Joaquin?"
"We have him resting in one of the rooms upstairs." Byron pointed up. "Do you want to see him?"
"Not yet," I said, then looked down the hall. My hands clenching to fists. "Show me the basement."
I didn't have to look back to feel the reluctance wafting off Byron. "Rosie..."
"Byron," I cut him off before he could talk me out of seeing it. I knew he was likely concerned about how I'd handle seeing for myself the condition Pierce put Joaquin under, but I needed to see the evidence for myself. I needed it to fuel my resolve to end Pierce's reign forever. I didn't want to have to do this, but I didn't want to take the chance of Byron arguing with me about going down to see the cellars. "As your alpha, I'm ordering you to show me the basement."
The words felt like acid on my tongue. I wasn't a demanding person; I didn't like barking orders at people. Sure, I taught classes, but being an instructor was different from being an alpha. This felt wrong to me, and yet this was my supposed destiny. I was supposed to lead the strongest wolf pack of my generation, but what kind of alpha did I want to be? Did I have what it takes to be an alpha?
"Yes, Alpha," Byron muttered, walking passed me and down the hall.
I instantly felt regret for the order, but not enough to deter myself from following him. Byron stopped at the metal door with a locking mechanism. He punched in the code on the keypad, and mentioned he'd show me how to change the code if I wanted to. I filed that away for a later date. With the door unlocked, Byron opened it up. Immediately the putrid stench of musk, blood, and mold burned my nostrils. Joaquin was definitely in here previously. His scent still lingered in the mix of it all, but so was the hint of wolfsbane.
"Don't worry, the smell of it is faint enough to not affect you," Byron said, sensing the poisonous plants as well.
