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“Down the hall on your left before you reach the foyer,” he said. Celeste kissed my hand and left the room.
“Is she really okay?” Rhett asked, looking at the closed door Celeste had just gone through.
“I think so. She is grieving, but I can sense she’s at peace with it.”
“I envy you that kind of connection,” he said, looking wistful.
“At one point, I hoped to never find my mate. I’m thankful the Moon Goddess ignored my idiotic request. I didn’t know how much I needed her in my life. She makes me complete. I hope you find your own soon, Rhett. It’s really another level of happiness I couldn’t have imagined.” I answered honestly.
“Why didn’t you want a mate?” he asked curiously. No one outside the pack knew the full story of what happened to my dad, as I had already taken over as alpha.
“My father lost my mother when I was five. You know he raised me by himself. He was lonely and chose a mate shortly after retiring.” My eyes darkened as the memory came to the forefront. “His chosen mate eventually found her destined mate some months later and left him, but even though she replaced my father’s mark on her, my father still felt the pain when she bedded her mate.” Rhett’s eyes went up at that. “He suffered for three years, and then by the Moon Goddess’ grace, she gave him a second-chance mate, and Dad was finally able to have peace. When that happened, I decided I didn’t want or need a mate. I didn’t want that kind of pain. I never sought mine after that, but the Moon Goddess had other plans for me.” I sighed. “A part of me wonders if I would have been able to spare Celeste some pain if I looked for her sooner,” I admitted, guilt spreading over my chest.
Rhett shook his head.
“Didn’t Celeste only turn nineteen less than a year ago? Perhaps not looking spared you the disappointment of not finding her for the last six. Something I’m very familiar with.” He smiled wryly, but I could hear the pain behind those words.
“I never thought of it that way. I do hope the Moon Goddess grants you the same happiness she has given me,” I said.
“As do I, my friend. Maybe she’s just coming of age like yours. I am only twenty-three I guess…perhaps I should start making my rounds during the full moons soon.”
“Well, you’ll be coming to the luna ceremony this month. Plenty of people from around the other packs will come. Maybe you can find her there,” I said.
“From your lips….” He laughed.
‘He will. The Moon Goddess told me so,’Celeste mind linked me as she walked in.‘But let’s keep it between us. We don’t need him smelling every woman at the luna ceremony.’
I choked on the last of my scotch at her joke, and I couldn’t help the laughter that bubbled up from my chest. Atlas was hollering on his back.
“What’s so funny?” Rhett asked suspiciously.
“Oh, I just told Markus if your mate knows how to cook, we might need to buy you a treadmill as a congratulatory present so you don’t gain a hundred pounds during the first year,” Celeste lied, which made me laugh harder still as Rhett was in the process of inhaling another brownie.
Chapter twenty-four
Celeste
Afterapleasantlunchwith Rhett, we made our way to my parents’ pack grounds. The thought of eating didn’t appeal to me at first, but as we sat and waited for the food to arrive, I realized I wasn’t sad. I was grieving for Uncle Lucien and the last vestiges of a life I once had that was gone with him, but I was also at peace knowing he was getting a new chance to be happy and live a full life. If anyone deserved it, it was him, and I owed it to him to finally take his advice from all those years ago.
“Flourish and live.”
The sun was already starting to set when we arrived at Sky Moon and found Danny and Gillian downing some trees in the distance to create a funeral pyre. I joined Maya and Ruby on the back steps of the pack house while Rhett and Markus joined the effort.
It was well past dusk when the pyre was ready, and we gathered around as Rhett and Markus laid Lucien on top of the pyre.
“Tell us about him, Luna,” Ruby asked.
“His name was Lucien Pierce. He was my father’s gamma. He was fierce in front of outsiders but would always bring me toys and sweets when he returned home after leaving the pack grounds. He always told corny jokes at the dinner table. Dad jokes, despite not having any pups himself. He was loyal and brave, always ready with a hug, whether you wanted one or not.” People laughed before I continued, “He always told me he wanted to find his mate and have a boy so his son could be my mate. Told me there was nothing wrong with being a cougar, and I would try to convince him I was a wolf.” There were a few more chuckles as Markus and Rhett joined the group. Markus held me to his chest while I kept talking.
“He held me when my parents passed away and told me to be brave, to live and to thrive. Those words saved my life more times than I can count. Any time I felt like giving up, I heard his voice. I remembered his laughter and pushed forward. He tried to get help for all of us. That’s how he got hurt. He jumped into the river to get away and find help. Lucien Pierce was a hero, my hero.” I walked toward the pyre and looked up at his body, enveloped in the white shroud. I felt the fire building inside of me and Markus shifted his stance next to me to shield my fiery eyes from the rest while holding a torch in his hand. I felt my aura flow from me as I spoke the rest, Kara’s voice mixed in with mine. “You were the fiercest of warriors Lucien Pierce. You were everything a werewolf wished they could be. Rest with the goddess and may she give you the reward you deserve at her side. May your next life be filled with love, fortune, warmth and peace.” I placed my hand on the pyre next to Markus' torch and let the fire flow from my hand. I threw my head back and howled at the moon as his body was enveloped by the blazing fire and his spirit returned home. Markus and everyone behind us threw their head back and howled along with me.
Suddenly, I felt myself jerk forward. I saw a small boy running after a couple of older ones. One of the older boys and the younger one had similar dark curls on their head, while the other older boy had straight dark brown hair. The little boy turned back and laughed as if he was being chased by someone. His eyes were gray and his smile was full of warmth. As I stared at him, my soul recognized his, and I smiled when the vision ended. There was no migraine this time. I thanked the goddess Selene for my gift. I watched as the pyre consumed his body and continued to see the boy's smile in my head, hanging onto Markus until the fire went out and hoping I was understanding the vision correctly.
We thanked Alpha Rhett and everyone who came with us to honor him once the fire was out. We walked into the pack house to look for the compartment Uncle Lucien spoke of. I needed to process today before I dealt with it, so once we found it, we took everything in the compartment with us and decided to wait to open it tomorrow in the privacy of our room. Later that evening, I lay in bed watching Markus sleep, his head on my chest as I combed my hand through his hair, thinking about Uncle Lucien and the vision until sleep finally claimed me.
The next morning, we had breakfast upstairs together before I sat between his legs, cross-legged with the box in front of us. I took a deep calming breath. I didn’t know what would be in it, but I knew whatever it was would be important. Markus put his arm on my shoulder reassuringly.
“Whatever it is, we face it together,” he assured me, and I could feel his, Atlas and Kara’s strength flowing into me.
