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“That is their choice…. you commanded them, they have every reason to stay and obey and nothing would happen to them. It’s not what they want.” Sierra interjects, still holding my hand and we patiently stand and watch every single wolf wait their turn to leave with a bow and respectful utter before walking away.
“Next time I lay eyes on most of them, will be at the rune border… What will Colton think if I let this happen?” I despair still, unable to let it go, imagining his heartbreak that I let his people suffer, but Meadow is the one to calm me with her logic and reasoning.
“Do you really think he would object to the pack coming together to protect you. He loves his pack, but he would always put your life first. You’re everything to him, and more now, even though he doesn’t know…. He would do exactly this if this was his decision to make.” Meadow moves her hand and smooths over my flat stomach, eyes misting over as her chin drops so she can gaze at the life we all know is in there.
I stare down at my stomach and try and pull myself together, knowing she’s right. Colton always protects me, uses the pack to shield me when he thinks I need it. That’s what packs are meant to do for the Luna. It’s why she has her own guard when our world is in turmoil. The Alpha is the warrior, not the Luna.
She’s the heart, hidden behind the rib cage and shielded in the warm, while the alpha, he’s the fist. Driving out front to lead the way. The pack, they’re the body… joined, connecting, working as one, but they get behind the fist and they always cover the heart.
The shaman’s words finally make sense to me. Words he uttered so many months before when he told me what my place in the pack was meant to be. Care for the people, listen to them, be the arms and the safe place. I finally understand what it is I am meant to be, and it was never a powerful force to tear down armies of vampires. The prophecy once said that I would conquer with love… not war.
Yet I know that tomorrow, love won’t keep them safe. And I am not ONLY a Luna of the Lycanthrope.
Now they’re mine. But I’m not going to let them down, not now they bound their lives to my own fate. Tomorrow I will lead, I will be the fist, even if it’s not what I was born to do. I will take his place and make him proud of what I can be. I know it’s in me. After all, am I not a princess of one world and a Luna in another. I’m royalty, either way, and I was given these gifts for a reason. I was given my eyes, my power, and my story, so I could be more. I’ve been sheltered for far too long and it's time I stood up and put an end to this, like they said I would.
I only hope to the fates we do this swiftly, and safely, and I don’t have to bury any of them at the end of the day. I’ll protect myself, my children, my people, and I will bring my mate home.
