Chapter 15 - Kenzie

I wasn't sure what I was feeling at the moment. There were too many things going on for me to concentrate on any one overwhelming stimulus. I was pregnant, there was a threat to both of the packs that I was affiliated with, and Senna had traveled away from her babies to inform us of that.

The fact that she'd left was huge. She was fiercely protective of her twins and rarely left them. If she'd come all this way, it meant that what she'd seen was enough to scare her into leaving them in someone else's care.

I do not like this.

My nerves hummed as Senna finished her speech and took her place next to Jet. The small voice in the back of my head was quiet, but there was a constant thrum of dread that I knew was coming from myself, my wolf, and my unborn child.

Having that many emotions and forms of consciousness inside me was extremely taxing, and I was already feeling that pregnancy fatigue I'd warned Senna about. It looked like that shit came on a lot faster when your baby was potentially a V?lva and way faster for a human. Kit had told me she felt "normal" for at least three weeks before the hormones made her puke her guts out.

Joy .

I'd missed some of what Senna had said when suddenly Grayson was walking up to the front of the stage and saying his piece.

"All right, all right. Look, this isn't good. Of course. But it's by working together that we'll handle this. I've also found some useful information in Eli's things. It looks like the rogue wolves may be connected to what he was doing with Reginald and Leon regarding the drugs. And…"

Grayson had mentioned the passage regarding the other wolf pack when I'd given him the notes. Choal had met me in the hallway with them, and it was odd to be speaking pleasantly with the man who'd tried to kill my mate. Not that the mate thing means anything, Kenzie.

Apparently, Eli, along with Leon and Reginald, knew of a different pack that we'd never heard of in the area. They weren't listed by name; instead, they were just marked in his notes as "the other pack." They had been interested in the drug as well, and before Kaiden had defeated him, Eli had plans to sell some of it to these "others."

"As one of the Alphas' Council," I refocused on Grayson as he spoke, shocked that he was mentioning the council in front of everyone, "I want us all to work together to come up with a solution. Alphas, join me."

Holy shit. Did he really just ask for cross-pack collaboration with the council?

Murmurs started passing through the room, and I could sense their apprehension and curiosity. It made sense that the other wolves were talking about the council. The Alphas from other packs had been called to "visit" one too many times for it to be a coincidence. We'd been slowly working on getting the packs to interact more and trust each other, but this was a huge step forward.

I eyed Jet. He wasn't facing me, but I could see the tension in his shoulders. The other Alphas who stood just before us in the crowd were the same.

Silence hung for several moments, and then Kaiden stepped forward. My brother was the first to act. He was as noble as he was unafraid, and one of these days, I worried that it would get him killed.

Still, it was impossible not to be impressed with the guy. As he took another step, Kit gripped his hand, kissing it quickly as she smiled at him.

"You're a good man, Kaiden."

My friend had whispered the words, but with my superior hearing, it was easy to hear her from where I stood. Warmth suffused my heart, and not for the first time, I was glad that she'd claimed him.

"Well, fuck that. I'm not about to let Kaiden be the only one to step up and impress the Lunas."

Laughter echoed as Brooks stepped forward with a wink. I rolled my eyes. That wolf had been a royal troublemaker for as long as we'd all known him. And it didn't surprise me in the least that he was happy to break tradition, particularly when it meant that he could swing more tail.

I mean, hell, the guy had been traipsing around with Grayson since we'd split and right up until the mate reveal ceremony.

Jet and Grayson welcomed Kaiden as he took up a spot at the front of the room alongside them, with Brooks right on his heels. As the four of them turned toward the crowd again, Cade and Alder stepped forward as one.

"Och, nay. I'll not be having my friends up there alone. You bastards can count on me."

Alder's Scottish brogue was such a stark contrast to the nearly accentless voices of my fellow North American wolves, and there was a wave of arousal that pinged the back of my mind as a few of the Edwards women heard it.

I was fairly certain that no one else really noticed it because I'd always been a bit better at scenting hormonal changes. It was why I'd become a healer.

As the two of them approached, Cade clapped Alder on the shoulder and then stood before Grayson, doing the same.

"You know me. Tradition can get fucked. I don't have time for bad actors, so let's show these assholes who they're messing with."

Rowan was the only one to still be waiting with the others. When the crew of Alphas turned toward him, he smirked. His fanged smile glinted in the light as much as his especially pale skin, and he walked forward with a swish of his long black hair.

"Just waiting to make a proper entrance into the crowd, darlings. I simply can't resist a flair for the dramatic."

Grayson rolled his eyes and laughed, and when the full council of Alphas stood before the Edwards and Williams packs, they turned to the wolves as one.

"Thank you." He stood there with them, and my chest pinched. "We need to find those wolves. It's their constant roaming around that's made it so difficult to track them down. But if we all have wolves searching throughout our territories—"

"We'll find them," Alder cut in with a grin. "You got anything of the rogue bastards that we can use to track the scent."

Jet nodded. "Yes. We have clothing stained with blood we've been using. I'm sure there is more here. In the lab, maybe?"

Grayson cocked his head, his brow down over his eyes. "I'm not sure. I think that place was pretty clean of their stuff. But we can look."

Choal stepped forward, bowing his head to the Alphas. "There are things that we've kept from the fight. It's been gathered in the basement for disposal, but we can save it."

Grayson nodded, and I could sense him pushing out a wave of appreciation. The Alpha powers were blooming in him, and my hormones were going haywire whenever he used them. I was already fucking pregnant, but it was like my body wanted its Alpha mate all the more.

"Perfect. Yes. Please have that brought to—"

Pound, pound, pound.

"The fuck? Who the hell is knocking? We're pretty much all here, ain't we?"

Brooks took the words out of my mouth, and I looked over toward the door to the hall. Everyone from inside the compound, the members of the Williams Pack, were all here. Nearly everyone from Jet's pack was here—now even Senna—and all the Alphas on the council were present.

Who is knocking?

"It's all right, everyone. We'll check and see what's going on."

Grayson put on a tight smile and then headed for the main entry hall to get the door. We all followed along behind him, and it was at that moment I realized that even Forrest and Willow had come from Kaiden's pack. If they were here, the number of likely guests behind that door was even slimmer.

I stuck close to Grayson's side as we all went into the foyer. I didn't like all these damn surprises I was being hit with, and in my… condition , getting injured would be cause for some pretty serious concern.

So, we tag along with the new Alpha. Lovely.

"Choal, would you be so kind as to answer the door?" Grayson met the other wolf's eyes, staring hard as the muscles in his jaw worked.

Choal bowed his head, accepting his role as a servant for the time being, and I coiled up my muscles in case I needed to make a run for it as soon as the doors were open. The air in the room was tense as Choal proceeded to haul open the massive set of double doors. A loud groan echoed through the main entry as he did, and everyone collectively held their breath.

There was no way that I could predict what I saw on the other side of the threshold however.

"Leon?" Grayson's voice blended with Kaiden's and Jet's as they all crowded closer to the door.

A low growl rumbled out of Kaiden, and I stepped closer to him, putting a hand on his arm just as Kit did the same to the other.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" Grayson barked, his voice low with barely contained fury.

There was a pause as our enemy bowed his head and left it there. It had started raining outside, and the rushing water beat against the stone steps as Leon stood there, getting drenched.

"My deepest apologies, Alphas. I've…I've come to make amends."

Fucking bullshit.

Tension pulled on my insides, and I could sense the concern billowing out of my unborn child. My wolf stalked invisibly, growling and snapping. She was equally upset to see the asshole return after selling out our pack to Terrance. Making amends for nearly exterminating the Edwards Pack was going to take a fucking lot in my book.

When I looked at Grayson, however, I saw that he was studying Leon with interest. I couldn't tell what was going on inside his head, but I could guess. Grayson had always been opportunistic, and I meant that in both the worst and best ways.

He was very good at seeing how something could be used for the benefit of his goals. He'd become a good fighter because of those instincts, and he'd proven himself a valuable beta for Jet when he was searching for said traitor and his partner, Reginald. Grayson had suggested using the other rogue mutts in the area as tools to keep an eye out for the pair, and it had worked several times.

Before Leon and Reginald would inevitably catch wind of Grayson's pursuit, of course.

I could guess what Gray wanted to do with Leon, and the thought of bringing him in even just to question him didn't sit right.

It was too coincidental. Leon had arrived just after Senna told us of her vision and that alignment of events just…

It's not right, Gray. This isn't right.

But what was I supposed to say to the man? I was his mate only on paper, and as much as he'd helped me with the heat, I still didn't know where exactly we stood. Hell, I was supposed to be leaving and returning with Jet now that he'd been deemed Alpha.

Was that still the plan? And what about the baby?

"You have a lot of nerve showing up like this, traitor," Kaiden snarled.

Grayson pushed to the front of the pack, standing right at the door in front of Leon.

"How did you show up like this? How did you know that we'd be here?"

Leon lowered his head again, playing the role of having his tail thoroughly shoved between his legs.

"I've been tracking the activity in the area for some time. I hoped…I hoped that now that you've mended things with the Williams, you might consider doing the same for me."

His eyes shifting between Jet and Grayson, Leon fiddled nervously with a chain he wore around his neck, trading his weight from foot to foot.

Bad man. Don't trust him.

The little voice seemed to be barely restraining outright terror, and I could sense the fear my child was feeling.

I don't plan on it.

I was unsure if I could actually communicate back to the spirit that was apparently growing within me, but I figured it couldn't hurt. There was still so much tension and apprehension in them, but there was also a sense of acknowledgment of what I'd said. Or thought.

"You seek amends to two packs, then?" Grayson cocked his head, and from my position off to his right, I could see him cock a brow. "You'll have a lot ahead of you in that case."

"I…I understand." Leon's voice trembled, and I had to restrain a growl because he should not be allowed here. "I'll do anything you ask of me."

Brooks and Kaiden appeared to be in silent agreement with me, their scowls never faltering as they stared daggers at Leon. I slipped my hand into my brother's and squeezed. A subtle wave of strength and love hit me from him, and I returned it in kind as best I could.

"We'll see because first," Grayson leaned forward out of the door, gripping Leon by the front of his shirt, "you're going to answer all my questions—whether you like it or not."

Grayson hauled Leon inside, tossing him down to the floor. When Leon hit with a loud thump and a groan, the wolves around us reared back. He was soaked through, thanks to the rain, and Leon's clothes were dirty and torn.

"Get him in cuffs or ropes, and then take him to the cells downstairs. We'll be dealing with you ," Grayson glared at him, "soon enough."

Leon didn't belong here, and I couldn't keep myself from worrying about what might happen to the baby if he tried something. Still, Gray didn't know about all that. We'd yet to speak. Hell, we'd barely been alone to do so.

As I looked across the faces of the gathered wolves, I found Forrest in the crowd. He met my eyes sympathetically, but there was a distinct concern there. Gesturing with his head, Forrest flicked his stare to my stomach and then back over to Grayson. I shook my head.

I still hadn't told him about the baby, but it seemed that now was probably as good a time as any.

Especially if there was a rogue wolf in the house.