Chapter 9

Kai

Earlier in the day

Elara's abrupt departure from the table left a bitter aftertaste in my mouth and it left behind a suffocating silence that I loathed. Her untouched plate seemed to be mocking me as it sat in front of me, and it caused a hollowness to settle in my gut. Having her around over the last couple of days had awoken a confusing tangle of emotions within me. At first, it had been irritation at her defiance but that had faded quickly, and it had been replaced by this energy between us that both terrified and exhilarated me.

My encounters with Elara always seemed fragile, almost as if there were a wall of glass dangling between us, just waiting to shatter. My wolf whined restlessly at the back of my mind all day and all night.

You're going to push her away if you keep it up, he chided. He had spent the last couple of days telling me this.

He wanted nothing more than to mark her and keep her with us, but our reasoning was very different and contradicted for the first time in our lives.

We have a duty to fulfill to the pack, and that comes first , I replied.

Before my wolf could respond, the door to the dining room was pushed open, and Smith stepped into the space, his face immediately lighting up with a grin when his eyes fell on the breakfast spread sitting on the table. He moved to settle down quickly, before picking up a plate and filling every inch of it with as much food as it could hold. Once he was satisfied, he began stuffing his face, and I chuckled, shaking my head at his antics.

"I assume you're here for something other than to eat all my food?" I asked, and Smith spared me a half glance before nodding and returning to eating.

"I was hoping to discuss some details about last night's patrol before the council meeting this morning. I know Rowan must have given you the highlights, but I need to understand some things for myself, too," he finally said after swallowing. My fists clenched at the news.

I wasn't looking forward to the council meeting scheduled to happen later this morning. Since the Omega's arrival, the pack had been on Rhys', Rowan's, and my neck to give them answers and more details about her. Details that I still didn't have. I could already anticipate that this meeting wasn't going to be pleasant, and I didn't think I was completely ready to face it.

"That's right. I need to check in with Rowan so we can prepare for the meeting. What details were you hoping to discuss?" I asked. I picked up a bell on the table and rang it to call for Rose, who was my maid.

She appeared in the doorway almost immediately.

"Could you go to Rowan's room and let him know to start preparing for the meeting?" I asked

"Of course, Alpha Kai."

"And Rose, can you keep the Omega occupied and do your best to keep an eye on her while we're out of the house?" I added. Rose gave a nod of understanding before exiting the room.

I turned to Smith, and he swallowed, taking a swig of his water before speaking.

"The Omega. Do you really think it's all just a coincidence? I've tried to perform a background search on her like you requested, but there's no information on her, none at all. It's almost as if she appeared from thin air. How is it possible that she just shows up right at our borders, not only bearing the mark of the moon that has been whispered about for a long time, but also as the mate for you, Rhys, and Rowan?" Smith concluded, with a seriousness that was not typical for him.

I sighed heavily, rubbing my temples with my fingers. "I wish I could say that I had an answer to even one of your questions, Smith. I'm as confused as you are about everything, but I guess we will just have to make things up as we go along," I said. Before Smith could respond, the door was pushed open to reveal a wide-eyed Rose.

"Alpha Rowan is not in his room sir. A-and the girl is gone, too."

My heart skipped a beat, but I remained calm.

"That's okay. Thank you, Rose," I dismissed her.

I knew Rowan was somewhere around the house. I would have felt his presence leaving if he had gone somewhere far away. That had to mean that he was in his favorite place: the training ground.

I had thought Elara had gone up to her room after walking away from breakfast, but if she wasn't in her room, then it also meant she was somewhere else around the house, maybe even with Rowan.

"I'll be right back," I said to Smith, who only nodded as he continued to eat.

I made my way to the back door that led straight to the training field at the back of the house. As soon as I stepped out, my eyes landed on Rowan and Elara, who were sitting at the other end of the field. They looked to be in a serious conversation, and for a moment, I wondered what exactly they could be talking about.

I took a second to admire her, taking in the way the sun cast an ethereal glow on her. She had such beautiful features that it was actually a struggle to look away from her.

I watched as Rowan leaned in to say something to her and she immediately threw her head back in a laugh. It was the most beautiful and genuine laughter I had ever seen, and I felt a twisting in my guts. Seeing her laugh was a stark contrast to the wary apprehension she normally displayed around me. It wasn't the laughter or their closeness that bothered me. It was the ease, the familiarity they shared. I longed for this kind of ease between us.

I told you, my wolf said, and I huffed, deciding to ignore him. I approached Rowan and Elara and they both raised their heads in my direction as I got close.

"Rowan," I called once I was close enough. "Council meeting. Daniel has been wanting to give a piece of his mind for the last couple of days. You don't want to keep him waiting," I added, clearing my throat to ease the knot that had formed in it.

"Of course, I'll go prepare now," he said with a smile, pulling himself to his feet. Elara stood up as he rose and held onto his arms.

"Can I come too? Please?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper, but I caught the words, nevertheless.

Rowan immediately looked in my direction, and I frowned, stalking even closer to them.

"I'm afraid not," I replied, my tone sharper than I intended. "This is an internal matter. You will stay here with Rose. She'll keep you company while we're gone," I said with an air of finality.

I watched as her lower lip trembled with helplessness, but her shining emerald eyes held defiance in them as she looked to Rowan for help. Guilt washed over me. I only meant to be assertive, not cruel, but my tone had betrayed me.

"But you'll be discussing me, right? You'll be talking about my mark and my fate here. Let me come with you, please. I deserve to know what you all decide," she pressed, and I cut a sharp look to Rowan. He immediately had a look of guilt on his face.

What have you told her? I growled through our shared mind link.

She asked some questions, and I only told her enough to satisfy her curiosity, he replied, and it flared up my anger even more

You shouldn't have done that!

My phone dinged with a text, and I pulled it out of my pocket to find a text from Rhys.

He had sent, "Kai, the meeting is set to begin. The officials are a bit impatient today. You might want to be on your way." I sighed heavily.

"Fine, you can come, but sit quietly and do not say a single word!" I instructed, putting emphasis on each word to make sure she understood. She nodded her head rapidly.

"Thank you," she said softly, and Rowan excused himself to go dress up.

"Come on, this way," I said as I ushered them both away from the training field. We waited in silence for Rowan, and when he stepped out, we all piled into his Jeep and headed for the administrative office where the meeting was set to take place.

The drive to our destination was filled with an uncomfortable silence, and it felt longer than usual. Eventually, we arrived. Rhys waiting for us in the parking lot. He frowned when his eyes landed on Elara as she walked in front of us, and he immediately looked between me and Rowan in confusion. She gave him a small wave and quickly masked his worry with a smile as he returned her greeting.

My brows shot up in confusion. When had they had time to meet?

Why is she here ? Rhys asked through the mind link, and I scoffed.

"Trust me, I'm not particularly happy about this either," I responded out loud grudgingly as I walked past him.

The walk to the conference room where the meeting was supposed to take place seemed even longer than the drive here. Elara walked a step ahead of me with Rowan leading us all through the corridors. Her presence was a constant reminder of the raging desires warring within me.

The moment we stepped into the room, the atmosphere shifted. Gasps rippled through the air, and all the officials gathered there turned in surprise. Several of them locked gazes with me, a silent question in the air. I could see the way their scrutiny caused Elara to move closer to Rowan. I knew that they disapproved of Elara's presence, but their focus on us was unsettling.

I cleared my throat as we settled into our seats before speaking. "We have some very important matters to discuss today…"

"So why did you bring the Omega here? You know we'll be discussing important matters," Daniel, one of the officials interrupted me, and I looked at him disapprovingly.

"You would know that by now if you hadn't interrupted me," I said, my voice calm but cold enough to send a clear message. Daniel muttered a quick apology, and I sighed before speaking again.

"A week ago, an Omega was found lying just by our borders. She was injured and unconscious. We nursed her back to health and upon questioning her, found out she had been traveling north when she stumbled into the wrong territory and was chased until she collapsed. Her name is Elara, and we've decided to keep her with us in this pack for her safety," I finished. A collective murmur went up in the air.

"Alpha Kai, we suggest that you three think more about this before you make this decision. This Omega…" Freya paused, her gaze flitting to Elara as she spoke, "…her presence is a significant threat to the pack's well-being."

"Threat? Look at her, Freya. She's half the size of everybody in this room. Who exactly does she threaten?" Rowan said. Another murmur went up in the air.

A part of me was already prepared for this hostile reaction. We were a close-knit pack that had gone through some rough years and change was something the majority of people here didn't do well with. They hated and feared the unknown. It was almost like a disease. I knew that none of them had any personal hatred toward Elara, they merely feared the change her presence would bring.

"She's an anomaly here. Keeping her here with such a potent scent around different Alphas who haven't experienced an Omega in generations is just asking for trouble. We have no responsibility to her. She just happens to be a traveling Omega girl that sought out refuge in our borders. We've done well enough for her, nursed her back to health. Let her be on her way and continue her journey. You could send a warrior or two to lead her safely until she's out of our territory and that's it. No need to disrupt the flow of things within the pack," another official said. A look passed between Rhys, Rowan, and myself.

"Well, that's where you're wrong. She's not just some traveling Omega girl. She bears the mark of the prophecy," Rhys revealed, and a collective gasp went up in the air.

"And she's mated to all three of us," I added, and a commotion erupted at our revelation.

"This is madness!"

"She's going to be nothing but trouble."

I'd had enough. I was hoping it would be a civil enough conversation that didn't have to escalate, but it was obvious I had to reschedule the meeting to give them all a moment to process the information they had just learned. Maybe then they would be more accepting, or at least less reactive. I stood up from my position to restore the room back to order, but from the corner of my eye, I watched as Daniel moved from his seat to pull Elara off hers.

"She doesn't belong here. She's going to be our doom. Let her go back to where she's from. Mark of the prophecy or not, she can't stay here!" he shouted as he pulled Elara with him. The girl struggled against him, but Daniel was much bigger than she was.

It happened so fast. I watched as Rhys and Rowan approach to stop him, but seeing his arms wrap around Elara and tug so aggressively made me see red. In the next moment before I could think through the action, I lunged out of my chair and in his direction, my fist connecting with his jaw. The sickening crack of bones breaking echoed through the hall, stunning everybody into silence.