Fate Mate

Chapter 49

I spent the better part of the evening before my Mating Ceremony in Nolan's office, seated at the head of a table and surrounded by alphas and a coven leader.

As soon as I'd explained my experience with Sophia in the graveyard to Nolan and Dominic in full, they agreed that this was information that the other Alphas and leaders needed to hear. We all, apparently, needed to be on the same page when it came to fighting the hybrids, and having a connection in the afterlife presented a monumental development.

So, I was given Nolan's jacket and placed at the head of a conference table, while my mate sat propped on the arm of my chair. I doubted he'd ever let anyone else sit in his place of honor, but I was too nervous to fully appreciate the gesture. The eyes of the most powerful leaders in the Western Packs rested solely on me as I recounted my conversation with Sophia and tried to explain the extent of my newfound... abilities.

"It's unnatural!" Alpha Niklaus growled from his position at the far-end of the table. "To speak with the dead! And how do we know if it is truly the spirit of Sophia? I've heard tales of demons taking the form of lost loved ones to wreak havoc on our world!"

He pounded his fist against the mahogany table, and I flinched as the vibration reached me. Alpha Kayan murmured his quiet agreement, and even my own father appeared skeptical. Nolan tensed from where he was perched by my side, but I spoke up before he could step in.

"She wasn't a demon," I countered. "We spoke of things that only Sophia would know." She knew the name that Sarah had given Nolan's unborn baby, after all. More importantly, I knew Sophia, her attitude and her smile, and no demon could have mimicked those things.

Angelina, who was seated beside her mother, nodded as well. "The spell-book mentioned side-effects if it took too long for Charlie to come back. It's very possible that a part of her remains in the afterlife, facilitating her ability to speak to the dead. Especially those closest to her."

"I believe Charlotte," Dominic agreed, his voice dangerously low from beside me.

"Of course, you do," Alpha Niklaus sneered, lips pulled back to reveal perfectly white teeth. Not a strand of his silver-blonde hair was out of place, and I inwardly wondered how I could have ever found the Celestial Pack to be handsome. "You'll say anything to get in her pants, again."

The words struck me like a slap to the face, only worse. I froze in my seat, even while the rest of the room turned into chaos. Dominic was out of his seat in seconds, the wooden chair knocked backward into the wall as he practically leapt on Alpha Niklaus. But Dominic arrived a second too late.

Nolan hauled Alpha Nikaus out of his chair at the end of the table and had the man pressed against the office wall by the neck. Talons had emerged from Nolan's nailbeds, drawing blood from the other alpha's throat. With one tug, Nolan could end Alpha Niklaus' life by ripping his throat in half.

Raegan, who had been standing dutifully by the door, barely kept Dominic at bay. The Rogue Alpha looked like he was on the verge of shifting, on the verge of tearing apart every being in the room to protect my honor.

And I simply sat there, still recovering from Alpha Niklaus' cruel words. I felt like the breath had been knocked out of my chest, made more painful by the healing stab wound to my abdomen. In a daze, I reached up to the point on my neck where Dominic had bitten me so many nights ago. The mark had nearly faded entirely, but not quite. If someone looked and smelled hard enough, the evidence remained. And word had undoubtedly spread amongst the packs that something had happened on the night of Nolan's birthday party. Clearly, however, the rumors were viciously incorrect.

"Now, everyone needs to calm down!" my father shouted, having stood from his seat. Both of his hands were in the air, a universal gesture of peace. "The hybrids won't need to attack again if we tear each other apart for them!"