Alpha Ultima

Chapter 17

The ceremony tonight is to be short and sweet. The pack is to surround us while Tyler makes his vow of loyalty under the light of the moon in front of all those he would now protect.

He had complied with little complaint over the past few days. Free to roam the pack grounds through out the day, and escorted to the cells to sleep his night away once the moon began to rise. I had made sure he was taken care of while he was there; a bed with a warm blanket and pillow, a few different books, food, water. What ever he needed, he was bestowed.

The remaining cells were empty. It was not often we had to use them since becoming the Alpha Ultima. Surrounding packs knew better than to risk a war, and other than the few rogue wolves that ran through our grounds unannounced, we had kept the peace for the most part.

It had been an incredibly easy few years as Queen. No major drama, no usurpers, no uprisings. The paranormal universe seemed to be at peace. I felt like a fool to forget about Viktor. The fact that he was planning an entire war right under our noses and we hadn't even noticed something was off, has shattered my notion of calm.

I spent the rest of my morning and into the afternoon helping around the grounds. The guys and I decided to make something of the ceremony; it had been too long since we had something to celebrate and our enemies son swearing truth and loyalty to us was definitely something worth celebrating.

I've tried to keep myself as busy as possible over the past few days. Sam still hasn't returned and my heart hurts. I want to comfort him and take his pain away, though I know that's obviously not an option.

Sam is my best friend, my other half, my platonic soulmate. We learned not only to navigate pack life together, but the part of sharing your soul with a beast as well. With only minimal time between him being forced to turn, and my soul being mended, it was something so new to both of us. It made it one hundred and fifty-two times easier having a partner to navigate new waters with at my side.

As much as my mates tried to be understanding and sympathetic, it was something that neither of them could comprehend. They were born whole, their wolves were apart of them since birth. Going from a normal human, to sharing your mind, body and soul with an entirely new being, was something that took time to get used to.

Sam and I learned it all together. We took everything in stride and with every set back or success, we celebrated together. Having Sammy leave me behind while he mourned what he felt was the impending rejection of his newfound mate, was hard to swallow. I ached to be with him and help him through this.

It was something that I had to take a step back from and realize that this was one of those things that just wasn't my place to step in for. Sammy would come to me when and if he was ready, and at that time, I would be there waiting for him with open arms.

But just because I had come to terms with the fact that I had to take a step back, didn't mean that it didn't suck ass to do it. I missed my best friend and I grit my teeth against the urge to go and find him and drag him by the ear back to me. What can I say, I'm a Queen and not a saint, and I am a selfish woman nonetheless.

I had gathered the young pups from their parents and brought them out to the field to help me pick wildflowers for tonight. While the little boys grumbled and whined about it, the girls yipped with excitement which brought a wide smile to my face.

I've found myself spending more time with the pups throughout my struggle with infertility. I may not be able to fall pregnant with my own, but spending time with the pack children has helped to ease the ache in my heart. These sweet souls make it hard to stay angry or upset and usually put my thoughts at ease.

As much as I'd like to say I didn't have a favorite, I looked down to the little blonde haired girl kneeling in the grass picking flowers beside me and knew that would be a downright lie.

Shauna's head tilted up, her golden locks a mess around her face. Her wide blue eyes and cheeky smile melted my heart. She was the daughter of Laura and Shane; Laura was a school teacher and Shane was the lead fighter of our pack. I had never met two nicer people, and that had shown in the mannerisms of this sweet little soul.

She had clung to me from the moment she saw me when she was only a mere two years old. Now, five years later, this little pup was running a muck and got away with it the majority of the time just by dazzling us all with her smile. I was a complete sucker for her.

My mates made a joke about how much of a push over I would be with our own pups and all I could do was laugh and shake my head. They were absolutely correct. I closed my eyes as I pictured it; I would be the soft nurturer while Quinn would bet he hard-ass, laying down the law and keeping order in our house and Xander, while he would be stern, he would be the one who got down on his knees to our pups level while he explained the way the world worked and the consequences of their actions.

My heart squeezed in my chest. One day. Even if it took the rest of my living days, I would see that vision come to light. I looked up to see the daylight was beginning to fade. Standing, I run my hands over the fabric of my dress, wiping away any lasting pieces of grass and clapped my hands to get the children's attention.

"Alright boys and girls! Gather the flowers you have picked and follow me to the kitchen! Time to put your hard work up for display!"

Grumbles from the boys and squeals from the girls flit through the air and I shook my head and chuckled. My actual Goddess I loved these little terrors. Their little bodies ran back and forth over the meadow, collecting the broken stems of each flower into their hands before rushing to stand before me.

A tug on my hand forces me back to attention. I looked down to see Shauna wrap her little hand around mine, intertwining her fingers. My heart squeezed in my chest and tears sprung to my eyes. What did I do to deserve this little ones love? I give her a warm smile and squeeze her hand gently in mine as we turn to leave.

Once back in the kitchen, I went under the cupboard to grab as many different sized vases as I can find. Bringing the pups around, they began to fill them one by one. Beautiful little bushels of wildflowers begin to overflow the glass edge and I instruct each pup to go place a vase anywhere they want as long as it surrounds the location for the ceremony.

"Thank you, Luna." A soft voice sounds from behind me.

I turn to see Shauna's mother, Laura, standing on the other side of the marbled island from me. I smile at her and tuck my hair behind one ear.

"It was no problem, really. I adore them."

She chuckles and comes around the island to stand beside me, placing a warm hand on my shoulder.

"I know you do. It truly shows. You are a fine Luna." My cheeks warm at her kind words. "You managed to wrangle all those crazy pups, and keep them busy and out of our hair while we prepared for tonight's ceremony. Not to mention my daughter is in love with you. A thank you was definitely in order."

Her arms are wrapped around me suddenly and takes me by surprise. She doesn't seem put off by my pause, and after a quick moment I hug her in return. The warm feeling of belonging fills my soul.

"Well, you're very welcome, you're little girl just melts my heart. She's a genuine sweetheart." I say with a smile. "We should get going, the ceremony will start soon."

I pull back from our embrace and turn to grab two more overflowing vases from the counter and Shauna does the same as she follows me out of the French doors that lead to the back yard. As the doors swing open I come to a stop. A sudden feeling of dread fills my stomach as I look out over the yard. It looks too much like the night of my mating ceremony that it throws me for a loop.

Goddess, please don't let this be de ja vu.