Hunting Midnight

Chapter Thirteen: Out Of The Woods

Everyone in the room and out in the hallway stares at me, addressing if there's any truth to the accusation. Anger pounds through my veins as I stare down Jelene, but that anger quickly turns to shock when Manteo comes to my defense.
"Kenna fought bravely tonight, Jelene. I don't think she betrayed our Alpha."
"She saved Marissa," Jelene scoffs. "You just happened to be there."
"Enough, Jelene," Ruhn says sharply. "Manteo's right." His voice is still weak, and yet it holds enough power over everyone in the room as Alpha as he defends me.
"I have no reason to trust her," Jelene continues.
"Ruhn is my mate," I say sharply. "I would never hurt him."
"It was me who jumped in front of Kenna. She's not responsible for me being shot," Ruhn adds.
Annoyed, Jelene crosses her arms over her chest and glares at me. "I don't care– I don't trust her."
"Kenna carried Ruhn all the way back here and got him medical attention as fast as she could," Caleb jumps in, coming to my defense.
"She didn't even kiss him to heal him," Jelene scoffs. "She barely touched his hands."
"It would be easier to believe you if you'd sworn your loyalty to Ruhn and accept him as your Alpha," Manteo says quietly, looking over to me.
I glance around the room with narrowed eyes while everyone nods– even Anna and Caleb.
"I had planned on officially accepting Ruhn as my Alpha at our wedding," I say.
"I cannot fully trust you or ask my fellow pack wolves to fight alongside you until you swear your loyalty to our Alpha," Manteo says with an apologetic look.
"I understand," I sigh, "but I, too, am being asked to fight alongside wolves who have not sworn their loyalty to me."
"If the pack agrees to accept you as their Luna," Ruhn says, squeezing my hand once more to grab my attention, "will you accept me as your Alpha?"
But before I can answer, Jelene cuts in. "I don't agree to accept her as my Luna."
"What about the rest of you?" Ruhn asks, looking around the room. "Will you accept Kenna as your Luna? You all saw her fight in the tournament."
Ruhn's voice is stronger as he defends me, and I can't help but smile at the fire in his eyes.
"It's obvious that she's the strongest choice to be our Luna."
"I'll accept Kenna as my Luna," Marta says, stepping into the room with a nod.
I smile at her and give her a nod of thanks while the pack murmurs their agreement. Manteo crosses his arms over his chest and pins me with an intense stare. "We'll accept you if you accept us."
I meet Ruhn's gaze, and together we share some unspoken agreement.
"I accept Ruhn as my Alpha," I say aloud, looking around at our pack. "Although I want the official ceremony to still happen on our wedding."
Manteo sighs, but nods. "I'll accept that for now."
With that, he turns, nodding and gestures for everyone else to follow him as he closes the door. I wait a moment, listening to the shuffling footsteps descend further down the hallway to the stairs until I let go of Ruhn's hand and head for the door, stepping out into the hallway to quickly grab my belongings before lugging them into Ruhn's room and tossing them onto the floor. Ruhn watches me with a hint of a smirk on his face as I unpack clothes in the walk-in closet, changing into a pair of sweatpants and a tank-top before crossing the room and grabbing Ruhn his own pants and handing them to him. As he changes, I pull a large, comfortable, leather chair next to the bed and sit down beside him, taking his hand.
"Nursing me back to health is not how I was hoping your first night in my bed would go," Ruhn says with a chuckle.
"I knew I'd have to take care of you at some point," I reply with a smirk. "I'm not even sure how you managed this long without me."
Ruhn lets out a pained laugh before clutching his arm in pain. "I managed not to get shot without you."
"But seriously, Ruhn," I say, squeezing his hand, "thank you for saving my life."
Ruhn nods, swallowing hard before saying, "When I saw the bullet coming toward you, I didn't even think about hesitating. Even though we met a day ago, the thought of losing you was just... unimaginable."
I nod knowingly. "I felt the same way when you were shot tonight." I bring a hand up to the place on my left arm where the bullet hit Ruhn. "I could feel your pain."
Ruhn's eyes narrow in concern as his fingers gently reach out to touch the place on my arm. "That's the way it is with mates."
I look down at Ruhn's tired eyes, his body in desperate need of rest. "You need to go to sleep and regain your strength because the wolf hunters will be back."
"We'll be ready for them," Ruhn says firmly, and yet, when he closes his eyes, the sound of soft snores lets me know that he's asleep. I let go of his hand and move the leather chair back in front of the fireplace before settling down on the bed beside Ruhn, pulling his warm blankets up over myself. I make sure to give him enough space– which is easy to do on this king size bed– watching his chest rise and fall with each breath until my own eyes close and I fall asleep.