The Hidden Gem

Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Ashlynn POV

We began walking off the porch, towards the tree line. The crowd of people moved out of our way, making a clear path. The whispers became quite as we walked and I could feel many gazes glued to us. Finally, we got to the end of crowd and turned to face them. "Are you ready for this?" Dave whispered to me, with concern filled eyes. I nodded and gave him a most sincere smile I could muster. "It will be fine, I promise." He said before pulling me into a hug. It gave me the boost I needed. He made me feel so secure and safe when he hugged me. He was the most perfect father I could ever ask for, even if I found him so late in my life. "Thanks, dad." His smile grew unbelievably big, before he passed me back to Danny. I looked over at Conner, Brandon and Andrew. It was easy to tell they were already told and knew was about to take place. "You got this, Ash." Conner whispered supportively, before I turned my attention to the crowd in front of me.

"Okay, you must be wondering why you were called outside tonight. How many of you know of the legend of the first female wolf?" More then three fourths of the crowd raised there hands. "Well, I don't know the story as well as I should, but I do know it's not a legend. No, that's not because of the ancestory blood of the first wolf is in our pack, because until recently I didn't believe it, even though I know most of that family really well." He gave Dave a sly smile and then turned to face me directly. Our eyes locked and his lips pulled to his breathtaking smile I adored. "I know- this may all seem crazy to you and I felt the same till I saw the first wolf with my own eyes. She is honestly the most beautiful wolf I've ever seen, with golden fur and black paws. She is actually almost as beautiful as she is in human form." Danny's eyes never left mine as he spoke about my wolf and even though they didn't know exactly why he was dragging on about some wolf, it made my heart swell with love. "Thank you." I whispered up to him quiet enough for only him to hear. "It's true, love." He whispered back before pulling his eyes back to the crowd in front of us.

"Are you telling us that Ashlynn has the first wolf?" Paige asked from the back of the crowd. Something in her voice sounded off, more like she was stating then asking. She sounded so sure and full of herself and had a smug look on her face. My eyes flashed to Danny's and then to Dave's. "Found the leek." I heard him whisper lowly. "There's no way she could be the first wolf." I heard Danny's mother say back. The crowd then erupted into whispers all talking about if I was the wolf. "Enough!" My once small voice roared through the air and silenced the chatter. I stepped back to the end of the tree line facing the crowd. Danny looked over to me with a reassuring smile. I took in the crowd one more time and felt a single tear slide down my face.

Before I knew it, I shifted. My gold coat amazed the crowd as I walked towards Danny and rubbed my head against his leg. My wolf couldn't have been happier about being known and not force to hide away. She was free, free to be loved, honored and free to be the wild animal she was. I layed down and put my big wolf head on my paws and look forward to the amazed crowd. Whispers filled the crowd about how surprised they were. Danny sat down calmly beside me and ran his hand through my fur. My wolf purred with complete and utter bliss.

"Meeting is dismissed." Danny concluded the meeting. "That's it? But what about the king?" Paige yelled, before she caught on to her own mistake. "Paige, the king wasn't mentioned." Andrew said calmly. She shot her hand to her mouth as fast as she could, like that would erase her mistake. "Paige, please don't tell me you sent a picture of my mate to the king." Danny said sweetly and calm. "No, of course not." Her face was coming blotchy red and sweat poured from her face. "That's good to hear, because something like that would put her in great danger." It was those words that made the ice queen crack. She dropped to her knees with tears pouring from her face. "I did....I didn't know. I'm so sorry." She sobbed. "That's what I thought." Danny said standing up. "Paige, go to your room, in the pack house. I'll handle this tommorow." Danny commanded using his Alpha voice. Paige listened and walked away directly to her room.