Shackled

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

It was time. The Elders would be here today.

Eden could feel a tightness in her chest, Eli had been avoiding her up until now, scared of her anger in the face of what he had done. It served him right, she hoped he was prepared for the hell she planned on raining down on him later, but more than that she wanted him next to her for moral support. She would need it to see these people again, the people that had chained her up like she was nothing more than the animal she contained within.

She didn't know how much Elijah knew of what had happened, probably next to nothing considering she hadn't told him. A few inklings perhaps, but did he know that he was making her face the people that had taken everything from her? Her family, her friends, her title – all gone from their drastic decision to suppress her beast.

She stood on the front porch, her eyes glued to the drive, waiting for the car that was soon to pull up. Johnathan stood behind her to her right, ready for whatever ensued. The tension in her shoulders was visible and she knew he could sense it, the discomfort of his Alpha leaving him on edge. Eli wasn't there yet but she could feel him in the house, probably in his office making the last-minute preparations.

The house had been cleaned from head to toe and a meal had been prepared, it wasn't every day that the Elders came to visit. The pack had been stressed in anticipation, Eli most of all. Soon though, she could hear the descending footsteps of Elijah as he made his way outside and took his place next to her on the stoop. She could feel him glancing at her, looking over and noting her tense form, but she refused to meet his gaze. He had been avoiding her and so she wouldn't give him the satisfaction. But her anger gave way to the more prominent feeling of stress, the weight of the unknown on her shoulders.

After what felt like hours but was more like minutes, a car made itself known, the grumbling of its engine an announcement of their imminent arrival. The sleek black SUV came to a rolling stop in front of the pack house, the tinted windows showing only outlines of the figures within. The driver got out and proceeded to open the doors for those within, revealing the figures Eden had been dreading.

Two men and a woman got out, sheer wealth and privilege radiating off of their clothes and uptight attitudes. Eden recognized two of them, figures of her nightmares but one of them, a man with chin length white hair was new. The eyes that looked up at the pair from the base of the stairs were piercing, only hinting at the true depths of their knowledge.

Elijah took a step forwards, his chin high and shoulders back, an Alpha.
"Welcome to Twin Peaks, I am Alpha Elijah, and this is my mate Alpha Eden."

Though she was still mad at him, her resentment lessened as she heard him call her Alpha, showing her the respect she deserved in front of the highest-ranking wolves in their world. He could have easily called her his Luna, in fact, she had expected it but once again he proved to be the kind-hearted man everyone knew him as.

At his introduction she felt the three sets of eyes shift to her, though only briefly before moving on. At its core the werewolf world was a patriarchal and hierarchical society and though she was the point of interest, they cared only what Eli had to say. She kept her head up, becoming conscious of the one set of eyes still burning into her, it was the long haired Elder. Steeling herself she met his gaze head on, unwilling to show any sign of being intimidated. What she saw however surprised her.

The long-haired Elder's head was tilted in canine fashion, his curiosity bright in his eyes as he gave her a once over. Then against all propriety, he sent her a smirk, obviously amused at the situation at hand, though Eden could think of nothing funny about their visit. He intrigued her for all the wrong reasons; she didn't like unpredictable people.