Lost Luna: Alpha's Precious Possession

I almost stumble as I dash out of the dining hall, my legs unwilling to cooperate with my forced speed. Rushing straight for the stairwell, I do not go to the kitchen, nor do I aim for my room to change my clothes. 

Katarine's order was not as straightforward as it could have seemed––kicking me out of the dining hall under the pretense of me being idle was just a farce, just a power play to show our guests that she could do that. 

What she really wanted was for me to be excluded just like she was. If Dion's wife can't be present at such an important event, then nobody can. Even the alpha's favorite. 

I don't notice how I get to the fourth floor of the mansion––Dion's side of the floor. Only a selected number of people are allowed to go this high, and I am one of them. Of course, only when Luna does not see me. 

Puffing at my chest, I press myself against the door to his study, my legs still shaking from both anxiety and strain. 

I am used to running––from others, from everything––but it never gets easy. 

I turn the round door knob clockwise three times and the lock opens with a quiet click. As soon as I open the door, I am enveloped in his scent––clean, fresh, minty. Dion's scent brings me the most comfort and whenever I feel anxious or scared, my head practically pleads with me to have it. 

Dion tells me that is precisely what mates feel. I believe him. 

I decide to stay in his office until the celebration ends. Usually, when Katarine asks to speak with her husband, she brings him to her own office, and I think it's because she still does not fully trust him.

I have to admit that I kind of understand her. Katarine became Dion's wife only a few years ago when her father, Alpha Theon of the Cold Wind Pack made a deal with Dion and the two of them united their packs by marriage, which eventually forced Katarine to move into this pack house and become the pack's Luna. 

Naturally, it was not a smooth transition. But while the rest of the Cold Wind Pack's members eventually got used to their new alpha, Katarine was too ambitious to hand the power over to Dion.

Katarine is the alpha wolf, but Dion forces her to submit to him, and his dominance is almost impossible to overpower. 

Sometimes I wonder if this is the reason she hates me so much. She does not hate me because Dion likes me. She hates me because I love to submit to him; that I trust him so wholeheartedly that I believe every word he says. 

And it's all true. After all, Dion is the only werewolf that has ever loved me. The only werewolf that has never tried to harm or abuse me. He keeps me safe, and I don't care if someone hates it. 

I get lost in my own thoughts and fail to notice that I am no longer alone on this floor. Two pairs of footsteps, the same ones that followed me out of the dining hall, are now approaching the door, and I hear my heart thumping in my ears. 

Why are they coming here? The stairwell to Luna's quarters is on the opposite side of the hallway which means that they are indeed headed for Dion's study. 

I swallow hard and nearly jump into the small closet next to the door where Dion keeps some of his outer coats and jackets. It's not a simple closet either; it's a secret passage made for me to come straight to any of his rooms through the narrow corridors in the pack house's walls. He made these arrangements just for me and I liked that. I feel much more at ease when I can move around the house unnoticed. 

So I stay inside and silently thank the Moon Goddess for using the scent suppressor Dion gave me so that I can mask my scent from others whenever I want to be unnoticed. 

It is just a concentrated mix of his own pheromones which makes me smell like him. It costs a fortune to make it so I use it carefully, but I am glad that I used it tonight to prevent other wolves from carelessly approaching me as they did with the rest of the female omegas. 

Hopefully, it is still working. Hopefully, Katarine will not notice that I am here. 

The door opens and I hear Dion's baffled voice. 

"I thought we would be having our conversation in your office, Kat."

I hear them go all the way to Alpha's desk before they both stop again. The light clicking of the liquor cabinet indicates that Dion is about to offer his wife a drink, but I only hear one glass being placed on the desk. 

It's a warning. He warns her to make it quick. 

"Why didn't you tell me about the deal?" She asks in an angry voice, but I can still hear a barely noticeable shaking of frustration as she struggles to compose herself. "It's one thing to keep me away from your sodomistic parties, but to ignore me on a political level? You have crossed the line, Dion."

"Those are some strong words, Kat. How long have you been waiting to use sodomistic in a conversation?"

Dion chuckles but as no reply follows, I hear him sigh and place the glass back on the desk. "The deal has been struck and I don't wish to discuss it anymore. It's my pack's business so I am the one making the decisions here."

"Your––? What did you agree on?" Kat finally speaks again, though the frustrated shake returns to her voice, and I hear Dion let out another sigh. 

"The alliance. There is too much uncertainty around our lands lately and I simply want to make sure that we are prepared for everything. I don't like what has been going on in the Lycan Kingdom, and I sure as hell don't trust the king."

I gasp but quickly cover my mouth with both hands, praying hard that I was not heard. 

Dion never openly talks with me about politics unless I ask him about it myself. I am ignorant and naive for the most part, but this is the first time I hear him confess how he really feels about the Lycan King. It's a dangerous confession and I don't like it. I'm convinced Katarine does not like it either. 

"What did you promise Alpha Robert?" She asks instead and I feel my heart sink. The Luna continues, "He does not like to share his power, nor does he like to go against those much stronger than him. He must have asked for something in return––what is it?"

The silence stretches for what feels like an eternity and my anxiety soars as I wait for Dion to answer her. Why is he hesitating? Is it something big? Something very important to our pack? Something that used to belong to Katarine's family, perhaps? 

My heart threatens to burst out of my chest, but luckily, Dion breaks the silence at last. 

"Layleen. He only asked for Layleen. And I will give her to him."