Heartless Angels

Chapter 37 – Levi

Chapter 37 – Levi

The council finally calls the meeting, four long days after I arrive. It’s the Monday after the first week that training has been

going on at the castle. I know that she’s here. Jack saw her. She had been jogging around the front gate. But Sophia is refusing to even say that Oakley is even on the premises and it’s driving me a bit nuts.

The thing is, I can feel her. It’s odd. Because she was so weak before, I hadn’t been able to feel her unless I was standing outside of her cabin. But now? I feel her from across the city. The second that I pulled into Corinth, I knew she was here. And my wolf has been going insane in my head. He’s been like that ever since she rejected us, but it got worse when she left. Now that she’s close by, it’s like I’m constantly fighting the need to shift. All my wolf wants to do is be close to his mate.

It hasn’t helped that I can feel her being intimate with another male. That first time, I nearly passed out from the pain. Is this what she felt every time I had S** after the matebond? I can’t believe that she was able to survive that. It literally took me the four days to recover from that one time. And I used to have S** up to four times a day to try to forget her. To forget that she didn’t want me on first sight.

Of course she didn’t. If this is what I put her through, why would she want me? And I had said that I would keep her as a side piece. To my mate, of all wolves! I have made the biggest mistake of my entire life, throwing away what the Goddess meant as a gift. I can only hope that she won’t attack me on sight

Of course with all the guilt that I’m feeling I would let her. I deserve it all.

I walk into the council room, a place that I’ve been at least once a month since I was 18 and started taking over some of my father’s role as alpha. I’d seen the judgments that have happened here and how they are decided. Ive even been part of those decisions. And I’m going to use it to get what I want. I’m going to use that knowledge to see my mate

The council room is a huge circular room in the very center of the council. There are descending tiers of seats. The ones on the highest circle is for the deltas and gam mas of the packs that may come. Usually it’s only one or the other because one is left behind to care for the pack. The second tier is for the secretaries and aides of the packs in attendance. They provide information to their alphas about their packs, treaties, allies, and anything else that they may need. The third tier is for the betas. The fourth for the alphas and their heirs.

The fifth tier is for the four historians of wolfkind, each extremely old wolves with extensive knowledge of not just the. history of werewolves and our interactions with each other and the humans that we live amongst, but also the Goddess’s book and her laws and will. They are the most intelligent and wisest wolves of our kind and are revered above all others. If they are against the decision of the alpha council, the decision does not pass

The final tier, in the center of everything and down in the depths of the room where everyone sees the smallest move that you make, is where the petitioners and those receiving punishment stand. It’s where I will stand, along with Sophia, and make

my case to see my mate

Sophia and I are actually the last ones to enter the room, by design. Though nothing has started, we are allowed in after everyone else is in their spots to feel each and every one of their stares.

I make my slow descent down to my place in the center of the room. All of the other 19 alphas are here, along with their leadership. My father is sitting in my seat, filling the last of the 20 seats. My beta, Gus, and my gam ma, Jordan, are in their spots and I nod to them as I pass them.

Before stepping onto the tier with the alphas, I make sure that my suit jacket is hanging correctly and my tie is straight. I need to present myself as a confident and solid alpha the second that they see me. I need to exude the strength that I’ve always exhibited in, my dealings with outside wolves. Ineed to show them the wolf who everyone fears. No weakness. No

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Chapter 37 – Levi

vulnerabilities. The alphas need to see that I want my luna back and I am willing to do whatever I have to in order to get her.

Stepping down to the alpha tier, I’m greeted by several allies and alphas who I have befriended over the years. Many others nod at me in acknowledgement. It’s now that I realize that the fourth time that I’ve stepped in this room as the alpha of my back, it’s to ask them to help me get my luna back. The luna that wants nothing to do with me. Not the best first impression and it won’t be something that is forgotten by anyone in this room. Ever.

Oakley’s father and brothers are sitting behind my father on the same tier. Though they will not be a part of the decision making, and therefore not getting seats at the alpha table, they will be allowed to sit with my father as his guests.

I give a little bow to each historian as a sign of respect. Though the historians aren’t above us in the pack and aren’t submitted to through the baring of our n*ecks, they are still respected and deserve to be shown that respect.

And, finally, I am down at my tier for today. The central tier of the hall. I had no idea how scrutinized and uncomfortable ! would feel here. All of my sins against my mate seem to weigh heavily on me here and the feeling of disapproval, real or imagined, seems to cloak my b*dy. I don’t deserve the chance to see Oakley again. I don’t deserve to be free of the pain her being with someone else will cause me. I know that. But she deserves to be free of me. And if that’s going to be her decision, I need to give it to her.

Sophia is already standing there, looking every bit the warrior that she is. Every time that she comes in, she is dressed as if she is ready to go out on the battlefield. She’s wearing lightweight, black armor, two swords crisscrossing her back, guns and knives in holsters along her waist and thighs, and extra bullet cl*ps in her weapons belt. Im sure there are other weapons that I can’t see, as it’s hard to see all of the black weapons amongst the black of her clothing.

“Alpha Silver,” she says, nodding towards me when I make eye contact with her

“Commander Knight, I respond. It irks me that she doesn’t bare her n*eck to me, though she would normally. I know it’s because, for the moment, we are on equals. Doesn’t mean it doesn’t get under my skin.

I walk to my seat, my aide setting out all of my papers. He’ll stay down here with me to help keep everything organized and find information that I might need within all of the papers that we’ve prepared I take one last look over my opening speech while my aide pours us drinks of water

I nod my thanks, gulping down the water in an attempt to ease my anxiety. Doesn’t really work, but I’ve gotta get myself together.

The head historian, Frederick, stands up. I know exactly what he’s going to do. He has to present the case, the whole case. This is not going to be pleasant. “Today, we are meeting to discuss the case of Alpha Silver’s mate and future luna, Oakley Moon is the daughter of Bradley Moon, a warrior of the Silver Lake Pack, and Elina Moon, a former warrior for the continent.” This piece of news startles me, as well as several wolves around the room, Bradley and his sons included. Seems that not many knew who Oakley’s mother had really been

“Oakley Moon left the Silver Lake Pack ten days ago, three months after finding Alpha Silver was her mate. Up until that day, the only ones that had known that the two were mated were her father and brothers and the two mates in question. Upon finding out that she was mated to Alpha Silver, Ms. Moon rejected him. The loud gasps around the room at this information are nowhere near as loud as the shouts that are heard after Historian Frederick says, “Alpha Silver refused her rejection and beat her to within an inch of her life after.”

It takes several minutes and loud strikes of Historian Fredericks’s gavel before the angry shouts of the wolves in the room quiets enough for the proceeding can continue. I am covered in shame, but I keep my head high and my eyes focused on the head historian’s pulpit.

He continues, “Ms. Moon had only shifted twice at that point, though she is 19 years old. Her wolf was weak and unable to healher the two broken ribs, punctured lung, dislocated jaw, fractured arms, concussion, and multiple abrasions and bruises

heather/the

Chapter 37 – Levi

healed almost human slow. It took a month for her to be able to breathe without oxygen. Two more weeks for her walk unaided.

And another month before she left her room.”

This time the room is completely silent as the anger, disapproval, and disgust of every wolf in the room pours down on me.

“During that time, no one came to visit Ms. Moon, other than her family. She had been shunned by her pack long before because of her lack of strength, something that the Silver Lake pack highly values.” Another stab of pain at my failure as not only a mate, but as an alpha, moves through my chest.

“Also, during that time, Oakley suffered m ental abuse, not only from her mate, but from her family as well. They blamed her for not being strong enough to accept Alpha Silver’s offer of being his mistress and the bearer of his pups, but not his mate. They accused her of being selfish, calling her a bit ch, worthless, and many other horrid things. At the same time, Alpha Silver was not faithful to his mate, having S** with four different she-wolves at the time, sometimes all in the same day. This occurred on a daily basis. Since the matebond was not completely severed, Ms. Moon felt everything. This further complicated her

recovery.

“Miss. Moon went through great lengths to get away from her pack, her family, and her mate. She left when no one was around, not expected to be around for several hours. She changed her appearance, stole several cars, and used an alias in the hotel that she stayed at. She withdrew all of the money that she had and then threw away all forms of identification and means

of tracking her before coming here to Corinth.

“She is suspected to be in training as one of the Elite 10. These suspicions are supported by three pieces of evidence, One, the car she stole is still parked in the castle parking lot, even now. Two, there is CCTV footage from the street of her entering the castle on the day of tryouts and no subsequent footage has found her leaving. Third, her brother, Jack Moon, saw her jogging on the grounds through the gates three days ago.

“Our job today is to determine two things. One, should Alpha Silver and Ms. Moon’s family be allowed to know if she is here, since the identities of all wolves that are a part of the Elite 10 are to be kept secret and we do not yet have a new Elite 10 picked

out yet. And two, if Ms. Moon is here, are they allowed to see her?”

Historian Frederick turns to me. “Alpha Silver, you may begin your opening statement.”