The Big Bad Wolf Mate

I looked over the balcony at the confounding sight before me. On the lawn stood thousands of wolves here for the amalgamation. It wasn't something I particularly wanted to do myself but my family insisted I go through with it. These past few months had been hard on us without him. Our sweet baby boys, Levy and Leo were born shortly after the fight and have brought so much joy into my life but a very big piece of me was still missing.

I smiled as I watched my mother coddling her grandchildren. A loving transformation inside of her occurred as soon as she held them in her arms for the first time. Her and Aunt Penelope had even reconciled and were as close as ever, although, I still never knew what their feud was even about.

"Are you ready, Alpha?"

Every muscle in my body tensed at the sound of those words and when I turned to face my best friends I couldn't help but roll my eyes at her comment.

"I'm not the Alpha, Mik."

She snickered just as she had done all those times before, knowing that I couldn't stand being called that. Yet, at the lowest point in my life I had risked the most important person to me just for the chance to be one. I was no Alpha, not even a fraction of one and my selfish choices made that apparent.

"He should be here." I said fighting back the tears threatening to spring from my eyes.

"I know." Mik replied as she waddled towards me and pulled me into a hug.

Kam was right behind her, bouncing her new pup in her arms as she fought her mother's tight embrace. "We all miss him." She said while wrapping her arms around me and squeezing me tight.

I could feel my heart constricting and the flood of emotions soon to storm my body but not wanting to have another breakdown, I stepped back and stood tall, composing myself for the speech I would soon have to make in front of the packs.

"Well, here goes nothing." I said as I walked out the room and down the stairs.

Deacon was standing at the bottom, looking up at me with a sad smile and again a rush of sadness filled my heart. He had been by Bishop's side for years so I had no doubt he would be nothing but helpful with the transition.

Once I made it out the house, a group of guards escorted me towards the podium where I took my place before the crowd. Clasping my hands together, I closed my eyes and prepared myself for what I would say next. I looked up and instantly felt a rush of power as wolves of all ages stared back at me.

Lifting my head high, I opened my lips and said, "I would like to start off by welcoming you all to the Black Shadow pack. For the past 5 months, I have had the pleasure to stand along each and every one of you as we started this merge between us and the White Claw pack. I know this has been a tough adjustment for some of you but I can assure you, we have taken everyone's concerns into account and have worked closely with the elder's to accommodate all of you as best we can."

My words began to catch in my throat and the threat of bile rising had me breathless. I cleared my throat and continued on. "With that being said, all those who chose to rebel, will be taken care of and prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. As for the rest of you, I, nor any other high ranking official of this pack will tolerate anything less than respect for us and everyone here."

Looking out into the crowd, I was surprised to be met with such loyal expressions. I knew most of Bishop's pack were still mad at me and I was yet to explain my actions to them but today was not the day. Today was about officially welcoming my Father's pack into our borders and helping them adjust to their new lives.

"Please, join me in welcoming our new friends, family and neighbors into the Black Shadow pack." I began clapping as the crowd erupted into cheers. "Now, let us retreat to the training grounds for a celebration."

I stepped down and led the way to the field as the others followed. Once everyone was seated, the food was served and a hush fell over them as they ate and engaged with the others at their tables. My family was seated in the front and I watched as my parents tried to feed the twins but their tiny little bodies wouldn't stay still much longer and they escaped on their knees towards the crowd. Jumping off after them, my mother laughed as they hid under the tables, peeking out every now and then, showing off their gummy smiles.

Just then, a hard wind blew and a whisper of my name floated through the air.

Red!

I snapped my head to the right where a beam of sunshine illuminated a narrow path into the forest. The tiny mutter of my name bellowed from the trees, as if the woods were calling me. I began walking towards it as my heart beat fast in my chest.

Red!

Hearing it again, I quickened my pace. As I got closer to the narrow opening, the sounds continued to draw me in and soon I was sprinting towards the soothing melody of a familiar voice. Pushing myself as fast as I could go, I broke through into the quiet clearing and stood there in the sunlight, alone.

I hoped my mind wasn’t playing tricks on me, making me believe I heard him beckoning me to this very spot, only to be fooled by my own imagination. My chest was heavy with pain, tears flowing down my cheeks when a bright light appeared before me revealing a figure.

“Missed me, Red?” He said so nonchalantly

Blinking my eyes in disbelief, I asked, “What? H-how?”

He stepped towards me wrapping his arms around my waist, pulled me close to him and replied, “I wanted to see how well you’ve been taking care of everything while I was gone.”

"But..."

He placed his finger on my lips leaving sparks along my skin. The sensation made my entire body come alive from his touch. I hadn't seen him since that dreadful day when everything was taken from me and now he here was, holding me tightly.

"The King let me sneak away."

My heart was so full, I felt as if it were going to burst out of my chest. I grabbed his hands and placed them on my face, relishing in the warmth of his touch.

"I want to show you something." I said as I dragged him to the opening where we both stood their and watched as our friends and families gathered together on the field.

"You've done amazing things since I've been gone. I can't tell you how proud I am of you, Red. I know it hasn't been easy for you but you seem to have grown into this Alpha role quite well."

"Your pack still hates me."

Placing his hands on my shoulders, he turned me to face him. He brushed his knuckles down my cheek and said, "They don't know the whole story but I am sure once they do things will get better." He kissed me on my forehead and said, "I promise."

We turned back towards the celebration and stood hand in hand, gazing at everyone who had supported me in my darkest days, especially while he was gone.

"Alpha!"

Just as his grip tightened around mine, it was gone in an instant, leaving a cold breeze blowing through my empty hand.

"You sure do know how to ruin an intimate moment Mik." He said with a deep chuckle in his voice.

"You know me, I was never one for that gushy love stuff." She laughed as she hit him hard on his shoulder. "Welcome back! Now come on lets get you two something to eat."

She pulled him towards the buffet table and as soon as everyone noticed he was home they flocked around him. Elation beaming from their faces as they welcomed their Alpha back to the pack. The boys immediately found him and crawled up his legs begging for his attention. With one strong scoop, he lifted them both from the ground and held them tight against his chest.

My heart was beating so fast, it was skipping beats as tears streamed down my face. My emotions were all over the place but the greatest of them was love. We were finally back together again and everything was complete.

WHAT?????? I thought he was dead? Where was he?

Don't worry, a flashback of that horrendous night and what happened after is in the next chapter.

Told you it wouldn't stay sad for long.