Chapter 4
Rhea PoV
I entered my dad’s office with my head held high, a small smile playing in the corners of my mouth, trying to appear confident and sure of myself; though on the inside I was trembling. I wasn’t sure if he would have calmed down from his outburst earlier and I was afraid he would still be enraged at what I did. I mean I only had a couple glasses of whiskey, but he was right, it could’ve delayed the merging with my wolf, and that was a crime amongst our people.
My father was sat at his long desk, my mother stood bedside him as they concentrated on an old book in front of them, I was almost certain I had seen it before, but I couldn’t be sure. It wasn’t why I was here.
“Mom.” I greeted with a smile, before turning towards my father, his eyes finally peeling away from the book. “Dad, I wanted to apologise for last night, I honestly wasn’t thinking. It was stupid and reckless.”
He watched me for a couple of minutes, seemingly shocked before he pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “Rhea, come sit. We have been looking for you for hours.”
I frowned, no one had mentioned that I was needed when I arrived back at the pack house. Though instead of arguing I nodded and walked towards the chair in front of the desk, nervously sitting on the edge of my seat. Why have they been looking for me? Did they know that I had shifted?
They should know I’m here. Alora growled lightly, she shared my memories of my father and even though she wasn’t able to communicate with me, she has been with me my whole life.
Let’s see what he says first, I don’t want to cause any more problems, not when Gabriel is already coming here unannounced.
Are you saying I’m a problem?
I sighed, no Alora. I just mean that what I said earlier when we first met was true. A wolf doesn’t ‘normally’ shift until the full moon after their sixteenth birthday. It is unusual and I’m not sure how they’ll react.
She growled again, but she was much calmer, realising that it could cause problems if they knew, not because I think she’s a burden. I loved my wolf. She is the second half to my soul that I didn’t know I wanted or needed.
“No one came to get me, is it because the vampire king is on his way?” I asked, glancing between them as they watched me.
“It doesn’t matter, you are here now.” My father said in a short tone, clearly annoyed about something, but I didn’t know what or if I was the cause.
“How do you know the vampire king is coming?” Asked my mum, frowning deeply as she placed a hand on my father shoulder to calm him.
A mates touch can calm even the most unstable of our kind, it doesn’t matter how long you have known each other, it doesn’t matter how often. Each time your mate touched you, your nerves would come alive with pleasure and content, it brings you peace.
“One of the omegas told me, they are rushing around and I stopped a young girl and asked.” I shrugged, quickly moving on after I had taken a breath. “But why is he here? The annual visit isn’t for another three months right?”
They exchanged a look, a sudden sob ripping out of my mums mouth as she slapped a hand to try and muffle it. I could see tears in her eyes when she snapped her head towards the window behind my father, my confusion only increasing. Sure, my mum was emotional, but she never cried in front of us unless it was serious.
I stood, wanting to comfort her. “Mum? Are you okay?”
My father held out his hand and motioned me to retake my seat. “You won’t want to be standing when I tell you this.” Was all he said.
I did as he suggested, not liking any of this. What could be so bad that the vampire king was arriving now and the idea of him coming here was making my mother cry? My heart rate automatically spiked, my palms sweating as I rubbed them against the arms of the armchair. Alora pacing restlessly within me.
My father patted mum on the back to try and calm her before he turned his attention back towards me, his tone suddenly cold and distant. “You remember the peace treaty that I signed with Gabriel and the vampire lords?”
I nodded, not trusting my own voice as I prayed it wasn’t what I was thinking, if the treaty was broken and a war broke out, then the vampires coming here now would only mean that they are arriving to kill us.
We’ll kill them first! Snarled Alora as she pushed against my mind, trying to force me to shift.
I pushed her back, mimicking her snarl. Shut up! You know we wouldn’t last two minutes!
I would. She retorted matter-of-factly before blocking the bond between us and disappearing into the back of my mind.
I had heard that our wolves could do that, but I never expected her to do it so soon and I felt oddly empty without her presence. Like I was missing the very thing I needed to function.
“There was a part of the treaty that we never shared with you and your brothers. We thought it would be best to leave it until we had no choice but to tell you.” My dad paused and rubbed his temples, my mother now visibly crying whilst I sat there confused and scared; unable to understand anything from the cryptic conversation I was having. “We hoped that it wouldn’t come to pass, that after a few years they would change their mind and remove that part of the pact. But that never happened.”
“I don’t understand, you aren’t making any sense. Why are they here now and what does it have to do with peace?” I asked, beginning to loose my temper as they danced around the truth.