Chapter 26

Silver’s POV

“Silver!! You made it!” Cara said, jumping up from her seat on the back patio of the packhouse and rushing toward me. Her arms outstretched as she wrapped me in her arms. I wasn’t used to others, besides Rebecca, hugging me, so I wasn’t entirely sure what to do.

I awkwardly patted her on the back, plastering a smile on my lips. Truth be told, I wasn’t going to come to the packhouse today. Yesterday, I was called by the manager of Hope’s Gallery, wanting to have a meeting this week about featuring my portraits in their new exhibit. I’ve worked tirelessly all night creating perfect pieces for this exhibit.

This morning, I was exhausted and didn’t expect Cara, who retrieved my number from Gamma Erik, her mate, to ask me to brunch at the packhouse. I wasn’t much of a brunch person, but I suppose now that I’m a Luna, it’s something I should get used to.

“Thanks for the invitation,” I said as she released me.

She looped her arm through mine and pulled me over to her friends who were munching on mini sandwiches and sipping on wine. Emma gave me a small smile while Alison gave me a noncommittal glance.

I sat down on one of the lounge chairs, putting my glasses on to shield my eyes from the sun.

“So, Silver. Tell us how you met our Alpha. We are dying to know,” Cara dug right into the investigation. I looked at them and saw that they were all staring at me.

What was I supposed to say? What was Elliot telling people? I wanted to make sure my story matched with his. I didn’t think he’d want me to tell people the full truth; especially those I just met.

“We met how anyone would meet,” I said, shrugging casually. “At a bar.”

They all looked at one another.

“Our Alpha was casually at a bar?” Cara asked, her eyes wide with curiosity. “He’s not a very casual guy.”

“I heard he used to have a party streak,” Alison shrugged, leaning back in her seat. “It doesn’t surprise me that he’d go to a bar.”

“A party streak?” Cara asked, her mouth nearly hitting the ground.

Alison glanced at her friend and nodded.

“You’ve only been in his pack for a little over a year, so you didn’t know him back when his father was an Alpha,” Alison stated simply.

I raised my brows at her words.

“His father?” I asked. I hadn’t seen his father at all since I’d been here; or his mother. It made me wonder where his parents were. “What happened to his father?”

They stopped eating and looked at me like I had just grown another head. I blinked, confused by

heir demeanor changes.

“You’re married to him and you don’t know about his father?” Alison asked, disbelief displayed on her face.

I bit my lower lip, chewing on it nervously.

“It never came up,” I admitted. “He doesn’t know much about my family either. Other than the fact that my father is the Alpha of the Stormwind pack.”

“Well, Alpha Elliot’s father was a fierce leader,” Alison started to explain. She paused to look around for a moment as if she was worried others might overhear her. Then she leaned in closer to me, dropping her voice to a whisper.

“He was killed by his own Beta,” she whispered.

I gasped, covering my mouth with my hands.

“I only got here less than a year ago and even I heard of this story,” Cara said, shaking her head with dismay on her face. “It’s known around the region about Alpha Albert.”

“Alpha Albert?”

“Elliot’s father,” Alison said, rolling her eyes. “It’s a popular story around the region. We are just surprised you didn’t hear about it. Especially considering you are an Alpha’s daughter. I thought you’d be in the loop.”

My frown deepened; my father made it a point to keep me out of the loop. It didn’t surprise me that I had never heard about this. I wondered if Rebecca heard about this and made a mental note to ask her later.

“How could an Alpha be murdered by his own Beta?” I asked, shaking my head at the thought. “A Beta is supposed to be the most trusted ally to the Alpha. It doesn’t make any sense. Did they do it for power? Where’s this Beta now?”

“We thought originally he had done it for power,” Alison said thoughtfully. “But that ended up not being the case. Maybe it was at first. But the guilt of it was too much for him to handle so he killed himself.”

I gasped again, my eyes large with alarm.

“What?!” I exclaimed.

“Yeah,” Alison said, leaning back in her seat and biting into her sandwich. “Pretty intense.”

“What about his mother? Where was she during all of this?” I asked, still trying to wrap my head around this information.

“She died when Alpha Elliot was a baby. We aren’t sure the exact cause of her death.” That time it was Emma who answered. She was quiet up until that moment, but I suppose Cara warned that she was the quiet one. “He has a sister though. She doesn’t live around here. She’s a famous priestess. Charlotte Crown.”

I had heard about Charlotte; she has the power to see into the future and the past. She’s a priestess of the Moon Goddess and debarked on a journey to travel the world a few years ago. I hear she doesn’t come around here that often, but Elliot is still in touch with her. Though I had never seen him on the phone with her and he had never actually brought her up to me. But it’s known that they were close at one point.

As the afternoon continued, we traveled into lighter topics. They asked me about my occupation, what I like to do for fun, my favorite type of flowers, my favorite color, and even my favorite foods. They truly wanted to get to know me; as time went on, even Alison started to warm up to me.

In return, I learned a lot about them as well. Emma and Alison grew up in this pack and know all of the tea that goes on around town. Cara grew up as the Beta daughter in the Howling pack a few hours away from here. She was traveling with her father and Alpha for business to this pack when she met Gamma Erik and found out he was her mate.

That was a little over a year ago and she’s been here ever since. She has a good relationship with her family, and they still talk all the time. Because of their joining, they have a pretty strong alliance with the Howling pack.

We shared many laughs and memories, and it was a pretty good day. I told them about my best friend Rebecca and suggested we all hang out together.

“I need to use the restroom,” I said, standing to my feet.

“Use the one upstairs. The one downstairs is being worked on,” Emma warned.

“Thanks,” I said as I walked into the packhouse.

I found the stairway and made my way up the stairs and into the bathroom. Once I finished, I left the bathroom and headed back to the stairs, but I paused when I saw Shirley walking up the stairway. Her eyes flashed to me, and an alarmed look crossed her face before it morphed into a smirk.

“Mrs. Stormwind. What brings you here?” She asked, raising her brows as she reached the top step.

“I was just using the restroom,” I told her. “I’m having brunch with a few ladies from the pack. Also, it’s Mrs. Crown. Or Luna Crown.”

I started to walk around her, but she put her hand out, stopping me in my tracks.

“It won’t be Mrs. Crown for long. Once Elliot comes to his senses, he will divorce you. He’s just confused right now but it won’t last forever.”

“What makes you sure of this Miss Shirley?” I asked her, raising my brows. “He didn’t seem very confused last night when we made love.”

It was a bold statement, but once the words left my lips, there was no taking them back. Her face grew impossibly red, and she looked furious.

“You are lying,” she said, folding her arms across her chest as she stared at me. “Elliot wouldn’t touch you with a ten-inch pole. He told me himself that the marriage was for convenience. It’s nothing more than a contract. What’s he’s done with you, he’ll divorce you and marry me like it should have been a long time ago.”

The memory of Elliot and Shirley talking in his office invaded my mind. My cheeks warmed at the thought of him admitting to another woman that his marriage with me was only a contract. But I had no reason to not believe her based on what I heard him saying and there was no other way she would know this information.

I squared my shoulders, not allowing her to see me break.

“It might be a contract but that doesn’t mean love can't develop down the line. Don’t be too quick to mark your claim on Alpha Elliot, Miss Shirley,” I told her cooly.

Her mouth nearly fell open and as I walked around her, she grabbed my arm forcefully, I winced at the strength of her hand wrapped around my wrist, knowing it was going to leave a mark.

“You bitch,” she hissed.

She began to pull me toward the stairwell and panic started to rise in my chest as I struggled against her.

“What are you going to do? Throw me down the stairs? Is that really the image you want?” I asked, breathlessly.

She paused for a moment and then a grin spread across her lips.

Then she spoke loudly, “Mrs. Crown, I don’t want to come between you and your husband! Please don’t!!!!”

Confusion slammed into me as my brows pinched together and then to my utter disbelief. She released her hold on me, and she fell backward down the stairs.