Chapter 317

Judy’s POV

“I want to know everything you can about the Cash family,” I heard Sampson saying as soon as we entered the packhouse.

“Yes, Alpha,” Aiden, Sampson’s Beta, said. “All I know so far is that Raymond is the former Alpha’s Beta. They are a strong and powerful family with a lot of influence, it seems.”

“I need to know more,” Sampson told him with a scowl on his face.

Lucy stood beside him with her arms folded across her chest and a mournful look on her face. It’s been a little over a day since they’ve arrived, and we allowed them time to get settled in yesterday and mourn the downfall of the Redcliff pack. Today, it seems they were all about business and getting things back on track.

“I’m also calling for a Redmoon pack meeting. I want everyone included,” Sampson continued.

“Yes, Alpha,” Aiden said with a nod.

I had never seen him quite so professional before; usually, he has a snarky remark or something, but like the others, he lost a lot during the rogue attack back in Redcliff, and my heart ached for them all.

Aiden turned to leave, and his eyes found mine. He gave him a short nod before retreating. Sampson sighed and wrapped an arm around Lucy, who looked like she was about to crumble at any moment. I hated that she was having a tough time, and I wished I could take away her pain. She was usually such a bright and cheerful person, but it seemed after the rogue attack, the light had been taken away from her.

“What’s going on?” I asked as I approached, my family behind me.

Sampson finally noticed me, and he let out a breath. Lucy also noticed me, and she broke free from Sampson to hug me.

“It was awful,” Lucy murmured. “I went to the Cash family manor this morning with some baked goods. I want to get to know the Beta family. I was hoping we could come up with a collab of a sort. I mean, it’s not like Sampson is going to fire Aiden as his Beta to make room for Raymond, but we could come up with a solution on how to keep Raymond on board so he could keep his Beta title.”

I nodded.

That was the tough thing about getting a new Alpha: The Beta of the pack could lose their title if the Alpha had a Beta already in mind. In this case, Aiden had worked for Sampson for years; they were also old-time friends, so it’s not like Sampson would get rid of Aiden for someone he just met, even if Raymond was here first.

Besides, Raymond was getting up there in age; he was already set for life, considering his family was incredibly wealthy. He doesn’t have any other children who could become the Beta right now anyway, so the logical solution would be for him to step down and let Aiden take over. But I knew that wasn’t Raymond’s style. He wouldn’t go down without a fight.

I knew a lot about the Cash family already, and I could tell them all the information they needed, but I needed to know what had happened first.

“They had no idea who I was, but they knew I wasn’t from this pack,” she said, a sad expression on her face. “He got the memo about the Redcliff pack and Redmoon pack merger, so he figured I was from the Redcliff pack. But he didn’t know I was the Luna.”

I nodded, glancing at Sampson, who had his jaw clenched; he was furious, and it was known to anyone who was in his close proximity.

“Well, they were just awful to me,” she murmured. “They put me down, told me that I’m not wanted. Told me to go back to where I came from. They even went as far as getting their security team to throw me off their property.”

My mouth nearly dropped open; of course, I’m not surprised that they were nasty… but to be nasty to a Luna. That was punishable by death. Telling from the look in Sampson’s eyes, that’s exactly what he was thinking as well.

“I came straight home and told Sampson about it,” she concluded.

“Those assholes,” Nan said, folding her arms across her chest, her lips pressed in a thin line. “They don’t deserve the Beta title. Just because they are a little stronger than others in this pack, doesn’t give them the right to treat people like shit like they do.”

“So, they are known for this?” Sampson asked, his eyes focused on Nan now.

She nodded and rolled her eyes.

“Yup,” she muttered. “They’ve always been nasty. Thank God Judy is no longer with their son.”

I glanced at Nan, willing her to shut up, but once she gets started, it’s hard for her to stop. The word vomiting came out before I could even process it.

“He was a jerk and treated Judy like shit even when she didn’t know it. But I never liked him or his stupid family,” Nan continued, shaking her head with dismay written all over her face.

Sampson glanced at me, his brows raised.

‘You were with their son?” He asked.

I sighed.

“He was my fated mate,” I explained.

“Wait, what??” Lucy asked, her eyes wide as she stared at me. “You had a fated mate and you never told me??”

I bit my lip; there was a lot I never told her. I never told her about my life in this pack because I didn’t want to remember any of it.

“I'm sorry,” I told her softly. “There were a lot of things I kept from you.”

“I don’t understand why,” Lucy said, her brows pinched together. “I thought we were friends…. At least, I wanted us to be friends.”

“We are friends,” I assured her, stepping closer to her. “I’m sorry that I kept these things from you. Truth be told, when I arrived at the Redcliff pack, I was running away from my old life. I wanted to start over, so talking about these things felt like I was living in the past.”

She blinked at me, trying to process what I had just said.

“Were you telling the truth when you said you didn’t have a phone?” She asked.

I winced at the lie I told her, and I knew she saw it because her eyes grew wide.

“I had my phone shut off for the last few weeks to avoid my friends and family. I was a coward and was afraid to turn it on,” I admitted. “So, I told you that I didn’t have a phone.”

She stared at me for a long while, processing all that she’s learned.

“I see,” she said softly. “Was anything you told me the truth?”

“That was the only thing I lied about,” I assured her. “Everything else, I just didn’t tell you because it hurt too much to talk about. I want to tell you everything, though, if you’d just give me the chance to do so.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to cause issues,” Nan said, a bit sheepishly. “Talking about the Cash family just riles me up after everything they’ve done to Judy.”

Lucy glanced at Nan, her pale blue eyes scanning her from head to toe.

“And you are?” Lucy asked.

Nan flushed.

“Oh, sorry, Luna,” Nan said, bowing her head slightly. “I am Nan Bigsby. I’m not really anybody. I’m just a waitress and bartender at the Carter resort.”

“She’s the head staff at the Carter resort,” I told them, putting my arm around Nan. “Don’t let her sell herself short. She’s an aspiring chef and is working hard to make her dream of owning her own restaurant a reality. Delta Carter is even featuring some of her latest dishes on his menu and letting her cook more than bartend lately.”

Nan blushed at my candid words.

“It’s really nothing,” she said, letting out a nervous chuckle. “I’ve worked for him for years; he’s just being nice.”

“Carter doesn’t do things just to be nice,” my father said. “Judy is right, don’t sell yourself short.” He then turned to Sampson. “I’m Delta Richard. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alpha.”

“Are you talking about Delta Patrick Carter?” Sampson asked, his brows raised as he shook my father’s hand. “Alpha Landry’s Delta?”

“That’s the one,” my father confirmed.

Sampson looked at Nan appreciatively.

“To have him vouch for your cooking is a huge deal. They are right, that’s a big accomplishment. I’m still trying to figure things out around here, and it seems this packhouse hasn’t been used in years. But I’m going to need a chef to run this kitchen. Maybe while you work on your dreams, you’d want to take over that role?”

Nan’s eyes grew wide as she stared at Sampson.

“Are you serious?” She asked.

She then looked at me, and I grinned at her.

“Can I think about it?” Nan asked as she glanced at Sampson. I knew she needed to speak to Chester about it and figure out what to do about Emalyn while they both worked. In Nan’s current position, she worked mostly at night, and Chester worked mostly during the day, so they could be there for Emalyn around the clock. But if she were to take Sampson up on his job offer, she would be working the same hours as Chester.

“Yes, of course,” Sampson said, nodding to her. He then turned to my father. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Perhaps I can steal your time for a bit, and we can talk about pack matters. I obviously don’t know much about this pack, and I’d love to pick your brain.”

“Yes, of course,” my father said proudly. He then put an arm around my mother. “This is my wife, Michele.”

Sampson smiled at my mother.

“You can call me Shelly,” my mother said, shaking his head.

“These are my parents,’ I told them.

Sampson’s eyes grew wide, as did Lucy's.

“Your parents?” Lucy said, her mouth dropping open. “You never spoke about your family. I had no idea you came from a Delta family.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know,” I told her. “Maybe we should go somewhere and talk?”

She looked between me and Nan, an uncertain look clouding her eyes.

“I want to tell you everything, Lucy,” I told her. “Because you are my friend. Let me introduce you to Nan properly. This is my best friend, and we want you to be a part of our inner circle.”

“We do?” Nan asked, her brows furrowed.

“Yes,” I said, giving her a look. “We do.”

Nan shrugged and then smiled at Lucy.

“Okay, I guess we do. How about a girls’ night tonight? We can invite Irene, too.”

I looked at Lucy, expectantly.

“What do you say?” I asked her.

She thought about it for a moment, looking between the two of us, before she sighed.

“Okay, let’s have a girls’ night.”