MATED TO THE SECRET ALPHA-Chapter 244: Will Fall In Line

Winter was getting harsher with each passing day. Snow was mounting, and the wind was howling like a distressed beast.

The fortress around the Black Moon Pack has been fully erected. The amalgamation of the West Wood and Black Moon Pack had been completed.

The crystal mine’s location has been found but the terrain, in this weather, was too dangerous. Especially with the monsters lurking around the perimeters of the mine.

The Luna couldn’t risk the lives of her pack members to mine in this weather. If the human village survived the Winter Fury, then Reana would give them full control over the mine. But at the moment, she had other things to worry about.

Reana stood on the watch post, eyes locked in the distance. A message from the scouts she sent out reached her earlier that morning: the delegations to the Southern Island had been spotted, making their way back to the pack.

This news uplifted Reana’s mood. But she was still wary. Until she saw them, until they crossed through the gates, they were not safe. Rogues have been parading behind the walls of her territories lately, and if they attacked the delegation now, so close to home, it would be the greatest insult she’d received.

Her grip on the frosted stone railing tightened, jaw clenched. She turned to the nearest guard, her voice firm and swift. "Send a signal to the eastern outpost. I want a patrol escort to intercept the delegation and bring them in safely. Tell them to move quietly but quickly. If there are rogues near the borders, I want them flushed out before they even sniff the scent of our own."

"Yes, Luna," the guard bowed and took off in a sprint.

Snow gusted up as the wind howled louder. Reana’s gloved hands twitched. She was cold but she couldn’t leave this place. Not until she saw her people.

"Luna, I’ll stand watch until the patrol returns, you get some rest," Kira said. Reana hasn’t been herself lately, ever since Ryder disappeared. She’d not been sleeping, resting, or eating well, and the Gamma feared she might suddenly break down.

Reana didn’t look at her right away. Her eyes remained fixed on the pale expanse of land and forest beyond the walls. "I’ll rest when I know they’re inside these walls and alive."

Kira exhaled, her breath misting between them. "Staring into the storm won’t bring them faster."

"But it might keep me sane," she murmured. "Every minute they’re out there is another minute something could go wrong."

"They’re strong, Luna. They survived the terrains to the Southern Island, and I’m sure the rogues are the least of their worries now," Kian replied, his tone calm but edged with quiet conviction. "They’ve faced worse. And they came back."

Reana gave a slow nod, but her eyes didn’t soften. "Still... it’s never the danger you expect that kills you. It’s the one you didn’t see coming."

Kira didn’t argue. She knew Reana was right.

The silence stretched between them, heavy and cold like the snow-drenched world beyond. Then Reana spoke again, quieter this time. "If they’re ambushed this close to home, the message won’t just be for me. It’ll be for everyone watching. That we’re vulnerable. That we’re distracted. That we can be reached."

Kira nodded slowly. Once again, she was right. But Kira was more worried for the Luna than she was for the delegations. She glanced at her side profile once more, unsure what to say. After what seemed like forever, she began:

"What plans do you have for Lady Tamara of the Dark Snow Pack?"

The pack knows now who Ryder truly was – Alpha of the Dark Snow Pack. In addition, Marcus and his team’s identity has also been exposed.

The elders’ debate whether Reana, who’d allowed a threat to stay too close to the throne, was fit to remain the ruler of the pack, was growing louder with each passing day. Whispers in the corridors had become full-throated challenges in council meetings. And while Reana still held command, it was clear that she was losing the pack’s support.

They blamed her for bringing trouble, in the form of Tamara, into the pack. They blamed her for letting a threat, Alpha Snow, worm his way into her heart and bed. They accused her of breaking her father’s wish of her only mating from the pack. They shamed her for not properly vetting the pack members and gave power to Marcus and his team. They claimed the pack’s safety and reputation had been compromised.

Reana’s lips pressed into a thin line at Kira’s question. Her shoulders, already stiff with tension, seemed to tighten even further.

She’d defeated Tamara but that only stirred the Dark Snow Pack members in the wrong way, and they became even more aggressive. Although they fought no one...not yet, they’d had put a siege on her pack, demanding for their Alpha’s body.

At least, they had integrity. They didn’t gang up against Reana after the humiliating Tamara VS Reana fight. They accepted their loss with stoic silence, but made their intentions clear. They wouldn’t leave her pack unless they found Snow – dead or alive. And the Black Moon Pack was given a couple of days to find him, otherwise, there’d be real trouble.

"She remains here," Reana finally said, her voice quiet but cutting through the wind like a blade. "She’s a leverage. Holding her hostage in the name of giving her treatment will buy us some time."

But time to do what? Reana didn’t even know.

Kira said nothing. There wasn’t much to say.

Reana turned slightly, just enough for Kira to see the cold burn in her eyes. "If I return Tamara to them, I admit guilt. If I keep her here, I invite war. Either way, I lose."

"Then what will you do?" Kira asked gently.

Reana shook her head, "I’m not sure."

Right now, everyone in her pack, including her, was walking on eggshell. She didn’t forget what those people did to her pack, in her vision. Because the event that led to the destruction of her pack was contained, didn’t mean the destruction might not happen.

"But the elders—"

"Will fall in line," Reana snapped before she could finish. She took a deep breath. "Eventually."

She was mad at those snakes who did nothing but to lay blames on her as if she was aware of Ryder’s identity from the start. Reana admitted she carried a portion of the blame, but definitely not what those old geezer were saying about her.

"The mating ceremony is –"