Conquering Theana (21 page)

Tim
was more of an analytical planner of sorts. He was a natural scheduler and
organizer. It was a trait that bled over into his work as house manager. It
also helped him in his martial arts training. To have a calculating mind gave
him the upper hand that his brawn lacked. However, leaving his pack to join
another was something he never counted on.

He
quietly inventoried his room, which seemed small and cozy. A bed, an armchair,
and a desk for planning had been his world for many years. Now he had an entire
estate, a compound even, that would be held under his leadership
alone
.
What
does it all mean? What will come of it? Am I ready?
Several questions
floated around his mind, which had taken a quick turn from secure to
insecurity.

Tim
entered into his small bathroom with adjoining closet. He wanted to freshen up
before he went to check on
Theana
. He turned on the
shower to the hottest setting, and then he undid his tied up dreads. Each lock
cascaded down his back almost reaching his elbows. He started growing them when
he entered the main house of
Ulric
, to commemorate
his parents' death and his acceptance of Rafael as his new patriarch.

He
stepped under the hot sheath of running water with thoughts of the uncertainty
that he was sure to face. Yes, Camden had committed a grave crime. Mates of
others were not to be tampered with. Not to mention the loyal wolves who helped
him. Many in the
Convel
clan would not accept him
personally, but they would respect him by natural order and law. Tim always
valued being the best at everything that he set out to do, and being alpha of
Convel
would be no different.

The
tense muscles in his shoulders and neck soon relaxed, and he finished washing
his body. After wrapping his waist in a towel, he decided to push the worries
of running his new pack to back of his mind. His new friend,
Theana
, was at the forefront of his concerns, and he needed
to see her.

He
walked into his small closet and took stock of his choices. His clothes were
comical at best considering his newly appointed title. Being merely a teen in a
man's world, his wardrobe consisted of slacks and jeans, button ups and polo
shirts, loafers and boots. Rafael would joke around with him some days saying
that he would be a great leader one day and he should dress like one.
Oh,
how he was so right with that notion.
Usually when they would have those
talks, Rafael would have a gift of clothing with him—some new suit that he had
found while in town. Come to think of it, Rafael would bring back little gifts
like that from time to time, another way to show Tim that he was more than just
an adopted lone wolf.

"Now
where are those damn suits?" Tim groaned while searching through his
closet.

Within
a matter of moments he found several suits hanging up wrapped in plastic with
the tags still affixed to the sleeves. Tim knew that he would not be too
relaxed in a full suit, so he decided to mix his personal style with the new
one that he would become accustomed to over time. He donned a pair of black
pants and matching suit jacket. Due to Rafael's teasing, he had a row of dress
shirts in an array of styles and colors. He found a slate colored shirt to wear
underneath the jacket. Prada double strapped loafers and cologne finished him
off.

Tim
took a quick peek at himself in the mirror thinking that he cleaned up well. He
kept his dreads hanging low, which added to his look.
Powerful
.
When he entered his room to gather his tablet and essentials for the running of
the house, he felt the sudden chill of his room. He became somber. The next
time he would enter his room, he would be collecting his things to move on. It
was no longer his room.

He
quietly shut the door behind him and walked through the common area of the
house. With Tim being the house manager, his room was one of the rooms on the
ground level near the living room. This gave him easy access to the kitchen
staff, the living room area, and deliveries. There were a few wolves sitting on
the many couches in the common area. When they caught sight of Tim they bowed
their heads out of respect. An alpha was amongst them. His throat tightened
with a large ball of air, but he wasn't feeling despair or nervous.
Pride
.

Tim
ascended the stairs, two at a time, and came face to face with the pack. The entire
clan seemed to be piled on top of each other outside of the master suite. They
all bowed their heads to him, and the outpouring of respect was almost
overwhelming. Before he was neither seen nor heard. He worked the background.
Things had changed overnight for him. It was a dawning of a new day, and he
needed to get acclimated with being with the heads of state, so to speak.

Many
of the wolves were in wolf form out of respect of their alpha bitch being
unconscious. While the others bowed to him, a dusky colored wolf approached
with cool blue eyes.
Narina's
eyes looked him over
from head to toe. She moved in a step closer. Tim could feel the heat and cool
of her nostrils taking in his scent, and then her eyes beckoned to him again.
Her head dropped slowly into one of the best bows of all.

Over
the years of being with Rafael and Gregori, Tim was left utterly motherless.
Narina
had taken an especial interest in him. She showed
him the benefits of tough love that only a mother could provide. So to see her
dipping her head low solidified the respect and loyalty received from his now
old clan. He could only hope that he would be received the same from the new
one.

Narina
lifted her head slightly then began nudging him toward the master
bedroom. In that moment, he had forgotten why he was even standing there. He
stood in the doorway then tapped lightly on the frame. Rafael and Gregori were
lying in the bed with
Theana
almost covering her.

"Come
in, Tim," Gregori whispered.

As
he approached the bed, he could see that
Theana
had
shifted out of her wolf form, but she remained unconscious.

"How’s
she doing?" Tim asked, standing on
Gregori's
side of the enormous bed.

"She’s
doing well. Her body has healed, and she’s sleeping right now," Gregori
answered.

"Trying
to sleep at least,"
Theana
interjected with a
raspy voice.

"
Shh
. You must rest," Rafael stated.

"How
can I rest when there's a hero in the room,"
Theana
said, then slid to a sitting position between her two mates.

"I
didn't mean to disturb you Miss
Theana
. I just wanted
to check in on you." Tim was riddled with guilt that he had broken the
peace in the room while she was in such a fragile state.

"Who
is disturbing me? I am star struck. Tim saved me from the big bad wolf,"
she teased him. Tim couldn't believe that he'd forged a friendship so fast with
her, but it was a strong one. He chuckled at her statement. Then Rafael sat up
and took notice of the new Tim.

"Whoa!
Look at you! You are looking like a great leader in those fresh duds," he
taunted. Rafael made his way out of the bed taking care to caress his alpha
bitch's cheek before he stood in front of Tim in only cotton drawstring pajama
pants. He grasped Tim at the shoulder then planted a huge grin on his face
before he pulled Tim into an embrace.

"I'm
proud of you, man. And I say man because you became one only
hours
ago. I always knew you were made to lead, and here you are.
Alpha
of the
Convel
pack.
Of course there'll be a
Council meeting, but that's only a formality to determine what will happen to
Camden. Nature's law states you're the rightful leader."

Tim
could do nothing but nod his head, but his smile from ear to ear showed that he
was happy that he made Rafael proud of him.

"Hey, you two.
Am I chopped liver over here? Come here,
Tim,"
Theana
ordered. He readily complied. Yes,
Tim had amassed a leadership role, but his heart remained loyal to
Theana
not only as a friend but the alpha bitch of his
former pack. He came around the bed to Rafael's side. She pulled back the
covers and patted the bed for him to sit. Once he scooted in, sitting Indian
style next to her, Rafael joined all three at the foot of the bed. Gregori had
sat up and gave Tim a wink of approval.

Theana
pulled Tim into a warm embrace. He could feel her heartbeat,
strong as the wind, and her scent was filled with the spring. She would be
okay. The little tussle with the traitorous wolves didn't affect her one bit.
He could smell it on her.

She
held him at arm's length with her eyes glistening. Tim felt as if it were only
the two of them in the room while they had their moment. Of course Rafael and
Gregori were there watching, and the rest of the pack at the door looking from
afar, but they were all blurs.

"Thank
you for finding me. Thank you for avenging me. Thank you for being the wolf of
strength, pride, and loyalty. The
Convel
are blessed
with a great new alpha." She then bowed her head to Tim. He felt so many
things in that moment. He knew that
Theana
was above him
in rank, but she was acknowledging him as alpha now. He was elated to embark on
the new adventure full of new duties and great power, yet he was sad to leave
the only pack that he had known.
The pack that raised him.
The pack that surrounded him and howled at the moon when word
came that his parents—two of their own—had perished.
The
pack that surrounded him and cheered on when he became victorious over a
physically stronger alpha.
His pack would live on his heart and bleed
out through his leadership.

"Okay,
enough of this sappy stuff. There are a lot of things that need to happen today,
and our mate needs her rest," Gregori blurted gaining everyone's
attention.

"Your
beta is right. We want to thank the pack for surrounding their alpha bitch
while she's recuperating. Her strength is increasing, and she will be back to
normal within a day. You may all return to your lives. The pack is whole
again," Rafael stated to all of the wolves surrounding the door.

The
various wolves in the hall yipped in response and filed away from the room.

"Tim,
there will be a Council meeting today in a few hours, so you should make your
way to Seurri HQ to get acquainted with your new staff. The call to make you
the official alpha of
Convel
has not been stated
formally, but you can get acclimated with your section of HQ. Gregori and I
will be there before the start. We wish to spend some time with our mate before
business."

Tim
patted
Theana
on the shoulder then climbed out of the
bed. He left the three alone to relax while he entered into his first task as
alpha. He left out the main house from the rear entrance in the kitchen. His
practical F-150 that he used to haul essential items for
Ulric
clan seemed so inappropriate for his new life, so he vowed to obtain a vehicle
that was more fitting to his new nature.

After
driving a few minutes down the highway, he passed the land that was allocated
to the
Convel
clan. Before it was so inconsequential,
but that day it had meaning. It belonged to him.
Under his
rule.

He
drove in a thoughtful trance. Before he popped back into reality, he was
pulling into his assigned parking spot.
Convel
alpha.
He took the main elevators up to the sixtieth floor.
Once off the elevators, a petite dark-eyed woman with bronze skin met him. Her
hair was swept up into a bun, and she was fashionable in a form-fitting
business suit. She approached Tim then took his hand in hers.

"Morning.
Alpha of Seurri notified me that you will be the official alpha
after today’s Council hearing. I'm your assistant, Mira. It is truly a pleasure
to meet you and work under you."

Tim
couldn't help but notice the flirtatious undertone in her voice, but he was
filled with too much excitement to care. Most saw him as assistant to his alpha
while he was a part of
Ulric
, but now he had his own.
This has to be unreal.

"Follow
me," she said again flashing her pools of dipped chocolate in his
direction.

As
the two made their way through the first main level of the office, he was
amazed at how different the
Convel
section of HQ was
compared to the
Ulric
level. They had buffed hardwood
floors, soft lighting, and earth-tone leather furniture. The first floor was
for greeting guest and conference rooms, so there wasn't much to see. Mira
walked them onto a private elevator that only went through the
Convel
floors. The second floor housed all the equipment
used for surveillance of the outer grounds of Seurri and the stadium. The third
level was fashioned much like the second with a few offices and surveillance
for the other main buildings and structures of Seurri. The next three levels
were filled with cubicles and smaller offices for the wolves who worked around
the clock to keep the large town safe. The next two levels were only offices
for the ranking wolves in the clan and the chief of the police department with
the final two floors all for Tim.