Luna of Mine (3 page)

Alina closed her eyes at
the memory of the Great Luna telling her about her mate. She had
thought that meant that her mate would be showing up within a
matter of days, but now, several months later, still nothing. She
tried not to grow bitter as she heard of others finding their own
true mates, but she wasn’t about to lie and pretend it was easy.
She wanted to be a mate; she wanted to be something to her male
that no other could be. But waiting never had been her strong
suit.

She laid there for several
more minutes until finally she heard her mother’s footsteps and
knew she would have to go. She stood up and brushed off her dress
and looked up at the moon. “Same time tomorrow?”
No, she didn’t expect the moon to answer back,
but then, she was a werewolf, anything was possible.

Romanian Proverb # 2

Nu haina îl face pe
om.

“
Clothes
do not make the man.”

“
I
t’s been less than a century since
I lost my brother,” Vasile said as he paced the large room that had
been his father’s meeting hall. “How am I to deal with the loss of
my parents, my Alpha, so soon after such a tragedy? To think, three
members of the same bloodline are gone, within a century of one
another, and this after my parents survived the 1712 werewolf wars,
not to mention the loss of our last gypsy healer.”

Anghel walked further into
the room as he watched the son of one of his oldest friends begin
the grieving process. Stefan and Daciana Lupei had been two of the
most loyal friends he had ever known. Being Alphas of separate
packs had never hindered their relationship. Though he was the
Alpha of the Western Romanian pack and Vasile now the Alpha of the
Eastern Romanian pack, it did not change how he felt for the son of
his old friend. He ached for him. He hurt with him and he knew
there were no words that could heal him. Maybe time would heal but
even that would be only a salve to the wound, not a
cure.

“
You
will deal with it because you must,” Anghel finally spoke, his deep
voice resonating against the stone walls. “You are Alpha now; you
are no pup. You are a century old and you know what it means to be
Alpha and I don’t remind you of that because I care little for your
pain. I remind you of that because there will be some who see your
position as weak. They will think you an easy target, and when that
happens they will do something foolish.”

Vasile snarled. He didn’t
want to hear it, though he knew it was true. His father’s pack for
the most part was united, but there were always one or two upstarts
who thought they could run things better. There were always a
couple who thought they should be the leaders, but they didn’t
understand if you were meant to lead it wasn’t something you
grumbled about it late at night in the local pub. If you were meant
to lead, then you led because the wolf inside of you refused to
follow. Vasile knew he was a leader not just by birthright but by
the wolf that lived inside of him. His wolf bowed only to his
father, and that was only out of respect. He could have beaten
Stefan in a challenge years ago, but he would not disrespect his
father or mother in such a way. And now here he was, Alpha of the
Eastern Pack, only a few short years later. He didn’t have to worry
about whether he might one day have to convince his wolf not to
challenge his Alpha, because his Alpha was dead.

“
You
must nip any notion of a mutiny in the bud, Vasile,” Anghel urged.
“You must reassure your pack that though their Alphas have gone on
to be with the Great Luna, the Eastern Romanian pack is still
strong and has a new Alpha, just as powerful as the old
one.”

“
I know
you are right, and I trust you just as my father did. I am still
just trying to get my head around the fact that they are
gone.”

Anghel nodded. “It was
unexpected to say the least. May I ask how it happened?”

Vasile’s shoulders tensed.
This was the part that he dreaded. This was what he did not want
anyone to know because he did not want them to think any less of
his father or his mother. “Do you want the official story or the
one my father would have you know because of your
friendship?”

When Anghel simply gave
him a pointed look he continued. “You have heard that old wolves
can sometimes become crazed?”

Anghel’s brow furrowed and
he nodded slowly. “But that usually happens to unmated males not
ones who have found their true mates.”

Vasile’s eyes slowly met
the Western Romanian pack Alpha’s. The next words were ones that
had not been uttered since his father had spoken them to him nearly
eighty years ago and told him never to tell anyone. “My mother,
Daciana, was not my father’s true mate.”

Anghel’s eyes narrow and
his brow furrowed. “They were mated for a very long time. How can
this be? And what about your father’s markings? They changed; I saw
them before he was mated and after.” Anghel said as his eyes
widened.

Vasile motioned for him to
take a seat at the table that dominated the center of the room. He
pulled out a chair and sat next to him angling his body so that he
was facing him. “I need your word that you will never share this
with anyone.”

Anghel nodded
once.

“
My
father had the rare fortune of meeting his true mate when they were
very young, too young to fulfill the Blood Rites or the bond. It
was a time when humans were superstitious and Canis lupis had to be
very careful about who they befriended outside of the pack. My
father’s true mate trusted the wrong person and paid for it with
her life. Since they were not yet bonded, he
survived.”

“What about your mother?
Didn’t she worry she would find her true mate and have to leave
your father?” Anghel asked.

Vasile chuckled. “Why do
you think my father kept her so close to his side and so close to
home all of the time? They loved each other, make no mistake about
that. And I believe my mother kept my father sane far longer than
ever would have been possible, although I think the guilt he had
for keeping her from her true mate ate away at him over time and
probably contributed to his madness. He knew the fate to which he
was condemning Daciana’s true mate, but he loved her and when a
wolf decides something belongs to him he does not easily let it
go.

“
As for
his markings, you know that he did not announce his mating until
after the trip that he took supposedly in search of mate. My mother
was already here. The trip was just a guise used to travel to the
sea to meet with a band of pirates. He knew of the custom they
practiced called tattooing, one that could place permanent markings
on the skin. He decided that to keep up the appearance of having
found his mate, he would have his marks altered artificially. Since
the females marks are never seen by anyone other than her mate, it
was not important that Daciana obtain markings.”

Anghel shook his head and
closed his eyes as he let Vasile’s words sink into him. “What he
did was proof that he was already showing signs of madness: to take
another’s mate as his own, to alter his marks unnaturally, and to
bear a child with her?”

Vasile nodded. “I know but
he ruled his pack fairly and none could challenge him and win. For
all intents and purposes he did as he was called to as an Alpha. He
guided, loved, shepherded, and kept order over his pack. My mother
supported him as best she could. Even though she wasn’t his true
mate, she was an Alpha in her own right. Had she not been a
dominant female the farce never would have held up.”

“
Your
mother didn’t have to die, did she, Vasile?” Anghel asked
unnecessarily. He knew the answer, but he felt like it needed to be
spoken aloud.

Vasile’s shoulder hunched
forward as he felt the weight of her loss. “No, but they wanted to
keep up the charade of their status. She was willing to die to
protect my place as Alpha, and she truly didn’t want to live
without my father. She loved him, maybe not in a way possible
between true mates, but in her own way, she loved him.”

“That is so much for one
man to carry.”

Vasile nodded. “Maybe, but
it is my burden and one that I cannot share with the pack—ever.
They would see my father’s actions as weak and his dishonesty with
them about his mate traitorous. And then they would question my
integrity and my loyalty to the pack. They might even take it as
far as to say that Alphas must bear their markings, even the
female, for all the pack to see as proof of their mating, and that
would not be wise.”

Anghel shifted restlessly
in his chair as he considered the quandary Vasile now found himself
in. “If you are to be Alpha, and be obeyed completely, you must
demand their fealty. You must command their submission and the only
way to do that is to be present. You will need to go out and visit
the villages of pack members. You need to make yourself known, and
you need to squelch any rumors about your parents’ death and reveal
the truth.” Vasile started to interrupt but Anghel held up his hand
to stop him. “I do not mean the real truth. I mean the truth that
you will tell your top four, and their mates as well. By now, even
the furthest pack members will be feeling the loss of their Alphas.
They will need reassurance that the pack is safe and intact. They
will need contact with you, the heart of their pack, and they will
need to see confidence in your eyes. That is where they will find
their comfort and stability.”

Vasile rubbed his face as
he let out a long sigh. Already the difficulties of what was ahead
weighed heavily on him. “The pack is scattered. My father’s hold
was strong enough to keep them united even as they sought out new
land and territories. As we’ve thrived in the absence of war we
have grown through matings. There have even been a couple births,
and without a healer that is a miracle in and of itself. It will
take time to reach them all if I am to visit every
village.”

“
Rumors
of your visits will spread quickly. You know as well as I do that
male wolves gossip worse than any of the
females.”

Vasiles’ lips turned up
ever so slightly at the older wolf’s words. “That is true enough. I
need to meet with my father’s…,” he paused and then corrected
himself, “with
my
top males. I will leave my second, Alin, here in charge and
take my third and fourth with me.”

“That is wise,” Anghel
agreed. “Have you thought about your mate?”

Vasile’s head snapped up.
“What do you mean have I thought about her? I have yet to find her.
How am I to think of her?”

“
I mean
have you thought about searching for her, actively, instead of just
hoping that the Fates grace you with their favor. You need a mate.
She will make you stronger, not to mention give you the ability to
produce an heir. You know that proven virility is seen as a
strength by the males. It will make them less likely to challenge
you.”

“
So
while I’m out reassuring the pack you want me to be hunting as
well?” Vasile’s eyes began to glow as he considered the idea of
actually finding her, his true mate. He had not entirely been
telling the truth when he claimed that he could not possibly be
thinking of her since he had yet to find her. There wasn’t a second
in any day that he did not think of her. He wondered what she would
look like. Would she have long hair or did she keep it shorter? Was
she tall and lithe, or short and curvy in all the right places?
Would her eyes sparkle when she laughed? On and on the questions
bombarded his mind. In truth he was desperate for her. Whoever she
was, he needed her, wanted her, and prayed the Great Luna would
show him mercy and lead him to her.

“
I heard
from your father that you are the most patient hunter in your pack.
He said that when you hunt as your wolf, you somehow allow the
animal more control without losing yourself. Maybe you should try
to stir your wolf’s patience while in your human
form?”

“
I have
a feeling that this hunt will not provoke the same kind of patience
in him as the hunt for a kill does. My wolf is restless for his
mate. The darkness inside of me gains more ground every day, and
now I have no family left to keep my wolf in check. I almost pity
the female who gets stuck with me.”

Romanian Proverb # 3

Nu te juca cu coada
ursului.

Never trouble trouble till
trouble troubles you.

I
t
was in the heat of the afternoon that Alina felt the ache, the
emptiness left from the loss. It was like a hole had been carved
into her heart and a chunk of it removed. She gasped from the pain
as she fell forward over the table where she had been kneading
dough for the evening meal. She knew what it was immediately
because she had been taught as a child the strength of the bond
between Alpha and pack. She felt the tears on her cheeks before she
even realized she was crying. This hurt far worse than she had
imagined it would.

“
Alina!”
She heard her mother’s voice coming from outside. She hurried to
the door, clutching onto anything she could for support.