Kingdom of Wolves - Page 93

Arriving at the border of the Eclipse Pack, I’m surprised tosee how many warriors are waiting on their side. Drake and Poppa Lykos are thetwo that have accompanied me. I maintain my confident posture, and I can feelEbony supporting me by giving out a little of our power.

“Welcome to the Eclipse Pack, Tatiana Winterstorm.” Onewarrior clearly states as he steps forward to the border, making sure he staysinside his territory. “My name is Dixon. I am the Chief Warrior for the EclipsePack and your guide while you are here. Alpha Blueblood instructed that you betaken directly to the packhouse where you can get settled into your room beforeyou meet the Alpha and Luna for lunch.”

Turning, I give Poppa Lykos a hug and whisper I’ll see himin two weeks. Facing Drake, I give him a look that he knows well. It’s metelling him I’ll be fine and ready to face whatever comes.

“Be careful and learn all you can, then come home with adecision.” Poppa Lykos says as he gives me a last hug and steps back for me tocross the border into the Eclipse Pack territory.

Stepping over, I feel the magic flow, which has always takenme by surprise, but I don’t show any response to the feeling. It’s just theshifter world letting me know I’m now in a pack and not in territory that isclassed as free.

A young woman steps forward from the warriors waiting andgives me a smile. “Hi, I’m Hazel and I’m looking forward to getting to knowyou. I hope you are going to train with us while you are here. There are onlytwo female warriors at the moment, but more are stepping up.”

Waving at Poppa and Drake, I follow behind Chief Dixon, andwalk next to Hazel. She talks non-stop and although she’s giving me the namesof others, I’m not sure I’ll remember them all.

It’s a good thing Drake had us travel from three in themorning, as it took four hours to get to the border. I’m starting to tire alittle although we stopped a few times to rest our human legs and wolves, muchto Ebony’s disgust, she wanted to run the whole way and get here fast.

Reaching the packhouse, males are openly staring, butthankfully not in any leering kind of way. The females, I’m getting noaggressive vibes from, which I’m very happy about, especially after having thatat the Blackshadow, Spirit Walker, and Blood Pearl Packs.

“Come, Tati, I’ll show you to your room.” Chief Dixon looksover his shoulder and I follow him through a large hallway, up a flight ofstairs, and along to a room at the end. When he opens the door I walk inside,I’m pretty shocked. It’s more like an apartment.

There’s a huge bed on one wall with a dresser and side tablenext to it. A sitting area with a large TV on the wall. Double doors open to abalcony that overlooks the side of the pack training area. I know that becauseI see training happening. Walking back inside, I open a door, and there is abathtub, shower, basin, and toilet. I’m set and sure it’ll be nice here for thetwo weeks I’ll be visiting.

“Will this be okay?” Chief Dixon asks as he is stillstanding in the doorway.

“It is perfect, thank you. I don’t need much and, as you cansee, I only have a few things with me.” I throw my backpack onto the bed, readyto empty the few clothes and toiletries I’ve brought along with me.

“I’ll either come back for you to eat or send someone. Willan hour be okay? Lunch will be served at that time.”

“That will be fine, thank you.”

Closing the door as he leaves, I quickly empty the backpack,place the few things in the drawers, and walk into the bathroom. I start theshower before stripping out of my dusty clothes and having an enjoyable shower.

Dried, dressed, and hair tied back in a braid that flowsdown my back, I rinse out the clothes I’d worn and hang them on the handrail onthe balcony. The sun is directly on the balcony so the clothes will be dry bylate afternoon, so I’m not going to worry about running out of clean clothing.

Knocking on the door gets my attention, and walking over, Iopen it and give a small smile to the tall woman standing in front of me,smiling back. “Hi, I’m Giselle, a warrior for the pack, and bestie with Hazel.Chief Dixon asked me to fetch you for lunch.”

“Oh, okay, thank you. I’m Tatiana, but you can call meTati.” I close the bedroom door and start to walk down the hall toward thestaircase.

“Oh, I know who you are and I’m so excited to have met areal-life Alpha female. What an honor. I hope you are going to turn the towninto a pack. That would be awesome. I’ll come visit even if you don’t, becauseyou are sure to be strong enough to get into mischief with the rest of usfemales.” Giselle is babbling away and I’m not sure if she realizes how fastshe is talking.

Walking into the dining room, I come to a halt when everyset of eyes turns our way. Some of the males run their eyes over me with morethan a little interest, but what has me in awe is the group of females that aresmiling and beckoning us to the large round table.

Taking a seat, I smile, and a round of names flies past:Sofia, Eloise, Summer, and Ember, plus Hazel, who is smirking at the look on myface.

The one called Ember pats my hand to get my attention and,looking to my right side where she’s sitting, she shocks me when she clearlystates what I had in my mind. “I know what you’re thinking. Why are they sofriendly? I wonder if this is a trick. Let me tell you, we are not like thathere in this pack. We all help each other and keep the males in line if needed.There are so few females in the pack that are not mated, and I suppose that islucky, but it leaves just the six of us available, which creates interest fromthe males, as you can imagine. While you are here, we all would like to get toknow you, and form a friendship that can continue once you leave.”

“I would like that. I have a bestie who calls me sister too.He’s great, just got his wolf, and he’s going to be a great warrior. My otherfriend is Alpha Lyle of the Spirit Walker Pack. We had a friendship start whileI was with them and he’s great too. He’ll make a fantastic Alpha. He loves hispack and cares deeply about his members and the friends that he makes outsideof the pack.”

The females listen intently and are nodding and smiling as Ispeak. “I’m pleased that he’s like his father, as Alpha Walker was a greatleader of the pack, and his Luna is lovely. I’ve met them both a few times whenwe’ve been on business.” Hazel tells us and then smiles. “I hope my mate willbe a nice male like Alpha Lyle. I don’t care what position in the pack he’llhold, just that he loves and cares for me.”

More murmurs of agreement fly around the table and whenGiselle speaks, we all jump to our feet. “Come on, let’s get something to eatbefore the males get their hands on all the good stuff.”

Placing a pasta salad onto my plate is enough for me, but Igrin when I see the heaps of food the other females have. “Hey, we’ve beentraining this morning. We’ve worked up an appetite.” Summer laughs.

“Oh, Xander is walking this way, with a purpose, too.”Eloise murmurs and I push my plate away before looking up and seeing one of thewarriors from the border this morning nearing our table.

“Tatiana, if you’ve finished lunch, Alpha Blueblood wouldlike to speak with you.” Xander gives the females a half smile, tipping onlyone side of his mouth, and I think he knows it has him looking rather handsomewhen he does it as his eyes are sparkling with amusement when Sofia sighs whilelooking at him with huge eyes.

“I’ve finished. I just need to take my plate away.”