Chapter 4: Eliza

Kaiden’s P.O.V

On my arrival at Half Moon, I was greeted by the Luna and The Beta. They both had kind smiles and projected a warmth that was similar to that of my own mother and my Beta, though they were older than us, they still treated us with respect which I honestly didn’t expect.

You see most of the Alphas from other packs around here were far older than us and far more arrogant, as were their heirs. They would pat us on the heads like we were pups and talk to us as if they knew better. They believed Alphas should be feared and respected, even by their own packs but I didn’t work that way, I respected my pack members, after all, without them, what was the point in my role?

As I pondered the sight before me, I realised their Alpha wasn’t present for my arrival which was odd, as an Alpha, I would always ensure I was there waiting for my guests, after all, it was only polite as their host.

“Welcome Alpha Kaiden, it’s such an honour and privilege to meet you. I am Luna Annabelle Silver but you can call me Annie,” she said extending her hand towards me. I took her hand and gently placed a kiss on the back “Please, it’s just Kaiden to you, thank you for inviting me,” she looked at me and smiled, “Your parents have raised such a polite man, they should be very proud of what they’ve achieved.” I smiled a genuine smile “Thank you Luna” I replied.

The Luna then turned to the Beta and introduced us, “Kaiden, this is our Beta and most trusted friend Gregory,” “It’s a pleasure to meet you Alpha” he said with a small bow, I nodded back “And you Beta Gregory.” I then turned and introduced my own Beta “This is Beta Luke, he is more like a brother, we grew up together.”

I smiled as Luna Annabelle turned him and gave her own warm smile. “It’s nice to meet you Beta Luke.” Luke smiled back and nodded “Thank you Luna, please, just call me Luke.” She smiled and then gestured for us to go inside, she then turned to Beta Gregory “Greg, could you please let my husband know that our guests have arrived and we’re waiting in the lobby,” she asked.

The Beta bowed and replied “Yes Luna” and with that, he turned on his heels and ascended the stairs.

Luna Annabelle then turned her attention back to me and Luke and gave a slightly apologetic look “I’m sorry the Alpha wasn’t here to greet you Kaiden, he’s under a lot of stress at the moment. Unfortunately we lost our Gamma the other night after rogues infiltrated our boarders.” Her gaze dropped to the floor, her features tainted with sadness. She quickly gathered herself and her smile returned “We have appointed a new Gamma but it unfortunately has coincided with your arrival, he’s been tied up with arranging the late Gamma’s funeral and the official ceremony for the new Gamma.”

I nodded my head in understanding, unfortunately, sometimes these things happen unexpectedly, so it’s not always possible to be prepared.

As Alpha George was sitting in his study going through the arrangements for the ceremony in which his only pup would officially take the Gamma title and recalling his pup as she was growing up, there was a knock at the door. “Who is it?” The Alpha called, “It’s Beta Gregory Alpha.” “Come in” Alpha George allows entry and is greeted with a small bow from Beta Gregory. “Alpha Kaiden has arrived Alpha, he’s waiting downstairs with Luna Annabelle and his Beta Luke.”

Alpha George walks out of his study and down the hall flanked by Beta Gregory, the pair descend down the stairs into the lobby where he is greeted by Luna Annabelle, Alpha Kaiden and Beta Luke.

After a few minutes, the Beta returned with the Alpha, he threw an apologetic look and smiled. It was clear he hadn’t been sleeping well, he looked exhausted. “Please excuse my tardiness Alpha Kaiden, things have been a little……chaotic here as of late, I’m Alpha George, I hope your travels here weren’t too strenuous,” he stated, I simply smiled and replied “It’s not a problem Alpha, I understand that things are some times out of our control, the drive though a little long, was quite pleasant thank you, and please, call me Kaiden.” He smiled back and gave a small nod and turned to Beta Gregory “Greg, can you have the maids prepare the guest rooms upstairs please? Kaiden and his Beta….” He looked at Luke and I then realised that I hadn’t yet introduced them, “My apologies Alpha, this is my Beta, Luke” I said, a slight hint of embarrassment had touched my cheeks as the turned slightly pink, Luke jumped then jumped in “It’s just Luke” as he offered a smile and a small bow.

Alpha George chuckled and turned back to his Beta “Kaiden and Luke will be staying here during their visit.” Beta Gregory bowed with a smile and left.

Luna Annabelle then cleared her throat to speak “Well, now all the formalities are out of the way, why don’t we retire to the living room while we wait, we can have a drink and get to know each other a little better before tonight.”

“Thank you Luna, that would be lovely” I said in response, she then quickly responded with “I’ve already told you Kaiden, you can call me Annie, this family isn’t one for formalities in the privacy of our own home.”

I took in the look she was giving me and the tone of her voice, I recognised that tone very well, it was a tone of which only a mother possessed and I had to admit, it was comforting. “Apologies Annie,” I gave her a cheeky smile and she looked at me as if she had seen that kind of smile before.

Before anyone could say anything further, Annie led us to the living room and we sat down. The living room had been decorated beautifully. Unlike my own which was very modern by today’s standards, theirs had a very warm family feel to it, it was calm, painted in creams and light greys with family pictures hung around the walls and decorating the mantle.

Alpha George’s eyes glazed over which told me he was in the middle of a mind-link with someone and Annie had excused herself to the rest room.

As I studied the pictured that spread around the room, my eyes fell on one photo in particular, It was a picture of the Alpha, Luna and a girl. Judging by their appearances, it can’t have been taken too long ago. The girl was surely stunning, she holds a natural beauty that is very rare these days. She had the most beautiful blue eyes and long dark hair, she was small with the most lovely olive skin and her smile looked as if it belonged to an angel, yes, she was a beauty indeed.

All of a sudden, the Alpha spoke, bringing me back to reality “That’s Eliza, my daughter” he explained. I looked at him and his face had a half smile, he looked a little disappointed. “She was supposed to be here to greet you along side her mother and I but she’s been held up, you’ll meet her tonight.” I smiled at the thought, I nodded my head at him.

The Luna returned and it was clear she had overheard Alpha George, “Eliza is very headstrong and outspoken Kaiden, all I can do is apologise in advance, we haven’t raised her to be rude but..” She paused for a moment and let out a small sigh before continuing, “Eliza has been through some things that have tainted her view of life and people.” The statement intrigued me. What had she been through? What did the Luna mean? I hoped Annie would elaborate but before she could utter another word, Beta Gregory entered the living room and informed us our rooms were ready.

Alpha George coughed and stood up from his chair. “You should get some rest Kaiden, it’s been a long morning for you I’m sure,” I nodded at him “It has George, I think a freshen up and rest is absolutely what I need.”

And with that, the maid escorted us out of the room and up to our temporary accommodations.

I took a shower and then laid on the bed, the room was lovely enough, it was painted in neutral colours but had the same homely feel as the living room. As I laid there, my thoughts turned to the beautiful girl from the pictures. “She really is stunning isn’t she,” my wolf intruded on my thoughts, “She is” I answered. “Natural beauty is something we don’t see back home” he blurted “I know” I said.

Jax must have picked up on my short answers because he didn’t speak further.

After around half an hour, my eyes slowly closed and I descended into a deep sleep. It’s not like me to look forward to formal events but for some reason, as I drifted off, I couldn’t help but feel a little excited for tonight’s festivities.

I woke to the sound of a light tapping on my door “Who is it?” I called, “It’s Helena, the head maid Alpha, I’m sorry to disturb you, I just wondered if you needed anything, myself and the other maids will be over at the pack house soon.”

The maids voice sounded like that of an older she-wolf, “No thank you Helena, I have everything,” I replied kindly, “If you’re sure Alpha?” I giggled to myself, “Yes I’m sure, you may leave me.” I then heard her feet tapping along the floor as she left my door.

I looked over at the clock on the bedside table, it read 4:30pm, I decided to get up and shower, though the celebration didn’t start until 6, if I showered now then I wouldn’t be rushing around when I had to get ready.

Once I stepped out of the shower and back into the room I threw on a pair of joggers that I had laying on the bed and took myself to the wardrobe, I had to admit, for a guest bedroom, it was huge. While I was rifling through the suits I had, a mind-link came through “Dude, I can’t decide what to wear!” I had to laugh “Luke, how did you even bring enough to have this problem?”Jax came through and chuckled with me, I grabbed my chosen suit off the rail, it was a blue 3 piece.

“I had to be prepared incase I found her!” My laugh suddenly caught, I knew this feeling all too well, I understood exactly. “Personally I’ve gone with the suit that called to me in the store that day” I linked, “Maybe just hone in your senses and one will call to you too.”

There was a silence for moment until Luke finally linked back “Thanks dude, I think I have the perfect one, I’m going to get ready now, I’ll meet you at your room.” Luke closed the link and I smiled, I hoped Luke would find his mate, even if I didn’t find mine, he’s always been a loyal friend and I liked to think of him more as family, a brother from another mother kind of thing, he deserved all the happiness in the world.

I put on my suit jacket as a knock came at my door, “Who is it?” I called out, a voice from the other side called back “It’s me Alpha,” I instantly recognised the voice, it was Luke, “Come in” I called back.

Luke entered the room with a look of pure shock, “Luke?, are you alright?” I asked “Sit down” I gestured to the sofa. Luke looked up at me and blurted out “She’s here dude, my wolf can sense her, he caught her scent.” I stared down at him, equally shocked “Who is it?” I asked, “I don’t know, I can’t find her, do you think she’ll be at the party?” He questioned, I thought for a moment, “I don’t know man, but if she is, you haven’t got long to wait, we’ll find her.”

Luke smiled a genuine smile for the first time in a very long time, I was happy for him, if he can find his happily ever after here, could I find mine? For the first time in years, I wasn’t afraid to hope, Luke excused himself to go to the bathroom before we left out and I stood looking out of the window. Suddenly I noticed something familiar just over the other side of the playground, Jax bounced around in my head like an excited puppy, “That’s the place” he kept saying “That’s where we were” Jax had just confirmed what I thought, it was the lavender field from my dream, the place where we met our mate, my heart filled and I said a silent prayer to the moon goddess, my mate is here somewhere, I had to find her, no, I NEED to find her.

Luke re-entered the room and looked at me slightly concerned, “Are you ok dude? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” I turned to look at him “I’m fine, let’s get ourselves to this party shall we.” With that we both turned and left the room.

We walked down the stairs and noticed Alpha George stood at the bottom in the lobby. “Ah Kaiden, Luke, did you manage to rest?” He asked with a smile, “We did, thank you George.”

We smiled back at him, he was much kinder and more hospitable than my father. Don’t get me wrong, my father loved us but to the outside world, he was just as hard and arrogant as the other Alphas. “Please allow me to escort you to the pack house, Annie will be here in a moment and we can leave” I nodded my head and smiled, I’ve never felt so welcomed as I have here, honestly, it was nice to meet an Alpha that actually cares, it’s so rare to find these days.

I looked over at Luke, his eyes kept flashing green, telling me he was struggling with his wolf Blaze. I linked to him “What’s wrong with blaze?” Luke looked back at me “He’s trying to surface, he can smell my mate really heavy down here and he wants to find her,” I looked at Alpha George who luckily hadn’t noticed Luke’s inner struggle, I looked back at Luke, at this point I needed to stop this before it became too hard to handle, I brought Jax to the surface and let him handle Blaze. Jax Alpha commanded Blaze to retract himself for now, and Luke’s eyes changed back to his normal colour, Jax then retracted himself once he was content that Blaze had followed his orders, Luke then linked “Thanks man, I wasn’t sure if I could hold him off much longer” I nodded at him and returned my attention to Alpha George.

Just then, I looked up and saw Luna Annabelle, though she was an older she-wolf, she looked no older the thirty, I couldn’t deny she was lovely both in personality and looks, I wondered if her daughter held the same warmth that Annabelle did.

“Oh Annie, you look lovely as always my beautiful lily.” Annabelle smiled at George and replied “Thank you dear, you don’t look too bad yourself.” Seeing the love between these two could melt even the hardest of wolves, I always appreciated the beauty of love, the way couples would look at one another, I hoped that I too would find my love.

Suddenly, Alpha George’s voice disturbed my thoughts, “Shall we go?” As he gestured to the doors, we all nodded and started making our way to their pack house and Luna Annabelle decided to point out parts of the pack grounds and what they’re used for.

I took in her words and saw a massive structure being built not too far from their pack house, “What’s that going to be George?” I directed my question at him because he was the only one not joining the conversation, he seemed a million miles away in his own mind, he shook himself out of his thoughts and answered “Ah, that’s going to be a new, bigger pack house, we figured ours was too small, if you were gracious enough to accept our alliance then we would need a bigger space to house your men if they visited and so, with my architectural mind and our Luna’s eye for design, this was what we came up with, I’ll show you the plans tomorrow if you’d like, maybe you could add something to them that we haven’t thought of.”

I smiled at the thought that this Alpha wanted my input for a joint future, “Of course George, I’d be happy to look it over, although I don’t see what I could possibly add,” Alpha George smiled but I could tell something was definitely bothering him, rather than press him on the matter, I simply smiled back.

As we entered through the doors of the pack house, I took in the decor, it was beautifully done white walls, gold trimmings and gorgeous marble floors throughout, it was more elaborate than the mansion to say the least but I had to admit, I preferred the mansion with its more homely feel and amazing views.

We walked through the lobby and then through a massive marble archway that was lined with gold and into a huge hall. It was easy to tell that Luna Annabelle had put a lot of time and effort into to this event. “Annie, this is amazing” I said, my eyes alight with pure appreciation, “honestly, you didn’t have to go to this much trouble,” I continued.

The Luna raised her hand to stop me speaking and cut in, “It was no trouble at all Kaiden.” We smiled at each other and then Luna Annabelle excused herself to talk to a group of women who had placed themselves next to one of the refreshment tables, Alpha George, Luke and I walked around greeting guests so the Alpha could introduce us to them. To my surprise, it wasn’t just elites of the pack here, there was also what my father called ‘commoners’. This had just confirmed that an alliance with this Alpha was the right thing to do, he spoke to and of each pack member with the same respect he would show family, a quality that I, myself hold close.

After a while, a maid brought us some drinks over and we stood talking and joking for a while. Beta Gregory was a little stiff at but Alpha George soon took care of that, telling the Beta to take the stick out of his butt and enjoy his night off.

Thankfully, the Beta was more casual from then on, dropping the formal titles in favour of our names, this is exactly how I like things, I could tell we all felt much more comfortable, just as we’d got another drink and turned back around to continue our conversation, we were interrupted by some disruption from the archway.

A guy who was roughly the same age as myself was rushing toward us holding his face. As he got closer, it was apparent he had a bloody nose. The man stopped in front of us and appeared angry, Beta Gregory sighed and looked at the man, “What have you done this time son?” The Beta asked the question but didn’t seem to be concerned or surprised in the slightest.

“I didn’t do anything dad, it was that bitch of a she-wolf!”

Oh goddess, I thought to myself, he’s one of those bratty, whiney wolves, I could see Jax rolling his eyes in my mind, “What she-wolf?” Beta Gregory asked but before he could answer, we heard a female cough from behind him, he moved to the side and revealed a short woman standing behind him. “That she-wolf would be me Beta” she stated as she stood with her arms crossed folded infront of her.

Her eyes were burning into the man, while I studied her, I realised she was the girl from the pictures back at the mansion, she looked even more beautiful in person and apparently, she was a total badass.

I managed to drag myself out of my thoughts but just as I had, I caught her scent, she smelt like I’ve lavender and vanilla. it complimented her features perfectly. While I was analysing the lovely smell, Jax stirred and let off a low growl in my mind and uttered the word “Mate.”

Shock took over but I quickly pushed it aside and urged Jax to stay calm, though every part of Jax and I wanted to grab her and claim her as our mate, we both knew this wasn’t the time or the place. We both took a breath and calmed and continued to watch the situation in front of us unfold.

“Eliza Marie Silver! What have you done now?” Alpha George was clearly angered by what his daughter had done but she didn’t waver, she kept a stone cold gaze on the Beta’s son and stated with confidence “Obviously, I punched him in the nose but he had a hold of my wrist and threatened to harm me first, I was merely defending myself.” Alpha George was going to snap back and I was poised to back my mate as my irritation and anger bubbled away within me but before anyone could say anything, Beta Gregory cut us off, “No George, don’t blame her. Eliza doesn’t hit out for no reason plus my son hasn’t given me any reason to believe him.” Jax and I calmed at the Beta’s words, he was on Eliza’s side.

“Austin, I told you to stay away from Eliza when you returned but no, you just had to try to get to her didn’t you and now you have a broken nose to show for it, better be thankful she only broke your nose and didn’t castrate you.”

He gave his son an icey stare and continued with his verbal onslaught, “Here’s what’s going to happen, you will apologise to Eliza, then you will take yourself out of our sight and back home so you don’t cause any more trouble, do you understand?” The Beta asked, anger and disappointment filling his tone.

Austin gasped and whined “But dad!” Beta Gregory raised his hand to stop him from speaking any further. “ I’m not asking you Austin, I’m telling you, not just as your father but as your Beta. I have been too soft with you since your mother died, that was my mistake but I have learned from it as you will from yours, now leave Austin, we will discuss this when I return.”

Austin turned and looked at Eliza with pure fury in his eyes, he leaned over and whispered something in her ear which made Jax and I tense “I so want to rip his throat out!” Jax raged, “Down Jax, not here, not now,” I responded. Austin then barged past Eliza and she called back “Yeah, what ever flea bag.” Jax and I giggled at her sassy response, Jax then said “Oh, I like our mate.”

“So do I,” I relpied.

Alpha George broke me from my internal monologue as he turned to speak, “ I am so sorry you had to witness that Kaiden, as you can see, my daughter is shy at coming forward and taking responsibility for her actions.” I looked at him and nodded with a smile, “Yes, two very commendable qualities that all wolves should possess.” I witnessed Alpha George relax at my statement, he then took hold of his daughters hand and proceeded to introduce us. “Alpha Kaiden, this is my daughter and our new Gamma, Eliza. Eliza, this is Alpha Kaiden and his Beta Luke.”

I took her hand and instantly felt the sparks, I placed a gentle kiss on the back and looked into her eyes, “It’s a pleasure to meet you Eliza.” I saw her eyes flash purple briefly, letting me know she felt it too but she quickly regained composure and responded with “Yes I’m sure, you too I guess.”

Eliza’s tone was bored and dismissing. What the hell? I thought to myself. Did she not feel the sparks? Isn’t she as happy as I am? Did I imagine the colour change of her eyes? Confusion took over and I put my questions to Jax who appeared to be equally as confused as me, Jax assured me he would speak to her wolf and find out what was going on.

I was again brought out of my inner conversation by Alpha George who excused himself and Eliza so they could talk, I could only assume about her manners because he had previously warned me his daughter could be difficult.

Not that I minded, I love a challenge as much as the next wolf and to be honest, the fact my mate was so forward kind of turned me on.

As I stood talking with Luke, I had made an observation, the elite she-wolves here were as shameless as the elite she-wolves back home. The way they dressed demanded attention from the males of the pack, a few had made advances towards Luke and I but we swiftly turned them away.

For an elite, male or female, status was everything so if you were recognised or better yet, taken by an Alpha or a Luna, you were thrown to the top of the social ladder but I made it clear I wasn’t interested, the only attention I wanted was from the pocket rocket the Selene has paired me with.

Luke was trying to speak to me and even though he was stood right beside me, I couldn’t hear a word he said, my attention was firmly on my mate. I took in her features, her beautiful blue eyes that resembled a winter moon and her gorgeous dark brown hair that shined like it was entwined with silk and her small, slim but curvy figure that was beautifully accentuated by the blue material that covered it, my goddess, Selene had given me a piece of art.

I made a mental note to prey to our goddess later and thank her for this gift. Jax was purring in my mind as he too was taking in her beauty.

Just as I was taking mental pictures of her face, each little freckle and the like, I was harshly dragged back into moment by a swift slap at the back of my head. “What the hell Luke!” I looked at him while rubbing the back of my head. “Dude, what the hell is wrong with you? You zoned out and had this weird smile on your face!” Wow, I must have been really deep in thought, I didn’t even realise I was smiling, I looked at Luke dead in the eyes and said “She’s here Luke.”

Luke studied me for a moment then asked “Who’s here?” I smiled at him, “My mate.”

Luke’s eyes widened in shock and he gasped, his eyes darting around the room. “Who is it?” He asked excitedly, I giggled and looked over to Eliza, “It’s her.” Luke paused before saying anything, he then turned to me and began to speak, “Wow, you must have been really good in your life dude, she’s beautiful.” While I appreciate the compliment, his comment sent a tingle of jealousy through Jax and I, she was our mate and the fact Luke saw her beauty means that other males must see it too.

I gathered myself and calmed both Jax and I, Luke was like a brother to me and I knew very well, he would never over step boundaries and rationally speaking, his own mate was here somewhere so the last woman he would try anything with would be my mate.

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