Chapter 31
Chapter 31
CHAPTER THIRTY ONE
AUTHOR’S POV
The Eastside pack grounds buzzed with the anticipation of the upcoming full moon. Every wolf within its borders seemed electrified by the energy in the air. Gage, however, was anything but calm.
His little niece, Leila, tugged at his sleeve as he surveyed the pack’s preparations for the full moon feast.
“Uncle Gage, uncle Gage,” she called with a high pitch, “is it true the full moon is when all the mates…” She hesitated, her tiny voice dropping into a conspiratorial whisper, “…you know, bed?”
Gage nearly choked on the water he had just sipped. “Leila! Where did you hear that?”
She giggled, completely unbothered by his reaction. “Mum said it’s the time mates get… close. Do you have a mate?”
The question hit Gage like a punch to the gut. His lips twitched upward in a strained smile. “I do,” he said softly, his mind instantly betraying him by conjuring up an image of Indigo.
Leila’s eyes sparkled. “Really? Where is she? Why haven’t I seen her then?”
He froze. The answer caught in his throat, tangled with a surge of longing and frustration. “She’s… busy,” he managed, his tone far less convincing than he hoped.
Leila pouted but quickly bounced back to excitement, skipping off to join her friends in decorating the feast tables. Gage remained rooted, staring into the distance as his thoughts swirled around Indigo.
‘What was she up to?’ He wondered.
Before he could dwell too much, his Beta, a burly wolf named Cade, approached him. “Alpha, I've got a word. There’ll be a Sanctum meeting in thirty minutes. They’ve called all the members.”
Gage’s jaw clenched. He nodded curtly and strode toward his quarters where the connecting tunnel led straight to the heart of the Sanctum, trying to bury his restless emotions under duty.
\---
The Sanctum was as imposing as ever—a towering structure, right in the middle of interconnected territories of all the packs….except Southside of course. It's dark stone walls seemed alive with an ancient energy, and its high council room was already filled with murmuring voices when Gage arrived.
Lyriq leaned against the far wall, his arms crossed and his expression unreadable. Valtor stood near the head of the table, smirking to himself as though the meeting were beneath him.
Lady Karina, a regal figure who oversaw the Sanctum’s operations, opened the session. “Southside has become a growing concern,” she began. “As we all know, their borders were recently decimated, and scouts report minimal activity within. We fear something far more sinister than rogue wolves is at play.”
The Alphas exchanged tense glances. Gage’s mind immediately snapped to Indigo. He knew her powers had spiraled that day, as Lyriq explained anyway. Just the thought of her accidentally wrecking such destruction wasn’t far-fetched.
Lyriq’s voice broke the silence. “What’s the plan?”
“We need a team to investigate after the full moon,” Karina said, her gaze sharp and commanding. “Alpha Gage, Alpha Lyriq, Alpha Valtor—your presence is required.”
“Understood,” Gage said, his tone clipped.
Karina’s gaze softened slightly. “And how is Miss Indigo coming along? Is she adjusting to her powers?”
Gage nodded, though his heart wasn’t in it. “She’s learning.”
Valtor’s smirk widened. “Learning faster than any of us could have imagined.”
“Good,” Lady Brooke suddenly added.
The tension in the room thickened, but Lady Karina swiftly ended the meeting before tempers could flare. As the Alphas began to leave, Valtor casually mentioned, “Oh, by the way, I’ll be spending the full moon night with Indigo. Thought you all should know.”
The room fell into a stunned silence. Lyriq’s jaw tightened, and his hands clenched into fists. He shot Valtor a searing glare but said nothing, storming out instead.
Gage stood frozen, disbelief and fury warring within him. As Valtor swaggered out with a self-satisfied grin, something snapped inside Gage. He turned to Cade, his Beta, and growled, “Bring Indigo to Eastside. Now.”
Cade hesitated only a second before nodding. “Yes, Alpha.”
\---
Indigo appeared at Eastside less than an hour later, still bewildered and breathless from the abrupt summon.
“Gage!” she called out as Cade escorted her to the Alpha’s private wing. “What’s going on? Why am I here?”
Her questions were met with silence until they reached a heavy oak door. Gage swung it open and pulled her inside without a word.
“Gage, what the hell is—”
Before she could finish, he spun to face her, his eyes blazing with a mix of anger and desperation. “Do you have any idea what Valtor said at the Sanctum?”
Indigo blinked, taken aback by his intensity. “No? What does that have to do with me being dragged here?”
“He announced to me and Lyriq—that he’d be spending the full moon night with you,” Gage spat, pacing the room like a caged animal.
Indigo’s cheeks flushed, her heart skipping at the implication. “He… what?”
“I couldn’t just sit there and let him… let him stake some kind of claim on you!” Gage’s voice cracked slightly, betraying the emotions he was trying to keep in check.
Indigo crossed her arms, her own frustration bubbling to the surface. “Gage, I’m not some prize to be fought over. You can’t just—”
“I’m not fighting over you!” he interrupted, his tone softer but no less intense. “I’m… I’m trying to protect you.”
“From what? Valtor?”
“From this whole damn situation!” Gage ran a hand through his hair, his composure unraveling. “The full moon is coming, Indigo. You know what that means. The mate bond… the pull… it’s going to get stronger. And I don’t trust Valtor to handle that without—without crossing lines.”
Her eyes widened as the weight of his words sank in. The full moon. The mate bond. The overwhelming instincts that came with it.
“And what about you, Gage?” she asked quietly. “Do you trust yourself?”
The question hit him like a physical blow. He stopped pacing and looked at her, his expression raw and unguarded. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I’m trying to do the right thing.”
Indigo’s resolve softened, though her heart still raced from the intensity of the moment. “You can’t just control everything, Gage. I need to figure this out for myself, plus I actually agreed to it.”
“You did?” He asked, his voice barely above a whisper. “I see how it is now.”
They stood in silence, the tension between them heavy and electric. Finally, Gage stepped back, running a hand over his face. “I’ll… give you some space.”
Indigo nodded, though her mind was anything but calm. As he left the room, she sank onto the bed, her thoughts spinning with everything that had just unfolded.
Outside, the full moon loomed ever closer, casting its silver glow over the Eastside pack as the night carried on.