Chapter 17 Chapter 17

Chapter 17 Chapter 17
Santiago’s POV

I watched them walk out of the room but made no move to stop them. It wasn’t that I couldn’t cancel the meeting, of course, I could, but what would be the point? They’d only request another one, and we couldn’t keep pushing it back forever. It was better to have everything settled at once, even if it meant dealing with the chaos now.

If that little girl’s words were truly genuine, maybe things could continue as they were. But if she was lying, then everything was about to get messy.

Still, whether she was lying or not didn’t really matter. Our fate was already written. She was our mate, and to keep ourselves from dying before turning twenty-four, we had no choice but to make her our Luna.

A sharp pain pulsed behind my temples, and I rubbed my forehead with a quiet groan.

My gaze drifted toward a maid standing a few feet away. “Go find Stephen for me,” I ordered.

Stephen, our beta, had just returned from a dangerous mission the day before. I knew he’d be annoyed to see me this soon, but I didn’t have time to care about that.

After the maid left, I went to my room, took some medicine for the headache, and waited until the throbbing eased. When I finally felt better, I headed back downstairs.

Stephen was already waiting for me, his expression a mix of irritation and exhaustion.

I knew exactly why he looked that way, but I pretended not to notice. “What’s wrong with you?” I asked casually.

“Don’t play dumb, you know why,” he shot back.

I blinked at him innocently. “No idea what you’re talking about.”

“The hell you don’t!” he snapped. “You sent me on a deadly mission, and now that I finally get back and have one week off, you’re calling me back after just a day? Do you even have a heart?”

“Oh, I did that?” I asked, feigning surprise.

Stephen rolled his eyes so hard I thought they’d get stuck. “You’re unbelievable.”

I laughed loudly at his reaction. “Sorry for ruining your fun with Leeyah.”

At the mention of her name, he sighed dramatically. “You know how badly I wanted to get her laid, but you had to ruin everything,” he groaned, dragging a hand through his hair.

Typical Stephen. Always shameless, and Leeyah was just the same.

“Alright,” he said after a moment, his tone shifting to something more serious. “What do you need me for?”

“Glad you asked,” I said. “I want you to dig into Amira. I need every possible detail about her before tomorrow’s meeting.”

“What kind of details are we talking about?” he asked.

“Everything about her past with Alpha Aphia. And don’t stop there, look into Aphia too. His secrets, business deals, hidden affairs… I want it all.”

Stephen nodded. “Got it. Leave that to me,” he said with a wink before leaning back in his chair. “But before I start, bring me your best wine!” he called out to a servant.

I chuckled quietly. Typical Stephen, he couldn’t resist a drink even when on duty.

Despite him being our beta, we never treated him like one. Between the three of us, Stephen, Alex, and Maximus, he was more of a brother than a subordinate.

Soon, we were drinking together, the sound of laughter filling the room. Time slipped by, and before I realized it, night had fallen.

Halfway through our drinking session, Alex and Maximus came back and joined us.

“Stephen, you sleeping over tonight?” Alex slurred, his eyes red from too much alcohol.

Stephen barely lifted his head. “Maybe,” he muttered.

All three of them were completely wasted, laughing at nonsense and talking over one another.

I, on the other hand, sat quietly, sober as always. No matter how much I drank, I never got drunk.

Suddenly, Stephen’s phone began to ring on the table. He was too out of it to answer, so I picked it up.

“Where the hell are you, Steph? You better hurry home!” came Leeyah’s irritated voice through the speaker.

“He’s drunk. Come pick him up,” I said calmly before ending the call. She didn’t need directions, she already knew this place.

Sure enough, about twenty minutes later, she arrived.

“Oh my goodness, look at you! You’re completely wasted,” she scolded, lightly smacking Stephen’s head.

“Bye, Santiago,” she said with a small smile, waving as she helped her drunk boyfriend out the door.

Despite her complaints, I could see the care in her every movement, the way she made sure he didn’t stumble or hit his head.

Once she was gone, I turned to the other two who were sprawled out and snoring on the couches. With a simple gesture, I called the gammas over, and they quietly carried Alex and Maximus to their rooms.

After that, I didn’t stay in the living room any longer. I went upstairs, took a long shower, and finally went to bed, hoping to rest before the storm that awaited tomorrow.



The next day, when it was finally time for the meeting, I made my way to the hall with Alex and Maximus walking beside me, both of them wearing deep, disapproving frowns.

“Santiago, you’re really something else,” Maximus sneered, his tone dripping with irritation.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

“What’s so funny?” Alex snapped, his brows knitted tightly. “Why did you still go ahead with the meeting after we told you not to? We honestly thought you’d come to your senses after all that drinking last night, but it seems you still do whatever you please.”

I chuckled again, unfazed. “You both know that’s how I am,” I said simply.

Their eyes sharpened, glaring at me like they wanted to punch some sense into me.

When we entered the hall, every elder and representative was already seated, their attention shifting toward us immediately.

Without wasting time, the meeting began.

“Regarding the Luna matter, I suggest we suspend it for now,” Elder Gabriel said first, adjusting his glasses. “As we can all see, there are far too many negative rumors circulating at the moment.”

“Why sugarcoat it?” Elder Ryan interrupted sharply. “What Gabriel means is that we’ve all decided against making that girl our Luna. It’s out of the question.”

I didn’t stop him, or anyone else, from speaking. They went on and on, taking turns expressing their disapproval. But no matter who spoke, their conclusion was always the same: none of them wanted that little girl as our Luna anymore.

“Hmm,” I hummed lightly, leaning back in my chair. “Why don’t we wait a little before making any final decisions?”

“And why should we?” Elder Ryan cut in again, his voice firm. “We might as well conclude it here and now instead of wasting more time.”

I already knew before this meeting started that Ryan would be the one to oppose her the most. He had always been guided by strict morals and would never accept anyone with a tainted reputation. I respected that about him, but this situation required a different kind of reasoning.

“Let’s wait,” I said once more, my tone calm and steady.

From the corner of my eye, I noticed Alex and Maximus exchange questioning looks, silently asking what I was up to. I ignored them and kept my composure, refusing to show any hint of irritation.

The others, however, were growing restless.

“We’ve been waiting for thirty minutes already,” one of them grumbled. “How much longer are we supposed to sit here doing nothing?”

“A little longer,” I said evenly, not looking in his direction.

Reluctantly, they stayed. Another thirty minutes crawled by, and the murmuring only grew louder.

“I can’t keep waiting anymore,” someone complained under his breath. “My butt’s gone numb from sitting too long.”

My patience thinned, and my tone turned cold as ice. “Then sit on the floor,” I snapped flatly.

“Huh?”

The entire room froze, silence swallowing their voices. Their eyes widened in disbelief, clearly shocked that I’d said that.

Some of them looked like they wanted to talk back, but when I lifted my gaze and shot them one deadly glare, their courage evaporated instantly.

Just because I’d been silent all this time didn’t mean I was weak or oblivious. I had simply chosen to ignore their whining, for now. But if they kept pushing their luck, I wouldn’t hesitate to remind them exactly who they were talking to.

The entire hall fell into complete silence. No one spoke a word, or perhaps no one dared to.

The tension in the air was so thick that even the faintest sound would have echoed. Then, in the midst of that uneasy stillness, my phone chimed with a soft notification.

I glanced down, and after reading the message, a slow, knowing smile tugged at my lips.

Without looking up, I began typing swiftly on my screen. “You all should check your phones,” I said casually, my tone calm but commanding.

Almost immediately, a ripple spread across the room as everyone reached for their phones. The same notification had appeared on all their screens, a message from me, sent directly to our exclusive group chat.

As the elders and officers read through it, I watched their faces carefully. Their expressions shifted from confusion to shock, and then to quiet realization.

Displayed on their phones was the report Stephen had just sent, a detailed document about the little girl. Attached to it was undeniable proof of Alpha Aphia’s betrayal, evidence that made it clear she was the one at fault, not the girl she had wronged.

A low murmur began to rise among them, breaking the silence at last.

“Ah, this is good to see,” Elder Ryan said finally, nodding in satisfaction. “Now we won’t have to worry about her tarnishing our pack’s reputation.”