Chapter 141 In the Best Hands Possible
Drawn by the sound of the Luna's laughter and the twins' happy squeals, it wasn't long before the rest of the pack kids playing on the lawn began to wander over. They dropped into the grass one by one, forming a wide, chaotic, and brightly colored circle around Leela and the babies.
It was a beautiful display of pack instinct. The youngest wolves inherently knew their Luna had needed lifting up, and they had come to surround her with light.
They peppered her with rapid-fire questions about the twins, about her garden, and about what the Alpha was doing inside. Leela answered them all with a warm smile, feeling the last of the morning's anxiety drain away into the earth beneath her palms.
Then, one of the older girls sitting across the circle tilted her head, her bright eyes narrowing as she studied Leela’s glowing complexion and the protective way the Luna occasionally rested a hand over her lower stomach.
"Luna?" the girl asked, her voice dropping into a loud, incredibly unsubtle whisper. "Are you... pregnant again?"
The entire circle of kids went dead silent, two dozen pairs of wide, eager eyes instantly locking onto Leela.
Leela couldn't help it. A bright, bubbling laugh escaped her chest. She reached down, ripped up a small handful of soft green grass, and tossed it playfully right at the inquisitive girl. The blades of grass rained down harmlessly over the girl's giggling face.
Leela looked around at the eager, hopeful faces of her pack's future. The war looming inside the study felt a million miles away. Here, in the sun, there was only life.
"Well," Leela beamed, her eyes shining as she looked from the kids to the two beautiful toddlers rolling around in Toby's lap. "I suppose I can tell you all now. Yes. Caspian and Briar are getting a baby brother."
A collective, deafening gasp rippled through the grass, immediately followed by a chaotic eruption of cheers, excited squeals, and a barrage of new, thrilled questions from the pack kids.
Inside the pack house, standing quietly at the edge of the sprawling, floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the sunlit courtyard, Elana watched the entire beautiful scene unfold. The thick glass dampened the sound, but she could still hear the muffled, joyous chaos of the children’s laughter—a sound that felt like the heartbeat of Blackwood itself.
A warm, deeply contented smile touched the former Luna's lips as she watched the pack kids swarm Leela. They were absolutely captivated by the news of the new baby, their youthful energy swirling around the young Luna like a whirlwind of hope. Below them, Caspian and Briar continued to happily tumble around in the grass with Toby and Sarah, their little limbs a blur of motion against the vibrant green.
As she stood there, leaning her shoulder against the mahogany window frame, Elana allowed herself a rare moment of quiet reflection, her mind drifting back decades to when she and Damon had first taken the mantle.
She remembered the weight of it—how young and determined she had been. During her own long reign as Luna, she had been deeply, profoundly loved. She had walked these halls with a grace that commanded respect, a pillar of iron wrapped in velvet. She had been the diplomat, the strategist, the one who could speak to the fiercest, most scarred warrior or the youngest, most timid omega and know they would speak openly and honestly back to her. She had been the steady hand on the rudder of Blackwood, the strength that held them together through winters and skirmishes alike.
But looking out at the lawn now, Elana knew without a shadow of a doubt that Leela was something entirely different.
In her youth, Elana had been the moon—steady, glowing, and guiding the pack through the dark with a cool, certain light. But Leela? Leela was the sun. She possessed a rare, magnetic gravity that Elana had never witnessed in all her years. With her bare hands resting in the dirt and her bright, unfiltered laughter ringing out across the grass, she didn't just lead; she gave life.
She drew people in effortlessly, not through the traditional power of her rank, but through the sheer radiance of her spirit. She didn't have to demand their attention or their loyalty—the pack simply gave it to her, completely and willingly, because her warmth was undeniable. Even the earth itself seemed to lean toward her, the grass greener where she sat, the air sweeter where she breathed.
Elana rested a hand over her own chest, feeling her heart swell until it physically ached with pride.
She thought of her son, Fennigan. He was so much like his father—stubborn, fiercely protective, and often carrying the weight of the world on his massive shoulders. If the Moon Goddess had somehow come down and offered Elana the impossible chance to handpick the absolute perfect mate for him, she could never have dreamed up someone as incredible as Leela.
Leela was the anchor Fennigan had always desperately needed to keep his wolf from drifting into the storm. She was a fiercely loving mother to her grandchildren, a keeper of ancient magic, and exactly the kind of radiant, grounding Luna this pack needed to survive the dark times brewing in the study.
Watching Leela toss another playful handful of grass at the giggling teenagers, Elana let out a soft, immensely grateful sigh. She saw her own legacy not just being preserved, but being outshone by a light more brilliant than she could have ever hoped for. Her family, and her pack, were in the best hands possible.