Chapter 302 Book 2 ~ Chapter 67

Chapter 302 Book 2 ~ Chapter 67
Bastian’s POV

The silence inside the car should feel uncomfortable, but it doesn’t. Which is odd. I sit in the back with my arm pressed against the door, one boot stretched beneath the seat in front of me whilst Leo sits in the space beside me like a trapped storm. He’s irritated enough that I can practically feel it radiating from him.

Most wolves would be struggling by now. Not because of me specifically, but because of what I am. Mountain Ridge wolves have always unsettled other packs. Our wolves are bigger, colder, and more territorial. Even when we’re calm, others tense around us. They keep their distance and watch our movements. Leo doesn’t, but he should.

He smells like our mate. The scent clings to him so strongly that my wolf has barely stopped pacing since we climbed into this vehicle. Warm female, crisp evening air with something darker hidden beneath it. Something electric that catches in the back of my throat every time Leo shifts too close.

Mine. Not fully. Not yet. But enough that my wolf already knows.

Leo’s wolf hasn’t once pushed aggressively against ours despite being trapped between me and Alaric. That shouldn’t be possible. Any normal dominant wolf would see us as a threat, yet the aggression never fully comes. He might be irritated by us, but his wolf isn’t. Interesting.

I watch him from the corner of my eye as the trees blur past outside the window. He sits straight in his seat, hands resting on his thighs, and his jaw tight enough to crack teeth. He’s trying not to react. Trying not to acknowledge the fact that Alaric is practically studying him openly. My brother is enjoying this far too much.

“So this mate of yours…” Alaric says casually.

There it is. Every muscle inside the vehicle tightens instantly. Ryder’s hands flex against the steering wheel hard enough to make the leather creak whilst Callen slowly turns in his seat. Leo goes completely still beside me. Protective, possessive, and defensive. Exactly what I expected.

The temperature inside the car drops several degrees as Alaric pushes all the right buttons. I remain silent, watching, always watching.

Callen recovers first. Just as I predicted. He’s the chaotic one, with the easier smile. The type of man who uses humour as both shield and distraction.

“Our Luna is one of a kind,” he says smoothly, though pride bleeds heavily beneath the words. “Bright, beautiful, strong. A human blessed to four of us by the Moon Goddess herself.”

Human… Interesting they still lead with that. Like they’re reminding themselves.

“She’s carried two of our children,” Callen continues, “and our entire pack adores her.”

Ryder says nothing, but his scent shifts sharply with smoky possessiveness. Leo’s reaction interests me more. He doesn’t interrupt or attempt to relieve the tension. Instead, he watches Alaric carefully, as if he’s measuring whether my brother is a threat worth removing. Which means the rumours are true, or close enough to the truth to matter.

The stories spreading through the territories have become impossible to ignore these past few months. A human Luna blessed by the Goddess. Four bonds. Healing abilities. Wolves kneeling. Pack alliances forming around Phoenix territory, as if they have their own gravitational pull. And the latest whispers that she’s a Goddess.

Most packs laugh at rumours like that. Mountain Ridge didn’t. Because strange things have been happening for months, and my wolf has been restless in ways I’ve never experienced before. Then our mate appeared near our territory, hearing voices no one else could hear, carrying a strange scent and energy that’s like nothing we’ve ever encountered before. It made sense when we discovered that she is the sister of this supposed goddess.

I glance toward Ryder again. Does he know that his Luna’s sister had wandered dangerously close to Mountain Ridge territory only days ago? Didn’t her strange guardians mention our interaction? Either they truly haven’t connected the dots, or they’re hiding it exceptionally well.

Alaric leans back in his seat beside Leo, his hands up innocently, though I know my brother well enough to recognise the calculated precision behind every movement.

“So who started the crazy rumours?” he asks lightly.

Leo lets out a humourless laugh beside me. “You trying to get yourself killed before we even reach Phoenix?”

“I’m just curious about how things like this start.”

“No,” Ryder snaps from the front seat. “You’re digging.”

Alaric grins.

Callen sighs dramatically. “You know, most guests wait until after dinner before pissing off the alphas.”

“My apologies, I didn’t realise it was such a touchy subject.”

“Sure,” Leo mutters under his breath.

My wolf brushes excitedly beneath my skin again. Not at Leo, but at the scent clinging to him. The pull has been getting stronger the longer I’m around him. My pulse has subtly shifted with it, instincts sharpening despite my outward calm.

Mate.

The word rolls heavily through me from my wolf.

Mine.

Beside me, Leo adjusts slightly in his seat, closer to me. It’s small enough that he probably doesn’t realise he’s done it, but I notice. His body language remains tense, but he’s no longer actively rejecting our proximity.

Callen and Ryder keep talking in the front like they didn’t just hand over an important piece of information… confirming their Luna has four mates. My wolf has been restles ever since those words left Callen’s mouth, but not with anger. Because suddenly too many things make sense.

Leo smells wrong. Not bad, just tangled. Pack wolves all carry traces of each other naturally. Pack scent always clings strongest to leadership, but this is different, stronger, and intimate. Poppy’s scent wraps around Leo in a way I can’t ignore now that I’m paying attention.

I shift my eyes toward Leo without moving my head. He’s staring out of the front window with his jaw clenched, clearly trying to pretend he isn’t painfully aware of being trapped between us. And yet my wolf hasn’t reacted the way it should. That’s the part I can’t stop circling back to.

My wolf tolerates almost no one. Touch from most people usually makes my skin crawl. Even standing too close to unfamiliar people irritates me, but since climbing into this vehicle, my wolf has remained unnervingly calm despite Leo practically pressed against my side every time the car turns.

He’s accepting his presence almost the same way he accepts Alaric. The same way it would accept pack. Like our wolves already know each other on a level our human minds could never fully comprehend.

I piece it all together slowly. Paige was blessed with four mates, and is clearly more than human. Poppy is her sister and carries whatever strange bloodline the Phoenix pack is hiding. And Leo smells too much like her for this to be fleeting contact or a brief hookup. He carries her scent as if he’s claimed her.

A normal wolf would be furious realising another male touched their mate first. I should be furious, no… I should be murderous. My gaze flicks briefly to Leo’s throat, to the pulse beating steadily beneath the skin. One quick movement would be enough. I know exactly how fast I could do it. But strangely, the instinct never comes.

Instead, there’s only relief that when Poppy ran, she hadn’t been alone, that the male carrying her scent is strong enough to protect her, and that my wolf already trusts him enough not to see him as a threat. That, more than anything, tells me this bond may go deeper than jealousy and instinct. It feels connected. Like fate had already started weaving threads together before any of us realised.

Alaric leans forward slightly, his attention still half on the conversation in the front. I say nothing because the last thing I’m about to do is tell my impulsive brother that the male trapped shoulder-to-shoulder between us might already be mated to our goddess-blessed female.

Especially not whilst we’re moving at seventy miles an hour. No. This theory needs to stay in my head for now. Because if I’m right… everything just became far more complicated.

“What exactly have you heard?” Callen finally asks Alaric.

Alaric shrugs. “Depends on which version. Some say your Luna can heal poisoned wolves. Others say she shoots lightning at the hunters. I also heard one particularly entertaining version claiming resurrected wolves are calling her a goddess.”

Heavy silence fills the car, and it’s all the confirmation I need that it’s the truth. Not all of it, but enough. I keep my face expressionless whilst my mind quietly rearranges more pieces into place. The rumours weren’t exaggerated. If anything, they’ve likely been watered down before reaching other territories.

Which is equally interesting and dangerous. My wolf doesn’t care about dangerous though. It only cares about the female growing steadily closer with every mile.

The sensation hits suddenly, making every muscle in my body lock. It’s fire and ice running through my veins. Alaric goes equally still. We must be close. 

My wolf surges forward so hard my teeth ache with the effort of containing him.

Mate. The word slams through me like thunder.

Warmth spreads through my chest despite the calm mask fixed permanently across my expression. Excitement isn’t an emotion I display openly, but my wolf is practically vibrating beneath my skin now.

Even Leo notices, his eyes flicking toward me briefly. Then toward Alaric. Understanding flashes there for half a second before he quickly looks away again. Smart wolf.

Outside, the trees begin to thin as the borders of Phoenix territory come into view, and for the first time in years, my wolf feels fully awake.