‘*Delta, Alpha Damon is heading this way, and he looks pissed,*’ Tony mind-links me.
‘*Doc, I need you to run interference with the Alpha for a minute*,’ I mind-link the Doc as I stand from where I was sitting on the bed. I take a washcloth from the supply cart in the room, go into the bathroom and run it under cold water. I turn back to Luna Cassia, who gives me a confused look as I give her the washcloth.
“Alpha Damon is on the way. Clean your face so he hopefully won’t notice you’ve been crying,” I tell her, and she quickly wipes the cloth over her face, her hands shaking as she does it. I squeeze her shoulder reassuringly, and she takes a deep breath, trying to compose herself.
“Move out of my way, Doctor! NOW!” I hear Alpha Damon yell, and I dash to the corner of the room and stand at attention, my eyes finding a spot on the wall to focus on.
The door slams open, and Alpha Damon enters, his gaze fixed on his Luna. “You weak, pathetic…” He stops speaking when I growl unintentionally.
I keep my gazed fixed on the wall as he approaches me, rage radiating off him in waves as he gets in my face, his hot breath fanning my face. “Something to say, Delta?” He asks menacingly.
“No, Alpha,” I say, pretending to bare my neck in submission to him.
“That’s what I thought,” he growls, returning to Luna Cassia. “Come on, let’s get you back to the house,” he says, almost kindly, and Luna Cassia looks at me, terrified.
“Alpha, the Luna has several important calls with other Lunas this afternoon about the mate ball,” I interject.
He growls in frustration. “Very well,” he says through clenched teeth. “We’ll discuss this later.” He glares at Luna Cassia before storming out of the room.
Luna Cassia waits until he’s far enough away to hear her and breaks down again. “Thank you so much, Athena,” she sobs.
I walk back over to sit back on the bed, and I squeeze her shoulder. “You can do this, Cass. You’re not weak or pathetic. He is,” I say angrily.
She sniffs and lays her head back on the pillow. “How am I going to get through this? I can’t be busy 24/7. He’s going to find it suspicious if I avoid him.”
“Then we’ll have to keep him busy as well.” I give her a sly grin. “I think I have a plan,” I say as I stand up from the bed. “I’ll be back soon. You’ll be safe here with Doc Apollo,” I say as I go to leave, but the concern on her face stops me. “Trust me,” I say to her, my eyes pleading with her.
She exhales and nods, so I give her a reassuring smile and leave the room to find Doctor Apollo.
‘*Everyone, meet me at the cabin*,’ I mind-link the rest of the Luna Guard and the Crescent Warriors, chuckling to myself at the name they dubbed themselves with as I find the Doc.
“I’m calling a meeting, but I’ll get Uncle Alex to fill you in later. I need you here to keep an eye on the Luna and let me know if Damon returns,” I whisper to him. He nods and goes into the Lunas’ room to check on her.
I motion for James and Luca to follow me, and then Leah and Tony when we exit the pack hospital.
#
When I walk into the cabin, I see the rest of the warriors, as well as Gino, Harry, and my mom, sitting in the small living room in front of the fire. “What are you guys doing here?” I ask, surprised that they’re here.
Mom smirks and pulls down her blouse to reveal the same mark carved into her skin that the warriors carved into their skin, and Gino and Harry do the same.
I glare at Uncle Alex and Ryna. “We’ll discuss this later,” I growl through clenched teeth.
They shrink back slightly from my growl, and Ryna pulls Gino in front of him like a shield. “Hey!” Gino yells. “You’re supposed to be the warrior, not me!” A few of the warrior’s chuckle at their antics, knowing that Ryna would die to protect his mate.
I turn to address everyone, and they fall silent. “I called you all here because the Luna needs our help,” I tell them, and they all stare at me, their brows furrowed in confusion. “I won’t betray her trust by going into too much detail, but she’s in danger. She needs all of our help to protect her,” I tell them.
“How can we help, Delta?” Harry asks. “Do you want to add more of us to the Luna Guard rotation?”
“Not quite. I need you all to help me come up with ways to keep Damon busy until the mates’ ball,” I tell them.
“What? Why?” Uncle Alex asks.
“He is who we need to protect the Luna from,” I tell them sadly.
Angry growls fill the room as they process what I said.
“He’s hurting her?” Harry growls.
“As I said, I won’t go into details, but we need to protect her from him,” I say.
“That piece of shit,” Leah growls. “This prick needs to die. A mate is sacred, and he is lucky to have found his. I’d kill to be able to find my mate.”
“It’s not just that! She’s our Luna! We need to do everything we can to keep that bastard away from her,” Harry adds.
Everyone agrees with a nod and a growl.
“Thank you, everyone. Harry, now that you’re here, I have an idea to utilize your talents. You’re our most experienced warrior, aside from Gamma Alex. This is no longer a one-man job, and I need you to be my second in command of the Luna Guard.”
“Thank you for this opportunity, Delta,” he says, nodding.
“Everyone else, I want eyes on Damon at all times. But you need to be discreet. He can’t know what is going on. Everyone’s safety is the top priority. So come up with as many ideas as you can to keep him busy without risking yourselves or Luna Cassia.”
“Of course, Delta,” Luca says, and everyone agrees.
“That’s all for now. Luna Guard, return to you posts at the hospital. Warriors…”
“Crescent Warriors,” Ryna grins as he cuts me off.
“Crescent Warriors,” I correct myself, grinning back. “Return to your duties and remember that Damon can’t be left alone with Luna Cassia. So, any distraction that keeps him away from her helps,” I say, and they all nod and stand to leave. “Harry, can you stick around, please?”
“Of course, Delta.”
The Luna Guard and the Crescent Warriors leave, leaving Harry, Uncle Alex, Mom, Ryna, and Gino behind.
“You’ve brought Harry up to speed?” I ask Uncle Alex, my eyebrow raised and arms crossed.
He smirks. “Don’t be mad. He was the one that started the conversation with the senior warriors about Damon fearing you.” He shrugs.
“And what about my mother?” I snarl.
“Calm down, Athena. I’m a grown woman, and I knew something was happening when I saw the crescent moon scar on his chest. I practically had to beat it out of him,” she chuckles.
“Same here,” Gino chimes in.
I roll my eyes. “Like I’d believe you two would beat anyone up… And what about the Doc?” I growl.
“He came to me. He knew something was up with Luna Cassia, and he felt like I was the only one he could trust,” Uncle Alex explains.
Sighing, I pinch the bridge of my nose. “The more people that know, the more people that are in danger,” I explain. “We don’t know who Damon is working with or what he is up to. Our suspicions aren’t enough to sway the pack, and we can’t go to the damn Elder Council. We need to be smart.”
“We are being smart, Athena. The people in this room, your Luna Guard, and the Crescent Warriors are all people that can be trusted. We wouldn’t put you in danger or your mom. This pack has lost enough. We’re not losing you too,” Harry says as he places his hand on my shoulder.
“Okay,” I smile at him. “I trust you all, and I trust your opinions. But can you please give me a heads-up next time before bringing anyone else into the fold?”
“We promise,” they say in unison, with grins.
“Uh, huh. I’ll pretend I believed that.” I chuckle. Turning to Harry, I say, “I’m so sorry about what Enyo did to you, Harry. I can’t believe she put you in the hospital.” I grimace.
“You don’t need to apologize. It was my fault for getting too close.” He cracks a smile.
“Thanks. If it makes you feel any better, she’s still exhausted from her antics. I’ve barely heard from her since it ended.”
He laughs. “Listen, I might be able to help with the Alpha Costas angle. I have a trusted friend over there that I can talk to.”
“Felix?” Uncle Alex asks, and Harry nods. “I wasn’t sure if that old coot was still alive. Reach out but be discreet,” he tells Harry.
“Discreet is my middle name,” Harry smirks.