Chapter 31
A knock on my door brought me back to reality and I realised I must have drifted off to sleep whilst crying my eyes out on the surprisingly soft and comfy bed.
"Good morning miss" a female wolf in a uniform greeted me with a smile on her face the moment I opened the door with tired and sleepy eyes and it didn't take much time for me to realise that she was a maid in the pack house.
"Good morning" I greeted back while yawning.
"The Alpha requests for you to come down for breakfast as soon as possible " she said with a smile before walking out of the door.
The moment she left, my stomach made a rumbling sound making me realise that I was truly hungry.
I instantly prepared myself and wore comfy clothes the maid placed on my bed before walking out of the room but the mansion was so big that I had no idea where I was going.
It was really possible for one to get lost in this mansion and probably die. No one would notice anyone was lost until the foul smell evolved.
I continued to walk slowly as I tried to either find my way back to the room given to me or to the dining room.
"Lenora!" A warm soothing voice called my name and I turned to meet the face of the Alpha of Red moon pack. He was in just some grey sweatshirts and sweatpants, almost looked like he had just returned from a wild morning run with the way his hair was roughened but it fitted him perfectly.
"Good morning your Majesty" I greeted with a bow but I immediately heard him chuckling.
"Don't be so formal, I'm Jika " he grinned at me before taking my hand into his and it made me remember the way his hands were so soft yesterday.
It would be hard to believe that those same hands have killed hundreds of living creatures, yet they felt so feeble like he was innocent. I just hope and pray that I wasn't walking right into a trap because this was too good to be true.
"Right this way" he said and led me to the dining room where he brought out a chair for me to sit on. It was just the two of us on the table before Cole came to join us with a girl by his side.
"Lenora!" He called my name in excitement even though his eyes were fixed on the girl and I immediately realised she was his mate with the mark on her neck.
"I apologise for the silly attitude of my pack yesterday, and for the way they treated you" the Alpha apologised and it made me uncomfortably shift on my seat.
"They didn't even offer her food" Cole said to his mate and she looked at me with some kind of pity in her eyes with her lips pouting. She was beautiful and the example of those female models on the cover of vogue.
"I assure you they won't do such a thing next time, " Jika said to me with a charming smile on his face.
"But they should have known by now that you care about little children and female wolves and that you would never hurt or punish them, those wolves never learn!" Cole's mate scoffed while Cole kept on staring at her moving lips without saying anything and before I knew it, he leaned in for a kiss.
"Not at the dining table" Jax groaned in frustration and Cole broke the kiss with a smile on his face.
Seeing the way Cole and Jika were behaving, one could easily tell that they had a really close relationship with each other unlike our pack. Not everyone knew the Beta as he was barely around the Alpha. Maybe that was what made the Alpha an easy catch to Alaric afterall.
After we finished eating and I was fucking full, Cole and his mate were both the first to leave the dining table leaving just me and Jika behind.
"So what brings you here in my territory?" He asked and I almost choked on the water I was drinking. I hadn't expected him to talk directly to me or hell, asking this type of question. Now I'm stuck in between lying and saying the truth which I obviously can't so I went with the former.
"Nothing " I said but his piercing hazel eyes weren't ready to give in to my explanation.
"I know when people lie to me, I'm not a fan of lies' ' he said but it rather came out as a growl that sent chills down my spine and I shook in fear. I really do hope I haven't triggered him.
"Let's try again, shall we? What brings you here love?" He asked and I heaved a deep breath. I might as well tell him the truth.
"I was rejected by my mate because I was too weak so I ran away in shame" I responded and his face held a sign of sympathy for me that I felt guilty I didn't tell him all that had happened that made me run.
I had lied to him but I wouldn't really call it a lie since it was technically true and I had ran away from both Asher and Tala but Alaric was also a reason for me running, I wanted to be free from his bondage and didn't want him near me anymore even though I understand that he was just being nice to me but it might have turned out a little bit possessive for no reason.
"I'm sorry about that but why would you call yourself a weak wolf, no one was made weak by the moon goddess " He said as he patted my shoulders and for some unknown reason, that actually felt really good and comforting to hear.
"Let's go for a walk shall we? I bet your food has digested already" he proposed and I nodded in approval as he led me outside the pack house to a garden. A very beautiful one with a lake and flowers.
"It's beautiful " I complimented while he only shook his head In response.
"Why did you help me? I've heard a lot about the Red moon pack and I didn't expect you to help me"
I said to him while he only bit on his bottom lip without saying anything.
He stopped on his tracks and tucked his hands into his sweat pants and I somehow found that attractive but it reminded me of someone, someone I didn't want to be reminded of; Alaric.
"I found something different in you that's why I chose to help you out, I don't kill children and females and I would have just sent them running off but I didn't do that to you because I saw a potential in you" He said with his fixed on mine and I shyly drifted my eyes to the beautiful rose flower beside him.
"Thank you for your kind words Alpha Jika but can I request a favour from you?" I asked and watched how his brows cocked in confusion.
"And what can that be?" He questioned.
"Can I forever stay here in the Red Moon pack? " I pleaded with my palms folded.
"Hmm, that's a quite tasking one there but I could make it work"
"Thank you so much!" I squeaked in excitement but halted when he raised a finger in the air. Damn he had some really good leadership aura that screams power.
"But on my terms and conditions' ' He added and I became scared. I secretly hoped it wouldn't be like that of Alaric who made me do a lot of things just for himself but it couldn't be that bad since Asher wasn't here after all.
"What could that be?" I nervously asked with a shaky voice and the corner of his lips tucked into a devilish grin, the type that sends chills down your spine but in a bad way.
"Well first, you need to relax because I won't hurt you and secondly I don't believe anyone is weak. The moon goddess created us as werewolves and not some other weak animals. We are Higher animals and talented so i'll make you believe in this. That's my term and condition" he said and I felt relieved.
"Okay, I believe " I said but he burst into laughter.
"I don't need you to say it, I need you to show it so from this moment henceforth I'll make you train to bring back that inner spirit in you." He said and I became short of words.
How can a stranger I met some hours ago be so nice to me? I don't think it happens anywhere else he has an alternate motive, especially him being the Alpha of one of the most dreadful packs in the world.
It still makes me freak out whenever I think of it that way and realise I'm standing in front of a ferocious beast just like Alaric but on the other hand, he was seeming to be nice.
I still can't choose to fully believe him until I spend some more time with him,hopefully.
"So for our first training, we run!" He brought me out of my thoughts with his soothing voice that always calms me and before I could tell he had sprung up and started to run leaving me behind.
"Fuck, here goes nothing" I said to myself before I also took control of my feet and started to run. He was way ahead of me but I was glad I was actually doing something.
Hell, I would do any logical thing as long as he let's me forever stay in the Red moon pack and does the necessary rituals.
I was soon starting to pick up on him and it felt really good as my legs swiftly avoided some twigs on the ground while I kept my eyes focused on him but just as I thought I was doing it right, a tree from nowhere appeared in my front and sent me to stars heaven as my vision blurred.
"Lenora, are you okay?" I could hear Jika curiously asking me but I couldn't open my mouth to form a simple sentence.
"Shit!" I heard him curse and In a split second I was on his back as he ran back to the pack house with me pinned on his back.
"I'll take her to her room " A lady offered but he had refused as he didn't stop waking.
"Nevermind " He replied to her before making his way to the room and laying me on my bed. My head hurt really badly and I had just started to feel the effect of the race as my legs became really sour.
"You ran into a tree" He said with worries all over his face but i had no idea why he was worried about me when everything just seems so funny to me.
"Were you running with your eyes closed?" A laughter came from the far end of the room and I tilted my head to see Cole leaning elegantly on the wall of the room.
"Fuck off Cole " Jika shunned while Cole on the other hand only rolled his eyeballs.
"Alright, I'll just go and meet Fiona, perhaps we could make babies too" he pouted before walking out of the room and Jika groaned in frustration.
I didnt blame Cole for what he said because I also found it funny, I was literally looking straight at Jika and I had no idea that a fucking tree was right in front of me.
"I'm better now" I replied with a smile even though it made my head hurt even more but I didn't want to be a burden to him or anyone else.
"Well that's good news because we'll continue the training when the sun goes down" he said and my jaw dropped open.
Why the hell do I need another training when I badly survived the last one,only if I had told him I wasn't feeling any better yet.