Chapter 76 Rejection?

Chapter 76 Rejection?
Dravik's pov
The murmuring grows louder.
I allow them to talk quietly amongst themselves for a few moments, giving the news time to settle before I raise my hand to demand absolute silence once more.

“Yes. She is a Lycan like them, but she is also a woman who was stripped of her birthright, treated like a slave, beaten until her body could barely withstand another blow. She is a Lycan who was bound from her other half not just once, but five times.”

My mate’s fingers tighten painfully around mine. I glance at her and immediately regret exposing so much of her suffering in front of everyone, especially when I see the glassiness in her eyes. She wants me to stop, yet I need my pack to understand what she survived before they judge what she has become.

“Five?” A voice asks from the front of the crowd.

I turn toward Collins. His eyes are fixed on Auren with an expression I have never seen on his face before.

“Are you certain, Alpha Dravik?” 

“According to what I was told, yes,” I answer. “Why?”

He hesitates, his gaze shifting between me and Auren. “That isn't supposed to be possible.”

My eyes narrow. “What do you know, Collins?”

“Stories. Old ones.” 

“There is nothing recorded about Lycans,” I reply.

“I can’t recall the exact details off the top of my head," Collins says, rubbing the back of his neck. “But I have come across old stories and legends concerning wolves and creatures whose abilities were bound. I can go have a look through those old texts again right now if you wish."

“Go,” Garric orders.

Collins nods and disappears toward the pack house, leaving behind a silence that lasts only a few seconds before the questions begin.

“Is she dangerous?” someone asks.

“Can she shift and attack us?”

“Will she betray us?”

“Will she send information back to Silverveil?”

“Can she control herself?”

I let them speak, knowing they desperately need to air their doubts, even though I feel insulted that they could ever believe I would make a foolish decision that puts my pack in harm's way. 

When the questions begin to die down, I push Shadow to the surface and slowly scan the gathering. “Any more questions?” I snap.

A heavy silence instantly falls as every single member drops their head in submission, nobody daring to utter a single word. They know better than to challenge me when Shadow is sitting right at the surface.

“How many years have I been your Alpha?” I ask, my voice quieter now. “Do you truly believe I would bring a threat into this pack and place every one of you in danger?”

No one moves.

“Do you really think I would bring a mate into this pack who would turn around and attack us? Many enemies have tried to infiltrate these grounds over the years, and every single one of them has been dealt with brutally. Auren is my fated mate, which makes her one of us now. And if anyone here wants to step up and question my decision, step forward right now." I slowly scan the silent ranks of warriors, my jaw set in stone. "Just remember... I will not be kind, and I will not hesitate to bleed you."

Auren gasps and her head snaps toward me, her eyes widening. Garric chuckles quietly under his breath, while Brandon leans towards her again. “He knows what he's doing,” he murmurs to her.

Of course I know what I’m doing.

It was a backhanded threat. I had heard so many of them over the years. 

“If there are no more questions, then let the ceremony continue,” I announce. “We’re after all here to celebrate.”

Music rises again, louder than before, and the pack breaks apart into laughter, conversation, dancing, and drinking. Wolves gather around the great fire in circles, some holding hands as they move in time with the drums while others dance with their respective others. Children run about, their voices blending with the music and occasional howls that rise toward the sky.

I sit down with Auren by my side as several gifts are presented to her. She looks at me for confirmation and I nod at her but she still refuses to leave my side for any reason. She’s no longer trembling now so that’s a plus. 

Our Luna ceremony isn’t only an announcement or a declaration of rank, but a night where the pack comes together to witness a new bond and then celebrates until dawn, because our people have always marked important moments with food, music, fire, and enough noise to make the forest remember us. This is the first one we’re had since my father and stepmom. Lyra didn’t live long enough to have one. 

“Gentlemen.” Garric raises a bottle toward Brandon and me, wearing a grin with his arm around a beautiful brunette. “Have a great festivity.”

“Wait, wait, wait.” Brandon says. “Shouldn't we find Collins and talk about those records?”

Garric laughs. “Come on, man. Loosen up.”

My mouth lifts up at Garric telling Brandon to loosen up. 

“This is a ceremony. There is tomorrow,” Garric says as the brunette hooks her arm through his and pulls him toward the dancers while Brandon shakes his head.

“Seriously, Dravik,” he complains, following my gaze toward the dancers. “It could be serious.”

“We will get to him. For tonight, Garric is right. We all need one free night.”
Goddess knows we need it.
He gives me a skeptical look. “Right. Like you actually enjoy parties. You don't attend them. The ones you do attend, you usually sneak away from.”

I grin and look down at my mate. Her body is still pressed into mine as she watches the dancers with open fascination. There is something almost childlike in the way she takes everything in, as though she has stepped into a world she never imagined belonging to, and I feel an unexpected ache in my chest when I realize how much of her life was stolen from her.

She looks like she is afraid to move too far from me, as though the moment she leaves my side someone might decide she doesn’t belong. I slide my arm more securely around her waist, drawing her against me. 

“You enjoying yourself?” I murmur near her ear.

She nods, her eyes still fixed on the dancers. “I…I’ve never seen anything like this.”

“You will see plenty more,” I promise, brushing my lips lightly against her temple. “This pack is your home now.”

I move my hand up her naked laps, sliding it under the slit of her dress, feeling her skin heat up at my touch. Her breath catches softly, and I catch the scent of her arousal like before. 

“Wanna get out of here?” I whisper in her ear.