Chapter 94 Air and Water pt 2
Seren
A chill crept up my spine. "Yesterday just proved that, didn't it? Do we know who that person was? What he was? He was so strong, Mom. Even for a shifter."
Her gaze softened as she came over to me, pulling me to her in a gentle hug. "It did, and that's why we're here now. I'd hoped to train you and Gideon together, but he's needed with your father. So we'll use the time we have and give you a boost, so to speak, so that when the next attack comes, you've got a defense."
"Have we heard from anyone yet?"
"Not yet. At least, not so far. You've had a good start this morning. Why don't we head inside, get some breakfast, and see if Aidan has gotten an update?"
I nodded, turning to the main pack house. "That sounds like a good plan to me."
We got settled at the head table in the dining hall just as Kayla and Louise entered with Cat. I could hear Aidan's voice carry from the hallway and knew he was heading this way, too. The breakfast buffet this morning had me drooling—golden waffles stacked high, rivers of maple syrup, and enough crispy bacon to build a small fort. My stomach rumbled in anticipation. Working with the elements burned more energy than I realized, and my midnight snacking had worn off a long time ago.
Once they'd gotten their own plates, the ladies joined us at our table, my mate's father not far behind them. He'd barely gotten settled before I asked, "Any news?"
"Actually, yes. I just finished a call with King Cian. The assault was over fairly quickly, all things considered. Unfortunately, they found the conditions there worse than they expected. I will fill you in on that a little later. But none of our people were seriously injured beyond what their wolves could heal, and everything is going as planned. They publicly executed Beta George and the rest of the guilty this morning. He expects they will be there for several days yet, sorting through what needs to happen with the people remaining and getting a temporary leadership team in place until we can have the tournament to determine the next leadership group."
"Have they ever done that before? Had a tournament to set leadership, I mean? I don't think I've ever heard of that," Kayla asked.
"We have had no reason to completely replace the leadership for a pack in ages," Mom answered. "Typically, there is always the Beta to step up if an Alpha needs to be replaced or dies without an heir. The last time a tournament was held was at least three centuries ago. There are guidelines and rules in place in the royal records. Cian had our archivists pull them as soon as we realized we would need them."
"The invitation will go out to all packs that have second and third sons in the Alpha, Beta, and Gamma families. By offering a chance for them all to compete, the new leadership team can be chosen fairly and publicly. The last test is usually a private audience with the royal family to ensure the leadership group has the best interest of the pack and the realm at heart," Aidan said. "I never thought I'd get to see something like this happen. I've only read about it in the history books."
"Speaking of history books, what exactly were you looking for in the library this morning, Seren?" Mom asked.
"Nothing specific. I wanted to see if I could find anything about the twin bond, white wolves, and the like. I grabbed the book of our family's history because it was there, and I thought it might be smart to familiarize myself with it. And I wanted to see if I could find out anything about why my attacker's eyes went red yesterday."
As soon as I finished my sentence, a plate crashed to the floor somewhere in the dining hall. I looked up just in time to see Lenore running out the doors.