“No, you’re right,” he agreed. “I’ve been shifting so much lately that I see no point in worrying about my appearance.”
“You’ve been shifting?” I questioned.
“I’ve been leading the search parties for Malachi,” he explained. “Since Nico can’t leave the Castle without the Council freaking out Nero and I have been out doing the dirty work. He takes one side of Werewolf Territory and I take the other.”
“I didn’t realize you were a part of all that,” I said as the butlers began bringing out the first course. It was some kind of soup that smelled delicious, but I didn’t recognize it by the look. The cooks must be experimenting again. I loved when they did this because I liked the change in menu but there are times that I wish I knew beforehand what it was instead of eating blindly.
“I’m a part of a lot of stuff that I never thought I would be doing,” he smirked. “It’s just part of the new job, I guess.”
“Is it what you want to be doing?” I asked knowing Nico and Nero could hear every word we were saying. I don’t think Roman hates his position next to Nico, I just think it all happened really fast. Just like Nico was thrown into being the Alpha, Roman was thrown into be his second in command and that can be a lot on someone. I think even Nico understood this.
“Of course, it is,” he said with confidence. “It’s just, I never thought of myself as someone qualified to be in this kind of position. I always thought I would take my father’s spot when he died. I realize it’s because of the prophecy but, even so, it’s a responsibility that I always thought was too much for me.”
“Even if you didn’t know about the prophecy you still would’ve been my second in command, Roman,” my brother said in between a bite of the tomato like soup. “Other than Nero and Nova there is no one else I trust. The other Council members kids are spies and I don’t need that around me.”
“There’s a reason why we didn’t hang out with the other Council shitheads,” Nero laughed mockingly. “They’re just as untrustworthy as their fathers.”
“Why do you trust Roman?” I questioned, not fully understanding.
“Because Roman hates his father more than we do,” Nero answered. “You know how he is, Nova.”
“I would never tell my father something that might actually benefit him,” Roman confirmed taking a sip of his wine. Even if he hated his father I could tell he was uncomfortable with this conversation. It’s one thing to have everyone know that you hate your father, but it’s another when you have to sit there and listen to how much everyone else hates him, too.
“So, what’s the plan for tomorrow?” I asked changing the subject. I could tell that Roman was silently thanking me. He was powerless when it came to Nico but anyone else would have lost a few teeth had they spoken about his father the way my brothers did.
“We’ll split up into groups, you girls and our second in commands will search the north end, the boys were search the south end, and the alphas were search the west end,” Nico explained.
“What about the east end?” Luna asked. “Why can’t your second in commands search that area?”
“Because we have no way of keeping contact with them,” Levi answered his sister. “In case of emergency or if one of us finds Malachi than the sorcerers can contact each other through blood. Declan and the others won’t be able to get that message because they’re not connected with us.”
“But mom was able to connect to us,” Kota reminded Kory. “Even if it came from dad she was able to get the message. There has to be a way to do the same thing for this.”
“There is a way,” Kory agreed glancing at each of the Alphas before continuing. “But it involves you and I don’t think you’re ready for it. I don’t want to make you do something that you don’t want to do. It would also involve Nathan and I’m not going to pressure him either.”
Kota glanced around the table at the rest of us, who were just as confused as she was. Only the Alphas seemed to know what Kory was talking about, but they stayed silent letting the sorcerers hash it out. I tried to put together the pieces of the puzzle that Kory left for everyone to focus on. The only thing that came to mind was the binding ceremony but there is no way that was an option. That would mean Kota and Nathan were committed to each other for the rest of their lives. They would completely skip the engagement part of the process and go straight to the ceremony. The Council wouldn’t like the rush of everything but, to be fair, the rest of us wouldn’t like it either.
I could tell that Kota finally figured it out. She glanced up at Nathan who had his head ducked down towards his salad, avoiding eye contact with her.
“Is it really the only way?” she asked turning back towards Kory. “This isn’t just some trick to get me to do what mom and dad want?”
“I wouldn’t do that to you, Kota,” Kory reminded her.
“And if we did this,” she sighed. “Then they would be able to search the east end and get the message if one of us finds Malachi?”
“Nathan would also be able to send a message to you, Kody, and I if they’re the ones who find him,” he said as he set his glass back down on the table. I was so focused on Kota that I didn’t even notice that he took a sip of his wine. I could see Kota considering the situation in that mind of hers and even though I know she wanted to take her time with Nathan I could see her starting to accept the idea as time continued to pass. It was awkwardly quiet while the butlers brought in the main course. Every sound that they made seemed much more dramatic in this silence.
“I’ll do it,” Kota announced as the rest of us took our first bites into the chicken that sat in front of us. We all shot our heads up and stared in silence as we waited for her to continue.
“There’s a reason I didn’t bring this up before, Kota,” Kory told her as the rest of us watched and listened. “I promised you I wouldn’t pressure you into binding yourself to Nathan.”
“And you didn’t pressure me,” she spoke calmly, eating her dinner as she spoke. “You explained the situation and I made a decision.”
“But do you really want to do this just so Nathan can get a message from us?” Kody asked before Kory could speak again. “It’s just one search out in the forest.”
“How many times have our guards searched the forest area?” Kota asked him in return. “We could just as easily join them on that search just like we’re doing here, and we’ll be in the same exact situation. Why are you trying to talk me out of it?”
“We just want you to be sure, Kota,” Kory sighed as he leaned back in his chair. “And we haven’t even heard anything from Nathan. What if he doesn’t want to do this?”
“He knew what he was getting himself into when he learned about the prophecy,” Kota snapped.
“He still gets a say, Kota,” Luna added surprising everyone when she spoke up. Actually, it surprised no one that Luna was the one that added her opinion to the mix. What surprised us was that she was actually going against what Kota was saying. It was very rare for any of us to do that.
“I’ll do it,” Nathan echoed Kota before anyone could start yelling at each other. No one was thrown off by this because, like Kota said, he knew what he was getting into when he found out about the prophecy. Still, I couldn’t help but feel bad for both of them.
The Alphas still seemed hesitant by this whole thing and I couldn’t figure out why. I understand that they feel like their breaking the promises that they made but that clearly isn’t the case here so why over think it? Kory eventually agreed to the ceremony. Nico announced that he would have the ballroom set up for tomorrow before the search started. The only thing I got from that was we would have to dress in our nicest dresses and then quickly change into our worst outfits for the search through the forest.
The rest of dinner was rushed so that we could all leave and go to our separate areas. There was a lot of tension in the dining hall and it didn’t mix well with all of our energies. All I wanted to do was figure out what was going on in Kota’s
head that would make her want to do this but at the same time, I respected her decision and knew that it would come to this eventually. I thought it would be a few months before they actually went through with the binding ceremony but sometimes duty comes first. It’s our duty to stop Malachi and doing this would help us do just that. It was going to take more than just the five of us to take down Malachi and we needed to have a way to communicate with each other. It seems this is the only way whether we like it or not.
Chapter Three
Kota
There was a part of me that wasn’t sure if what happened at dinner actually occurred. It was all I could think about but whenever I went over the conversation in my head it was almost like I was watching it happen from a different point of view. I was trying to process what I had just agreed to, and it wasn’t like anyone forced me into this predicament. I agreed on my own with no pressure, but it still feels like it’s being forced on me. Nathan and I are in a really good place in our relationship and we had been even before everything happened with my father. I worry that the binding ceremony will change us or change our relationship. I wasn’t like the other girls, struggling to understand how I feel or trying to be defiant to get back at my parents. On the outside, I didn’t show my emotions when it came to Nathan and I because I wanted them to be just between us but on the inside, I knew what I wanted and that was to be with him. That was probably why I agreed to the ceremony so quickly. I would rather have a more celebrated ceremony with a ball afterwards like most Alpha family weddings but we don’t have time for that. This was good enough for me.
A soft knock echoed around the room as I sat in the middle on one of the white couches. I had been up here by myself since dinner ended and I refused to talk to anyone, not even the girls. I needed time to process and convince myself that this was the right thing to do. A small part of me wondered if I only agreed to the ceremony because if I didn’t do it now then I would never do it. I love where Nathan and I are in our lives and I don’t want that to change. I guess I’ve always seen our lives turning out to be different after we went through with all the official festivities.
I didn’t respond to the knock, but I could tell by the heartbeat that it was Nathan. I wanted to tell him to go away just like I did the girls, but I felt like I couldn’t do that when he was the other sorcerer involved in tomorrow’s ceremony. The door made a creaking sound when it opened letting me know that I was no longer alone in the room. I found myself smiling even if Nathan couldn’t see it because I was still at that point in the relationship where I liked being around him.
“What have you been thinking about?” he asked as he sat down next to me on the corner seat of the couch. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder and motioned for me to lean back towards him. I rested my head on his chest while the rest of my body put its weight onto his side. He rubbed my arm up and down as he waited for me to answer but, with the way I was feeling as he touched me, I could fall asleep in seconds.
“You know what I’ve been thinking about,” I told him as my eyes closed gently.
“Don’t stress yourself over it, Kota,” he spoke so softly and with a calmness that I didn’t expect from someone who had just been thrown into our situation. “This was going to happen eventually.”
“I took the choice away from you when I announced to the whole table that I would do it,” I explained a frustration that I had with myself. “Would you have agreed if we had the conversation in private.”
“You already know the answer to that,” he chuckled, his chest bouncing my head in the process. “I was prepared to do this since the day your father told me about the prophecy and I wanted to do this since the very first time we took a walk around Sorcerer Castle. Do you remember that day?”
“I was so surprised when you asked me to walk with you,” I recalled as the smile returned. “You had always been Kory and Kody’s friend. I couldn’t understand why you wanted to hang out with me. I should’ve known it was because of some blood ritual.”
“That walk took place before the blood ritual, Kota,” he told me, my body shooting up to face him. I regretted it immediately because his warmth disappeared when I left his side.
“Why didn’t you tell me that?” I asked, relaxing my body before I continued. “This whole time I thought it was become some spell told you we were a match.”
“It’s always been you, Kota,” he smiled in my direction, forcing me to make eye contact. I hated when he did that. I wasn’t able to think properly when my eyes looked into his. “Your brothers may have been my best friends, but I knew it was you pulling me towards the Castle every day. We may not have known it at the time but every time I was with your brothers and I saw you, something hit me hard in the gut. Your father saw us walking that day and saw how we laughed and looked at each other. I was the only one he tested for your hand.”
“He didn’t test anyone else?” I questioned thinking it was strange that my father didn’t give himself options to consider.
“After the spell came back saying we were a perfect match he felt he did not need to test anyone else,” Nathan explained. “He said he saw in us what he and your mother always had. Although, he did consider testing other available men when you refused to look at me in public.”
A tear crawled down my cheek as he told me the whole story. It wasn’t anything to be crying over but just the thought of my father seeing exactly what I felt well before anyone else did was a little overwhelming. Another tear fell when I remembered he wouldn’t be there tomorrow to see me bind myself to Nathan. Kory and Kody would be there in his place, but it wasn’t the same.
“Did Kory say anything about my mother coming tomorrow?” I asked as I thought about the people who wouldn’t be there to see the day that was supposed to be one of my best. I realized there was a good possibility that my aunts wouldn’t be there either and obviously my uncles would absent, too.
“He sent a fire message back to her but, so far, he hasn’t received a response,” he finally told me after some hesitation. “He’s going to try to convince her to be there, but I hope you won’t see the ceremony as a negative thing if she’s not there. Just because it’s not the way you pictured doesn’t mean it won’t mean anything.”
“I’ll be really hurt if my mother isn’ there tomorrow,” I admitted. “But we really only need you and me to be there and my brothers and sisters are just a bonus, so, that’s going to have to be good enough.”
“I didn’t mean to make you think that way,” he said apologetically. “I just meant to say that the ceremony will mean the exact same thing to me as it would if we had planned it out. Just because it’s rushed doesn’t mean it’s fake or not good enough.”
“I know what you meant and you’re right,” I spoke quickly before he could interrupt me. “I see it the exact same way, it’s just, I can’t help but think about the other stuff. I try to put it in the back of my mind but it’s easier said than done.”
“Don’t push it down and hide it, Kota,” he reached out for me as he spoke. He pulled me into his body, my weight on his lap as he cuddled me into his chest. He leaned back against the couch again, taking me with him. “Your dad will be there tomorrow. It may not be in the way that you wanted, but he’ll be there.”
“You always say the right thing,” I said through a muffled voice.
“You better remember it because a hundred years down the line I may not be saying nice shit anymore,” he laughed, bouncing my whole body this time instead of just my head.
“Are you saying you’re going to get stupid with old age?” I giggled although I’m pretty sure it was because of his chest moving so quickly.
“Well, my dad did,” he answered making it completely awkward. Usually, I was the one who made something awkward but this time, it was all him.
“What do you mean by that?” I asked.
“He’s not stupid. I shouldn’t have said that,” Nathan mumbled. “He just doesn’t get it. His position and reputation come bef
ore his family and that has never made sense to me.”
“And that’s why you don’t get along?” I assumed.
“We don’t fight about it,” Nathan corrected me. “We just don’t talk about it. We don’t talk about anything at all. He would come home every night and do the same thing: ask us how our day was and then he left to hide in his study. If he spoke to us about anything else, it was usually because my brother and I got ourselves into trouble.”
“So, you don’t talk at all? How does that even work with your mother?” I questioned. “Surely, he talks to her.”
“I think they had conversations after we went to bed but that may have changed once my brother and I got older,” he recalled. “The less we needed him the more he slipped away. Occasionally, we’ll talk at the council meetings but it’s about council stuff.”
“Will your parents be there tomorrow?” I asked without really thinking about it. I should’ve been more sensitive about it especially with the relationship his parents have with one another.
“I doubt it,” he sighed. “If my father comes it’s only because his absence will cause more drama than his attendance with the other Council members and my mother is too busy doing her own thing. I don’t even know what she does with her time anymore.”
“How did I not know about any of this?” I asked in a rough tone. “You never mentioned it before.”
“It’s nothing to concern yourself with,” he chuckled hesitantly. “You clearly don’t know what it means to be a Councilmen’s kid. They’re nothing like your parents and so, we, as their children, are not used to being the light in their lives. I think it bothers you more than it bothers me.”
“How can you not be upset about it?” I continued to question him even though my gut told me it wasn’t a good idea. “You’re right about my lack of knowledge when it comes to the Council and their families but that doesn’t make it right.”
Deprived (Daughter of an Alpha Book 2) Page 4