by Maia Starr
Jean-Paul walked straight ahead, following a line of trees for a mile, and then two. The start of wolf territory was terribly far to a human, but to a shifter, with increased strength and stamina, it was nothing.
He laid James’s body at the line between wolf and bear territory, covering it with a few leaves. And then for good measure, he gave it a little kick, making sure there was truly no life remaining in it.
The walk back seemed twice as fast, his head swirling as he tried to figure out what he was going to say to Jenna Mae. He understood her grief for her baby’s father and understood that the poor child, who was blameless, was caught in the middle of this.
“Why?” he muttered, halfway through the walk. He wasn’t sure who he was asking, but he needed answers. “Why did she have to be my mate? Why is it this way? What am I supposed to do?”
Of course, no answer came.
When he got back to the cabin that suddenly felt far too small, Jenna Mae was in the kitchen, boiling the kettle. She looked positively broken, her face pale and still tear stained.
She looked at Jean-Paul and then her gaze drifted down. Jean-Paul looked down as well and realized his hands still had blood on them.
Without a word, she stepped away from the sink and he approached, washing them clean. Both of them watched the water turn red and then run clear.
“What will happen now?” she asked.
“I have to talk to my council,” he said. “This is a serious matter.”
“And what will they say?” she asked.
“I don’t know,” he said.
“What will they do to you?” she pushed.
“I am the Alpha,” he reminded her. “I call the shots.”
“That’s what James thought,” she said. “You don’t know what the wolves are capable of. You don’t know…”
“It’ll be alright,” he said. “Please, whatever I can do to make things...right between us, let me know.”
“I really can’t talk about this right now,” she said. “I don’t know about the future.”
“There is something you should know,” he realized he needed to tell her everything, or they might never be alright again. “About you and I.”
“What?” she asked, sounding completely broken.
“You know about fated mates?” he asked. “James must have told you?”
“He made fun of them,” she said. “He said that...it was for fools, and that mates were the choice of the Alpha.”
“He was lying,” Jean-Paul said to her. “Fated mates are real. I didn’t believe in them either because I believed that the universe had...been screwed up for me. I wasn’t supposed to be an Alpha, and yet here I am, and so I didn’t think there was a mate for me...until I saw you.”
“What?” she asked, dumbfounded.
“And I felt what everyone told me I would feel, staring into your eyes. You are my fated mate; you are mine. And you and Cameron are mine to protect, forever. Even if I didn’t want to, even if I wasn’t...falling in love with you. I would have no choice.”
“Oh my God,” she put her head in her hands. “This isn’t happening right now. This isn’t happening right now.”
“Jenna Mae…” he said, reaching for her, but she pulled away.
“Please,” she said. “I can’t take any more today. No more. I would go if I had somewhere to stay. I can’t...”
“I won’t say a word to you for the rest of the day,” he promised her. “And if you want me to go, you just say so.”
She left the kettle boiling and returned to the bed, pulling the curtains around her. Jean-Paul sighed, closing his eyes. He had no idea how they were going to get through any of this. But he did know they were going to have to, or life wouldn’t be worth living. He had thought that life was hard before, but this was the biggest obstacle he had ever come across. He knew he should trust in the universe’s plan, but at this moment, everything seemed hopeless.
Chapter Nine
The silence in the cabin for the next few days was suffocating. Jenna Mae made no indication that she wanted him to speak, and he didn’t want to rock the boat any longer. He threw himself into the outside world, making arrangements to return to the city as soon as he felt like he could. He hoped Jenna Mae would come with him, but at the moment, nothing seemed certain. They passed their days glaring at each other as they brushed past each other in the small cabin. Jean-Paul spent as much time outside as he possibly could, trying to take in what felt like the last peaceful moments of his life.
When the day came for the meeting, he broke his silence to tell her where he was going.
“I wish I could say that I won’t be long,” he said., “But this could take hours, or…”
“I understand,” she said, stony-faced. “I understand that I won’t be able to leave because I am trapped here.”
“Jenna Mae,” he said. “That’s not the case.”
“It’s ok,” she said, still emotionally dead. “I am used to it.”
It broke his heart, but she didn’t let him say another word. She walked away, her back to him, and he felt he had to walk out the door then.
He knew he needed to swap his head from their relationship status into Alpha status. However, Jenna Mae’s words continued to echo in his mind as he walked through the forest.
The other bears were gathered by the lake. To the outside eye, they would have looked exactly like normal bears. They were swiping at fish or scratching at trees.
However, when Jean-Paul approached, they immediately dropped to attention, their heads swinging towards him. Jean-Paul bowed his head as well, and they began their transformation.
He had known some of these bears since childhood. They either were related to him or had been advising the throne and his family for centuries.
In the center of all of them was Remy. Jean-Paul knew that Remy had to come, but he wished that the Bear beta had stayed home just the same.
“You’ve all heard the truth by now,” Jean-Paul said once they had transformed. “That Wolf Alpha James is dead, by my hand.”
“The wolves are already readying a plan of attack,” Remy snarled. “Do you know what this has done to the fragile peace we had?”
“It had to be done,” Jean-Paul said. “I don’t want to debate the reasons why.”
“I think you have to tell us why,” Remy demanded. “You crushed him. The photos of the body were sent around and—”
“I know how it looks,” Jean-Paul said. “But you all have to trust my judgment that I did it for the good of everyone.”
“For the good of who?” Remy snarled.
Darwin, the Gamma bear, chose to cut Remy off then.
“The wolves will want answers, and justice,” he said. “And we cannot deny them that.”
“They will have it,” Jean-Paul answered. “They will know what their Alpha did.”
“How in the world can they when you don’t tell us?” Remy answered. “This has always been your way, secretive and—”
“And that is my choice.”
“It has something to do with that woman you’ve holed up with, doesn’t it?” Remy demanded, and everyone fell silent, turning to Jean-Paul.
“What led you to that conclusion?” Jean-Paul asked.
“Who else would it be?” Remy growled. “Is she—”
“I am keeping her safe,” Jean-Paul said. “You do not understand the situation. He could have killed her. He would have broken absolutely everything in her, and then killed her for sport. He would have…”
“But...she's the wolf’s mate,” Darwin said. “You can’t do that.”
“She wasn’t his mate,” Jean-Paul answered.
Everyone fell silent for a minute and then Remy spoke up.
“Is this the way it’s going to be? One rule for us and one rule for the Alpha? We’ve had Alphas like that before and…”
“This is not a situation like before,” Jean-Paul said.
“You have killed the Alpha Wolf,” Remy
pointed out. “Over his mate.”
“I feel,” Jean-Paul growled, asserting his power, “that this is enough for today. We have the information. We bears have never decided on things quickly.”
“And what, we sweep this under the rug?” Remy asked. “You have violated every law that we have, Jean-Paul.”
“And I am the Alpha,” Jean-Paul replied. “So I will decide what is fitting.”
“You will not,” Remy growled and Darwin held him back.
“Do not speak to our Alpha that way,” Darwin said.
“I will speak to him whatever way I want,” Remy said. “As far as I am concerned, he is not our Alpha.”
This was a serious thing to say. Jean-Paul raised his chin, trying to show that he was not shaken.
“Are you trying to challenge me, Remy?” he asked.
Remy stayed silent for a long time, holding his gaze.
“No,” Remy said at last.
“Good,” Jean-Paul said, turning to the rest of them. “Now, I understand that there are laws to be violated. I also understand that I’ve asked for some time to relax. I am ready to return to proper duties. I will move back into the city within the week.”
“With the girl?” Remy asked.
“That is none of your business,” Jean-Paul said. “We are done here.”
Jean-Paul waited until he was a few steps away, his back to the council, before letting out a long breath.
He knew that they had the right to question him. But whatever was going on with him, whatever he had done, he still had to take care of the rest of the bear pack, and he had been away for so long already.
He went over and over in his head how he was going to handle things with Jenna Mae. The truth was that she had nowhere else to go. He didn’t want her to feel like she was trapped, but he also needed to keep her safe. The wolves would be out for blood, and they would want to take Cameron away from her. Jean-Paul had no intention of letting that happen.
Back at the cabin, Jenna Mae’s bags were already packed. That shocked him, sent his heart into his throat. He couldn’t let her walk out the door; he just couldn’t.
“Jenna Mae,” he said, looking at her bags. “Let’s talk. Please.”
“No,” she said to him. “I can’t do this. I can’t stay.”
“Where will you go?” he asked. “You don’t have anywhere to go.”
“It’s not for you to decide,” she said. “I don’t belong to you.”
“But…” he tried to think logically. “Jenna Mae, you are my mate.”
“Stop,” she said. “I don’t want to hear it.”
“Do you know what it’s like to be separated from your mate?” he asked. “It’s excruciating.”
“How do you know?” she asked. “You said that only one person could be your mate, so how would you know what it’s like to be separated from them?”
“Michael had a mate,” Jean-Paul said, softly. “My brother Michael, the one who was supposed to be Alpha. The one who should have been Alpha.”
“What happened to her?”
“She died,” Jean-Paul said. “My sister in law...was in a fragile state when Michael met her. The universe sometimes does not give your mate in time. Rory was only nineteen, but there was...something wrong with her body chemistry. She was sickly, and when Michael met her, she was dying. They had a year together and then...that was it. Michael fell apart after that.”
“Is that why he died?” she asked. Jean-Paul didn’t know how to answer.
“Yes. No. I don’t know.”
“Well,” Jenna Mae said. “I’m very sorry for your brother. And I don’t wish that on anyone. But I can’t stay, Jean-Paul. Not for myself and not for the good of my baby.”
“Where will you go?”
“It’s none of your business,” she said, picking up her two bags and Cameron. “Thank you for everything that you’ve done. I really appreciate it. But I can’t stay.”
And with that, she brushed past him and walked out the door.
He wanted to grab her and pull her back. He wanted to call after her. But he knew that if there was any hope of trying to win her back, he needed to let her go.
“Jenna Mae!” he said, at last, when she was almost out of sight. “Please be careful.”
She didn’t answer, but he hoped that she heard.
Jean-Paul went back into the cabin, closing the door. He needed to figure out exactly where she was going. He needed to answer all the messages that were pouring in. He needed to emerge back into public wearing his metaphorical crown. He needed to be the Alpha more so than ever before if he wanted to make this right.
Chapter Ten
“Have they lost their minds?” Jean-Paul asked Darwin, not four days later. “I was the one who murdered him. I don’t deny that.”
“The whole planet is aware of that by now,” Darwin said. “But regardless, you are the Alpha, and you must attend the coronation of the new wolf Alpha.”
“I will not,” Jean-Paul responded. He had been in his city mansion for the past seventy-two hours, and he felt like he was drowning. Part of it was the constant pressure, the duties of being an Alpha combined with the fact that he felt like his heart was breaking. Without Jenna Mae at his side, he couldn’t think straight. Tasks that used to come to him with ease were now something he struggled with. Everyone wanted answers, and everyone wanted to question him about the rumors that were popping up about him. Did he sleep with a former wolf mate? Was there a child? Was it really self-defense?
“Jenna Mae’s son is their new Alpha,” Jean-Paul snapped at Darwin. “And I will not attend a ceremony for a usurper.”
“Here’s the thing,” Darwin replied. “No one knows about her.”
“What?”
“My intelligence inside the wolf pack says that James’s human life was kept secret from his pack just as his wolf life was kept secret from humans. He worked very hard to lead a double life. I do know this though: even if it’s proven true that she did carry his son, it doesn’t matter.”
“Why not?” Jean-Paul barked.
“Because James was married,” Darwin said. “And it wasn’t to this girl that you are claiming. Her name was Joan, and he kept her like a bird in a cage too. Who knows how many other birds he has fluttering around.”
“Two years!” Jean-Paul cried. “Jenna Mae spent two years living with him.”
“She thought she did,” Darwin answered. “But it’s likely she spent two years living in a shitty run-down apartment, and James kept several women, including his wife.”
“I refuse to believe this,” Jean-Paul replied. “They can’t be that in the dark.”
“They are wolves; they are stupid,” Darwin answered. “But they are also coronating their new Alpha today at the top of the mountain. And if we don’t go, then it will be all-out war.”
Jean-Paul put his head in his hands.
“We won’t even be able to understand,” he said. “Who knows what wolf howls mean?”
“They will do it as human,” Darwin said. “So that all species can attend. We have to be there. You cannot break with tradition when you’ve already…”
“What?” Jean-Paul asked him. “Go on and say it.”
“Forgive me, my lord,” Darwin replied. “I forget my place.”
“No, you don’t,” Jean-Paul said. “Admit what you were going to say. I command you.”
“When you’ve already broken with so much tradition,” Darwin said at last.
“There,” Jean-Paul replied. “Was that so hard?”
“It was rude,” Darwin replied.
“Rude or not, it’s the truth,” Jean-Paul said. “I’m aware of what I’ve done. And I’m aware what a rift it is causing the community. Will Remy be there?”
“Without a doubt,” Darwin said. “He is likely willing to act as your represent—”
“To hell he will,” Jean-Paul said. “I will be there.”
“Good,” Darwin said. “Because I’d rather you
be Alpha over Remy any day.”
The last thing that Jean-Paul had any interest in doing was going to a coronation ceremony for the wolf pack Alpha. Still, he understood the laws, and as the moon rose, he climbed the hill of the highest mountain, where the wolves kept their den of the Alpha and family. He had been at the coronation of James's father, and James,many years ago, and he remembered that each shifter Alpha had a place in the ceremony. It seemed to be the only time in history that they all got along.
The other nobles of the shifter community were mostly already gathered. There were other wolves, bears, and lions, half transformed and the other half in human form. When he approached, everyone turned to stare at him. They all knew what he had done, and he knew there were many opinions.
He took his place beside Darwin, and beside Remy, who wouldn’t look at him. He seemed to be the last one to arrive, and with his presence, the wolf shifter at the front of the crowd began the ceremony.
James’s brother was called Alexander, and he had mated with a slim silver wolf shifter named Elizabeth. Jean-Paul had only seen them in passing up until now.
For one brief moment, Jean-Paul met Alexander’s eyes, and it seemed an eternity passed between them. Jean-Paul knew exactly what Alexander had gone through, because he himself had been a similar position not that many years ago. He had stood at the front of a ceremony and listened to the words while his heart felt hollow. He had felt like an imposter, a fraud, and heartbroken, yet simultaneously excited at the same time.
At least, Jean-Paul thought, Alexander had his mate by his side. At least there was that.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, I present you the Queen Regent Elizabeth and Alpha Alexander, your undoubted queen and Alpha of Wolf Kingdom, who have come before you today to serve the Kingdom. Are you, Queen and Alpha, willing to serve the laws of the land as your forefathers have done before you?
“We will do the same,” Alexander and Elizabeth chorused at the same time. Despite the fact that James had died just a few days ago, and they hadn’t even buried him, as far as Jean-Paul knew, they seemed well rehearsed. They seemed much better prepared than Jean-Paul had been when the crown was suddenly placed on his head.