Chapter 776 – Hidden Desires of the Werewolf King Novel

Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel

Dayson snorted. “I’m sure you will say that your son is a good one also, yet look at him trying to take my mate away.”

“He is just a child.”

“Is that your answer to everything? Children should be forgiven no matter how big a mess they make? Last time I checked, ignorance and lack of experience didn’t count as valid excuses for mistakes,” Dayson said stiffly. Cristian was about to say something else, but Dayson raised his hand. “Your son is over the line, but I’m not a child-beater. However, don’t blame me if Talia doesn’t respond to his invitations going forward. And don’t worry about your general. As long as she doesn’t cause more trouble, I won’t pursue this matter. Talia is an Alpha and she can take care of herself, but to me, Talia is my mate, my Luna, my family, and I will do anything to ensure she is happy. No one can act freely and disrespect her.”

Cristian nodded in understanding.

“What’s with the stiff atmosphere?”

Dayson and Cristian turned toward the voice to see Tony approaching them.

“Am I interrupting something?” Tony asked.

“No,” Dayson responded. “We were just done.” Dayson glanced behind Tony to see that Kalina and Michelle were chatting, and Dayson wished that Talia stops dancing with that shrimp and sit with the ladies.

With Tony joining, the atmosphere between Dayson and Cristian was less tense, but neither of the three was able to relax completely as they were getting updates through their pack links from warriors that were spread through the area.

Maddox didn’t join, because Tanya was pregnant and he didn’t want to risk her safety, but his Beta Oliver was in attendance. Oliver was also mentally communicating with warriors from the Blue River pack.

“Do you mind if I join?” Alpha Adam of the Silverfur asked as he approached Cristian, Dayson, and Tony.

Cristian gestured to Alpha Adam to go ahead. “Are you enjoying the party?”

“Yes, yes. It’s been a while since I attended an event without a business agenda.”

Dayson didn’t approve of Alpha Adam’s presence, but this was not his party, so he didn’t voice his complaints.

The Silverfur pack was usually staying neutral, acting only if their interests were in jeopardy and trying not to stir waves. That put them in a position of not having enemies, but not having any loyal allies either. Everything was a business transaction, which meant that Alpha Adam will side with whoever gives him more benefits, and Dayson hated such people. Especially since Alpha Adam sent his Beta’s daughter, Jade, to stir trouble for him and Talia.

Alpha Adam was in his early forties. Age-wise, he didn’t belong to this younger group of Alphas, but he didn’t quite get along with the older generation either because they thought of him as young and less experienced. He was caught in an awkward gap between two groups, and he was doing the best he could to provide for his pack.

“I was wondering…” Alpha Adam started while his eyes darted from Dayson to Cristian, “How are things going since you opened your borders to merge territories?”

“We didn’t merge our territories,” Dayson said stiffly. “We came to an agreement that we won’t be hostile toward each other, and due to that, we relaxed security on the borders we are sharing.”

“You can call it that way, if you want,” Alpha Adam said. “Do you see benefits of doing that? Any faults with it?”

“I’m sure you are aware of the benefits and dangers, Alpha Adam,” Cristian said. “We are all friends here, so how about you get to the point?”

Alpha Adam scratched the back of his head. “Well… I was wondering if you will consider letting my pack in on that.”

—

The Silverfur pack was placed on to the East of the Shadow Fang pack, and it also shared a border with the Spring Leaf pack.

“No need for such a reaction,” Alpha Adam said. “I am just trying to get more information. Are there some conditions I need to fulfill? Is there any transaction between you to keep this open-borders policy afloat?”

“You want to open your borders to our packs?” Dayson was visibly surprised. Dayson thought Alpha Adam would ask about Jade, and the conditions for releasing her from forced-labor punishment that was documented by the WW Magazine, and not discuss an alliance.

Alpha Adam pressed his lips into a line. “Is that so unexpected? Everyone would be attracted to the possibility of not needing to guard a certain stretch of the border. With fewer patrols needed, I can strengthen the ones along borders facing rogues and ease the load my warriors have. If we make this work, your two packs and the Blue River pack will be my allies. Even if you don’t like me, you will come to my aid because if my territory is breached, it means that enemies can come to you easily.” He glanced at Tony. “As a bonus, I am on good terms with Alpha Peter of the Evenfang pack. The South side of his territory borders the Lightclaw pack, and we could be the bridge to Alpha Anthony joining this alliance.”

Dayson couldn’t believe this. It’s not that just Alpha Adam wanted in, but he was negotiating for Alpha Peter too!? Alpha Peter was a bit older than Alpha Adam, but they were the same kind, both officially neutral and watching only for their own interests.

How Dayson saw this, opening up borders to them would be an invitation to disasters on many levels.

“This is an interesting offer, Adam,” Cristian said calmly. “We will consider it. However, as you know, we can’t make that decision without involving Alpha Maddox; before we decide on anything, we will conduct a thorough investigation that must end with positive conclusions from all parties involved. If Alpha Peter is interested in opening up his borders, maybe the two of you should consider such a deal before you join our negotiating table. If you approach us to join as you are now, we will look at each of your packs individually.”

The Spring Leaf pack was not the biggest, strongest, and definitely not the wealthiest, and they didn’t have any hidden weapons either. The position of the Spring Leaf pack was secured by negotiating ability of Alpha Cristian. He was an Alpha, but he could read the room and navigate the conversation with such skill that he could slam a refusal into someone’s face without offending the other party.

Considering that Alphas were known for their explosive temper and pushing their agenda at any cost, Alpha Cristian was an odd one.

Alpha Adam nodded while Cristian was talking, and then he left, pleased with the response.

“Are you serious about considering those two?” Dayson asked when Alpha Adam was out of earshot.

Cristian shrugged. “Who knows? Let him play with Peter, and we will see how that turns out.” Seeing Dayson’s obvious disapproval, Cristian asked, “Weren’t you the one who spoke about a dream of unifying all our territories? I remember a speech about how that would eliminate rogues and allow us to move freely, which will also increase chances of our people finding their fated mates.”

Dayson said those things, but those were Talia’s ideas. At that time, people didn’t know that Talia was his mate, so Dayson spoke in her place. It was her dream for everyone to live in peace, and Dayson wished for the power to make it come true. Unifying territories of three packs was a step forward, but it was far from the end goal.

Tony released a long breath. “I wish my territory is closer to yours.” They were allies, but Tony shared borders not only with the Evenfang pack but also with the Red Moon pack, and that was a big headache. If Alpha Edward attacked, Tony would be defeated before any reinforcements arrived.

“Me too,” Dayson said honestly.

It’s not that Dayson was buddy-buddy with Tony, but the Lightclaw pack was closest to the portal to the Midnight Guardians pack. If they could connect their borders, it would be easier for everyone to move around.

Unfortunately, Dayson didn’t trust Alpha Adam and Alpha Peter. If they opened borders with them, it meant that those two would know about witches and abilities, and Dayson was not ready to share that information with the world; No one was ready for that, yet Dayson could feel that a storm was coming.

Cristian’s eyes lost focus for a moment. “My patrols caught some movements.” He glanced to check the time. It was not time to end the party, but it was not early either. “I will get the kids out of here.”

Cristian issued several commands through the mind-link, and the band stopped playing music.

Cristian went to the stage and took the microphone. “I want to thank everyone for coming here tonight to celebrate Ashton’s sixth birthday. I’m glad to see you are having fun, but I must remind you that we have kid-friendly activities in the morning that start at seven o’clock. I will leave it to parents to decide when to put their children to sleep. We want you fresh and energized because we will build rafts and have a race on the river.”

“YEAH!” A bunch of kids screamed, making grownups burst into laughter.

Cristian thanked everyone again, and the people started dispersing.

Guesthouses had tight security, so they were safe from the rogues. With most of the members of the Spring Leaf pack in shelters, the people left in the area were warriors and high-ranking members who were aware of the situation.

Ashton was reluctant to leave Talia’s side, but he left with Luna Michelle’s parents after Talia promised to watch him during the raft-building activity.

When Ashton was out of sight, Talia’s smile faltered, and she looked at Dayson with concern. ‘What’s going on, Dayson?’ She didn’t have the pack mind-link, but she knew the plan, and the fact that kids and most of the grownups left, told her that something was happening.

‘We have confirmed sightings of rogues,’ Dayson responded through their mind link. ‘Do you want to go…’

‘I’m staying with you,’ Talia responded with finality.

Dayson was now by her side. He cupped her cheeks with his palms and looked at her with all the concern in the world. “Kitten…”

“No, Dayson. I am not backing out from this. I know what you are going to say. I am aware of the dangers, and I am aware of my condition. You might think I’m foolish, but I want to remind you of the fact that whenever something bad happened, we were apart. We need to stay together, Dayson.”

Dayson frowned in disapproval, but he knew she was right. If it were up to him, he would ask her to go into a shelter, but that was not Talia. Even before she knew they were mates and that she had powers, Talia didn’t go to a shelter. His kitten was always in the middle of a fray. Reckless kitten. His kitten.

Dayson leaned to peck her lips. “Stay close to me.”

Talia wrapped her arms around him. “There is no other place I would rather be.”

Dayson exhaled in defeat, and then he kissed her again.

—

Cristian was on top of the situation.

Patrols from the Spring Leaf pack identified several places where rogues were hiding, and they swiftly formed several groups, each with Alphas present. Their goal was to attack rogues. None of them were willing to wait and see what rogues were up to.

Their mission was to eliminate threats while trying to catch some alive, so they could interrogate them.

Beta Oliver was securing guest houses with warriors from the Blue River pack.

Luna Michelle was not a warrior. After confirming that Ashton was asleep and well guarded, she went to the shelter to assure their people things were under control.

Liam and Amelia were in the group led by Alpha Cristian. Amelia was excited to be part of this. She never saw anything like it.

Pierce and Daria went with Tony and Kalina. They volunteered to join that group because Daria wanted to be with her sister.

The idea to mix up teams came from Alpha Cristian. He thought it would be easier to share updates because each can communicate with members of their own pack.

Dayson and Talia moved together with Keith and a group of ten warriors.

‘It would be better if it were just the two of us,’ Talia spoke to Dayson through their private mind-link.

‘You want a piece of this?’ Dayson asked teasingly and flexed his muscles.

He was wearing only shorts, and he knew that Talia enjoyed checking him out. Other warriors were also scarcely dressed, but Talia had eyes only for Dayson. Dayson approved.

‘I don’t want a piece. I want all of you,’ Talia responded right away. ‘I wish it’s only the two of us because you are immune to my powers. It will be difficult for me to aim, so I don’t harm our people.’

Dayson shot a side-glance at Keith. Keith’s injuries healed from how Talia blasted him in the cave, and since then, Keith had minimal interaction with Talia, keeping it strictly business-only. Dayson guessed that Keith was feeling guilty about what happened when Talia was in heat, and Dayson wouldn’t mind if Talia blasted Keith again, just in case the measly coach gets any other funny ideas in the future.

Dayson was truly torn about Keith. On one side, he was a capable warrior and the most loyal person, the perfect candidate to watch over Talia. And on another side, Keith couldn’t conceal his admiration for Talia, admiration that went beyond what a warrior should feel for his Luna. If Dayson dismissed Keith, Talia would lose a capable guard, but keeping him didn’t sound good either.

‘Dayson?’ Talia’s voice sounded in Dayson’s head, reminding him that they were in the middle of a conversation when he spaced out.

‘Yes, yes. Don’t worry about harming our people. If you want to blast anyone, let me know, and I will mind-link them. Or… how about they duck when you whistle?’

Talia liked that. ‘That sounds great, but I’m not much of a whistler. How about they duck if I shout “duck”?’

After a second, Dayson responded, ‘Done.’

Talia knew that he had already mind-linked others about this.

‘Dayson?’

‘Yes, kitten?’

‘I want us to hurry with my Luna ceremony. I need the pack mind-link, so that I can communicate properly with everyone.’

‘Alright. We can do what Max and Tanya did. A private ceremony for the pack, and we can have a big party later.’

A few moments later, Talia called again, ‘Dayson?’

‘Yes?’

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