Filed To Story: In the Shadow of the Past Luna (Lily & James)
Thankfully, when Lily announced her proposed replacements, none of the three expressed any doubt or reservation. To our pleasant surprise, all three seemed incredibly honored and immediately accepted. That left just one spot that she would have to fill in the future.
Lily immediately swore in each of the new council members -using an oath that Rose told her to use- and the new werewolf council was announced and presented to the crowd:
Lily Brogan
Kevin Stoller
Peter Sampson
Dr. Jay Hyder
Dr. Ryan Miller
Alpha Brett Donaldson
[vacant]
As you might imagine, most wolves in the ballroom were thrilled and excited about the changes. The applause given was loud and boisterous.
Many if not most of the wolves sitting in the boxes, however, were angry or upset. They knew that all the attention in the room would now be turned to them, and it was not going to be pleasant.
(Luna Jane POV)
I was shocked when several members of the council admitted to purchasing females from Margie, and when they admitted to being blackmailed to do her bidding.
I knew that Margie had blackmailed Randall and I, but I had done something to deserve it. Trafficking females and blackmailing council members went far beyond what Margie had done to Randall and I.
How could Margie… my best friend… do any of that?
As I listened to the confessions, I kept waiting for a logical explanation. When it was said that Margiel had communicated with them by phone to avoid being alpha-ordered, I thought I had found what I was looking for. Obviously, someone was impersonating Margie. Perhaps it was Sheila, or even Stephanie for that matter. But clearly it could not be Margie.
But then Nick stepped forward and played the recent audio recordings. That is when my heart completely.
shattered. I not only recognized Margie’s voice, but I also recognized her manner of speaking. She also mentioned details that Stephanie and Sheila would not know.
I could not stop the tears from flooding down my face. How could my best friend -and our pack’s beta female- do such things? How could someone that I had been close to all these years… someone I had relied on for advice on how to parent my son…. someone we basically allowed to control our entire pack.. be involved in female trafficking? And blackmail? And conspiracy? How could she seriously propose that her own son -who she knew was not g ay and was still mated to Jenny- sleep with Member Bloch and record it?!?!?
I felt like my world was falling completely apart. I looked to Randall for comfort, but he seemed to be dealing with his own internal demons.
In fact, Randall’s face was as red as a tomato, and he was angrier than I have ever seen him before. I reached my hand out to comfort him, thinking that perhaps we could find comfort in each other.
Before my hand could even make contact with his, however, I pulled it back. I realized that Randall’s rage- filled eyes were not directed towards the council members or Margie. No, Randall’s rage was directed at James and Lily.
As that additional reality began to hit me, I began dry-heaving. Guards brought me a bucket. Randall did not even seem to notice; that is how angry he was.
I suddenly began wondering whether it was just my best friend that was a stranger to me. Was it possible that my mate was too?
I somehow managed to pull myself together by the time that the new council members were announced. I was the only wolf in either of the boxes who joined the applause,
My applause earned me a dirty look from Randall. It was the first time that he looked at me since the wrongdoing of the council was revealed. I had never, ever seen Randall look at me that way before, but the look only made me clap louder.
Lily announced that the public meeting to discuss alleged wrongdoing at West Mountain Pack would now begin. Chairs were brought out for Lily and James, and they were placed in the middle of the chairs for the other council members. Just before sitting down, James looked at Randall.
“Father, during our meeting earlier, I commanded you to not disclose our earlier conversation or try to interfere with tonight’s plans. I relieve you of those commands. It is only right that you be able to fully participate in the discussion and investigation of your leadership.”
Was the alpha command the reason that Randall was so angry at James and Lily?
Randall stood and addressed James and Lily. “There is no need for an investigation. I formally rescind my title as alpha of West Mountain Pack and name you, James Anderson, as my successor.”
“Thank you for making that part of the process easier, Father. I accept the position as Alpha of West
Mountain Pack.”
With those words, there was a subtle shift in the wind, and the transfer of power from Randall to James could be felt by all in the ballroom. A part of me felt proud that James and Lily could now be referred to as “Alpha James”
and “Luna Lily.”
Once the wind settled down, James spoke again.
“Unfortunately, Father, your opportunity for a peaceful transition closed when you told me to f&&k off earlier. There are wolves that have been waiting to address you and the others on stage. They also have
Questions that they want to ask, and that they deserve answers to
Had you been willing to man-up and admit your role in the horrors that have been happening in this pack, I would have asked that the waiting wolves focus their complaints and questions on the others on stage.
However, at this point, your concession is a little too late.”
James then turned to Lily. “Sweetheart?”
“Alpha Aaron, you may now read the list of charges,”
Lily said as she took her seat.
Alpha Aaron approached the stage again.
“Thank you, Luna Lily and Honorable Members of the Werewolf Council. I hereby accuse West Mountain
Pack and its former leadership of the following crimes:
-The abuse of females, children, the elderly, and other vulnerable persons;
-Abuse of the mate bond, and intentionally using that bond as a vehicle for torture;
-Unwarranted and inhumane punishment of pack members for petty sins without due process;
-Conspiracy to commit kidnapping, rape, blackmail, and trafficking.
I accuse everyone in both boxes of all of these crimes.”
Wait, what?
The trafficking had already been established as to Margie, and there had been some reference at Sheila’s wedding to what Stephanie and Sheila did to Nick’s mate bond, but was Alpha Aaron suggesting that more had happened? And that we all knew about it?
I looked at Randall. Unlike me, he did not seem surprised at all by the allegations. Instead, his hateful glares at Lily and James had returned. Meanwhile, Stephanie and Sheila looked dumbfounded, as did the other pack members in the box.
Confused, I then looked at Margie. She was crying as Robert tried to hold and console her. He must have moved closer to her at some point and I did not notice it.
After a minute or so, while the room continued to process the weight of Alpha Aaron’s allegations, Robert stood up.
“Lily, enough is enough. I demand that you end this now.”
“It is Luna Lily, Father. And what do you propose that I end?”
“Can’t you see what this is doing to your mother? Do you really need to publicly embarrass her? I admit that she made some mistakes. A lot of mistakes. But she is not evil. She is simply acting out in pain, after all the horrible things that have happened to her. Can you not show some mercy to your mother?”
Lily glared at him. “Where was the mercy that she showed me when she was beating me? When she told me that she wished it had been me that died and not Stephanie? Where was her mercy when I was forced to go days without eating? Where was her mercy when Stephanie was torturing me in the name of luna training?”
Again, what?
“She is your mother, for Goddess’ sake. She gave birth to you and she raised you. She loved you in her own way. Yes, she made mistakes. But I did too. And you did too, Lily.”
“LUNA LILY.”
Robert sighed. “You made mistakes too, Luna Lily. She is your family. Family forgives one another.”
“SHE PAID WOLVES TO HAVE ME KILLED!!!”
“She thought that you killed Stephanie! And that you stole Stephanie’s mate!”
“Neither of those things were true.”
“But she was confused. You are the Goddess’ chosen one. Can you not use your gift to see how much your mother has already suffered? Look at her, she is crying. Does that bring you joy? Is your revenge really more important than taking care of your family?”
“THIS IS NOT ABOUT REVENGE!”
New Book: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel
Dayson was the alpha of the largest pack in North America. Powerful figures from other packs sought to offer gorgeous girls as potential mates for Dayson. He steadfastly rejected these advances, he was not a pawn to be manipulated. But eventually there came a mysterious girl he could hardly say No. Who was she?