Chapter 764 – Hidden Desires of the Werewolf King Novel

Filed To Story: Veiled Desires of the Alpha King Novel

Talia nodded into his chest. Somehow, his words managed to soothe her anxiety. For now.

…

Dayson and Talia went downstairs, and they heard voices from the garden.

Maya, Jaeden, Pierce, and Daria were there with members of the Midnight Guardians pack.

“Good morning,” Talia wished them when they stepped on the terrace that connected with the garden.

Maya grinned. “It’s almost lunchtime, but fine… let’s go with the morning.”

Talia glanced over their guests to notice, “I see some people are missing.”

Maya lifted her chin proudly. “Out of twenty people, seven found their mates last night. Sandy, Tyler, Amelia, and Liam sent them to the Midnight Guardians pack last night. Sandy took Tyler to spend some time with her family. As for the thirteen remaining singles…” Maya gestured at people in the garden. “We are taking them to Darkbourne for lunch and some swimsuit shopping, and then for an outing by the lake. I expect to thin this number further.”

“And we are happy to report that we had no incidents last night,” Pierce added.

Talia put her hand over her chest. “Seven mated couples in one evening? That’s fantastic!” She turned to Dayson. “How about we join them by the lake in the afternoon?”

Dayson agreed. Other than relaxing, the morale of pack members will improve when they see that their Alpha and Luna are getting along well.

“Great!” Maya exclaimed. “With the boost from Malia services, the rest of them will find their mates in no time!” She continued to Talia in a lower voice, “You should ask Axel to send us more people. I’m coordinating with Tanya, Kalina, and Michelle a mixer for singles in four days, and at this rate, we won’t have any singles left.”

Talia shook her head helplessly. Why did Maya lower her voice when every werewolf could hear her clearly? But she didn’t refute Maya’s words because thirteen pairs of eyes were looking at her expectantly. It was obvious that Maya told them about Talia’s mate-matching abilities.

Talia was nervous. What if the people inside start cursing her and tell her to leave?

The door opened, and a middle-aged man bowed with, “Alpha, Luna.”

Talia’s heart tightened at the sight of a man she saw at the Summer Solstice festival. That was Lulu’s father, and they called him chef Page. Talia saw him only a few months ago, yet he looked like he aged a decade.

“No need for formalities, Page. We came here to see how you are doing,” Dayson said.

“I am honored. Please, come in.”

Talia and Dayson stepped into the house that immediately opened into a living room. There was one sofa, two sofa chairs, and a coffee table. Straight ahead was a kitchen with a dining area, and there was a small hallway on the right.

Talia swallowed a pinch in her throat at the sight of a fireplace that had Lulu’s large photo with a black ribbon at the edge. There were many smaller photos of Lulu around it, from her early childhood and teen years, and then there were few with Lulu as an adult. At the bottom of the fireplace were one teddy bear, a worn-out doll, and several vases with fresh flowers.

“Can I see the photos?” Talia asked, unsure if she was worthy of going there.

“No need to ask, Luna,” Page responded respectfully and gestured toward the fireplace.

Talia walked closer to observe photos, and she heard Dayson asking, “How are things, Page? Do you need any help?…” Two men talked, but Talia’s ears were buzzing, and she didn’t hear them.

More than those photos, Talia saw Lulu in her mind, smiling, arguing, and then that prideful expression that made everyone wonder if they should challenge her.

Talia remembered the moment when Dayson said they could be her guards. Keith stepped forward first, accepting his role, and Lulu was second. After that, Lulu didn’t voice her loyalty, but her actions were not lacking. Why did Talia doubt her?

“Are you OK?” Dayson’s voice sounded close to Talia’s ear, startling her.

She didn’t notice when he came behind her.

Talia wanted to say she was fine, but she knew that Dayson could sense her emotions, and he would see through her.

Instead of answering his question, Talia pointed at one photo. It was young Lulu, maybe around ten years old, with a woman by her side.

“Is this Lulu’s mother?” Talia guessed. There was some resemblance between the two.

“Yes. That’s Dove.” Page responded.

Dayson thought how that was odd. He didn’t remember Dove as a pack member, but maybe she joined while his father was the Alpha. He was embarrassed to admit that he didn’t know much about Lulu’s personal life, but he still asked, “Does she live here?”

“No. She left us a long time ago. It was just Lulu and me.”

Talia’s heart cracked.

“Page, I…” Talia exhaled a shaky breath. “I am so sorry for your loss. Lulu was an amazing she-wolf. She died while saving my life, and I will always be grateful for her sacrifice. I know that there is nothing I can do to make it up to you, but if I can help you in any way, just let me know.”

Page smiled sadly. “Lulu would be happy to hear those words, Luna. There is one thing you could do.”

Talia blinked while wondering what he would ask for.

“Can you tell everyone that Lulu was a good person?”

Talia didn’t have any problem with that, but… “Why would anyone think bad of Lulu?”

Page released a slow breath. “Lately, Lulu was troubled. She told me that everyone took a blood oath, and she didn’t. Rumors spread quickly, and some people asked her if she was planning to betray you. Lulu endured, too prideful to admit why she didn’t do it, but I knew she was troubled by it.” He turned to look at the photo with Lulu and her mother. “Dove was the reason why Lulu…” He paused. “Do you want to hear Lulu’s story?”

“Yes, please,” Talia responded right away.

Page gestured toward the sitting area and offered them drinks. Dayson and Talia settled on the sofa, and Page brought them water before sitting on the sofa chair.

“I met Dove more than two decades ago,” Page started his story. “I was on a mission to check for rogue activity in the area, and I stopped by the human town where I met her. Dove was the most beautiful she-wolf I had ever seen.” He smiled bitterly. “That’s how the mate bond works. I remember fearing she was a rogue and if we were doomed for failure, but she didn’t smell like one.”

He released a long breath before continuing, “Dove was carried away by the mate bond, just how I was, and everything was great, except that she refused to come with me. Dove said she had a life in human town, and she couldn’t just disappear. I would visit her whenever I could. She had a single-bedroom apartment and…” He shook his head. “That’s not important. I was delighted when we confirmed she was pregnant with a pup. At that time, she agreed to come with me. I thought it would be forever, and I had no idea that Dove had different plans.”

Page stopped talking. Dayson and Talia stayed silent, waiting for Page to gather his thoughts. It was obvious this was emotional for him.

“It lasted for about half a year. I was blindsided when Dove said she needed to return to human town. Lulu was just a few weeks old then. When I realized she was not talking about just shopping, Dove explained that her vacation time was over, and she didn’t want to lose her job. She said this house was small and shabby, and we needed more money and… Anyway, she left.”

“Days became weeks, and I was angry that Dove was not coming back. Lulu needed her mother. I went to look for her and… I found out she had a man there. He was human. Dove panicked, thinking I would kill him, and I almost did.”

Page’s expression darkened.

“Dove said she was with him from before we met, and he was taking care of her, and I realized that my aches when we were apart were because my mate was unfaithful. In a fit of anger, I rejected the bond, and I forced her to accept it. I thought I will die, but Lulu’s existence kept me afloat. My wolf weakened, ending my career as a warrior.”

He rubbed his face with force and then continued, “I thought I will never see Dove again, but she came to visit for Lulu’s first birthday. I didn’t have the heart to chase her away when I saw Lulu smiling at her. I didn’t know if it was Dove’s guilt, mother’s instinct, or maybe she just wanted to torture me, but Dove would visit occasionally, always bringing presents. As time passed and Lulu became aware of her surroundings, Lulu noticed that other kids had both parents, yet her mother was not around. Lulu started asking Dove why she didn’t live with us, like other mothers, and Dove would always say it will happen next time.”

Page looked at Talia and Dayson seriously. “Lulu grew up listening to empty promises. Her mother would show up for birthdays and holidays, coming with a smile and expensive toys and clothes, and leaving Lulu with a broken heart. Lulu was a teenager when she confronted her mother. Lulu said that she was tired of lies and that if Dove had no intention to be a mother, she was not welcome.”

He smiled sadly. “Lulu burned all the gifts Dove ever gave her. Lulu said she didn’t need trinkets and promises. She wanted her mother.”

Talia was glad that Dayson’s hand held firmly on her shoulder like he was preventing her from falling apart. Talia knew very well what it meant to grow up without a family. The comforting thought was that Lulu had a loving father. Unfortunately, that same father was now grieving Lulu’s death. How could Talia not feel responsible?

“Lulu was a good child,” Page said. “She channeled her frustration into training and studying. Lulu loved this pack, and she was honored to be your guard, Luna. To her, it was recognition of her efforts. Lulu hated empty promises, and she was determined to prove her loyalty with actions.”

Talia felt a lump in her throat. “Lulu was an amazing warrior and a great friend. She was loyal to the pack, and she died an honorable death. I will make sure everyone knows that. “

Page bowed his head. “Thank you, Luna.”

His shoulders shook, and Talia’s vision blurred from tears that streamed down her cheeks as they cried silently.

If they were alone, she would dissolve into crying again. Talia started the day with crying after listening to her mother’s message, and then the waterworks continued when they visited Page.

That much crying can’t be good for anyone, and Dayson was desperate to distract Talia.

It was a warm, sunny afternoon, and the beach was packed. People played volleyball and badminton, relaxed in the sun, and many heads bobbed in the water. Laughter and cheers were heard from every direction, and the mood was uplifting.

Maya and Jaeden coordinated to free up a section for the newcomers that included towels, a shade below the canopy, and fruits and drinks as refreshments.

Dayson was pleased to see a smile on Talia’s face.

Talia was amused while listening to Maya’s narration of how she needed to explain swimsuits to newcomers. In the Midnight Guardians pack, everyone is a werewolf, and they have no problem with nudity. Newcomers didn’t understand why they needed to cover up certain parts of their bodies and how that was related to humans.

Talia’s mood improved when three more members of the Midnight Guardians pack found their mates on the beach.

Amelia and Liam were right there to take three couples to the packhouse where Amelia set up a teleporting diagram. Amelia, Liam, Keith, and Caleb escorted newly mated couples to the Midnight Guardians pack and then returned to the Shadow Fang pack to see if more mated couples needed moving.

One male from the Midnight Guardians pack found his mate earlier that day in Darkbourne. With these three latest couples, eleven out of twenty people who came from the Midnight Guardians pack found their mates.

“Maybe I should listen to Maya’s advice and ask Axel to send us more people,” Talia mused. “I was hoping they will find their mates soon, but this is super-fast.”

Dayson was happy to see that she was thinking about something other than Lulu.

“Maybe we should bring some witches here as well,” Dayson suggested.

Talia didn’t think it was a good idea. “Evanora didn’t seem happy when Amelia left with Liam. I don’t want her to hate us. We can bring some people with us when we go to visit next time.”

Dayson liked that idea, but… “The more people we take there, the more will know where the portal is.” They can’t go knocking out and blindfolding everyone. It was not practical. “We need to make people in this realm aware of witches and abilities and get them to accept it as normal. That won’t happen if we only have people going there.”

Talia and Dayson talked about this before. It was a long-term plan of assimilating witches into society, and it would take years, decades maybe. However, now that the danger of Guardians was looming above them, they needed to speed up the process.

Talia wanted to say something else, but she didn’t want to risk others overhearing them, so she continued talking to Dayson through their mind-link, ‘We should also discuss with Max, Tony, and Cristian how to alert our people about Guardians. If our people are unaware of dangers, they will walk right into them.’

Dayson agreed on how that must be done. ‘I will contact them to schedule a meeting. We should also find a way to invite George and James.’

Talia agreed. George was an Alpha, and James was the smartest guy around. ‘Cornelia comes here every day. We can use that to send information on Guardians to James. That will give him time to brainstorm ideas before we meet. Or if he cannot attend the meeting, he can give his inputs beforehand.’

‘I love how your mind works, kitten.’

Dayson leaned to kiss her cheek, and then he started feeding her strawberries that Maya had placed nearby.

Talia looked at Dayson helplessly. He looked at her with sparkles in his eyes like no worries in the world. She wished that she could disconnect like that.

Talia moved closer to Dayson and leaned on him. Sparks of their bond prickled her skin wherever they touched, calming her anxiety; the sweet strawberries and Dayson’s undivided attention helped.

Talia looked around to see the crowd relaxing on the beach. She felt a sense of pride at the sight of many smiles. Those people were enjoying their carefree time because their leaders ensured their safety.

Talia hoped they will be able to repel the dangers and allow their people to keep smiling.

…

---