Chapter 2: Planning

-Rogan-

The room was rather quiet, as I sat in front of my betrothed. She calmly met my eyes, which showed the strong blood running in her veins. It was hard for others to look alphas like me in the eyes. Though even if you carried the title alpha, it did not mean you were strong enough to intimidate others. My power came from the strength inside of me and hard training. An alpha was not just alpha because he was born to be. No, he worked hard to become one, so he could keep his pack safe and protect the weaker ones. Therefore, I hated those alphas, who felt so damn entitled because of the title they carried. I liked to remind them as often as I could, that they didn’t deserve that title, and never would.

“Some more coffee?”

It was my betrothed’s mother who asked me. They both descended from powerful lines and had more money than they could ever spend. Her father was here too. This was all just a formal meeting between us. For us to get to know each other, and yet we didn’t have a moment alone. It was the old way to do it like this, but alphas had a way of not liking change very much. We liked traditions because they were safe to follow. Sadly, we couldn’t forget that the world changed, and our traditions often couldn't follow those changes. Still, it brought some sense of … calmness, and I didn’t mind. I was not going to say no to this union, and I was sure Julianna wouldn’t either. She didn’t look like she was about to run out of there. No, she just continued to look at me with a calm smile on her lips, and her back was way too straight. Maybe I did make her a little nervous, or maybe she simply didn’t want to seem sloppy but put together.

“Yes, please,” I said and gave the mother a charming smile, which made her blush.

I often had this effect on women, not that I used it much to my advantage. I had other things to take care of than to sleep around. Didn’t mean I didn’t find some time to blow off steam, but like some of the people I surrounded myself with, I didn’t take every opportunity that was presented to me.

I held out my cup, and she poured me some more coffee, but really, I just tried removing this strange silence. It all felt so … uncomfortable. Really, this meeting could go much faster if Julianna and I got a chance to be alone and exchange some words, but I also knew that her father, despite us being friends, would not allow me to be alone with her. He only had Julianna. He and his mate had not been able to conceive others, and I understood he was just being protective of her.

“Are you sure you will be able to end this war once and for all?” Eric asked me.

I turned to Eric, nodding once, knowing once we joined our packs, we would finally be able to get rid of the last hunters. They had been a pain in our asses for far too long.

“I’m sure,” I said.

“Let us not talk business,” his mate said. “That is not why we are here.”

“All of this is business, Mother,” Julianna said.

Her mother looked at her, shocked, and so did I, but I couldn’t help but smile afterwards. It seemed like I hadn’t given the little female enough credit. She seemed to understand this situation much better than I had thought.

“That’s correct,” I said.

She turned to me and looked as calm as ever, and I could only say it pleased me that I would have a luna at my side, who understood not just how our union would be, but also the severity of our situation. She understood how important it was that we joined forces, and the best way to do that was for us to get mated.

“So, when will the ceremony be?” she asked.

My smile grew at the confidence she showed.

“In a week, I hope,” I said and turned to her father. “We still need to get the last things settled.”

He nodded.

“Well then,” Julianna said and stood up, surprising us all.

She had this long, very light blond hair and blue eyes while wearing this black dress that hugged her slim body unbelievably well, yet I didn’t let my eyes wander. I calmly met hers instead, wondering why she was suddenly standing.

“If you just need to settle some things with my father, then I believe I am no longer needed. I will see you in a week,” she said.

And then she just walked away. I looked after her surprised, and I saw my beta Rhys and my third in command, Marcus looking after her as well, as shocked as me. I turned back to Eric and his mate, who were all watching me a little scared, probably thinking I had been offended by their daughter’s behavior, but really, I was impressed.

“I guess she is not wrong,” I chuckled lowly.

“I apologize, Alpha Rogan.”

I shook my head and waved my hand in the air.

“Your daughter is smart. I like that.”

“She loves to … speak her mind.”

“Only another thing to admire,” I said.

He seemed a little calmed by my words, but I guess he feared I was just trying to be nice, because of the connection we would soon share between our packs, but really, Julianna did impress me. I was glad I wasn’t getting a mindless luna or one who simply wanted to be with me because of the power I brought. Julianna didn’t seem like she could care any less about me.

Very interesting …

“She won’t act as disrespectful again,” Eric assured me.

I just smiled.

“Surprisingly, I don’t really mind.”

He looked at me surprised, but I just smiled.

“We got more important things to worry about.”

He nodded, seeming to understand where I was going.

“The hunters have been quiet lately, but I know they won’t stay that way,” I said.

“No, they never do.”

A dark expression took over both of our faces, as we thought of all the death those damn hunters had brought us.

“My goal is to catch some of these hunters and get them to give me their location.”

“They always carry poison with them,” Eric said.

“I know, but I need more information. We don’t have the same spies as we once did,” I said.

He sighed and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

“No, I know.”

“We need to know where to find their bases. We need to destroy them once and for all.”

“How do you want to draw them out?” he asked.

“The ceremony.”

“You want to risk so many people’s lives, including my daughter?” he asked.

I shook my head.

“Small ceremony. We aren’t doing anything big. We will keep our fighters hidden and ready to strike when needed,” I said.

Eric didn’t seem to like my plan very much, but I knew he could see it also might just be our best option.

“She is all I got.”

“And I will make sure she stays safe,” I said.

“We don’t know how many they might send.”

“They work in smaller groups, so they stay hidden better. They know that we win when it comes to close combat. Sending a big group, we will notice too fast, and they will lose.”

“What if they have changed their tactics?” he asked. “It has been a year since we have experienced a bigger attack from them.”

“They haven’t changed. People like the hunters are incapable of change.”

Eric didn’t seem that convinced, but eventually he nodded.

“Okay then. Let us talk again tomorrow. Make a real plan.”

I nodded.

“As you wish. You know where to find me.”

He nodded, and we both stood up and shook hands, before I nodded to his mate, not wanting to disrespect Eric by touching her unless he had made it clear he allowed it. Alphas were very territorial over their mates and touching them without permission was a good way to lose a hand or… a heart.

I waved a hand through the air, telling my beta and third command to come with me, and we began to leave the house, but as we got outside on the porch, some kind of strange light hit my eyes. I blinked, confused, before I noticed the red dot on my chest.

“Alpha!”