22: Emma

Elijah cleared his throat, his eyes studying me with that particular mix of brotherly concern and Alpha assessment I'd grown accustomed to over the years. "Everything okay, Em? You're later than planned this morning."

I nodded, grateful for the change of subject. "Just took a call from home. Liam wanted clarification on the training schedules while I'm away." I cut into my pancakes, focusing on the simple action to ground myself. "We've got three new recruits starting perimeter rotation training next week, and there was some confusion about protocols."

"Did you get it sorted?" Elijah asked, passing me the coffee pot.

"Yes. I reminded him that the southeastern boundary needs double coverage since the flash floods took out part of the scent markers." I poured coffee, watching the dark liquid swirl in my cup, the aroma rich and grounding. "And that Davies isn't ready for solo runs yet, no matter how much he insists otherwise."

Elena smiled knowingly. "Still trying to push boundaries, that one?"

"Always," I agreed, returning her smile with a genuine one of my own. "Good instincts, but too impulsive. Another month of paired runs should settle him down."

Chris leaned around Theodore, his gray eyes sharp with interest. "So you're responsible for running the training? For your pack's security force?"

I nodded, taking a careful sip of coffee. "Yes. When I returned home to Blood Moon, our previous gamma was ready to retire. I took over the security responsibilities." I kept my voice carefully neutral, aware of how unusual my position might appear to outsiders. Female gammas weren't unheard of in werewolf packs, but they weren't common either.

"Returned home?" Chris repeated, his tone casual yet probing. "From where?"

The question touched a raw nerve, conjuring memories I preferred not to revisit over breakfast. My hand tightened around my fork, and I felt Theodore tense beside me, clearly sensing my discomfort.

"Another pack," I said simply, unwilling to elaborate further.

Chris studied me with those calculating eyes, his head tilting slightly as if making assessments. Then his eyebrows rose marginally. "You're an Alpha," he stated with quiet certainty.

The words hung in the air between us, sharp as broken glass. My coffee cup froze halfway to my lips, my breath catching in my throat. Across the table, Elijah's posture shifted subtly, a defensive preparation so ingrained he likely didn't realize he'd done it.

"Not here, Chris," Theodore said, his voice quiet but layered with unmistakable authority. Not a request but a command.

Chris nodded once, accepting the rebuke without argument. "Apologies," he said, though his eyes remained curious rather than contrite.

The tension around the table slowly diffused, though Artemis remained alert within me, assessing this new potential threat to our carefully guarded secret. Being identified as an Alpha wolf in a gamma position raised questions I preferred not to answer – questions that inevitably led back to Benjamin and the broken bond I'd left behind.

Theodore leaned closer, his lips near my ear. The proximity sent a shiver down my spine that had nothing to do with fear. "Chris has always had an unusual gift for identifying ranks, both among wolves and Lycans. Even those he's just met." His voice carried a note of apology. "It's made him invaluable in diplomatic situations, but occasionally inconvenient in social ones."

I nodded, keeping my voice equally low. "I'm sure he understands why this isn't public knowledge."

"He does," Theodore confirmed, drawing back slightly but remaining close enough that his shoulder brushed against mine. The contact, though fleeting, sent a pulse of warmth through my arm.

I returned to my breakfast, the food now tasting like ash in my mouth. The familiar weight of secrets settled once more around my shoulders – the constant vigilance required to maintain the careful fiction that I was simply a gamma, not an Alpha wolf who had rejected her first mate bond and been carried out of her first mate’s pack by her older brother.

"So," Elena said brightly, clearly attempting to steer the conversation toward safer ground. "What are everyone's plans for today? I understand there's a presentation on integrated educational systems this afternoon."

The conversation resumed, flowing around me like water around stone. I contributed when necessary, offered appropriate responses, maintained the social mask I'd perfected over years of diplomatic functions. But beneath it, Artemis paced restlessly, unsettled by being so easily identified.

’He recognized our strength,’ she growled. ‘But didn't challenge. Just observed.’

‘Yes,‘ I agreed silently. ‘That might be even more dangerous.’

Theodore's presence beside me remained a constant, unsettling contradiction – both comforting and overwhelming, familiar despite our brief acquaintance. When his hand briefly covered mine under the table, a gesture of reassurance hidden from the others, I didn't pull away. My fingers tingled with the contact, but I felt a warmth in my chest, an uncomfortable heat that wasn't quite guilt – more like acceptance of something inevitable, something both frightening and exhilarating in its potential.

The mate bond hummed between us, new and fragile yet undeniably real. Whatever came next – whatever complications arose from a werewolf being mated to the Lycan King – at least I wouldn't face it alone. The thought was both terrifying and strangely liberating.