Enemy

RORY

I’m lost in a whirlwind of thought and worry. My anxiety is tenfold watching Everett pack some things to take with us for the week.

“Aurora, I can feel your panic. I told you, you have nothing to fear,” Everett says once more, pecking my lips in an attempt to ease my nerves.

He picks me up and hugs me close to him, like I’m a monkey clinging onto a tree. I’m tired and scared and I don’t want to go.

I hide my face in Everett’s neck, comforted by his smell and his overall aura. It’s the Alpha aura and mate aura that makes me feel so protected, and the love I can feel from him.

“I don’t want to go,” I whine, hugging him even tighter.

“Why? Nothing will happen. I’ll be there, right next to you, all the time. Hmm?” He strokes my hair and tilts his head against mine for more skin contact.

“You’re my Luna and my mate. Someone tries to hurt you, I’ll kill them.”

I’m going to have to wrap my neck so that it appears as though I’m just hiding the scar Nick and Victoria created when they slit my throat. In reality, I’m hiding the fact that I have no scar.

“I love you, Aurora.”

“I love you too. I’m just scared. But it’ll be fine. I have you.” I reassure him that I’ll be fine whilst he finishes packing.

“You’re not mad about the thing with your ex-boyfriend, are you?” he asks, zipping our bags up and tugging me to my feet.

“No, I’m not. He was being weird,” I comment, thinking back to all of it.

From the moment Everett put me back in school, things have been strange between me and Eddie—and then there’s the whole thing with Jax too.

“Get your shoes on, little one,” he orders, grabbing his car keys and discussing something with his Beta.

With this being a big wolf conference thing, many of the pack members are attending—many warrior wolves to protect their Alpha and Luna; the Beta and Gamma to join the discussions; and Ophelia is even coming, advising Everett.

There will be plenty of wolves to protect me.

After what is already a long drive, I find out we’re only halfway there. Everett swaps driving with one of the warrior wolves in the car, and he sits with me in the back seat.

Dragging me onto his lap so I can have a comfortable sleep, he straps us in together and lulls me to sleep by stroking my back.

When we reach the place, it surprises me how tall the buildings are, and that they don’t get any human visitors who accidentally wander through.

Everett tells me it’s because they got a witch to cloak the place. I’m not sure how that even works, but it does.

They don’t like humans, they just tolerate them, and that’s for now. How will they react to me? Will it make Everett seem weaker because he has a weak human mate?

I don’t want to harm his reputation among these wolves, particularly because even I know that the Shadow Blood pack is one of the most powerful packs in the country—I knew that before I even met Everett.

And that means Everett is seen as one of the most powerful Alphas. But with a new human mate, he may look weaker.

Lunas are meant to strengthen the pack, sharing the load with the Alpha successfully. But I’m human.

I hold Everett’s hand tightly as we enter a massive building joined to an even bigger one. Everett explains that this is where we are staying for the week, and the conjoining building is the wolf headquarters.

They make laws, set boundaries, handle external pack disputes. The council.

We have a good night’s sleep, with me cuddled up soundly in Everett’s big arms. He makes sure to strap me down with them since we no longer have the Aurora-proofed bed.

In the morning, we eat a quick breakfast before changing into our formal wear for the welcome party downstairs. This precedes the first meeting of the week, so that everyone can catch up.

Everyone will be there—most of the Alphas in the country will be there.

All that dominance in the room, I imagine, can raise some tensions, especially since one Alpha is my loving mate and another is my murderer.

I throw on a green turtleneck dress that, luckily, is quite suitable for the event as it covers up enough to make Everett happy, although hiding my mark. But it’s also short enough to make it seem more formal.

Heading down the stairs with my hand attached to his bigger one, my heart is thumping in my chest so much, I’m certain every wolf around me can hear it.

Everett’s thumb starts stroking my hand, trying to soothe me, which, in fact, does help.

Heads turn when we enter, eyeing me and the powerful Alpha holding my hand like I’m a little child who could get lost. And I probably can in here.

I squeeze his hand tighter as we continue to walk in, Lucius and Ace on either side of us.

I remind myself that I have nothing to be scared about with any of these people, besides Nick and Victoria, and I can’t even see them yet, or any of their entourage.

“Breathe, Aurora. You have nothing to be worried about,” he assures me, his hand moving from mine to my waist and tugging me to his side to make me feel safer. And I do. With him.

“Alpha Everett,” a man, an Alpha, greets as we approach him.

Everett wears a polite smile, shaking this Alpha’s hand and nodding over to a woman I assume is his Luna. This Alpha appears much older than Everett, perhaps close to retirement.

“Alpha Bruce, Luna Nancy, how are you?” Everett asks.

His tone conveys to me that he is genuinely friendly with these two and not faking the smile, like I assume he will do with many of the others.

He hates many of them for not supporting his justified and innovative ideas.

“We’re great. I see you have found your mate at last,” he replies, turning his gaze to me and sending me a warm smile.

“This is Aurora, my mate and Luna.”

“And human,” Alpha Bruce adds, studying me with narrowed eyes.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Alpha Bruce, Luna Nancy,” I say, deciding to step up and use my manners. Which seemingly surprises him as his smile widens.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Luna Aurora,” he replies, as does his Luna.

We move around, making the introductions, with some turning their noses up at me, a human Luna, as expected. I just feel comforted with Everett beside me, and nothing can ever feel so terrifying with him.

That’s until I see them, and they see me. Their eyes widen. Victoria chokes a little on her wine. Nick narrows his eyes to make sure they’re seeing correctly. Everett just nudges me along over to them.

“Alpha Nickolas, Luna Victoria,” he greets. But they are utterly speechless, their eyes stuck on me. “I believe you already know my mate, Luna Aurora.”

“Your mate? Curious why you didn’t mention that when we met before,” Nick states, immediately tense and wary of both of us. I’ve never seen him like this. I think he’s scared of Everett, my mate.

“You know his Luna?” Alpha Bruce asks, cutting into the conversation.

“She’s the usele—she’s the human we exiled.”

He was going to call me useless, but after glancing at Everett’s cold and fierce look, he changed his mind. Victoria just stands there dumbfounded, utterly speechless.

“Exiled? You tried to kill me,” I state, gaining my confidence from Everett. This shocks all but Everett as he moves to protect me even more.

“It’s not a crime. You were on our territory; it’s not against wolf laws,” Nick replies.

“We’ll see about that,” Everett growls lowly, making Nick visibly shiver. He tugs me away and over to a corner of the room, attempting to control himself.

“I’m going to fucking kill him. I don’t even care what the laws are. What they did to you was fucked up. And more than that, you’re my mate. They would have killed my mate.”

They did kill me. But it made me stronger. It brought me to Everett and he makes me stronger. He gives me courage every single day.

“I would never have found you if they didn’t force me out.”

“I would have never found you if they actually managed to kill you, little one,” he counters, tilting my chin up and pressing his lips to mine.

“If you knew we’d have to come here and see them anyway, why didn’t you tell them I was alive before?” I ask.

“There’s a reason. And you’ll find out soon enough.” He seems a little calmer now, taking deep breaths to prevent himself from exploding and taking Nick and Victoria out with him.