Alpha's Blind Luna novel Chapter 36

It had been three months. Three months of pain, torture and absolute hell. I loved every minute of it. We had landed in Italy and when we got to their supposed pack house, my jaw dropped. Sitting on a small peninsula, it was a three story Tuscan-style house. It was surrounded by rocks but that didn’t stop anyone from jumping into the surrounding sea. It still did have a regular pool. There were three offices, eight bedrooms, a library, a game room with a pool table and full bar, even a grand piano in the main living area.

Frankly, it looked like a vacation home and was beautiful. Auri showed me to one of the larger rooms and had me settle in, making sure to take me out to fill out more of my wardrobe with local items from the nearby city. Apparently, this was just the tip of their territory.

Crossing the highway a little south from it, there was a large piece of land that Auri had purchased and claimed. They were building another city in the hills for other pack members who came. Some of them were from the Harvest Moon pack but a few of them were rogues that knew Auri as The Huntress. They had homes and if they wanted more land to farm or a store to step up, the pack took care of it all.

Seeing Auri, Hector, and Bryan work as the leadership of the pack was humbling. They worked as a single unit and nothing was forgotten or left. Hector took over most of the training but it was Auri who was my personal trainer. I had never hurt so much, never felt like I was weak until I went up against Auri. Hell, even Hector was miles better than I was and I was undefeated in my pack. Between the two of them, there was rarely a day I was not bruised on more than 50% of my body.

Bryan also took over my ‘re-education’ as he called it. Making sure I knew what was going on in the world. He had me memorize all the packs, where they were located, who their Alpha was as well as their Luna. I needed to know who was having issues and why. They also went into detail about the packs where the drug, Nova, was being consumed.

Everyone sat down and we have a serious conversation about the Darkry pack and why knowing the people who were providing the drug was so important. I had been shocked and angry that this was going on, especially with my deep roots in our traditions. Altering our bodies even more, without the blessing of the moon goddess, losing the connection to our emotions and our mates was worse than anything I could imagine.

Now, though, we had settled into a routine. Wake up, swimming, breakfast, training, lunch, re-education, training, dinner, and then free time. AJ, Jax and Lucy had left for the High Council a couple weeks ago. Morgan left before that to continue his own work a head of the mafia. Now it was only Bryan, Hector, Auri and I in the pack house. It was much quieter than normal but it was nice.

We had finished dinner and everyone disappeared into their own space tonight. Sometimes, Auri would play the piano and Hector would play his acoustic guitar, singing as well. Sometimes, Bryan would read a book for everyone though Auri would grimace when he tried to speak in any other language than English. But sometimes, like tonight, everyone would take off separately.

Walking outside, I noticed Auri sitting on the edge of the rocks, allowing the waves to spray her as she sat. Going to the end of the grass, I looked out over the sea. The sun was going down and the streaks of orange, yellow, red and even purple that reflected on the clouds was breathtaking. The colors reflected in the water, making everything look like it was burning.

'There will be a storm tonight. It’s coming in from the South.'

I stared at the scenery. “How did you find this place? I mean, there is no way this place was for sale. I can’t image anyone letting it go.”

She pulled her knee up to her chest. 'A long time ago, I fell in love with a vampire. He died saving my life. He left it for me, left everything he had for me. I never realized how much he owned until I got the deed in. It’s now the current pack territory. Two hundred years ago, I think he tried his hand at having a vineyard but it did not go well.' Auri chuckled.

There was a lot to unpack in those six sentences. “So you were ready to have the pack here for years?”

She shook her head. 'No. I hadn’t even been back here. I didn’t want it. Didn’t want anything he left me. It hurt, knowing someone died for me. Someone who loved me. But this was the perfect place to help Vale, the perfect pack territory. It was painful for a while, coming back here, but now it feels like home. Just like it used to.'

I smiled, hearing the multitude of emotions in her words. She had been more open about her past but it still felt like every time she said something, I was learning about something else crazy that happened to her. I felt bad her mate wasn’t by her side. Auri said their relationship had been rough from the beginning, even if their mate bond was strong.

With Rose, because she was my chosen mate, it was always about building our relationship since we didn’t have that fated bond to help force us together. So I was always aware of the relationship side of the mate bond but hearing when the mate bond was strong but two people clashing in a relationship seemed just the opposite side of the same coin. Rose and I had no pull to each other and she tried to explain to me what it felt like when she met Cory but it never made sense until I met Vale.

Auri never let Bryan, Hector, or Morgan say anything bad about Logan, the previous Alpha King. If she heard it, something was coming for their head. She also admitted that everything she ate, just like I had happen, tasted of ash unless Vale was near. Her mate being far away effected her in the same way it had me and Vale was his blood. My heart went out to her. How hard it must be for her to love someone who didn’t love her back anymore. To be mated and feel that bond but not have a relationship with them.

I looked back over the sunset, it was becoming pink, red, purple as the sun dipped further down. The sound of the waves and the view was calming as I felt the tension from the day’s training ease away. Arms came around my shoulders and I stiffened as an electricity raced through me at the touch. It only got worse as I felt a head fall to the crook of my neck and inhale deeply. The smell of fresh baked bread and basil, overcame my senses. It hit me so hard that I nearly fell to my knees right there. I knew I started to shake, stunned and unable to move as Vale held me tight.

Faris threw me back and I was stunned as he growled. “Mate.”

Vale nodded in our neck, his voice also deep. “My mate.”

A shiver violently ripped through me and it stopped shaking as Faris gave me back control. My hands come up and I put my hands on his arms. The sparks were something that Rose explained to me multiple times but I never thought they were this strong. How could you just hold hands if you were feeling like you stuck your finger in a socket?

“I missed you.” Vale’s voice was normal as he nuzzled me.

I smiled. “I missed you too. I was worried how long the High Council would have their claws dug in you.”

He hummed for a moment, the vibration in my neck making another shiver tear through me. “Hi Mom.”

'Hello, dear. I hope your drive was uneventful.'

“As usual. Though, Dad called me on the second day. He thought I would be with you. He said he wanted to talk to you but he couldn’t get ahold of you.”