Alpha's Blind Luna novel Chapter 62

***Ezekiel’s POV***

I brought the two wooden swords down against Morgan’s block. The sound reverberated in the backyard only to be overshadowed by the waves crashing against the rocks. My body was covered in sweat and I already had discarded my drenched shirt a while ago. Morgan, however, looked completely unperturbed. His button up shirt was just rolled up to his elbows and not even a hair was out of place.

Growling, I spun into a kick and then followed up with two strikes, trying to overpower him. Of course though, he blocked my kick with his arm, his one sword blocking both of my hits. Jumping back, I straightened and took a deep breath.

“You’re doing much better.” Morgan nodded to me and reached over, throwing me one of the water bottles on the table.

Cracking it open, I downed half of it. “I still can’t even get a hit in.”

“Don’t worry. It took Auri a long time to even get close. You’re starting to build back up the muscle you lost. You can’t expect to be better right away. It’s going to take time.”

I sighed and looked down at the water bottle in my hand. He was right. It had been four months since I was saved. Four months and I still felt the effects of what happened. Morgan had been helping me every step of the way. He understood and there were times I wanted to ask how he knew but as soon as he said he had done it before, I stopped asking. It had something to do with Auri and I didn’t want to bring it up.

Hector had left about a week after he came back from the Crescent River pack. I had only seen him come back once. He showered, slept the night, did some laundry and was gone the next day. Most of the time, he would answer the phone if I had a question. If he didn’t answer right away, it was always a call back within a few hours. Him and Pipsqueak had connected and the two of them were completely consumed with finding her. Whenever I would ask how it was going he would just say frustrating and nothing more.

In the meantime, I had decided on my Beta or Betas. It seemed ridiculous to break up the Bloodblades. It took Jax a week to agree but he finally did. He was still struggling with feeling like he had failed his Alpha. I told him this would be his chance to redeem himself. The two of them worked with Vale and I.

It worked out well actually. Jax stayed with me most of the time, helping me with pack business while AJ was helping Vale with his work. I still kept Bryan as Gamma but I knew he was slowing down. Without Auri and Hector, Lucy was his only connection and once in a while I saw him slipping into a shell. A wolf who had lost his beloved mate and was struggling to grasp onto something to stay with us. So, I did my best to keep him busy with things within the pack I knew he would be better at than I would be.

All in all we fell into a comfortable routine. The air still felt heavy. The feeling of loss still weighed on everyone. It didn’t help when I would wake up in the middle of the night screaming, I’m sure. A constant reminder to everyone. Vale and I were still struggling a bit. We had been getting better but Vale was impatient. It took a couple weeks but I finally was more comfortable with him sleeping in the same bed but we couldn’t touch. It would send me into a panic attack. I wasn’t ready and that set him off sometimes.

“Why don’t we take a break?” Morgan placed a hand on my shoulder and I nodded.

“I don’t understand how not even a hair is out of place. It’s seriously disconcerting.”

Morgan laughed but we both turned when the door opened. Hector walked through, his duffle bag still on his shoulder. He dropped it on the ground and rolled his shoulders.

“How about a go at me, old man?”

Rolling his eyes, Morgan picked up his one sword. “Raring to go just when you get home?”

Hector shrugged and grabbed one of the swords I was using. He discarded his shirt and I almost spit my mouthful of water out. I may be mated but I could admire the beast that was Hector Mendez. He was taller than I was and maybe as tall as Vale. His shoulders alone made me feel tiny. Not an ounce of fat was on his body and his muscles were chiseled into his body. Shaking my head, I sat on the chair in the shade to watch.

Morgan was the first to attack which surprised me. Hector deftly avoided it and moved for his own attack. Their dance started and the beat of their wood swords clashing filled the air. I was stunned about how well Hector held up against Morgan. At times, it looked like Hector had the upper hand. Auri could beat Morgan and I had seen it myself but I hadn’t seen Hector fight anyone other than Auri before. He would lose every one of those spars.

Jax, Lucy and AJ joined me under the umbrella as we all watched their fight. Hector was glistening in sweat but he didn’t look tired. Morgan had pulled back his hair into a tiny pony tail and had shed his shirt that Hector ripped a while ago. The two of them were so evenly matched the fight was impressive to watch. Lucy whistled when Hector got a good hit on Morgan’s ribs and I looked behind me as I saw money exchanging on the table. I rolled my eyes. These guys and their bets.

The front door slammed open and all of us turned to look. Hector and Morgan stopped immediately and I heard a growl out of Hector. Standing up, I walked into the house, taking in the wolf who barged into the pack house. My brow furrowed as I crossed my arms over my chest.

“Can I help you?”

“Where is she?”

The man was an Alpha but his presence seemed diluted somehow. He was taller than anyone in the pack house, including Vale but he was stout. His face was filled in with a defined double chin. Not to mention the weight around his middle. I wondered if he was older than Hector and Bryan. The two of them kept in shape but this wolf apparently didn’t see the point. Honestly, I hadn’t seen a werewolf like him in all my years.

“You’ll need to be more specific. We have a lot of she-wolves in this pack.” I growled.

He looked at me, giving me a once over. His eyes roamed behind me and I knew everyone outside had filled in behind me. I didn’t know who he was but it seemed everyone else did.

“Auri. Where is Auri? I know she’s fucking here.”

My eyes widened and I looked back at Hector and Morgan. Morgan was standing in front of Hector, visibly holding him back. Looking at his eyes, I knew Rydere was in control and I looked back at the man standing in our living room.