Chapter 56: The Voting

Maya was the first one to leave the circle and join her Alpha’s side.
“I plead allegiance to The Pearl Moon pack and Alpha Riannon Michaels!” she
declared loudly. Tatiana and Aria were next, followed by many others.
“I plead allegiance to The Silver River pack and Alpha Brayden Thorn,” the elite
warriors announced one by one. Almost all of them, yet not all.
One by one, people were choosing their side and soon two groups were standing
in front of each other.(This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com) It
was more or less the way she expected it. At the moment, her crowd was much
bigger than her ex’s, but that was a given, since they were on the land of her old
pack. Not everyone was present here and she knew that it was only the
beginning.
However, Brayden was getting gloomier and gloomier with each person who did
not choose him. It probably played very differently in his head. He never lost
anything in his life before and now it was starting to look like a pattern for him.
“Thank you for making your choice,” Riannon smiled when everything was over,
looking
at the people in front of her, “I know this is not an easy situation. And I am still
grateful for the
years I spent as your Luna. Our ways part now, but you will always remain in my
heart. And I
want you to know that I will not hold this against you.”
Brayden wanted to say something as well but changed his mind at the last
moment.
“I think we are done here,” he announced dryly and then turned to his people,
“Pack your bags. We’ll be leaving this place today for the old Silver River
packhouse.”The pack was bustling with people saying their goodbyes to each other. No
matter what was happening, they spent years as one pack and the breakup was
hard for all of them.
Quite a few people were glaring at Roxy, feeling like she was the one to blame
for everything that happened. (This novel will be daily updtaed at
www.noveljar.com)The fake omega was playing her usual part, looking at
everyone with doe eyes and holding her belly that wasn’t even protruding yet to
evoke sympathy.
Men and women were coming up to Riannon to say their goodbyes and words of
respect even if they were leaving with Brayden. And she made sure to thank
each of them, at the same time letting them know that her doors would always be
open for them.
It was a victory. And everyone knew it. Her new pack members were
congratulating her, happy to stay under her wing.
Soon, however, the crowd dissipated, leaving just two small groups present.
Brayden’s
and hers.
“I hope you are happy,” her ex said spitefully, “We are no longer the strongest
pack out
“Strength is not only about the size, Bray,” Riannon parried, “I have to look at a
bigger picture here. And the safety of my people comes first.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked through clenched teeth.
“It means that you brought a wolf in sheepskin to our pack,” she turned to Maya
and motioned for her to give her the folder that Gideon gave her, “However funny
that sounds.”“How threatened are you by a simple omega?” he scoffed and she let out a sigh
as she did not expect any better of him.
“I am not threatened at all,” Riannon rolled her eyes, “I took precautions to
protect my people. That’s what a good Alpha should do. One thinks you should
know that... But speaking of her being a simple omega, what really do you know
about her? Did you even bother checking her past before you brought her here?”
“Of course, I did,” he said, “I talked to her previous Alpha.” “The one who abused
her?” she chuckled, “That’s some source of information!”
“He wouldn’t lie to me,” Brayden got annoyed by her insinuations, “He knows that
I would kill him.”
“Funny you should say that,” she pushed the folder into his hands, “But he is
already dead. (This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)Didn’t you
notice that he wasn’t present at the Summit?”
“That’s very sad and all, but I don’t see the connection,” Bray took the folder and
opened it, running his eyes over the papers inside.
“A mighty Alpha was killed on a simple patrol of his own pack just two days after
you happened to find your poor mate in his pack. Sure, that’s not suspicious at
all.” Riannon shook her head, “Neither is the fact that most pack members say
that she appeared in their pack just three months prior to that lifechanging event
of yours. And no one except for the deceased Alpha knew where she came
from.”
She could see how dumbfounded he became while reading the information she
gave him.
But she also knew that he was a stubborn man, so she wasn’t surprised when he
closed the folder angrily.“This doesn’t prove anything!” He said and Roxy smirked behind his back, “You
are just angry at my mate for everything that happened.”
“am just stating the facts.” Riannon replied calmly, “What you do with this
information is up to you. She is your problem now. Not mine. But if I were you, I
would at least ask her to
“Don’t listen to her!” Harper appeared out of nowhere and gave Roxy a protective
hug,“ She is just jealous that the two of you are happy together and are about to
have a child! She couldn’t give you one for so many years!”
“And thank Goddess for that!” Ria couldn’t hold back a snort.
“You see, this is your mistake here,” her ex-sister-in-law went on, “You think you
are so much better than everyone else! Always the perfect Luna! Always loved
by everyone! Now the joke is on you! This is the first time when something
doesn’t go the way you want it, and you just can’t handle it!”
“What are you even talking about, Harper?” Riannon rubbed her forehead,
already tired of the scene, “You sure never gave me any love. Almost from the
very beginning and I still don’t know how and why I earned all the hatred from
you. And as for the rest, nothing came to me easily. I worked for everything that I
have. But this is something you always choose to ignore. You notice when
someone praises me or when I win something, but you never notice the work that
was done before that. And this is your problem. Recognition is not given for
nothing, Harper. You have to work for it. Not that you would know what work is.
You haven’t worked a day in your life, have you? So, what do you expect?!
Instead of obsessing over me and trying to bring me down at every opportunity
you have, try improving yourself and your life. And maybe then you will finally be
happy and stop being so bitter.”
Harper stared at her, gaping. But then she furrowed her brows and raised her
hand, clearly intending to slap Riannon. She knew that Brayden wouldn’t stop her
now.However, her hand never reached Ria’s face as someone else caught it when it
was inches away.
“Ash?!” Harper looked at the Beta in shock, “What do you think you are doing?!”
“Saving you the embarrassment,” the man replied, still not letting go of her as
she tried to get her wrist back angrily.
“She deserves it!” the girl hissed, her pretty face distorted by the ugly emotions.
“Let her go, Ash,” Brayden ordered, “Riannon is not your Luna anymore. You
don’t have to protect her.”
“She is not my Luna, that’s true,” Ash sighed heavily and looked at his best friend
since childhood, “She is my Alpha, Bray. I plead allegiance to Alpha Riannon
Michaels of the Pearl Moon pack.”
Ria’s lips parted in surprise. She didn’t see Ash making his choice and she just
assumed happy that her friend decided to join her side after all.
“You are not serious!” Brayden growled in annoyance. Everything was crumbling
under him today and coping with it was getting harder and harder.
“I am,” the Beta replied, letting go of the girl’s hand, “I am sorry, man. But you lost
your way. I cannot support you anymore.”
“Ash, no!” Harper looked at him pleadingly, placing both her palms on his chest,
“You can’t leave us! You can’t leave... me.”
Ria covered her mouth with her hand, realising that there was more to the story.
Looking at the two of them now it was clear that Harper had feelings for the Beta.
“I am sorry,” the man replied emotionlessly, “It’s for the best.” “But...” the girl now
had tears in her eyes and Riannon even felt sorry for her, “You and I“There is no you and I, Harper,” Ash took her hands off him, “I told you that many
times. (This novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)I cannot give you
what you want.”
“But she can?!” the girl didn’t even care anymore that people were listening to
their conversation. She pointed her finger at Riannon and the latter run her hand
through her hair in frustration. How did she even get in the middle of all this
drama? “Bray, did you know that your own Beta was eyeing your Luna this whole
time?!I bet they even slept together behind your back...”
The sound of a slap made everyone gasp. And Ria scratched her hand, while
Harper was gaping at her with a red cheek.
“Would you calm down?” the Alpha female quirked her brow up, “Stop your
hysteria and stop accusing me of things you have no idea about! Ash is my
friend! And he will always be my friend.”
“Don’t touch my sister!” Brayden finally woke up from his shock, growling, “You
have no right...
“No, Brayden,” she stopped him, “I have a right to defend my honour. And as
for you three, I think you overstayed your welcome. You’d better leave. None of
you is handling it well and it’s getting embarrassing for all of us.”
“Apologies, Riannon,” Bray gritted through his teeth, “Betrayal hurts.” “I know it
does, Brayden,” she looked him up and down, “You made me familiar with the
“Let’s go, Harper,” the Alpha tore his sister, who was now crying silently from his
ex-Beta, giving him a glare full of hate, “We have nothing to do here anymore.”
They started walking away and only Roxanne hesitated slightly, staying for a few
seconds longer. A sly smile spread over her face as she bent towards Ria and
whispered into her ear, “This is far from over.”
“Oh, I know,” Riannon sneered at her enemy, “I am just starting with you. And, by
the way, tell your friend Everett that if he wants to tell me something, he shouldjust do it. Staring at me from the other side of the street is just creepy.”
Her words hit the goal again as the eyes of the fake omega shone red
momentarily. However, she supressed it quickly this time and fluttered her lashes
innocently again, “I don’t know what you are talking about.”
“Of course, you don’t,” Ria chuckled and waved her off with her hand, turning
away to face Ash.
“You and Harper, huh?” she raised her brow at the man when the omega caught
up with her mate.
“It wasn’t supposed to be anything serious. I got drunk twice and this is the
result.” The man confessed, “It’s just that she saw it all wrong and...”
“You don’t need to explain to me anything,” she interrupted him, “Your personal
life is just yours. But if I were you, I would speak to her again later.”
“I will,” he promised, “Not that Brayden will ever let me go near her again. But I
will call her and clarify everything when the dust settles.”
“Good,” Ria smiled at her friend and squeezed his arm in a sign of support, (This
novel will be daily updtaed at www.noveljar.com)”I am happy that you stayed with
me, Ash.”
“I will always be by your side,” he smiled back and she could tell that he was
sincere this time.
“Just don’t count on being the Beta anymore,” Maya and Reid joined them, “That
position is taken.”
“Fine,” Ash groaned, “But will you at least have me as your Gamma?” “Gladly,”
Riannon agreed, “Welcome to the team.”
“Now that we are done with that,” Maya smirked, “Excuse me, I need to go and
find my moron of a younger brother. He disappeared right before I could kick hisa.ss for being friends
There were too many matters to deal with at the pack. The members of The
Silver River left the territory when it was already getting dark and a lot of new
arrangements had to be put in place to maintain safety for everyone.
Riannon sat in her office, exhausted and knowing that she was far from done
there. The lycans were helping Maya on patrol and to search for Dean, who was
still nowhere to be found. She knew that he was aware of what he had done and
probably felt guilty about the whole thing. Dean was like a little brother to her and
she hoped that they would find him soon. After all, he declared his loyalty to her
and The Pearl Moon.
The phone rang and she smiled, seeing Gideon’s face on the display. She took
that one photo of him when he was sleeping and just the memory of it made her
heart skip a beat.
“How is it going?” he asked in that husky voice of his.
“Just as I expected,” she admitted, “But I don’t think that I will be able to get back
to your kingdom today.”
“Not a problem,” he chuckled, “I will come to you.” “Really?” she almost jumped
in her seat with excitement.
“Yes, Ria, really,” he teased her, “I am not spending a single night in my life
without you anymore. I am done for today and I want to see my Luna.”
“I love you so much,” she confessed and heard him chuckling at the other end of
the line.
“I know you do,” Gideon said, sounding smug, “I love you too. And I can’t wait to
hear everything about today.”
“Oh, I have a lot to tell!” she giggled, “Come faster.”“I’ll be there as fast as I can. See you soon, Riannon.” The Lycan king said and
hung up.
Riannon relaxed her back into the chair and closed her eyes just for a few
second, when her phone rang again. (This novel will be daily updtaed at
www.noveljar.com)She answered without looking, thinking that it was Gideon
again, ready to tell her something sweet the way he always did.
“Did you forget something?” she smiled, but that smile faded when she heard
Roxy’s voice.
“If you want to see Dean alive, you will come to meet me in one hour at the forest
tree house where you guys used to play as children. Alone.” The fake omega
didn’t sound her usual sweet self, “Bring someone with you and the boy is dead.
It’s time for us to talk, Riannon.”
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