Shani Khoza

In two days, we'll be in the Pack of the North. It's almost impossible to believe, but it's true. Her first adventure will then come to an end. She quite enjoyed it, more than she ever thought would be possible.

However, Kara's confession and the discovery regarding their memories do change their plans a little. Instead of travelling directly to the pack in the North, they're now planning to take a brief detour to visit the coven in the area. After hearing someone might have altered their memories, everyone was quite determined to get to the bottom of it, and Darius's mother suggested consulting the leader of the Coven close by. "Her name is Rosetta Alfieri. She runs the coven with her husband, Matteo. She's also an expert in memory loss. Perhaps she can offer some help on your mission."

Athena had responded in awe when Ellie Ivanov dropped the name of the enchantress. "Rosetta Alfieri? I've heard of her. Alexis, my mentor, knows her," she had said in excitement. The disappointment that was painted on her face a minute for not being able to fix the problem herself was momentarily forgotten after the announcement. "She's very gifted," Athena continued. "It would be an honour to meet her. She's famous for discovering people's deepest secrets and uncovering lost memories. If anyone can help us, it's her."

Tomorrow morning, they'll leave Darius's pack and Shani wonders when or if she'll ever return to this place. It's Darius's home, not hers, and although she knows he and pack will accept her as a member in a heartbeat, she's uncertain this is the life for her. Apart from the abuse her old pack inflicted on her, she never adored the pack life. She wanted to travel the world; she didn't want to be bound to a place. I don't want to feel trapped again. Of course, her views changed a little now she knows a steady home can be pleasant when the right people are surrounding you, but still. She enjoys being on the road, running for hours without having to turn back, and having no rules or a schedule to follow that comes with a life like that.

For too long, life has withheld her. Not anymore. She's young, only 21 years old. This is the time to explore the world; explore herself. She desperately wants it; she needs it. Denise's words about Leon being too reluctant enter her mind again. She has dismissed it at the time, but now she realizes Denise was looking out for her. For her wishes; her desires. Perhaps she should think about what else she wants before running into the arms of a brooding, attractive werewolf. At least until she figures out who she can be herself instead of only thinking about who they can be together?

"Where did you go, Shani? I've never seen you this deep in thoughts," Darius asks her, amused. He's sitting beside her at the dinner table. "Just thinking about tomorrow," she answers timidly.

They were having dinner at the packhouse and the giant table is barely enough for all the attendings guests. A quick look around the room tells Shani there are fourteen people present. Their own group counts eight. Then there is Darius's mother, Brigitte, Annika, and her mate Chris, Chris's beta, and her mate. This table is really big.

"Alpha? Alpha?" A pack warrior storms into the dining room and walks straight to Darius.

"Another alpha is waiting at the border for permission to enter our pack. Do we let him in?"

"Who is it?"

"Alpha Philps, Alpha. The leader of the werewolf pack in England."

Clang.

All heads turn immediately towards her. The glass that was in her hand a second ago is now spread across the floor. What is he doing here? What does he want?

"Shani, are you okay?" Darius asks her while signalling to the warrior to give them a second. He knows exactly who Alpha Philips is. They know all about how Shani ended up with Athena and how badly she was injured when he kicked her out, not to mention the injuries she suffered while she was in his pack. Why is he here now?

"Did Alpha Philips come alone?" Darius asks the warrior, switching his gaze from the warrior to her. He looks worried. A frown carves his face. Come on, Shani. You're free now. He can't hurt you anymore. The thought makes her instantly feel better, and she straightens her spine. You're brave, she hears Denise and Athena echo in her head. I am brave. And I can handle Alpha Philips.

"No, he is accompanied by four other werewolves, including his daughter," the warriors answer nervously. He must have met the bastard. Poor boy. Darius frowns. He clearly has no idea. He why the alpha of the pack in England is at the entrance of his pack. During dinner. Is nothing sacred anymore?

"Did he say what he wanted?"

"He did not, Alpha. He simply asked for a meeting with you. Apparently, he heard about your heroics and decided to strengthen our alliance." Darius raises an eyebrow. "I wasn't aware we had one." The warrior answers quickly: "The former alpha Tyson," he glanced briefly at Christopher, "had an alliance with Alpha Philips. It's the main reason nobody dared to attack either of their packs, given the fact they are the two largest packs in Europe."

Shani feels sick. It explains a lot indeed. It explains why no stranger ever visited the pack; why nobody ever saw the terrible behaviour towards her and other pack members. Alpha Philips did not have to account for anything; that's why the pack became the way it is now. "Shani?" She looks up again and sees Darius still looking at her. Or more likely again. "Do you mind if he enters the pack? Despite him being a terrible person, I can't send an alpha away. It'd cause trouble in ways we can't foresee or afford, I'm afraid," he explains formally, but the regret is fully audible in his voice. He doesn't want this any more than she does.

She's grateful he asks her even though his hands are tied, just like everybody else's. But still, he's truly a friend, and she nods and shoots him a reassuring smile. "This is your home, Alpha, he's the one who needs to behave. Make sure you let him know that," she says with a smile, but she's certain Darius notices the serious tone she speaks with. Darius nods and gives the warrior his order. "Let's see what he has to say."

The atmosphere in the room has suddenly changed and the minutes that follow are taken in silence until a sound of a fist knocking on a wooden door alert the people at the dinner table. Shani sees multiple couples eying each other in concern. Leon watches the door with narrowed eyes. Does he look taller?

The door opens and the guard from before enters, followed by a man she hoped to never see again in her life. The man who made her life a living hell. Alpha Philips. She follows his every move from the moment he steps into the room. His face is just as she remembers. Frowned, angry. Vicious.

He greets Darius formally before looking around the room. His head pauses briefly at Hinote and his eyebrow twitches when his eyes fall on Athena. Then he sees her.

"You!" He utters. His voice does not show his surprise, but he must be. After all, she's supposed to be dead. If it was up to him, she would have never made it out of the forest that day when he left her to die. She looks at him but averts her eyes quickly. She sits stiffly in her chair, forcing her body not to flinch at the sound of his voice.

He doesn't give her a second glance, but looks back at Darius. The rest of his party has also entered the room, making the dining room even feel smaller than before. "Alpha Ivanov," the Alpha of the werewolves in England. "When I heard the news about the... passing of Alpha Tyson, I immediately took my plane for a quick meeting. See, Alpha Tyson and I had an arrangement... I would like to make a new one. And," he pauses briefly before nudging a she-wolf forward. "In exchange for an alliance, I let you mate with my daughter."

What?

"What?" Shani's not sure whose voices she's hearing. It could be all of them.

"My apologies Alpha Philips. Your daughter seems lovely, but I've already found my mate," Darius says, smiling; the pride in his eyes lights up when he lifts Athena up from her chair to present her to the alpha. Shani's surprised Darius was able to find the kind words he spoke out loud. She's not surprised Athena's looking at the father and daughter pair like she wants to cut the eyeballs out of their faces.

"Quelle connerie," the hybrid snorts angrily. "Bouffron." Shani has no idea what it means, but it cannot be friendly. She can't say she blames her friend for her outburst. Everybody in the room can sense their bond and the mark on her neck should have been enough for the alpha to not have offered his own daughter to Darius. The level of disrespect angers their entire table, but her former alpha doesn't seem to care, and Shani has a pretty good idea why. He thinks Athena's human and if there is one thing Alpha Philips hates even more than werecats, it's humans.

Shani gazes at the young girl now standing before the alpha. She recognizes her. Laura Philips is probably the only one who didn't treat her like garbage when she lived in her father's pack. Despite her being a year older than Shani, she looks quite young and anxious, no doubt because of her father. Alphas like him want to keep the things they can control in control, and poor Laura is definitely one of his victims.

Surely, she doesn't want to be involved with Darius; she has a mate out there too. Even though she's his only daughter, he never expected her to take his place as alpha one day. It's a shame, Shani thinks. Laura would make a damn good alpha. If she's given the chance to prove herself and develop her own mind. Shani might have been the one who got the beatings, but Laura was just as trapped as she was.

"I see. Do you mind continuing this in your office without all the... interruptions? Perhaps we can come to a better arrangement?"

"I'll lead the way," Darius says in a low voice, before making his way towards the door. Alpha Philips tells his daughter without a single word to stay behind and she sits down quietly. Then he points his eyes to Shani. "You. Grab your things, you're coming back with us," he growls. Shani looks at him. Their eyes meet before he turns around. Did he bark that order to her? "I beg your pardon?" She exclaims, surprised. Alpha Philips stops his movements and turns his head slowly. "Do I need to repeat myself?" The fuming alpha asks her slowly.

"I'm afraid you do, Alpha Philips. You do not have the authority to demand anything from my friends in my home," Darius answers for her. He has closed the door. Nobody went through yet.

"I am her Alpha; I have every right."

In the blink of an eye, Shani sees Leon removing the distance between himself and her former alpha. She knows if he gets involved, things could get ugly really fast and that's the last thing they need. But in that split second, she knows she cannot stop him anymore. She extends her hand but knows he's out of her reach. Leon. Stop! She thinks and abruptly, his body stiffens. He turns around to face her, surprise written in his eyes, just like hers. Did he hear her? But how?

There isn't any time to think about it, because even though Leon didn't touch the alpha, he still came very close and her mate is still angry enough to look the alpha directly in the eyes. Which is quite stupid to do for an ordinary werewolf. And yet, the alpha flinches, as if something in Leon's eyes scares the hell out of him. Shani can imagine it must be the anger raging in them like fire or his growl that sends shivers down everyone's spine.

He never looks at you like that. Shani can't help but smile at the thought. It's true, he never does.

"You. Are. Not. Her. Alpha," Leon grunts.

"And who might you be?"

"I'm her mate!" Leon answers. That seems to surprise him. Just because you think I'm not worthy doesn't mean everyone feels that way. The shock is quickly removed from his expression, traded for a fabricated annoyed one. She has to admit, she's pretty astonished Leon called her his mate as well, but while it makes her heart flutter, it only angers her former Alpha immensely. Which makes it even better.

"Alpha Darius, I suggest you keep your guard dog under control," he barks. "I do not wish to cause a scene while simply taking back what's mine."

"Oh, I wish I could, but Leon and Shani are members of my pack now. You could call us friends. I tend to listen to them when they speak. Shani, what do you have to say about Alpha Philips's request to return you to England?" Darius looks at her; a hint of amusement sparkles in his eyes. It makes her relax a bit, giving her the confidence she needs to answer his question.

"I'm afraid I must decline his kind invitation," she tells him. Darius nods and she directs her eyes towards Alpha Philip. "You have already given me permission to seek a new home, Alpha." By throwing me out and leaving me for dead for rogues to find. "And I'm happy to inform you I succeeded. I have no wish to go back to England. Ever."

"Y-you," Alpha Philips stammers angrily. He is losing his authority, and he knows it. Shani knows the alpha doesn't like to lose, and he tends to go a little... berserk when he doesn't get what he wants. It used to frighten her because she was the one he took his anger out on when he was unhappy. Now, the distance between them is far enough to not feel any fear. She feels safe, protected, and also stronger herself. That doesn't mean she isn't vigilant about the unpredictability her former alpha possesses. Quite the opposite; the flash in his eyes, showing his wolf is on the surface, makes her heart beat faster. He's definitely up to something.

"Alpha Ivanov, I came here to prevent a war between our packs, but I can see you're not interested in protecting yourself and your pack."

"You misread me and this situation then, Alpha Philips. I've every intention of keeping my pack safe, but I'm not sure I want to get involved with a pack whose laws are cruel and outdated. We don't share the same ideals and I don't know how we can fix that." Darius responds.

"Perhaps, I can make it easier for you," he says lowly, replacing his fake smile with a murderous grin. "Alpha Ivanov, I challenge you to a duel. Whoever wins can claim an alliance in the way they wish. If I win, you pledge The oath of Fidelity to me. My daughter stays here, and the cat comes with me."