Wolf Betrayed (Talon Pack #4)(65)

“Let’s get started then,” Kade said after he gave her a nod. “Gideon? Do you want to begin?”

Gina held back a frown. They were acting more formal than usual, so that hadn’t been her imagination. The Talons and the Redwoods had formed a treaty during the latter days of the war between the Redwoods and the Centrals. It wasn’t as though these were two newly acquainted Alphas meeting for the first time. Though maybe when it came to Pack matters, Alphas couldn’t truly be friends.

What a lonely way to live.

“It’s been fifteen years since the end of the Central War, yet there hasn’t been a single mating between the two Packs,” Gideon said, shocking her.

Gina blinked. Really? That couldn’t be right. She was sure there had to have been some cross-Pack mating.

Right?

“That means that regardless of the treaties we signed, we don’t believe the moon goddess has seen fit to fully accept us as a unit,” Kade put in.

“What do you mean?” she asked, then shut her mouth. She was the youngest wolf here and wasn’t formally titled or ranked. She should not be speaking right now.

She felt the gaze of the dark-eyed wolf on her, but she didn’t turn to look. Instead, she kept her head down in a show of respect to the Alphas.

“You can ask questions, Gina. It’s okay,” Kade said, the tone of his voice not changing, but, as his daughter, she heard the softer edge. “And what I mean is, mating comes from the moon goddess. Yes, we can find our own versions of mates by not bonding fully, but a true bond, a true potential mate, is chosen by the moon goddess. That’s how it’s always been in the past.”

Gideon nodded. “There haven’t been many matings within the Talons in general.”

Gina sucked in a breath, and the Beta of the Talons, Mitchell, turned her way. “Yes,” Mitchell said softly. “It’s that bad. It could be that in this period of change within our own pack hierarchy, our members just haven’t found mates yet, but that doesn’t seem likely. There’s something else going on.”

Gina knew Gideon—as well as the rest of his brothers and cousins—had come into power at some point throughout the end of the Central War during a period of the Talon’s own unrest, but she didn’t know the full history. She wasn’t even sure Kade or the rest of the Pack royalty did.

There were some things that were intensely private within a Pack that could not—and should not—be shared.

Jasper tapped his fingers along the table. As the Redwood Beta, it was his job to care for their needs and recognize hidden threats that the Enforcer and Alpha might not see. The fact that he was here told Gina that the Pack could be in trouble from something within the Pack, rather than an outside force that Adam, the Enforcer, would be able to see through his own bonds and power.

“Since Finn became the Heir to the Pack at such a young age, it has changed a few things on our side,” Jasper said softly. Finn was her brother, Melanie and Kade’s oldest biological child. “The younger generation will be gaining their powers and bonds to the goddess earlier than would otherwise be expected.” Her uncle looked at her, and she kept silent. “That means the current Pack leaders will one day not have the bonds we have to our Pack now. But like most healthy Packs, that doesn’t mean we’re set aside. It only means we will be there to aid the new hierarchy while they learn their powers. That’s how it’s always been in our Pack, and in others, but it’s been a very long time since it’s happened to us.”

“Gina will one day be the Enforcer,” Adam said from behind her. “I don’t know when, but it will be soon. The other kids aren’t old enough yet to tell who will take on which role, but since Gina is in her twenties, the shifts are happening.”

The room grew silent, with an odd sense of change settling over her skin like an electric blanket turned on too high.

She didn’t speak. She’d known about her path, had dreamed the dreams from the moon goddess herself. But that didn’t mean she wanted the Talons to know all of this. It seemed…private somehow.

“What does this have to do with mating?” she asked, wanting to focus on something else.

Gideon gave her a look, and she lowered her eyes. He might not be her Alpha, but he was still a dominant wolf. Yes, she hadn’t lowered her eyes before, but she’d been rocked a bit since Adam had told the others of her future. She didn’t want to antagonize anyone when Gideon clearly wanted to show his power. Previously, everything had been casual; now it clearly was not.

Kade growled beside her. “Gideon.”

The Talon Alpha snorted, not smiling, but moved his gaze. “It’s fun to see how she reacts.”

“She’s my daughter and the future Enforcer.”

“She is right here, so how about you answer my question?”

Jasper chuckled by her side, and Gina wondered how quickly she could reach the nearest window and jump. It couldn’t be that far. She wouldn’t die from the fall or anything, and she’d be able to run home.

Quickly.

“Mating,” Kade put in, the laughter in his eyes fading, “is only a small part of the problem. When we sent Caym back to hell with the other demons, it changed the power structure within the Packs as well as outside them. The Centrals who fought against us died because they’d lost their souls to the demon. The Centrals that had hidden from the old Alphas ended up being lone wolves. They’re not truly a Pack yet because the goddess hasn’t made anyone an Alpha.”