Chapter 75
1479words
'We found nothing Alpha." Beta Stones bowed, his eyes staring hard at the floor.
'There must be an evidence." The Alpha insisted.
'I will go alone."
'Of what use is it Alpha?" Stones hated that he had to do this every single time the need came up. Where was Victor?
'We brought back her bloodstained dress, the one you confirmed she wore out that day."
'We buried her body, it was already beyond recognition."
'But I still want to see it." The Alpha insisted.
'It's been months Alpha." Stones tried to make him see reason with him.
'Who would have dug her bones from her shallow grave? Who would have hated us so much to do that, huh?" The Alpha was jumping on his seat while talking to himself.
Beta Stones just watched him continue. In his heart, he prayed that the Alpha should lose his touch with reality; only then would he attain the leadership of the pack without a shed of blood.
***
Going back to the place he stood some minutes ago, Victor traced the scent of the couple down to their abode.
He stood still looking at the night sky while listening to their hushed conversations and rushed steps.
The baby in his arms had cried himself to sleep, so he pinched her again, and she began crying a loud one. It still baffled him that she was still alive.
Using his extraordinary speed, he placed her by their doorpost and zipped back to his original position.
***
The couple froze in their action when the cry of the baby distorted the atmosphere.
'What is that?"
Joana felt she would get a stroke from her increased blood pressure when she heard the sudden cries of a baby. Was her mind playing tricks on her?
'The cry of a baby, stupid," Steve responded.
Joana would have smacked his head, eyed him, or retorted, but she could not; she was shaking all over, sweating as if she was dumped in an airless room.
Was this karma? It came too quickly.
'You can hear it too?" Her shaky head turned to look at his.
'Let me go check." He offered.
'NO!" She held out her hand in front of her.
'What if this is a trap to get us killed by those who heard us?" Her voice was a shaky one.
'What if it isn't?" Steve asked, opening the door as he did.
He paused, seeing the crying baby just in front of his doorstep. Joana who was behind him, peeped to look.
'A real baby?" There was relief in her voice. The cries of the dead baby before it finally stilled kept tormenting her.
'Drop her."
'No." Steve gave her a side glance.
'You still won't change, will you?" He asked her.
'Well, if we need to leave, we have to do it silently and not with a crying baby Steve." She tried to see reasons with him.
'She looks newly born."
'Obviously." Joana rolled her eyes.
'We are taking her with us."
'What!?" Joana gave way for him to bring her in."
'Think Mate." Steve placed her on his pile of clothes.
Walking around, he caught a clean towel, got a cup, soaked the tip of the towel in the water, and brought it to her mouth. The hungry baby immediately started suckling on it, her cries lessening with time.
'If we take a baby with us, don't you think they will be more likely to accept us?" He cast another side glance at her.
She looked back at him, huffed, and stomped her feet before going to pack out the remaining things needed.
'I am done." She said after she had packed the few essential things they would need.
'We leave" He carried the sleeping baby in his hand and opened the door.
'Are you really taking her with you?"
Steve paused. 'Yes."
'Do I have a choice?" Joana asked.
'No." Steve continued.
'She doesn't even have a name!"
Steve paused again and looked around him before facing the night sky; he looked at the half-moon for a while, then at the face of the sleeping baby.
'Moon. I will call her Moon" He decided.
***
Victor had his fist folded into a tight ball. He felt like punching the idiot in the face. He needed a name and could not think of any other name!
He wanted to leave them to their decision, but a part of him wished to know their destination, so he followed them.
Another wave of irritation hit him when he found out they were heading for the Silverstone's pack.
Teleporting to his room, he awaited their arrival. They came in not quite long after he did.
'The Beta and Alpha demand your presence." A guard knocked on his door, not daring to open it.
'I will be there in seconds." He responded.
Knowing what he was called for, he walked down to the courtroom to see them kneeling with the baby before them and the Alpha and Beta in an argument.
'What do you have to say about this Victor?" The Alpha asked the moment he stepped in.
'They can stay." Came his flat-out response.
The Beta looked at him, trying to understand why he would permit them to stay back. The couple looked at him in shock; their eyes widened, their face pale, their lips trembling, and their hands shaky.
'What? Don't you want to stay here anymore?" He raised his brows at them.
'Yes…yes. We want to stay." Steve answered he was more surprised than his wife.
'Good."
'Do you think this is wise Gamma?" The Alpha asked.
'Luna Olivia would have wanted this. She accepted me too." Gamma Victor responded, he stood still.
The couple looked at themselves, wondering when their Alpha became a gamma.
'Beta Stones, are you still against this knowing it's the wish of the deceased Luna?"
'No." Beta Stone responded at once.
'If that is all, I wish to leave now Alpha." He bowed.
After the now saddened Alpha waved him off, he left but overheard him telling Stones to give them a place in the pack house before the introduction.
Walking towards the empty room, he leans on the doorpost, obstructing it with his long leg. He looked around the room that would soon belong to Alpha Rex's daughter and her fake parents and sighed. He hoped nothing brought them together.
Putting his hands into his pocket, he brought out a metal lighter and a single cigar. Holding the stick between his teeth, he lit up the cigar and took a drag.
He looked up at the ceiling before his eyes closed to hear his thoughts and think of possibilities around the growing complex situation.
After dispelling the smoke, he took another drag before hearing footsteps.
'Is this part of the plan?" Stones asked him, stopping a few feet away. He ignored him.
'That couple, they know you, right?"
'Obviously."
'Your subjects?" Stones looked at him.
'Not anymore." He kept his leg down before opening his eyes.
'Just so you know. That baby is his." He informed the Beta.
He didn't need to spell it out, the Beta already knew who the ‘his' was.
'Victor!?" He called, his hands tightening.
'This was not part of the plan." Stones' facial muscles were twitching.
'I didn't plan this either." He responded.
'You keep acting important." Was Beta Stones' words before he rushed with his hand folded before him.
Victor held his hand mid-way before it could get to him. 'I would have always taken my time to think twice if I were you." He looked intensely at the Beta who grimaced in pain.
'Al…Alpha?" The couple called at once, seeing the scene before them.
Letting go of Stone's hand, he rushed towards the couple.
'Henceforth, I am Gamma Victor." He warned them.
'The moment you address me as Victor before any other person is the day you die."
Joana only shook her head vigorously in response while Steve managed to respond. 'We would never do that Alp…sorry Alp…I mean Gamma Victor."
It felt weird to address the Alpha of their pack as the Gamma of another pack but for the sake of their life, they had to abide by the new rule.
'The baby. Why did you name her Moon?" Victor unknowingly exposed his Alpha Aura, and Steve fell to his knees.
'If you don't like the name, we can change it."
'Forget it." He looked ahead, taking another drag of the cigar.
'Make sure you treat her like the orphan she is." He told them, blowing rings of smoke into the air.
'Excuse me?" Joana had wanted to say, but she said, 'Okay, Alpha," instead.
Knowing he was done with them, Victor looked back at the confused and pained face of the Beta before walking off towards his room.
