Chapter 73-Visiting The Chosen

“Alpha,” Doc says as he lowers his head in respect, then hugs me. He pulls back suddenly, sniffing the air, then looks at me. He moves my hair from my neck and grins. “I’m so happy for you,” he says with a wink.
I blush and brush my hair back over my mark. “Thanks,” I mumble.
“Covering it will not hide anything,” he says with a chuckle. “And there’s nothing to be ashamed of.”
“I’m not ashamed,” I tell him. “I just don’t think it needs to be announced to everyone.”
“The entire pack will know by the end of the day, Alpha. Your scent has changed, and everyone is going to be thrilled.”
“I didn’t notice,” I say, sniffing myself.
“Where is Alpha Andreas? I should check on him to see if there have been any changes to his condition.”
“He’ll be here in a moment,” I tell him. “How are the chosen doing?” I ask, changing the subject.
“Two are still under the close eye of Doctor Andrews. That would be Jack Ryan and Philip Gray,” he says, looking over the paperwork on his clipboard. “The other two, Will and Connor, are healing well, and have fewer psychological issues than the others, but Doctor Andrews is helping them as well.”
“Thank the Goddess he offered his services when Elder Laskaris called him. We’d be lost without him,” I say.
“It’s been my pleasure, Alpha,” I hear Doctor Andrews say behind me. I turn to face him, and he lowers his head in a bow. “Connor and Will are ready for you, Alpha. Would you care to follow me?” He asks, holding his arm out in the direction of the corridor.
“Of course, thank you, Doctor Andrews,” I say. “Doc, can you send Andreas in when he gets here, please?” I ask him.
“Of course,” he says with a bow.
I follow Doctor Andrews through the hospital to one of the back visiting rooms. We walk in, and two men are sitting at the table. They both stand when I come in and bow their heads to me, before also baring their necks in submission nervously.
“Please sit, gentlemen,” I say, taking a seat, as Doctor Andrews sits next to me.
“Alpha Athena, this is Connor Mathews, and Will Ryder,” Doctor Andrews introduces them.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you both,” I say. “I just wish it had been under...”
“You’re really like us?” Connor rushes out, cutting me off, then covers his mouth with his hand. “I’m sorry, Alpha. I meant no disrespect.”
“You haven’t disrespected me,” I tell him with a kind smile. “I’m sure you have a lot of questions.”
They both nod.
I close my eyes and when I open my eyes again, the usual blue glow casts over the room.
The men close their eyes, and when they open them again, Connor’s eyes have changed to brown, and Will’s eyes to gray.
“I can’t believe this,” Connor says with tears in his eyes. “Before I was captured, I thought I was just a freak. That I was on my own.”
“I think we’ve all felt that way,” I say gently, placing my hand on his forearm. “But you’re not alone, and you have a place in my pack if you wish to stay,” I tell both of them.
They both break down crying, nodding their heads, as they say thank you.
There’s a knock on the door, and Andreas’s head appears in the doorway. “Can I come in?” He asks.
“Andreas!” Connor yells as he jumps up from his chair and runs to Andreas, and hugs him.
Andreas hugs Connor back tightly, the two men having a hard time controlling their emotions.
“You got out,” Connor says, his voice hoarse from crying.
“I did,” Andreas says, squeezing Connor’s shoulder. “We all did. We’re all safe now because of Athena and her pack,” he says proudly, smiling at me.
Connor looks between me and Andreas, then makes the connection. “You’re... you’re an Alpha?” he asks Andreas, confused. “But... But you were a rogue?”
“My mate, Athena, is an Alpha. My Alpha. I became an Alpha because of her,” he explains.
“This is confusing,” Will says, rubbing his temples.
“There is a lot that you and the rest of the chosen need to be caught up on and told. Just know that Alpha Athena will protect you if you choose to stay in her pack. Everything else I will happily explain to you later when you’re up to it,” Andreas tells them with a smile.
“I have nowhere else to go. I would like to stay here in your pack, Alpha,” Connor says to me.
“Me too,” Will says.
“You’re both more than welcome to my pack, not only as members of Blood-Moon but of the chosen,” I tell them with a smile. “I don’t see any point in waiting, do you?” I direct my question to Doctor Andrews.
“I don’t. If anything, I think this will help them considerably,” he says with a smile.
“Then gentlemen, please kneel,” I tell them with a smile, and mind-link the Doc to ask him to bring me something to cut our palms. He enters the room a moment later and hands me a silver knife, then leaves the room again with a smile.
I look at Connor and Will with a smile. “Do you both accept me, Athena Argos, as your Alpha?” I ask.
“I do,” they say in unison.
“Do you promise to abide by the rules and laws of the Blood-Moon pack?”
“I do.”
“Please give me your hands,” I tell them, and I cut their palms, then mine. “I, Alpha Athena Argos, accept you, Connor Mathews, and Will Ryder, into my pack,” I say, taking their hands one by one in mine and solidifying the connection with our blood.
“Welcome to the pack,” I say with a big smile.
**Meanwhile, in another part of the country...
Elder Laskaris P.O.V**
“It’s looking more and more like this has to do with the chosen,” I say to Elder Andino as we look over the papers we have collected from the packs. “It would seem there are more of them than even we knew.”
“Do you think the High Council knows how many there are?” He asks, looking up from his work.
“If they do, there’s a reason they haven’t told us.”
Andino huffs. “They’re hindering our work by not telling us,” he retorts.
“It’s not our place to question the council,” I say in a warning tone.
Andino rolls his eyes and returns to the papers in front of him. I try to reign in my frustration with him and remind myself that he is new to the Elder council and still learning our ways.
‘He is pig-headed and foolish,’ my lycan, Demetris, snarls, and I have to stop myself from laughing out loud.
‘He’s still young. He will find his way. The High Council wouldn’t have chosen him if they didn’t think he was suited to the role.’
Demetris snarls in disgust and curls up in the back of my mind.
“I think it’s time I called Alpha Athena and notified her that these are chosen lycan being taken,” I say.
“I still don’t trust her,” Andino says with a growl. “She shouldn’t be involved in council matters, let alone in charge of a pack.”
I growl in warning at him. “We have our orders from the council. Are you going to disobey?”
“I just don’t understand!” He yells. “Why is she so important? What does she have to do with any of this?”
“It is not your place to ask questions!” I roar at him, making him cower slightly. “We are to keep her informed of anything to do with matters of the chosen and to follow her lead and support her in the decisions she makes regarding them and her pack. That is all you are to be told right now. Understand?”
He nods and returns to his work. I take a deep breath and calm down, cracking my neck in an attempt to let go of my anger. Just as I’m about to return to the papers in front of me, Andino speaks again.
“What do you think the chalice catching fire meant?” Andino asks, referring to the night of Athena’s Alpha ceremony.
“I’ve never seen it before. No one has,” I say with a sigh at another interruption.
“But what do you think it means?” he asks again.
“I believe only the Moon Goddess has those answers, and it’s definitely not our place to question her,” I say as I hear my cell phone ring.
“Elder Laskaris,” I say, answering the phone.
“Elder, thank the Goddess, I wasn’t sure if this was even your number,” I hear an unknown voice rush out in a whisper.
“Who is this?” I ask with concern.
“My name is Lily. I’m an Omega in the Blue-Stone pack,” the girl whispers.
“How can I help you, Lily?” I ask.
“I don’t know what to do, Elder,” she says, clearly upset. “The Elder that was sent here to help us, he’s... he’s missing, and I think my Alpha had something to do with it,” she sniffles.
“When did he go missing?” I ask, trying to keep the panic I’m feeling out of my voice.
“I haven’t seen him for two days. I overheard him yelling at the Alpha, telling him he was in big trouble with the council. Then that afternoon he didn’t come down for his afternoon snack like he had every day he was here.”
“Does Alpha Luke know you’ve called me?” I ask, worried for her safety.
“No,” she whispers. “I found your number in the Elders’ things. The Alpha would kill me if he knew we were talking,” she sobs.
“We will be there as soon as we can. Don’t mention this to anyone, Lily. If anything happens, I want you to run to the closest pack and ask for asylum. Do you understand?”
“Yes, Elder,” she says and hangs up.
I look at Andino. “I need to call the High Council, then we need to get to the Blue-Stone pack as quickly as possible.”