Chapter 22: The First Mark

Chapter 22: The First Mark
Silas
Sydney raises her hand to quiet the pack again. "Now to our other announcement. As most of you have heard, I found my mate when I traveled to the Amaris Pack. Silas Youngblood is the third son of the Beta Youngblood family. The goddess has blessed our pack and me with a strong and capable Lumiere." The pack erupts in cheering. An Alpha couple insured stability for the pack, and heaven knows they wanted it.
I take a step forward. "Thank you all for the warm welcome. I promise to get to know each one of you as time progresses. We have a lot of rebuilding to do. I hope we can count on each of you."
Sydney pats my shoulder. "Thank you. We will now accept Silas into White Ridge."
I turn to face Sydney and start to unbutton my shirt. I have to have my left shoulder visible to the pack. Once my shirt is off. I see Sydney look me up and down. A slight blush to her cheeks. I cannot help but drop to one knee in front of her and take her hand like a fairy tale knight and a princess. Her blush grows deeper. I'm smiling so big it hurts.
Sydney tries to act naturally and not let it show. "Silas Young Blood, do you accept the White Ridge Pack as your new pack, and do you promise to uphold your duties as it's Lumiere?"
"Yes, Alpha, I do" I kiss the back of her hand, gaining an aww from the crowd.
"Do you submit to me Sydney Eld as your Alpha?" Her tone is softer, and her eyes look so warmly at me. It's like it's just her and I.
"Yes, Alpha, I do" I kiss her hand again.
She gives me a shy smile. "I Sydney Eld accept you Silas Youngblood into White Ridge." She cuts her palm with a claw; I do the same. We clasp hands, mixing our blood.
I feel our mate bond pulling us together. A small gasp leaves Sydney's lips; I guess she feels it too. My left shoulder starts to feel warm, and I know my pack is changing. As expected, it's a ranked mark.
Then I feel my old pack bonds fade and a new one take hold. "Welcome, Silas." Sydney mind-linked me. I guess you can't be any more official.
I mind-link back, "I finally get to get into that mind of yours…" I'm hit with this confusing rumble of voices. "Ugh," I can't even mind-link. It's so loud. "What is that?"
Sydney answers in mind-link. I think she's trying to drown out the noise. "That must be the Pack-Link. Only the Alpha couple have it. It connects our wolves to the pack wolves. It's like an early warning system. Bram will need to control it." Now that we have a stronger mate-bond, I feel Thora reach out to Bram.
"Bram, you got it?" I hope he can get this under control fast.
"Yeah." He grunts. It's the oddest feeling. It's like he gets bigger and swallows the voices. It's just him and I again in my mind.
"That's better. Thanks." That explains why Alpha Conor always knew when something happened.
"I can connect with Thora better now. It's not strong yet, but it's better." His need for Thora has grown so strong over these two days.
"Don't worry, buddy. After tonight that's not going to be a problem." I wasn't going to let Sydney run away tonight. We didn't have time to take it slow.
I stand to my feet, and Syd steps forward to address the pack. "White Ridge, please welcome Silas Youngblood to our pack. Four days from now, we will be holding his Lumiere Ceremony. I expect everyone to be here." She looks at me out of the corner of her eye. I know she's thinking the same thing I am.
Most of the pack members come and introduce themselves to me. Even Ralph and Vance give me a welcome handshake. I guess the fruit fell far from the tree in this case. I get the feeling they disapprove of their father. I need to find out the whole story. There's more to it, I'm sure of it. Soon enough, everyone leaves, and it's just Nina and Toby's family left with Sydney, Ambrose, and me.
I reach my hand out to greet the man. "I don't think I caught your name earlier."
He accepts my hand. "It's Kyler Hughes, and this is my mate, Katie." He pauses. I can see he wants to say more but is holding back.
"It's nice to meet you both, and I'm glad Toby and Nina are safe and happy now." It will be nice to watch them grow up.
"Between you and the Alpha, I don't know who to thank more. You both saved my family. I don't know how we can ever repay you." His voice is shaky, and I can tell this is his heart right away.
I pull him into a hug. "It's not a debt I intend to collect on. Seeing the pups grow will be payment enough." I release him and clap him on the shoulder.
Kyler drops to one knee. "I Kyler Hughes of the White Ridge Pack pledge my Loyalty to Alpha Sydney Eld and Lumiere Silas Youngblood, the mother, and father of our pack. Please accept my pledge." He cuts his palm. Well, this was not expected.
I look over to Syd. "I guess we found our Gamma."
Syd lets out a sigh. "Looks like it." She cuts her palm and clasps his hand. "I accept your pledge."
Kyler rolls up his sleeve, and we see the change in his pack mark. He looks around at us wide-eyed and jaw gaping open.
Ambrose breaks the silence. "Well, look at that! We are a real pack again!"
"Beta Ambrose, over the next few days, will you assist in moving the Hughes Gamma family to the packhouse?" Sydney is all business. I can tell she's feeling overwhelmed.
Ambrose solutes Syd. "Yes, alpha." We are going to need to work on etiquette.
"Wait… I'm the Gamma now!" Kyler finally comes out of shock.
I chuckle; I guess we should help him grasp the situation. "That's right. The goddess called you."
Sydney shakes his hand. "Thank you for hearing her call. I know we will make the pack great again."
Toby hobbles over to his dad, tugging on his pants. "Dad! Are you going to work with the Alpha and Silas?"
Tears were welling in his eyes. "Yeah, buddy, I am. Silas is our Lumiere. You have to call him by his title."
I smile at the boy as he looks up at me. "Toby, and one day you will work with the Alpha."
His little eyes grow wide, and his mouth drops open. "Really!" We all nod." Cool!" We all laugh.
Katie steps forward with tears streaming down her face. "Thank you both. I don't even know where to start. Can I hug you?"
"I guess so." Squeaked out of Syd, which surprised me.
Katie pulled Syd in a big hug and started crying. The pure bewilderment on Sydney's face makes it hard not to laugh. She really is a bit socially awkward, and it's never been more evident. She looks at me with pleading eyes, and I fight my strong urge to laugh but smile at her.
I mind-link Syd. "Hug her back. She is our Gamma female, the only other ranked female beside you."
She links me back. "I guess I didn't think about that." Syd pats Katie on the back, and I didn't even know she could look more awkward, but she did it.
Katie releases Syd and takes a step back. "Thank you. And Lumiere, you saved my son, and I gained a daughter because of you. Thank you." She pulls me into a hug.
I hug her back. "Nina was the real hero that day, right Nina." Katie steps back from our hug.
Nina runs to me, jumping into my arms. Her thin arms wrap around my neck so tight. "I was so scared then you came, and I wasn't scared anymore. Please don't leave Silas."
"You are so brave and strong, just like our Alpha." I feel her tiny body tremble. "Hey, it's OK now. I'm not going anywhere, OK." The truth was I was just as fragile, but I wasn't a seven-year-old.
I was an adult with a ranked title and responsibilities. Focusing on what was in front of me helped me push my guilt aside. I wish I could feel comfortable expressing it like this. I have to give it to Sydney. She doesn't hide her pain or act like it didn't happen, but she does let it control her. Maybe I did, too, in a way.
I knew I was going to mark Sydney tonight. We didn't love each other yet, but I needed her. I needed to make sure she couldn't leave me. I've only felt at peace when I'm with her. I can't lose that. I have a purpose with her; I'm just a substitute without her.
I feel Nina Calm down, and I hand her over to Kyler. "We will see you tomorrow morning Gamma Kyler."
"Yeah, I guess so. This is surreal." Finally, everyone heads home for the night.
Sydney and I walk to our room in a calm silence that I think we both need.
Sydney is the first to break the quiet. "What a long day." She shuts the door behind her.
I grab her wrist and pull her to me. I crash my lips to hers. I pull away, and I am not disappointed with the adorable flush in her cheeks. I whisper in her ear. "It's about to be a long night."