Chapter 41 - A fond reunion

**Callums pov**
When I heard Mayas words about me in the phone I knew she was right. I did take Hope away from everything she knew and loved. What kind of mate does that? I knew when I saw the tears falling from her eyes that we can’t go on with the ceremony until I fix this mess. I can’t ask her for more, or expect her to step into this new life with me, leaving everything behind. No, when I mark her, I want her to be complete, and she can’t be that with half of her life gone.

“Zandra!” I call through the link.
“Yes, I’m here” She answers.
I told her everything about the call, Hopes reactions and my plans to do something about it.
“I agree, Its risky but I agree nonetheless” She said
“Good! Meet me at the runway in twenty minutes, do you need someone to pick you up?”
“What?? No, I didn’t agree to that! I’m not flying! You can do this Callum, I'll wait for you here”
“Oh no you don’t! This is your mess too and there are going to be some intensive crash courses so I need you! Hope needs you and Luna needs you Zandra!”
“ You stubborn pup…You know I’m pretty much immortal right? So, if the plane goes down and I become a cripple, you will be the one changing my diapers and spoon feeding me..just so you know..”
“Gladly!” I chuckled
“Fine..have someone pick me up..I'll see you soon.”

I linked a lot of people on my way to our little airdrome, Reece and Greta, they will have to prepare most of the ceremony without me. I linked Rafael to fuel and start up the plane, Mike to pick up Zandra and Cathy, to explain everything and to tell her not to tell Hope.
I rarely use our private jet. I’m a creature of the ground so by nature I don’t like flying. But this is an emergency and I don’t have the time to spent atleast 4 hours in the car one way. The plane will cut the time to a third or more. I need to put the smile back on Hopes face, the happiness in her eyes and to do that I would fly to the moon and back if that’s what it would take.

Mike arrives with Zandra a few minutes after me. I give him a few more tasks before climbing the jet with Zandra.
Its a luxurious machine I might say. My father bought it when he was Alpha. Unlike me, he loved to be in the air, and when he was he wanted it to be comfortable, so he got this private jet. It has a bar, a bedroom, nice couches and chairs. Kind of a mini-apartment.

“Do you really think this is a good idea?” Zandra asks me when the plane starts climbing.
“You should have seen her Zandra, it broke my heart”
“I understand what you want to do. But telling more humans of our existence can easily go the wrong way.”
“I’m willing to take that risk, for Hope I’m willing to take every wrong way if it makes her happy again”
“Okay then, lets do this” She answers before leaning her head back and closes her eyes.

**Mayas pov**
I hear the doorbell in a distant. My head feels a bit fuzzy and my eyes dry.
I blink a few times and soon realize that I’m still on Hopes couch, and I obviously fell asleep. I check my phone for the time. I slept for three hours!!
I hear the doorbell again and get up to answer it.
One hour later I’m sitting with my mouth open and staring at the biggest creature I have ever seen. The wolf seems to be uncomfortable because it can barley turn around in the small apartment.

The story Callum and Zandra told me, after I reluctantly let them in, was a fairytale and I didn’t belive any of it. In my mind there were no doubt about it, this was a cult and they took Hope and filled her head with nonsense and they were trying to do the same with me. So I left Callum no choice but to shift to prove me wrong. And he did. For the first time in forever, I have nothing to say. I feel a tear rolling down my cheek and the woman, Zandra sits beside me and takes my hands in hers.
“Callum, go and change back” She says and the beast struggles to leave the living room.
“Dear child, I know its a lot and normally we would not do this. We know you love Hope and how big a part of her life you are and she needs you, she needs people from her old life in her new one to be complete. Do you understand?” she looks at me while rubbing my hands with her thumbs.
I felt warm and safe with this woman. I could tell she was good, genuine and she wouldn’t try to lure me and take me away to some sect. She was worried about Hope, whose soul she obviously was connected to and had been for hundreds of years.
Callum comes back into the room, scratching his head.
“Sorry about that” he says, knowing he freaked the living shit out of me. But I have to hand it to Hope, she really hit the jackpot with that one, he is gorgeous.
I clear my throat and roll my shoulders to get some of the tension off.
“ So, how do you want to do this? What is your plan?” I ask looking at them both.
“Well, we need to make another stop. We need to see Hopes mother, and if she handles this as well as you we fly back after” Callum answer me.
“Make that two stops, I need to pack a few things if I’m going with you” I stand up and start to close all the windows and check so everything is in order before we leave the apartment.

**Callums pov**
It is way past midnight when I finally open the door to my room. I can hear Hopes even breathing so I know she is sleeping. I take a quick shower and brush my teeth before crawling in to bed and carfully pulling her into my arms. I inhale her scent and every tense muscle in my body relaxes..well all but one.
I missed her so much being away today, but it will all be worth it when she wakes up in the morning.

Meeting her mother, Cecilia went better than I expected. She was surprised but took it all in and I didn´t even have to shift to prove anything.
Cecilia had heard the tales about the wolves and the creatures of the night growing up, and had always found them captivating. Was she sad this happened to her daughter? Of course she was, she would rather it happened before Hope was born so she herself could have fought this battle. But she was determined to be by her daughters side so she packed a bag, before we walked out the door she turned to Zandra.
“Since you are a witch I assume you are connected to the earth and all living things?”
“ In a way, yes” Zandra answered her, a little smile tugging her lips before she says
“Ill get right to it” closing her eyes and silent whisper’d words I didn´t recognize.
“There, all done, don’t you worry dear.” She said, turned and walked out the door.
Cecilia nodded a Thank you and we all went to the waiting car.
“What was that about?” I had to ask
‘“Well, I don’t know when I'll be back and I would hate to come home to see all my beautiful plants dead, so I asked Zandra to protect them.” Cecilia explained.
Both Maya and Cecilia were baffled when we reached the pack house after dropping of Zandra at her place.
Almost everyone was asleep, except for Greta and a few of the omegas who I asked to ready two rooms on the second floor for our important guests. We agreed not to wake Hope, but instead surprise her tomorrow morning. I left them in Gretas care hurrying upstairs in need to see my girl.
I feel her stir in my arms and the scent comes right after, I smile and drift off to sleep.

As the morning sun touches our faces our eyes open at the same time.
For a while we just lay there, watching eachother.
“Hey you..” I say and pull her closer, planting small kisses on her cheeks and down her neck.
“Hey yourself..” She giggles. She pulls away looking at me while playing with my hair.
“Where did you go yesterday? Cathy and Reece refused to tell me anything, they just said not to worry.
“Its a surprise, see it as a ceremonial gift, like a wedding gift of sort” I answer her and at the same time I hear a knock on the door.
“ Greta is early today” Hope says, sitting up reaching for her new robe and try to put it around her.
“Its not Greta” I answer and help her with her arm and the robe before jumping out of bed and in to a pair of sweats and a T-shirt while moving to the door.
“Who…” She doesn’t have the time to say anything else before I open the door and Maya and Cecilia runs through, jumping up in the bed, attacking Hope.
I make a deal with Beacon to save the images of Hopes face in this very moment.
As I watch her I see surprise, disbelief, realization, joy and finally happiness and it warms my heart. There are a lot of tears, laughter, more tears, scolding, more laughter and around it goes.
“Hrm..” I clear my throat to get Hopes attention.
“ I'll leave you girls catching up. Meet you all for breakfast downstairs later?”
Hope jumped out of the bed and comes up to me and put her good arm around my neck.
“Thank you, thank you! You have made me the happiest woman alive, I love you so much!”
“Thats my job, to make sure you always wear that smile on your face”
“That will give me wrinkles” She smiles, her face beaming.
“Yeah, and I will love every one of them”I say kissing her lips softly before leaving her catching up with her friend and mom.