Chapter 22

**Cole**



I hope Winter won’t be too mad at me for sending her shopping with Gale. I don’t really have time to dwell on that though. I have a lot to do. In my office I read over applications to work in the pack house. Then I make phone calls to a few different alphas. We are holding a summit in a few months, and I want to make sure we are on good terms. I need to make sure they are still happy with our alliance. I assure them if they need anything, they can rely on The Red Dawn Pack.

That took the whole morning. I hear a knock and get up to get the door. “Hey Alpha, I brought your lunch. I figured you were too busy to come down.” Julian says.

“Thanks man.” I take the plate and retreat to my desk as Julian leaves. I start reminiscing about how I hired Julian and Marie.

I sent the word out that I needed two new chefs and sure enough tons of applications were sent in. So, I picked the top ten. I had them all prepare their best chili, since it is my favorite meal. The top two would be hired. After I picked Julian and Marie. I met with them and came to find out that they are siblings, and they are equally talented.

Just as I am finishing my sandwich my mother walks in. Honestly, she doesn’t even knock. “Hey Cole, I am preparing a mating gathering for later this week, and I would like to run some things by you.”

“Mom we do not need a mating gathering. I have found a mate. It’s done. Drop it and leave it alone.”

“Look Cole, even if you have found a mate, your sister Gale hasn’t. Plus, I already sent out the invites to our neighboring packs. Besides, as I said before, Winter is not Luna material. You should perhaps consider Charlotte as your Luna. You seemed to enjoy her. She is regal and beautiful.”

“Mom Charlotte is not my mate. I will not mark her. Therefore, she will not be Luna.”

I know some werewolves have taken in she-wolfs as their mates although they weren’t their destined mate. This usually happens if they are tired of waiting, or if their mate dies and they survived the severed bond. But I am not in either of those categories.

“Mom, we can hold the gathering for Gale, but after this gathering you will no longer be planning events of this size. You are not Luna anymore and you haven’t been for a while. I have aloud you to continue in this role since I didn’t have a mate. Now that I do you will no longer be able to fill this position. With that, I don’t want you bringing up Charlotte or any other She-wolf you think I should mate with.” With that she gets up and leaves.

Sometimes I get so frustrated with her. She wants everyone to obey what she thinks is best, but that is not how things run. Sure, when she was Luna, she had power, but she doesn’t anymore. She is just a part of the top tier now. I’m sure what I said pissed her off. It is the truth though, and she will just have to get over it.

As I get back to work I make it a point to not just look over pack business, but to see how my personal businesses are going. I don’t know how I mange everything, but my father taught me that delegation is the key to success.

It is getting late into the afternoon now. I wonder when the girls will be back. Goddess I hope she is not still mad about me pulling rank this morning. I lean back in my chair and start thinking about Winter.

I think of all the questions I still have for her. Like how did she keep herself from becoming feral? How did she keep her sanity? How did she learn to fight as well as she does? How did she make money to buy herself books? My brain starts to spiral into a bunch of hows and whys? I definitely need to spend some time getting to know her better. I wonder what caused the fire that led to the downfall of the Moon Stone pack. I think I will have to call Byron. He might know.

As I pull out my phone, I get an alert. “INCOMING ROGUES APPROACHING. FRONT ENTRANCE ROAD. IMMEDIATE THREAT!” With that I spring into action heading out to where the fight will be.



**Winter**



We are about to enter the pack boarders when I am woken up by a ping from my phone. I had dozed off on the car ride back. I look down at the screen to see what woke me up. “INCOMING ROGUES APPROACHING. FRONT ENTRANCE ROAD. IMMEDIATE THREAT!” I yell to Linus “Stop the car!”

He stops the car. As I am jumping out, I call back “take care of Gale.” I shift, ruining my clothes, and run straight into the woods. I figure the rouges won’t be expecting an attack from behind, so this is a good strategy. As I run I begin to smell dirt and grime. No wonder people didn’t like me before I joined the pack, I really did stink.

I arrive just in time to see them crossing the border. There are three of them. The warriors will be here soon... Hold on. I think I know that wolf. It has to be Gerard’s wolf. Oh, this will be bad. I encountered him a few years back. He is ruthless.

I run up and bight the back of the neck of the one closest to me. He yelps and pulls away. I start snapping at his leg and quickly I get a bite. I tear the tendons and he goes down. He is out of this fight. I watch him to be sure, but he just lies there. I look up to see the warriors arriving and Coles big black wolf in front. Gerard looks back and sees me. I know he knows who I am. He turns and runs back into the woods, leaving the territory with his friend. I can bet that this will not the end of this.