Chapter 9: Meeting The Gang in The Whispering Moon Pack

[Dove]
I knew that it was too good to be true.

Standing in the middle of a large concrete platform, the size of a basketball court, I was seething with annoyance and anxiety. I was annoyed at the grinning ox-brained Alpha and anxious about what I was just told.

It all started with me leaving the mansion, thrilled with anticipation for more surprises since I had just received two - a couple’s breakfast and an invitation for a couple’s stroll. It was probably euphoria, or his bloody scent, that made me miss all the signs.

So we met the first person, an elder who was in charge of the farmers, Patrick - a short, fast-talking man with bowl-cut hair and an overly kneaded forehead. Cole listened patiently as he rattled off about the recent weather and the reduced harvest, his son who was not training hard enough, to the latest technology - something called a ‘mobility’ phone - the cubs had read from the newspapers and were fantasizing about.

I listened in awe at his sentences that always seem to miss a full stop and caught a knowing smile from Cole. My heart fluttered until Patrick managed to pause for a while to ask Cole’s Luna if she had heard of the ‘mobility phone’.

There was only enough time for me to give a nod, and he was off again, going on about the universe.

Next was a Delta whom Patrick had fleetingly mentioned in his speech - Megan. I didn’t meet her when I was going about the grounds with Jude. Looking at her standing in front of me, her golden hair bun, freckled nose and tanned high cheekbones, I was suddenly very conscious of my appearance.

In an awkward tiny voice that made Cole raise a brow, I introduced my name and stretched out a hand, which she didn’t take. My smile instantly hardened into an embarrassed one.

“My hands are dirty.” She coolly explained. “I wouldn’t want to stain your pretty ones.”

I slowly retrieved my hands and glanced at Cole for some support but he just stood there, observing me with an amused look. So I pretended to be interested in our surroundings as Megan continued to observe me with fuming eyes.

Finally, Cole turned from me to Megan and asked, “Megan, have you spoken to Patrick?”

Equally tanned and almost as tall as Cole, Megan gave me a cold hard gaze and answered, “I don’t need to talk to him. I do what I have to do.” I noticed Cole’s tone in her voice and my shoulders tensed up.

Cole dropped his arms and her name came out in an exasperated drawl. “Megan... we’ve been through this many times.”

She finally released her eyes from staring at my face, turned to Cole and started staring at him. “Yes, we have. And I’ve told you many times that Patrick is an ox.” She frowned at my sudden coughing, then returned to Cole and shrugged. “So I can’t communicate with him.”

“Fine.” Cole straightened and folded his arms again. “Then I’ll get--.”

Megan immediately pointed a finger at the giant’s nose. “Don’t you dare!” And then she exhaled angrily at Cole’s silly grinning face.

Amidst their interactions, I felt even smaller. Cole was showing so many expressions that I’ve never seen before, and Megan was the one drawing them out. I felt something sour in my mouth.

After convincing Megan to talk to Patrick again about her new harvesting system, Cole strolled towards his next stop, and I followed suit behind him.

As always, I like to turn back to the place that I was leaving and give it one last glance; it was then I caught a murderous glare from Megan. I blinked to see clearly but her back was already facing me. She was bending over a frightened werewolf and thrusting her arms skywards in all directions.

“What’s wrong?” I heard Cole’s voice and returned to the front.

“Nothing,” I mumbled, a little riled up by the glare that I might have received. But I only sighed. “Megan’s really something, huh?”

The corner of his lip lifted and my heart skipped at the familiarity of it. Then he laughed and moved on. “Yeah, she is. She helped me a lot. I’m not much into agriculture and money.”

I went up beside him and asked, “Why do you need money? We don’t really use them and we can’t.”

Cole explained patiently. “We are a large pack and it’s hard to get things moving,” He flashed me a secretive smile, bowed slightly and added in a low whisper. “Without a little bit of help.”

“Technology?” I was panting slightly.

Cole noticed my shallow breathing and shortened his strides. I noticed the change and looked up at him smiling down at me. “Someone’s been paying attention.” There was pride in his voice and I was elated.

Upon reaching his final stop, he turned to me and added, “As you rightly put it, we can’t use money. So we had to rely on humans and Megan has the connections. She was the only one in the pack who had attended a human college in the city.”

“I’ve read about them.” Was all I could say. And with just a smile and nod from Cole, I felt that I had lost to Megan once again.

Walking to the center of an empty concrete platform, I saw a familiar figure coming towards us and shrieked in surprise. I rushed forward to her as she had done to Cole when we first met, and greeted her, “Connie!”

She held my hand as she had with Cole’s and flashed her motherly smile, “Dove, how are you dear?” Her voice was like sunshine although she was still dressed like a rain cloud.

“I’m good, thank you. And you?”

“Good, good. Cole told me that you’d be here. I need to speak to you.”

I gave a puzzling glance to Cole who shrugged back with a strange smile.

Turning back to Connie, I asked, “What did you want to talk to me about, Connie?” I was already excited to have something to discuss with someone.

“The feast of the year, my dear!” Connie threw her hands up in the air and started dancing around me, rejoicing. “The event that every werewolf in the Whispering Moon Pack looks forward to at the start of the year.”

I blinked furiously. But what has that got to do with me?

Connie froze in the middle of some sort of a tap-dance and slowly turned to me, wide-eyed. Surprised, I looked at Cole who had already turned from me and his broad shoulders were shaking furiously at me. I winced at the realization that I had, again, spoken my thoughts out loud.

Before I could apologize, Connie grabbed my hands again and beamed at me, “You didn’t know? It’s the job of the pack’s Luna to make it happen.”

“What?” I whispered nervously.

“Yes!” Connie turned to Cole, then back to me. “Before Cole had you, I was the one who helped him. Now that he has a Luna, you should do it! It’ll be fun!” I was pulled into her warm embrace.

I would’ve been enjoying her motherly hug if it weren’t for the sudden big news. I’ve never planned anything up till now, how the hell can I pull this off, my mind screamed.

Cole was smiling from cheek to cheek as if saying to me that pay-back is a witch.

I inhaled sharply and cast him a murderous glare over Connie’s head.