40. Expect the unexpected.

**Luna**

The day seemed to go smoothly, despite the bad feeling she had felt from the moment she woke up. For most of the day, she had locked herself in the office, rearranging documents, and cleaning- a thing she had never done before. A light knock on the door startled her.

"Can I have one day without any interruptions, for fuck’s sake?" she groaned, dropping the pile of paperwork on the floor.

"What do you want?" she hissed, sounding like a snake as she approached the door.

"A truly wonderful way to talk to your mate," the male said from the other side of the door. Her heart skipped a beat after hearing that voice. She rushed to the door, unlocked it, and let him in, leaning against the door frame.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, sliding her hand through her hair. "Today is not my day; I've been feeling weird since I woke up." The male smiled brightly, wrapping his arms around her waist, and lifting her, nearly spinning around like a child.

"Does that mean...?" he laughed, a glimpse of hope and excitement dancing in his eyes.

"No, it doesn't, put me down. I'm sorry to break the news, again, but you cannot have children, Xavier. We discussed this hundreds of times already, all tests came in negative, you have zero chance of impregnating me," her voice was cold, no hint of sadness or regret. She, unlike her mate, accepted the harsh reality a long time ago.

"I don't get it, you just said yourself that you're not feeling well. When a shifter woman feels sick, the only time is when she's carrying a child," he furrowed his brows, unable to let go of the hope. No matter how much time or effort it took- he would try over and over again.

"I never mentioned the pregnant kind of sick," she rolled her eyes.

"Put me down, I have a lot to do here," she tapped on his arm, silently hoping that, for once, their conversation would not end with an argument. Lately, both couldn't spend more than five minutes together without yelling or snarling at each other.

"Alright," he released her, watching over her movements carefully.
"What are you even doing here? And mind explaining that feeling?" Xavier sat down, looking around the office, somewhat surprised, noticing how clean it was. Every detail, each interior element was polished to perfection.

"I'm working if you haven't noticed yet. The paperwork is in a state of disaster; I'm looking through it, seeing what isn’t needed anymore. I'll sort everything and bring the old documentation to the archive. Also, I'm cleaning up the place. Since we tend to spend so much time here, I want to feel comfortable. About that feeling, I'm not sure myself, it's like something has been bothering me since I woke up, and the feeling won't disappear," she spoke honestly, looking down at the documents.

"Interesting. I'd guess that your Luna instincts are kicking in. It took a couple of years, but I'm sure that is it," Xavier smiled, leaning his head back, feeling at ease. If her instincts are genuinely kicking in now, she will stand as a Luna for at least thirty more years. When the chosen Luna becomes strong enough, she can use her superior tone of voice. When she is accepted by the pack, her protective instincts over her people become more robust, meaning that she can sense if strangers cross their borders.

"I wouldn't put high hopes on that one, my love. Maybe I just ate something, maybe my body is dehydrated or needs more rest. There are millions of scenarios," she glanced at him, a slight smile creeping on her lips. She needed Xavier gone from the room. No matter how much she loved her mate, she needed some privacy to collect evidence against Eros and save herself from the council.

"I would. I can't see any other explanation than the one I just mentioned. And I do have a reason to think so," he stood up, approaching her, eyeing the piece of paper in her hands.

"Okay, please enlighten me," Luna giggled, mentally preparing for some awful explanation.

"I find it odd that you feel sick the day when two strangers crossed our borders, unnoticed. Both are still wandering around our land, and none of our most skilful trackers can find them," his facial expression turned from one of amusement to severe in a second. He stood next to her, hovering over her, capturing her eyes in his. As much, as he loved his mate, Xavier knew that something fishy was going on in this office. She never sorted the paperwork, saying it's too dull and wastes too much of her time. His Luna never cleaned up, using excuses about having servants to do their dirty jobs.

"You're joking, right?" She tapped on his shoulder, trying to crack his cold demeanour.

"I'm not. The reason why I decided to join you here was that I hoped that you might have the answers I'm looking for. Maybe you know who the strangers are, how they managed to get past our border patrols, and why they decided to visit our pack without being invited?" Xavier knew the look on her face, which appeared whenever she lied. This time, his Luna looked as shocked as he was.

"I don't know, really," she said honestly, her voice sincere and not a single fiber in her body resembled even the slightest lie. Xavier turned around and approached the couch, dropping himself onto it lazily, groaning and snarling into the pillow.

"I have no ideas left, then. They must know someone from inside, meaning that we have a traitor, living amongst our people," he tried to come up with an explanation, unable to understand who they are. Nothing terrible had happened, so far There was no news about missing persons, or properties being destroyed. There must be a reason for their visit and that pissed Xavier off.

"I've spent the whole day locked in here, truthfully- this is the first time I’ve heard something about outsiders getting in." Luna piled up the paperwork, occasionally glancing at her mate. Xavier looked utterly drained; even his eyes looked tired. They both stared in silence, seconds turned into minutes, minutes into hours.

A light knock sounded from the other side of the door.
"Sorry to interrupt you, Alpha, but you have a guest. Two guests to be more precise." It was his maid, the only staff member who was allowed to enter his study with or without Luna by his side. "The guests are waiting in the living room, both eager to have a word with you. They did mention that Luna should accompany you," after delivering the message, the maid rushed away, well aware of her Alphas lousy temper. If she were to stay around the office for longer than needed, she might get into a lot of trouble.

"Do you think our guests are the mysterious people who invited themselves into our territory?" The Luna dropped all amusement.

"Who knows, I guess we will find out," Xavier shrugged his shoulders, and headed for the door. Truth to be told, he wanted to seem completely unaffected. Deep down, he was terrified, an unusual emotion for Alpha to hold. In all his years, holding the title, he never had even one, uninvited guest, and now he had two, meaning nothing but trouble. Xavier left the room first followed Luna. It was a proper way to greet important guests; first came the Alpha, then his mate. As he stepped into the living room, all stress and worries left his body instantly. An older couple stood before him. He would be careful though; there must be a reason why they sneaked in, after all.

"Welcome," Xavier said with confidence, with no hint of respect in his voice. He wanted to appear intimidating in front of them; the strangers had to know who was in charge.

"Alpha Xavier, it's a pleasure to meet you. I assume the beautiful woman, hiding behind your back, must be your Luna. It's an honour," the man said, extending his hand towards Xavier. Of course, the stuck-up Alpha ignored the stranger’s politeness, choosing to avoid shaking hands.

"Let's drop the act. Who are you and why are you in my territory, inviting yourselves in like some royalties?" he growled, pushing out his chest, blocking their view to his mate.

"Ah, no need to be aggressive. Believe it or not, my mate and I have all rights, by law, to step over any borders without being invited," the man grinned, pissing off the Alpha.

"Bullshit. Why the fuck are you in my pack territory, my house, having the audacity to act as if you belong here?" For now, he was trying to stay calm rather than attacking them.

"Luna, may we take a look at you?" The woman spoke up, her silky voice smooth, hypnotizing like a siren. She took one small step towards them, triggering Xavier, who instantly tried to attack her. Xavier ended up being held up by his throat by the seemingly elderly male. The stranger extended his canines, three on each side, catching Xavier by surprise. The foolish Alpha finally understood how big of a mistake he had made.

"There, there, pup, I've been nothing but nice and polite toward you, the same as my mate. Have you heard of a term called manners? No need to attack us. Not unless you hold a death wish in your palm. Now, why don't we start our introductions again, this time with you kneeling in front of us," the man spoke with confidence, the fame in his eyes scared even Xavier's wolf, making it hide deep in the back of his mind.

"Never will I kneel in front of a low life mutt," Xavier choked out, finding it difficult to breathe. The man dropped the Alpha and looked down at the coughing man, grinning at his miserable state.

"Let me introduce myself properly. I am Lord Balthazar, and this lovely lady is my mate- Lady Mary," suddenly his voice was filled with such authority, forcing Xavier and his Luna to their knees. Neither wanted to bow in front of their uninvited guests, yet they couldn't fight their instincts.

"That's better. Now, shall we have some tea, or are we going to argue back and forth until someone gets seriously hurt?" Mary joined the conversation, sliding her delicate had into Balthazar's.

"What do you want from us?" Xavier ignored her request, trying to get straight to the point.

"Wolves nowadays, no knowledge about taking in their guests. Disrespectful," Balthazar hissed, displeased by the Alphas attitude.

"Fine, we can play by your rules, for now. We arrived to collect the kingdom's heir, and meet my distant relative- a granddaughter," Balthazar's tone became softer, calmer and more polite. He didn't sound, nor looked as dangerous as he did just a moment ago.

"She’s got her father's eyes. Luna, wouldn't you like to hug your grandfather?" Mary smiled, looking down at the woman with nothing but love in her eyes.

"What? What the fuck is going on here? How can this happen?"

Xavier tried to speak calmly, yet his anxious behaviour wasn't left unnoticed.

"Expect the unexpected," Balthazar shrugged.