No Foul

After Drina's words, there is silence in the conference room.
Thoughts go in all directions, although my subconscious had already registered the signals, my brain refused to think rationally. But everything in me is convinced that the two are telling the truth.
Alpha Remus now faces Elder Antonius.
“Elder, you are wiser in this than me when it comes to life experience,” he states. “Ever heard of a mate bond between a five-year-old and a twenty-plus?” he asks the older man. But judging by his attitude, he is skeptical about this matter.
“Well, there are a few cases where this has happened in the past,” the Elder begins. “But there was a reason why the Moon Goddess paired them up early. The mating has a purpose”. He looks at Drina and me. “The fact that the girl is related to the woman next to the Alpha King and these two are not disclosing their mating says a lot. Something is coming up, something great is about to happen. I just don't know if it's positive or destructive. But Midnight Moon needs to get ready.”
Jace stares at me, my eyes fixed on the Elder.
“Elder Antonius, you cannot say such a thing without directions. We have a pack to keep safe. What is going on?" I ask sharply.
“Alpha King, I am speaking from experience in my one hundred years of presence on this earth. And scriptures about things that happened before my existence”, he explains, laid back as if he is engaged in a village chat. And then he turns to Alpha Remus. “I am just connecting the dots. Two strange women from nowhere without a scent appear in the pack, a girl of five who suddenly turns out to be the mate of the Beta. And that all happens within the circle of the pack's high rankings. Does that strike you as coincidence, Alpha?”
Now it's Alpha Remus' turn to look doubtful.
“No, my common sense tells me there are too many coincidences going on here,” he muses thoughtfully. “I am in no position to force the Alpha King to reveal his secrets, the Council has no right to do so. I would have thought he would trust me as a good friend”, he sighs somewhat disappointed. “But whatever it is that Midnight Moon is facing, I know this pack has been unbeatable for ages. My experience is that sometimes spiritual forces work where weapons fail. With this, Silver Bow pledges all your support, whatever you may face, Alpha King. We've defeated the occult, so we are experienced in this field.”
Yes, my pack is powerful.
But to hear a friend blindly promise you assistance without knowing the need in advance is enormous. I walk over to the Alpha and give him a bro-hug, overwhelmed by his confidence. “We need to review our agreements, Alpha. I think we should also connect our packs socially. One of your grandsons has to wait for my daughter so we can mate them," I let him know.
The Elder clears his throat.
“Alpha King, I see the girl and one of the women here. The other and your Gamma are absent. Is that a statement?” He hits the nail right on the head.
Being in a room with two intelligent men while keeping secrets is not easy. The men analyze the relationships in my surroundings perfectly. I peek at Drina, hoping she will be ready to open up now. But she keeps staring at Erina, she doesn't give in. Another perfect moment to announce our mating has passed.
“To be honest, I suspect that one of them helped the gossip into the world. There is some rivalry between the women," I say dryly. “But since everything is cleared up now, we can drop the case against my Beta. Alpha Remus, can we simply declare to the outside world that the Council has detected no irregularities in the friendship between my Beta and the girl?”.
Alpha Remus nods.
“As long as the nanny stays with them. And she doesn't call him her mate, because that raises all kinds of questions," he declares. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief, a drama has been averted.
We turn to Jace and Erina and see that the girl is busy telling him about her backstage experience. And my Beta patiently listens to her enthusiastic story, occasionally asking her for clarification. Erina clearly had a great day, and her first runway appearance deeply affected her. She is now a very happy pup. We listen in for a few seconds and become increasingly fond of the familiarity between the two.
“I immediately announce in the Alpha WhatsApp group chat that this matter has been investigated by me and everything is according to Were laws. No abuse or other wrongdoing," Alpha Remus explains as he takes his phone out of his pocket. “There will be a Council meeting to discuss this. But I will put it off with a few more weeks."
Relieved, I now look at the Elder.
“Yes, I can live with this. An advise, Alpha King. Prepare your warriors, expect anything to happen from now on. If anything positive is on the way, it can do no harm, but never be surprised by the bad,” explains Elder Antonius. Cleo, who has silently followed the discussions all the while, turns to us.
“Don't worry, Alpha King. I'm already on alert. Ten minutes ago, I ordered the warriors in the mind link to be ready early in the morning for level A training”, he informs me. “My only concern is Gamma Clark. How do I involve him in all this if you are in a crisis of confidence with him?” sighs Cleo.
He has a strong point here.
I can't ignore Clark for too long, I have to make up my mind about my Gamma.
“I'll talk to him tomorrow to see how much he's sharing in the gossip. Clark has always been very loyal. But love makes one blind. I almost feel like he is against me instead of next to me”, I explain thoughtfully. As I say the words, I wonder where that feeling comes from. Drina and Alcina have something going on and Alcina is not Clark's mate. But as a witch, she can manipulate all kinds of feelings. Clark probably doesn't know Alcina's true nature...