Chapter EightyTwo 

*Swear your oath,I said, my eyes marrowing at the man before me

His body still lowered in submission, he placed a hand over his chest in respect

), Alpha Tristan Green, of the Onyx Rock, hereby pledge my pack to the alliance offered by Alpha Ariadne of the Winter Mist. May our packs continue to prosper together under your guidance and protection.” 

Good

Satisfied with his words, I stood up and walked over to clasp my hand in his

I accepi.” 

And with thai, another pack had joined the alliance. Though, more accurately, another had sworn to continue their alliance. Something that was seemingly slow going lately, the days dragging out

So much so, it was hard to believe that two months had already gone by

Two months since Id killed Tytus, imprisoned Aleric, and became Alpha of the Winter Mist

And things were... okay

Not to say I was doing anything wrong. On the contrary, I had the pack running like clockwork, making us more efficient than ever before

No, the issues were laid more externally. Specifically, other packs

I had been prepared for opposition to my rise in rank however, it seemed Id miscalculated just how many would be against pledging to an alliance with a female Alpha

The ways of our kind were apparently still too archaic, too set in stone with old beliefs

But Id been wearing them down slowly

Little by little, I was showing them why it was in their best interest to continue, proving I was far more fearsome than most had believed. Not the helpless Saintess Id initially built my brand to be... but rather a foe you didnt want to find yourself suddenly facing. The only issue was there were still so many packs left to go. There wasnt one simple way to get them all to agree at once so it had been a painstakingly slow process

Youll have access to your supply route again within the day.I continued to the Alpha, my lips slowly twitching into a triumphant smile. Pleasure doing business with you.” 

Now theyll never forget how easy it was for us to cut them off. How much they still need our support,’ the voice said inside

And I agreed

The Alpha didnt stick around for much longer once the requirements for the alliance had been finalised. Not that I blamed him. I was far too busy to care though, needing to focus on other problems

Behind the scenes of my new operation these last few months, Iris had been utilising her network of followers across the country to support me but, since hardly any of those extended to the ranked members of those packs, the results were not instant. Not to say those contacts didnt have their other uses though. Uses like uncovering information for me on their packsweaker points

It hadnt been hard to figure out that most of these Alphas were never going to respect me unless I forced them into some sort of submission. Proof that I really was as formidable as the new rumours had hinted a 1. All they had wanted to see was a young, naive girl... right up until I suddenly had their whole pack in

checkmate

Some were still trying to play a waiting game though, holding off to see if I would crumble under the new responsibility. They wanted me to prove them right, prove that I wasnt cut out for this. A gamble that some were even now risking their own packs for. Though soon they would start to feel what the loss of our alliance meant

I wasnt entirely ignorant though. I knew under the surface that even my own pack was somewhat divided. They were forced to respect me because of the Alpha bond but I knew what some of them were thinking deep down. Or, at least, what some of them were hoping for

...Hoping for the rising of their Alpha heir

The one who had been living within a cell these last two months

If only they knew the kind of person he really was

This is going too slow,I grumbled to Elder Luke as we entered back into my office. At this rate, well start declining too far in status if we cant make enough progress.” 

I dont disagree,he said, grabbing a few documents from the desk

now we‘d be seeing a small upward trend of people joining. Except it‘s stayed about the same. It‘s almost like …

traditions than you might believe,” he said, raising

it wasn‘t of any

for the documents he‘d

was as I scanned the list of packs still pending

saw

continuing to flick through the pages to ensure it

Alpha,” he answered.

that couldn‘t be right...

saying the Silver Lake pack still hasn‘t sent word about

That is correct.” 

the page, though now only further confused. “But… why? mean... have they provided a reason? I didn‘t think they, of all people, would reject my extension for friendship.”

between us? It seemed so petty to bring in personal

something

imprisoned here for so many months, to the point of almost inciting a war, I can‘t really blame Alpha Tobias for his

the one trying to free Cai that entire time.

olet Enghe two 

he said slowly. “However, and forgive me for saying this, but, were you not the reason why he was imprisoned to

the inside of my cheek, knowing

fall in status now, they would just stand to gain becoming the next powerhouse pack within our region. They have the least to lose by declining our offer...

going to say,” I interjected. “I know what path

far worse than one

would explain why there was so much push back to join the alliance

were waiting to see if the Silver Lake would rise up, challenging us for our

alliance would need to choose a side and, in doing so, they would

to regain our position, the Winter Mist would then

we submitted to the Silver Lake, hoping that they didn‘t refuse our request to fall under the umbrella of their alliance. Though, I was uncertain whether Tobias would even accept

be outcasted. Without the support of an alliance to strengthen us, we wouldn‘t be able to maintain our status for long. It meant putting ourselves in the hands of Alpha Tobias to decide our fate; leaving

the death of our

knew what might lay ahead for us. I saw what Elder Luke did.

us now... or we‘d have to implement an approach that had the best chance of success. A path that reduced the most risk of ending up in that vulnerable

...War

failed to acquire the numbers within the alliance, it would be

packs were still being divided between us, before any one territory could become a clear victor. It would be only during that moment that we would still be able to utilise the entirety of the alliance network we still had. Because once everyone had abandoned us, the battle

O

the Silver Lake to join back into our alliance, avoiding that outcome entirely.

“Has anyone had any official confirmation yet? Any indication for when we‘ll receive

days, handling rogue disputes along their

with Cai,” I replied. “He is

realise this won‘t benefit either of us S

Elder Luke started the response was that he didn‘t

almost five months.”

a

asked, incredulously. “This feels so... so immature.”

knew we didnt leave things on the best of terms, but making excuses to get out

other hand though, I wondered if this was because of his mate. Because she didn‘t want

unable to verify,” Elder Luke said. “Though I would agree that

up and paced a few steps by the window, thinking of what to do in this situation. However, there weren t many

they were available. The only problem was that this indecision of theirs was due to personal history so my best chance

said. “I want

simply bowed his head, acknowledging my order.

to leave his mate for me. Now it seemed that I needed to exploit his affection a little. I still could vividly remember how he‘d looked at me eren once I‘d try to scare him away. We might not be romantically involved anymore,

the Silver Lake business now dealt with, I moved to return to my paperwork. However, Elder Luke remained seated, almost as if he had more matters to discuss. Matters

asking for you

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