His Reluctant Luna

Alice -

Our time ended much too quickly. I loved every minute of it. We hunted, explored, and fucked to our heart's content. I was sad when it was time to leave.

I realized that this was the most amount of time Lucian and I had ever spent together, alone. We blended so well it surprised me. We didn't have anything like a honeymoon or even much of a real date. Our relationship just materialized into existence out of thin air, but it did feel solid.

As we drove back towards home. I contemplated our relationship and life. Lucian seemed lost in his thoughts. It was a comfortable silence between us.

We reached the pack land in the late evening. I yawned and stretched my body, I badly needed some rest.

"Go in and get some rest? I have some work to catch up on." Lucian spoke while taking out our luggage.

"I am not tired. Let's meet the pack. Katherine and I need to talk." I pressed my lips in a grimace.

Lucian chuckled.

"Come on! I am sure she gave you that drug in a good faith. Don't be hard on her. She is more excited about our pups than us."

"I know, but I don't fancy conceiving babies in the middle of a highway in a broad daylight!" I retorted.

"It wasn't so bad," he laughed, pulling me towards him and grabbing my waist.

"No, it was...great, but I still want to have 'the talk' about personal boundaries," I replied.

We were walking happily towards the packhouse when suddenly Lucian came to a screeching halt. I followed suit and watched him. He was eyeing the surrounding ground suspiciously. His ears twitched in a warning. I tried to understand what was upsetting him. It was just us in the middle of an empty clearing.

"Something's wrong?" I asked.

"Yes, I am going to the infirmary. Damon just contacted me. You can proceed to the packhouse. I will join you once I am done." He walked off quickly without a backward glance, I stood there momentarily, contemplating if I should follow him. I decided to let him be. If he had not invited me, I better not intrude. We worked as a team, but we also respected each other's space and authority. Lucian never interfered in the issues regarding women, kids, or the daily running of the pack unless asked to intervene. That was under my domain.

I never interfered in the security, or other business-related decisions, that was mostly Lucian's concern. He was good at it.

"Madam Luna! It's so good to see you." Rain gushed, as I entered the dining hall.

I was soon surrounded by Katherine, Rain, and a bevvy of adoring youngsters.

"I had a good trip, thanks for taking care of the pack in my absence." I smiled, at Katherine and Rain.

"We love to serve you, Alice, I hope you had a good time and made strong pups," Rain grinned, making me snort.

"Thanks, Rain, we tried our best." I grinned back at her.

"Speaking of pups, what exactly did you give me, Katherine? It wasn't a calming tea." I raised my eyebrow, trying to look stern.

She fumbled a little.

"Sorry Alice, it's a popular fertility herb, many wolves take it during the heat to increase their chances of conception."

"That's fine, just that you should have told me. I nearly assaulted Lucian in the middle of a highway!" I mumbled, earning a giant round of giggles.

"Can we get the details?" Rain asked, grinning.

"NO!" I warned, leading to another round of giggles.

"Rain!" Katherine admonished her again, as usual.

"Anyway, I hope we get Alpha pups soon. " Rain said, sniffing me.

"I don't smell anything yet," she said, wrinkling her nose in concentration.

I had no idea how soon after conception my scent would change, but it could not be within a few hours of doing it.

"That won't happen until next month. It takes about a month for the pup to become big enough to affect the scent of the pregnant mother." Katherine replied, rolling her eyes.

The pressure of having pups was giving me anxiety, so I decided to change the topic.

"So, how are things here?"

A sudden silence descended on the group.

"What?" I asked.noveldrama

"Things have been going fine, except a few murders," Katherine said, softly.

"Murders!" I was shocked.

***************

Lucian -

I stared at the mutilated body of the two women. They were young, aged about 18-22.

"We found them near the dockyard. It was left in an easily discoverable place. There was no indication of an attempt to hide or bury their crime. Nothing was found on or near the body that can point us to the evildoers." Damon said gravely.

"Who perpetrated these crimes. Any lead, any evidence?"

"The lack of genetic evidence and scent marker points to a were. Humans, as we know, are unaware that we can hunt by scent alone, so there was no reason to mask their scent."

Peter, my tracker, leaned forward on the table. "I doubt that this is the work of one individual. The crimes are too fucking perfect!" He exclaimed.

I breathed deep to keep calm. My wolf was riled up at the thought of helpless

humans massacred for no reason, such deeds screamed of cowardice.

"The interesting part is they were also newly turned," Peter added. "Possibly, kept

in captivity, seeing the manacle marks on their wrists and ankles."

My Wolf Jake twitched in anger.

"So, it's rogues?" I asked.

"We can't be certain. " Damon replied.

"It could be someone from our pack?" I said.

The betas and the trackers looked grim. With so many new arrivals, it was a possibility. One of them could be a depraved sadist killer.

"The fact that the bodies were in the shipyard which is owned by us, the perpetrators would be having access to it. Check on everyone who works there and who all had access to it last month." I ordered.

"But Alpha, that would cover almost 80% of the pack. Most, our people work there." Damon commented.

"So?" I raise an eyebrow. "Everyone has to be checked, is that clear. Nobody can be trusted."

There was an eerie silence in the room. We were all reminded of Savannah. I cleared my throat.

"We are looking for alone one or a group of rogues. This could be a freak incident. But, we need to be vigilant. If the cops had reached the bodies before us. Covering it up would have been a hassle."

Despite all the secrecy measures. Occasionally, a wolf attack or a human encounter with one of the shape-shifters was unavoidable. These stray incidents fed conspiracy theories and myths about us. We had people in the FBI, police, the government everywhere to help cover up such incidents, and keep our world a secret. But, it was a big hassle. Establishing the need for urgency to act on a plan of action, we finally decided to have three groups working independently of each other, which would then report to me. Damon then deliberated about who would be included in the task force. As the betas discussed and argued, I decided to check on my mate and sense what she had been up to.

Having earlier blocked the mental link between us to focus on the business at hand. I freed the link. She was laughing and chatting about our future pups. I smiled and closed the mental link.

"One more thing, just keep this a secret."

"But the pack already knows about the discovery of bodies," Damon replied.

"I know, do not reveal the details about the victims being newly turned were or this

being a rouge attack. Just tell everyone that it was a human murder and the bodies have been handed over to the cops. Meanwhile, send these bodies for autopsy and continue the security measures."

I commanded and leaned back in my chair. I was suddenly exhausted. We barely

had a few months of peace, I didn't want another problem, in case Alice got

pregnant.