Forget Me Not (Phased Moonlight Series Book 2) (2 page)

              “I am alpha too. I have a right to decide who visits our home, just as much right as you do.”

              “Bringing five humans into a highly dominant pack of werewolves? Gee. Maybe you’re right. I don’t see how anything can possibly go wrong!”

              “They’re part of me, Koda.”

              “As am I. I don’t want you to be alone when you are forced to face your past again.”

              “I’m not alone. Trisha is with me.”

              He paused, and Sera could tell he was trying to rein in his temper. She also sensed that it was a battle he was quickly losing.

             
“You have no idea how angry I am right now, Sera. You’d better keep your ass safe so I can kick it when I see you again.”

             
“I love you,”
she whispered into his mind, sending him a mental image of her kissing him.

             
“I love you too,”
he said, not bothering to return any sign of affection or intimacy.

              Sera closed her eyes as she felt him slowly pull away from her mind. She tried to force herself to sleep, but as soon as she drifted off, the plane jerked and jumped as they landed.

She sighed and unbuckled her seatbelt. She wobbled over to Trisha, smiling sadly at her sleeping friend. Bags lined Trisha’s eyes, and her lips seemed dull, curled into a frown. “Trish,” Sera said, gently touching her shoulder. “C’mon. Wake up. We’re here.”

              Trisha shot up with a gasp, causing their foreheads to connect.

Sera yelped, moving back as she gripped her head. She felt Koda push into her mind again and almost growled.

             
“What happened?”
he demanded.

              “Calm down,”
Sera said with a growl.
“Trisha and I just bumped heads. We’ve landed in California.”

             
“How will you get back to the property?”

              Sera realized he refused to refer to it as her “home,” and she was grateful for that. From now on, her home was with him.
“Two pack members are picking us up.”

              “Pack members, huh? Are these pack members male, by any chance?”
he asked with a growl. 

              Sera sighed, exasperated.
“Are you sure you want to know, Koda?”

              “Answer.”

              “Yes.”

              She felt his presence leave her mind as he disabled their bond once more. Instead of words, his anger blew into her like a hurricane. For a response, she growled at him, even though she knew he wouldn’t hear her.

Trisha whimpered, her own wolf picking up on the agitation of her alpha.

Sera looked at her friend and quickly got a handle on her raging emotions. “Sorry, Trish. I’m just…aggravated.”

              Trisha nodded and grabbed her bag from a compartment in the side of the plane. “I understand, Snow. I just feel so lost right now. Jackson has never been so cold to me.”

              Sera sighed and hung her arm around her friends shoulder. “Don’t worry. They never stay mad forever. He loves you too much.”

              Keegan walked into the bunker, baring his neck.
“Alpha, I trust your trip was...” He paused as he took in the worn-out expression on her face. “Comfortable?”

              Sera gave him the best smile she could muster. “It was fine, Keegan. Thank you. You’re a marvelous pilot.”

              Keegan smiled, blushing in pleasure of her praise.

              “I am sure Koda will want you home as soon as possible, but I want you well rested before you fly again. Don’t leave until tonight. He can wait.”

              “As you say, Alpha.”

              “Would you like to hang out with us for a while, before you have to go?” Sera invited. 

              Keegan shook his head and offered a polite smile. “No, that’s all right. I’ll just stay here in the bunker and sleep for a couple hours. Thank you for asking though. It was most kind of you.” 

              Sera gave him a friendly nod, then descended the stairs to disembark from the plane. When her feet touched the asphalt, she nearly cried at the familiarity around her. Scents she had known all her life bombarded her senses, and she sighed as she basked in the wonderful nostalgia. She looked over at Trisha, who had her nose to the sky, relishing in the warmth of the afternoon sun.

              Together, the two walked into the airport. They nodded in gratitude to the person who held the door open for them, then walked toward the entrance. Before they could go any farther, they were stopped but two pairs of large arms encircling their waists and spinning them around.

Another familiar scent wafted into Sera’s nose, and she laughed, holding on to the arms that held her. When the familiar figure gently set her down, she turned to give him a hug. “Faolan! Lowell!” Sera smiled as she looked at the two exotic twins. She gave each of them a kiss on the cheek and ruffled the hair on top of their heads.

              “Y’all haven’t changed a bit.” Trisha smiled.

              “Meh,” Lowell said, shrugging. “How can we change when there’s a civil war going on?”

              “What?” Sera said, blanching. 

              Faolan chuckled, slugging his younger brother in the arm. “Calm down. He’s just talking about the new video game he got. He’s obsessed with the damn thing.”

              Lowell gave a friendly shrug, feigning innocence. “What can I say?”

              Faolan tugged Sera’s hair slightly, drawing her attention. “First, I like this color on you. It’s very fitting. Second, how are you doing?”

              “I’m all right. I miss John like crazy. It’s weird not having him around anymore.”

              Faolan gave a sad smile. “He woulda been proud of you.”

              Sera smiled at him. “The alpha title is a lotta work, but I think I’m up for the challenge.”

              “We know you can do it, Sera,” Lowell said, grinning. “And how have you been, gorgeous?” he asked, wiggling his eyebrows at Trisha.

              “Nope,” she said, wagging her finger at him. “No more flirting with me. I have a mate now, and if you value your life, you’ll steer clear.”

              He gave her a small pout but softened it with a wink.

              “So,” Faolan said, clapping his hands together,  “who’s hungry?” His dark eyes took on a slight glow as his wolf came forward.

              Sera shook her head. “I’m sorry, Faolan, I know you want to go hunting like we used to, but my wolf is dangerous right now. She wants her mate, and if I let her out now, she’ll go crazy trying to get to him.”

              “Panda Express it is then!”

              They laughed in unison as the twins took their luggage and guided them to the pack Hummer. Sera climbed into the passenger seat and smiled when Faolan turned the radio to the country station, her favorite. Faolan and Sera were just like twins; he was the male version of her. They both enjoyed the same style and even the same food. For a time, everyone was convinced that they would be mates. The thought had even crossed Sera’s mind when she was younger, but as they grew older, she knew in her heart that it wasn’t meant to be. Faolan was more restricted than her, more guarded, and that irked her to no end.

              She sang along to Jake Owen’s “The One That Got Away” as she observed Faolan out of the corner of her eye. He was tense; she could tell by how tightly he was gripping the steering wheel. His back was rigid against the seat, and even though there was a smile etched across his face, it didn’t quite meet his eyes.

              The twins had been with Sera’s pack since she was three years old. Their father and mother had fled from their pack in Cuba, after their alpha had fallen to Ancients Disease. When an alpha was in control of the pack for a long period of time without a mate, they often went insane from the constant pressure. The alpha had demanded that all the women in the pack, mated or not, be given to him for his service to the pack. Those who opposed were sentenced to death. The twins’ family was the only one to escape. They fled to Sera’s territory, and her mother and father quickly accepted them, offering both their protection and love.

              They were exotic, handsome wolves, completely identical except for their eyes. Lowell took after their mother, sporting dark brown eyes with flecks of gold and green. Faolan, however, shared his father’s light, coppery, reddish-brown eyes. They had long black hair held back in the traditional braid of their Cuban culture. Like Sera and Trisha, they preferred punk style, like ripped jeans and tight-fitting black shirts.               Sera noticed that Faolan was wearing the ripped jeans she’d bought him for his nineteenth birthday. It made her smile that he had kept them, considering he was now twenty-one.

He looked over at her and nudged her elbow with his own. “What are you smiling about?” he asked.

              “Y’all just remind me of home, that’s all.”

              They drove to Panda Express, placed their order, and got their food. Sera groaned when she popped a piece of orange chicken into her mouth. As they ate, the twins told them about the pranks they had helped Richard and Damion pull on the school principal the last week of school. Though Sera was sad that she’d missed her high school graduation, she wouldn’t have changed what had happened; finding Koda was much more important to her.

              Lowell explained the prank in full, vivid detail. “You shoulda seen Mr. Row’s face,” he said.

Sera and Trisha laughed so hard that their sides ached and tears rolled down their cheeks. It was then that Sera was reminded why she loved the twins so much: They always knew how to cheer her up.

             
“So? Who are these males you love so much?”

              “Really, Koda? You’ve been blocking me from your thoughts, yet you have free reign over mine? Faolan and Lowell are like brothers to me, so just calm the hell down. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some catching up to do.”

              “Sera…”
he whined in her mind.

             
“Goodbye, Koda,”
she snapped, closing her mind off from him completely.

              Trisha saw her face and rolled her eyes. “Men.” 

              Sera laughed, nodding in agreement.

They all continued to talk and eat as if nothing in their world had changed.

Sometime later, Lowell looked at his watch and let out a whistle. “Whoa! If we don’t head back now, the ride home will be horrible. Traffic’s a bitch at this hour.”

              They filed out of the fast food joint and drove for another hour, until they pulled onto the three-mile dirt road that led to Sera’s home. She felt her breath lodge in her throat, and she gripped the seat.

Trisha laid her hand on her friend’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

Sera nearly wept when the large gray mansion came into view. Her heartbeat sped up as her wolf clawed for the surface. She was on her turf now, and the urge to explore, roam, and claim was strong. She remained in the car even after the others filed out, trying to find the courage to enter the house.

              Finally, she took a deep breath, left the Hummer, and walked toward the large doors. She laid her hand on the silver knob and pushed, blinking the tears away as she entered the home.

All the pack members who normally stayed there were loyal to Ryan, so the house was now pretty vacant, save for Lowell, Faolan, and a few of her father’s followers. They gave her a quick hug but kept their distance, obviously picking up on the fact that she was a bit nervous. When the seven wolves stopped in front of her, she froze, unsure of what they were doing. They fell to their knees before her, baring their necks.

              “Sera,” said Mark, her father’s best friend and former beta, “we are so sorry. We never should have allowed you to suffer at the hands of Ryan. You did not deserve that.” 

              “I understand,” she said, her voice thick with emotion.

              “No,” he snapped. “It was unacceptable. You are our princess, and now you are our queen.” He lifted his head, and his eyes filled with tears. “Your father was like a brother to me, and you, my niece. I should not have allowed Ryan to harm you. Had it not been for my own mate…” he said, looking at the small woman who was still baring her neck to Sera.

              “Stop,” Sera said, drawing his attention. She extended her hand, and he took it. She pulled him to his feet, then craned her head to look up at him. “You have been and always will be my uncle. You only did what everyone else did. Those loyal to the Kalihan line only fell in line to protect those they loved, and I understand that better than anyone. I cannot scorn anyone for their actions while under Ryan’s tyranny. Now, I’m where I was always meant to be. I am your leader, queen, and alpha. I will do as any alpha should. I will offer protection, shelter, love, and healing. It will take time, but I will work to heal my pack and bring us back to our former glory. You have my word.”