“How long have you been speaking to Javier?”
Alex scrunched up his brow.
“I don’t understand your question, Ava.”
Waking up next to Adrian might have warmed her heart more than she would dare to admit but that doesn’t mean that she had forgotten all about what Javier had said.
If it had happened with Jenny or any of her other friends she would be equally concerned so it would be terrible of her to do the opposite in an attempt to overcompensate just because she was aware of his feelings for her.
“Why didn’t you tell me he was trying to reach out for me? I feel so shitty that I forgot about reaching out to him entirely. What sort of friend does that make me?”
Alex shrugged.
“Don’t you recall how chaotic it was when you got here? Plus after all of that, the last thing I wanted was to do anything to sabotage your relationship. I saw how Javier looked at you back then in Spain. I thought both of you made a great fit but that was before I knew Adrian was your mate.”
“How could I with good faith ask you to make contact with him? Both of you needed time. He needed to get over you and you needed to acclimate to your new position. He didn’t ask after you again after the first couple of times – guess he got the message. And that was that.”
Ava considered what her brother said. He was right. He had only done it in her interests after all. How could she fault him for that?
Ava sighed.
“I understand you brother. It was probably for the best anyways. It just bothers me that we are no longer on speaking terms when we were once good friends.”
“Give it time, Ava. The man was in love with you. It must hurt to see you mated to someone else so soon. Javier will forgive you in time. Just be patient, okay?”
Ava nodded. She could give it time. It was the least she could do.
“On to more favourable topics. Zinora’s people will be coming over in the next two days since we are having the ceremony over the weekend. Hopefully, everything about this envoy business will be wrapped up very quickly so that we can focus on the preparation for that.
“So eager to get mated, Alex?” Ava waggled her brows suggestively.
Her brother let out a low groan.
“I refuse to have this conversation with you.”
Ava laughed at the long-suffering expression on his face. It reminded her of the one Gabby usually wore whenever she was particularly frustrated.
Her smile vanished.
Gabby.
“Have you been able to get any information about Gabby?”
Alex sobered up as well and shook his head.
“I don’t know what Elder Elvis’s deal is about this. No one is talking and I don’t know why I feel he might be behind this.”
The society still hadn’t gotten back to her on it so she assumed they hadn’t found anything as well.
She remembered Ivy’s smug expression at their last meeting when she had apologised for keeping Gabrielle’s crime a secret.
“I don’t feel Alex, I know he is behind it, what I do not know is his motive. If I can’t find anything, I might have to meet him privately and ask him myself.”
Alex sat upright.
“I know that you want to find Gabby. Trust me, so do I but this isn’t the way…”
“It is the only one I can find. Mom is dying. By the time Gabby’s so-called sentence ends, she won’t be alive. I refuse to let the last memory they have of each other be that of a false trial. If it takes talking to Elder Elvis to find out where she is, I will do it without hesitation.”
Alex sighed loudly, his hand in his hair.
“Fine. But before you do that, let me exhaust all our options first. He might ask you for something you can’t do… just let me handle this for now, okay?”
All their options were already exhausted but Ava nodded to soothe her brother knowing deep down what she would have to do.
“Okay.”
Adrian had been in the meeting for hours. At this rate, he would be late for the family dinner with Zinora’s family.
The envoys had first done a survey of the pack – whatever that meant, it wasn’t like they explained their methods to him – and now they had been grilling him and the council on the smallest details of the attack and their investigation means.
The only bright side about this was the fact that the elders were being grilled alongside him. He especially enjoyed seeing Elder Elvis scramble to answer Harry’s rapid-fire questions.
Javier sat somewhat quietly but his eyes seemed to catalogue everything that was being said and done in the council room.
Truth be told, Adrian wasn’t jealous of him. He had no reason to be. Ava was his mate and stayed in his bed. He almost smiled at the memory of the time they had spent together.
However, he couldn’t deny the urge to mark her so that Javier knew to keep his feelings to himself. She was his and his alone.
It had felt so primal taking her like that until she forgot about everything on her mind. Including her anger. He had sweetened her up afterwards with some treats then kisses then treats and sweets. He loved being mated.
He forced his mind back to the present.
The envoys would soon be leaving,
thankfully, and they would hear back from the Werewolf council once that was taken care of.
“Alpha, Elders, thank you for your cooperation. With this we conclude our exercise, we shall give our unbiased opinions to the Werewolf council to hopefully get this matter resolved as quickly as possible.”
Adrian nodded solemnly.
“As it should be. Tomorrow we plan on having a small celebration of sorts to send you off. It would be an honour to have you attend however briefly before you leave.”
“The honour is all ours.”
*********
Ava had left the pack house with the intention to check on her while the final envoy meeting was still ongoing but along the way, she changed her mind.
If anyone knew how she could approach Elder Elvis it would definitely be Anya. She would be a fool not to use any help she could get.
“It’s been a while, Luna Ava.”
Ava bowed her head.
“That it is.”
“Might I ask what problem brings you here?”
Ava’s cheeks burned. Was she truly so transparent?
“None at all. I don’t always come here because of a problem. This is a courtesy visit. I realized that I haven’t seen you in a long time. I worried for your health since you remained silent during such a turbulent time.”
Anya laughed as though she didn’t quite believe her, her white hair loose and flowing over her shoulders as her violet eyes sparkled with mirth.
“I am flattered, Luna Ava. My health is well. I was… meditating. Once you reach a certain age as I have, it becomes harder to pay attention to such trivialities. It would seem to me that the pack scaled through whatever trouble they were going through without my help.”
Meditating for almost two months? Oh well, it was Anya after all, nothing was too strange for the woman, Ava mused.
“That we did.” She replied finally after much thought.
Sort of. Even if it had come with a high cost both to the pack and her family.
Anya looked her over and smiled sagely as though she could hear her thoughts.
“Would you like some tea while you fill me on what I’ve missed?”
“Thank you. I would love to.”