Looking at the clock, it was a little after 8pm. The Blood Moon Pack was already at the border, but why haven’t they crossed over yet? Reid would know I’m here by now.
“I am only here because of Lily. Despite the hell you have put her through, she still feared Reid was going to kill you. She wanted me to stop this. You and I still have unfinished business, but for now, this is about Lily, so I suggest you prove you deserve to be a part of her life. Maybe visit, get to know her, but she remains a part of my Pack.” The Alpha growled at me about to disagree and argue back. I held my finger up at him, motioning him to let me finish.
“When she turns 18, we let her decide if she wants to take over the Black Moon Pack. For now, until I can trust you, you can get to know her and then maybe down the track if Lily decides she wants you in her life we can sort out custody agreements.”
“Shared custody, she is my daughter,”
“Listen to her, Alpha. She has a point. You can’t just rip Aria away from Lily and expect Lily to be okay with that. Aria is all she has ever known.”
The Alpha seemed to think about it. I heard Michael start to mind link him and blocked him out, giving them some privacy to speak. Pushing through the bond, I could tell Reid was close.
“Reid you there?”
“Where the fuck are you, Aria? Do you have any idea of the damage you have caused?”
“Calm down, I’m with Alpha David. I will be back at the border soon.” I could tell he was using the bond to find my location.
“No, I’m coming to get you. Tell David to tell his warriors to let us through or it will be a bloodbath.”
“Just wait there, I will be there soon,” I argued back.
“No, you went against me. This could have been avoided, but you had to defy me. I’m coming to get you, and that’s final.” He cut off the mind link. I could feel his anger pouring through the link.
“Reid is on his way. Tell your warriors to stand down.” They both stopped talking and looked at me. Alpha David raised an eyebrow at me. “I tried to stop him, but he is coming anyway. Tell them to stand down. I don’t want our people hurt.”
“Our people?”
“Yes, I might not be a part of this Pack anymore, but they are still family to me, despite what you may think. I don’t wish any harm to anyone here. Please.”
“Very well. I will tell them to let them through, and as for Lily, we have a deal for now.”
I smiled, genuinely excited for Lily. She may just get the father she wanted, after all. I always had that hope for her that this monster would eventually come to his senses and see what a great little girl she was and how much like Mum she is.
It didn’t take long before we heard cars pulling up in the driveway. Following David and Michael out we made our way through the Pack house.
It hadn’t changed much. I had so many horrid memories here, but it was home for so long it just felt familiar, comfortable in a way. Which is absurd, but it was home. It’s where I lived with my mother for 6 years, where some of my earliest memories were. This place will always feel familiar.
Once outside, five black SUVs were parked out the front. Men piled out of the cars, standing alongside the vehicles. Reid stepped out of the one that was parked in front of the stairs. He only had blue shorts on, and his chest was bare. He was covered in dirt and sweat. Meeting his eyes, I went to walk down to him when I noticed him glaring directly at me. I froze on the step. He was furious. My heart skipped a beat when I heard him speak.
“Aria, get in the fucking car.” I was frozen. I didn’t react which just pissed him off even more. Marching forward, he gripped my arm, ripping me towards him, making me stumble into him. I heard Michael growl at him behind me at his forceful grip.
Reid shoved me towards the open rear door. “Get in the car NOW!” he shouted at me, making me flinch. Alpha David came down the stairs and extended his hand to Reid in a polite gesture, trying to diffuse the situation, but Reid just spun on his heel and punched him breaking his nose making David stumble back falling onto the steps.
Aria’s POV
The only sound was a collective gasp from everyone who was present. I held my breath when I saw David scramble back to his feet. He dusted himself off before rubbing his already bruising jaw. Michael’s eyes flicked to my horrified ones, begging me to do something before this got out of hand.
But I didn’t have to, the most shocking thing happened when David clenched his jaw and walked back up the stairs and inside the house. Everyone kind of looked around confused by the Alpha just walking away from a fight. No one was more surprised than Alpha Reid.
“What? You are just going to walk away and be a coward?” Alpha David just kept walking ignoring Reid. Michael quickly followed behind. For the first time ever, I was actually proud of the way he handled himself. He didn’t give in to his anger, he just simply got up and walked away not wanting to risk the agreement we have come up with. Maybe he really is going to try and right his wrongs.
Looking around, my former Pack members eyes quickly darted away from the scene and they went back to patrolling, leaving just the Blood Moon Pack standing around. I must have missed an order through their Pack link since there were no threatening growls or any attacks from anyone. Reid’s Pack looked tense like they were expecting retaliation, but there wasn’t any. They all simply walked off like we weren’t intruding on their land.