Fated To My Lycan Stepbrothers
Chapter 175

Leke POV

"Did you say she was buried here?" I turned to the girl we had all been waiting for almost two hours. Renee.

Renee nodded. She had told us not to tell Naya about her returning to the pack that it would only distract us. I believed her. She may not know it, but sometimes she had a knack for causing troubles. Besides, this was concerning my mother. I balled my fists. "How could father bury her here without letting anyone." I gritted angrily.

Kyle flashed angry eyes at Renee. "Even if all this is true, why didn't you wait until morning. We are just newly mated for goodness sake!"

Renee simply rolled her eyes in a Renee way. "The last time I met Naya, I could perceive your scent," she pointed at Kyle and then me. "And yours." Yeah, it was obvious what we both did to Naya. She didn't have to say it like it was normal. She made it sound like it was normal to be an alpha who cannot control his se**xual impulses when close to his mate.

I slapped her hands off me. "As much as this is important, we aren't supposed to leave our mate without tending to her. I know you have heard about the recent happenings." Renee's shoulders slumped. "Oh, the one about Naya turning our Dean into a rat?" She barked out a laugh. "That serves her right. How dare she be a spy for."

The glare I gave her was enough to let her know that we didn't trust her as much as Naya did. She wasn't officially part of my pack, and smelled nothing like the blood moon pack. For all we cared, this could have been a distraction to take us away from Naya. However, I made a promise to Naya that we wouldn't touch Renee, but watch her. So far... she has been doing well.

"Orrr..." Flame cut in, dragging his words just to annoy me.

"Make your point already."

"Or you were so occupied with Alpha duties that you forgot to tell the inspectors or whatever their name is to keep an eye on Renee, as a double agent of course."

It didn't take a soothsayer to tell me that Flame was right. sh*t, I remembered saying something like that. I totally forgot. Damn! I turned to Renee, allowing some of my alpha power to slip through. "Are you sure we can trust you and this isn't a plan to distract us from our mates?"

"Yes, it's a plan. I was asked to tell the both of you that your mother was buried here. It isn't entirely wrong." She shrugged like she didn't not just tell us what I have dreaded to hear. Everyone including Beta Brooke who had been silent froze. I Wouldn't want Naya to kill herself with guilt just because...

"Are you serious?" I asked, eyeing her serious face as Kyle subtly got into position and beta Brooke broke out of his frozen state to scam the surroundings for any possible ambush. It was then I realized how foolish I was for taking the decision of no guards. Renee nodded and it was as if the emotions on her face were gone. Let this be a joke please...

"If it isn't, I will be the first to tear her to pieces. Orrrr, ripping her head off is fine to me too." Flame smirked wickedly. He could do that because she was within range, however it won't get Naya back.

That is, if all of this were true. It took a lot of courage from Flame and my will to state in front of the crowd our replaceings about Naya. First, she was our mate and secondly, she was an elder. A born elder. I had expected Marley to be in anguish, but her composure shocked me. Not her eyes though. They looked crazy. I knew she was pissed and held it in.

It must be painful. Everyone at the party that day had been shocked to the core. A bit of me expected protests, but Naya was immediately accepted as Luna. Yes, many questions were asked, but they weren't as scary as I thought they would be.

"What's running through your mind now... are you going to kill me?" Renee asked. Her face was so hardened until I saw them.

I wish I could speak through the mind link to my brother and beta to keep calm. She wasn't serious and only wanted to see our reactions. On the other hand, she could be serious enough to play such a joke.

What should I believe now?

"Oh, my moon goddess, you should have seen your faces!" I sighed in relief as Renee burst into laughter, breaking the tension that had gripped everyone. The anger, fear, and confusion began to dissipate as realization dawned on us that it was all a prank. Damn, Renée for making such pranks on her alphas. We would have been termed stupid for blatantly refusing to heed to Beta Brookes warning. The only thing he ended the argument with was how stubborn we were like our father. "Renee, that was not funny!" Kyle scolded her, though there was a hint of relief in his eyes.

Flame was still grinning. "Well, I must admit, you got us there for a moment." He wasn't entirely trusting of her. That was really convincing. Her heartbeat was normal... What happened, why would she do such a prank? Renee wiped away tears from her eyes, still chuckling.

“Come on, lighten up, guys! A little humor never hurt anyone."

Beta Brooke shook his head, clearly not amused. "This isn't a time for jokes, especially about such serious matters." He was about to grab her when she ducked

"Come in, I was just kidding! We were all so gloomy! And you..." she faced me. "You were talking too much about your mate. You make other people lonely."

Kyle frowned, his voice cold and stern. He was the king of humor, so he must have something to say about her childish behavior. "Renee, there are boundaries to humor, and you just crossed them."

Renees laughter faded as she looked at me and Kyle's stern expression. "I... I'm sorry. I thought it would break the tension."

"Well it didn't. Now tell us what more you know about my mother, how you heard and what exactly we are doing in the woods by this time of the night, when we should be in our beds." I growled, really offended as to how she thought to play pranks now. It was so unnecessary.

"Okay, maybe I exaggerated a bit. Your mother isn't buried here as you know already." Renee's expression softened slightly as she looked around. She paused, letting the weight of her words settle before adding, "She's actually in the pack cemetery, not far from here."

A collective exhale swept through our tiny group. I couldn't even stop mine. Mother has been there all along? The pack cemetery.. has been abandoned a long time ago. We weren't just used to all the sophistication. A mix of relief and frustration filled me. I didn't know which to express.

I narrowed my eyes, continuing to assess Renee's sincerity.

"Why the deception? What are you really up to?"

I almost did a double take when she met his gaze, her eyes devoid of the earlier mischief. She was definitely fearless. blame familiarity and the fact that she wasn't a pack member. "I needed to be sure you'd come with me without any distractions. You both needed to know the truth about your mother."

I exchanged a glance with Kyle as we both silently acknowledged the unsettling feeling that our lives had secrets. "Fine, we'll go to the cemetery, but you better be telling the truth, Renee. If this is some kind of ploy, you won't like the consequences." Flame interjected with a sly grin, "Can I rip her head off now just to be safe?"

Ignoring Flame's morbid suggestion, he suggested another.

"Call Naya and ask her how she's.."

I glanced at Kyle who was sulking. "Aren't you speaking through the mind link? Reach out to her again." Why would she block the mind link?

"I have tried." Kyle was trying so hard not to let his anger show. "She is just annoying sometimes. She could be holding a grudge I have no idea about, locking me out because of it!"

I chuckled. "Then you don't know Naya so well. She is not one to hold grudges. That I know so well." A sigh escaped me. "Lead the way Renee. And remember, one wrong move, and you'll have more than just Flame to worry about."

As we walked farther away from the manor, I couldn't shake the nagging doubt that lingered in the back of my mind. Renee was weird, and her motives remained unknown to us.

"I overheard Baron telling someone this. That person seemed to know a lot about the wolf cove."

I tsked. "We have caught her already. Our Dean."

Renee's eyebrow shot up. "Really." It wasn't a question.

The red half moon casted an eerie glow over the cemetery, and it wasn't even a full moon. Gravestones stood as silent witnesses to our unwelcomed stay. The atmosphere grew tense as we approached the resting place of my mother. There were so many things...

Renee pointed towards a particular grave. "There, that's where she rests."