Forever in the Past and Forever in the Future
Chapter 169

Chapter 37

Once Kas calms down a little, Tyree gets me a towel to clean myself up, then moves to the corner of the room to keep an eye on things between Kas and 1.1 explain more about my conversation with Randall and what I need Kas to take care of at Silver Moon.

"Kas, Randall will meet you there,. You won't be there by yourself," I promise her, "You are going to be their Luna. When Randall announces it, they will show you respect. The pack members that don't want to accept that can leave. It's their option. And honestly, good because I don't really want any of them here, but the Council is forcing my hand. I've already made it clear to Randall that there are no second chances once they're here." 2

Kas has a permanent little frown through the entire conversation. I know she isn't happy about the idea, but she hasn't made any comments or asked any questions either. She's just intently listening. "How long do I need to be there?" she finally asks.

"You will need to leave tomorrow and be there for a full week. There is going to be a ton of meetings, paperwork, and you will need to do tours of their various buildings and the grounds to make assessments. If there is anything valuable, we can sell it. Use the liquid capital to fund building and fixing up houses for the additional pack members here," I explain while she nods slowly at me.

"Will Randall be there all week?" I still can't read her expression and there is no tone to her voice to guide me.

"Yes, the entire time."

"I'm not staying in the Alpha's apartment."

"Okay. I will send orders for a suite to be prepped for you."

"I want Marco and James to come. If James won't come, then Tyree. They can bring their mates," Kas crosses her arms over her chest, finally giving me a peek into her mind..

I can hear a slight waver in her voice. I can tell now that she's trying her best to not be scared, but it still doesn't show on her face. She's so good at masking her emotions. If you don't know her the way I do, you wouldn't be able to pick up on it. Most of the time, I can't even feel her emotions through our mate bond. Not unless she lets me. She spent her entire childhood hiding, making herself as invisible as possible. Showing emotions drew attention, attention was dangerous, and she has gnarly scars covering her back, arms, and legs to prove it.

I look over to Tyree, "Tyree, how about we send you regardless of James being there or not. You have been to Silver Moon before. You remember the layout of the place?"

"Absolutely, Alpha."

"Alright. It's settled. At least Marco and Tyree will go. We will see what we can do about James on short notice."

Kas presses her lips together tightly and nods, avoiding eye contact with me.

"Tyree, I think we're okay now. Can I have a few minutes alone with the Luna?"

"Yes, Sir," Tyree salutes then leaves the room, closing the door behind him.

"What's going through that brain of yours, Baby? You're blocking our connection but I can see something brewing on your face."

Her mouth scrunches up in a little line, and a wave of frustration comes over her face.

"I just wish you would have told me sooner. Give me a chance to prepare," she sighs with a little whine in her voice. It's a tone she reserves for me. She never complains like this in front of other people. 1

"I'm sure if you need help packing, Lenora can help. I'm not seeing the problem," I suggest.

"Oh my Goddess, you're such an idiot," Saint chimes in. 2

"No Bronx. I mean, like mentally prepare. I would have made an appointment with the therapist or something," the tears start to spill over onto her cheeks now. 2

These are the tears that come from a deep, dark place. The place I wish didn't have to exist in her. They are not just wiped away like a little kid who scrapes their knee. These are the tears she kept hidden away with her emotions all those years.

I try to climb off the bed to hold her, but quickly realize my entire body is still wrecked, so I hold my arms out to her instead. I watch as she sits in the chair, arms crossed, with tears pouring down her face. Her nose is turning pink as she sniffs.

"Please, Baby. Let me wipe your tears away," I request softly," We're gonna get through all this. We just need to hang in there. I don't know why the Goddess is testing us, but there must be a good reason." 1

"Why didn't you tell me sooner, Bronx?" she asks with a sob as she stands up and comes to the side of the bed, her resolve breaking.

"I was going to tell you the night we had pizza in the apartment, but things got kinda heavy and I didn't want to add on to it. And things have been kinda, well, weird since then. I couldn't replace a good time to bring it up. I thought I would be able to push it back. But things aren't really working out that way."

She climbs on the bed and sits down, but just far enough down that she's out of my arm's reach.

"I have to be away from you for an entire week?" The look in her eyes is painful. I feel my chest constrict a little as I watch her.

"Yeah, but we have been apart a lot longer than that in the past. A week is going to be a piece of cake," I smile, trying to downplay the situation. I hold my hand out again and give her my best sympathetic look.

She looks down at it and smiles back through the tears, "You're glowing, Sweetheart."

I look down to see that she's right. It's not nearly as bright as her aura gets, but there is a distinct light emanating from me, "It appears so. I guess it wasn't a fluke earlier. Lady Camille is here, right? Maybe I can have her give me a checkup, see what's going on."

"You're going to let a witch perform magic on you?" she looks at me suspiciously.

"Eh, even an old wolf like me can learn some new tricks," I chuckle.

Kas tilts her head and smiles at me before she finally takes my

hand. I pull her into my arms with a painful groan. When she is settled against my chest with my arms securely wrapped around her, I bury my nose into her sparkly silver hair and take a deep breath of her fresh rain and lilac scent. I feel a comforting warmth coming from her.

"Are you healing me without my permission?" I ask into her hair.

"Yes. I did this to you. I'm taking it away. You've learned your lesson," she gives a muffled reply from inside my hug.

I kiss the top of her head as the comforting, healing feeling washes over me as my muscles start to relax and renew. While it should be easy for her, the day's events have worn her out. I feel her breathing slowing into a steady rhythm before her adorable little snores tell me she's asleep.

I mind link James and let him know Kas will meet up with Lady Camille and Delilah after she has a quick nap. Then I lower myself back onto the bed and close my eyes with my beautiful little mate in my arms for the most peaceful couple of hours of sleep I've had in weeks.