My Mate Is An Omega
Chapter 29

Caitlyn POV

cause.

Because of our animal side, werewolves had amplified emotions, which meant they were more intense for us than they were for humans or other supernatural creatures. Happiness, sadness, excitement, and more importantly, love and anger. It was common for us to make decisions based on our mood, which is why great leaders should have impeccable control over their emotions - the stronger the wolf living inside of the human, the harder it usually was for them to be controlled, and the bigger was the damage they could Due to our bond, I could clearly feel everything Lance was feeling; it was extremely painful. I watched in horror as the man who was always so calm and kind broke down right before my eyes. It was killing me to see him in such misery, but what could I do? The recent events had taken a huge toll on me. I still hadn't had time to process everything, I only had a bunch of half-stories and loose information. All of a sudden I lost the good Alpha who took me in with open arms - apparently by my mate's hands - and I was supposed to become a Luna? The pressure, the fear, the confusion; my own feelings were already too much to deal with. How could I help him when I was just as overwhelmed by the whole situation?

"We can start by calming ourselves down. By controlling our own emotions, we can send him good energy to sooth him via the bond," Faye chimed in, always the voice of reason. "He has lost a lot more than us today, and the weight he has over his shoulder is much heavier. We must do this for him."

Realizing she was right, I closed my eyes to take a deep breath - I wouldn't be able to focus on positivity as long as I was looking at his deplorable state. It was hard, but I did my best to block all of the negativity out and concentrate solely on the love we had for each other, the memories we had shared in the previous months and the new ones we would make in the future. In the eye of the storm, I could somehow replace hope. And after a few seconds, I knew exactly what I had to do.

"Lance," I called, placing my hand over his shoulder.

My touch immediately calmed him down; I could feel his franticness slightly subside as he stopped sobbing. I turned around, kneeling on the floor in front of him to cup the side of his face with my hands, gently lifting his face up so our eyes could meet. His usually bright, vivid green orbs were now pale. The serene forest which once brought peace and tranquility had lost all of its life. His tan skin, always warm like the sun, had now turned red, burned by heavy tears. Never before had I witnessed him cry; he was usually so cheerful and easygoing. It was too painful to see him like this, but I pushed through it. I kept breathing steadily, focusing on calming him. Thankfully, my efforts seemed to be paying off.

"You are not alone anymore. I am with you," I began once I had gotten his attention. "I will be with you through every step of the way. The waters are rough right now, but we will swim together. We will build a water mill and use the difficulty to our advantage." I closed my eyes for a second, resting my forehead against his. I noticed he was breathing in sync with me. "You have always been strong for me, Lance, and I want to return the favor. I want to help you while you're most vulnerable. Let me be strong for you. For us." He remained silent for a while longer, taking in everything I said. When he eventually pulled away, I was surprised to see his eyes glistening; he looked at me as if I was an angel who had descended from Heaven to come rescue him. Without warning, he pulled me into a tight embrace. I could barely breathe locked inside of his bear hug - I was sure his heightened emotions made it hard for him to measure his own strength - but I didn't complain. Instead, I snaked my arms around him, returning the gesture as best as I could. "Thank you, beautiful," he whispered over my shoulder. "I really needed to hear that."

***

Lancaster POV

It was hard to get my mind off the fateful event of the morning, especially when I had to spend a lot of time inside of Dario's office. As painful as it was, I couldn't help but relive the experience, thinking of what I could have done differently. In the end, I knew it was useless; no matter how bad I wanted to, I couldn't change the past. Thankfully, Caitlyn never left my side throughout the whole day. I admired how she managed to be so calm, and it helped me remain sane. I don't know what I would have done if I didn't have her with me. During the afternoon, we were allowed to rest in one of the guest suites located on the second floor of the pack house. Other than my mate, sleep proved to be an incredible medicine.

At sundown, the Beta knocked on our door to remind us to get ready for the funeral. Although we didn't have the proper attire to attend such an event, Luke was happy to lend me one of his best suits. For the first time since the attack, Caitlyn had to leave me to try on some dresses in Sasha's room, and I was left to get ready at the Alpha's office by myself. And how scary it was to be alone with my thoughts.

As I got dressed, I remembered the announcement which would follow the ceremony - the one where I would be presented as the new leader in front of the entire pack. In the middle of the mess, I couldn't even allow myself to celebrate my new position. Actually, was I even happy about it? How could a stray lead a pack with hundreds of wolves? Would they even accept me? It was too surreal; never in my wildest dreams had I imagined myself as an Alpha.

"Yet you have always suspected, deep down in your heart, that Dario had plans to hand the pack to you. You already knew it, before he even acknowledged it." Atlas' voice was loud and clear inside my head. He had been quiet until now, silently mourning our loss. "I didn't know," I retorted.

"By lying to me, you're lying to yourself. We share the same thoughts and feelings." He scoffed. "The reason why your heart started beating faster yesterday when Dario wanted to discuss your future is because you knew he would mention his desire to pass the title on to you. You might not have been fully aware of why you were so hesitant, but subconsciously you knew."

Lacking the time or energy to deal with him, I resorted to something I rarely did and locked him back in the depths of my mind. With a heavy sigh, I combed my messy hair, put on my shoes, and tied the black bow tie around my neck before walking towards the mirror. I had to laugh as I stared at my reflection - the man in front of me... he looked nothing like me. The stray wasn't calm and collected; I was reckless, impulsive. I'm not a leader! What the hell was Dario thinking?! I didn't deserve his name! I didn't deserve his legacy!

In a blaze of rage, I punched the mirror with all of my strength, some of the shattered glass scattering around my feet; I just couldn't stand staring at my own reflection any longer. It was merely a mask. A lie. I hadn't even joined the game and I already couldn't play it anymore. Blood dripped down my fist, staining the white button-up shirt, but I didn't care. The physical pain was nothing compared to the emptiness I was feeling, the fear of failure consuming me. As I tried to collect my breath, I heard a voice behind me which made me turn around.

"What the hell are you doing?" James arched an eyebrow at me. He wasn't mad or disappointed. "The ceremony starts in half an hour and you're here breaking stuff and destroying your clothes?"

"I'm not ready, Sir. I can't do this," I confessed in despair. Looking straight into his eyes, I silently begged for him to get me out of this situation.

Instead, he just sighed, approaching me. "Let me tell you a story, boy. I think you need to hear it." He stopped right behind me, our distorted reflections in the broken mirror. Because of his injury, he could only move with the help of a cane. He surprised me by pulling out a flask from the pocket of his suit, taking a long sip before turning back to me. "You know, Alphas have the final say in almost everything, but the Betas are the ones who lead the army during a battle. I was younger than you are now when I had to command my men during my first attack. I was so confident, so full of myself. Now, I laugh at how foolish I was back then."

After a brief silence, he went on, "Long story short, we were being attacked by rogue wolves. I read the situation wrong and gave my warriors an order that cost many of their lives. In the end, Dario and I had to end the enemies pretty much on our own. That day, there was a lot of blood on my hands. Every night I still wonder if the men who blindly trusted me resented me in their final moments." It was impossible not to feel shaken by the story, but I still couldn't understand why he was telling me that. He downed another gulp of his whiskey before clearing his throat. "No one is ever prepared, but you'll learn the ropes as you go. You have wonderful people by your side, and they trust you. Dario trusted you."

His words finally struck me, making my heart throb. He caught my attention when he patted me on the shoulder. "Straighten up, Alpha. Dario's standing beside the Goddess now, and they both have their eyes on you. You wouldn't want to let them down, would you?"

I knew he was right, and thankfully he didn't expect me to say anything more. Through the reflection in the broken mirror, I watched James walk out of the room, leaving me alone once again. It took me a moment to process everything, yet when I did, I finally calmed down. There was nothing I could do to change the past, and whether I liked it or not, I had big shoes to fill. If the man I considered as my own father was truly looking down on me from the moon, I couldn't disappoint him.

The first thing I had to do was fix the mess I had made. In the first drawer of the desk, there were a few paper towels I used to clean my bloody shaking hand before bandaging it. There was no way I could still wear the white social shirt, its sleeve now colored red. Thankfully, the Beta's son had also left a second button-up shirt - a black one - so I could choose which one I preferred. Although I hadn't initially intended to wear an all-black outfit, it did suit the occasion quite well. When I was done, I headed towards the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, hoping the view would help me remain calm.

Not too long after, I felt a pair of arms hug me from behind. I recognized her gentle touch, but even if I didn't, it was impossible to miss the familiar tantalizing scent. Caitlyn tugged on my suit, slowly pulling me to face her. She looked stunning in a long black dress with lace medium sleeves. Her chestnut hair was styled in a high bun, a few wavy strands cascading down the sides of her beautiful face. The second her gaze fell on my self-inflicted injury, I stiffened thinking she would be disappointed. To my surprise, she just took my hand in hers, lifting it up to her lips to plant a soft kiss on my knuckles.

Then, the corner of her lips turned up in a small smile. "You look handsome."

"Thank you," I breathed out, instinctively brushing her cheek with the back of my rough fingers. The way she leaned into my touch, closing her eyes, instantly made me relax. I felt so safe with her. "Are you ready?"

I nodded, and then she led me out of the room. One step at a time, we eventually made it to the town square, where all of the wolves of our pack gathered for the funeral. It was overwhelming to know I would soon be the center of attention, standing on the stage where I would be announced as the new Alpha. No matter how many times I repeated it to myself, the idea always caused a chill to run down my spine. However, before I was consumed by my anxiety again, I felt my mate squeeze my hand reassuringly. She flashed me a smile, and just like that, my troubles vanished.

Jasper, Luke, and Sasha were already there. I hadn't seen the stray since the fight, but I knew the Beta's son had informed him of my decision to make him the new Gamma. When he approached me, I expected him to tell some stupid joke like he usually did. Instead, he just squeezed my shoulder and forced a smile. Moments later, James' voice echoed through the area as we all turned to the stage.

"Wolves of Diamond Tempest," he started, his voice loud and clear. "Today we were victorious, but our win came at a price too high. Sadly, the enemy took down half of our warriors. Some of them were fathers, sons, husbands, and mates. As you might have felt, among them was our Alpha, who bravely gave his life to defend our pack."

At his words, memories of the event flashed through my mind, making my heart ache. Gasps of horror and sad whimpers echoed through the crowd as they were shaken by the news. My mate tightened her grip around my arm, as if to let me know she was still there; I wasn't alone.

"Tonight, we will mourn Dario Stark and the other amazing warriors who lost their lives in combat. Together, we shall howl to guide their spirits safely into the arms of the Goddess."

Once the Beta finished his speech, he stepped down from the stage to allow a group of warriors to proceed with the ceremony. All of the bodies had been taken to the morgue for their families to decide how they wanted to say goodbye to the ones they lost. Only one casket was laid over a stone pedestal at the center of the town square - the Alpha's. Members were allowed to say their prayers and throw moonflowers over it in a tradition werewolves were too familiar with. Later on, our wolves lent our voices so we could sing a melancholic melody as the warriors lit the casket on fire, the ashes rising as they ascended to the moon. As painful as it was for me, the ceremony also brought me peace; it was as if Dario's spirit had been freed from his body, and now he could keep looking after us from the sky.

James was back to the microphone as soon as the funeral was over. "I'm sure you are concerned about the loss of our Alpha, but you must not worry. Before Dario perished, I witnessed him pass the title on to his most trusted soldier. We shall respect his wishes and welcome the one he chose as his heir..." The moment his golden eyes locked on me, I froze. "Lancaster Stark!"

There was surprise in everyone's eyes as they turned to look at me. My legs started to shake. At the same time, I was rooted to the ground, unable to take another step. However, before I could make a fool of myself, Caitlyn pulled me forward, offering me her strength. Although I could hear her heart beating fast, she concealed her hesitation and held her head high. In the middle of the chaos, a storm of emotions, she was showing me what to do. With gratitude, I followed her lead. For a moment, the weight over my shoulders didn't seem so heavy; as long as I had her, I believed I would be able to carry it.

"And, of course, your Luna, Caitlyn De Bruin!" James stretched his hand in my mate's direction as soon as we stepped onto the stage. Not a second later, the crowd - which seemed speechless and confused at first - erupted in applause and cheers as they celebrated us. I couldn't help but widen my eyes in surprise at their reaction.

"I would also like to announce Gamma Alden and I will be stepping down as well to pave the way for a new generation," the Beta went on. "Please welcome your new ranked members, Beta Luke Holt, and Gamma Jasper Stray!"

During another round of applause, my two brothers joined me on the stage - my Beta on my right, and my Gamma on my left. As the crowd cheered, I noticed Sasha among them smiling proudly at the three of us. She couldn't be by our sides, but she was still happy for us. At that moment, I was reminded of what James told me earlier; I was surrounded by wonderful people who trusted me. And I would make sure not to disappoint them.

***

Later that night, I was in Dario's office - well, my office - signing the first papers. Most issues in a pack were addressed with rituals and ceremonies, but everything was still heavily documented. The Elders, both from our pack and from the country, had to be informed of every major decision regarding the pack. To prevent archives from being stolen and modified, they demanded everything be registered manually on paper instead of online. As time consuming as it was, previous events had proven this to be the safest method.

I was left to take care of the documents on my own after Caitlyn offered to help the former Gamma's daughter with some other issues. Of course, I was still beaten up after everything that happened, but I tried to stay strong for my mate and my friends. Still, after such a long, terrible day, all I wanted was to go back home and fall asleep in the arms of my angel.

My heart skipped a beat when I heard a knock on the door, immediately hoping it was her. I stood up in a rush to let her in, but when I opened the door, uncommon red eyes made me stumble backwards. What was Cordelia doing here?