Chapter 154 - 153. The Rogues' Pack

Silver heard his son's words and total confusion washed over him. How could he say such things? The leader strode forward to join Eden, ready to demand explanations. When he was close, he grabbed the male omega's shoulder who was staring at the Red Orbs' alpha.

"Why would you say something like…"

"Cherry has been hurt." Eden dropped the bomb and saw his father's reaction change as he was taken aback by the sudden revelation that was upsetting but unrelated. Or so he thought.

Eden gazed a moment at his father who expected him to explain why he was acting like this. The blond didn't utter a word and sent a link with his memories of the last two hours. From the moment they had been attacked to the discussion he had a few minutes earlier with his teacher. Silver Bloodhood's hand released his son's shoulder.

His heart was throbbing. He also felt a certain sadness and pride. His son had just embarked on a difficult and dangerous but fair path. Silver already foresaw all the hardships Eden and his mate would encounter, all the changes Bloodhood and the rest of the Werewolves world would experience. Connor's voice snapped the alpha out of his thoughts.

"Are you sure about it, Eden? A lot of packs and even the WIA will look at Bloodhood through a new prism if you decide to meddle your pack with Red Orbs." The man walked over to the trio formed by Eden, Glen, and Silver who were facing Krasny.

The red-haired werewolf watched them, eyes squinted, and his almost black brown irises glowed with an interest that had been absent throughout his encounter with the Alpha of Bloodhood.

His arms were still folded, but his torso was fully turned to the three werewolves and he didn't display the expression of hostility his face had shown moments earlier.

"I'm well aware of that fact. I will address the pack and I will explain my reasons. If they refuse I won't impose anything on my packmates, but I'm sure they will follow me. Correct me if I'm wrong Connor, there have been no incidents involving Red Orbs since Krasny Licht took charge of their band of rogues and turned them into a pack." The blond eyed the alpha of the rogue pack with a scrutineer gaze.

Krasny had never felt anything like this. The way the omega was staring at him made him uncomfortable and yet he was captivated. Eden Bloodhood exuded a force that attracted him and disturbed him.

Nothing about the dynamic unfolding before him made sense to the former rogues' leader.

The omega son of the Alpha of Bloodhood led the discussions of an alliance with his pack and the leader and his mate who was even more powerful than the traditional pack's leader himself, let him do as he pleased.

It didn't make sense, and yet whatever was going on right now, his instincts wanted to be part of it. He wanted this to happen.

"So your proposal cannot be taken seriously. I mean, if you haven't even discussed this with your pack, I'm probably wasting my time listening to you."

"This weekend bring your trusted ones to Bloodhood. By then we will be done sorting things out with our packmates but before that, allow me, please, to ask you something."

Krasny shrugged, trying to look calmer than he was. His wolf was more and more restless, and he had the strange feeling that Eden could feel it too.

"You can ask. I'll answer if I feel like it."

"It has been in my mind all night after I heard Connor speak. The reason why Red Orbs behave, the reason why you're after Alpha Loan is not only because he's your father and that he destroyed your mother's life…"

"How do you know that..." The alpha turned his attention to Connor who gave him a wide grin and waved at him.

"You're annoying, Red!"

"Don't call me that nickname," Connor retorted in displeasure.

"That's how all the rogues here and everywhere else call you though," stated the werewolf and he looked back at Eden who was waiting for him to finish his brief exchange.

"You don't want Alpha Loan to mistreat his packmates anymore. You knew he was abusing his daughter, your stepsister. I'm sure you knew that, just like I'm sure you watch everything that happens at White Sage, don't you? And you had no ill feelings for her when you proposed a candidate for Lia's mating. You wanted to save her. You want to save the entire pack. That's why you proposed a leader you knew and trusted. One that would end the cycle of fear and terror."

Eden finished his arguments, his face impassive. Krasny remained silent and waited several seconds. Silver, who hadn't thought for a minute that the alpha whose pack had a bad reputation could act out of benevolence, stared at the red-haired dominant, then at his son.

"They call me the alpha of rogues and my packmates are the rogues' pack. Our past is filled with murder and killing and you think our purpose is filled with love and compassion…"

"You know what it feels to be helpless. Weak. You know what it feels like to be at the mercy of others because they are more powerful. I'm not going to pretend I know what it's like to be a rogue. After all, I lived sheltered in a pack. However, I experienced another form of weakness. I experienced another form of injustice because of my blood rank.

A weakness that most omegas like me and even dominant low-ranks like your mother still know today. Whatever you did, I'm sure you did it to survive. The proof is that as soon as the former leader died and you took over the gang, you immediately stopped everything. I told you, it stuck in my head, so I did some research last night. It was like Red Orbs have completely disappeared from the radar.

No more looting, no more killing, no more clashes over other pack's territories. It lasted six months, then you met the WIA and explained your desire to create a pack. And you succeeded. Here you are at the head of a respectable pack."

Krasny chuckled to hide his discomfort. He had the impression that the blond werewolf read him perfectly.

"This is the first time anyone has described my pack as respectable…"

"And yet you are," Eden cut him off. "No one should judge you and your packmates for doing what it took to survive under the protection of the former leader of Red Orbs because they don't know what they would do to survive as a rogue. They don't know what it's like to be weak and have no choice but to submit to live another day. The former leader was bloodthirsty but you are not.

Today, what you seek is power. The real power. The one that will allow you to keep your packmates safe and that's why I'm asking again. Play by the rules. Demand a dead-end, defeat Alpha Loan, and take over White Sage. Bloodhood will have your back. Are you in or not?"

A long silence settled. All the werewolves were deep in a silent discussion, weighing the pros and cons of this alliance which, from the outside, seemed insane.

"You're something, pretty thing. If you weren't bond…" He saw Glen take a step closer to him, threatening and Krasny stopped. "Joke! It was a joke. Don't kill our alliance that hasn't even been born yet." Krasny saw the alpha step back to his mate and grabbed him by the hip to pull him closer with a final warning glare in his direction before turning his head to Eden, eyes filled with affection.

The scene was sweet. The dynamic between the two mates was an example of what a relationship between an alpha and his omega should be. Not forced or driven by fear. This is the kind of relationship her sister, the kind of relationship Lia should have known. In twenty-four hours, he had gone from joy to mourning.

When Krasny Licht learned that his candidate had been chosen by Lia, the alpha didn't hide his joy. Unfortunately, in the middle of the night, everything fell apart. He heard about the death of Lia and his protege because of the Omega's Mark ritual.

The Red Orbs' alpha had never heard of this ritual, but one thing was certain, the only reason that motivated Loan White Sage to indulge in an obscure ritual was his unquenchable thirst for power. He was ready to walk away when a question crossed his mind.

"How did you know I didn't mean him any harm? Anyone would have thought my intentions were bad." Krasny asked Eden.

"Lia's packmate told me about her death. She told me that your protege gave in to Alpha Loan regarding the ritual upon hearing that he and Lia would be considered Chosen ones of the Moon Goddess. If he intended to hurt Lia, he wouldn't have agreed to something that could put them out of the reach of critics. You have undoubtedly sent your candidate, informing him of all the difficulties that await him. He wanted to do his best to protect Lia, as you taught him. Unfortunately, he didn't know this ritual and it worked against him." The blonde paused. "I'm sorry for your loss."

When he heard Eden present his condolences, the werewolf's eyes watered. He turned around and walked away to rush into his car.

Silver Bloodhood watched the vehicle drive away from the WIA site and put a hand on his son's shoulder.

"Let's go see Cherry and Dante. I want to see how they are both doing and make sure the Dean has fired those responsible for your assault."

________

Immersed in water up to half of his chest. The male omega let himself be shampooed for the third time by his mate. Glen's fingers gently massaged his scalp and Eden groaned with pleasure. He rested his head on the chest behind him and the dominant protested.

"Hey, if you're leaning back, I can't finish."

"I'm sure there's no trace of my teacher's pheromones on me anymore."

"Let me finish this shampoo to be sure."

Eden chuckled and sat up to let his alpha finish. He remembered how he was annoyed by the smell of another omega on his mate so he let him have his way. Just this once. The dominant rubbed his mate's hair for a while longer and his hands stopped.

"Tilt your head back."

The omega complied and warm water ran over his hair to rinse the foam. He closed his eyes to protect them and stayed like that until the water stopped flowing.

"Are you sure you don't mind being here? It's nice to let Cherry, Dante, and I spend the night together before going back to school tomorrow but... You told me that it had been a while since you had returned to the house where you had grown up. I don't want you to force yourself just for us."

"Cherry would have been nervous after what happened because she can't stay with her mate at the dorms. And I bet you want to stay with them as well. It's ok. I asked Connor for the key back when I was looking for my dad's books and I told you. He suggested that we all move here next school year. We spent a lot of time cleaning."

"Won't we be a hinder in their honeymoon phase?" inquired the omega with a smile in his voice.

"He and Greg enjoy the hustle and bustle with everyone around. And that's also a mini-pack for Sora, she needs it and it's fun!"

"In that case, okay. Let's move in together next school year."

______

When later that evening, Connor opened the door to the bedroom that once belonged to his little brother Anthony, he didn't feel the sharp pain that had kept him away from that place for so many years. A smile curved his mouth upward as he saw four wolves, one bicolor, one golden, one silver-grey, and one white lying on blankets on the floor. His heart swelled with joy and he whispered.

"I hope you see that from where you are Mum, Dad, Anny.. I really hope you do."