Chapter 338: Return To Shadowpine
Violet
Kael had left while I was asleep.
I had sat with the news just briefly while sadness and relief hit me at the same time. It was better this way. Another goodbye would not have been nice for him.
I hoped the journey home would give him space to breathe, and I hoped, selfishly, that the next time I saw him, the sadness in his eyes would have faded enough for him to be happy.
We had left Frostheim not long after. After many appreciative thanks to Voya and her wolves for not only hosting, but helping me, we started the journey back to Silverwood.
When we arrived in Silverwood, I was welcomed differently.
It seemed the wolves that had gone ahead of us had spread word of me being his mate. This time, I wasn’t just the special guest, but their future Supreme Luna, and they were all excited.
I had spent the next two weeks with Rowan in quiet solace, only to prepare for the immense bulk of what I had to do next.
[ - ]
Five months had passed since the trial had ended, and it had been such a busy period Rowan and I had barely had time for anything else.
The days and weeks between had been a blur of meetings, correspondence, and the slow, grinding work of turning words on paper into reality. I had barely had a moment to breathe, and yet, for the first time in my life, I didn’t feel like I was suffocating.
The Lycan protections had been formalised across all territories. Every Supreme Alpha had signed the accords, some with reluctance etched so deeply into their faces that I half expected the ink to dry bitter. But they had signed. And the provisions for Omegas, while less sweeping, had been set into motion with enough structure that I could hold them accountable if they faltered.
I had not revealed the location of the Lycan civilisation to anyone else aside from Rowan.
Neither would I do so for the next foreseeable future. Not until my children had lived full lives and the world had proven, through decades of action and not just promises, that my people’s resting place would be honoured rather than plundered. The ruins belonged to the Lycans who had built them, and I would guard that secret with everything I had.
It would also be my future children’s sanctuary at the very least, and I wasn’t going to take that away from them anytime soon.
There was also Nal.
Palisa’s territory had been in a state of barely managed chaos even before her death. The packs within it had been functioning on momentum alone, and the vacuum of leadership after her exit had left fractures that were widening by the day.
Fana had refused the position.
She wanted no part of ruling and she intended to leave Nal entirely and live as a wandering rogue, free from the shadow of her mother’s legacy.
I had understood and chosen a wolf from one of the territory’s larger packs instead to rule as my proxy. It had taken me a few weeks to find a wolf capable to taking the position of Nal’s Supreme Alpha, and aside from his good capable qualities, he had reminded me of Bei.
He was competent, fair, and listened before he spoke.
And most importantly, he answered to me.
Rowan had been surprised when I had told him I had no intention of ruling Nal for myself. He had assumed that I would claim it as my own territory, given what Palisa had done and the political advantage it would provide.
But Nal was not my home. It had never been, and binding myself to a single territory that was far from where my true roots lay felt like trading one cage for another, and it had stunned me Rowan had considered leaving his territory to come with me if that was the case.
But I had found a better alternative after much consideration. And it felt nicer to have two territories under my hand rather than just one. Apparently, it was some old rule that might still be changed, but there were some special occasions where you could have a territory under your domain, while still appointing someone else to manage it in your place.
And I preferred it that way.
Sera would manage the details, and I would maintain oversight from a distance. While I hadn’t revealed this to anyone yet, but I intended to pass Nal on to one of my children in the future at least.
And in between all this, I had seen Kael a few more times, especially while dealing with Nal.
Each time had been brief, but he had looked better than the last time I had seen him. I would be lying if I said he hadn’t completely moved past everything. I hadn’t either, but I looked back upon our time together with fondness.
But I was grateful he didn’t look as pained. Still, I would notice how his smile wouldn’t always reach his eyes, along with the lingering looks he would give me.
He appeared a lot gentler than before too.
His relationship with Rowan had been a bit strange, which I fully understood.
With Rowan following me a lot whenever I came to Nal, it was inevitable that he would run in with Kael aside the Supreme Alpha meetings we attend. And Kael had been helping me with handling affairs between our two territories.
They were a lot more cordial between each other now while somewhat distant at the same time. I wasn’t sure how else to explain it, but it made me sad at times.
But whenever we saw, he would always mention how happy he was to see me at least.
And I was happy to see him whenever I did too.
Soon enough, the time came for me to make one final trip to a place I hadn’t been entirely keen on visiting.
Shadowpine.
The pack that had shaped my early years. The pack where I had been starved, beaten, overlooked, and discarded. And where Damon had looked me in the eye and severed our bond in front of everyone else.
I hadn’t planned on coming back either. Not until Nal’s restructuring forced me to confront the fact that Shadowpine, nestled within Nal’s borders, was now technically under my authority.
The irony was not lost on me.
