Thank you all for reading and commenting, enjoy! DW
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When the pack parties, the pack parties. Once Joel and I came undone he cleaned me up a little and we made our way back to the sounds of revelry. The smell of roasting meat filled the air. Torches had been lit to light the area. As the food was turned and cooked, the dancing started.
The women danced for the men and the men danced for the women. Joel sat and watched all the performances. His interest in the goings on were obviously important. The wolves seemed pleased when he complimented them.
When the meat was done it was delivered to Joel first. He took a large chunk of the proffered item and we ate heartily. The rest of the pack followed his lead and ate with the same gusto. I felt thirsty and wondered where I could get a drink.
"We usually just drink out of the lake," Joel whispered to me.
"That's fine," I told him, starting to rise. He stopped me with a hand on my arm.
"I wasn't sure your human immune system would handle that well. Nate is bringing you water from the den," he said pulling me back down.
I was embarrassed. I felt like the kid that needed all the special attention in school. It was like if he handled me too roughly I'd just break.
"Not at all," he laughed at the conversation in my head, "but I have had occasion to see humans after they drink water that isn't pristine. Once I change you into a wolf it won't be an issue anymore."
"When are you doing that?" I asked him. I'd forgotten that should have been tonight.
"Tomorrow," he answered me.
My dry mouth felt about a hundred times drier all the sudden. Gratefully, I accepted the water Nate brought to me and gulped it down.
"What's making you so nervous about it?" Joel asked curiously. "You just had sex with me down by the lake with a large portion of my pack present. Your human modesty is not the issue."
"I was really excited, so I didn't think about that," I shrugged. "I know you don't understand this, but I've only ever been human. It's a strange idea to think I'll be something else after tomorrow."
"There's a wolf in there already," Joel grinned, "or I wouldn't be attracted to you. We just have to find her."
I wasn't really sure what to make of that esoteric explanation, but I let it pass. My life would seem empty without Joel, so I was going to do the change whether I really understood it or not.
The rest of the night was crazy. The pack ate, danced, and fucked. Katrina told me this was the wildest she'd ever seen one of these parties. The pack hadn't liked having their range restricted while the witch was threatening them. They were cutting loose.
I did find time to talk to Joel about what he'd learned from Ryana. Nate hadn't been lying, she had made her spells in front of him. She had believed him to be completely bespelled by her. She'd even talked about the renegade wolves. She wanted them placed in positions of authority.
Remembering Lucas and his punishment I asked Joel about the families of the rogues. I wondered if he had cast them out or killed them.
"When we first determined who was involved I interviewed all of the direct family members. They all pleaded innocence to me. Several asked me to end their lives out of shame," he said shaking his head. "I understand why my father acted as he did. It has been difficult to let them live and stay in the pack. There was the constant threat that they were involved. Despite those reservations, I chose to wait until I had more information."
Joel took my hand as he talked further, "The witch inadvertently told me I had made the correct decision. Tonight, in her plan, would have been not only her changing and your death, but the death of several of those families. She believed her Betas, as she called the rogues, would come out of hiding as soon as she ended their lines."
"They wanted their families dead?" I asked in shock.
"Yes," he answered solemnly.
"Did she know some of the renegades were already dead?" I asked him.
"Evidently not," Joel answered, "I believe she had been living in the woods, but she didn't seem to be in contact with the remaining rogues."
I sat and watched the bonfires burning around the clearing. There was so much I wanted to know.
"Did you figure out why you couldn't smell her?" I asked.
Joel lay back in the grass and threw his arms over his head. "I have never, never seen a spell like that," he said. "It wasn't hers, she bought it from someone else. When the drinker takes the potion it conceals their natural odor completely. It wore off toward the end and her scent came back. She didn't know how to make it, unfortunately. Amazing spell, completely effective, even on us."
I lay down beside him and stroked his chest. He was really irritated.
"Were the other witches involved?" I asked.
"No, they didn't seem to be, although they made no moves to stop Ryana. Althea sounded surprised when Ryana told her she had succeeded when I overheard them on the phone," Joel snorted. "Her grandmother asked her for money and Ryana laughed at her. She told the old woman she could be dying on the side of the road and she wouldn't give her a dime."
"Cold," I marveled running my fingers along his jaw. "I can't believe she said and did all of this in front of you."
"It was difficult acting unaffected by her. I wanted to tear her throat out, but I wondered if she would be as brashly confident as she was. Torturing her could have taken days and even then we may not have asked all the right questions. This was so much more effective."
"A lot less satisfying though, huh?" I asked him absently.
Suddenly I was pushed on my back and he was towering over me. "You got the only satisfying part of the entire ordeal, love," he growled pressing my into the soft grass.
His lips pressed into mine and I heard howling from the surrounding pack.
"Are you mad I did that?" I asked quietly in his ear.
"I was worried for you and stayed at your side for that reason. No, I don't mind sharing with you," he whispered starting to grind his hardness against me. "The violence was very attractive to me, although I still appreciate your delicate nature."
Joel's hands wandered all over my body for a while. He tweaked my aroused nipples and then moved his hands down to clasp my ass. When he moved inside of me I moaned loudly, eliciting another loud howl from the surrounding wolves.
"You smell of me and the forest, Elizabeth. I adore your skin this way," he told me burying his face in my neck.
I was lost in him, trapped beneath his warmth. I could stay like this forever. We exploded together and I saw stars. Except for the cold wind that started to blow, I could definitely stay like this forever.
After a while, even close to Joel and the fire I was chilly. My clothes were somewhere in the field, but they had probably been trampled by now. My shoes were gone, too. My toes and fingers were having trouble keeping feeling in them.
Noting my discomfort, Joel shifted into his large black wolf and started back to the den. I rode on his back and watched the wolves weaving effortlessly through the thick foliage. I felt bad because most of the pack followed him. As we headed into the den I was tempted to apologize publicly for my lack of cold tolerance.
"Elizabeth," Joel said as we walked into the wide back doors, "no one slept while the witch was here. We are all tired. You didn't end the party too early."
"And tomorrow's the real party and that will be all about you," Anthony said jovially following us in.
Joel turned and looked sharply at the man and Anthony bowed his head.
"Since you are so interested in my mate Anthony, go remove the mattress and pillows from our rooms. The Madam Alpha will not sleep where the witch did. I want a new one of similar quality in its place quickly," Joel said.
I heard the censure in Joel's voice and I wasn't sure if it was because Anthony interrupted or because of what he said. In an effort not to get him in more trouble I tried not to think about it.
"Would they have anything warm to drink in the kitchen?" I asked instead.
I didn't want to be staring longingly at the bed while they set it up. It would be more polite to give them a moment to work.
We wandered toward the kitchen and Joel heated me water for tea. A pretty brown haired Omega walked in while Joel was preparing the tea pot and fell over herself to do it for him. I laughed inwardly. Did she do it out of respect or did she think Joel couldn't boil water?
"Emily," Joel said addressing the Omega, "my mate is curious if you think I am unable to boil water?" I saw a smile twitching the corners of Joel's mouth, but Emily didn't.
The poor girl stuttered and stumbled over her words, trying not to offend. She obviously wasn't used to being teased by the Alpha. She bowed far too low and ran to get some tea from the pantry.
"I take it you don't usually play with the Omegas?" I asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Evidently not enough," he said watching the girl come zipping in with a selection she spread out on the table.
"Thank you for your help tonight, Emily," Joel told her and dismissed her to go get some sleep.
"I know there has be balance," Joel told me as we sipped tea alone at a table in the kitchen, "but it has been difficult to instill the proper amount of kindness into my actions."
"How's that?" I asked him not understanding.
"I am the pack's protector. I cannot afford to be seen as weak. I have tried to be gentler than my father, but it is a fine line to walk," he told me.
"You didn't kill or cast out the rogues' families because you wanted to handle this differently than your father," I said starting to put it all together.
"Yes," he murmured, "although one of the fathers took his own life in shame. Another family has asked to be leave the pack. None of them barely show their faces for the embarrassment they feel."
We sat in silence for a moment and listened to the sounds of everyone filing back into the den. From the ones I had met, the wolves seemed good and friendly by nature. They weren't inherently evil.
