Tatiana's Right

Prologue

I stood in the shade of the trees, looking out into the valley below me. Behind me, the main cave entrance to the den carved into the side of a mountain. With a deep sigh, I walked down the steep slope, down into the gorge for a quick walk through the forest that I knew so well. I took the trail that I hadn't used in so long that twisted on a scenic route to the river. The sun peaked through the branches high above, speckling the ground with the early morning light. Finally, I arrived at the wide river and sat on a rock, enjoying the view. It wasn't more than ten minutes before my advanced hearing picked up a twig snapping and a childish shush. Without turning, I smiled to myself. Though well concealed, my pursuers had made the mistake of standing upwind and allowing me to sniff them out easily.

"Anne Marie, Toby, Hannah and everyone behind that bush better come out and give me a proper welcome," I called out, my voice tinged with amusement. These pups would give me a heart attack when they were older, getting into worse trouble than this. High-pitched laughter and shouts met my demand and five children came running. The oldest was Anne Marie, at ten years old. She was a beautiful little girl, with chestnut curls, light freckles and bright hazel eyes. Next were the twins, Hannah and Toby who were nine. Both had their father's flaxen hair, but their mother's dark eyes and fair skin. Then I saw little Jase who had just turned eight. He was an exact copy of his father with his dark hair and olive skin, but still had the haunting green eyes of his mother and her father before her. Last but not least, my darling Isabeau. My favorite. Her eyes were the color of melted chocolate, and her midnight hair hung in ringlets down to her waist. She was only six, but all the trouble of each of her companions combined.

"Nana, Nana!" Hannah giggled as she ran to me and clung to my leg. She grinned up at me with her adorable dimples. Jase was right behind her, pulling on my hand to get my attention.

"We watched some of the hunters bring down a deer in the woods! Dad said that I could have one of the antlers to keep in my room!" he exclaimed. His face was bright with excitement. It went on like that for a while, each of my grandchildren eagerly telling me the events of their morning in the vivid detail that only young children find important. Isabeau sat on my lap as the children played in the river. Suddenly, she looked up at me with her big eyes.

"Nana, Mum took me to town yesterday and I met a girl named Jane and she was with her nana and her nana was way older than you," she said looking confused.

"Well, Izzy, was this Jane girl human?" I asked patiently. Before he had mated my daughter, Isabeau's father had been a human. It was natural for children Izzy's age to start asking these kinds of questions. Izzy nodded and I sighed, moving her to my other leg.

"Alright. Isabeau, we are not like humans and you know that. We age much, much slower than them. Once we get as old as we need to be, we stop looking older. We look young even though we get old," I told her as she looked up at me solemnly.

"Mum said that everyone has to die at some point. Will you die too?" Isabeau asked with a frown. I laughed and kissed her on the head.

"Yes, dear one. Everyone dies eventually. Even you and I." Isabeau nodded and slipped off of my lap. "I think it's time you all headed back to the den. I came out here to get some alone time and I'm sure that your parents don't know that you're all out here." As soon as I mentioned their parents, all of my grandchildren bolted for the den. I chuckled and went to the river, taking off my boots and stepping into the cool water with my bare feet. The smell of the forest and the feel of water and sand beneath my feet was invigorating. So much better than being stuck in the den for so long. My children worried about me too much. Of course, who could blame them. I was getting old. My time in this world was coming to an end, and to be perfectly honest the thought brought on a feeling of relief as well as a little bit of sadness. I would miss my family. My pack. I had worked so hard to lead and serve them. As the Dowager Alpha Female of one of the most powerful werewolf packs in the western hemisphere, it had been my responsibility to provide for my pack and ensure that the humans of North America never discovered our secrets. When I resigned I passed on my title and responsibilities to my eldest child, Luke. He now protected our pack lands from rogues, invaders and any other threat to our family. Our territory spanned from Canada to the bottom corner of California to South Carolina, the borders guarded by patrols of ten to fifteen thetas.

I looked down into the creek and saw my reflection in the lazy river water. The woman that looked back at me looked like a human in her late forties, with lines around her eyes and mouth as well as a scar that ran from her temple to the corner of her jaw. Her once-raven colored hair was now completely white. However her eyes were still bright and the color of dark chocolate. With a wistful look at my reflection, I turned away. My life had been rough, but I was proud of who it made me out to be.

I am Tatiana Dubois, daughter of the Werewolf King Filipe of Spain, widowed mate to Leonardo de Dubois and this is my story.

------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 1

Tatiana paced her room nervously, every once in a while looking at the clock on the wall of the room. She was in her father's office waiting for him to return from the meeting with the pack council. In the next few minutes, her life would be changed for the better or for the worst. In a matter of minutes she could be betrothed to one of the sons of a pack as part of a peace treaty, or she could be free to live without a mate and inherit her father's pack as rightful heir. Pft. As if. There hadn't been a ruling female alpha in the last four hundred years. She started when the door to the office burst open to reveal her father and two of his most trusted betas flanking him. His name was Filipe, a former prince of Spain before he was cast out after being turned by a rogue wolf.

Though he was still viewed as one of the most powerful leaders in the Were community, Tatiana's father was aging. His hair was dark brown streaked with grey and his beard was a salt-and-pepper color. In contrast with his forever-young face, his eyes showed the wisdom of a hardened leader. He wore a black suit and tie as well as a white shirt and dress shoes today for the special occasion. His skin was extremely tan from the years of running wild.

"Well?" Tatiana demanded. Her brow was furrowed in worry and her hands were crossed over her chest. She knew the answer, but she wanted to hear him say the words. That he had sold her to another wolf at the price of a little peace on our borders. Filipe winced at her tone and motioned for her to sit in one of the wooden office chairs. Stubbornly, Tatiana placed her hands on her hips and remained standing. This caused her father to sigh and collapse into the chair at his desk tiredly.

"The council was adamant about you being mated to one of the sons of James Larson's pack, but I would not allow it. We are already allies and it would be a waste. We argued for several hours before we came to an agreement on mating you to Alexander Gavroche-" he gave a warning look at Tatiana's outraged gasp. She'd met Gavroche before and didn't care to repeat that mistake. "-but then the one council member who disagreed remembered one ancient and important loophole. If the woman being betrothed as a peace offering to another pack is the first born of an Alpha, then she has the right to fight for her own hand against those who wish to mate her. If she is victorious in each challenge, then she may rule the pack as the sole Alpha in her predecessor's place when the time comes. No other female who has accepted this challenge has ever gone undefeated," her father warned.

Tatiana stood speechless for a moment before a giant grin broke out on her face. She was the fiercest warrior in the entire pack. No one had beaten her in the training rings or Challenger's Circle in the past twenty years. Though she was well over fifty years old, Tatiana didn't look a day over twenty-two. Her strait, raven black mane was currently pulled back in a tight pony tail and she wore thick, black leggings tucked into combat boots. She wore a skin-tight shirt that was a dark green color, covered by a black leather vest. Her skin was tanned to a light brown and a small smattering of freckles dusted over the bridge of her nose.

"I accept this challenge. Whoever challenges me will learn the meaning of challenging a true and rightful Alpha," Tatiana swore. Suddenly she could feel the presence of the pack. They were gathered below the balcony that led outside. It was time for her to announce her decision. With a respectful nod to Filipe, she marched out to the balcony and spread her arms in acceptance of the cheers and howls that met her arrival.

"Pack of Filipe Ramirez, the council, my father and I have made our decision. Rather than be sold off to one of our enemy packs hoping that we gain a little peace..." This was met with much booing and snarls. No one in the pack wanted to sell off their alpha's daughter. "I have decided to make a challenge known to any male who dares to try and claim me. I will fight to make this pack my own. So those who believe that they have what it takes to defeat me and take their prize, step forward. I'll fight every one of you until I am victorious and the leading Alpha of this great pack." At the end of her speech, several males her age and older stepped forward to meet the challenge. Tatiana wasn't surprised to see Damien, an old time friend of hers, with the group. She also wasn't surprised to see some of the older betas in the group taking the challenge as an opportunity to go up in rank. Within a few days many males from packs all over the world would come. And Tatiana would be ready.

"Let the games begin!" she screamed, throwing her fists up in the air to the howls and cheers from the crowds below.

-------------------

Thank you so much for reading! This is my first submission and I hope that you all enjoyed it. I know there weren't any sexy scenes yet, but they will come! Comment below for what you liked or didn't like.

xoxox

-Reinhart