Jacob

The hall is filled to the brim with high-ranking wolves from all over the region. I can feel the competition between our wolves raging, but everyone seems calm on the surface. Drinks are being served at the bar, and volunteers from my pack are offering snacks on platters.

Beautiful Lunas drift through the crowds, greeting and smiling at each person they meet. It stings that Gisele isn't here to join them.

"Alpha Jacob, good to see you." A man named Volvec reaches out a hand to greet me. His pack runs on the very borders of the region, and they have often asked for assistance against the aggressive packs on the other side of it. Like most of the Alphas here, he has salt-and-pepper hair, and is at least a decade and a half older than I am.

"Alpha Volvec," I say as I shake his hand and nod curtly. It's the end of our discussion, and he walks off to greet the next man. The formalities of the Alpha Hunt are always boring.

Strangely, I find myself missing Ana. She would be making me laugh in the midst of this monotonous bureaucracy, and she'd make me feel at least somewhat normal.

There are a few jokes in my head about all of it, and no one to tell it to. I sigh as I grab a beer from the nearest waiter. Maybe I do have feelings for Ana.

"Hey, Boss, shouldn't you be mingling?" Kimon has approached me from behind, thumping me on the shoulder so hard that some of my beer spills. "It is your event, after all. Should really be getting into the politics and all of that fun stuff."

"I just spoke to Volvec," I answer, but I know Kimon is right. I am not doing my duty as I should be. My mind seems too full to focus on any of the important discussions that will be happening tonight.

"Come on, now," Kimon says, rolling his eyes. "You're being ridiculous."

"Fine." I walk off purposefully towards the first pair of people I see. "I'll do my job."

"Ah, Alpha Jacob." It's Alpha Haran and his Luna, Celeste, from the Zeran pack on our borders. "I've been meaning to speak with you."

"Certainly, I'm sure everyone has," I reply with a fake smile planted squarely on my face. "I assume this is about my guards crossing into your territory a few weeks ago."

At the far end of the room, I spot Derek walking in with Medeia. I feel the ice in my blood and my jaw tightening as he makes his way toward me. It seems like he doesn't even want to greet anyone around him.

"Yes, well, I know you must be aware that it seems like a threat," Alpha Haran says, vying for my focus. I shake my head at myself, deciding that I will deal with Derek as necessary when he reaches me.

"My apologies, Alpha Haran," I sigh. "Those guards were new, and they encountered an obstacle on their usual route. I have no intentions of extending any threats towards you, now, or in the foreseeable future."

"Please ensure that this does not happen again, in any case." Alpha Haran says with a frown. "I was not aware that your guard training is… Less than ideal."

I hear the insult, but Derek draws level with us in that moment, and I have no time to respond. Medeia is right behind him, refusing to make eye contact with me.

"Alpha, may I speak with you?" Derek asks, bowing politely towards me. I know that he is doing it so that the other Alphas do not see a weakness in our armor. If they knew that I was arguing with wolves in my pack, they could use it as a political tool.

Or, possibly, an opening to start a war.

"Are you interrupting a conversation between your superiors, boy?" Luna Celeste says with a derogatory eye roll. "Are you not taught any manners in this pack?"

"Derek, I will call you when I am finished." I keep my voice low and serious when I look at him. "Do not let this happen again."

I notice his wolf straining to snap at me, but Derek casts his eyes down anyway. "Of course, my Alpha. Whenever you are ready."

"Is it because you are young that you are treated with such disrespect?" Alpha Haran does not seem impressed. I hate the elitism that flutters through the atmosphere at this event. The fact that even a simple request can impact my image among the Alphas annoys me even further.

Somehow, I wonder if Ana would have accepted their rudeness. If her wolf would have bowed before theirs. It would certainly have been entertaining if she did not, and I would have liked to see it.

I can't keep thinking of her while I am here. There are important things to do, and I cannot fall for her. Not after what happened.

I shake my head, trying to remain in reality. "Alpha Haran, I hope you are not trying to impose your culture upon my pack. I have full control, and your disrespect might land us in an antagonizing situation. Knowing my alliances in this room, do you truly want to go that route?"

"Of course not," Alpha Haran sighs dramatically. "I suppose we are done here. Run after that little pup, if you must. Come, Celeste, we have other business to attend to."

He walks away with his Luna attached to his arm, and I search through the faces for Derek.

For the last few weeks, things have been tense between him and I. He has been lashing out at me each time that he sees Anastasia with me. I know that it is difficult for him to control himself, but at the same time, my own fury has been building.

A fight between us would be inadvisable at the Alpha's Hunt, however. I decide that I will calmly approach him and discuss it for appearance's sake. Our pack must be strong enough for outsiders not to take advantage of our weaknesses.

"Derek," I say when I find him in the corner of the room. "I assume you know how to behave yourself while you are here and that I do not need to ask you to leave."

Medeia walks away from us. It is obvious that she is not sure that she can remain in control of herself around me. I can feel it in the way that her wolf reacts to my presence, as well. It submits to me, but is anxious and weary as she walks away.

"Of course," Derek answers with a shrug. "In fact, I think that we should make peace between us over everything that's been going on."

My beer is empty. I think that I need more alcohol to survive this whole night.

"Do you want a drink?" I ask Derek, pointing at his empty hands. "I know I do."

"Sure," Derek nods. "But maybe I should get it. You don't want your fancy friends to think that you're serving me."

He's right. Bringing a drink for a friend would be analyzed ruthlessly and endlessly in this room. The vultures would swoop down faster than I could blink.

Derek walks off for a moment and I can sense how tense he is. It's in this moment that I am actually grateful that Ana is not here. I know that seeing Derek and Medeia would make her incredibly uncomfortable.

The probability was also there that Derek wouldn't have been as polite if Ana was here with me. At the same time, I feel that he doesn't deserve to be jealous, especially if we are only together as friends. He rejected her the moment he chose Medeia above her, even if Ana was the one to make it official.

He comes back with a beer for me and one in his hand for himself. I hope that the alcohol will help him stay calm and not increase the aggression that I sense coming from him.

"Peace?" Derek asks, offering his drink for me to clink.

I do so with an awkward smile. "Sure. I don't think that it's healthy for this animosity to continue."

"I need to ask you something," Derek continues. He isn't looking at me, but rather letting his gaze travel across the gathering. As if he doesn't want other people to notice that we're talking about internal matters. Or maybe, he's watching so that they don't impede on it.

"Feel free," I reply, clutching my beer tightly. I am already defensive, and I don't know if I'm going to like his question.

"Do you still blame Ana for Gisele's death?"

Discomfort surges through my limbs. "We're not discussing that in here."

"Alright, then let's go outside." Derek heads for the double doors that lead outside. He's clearly insistent on this topic, even if I meant that I didn't want to discuss it at all.

With trepidation, I follow him through the doors and into the chilly night air. We walk far enough away from the hall that even those with the best ears will not hear us.

Derek stops under a tree, leaning against its trunk. "I can see that you feel more than emotions of friendship for Ana."

"I don't know what you're talking about," I answer, knowing that my nerves are giving me away.

"I'm guessing you don't want to admit it," Derek continues without missing a beat. "Because you still blame her for that little accident."

"Gisele was my mate," I warn, my voice raising. "Don't talk about that tragedy like it's nothing!"

"So it's true." Derek remains calm, and that frustrates me to no end. "You are in love with Ana."

"Even if I did feel something for her," I grit my teeth, unsure why I am being so honest. "I cannot just get over losing Gisele. I loved her, for fuck's sake! She was my world, and she's gone, and if Ana hadn't led her over that cliff, she'd still be here."

I don't even know why Derek is going down this route. He might be looking for weakness to overthrow me, or be genuinely concerned.

I have no way of knowing which it is, and that's a problem. At the same time, the tone that he uses to speak to me is calm and gentle, as if he's truly trying to make me see sense.

"Look, Jacob, you have to know that you're being unfair," Derek answers, still eerily evenly. "It wasn't anyone's fault that the foundation of the cliff edge was unstable. How can you expect Ana to magically have known that? You're blaming her because you feel guilty. But you know, it isn't your fault either."

Even if he's making sense, anger boils up inside of me. I start seeing red. In frustration, I throw my beer as hard as I can against the ground. It shatters loudly, flinging pieces of glass far across the ground.

"If all of that is true, and it's no one's fault, and everything's just fine now," I scream, unable to control my tears. "Then why isn't Gisele still alive? Why is she the one who is dead, and not Ana? Or me?"

I can't continue this conversation. I run off, a storm raging in my heart, two sides of a coin each refusing to give in to the other.