Is It Wrong To Love My StepBrother Alpha Mate?
Chapter 67: Darkridge and Magic

Chapter 67: Darkridge and Magic

Romeo didn’t have to be fully mated to Helena to know just how much the death of the wolves affected Helena.

He’d known her long enough to know that every death would be marked on her soul.

He moved quickly, pulling her off of her seat and onto his lap.

At first, she fought him, not wanting to seem weak to the visiting Alphas.

"The bonds are fresh," one of the visiting Alphas who had been invited to their meeting said. "The fact that the Alpha and Luna are here rather than in their room is a sign of strength."

The other Alphas and their ranked members nodded in agreement.

All of them were older than Romeo and Helena, all more experienced.

Romeo held Helena tight as he slowly stroked her arm as he tried to get her to calm down.

She was vibrating with anger and guilt.

"It’s not your fault," Romeo whispered to her. "Its the fault of those wolves that attacked. This isn’t on you, Helena. You took down so many of those that tried to hurt our pack."

"I could have done more," she hissed. "If you weren’t busy worrying about me you could have taken more on."

"Are you sure?" Romeo asked. "They would still have slipped through, Helena. There is only so much that we can do no matter how strong we are."

Helena whimpered, a sign that she was slowly accepting his words.

He didn’t bother to look up at the other people in the room with them. The only person that mattered right now was his mate.

She was distressed, and he needed to take care of her. He needed her to know that it wasn’t her fault.

After a few minutes, Helena calmed down enough to slide off of Romeo’s lap and settle back into her seat.

She blushed as the others watched them. Romeo knew she was worried about what they were thinking, but he didn’t really care.

"How many injured?" Helena asked as soon as she managed to gather herself. Her tone was strong and steady, not a single sign of her guilt was left, and this made Romeo worry.

"Ten, Alpha," Kade replied. "Nothing serious, mostly scratches. You aren’t even in that count."

Helena nodded.

"Where are the survivors?" Romeo asked.

"In the cells," Kade answered.

"Have they been interrogated?" Romeo questioned.

"The former Gamma is there now with some of the warriors," Kade said with a tentative look. "I gave them the task. I know former Gamma Norris will be more than able to extract answers."

Romeo nodded.

Kade had been surprising him at every turn.

At first, he’d only chosen Kade to be his Gamma due to his fighting ability, but the way he handled challenge after challenge impressed Romeo.

What impressed Romeo even more, however, was how Kade handled Helena.

As Gamma, he would be the one that had to protect Helena, and Romeo knew just how stubborn his mate could be. He knew that if Kade wanted to be Helena’s Beta someday, he would need to learn how to put his foot down with Helena.

"Gamma Norris is a good choice," Romeo said as he voiced his approval of Kade’s decision.

"Do we have any idea on what pack they come from?" Helena asked from Romeo’s side. "Have you asked our guests if any of them recognize the scent?"

It was Neil who answered this time.

"We have, Alpha," Neil answered. "And we might know what pack they are from."

Romeo raised an eyebrow.

This was the furthest they’d gotten into finding out the identity of the pack that kept attacking them.

"And?" Romeo asked.

"Well, Alpha, I’m not sure you’ll believe us," Neil confessed.

"If they know what pack they’re from, then why would I doubt that information?" Romeo questioned as he crossed his arms on his chest.

"Because that pack shouldn’t exist," Neil answered.

"No," Romeo gasped.

Neil nodded slowly.

"From what we gathered, they’ve all been confirmed to be former members of the Dark Ridge Pack," Neil told Romeo. "And according to those that know the scent, it’s still the same."

"That pack was disbanded years ago!" one of the visiting Alphas said, his voice rising a little.

"I know," Romeo sighed, slightly shaking as he realized his past actions had truly come to threaten his present and future. "I disbanded that pack."

"Then how can they still operate with the same scent?" Helena questioned. "Have we ever heard of this happening?"

The room went silent with Helena’s question. It seemed no one knew the answer.

"Dad?" Helena asked, and the former Alpha sat up. "Do you think the elders would know?"

Raul pursed his lips and scratched his chin as he considered her question.

After a few moments, he finally spoke.

"They might," Raul said. "We will have to check, but it’s worth a shot."

Romeo nodded, giving his father permission to proceed.

"There is another thing I find oddly suspicious with all of the attacks," Romeo said as he reached out and held Helena’s hand.

He knew she noticed it too, as a matter of fact, she’d already brought it up during the first attack, but they’d been too busy with everything happening to truly talk about it.

"Our scouts don’t notice the wolves till they are directly in contact with them," Romeo explained. "They start out silent and without a scent, it’s only when it’s too late that they can be scented."

"Do you think—?" Kade asked as his eyes darted between Helena and Romeo.

"Magic," Helena hissed.

"But the Warlocks and Witches have been in seclusion for years," one of the alphas said.

"They’ve been in mourning," Raul said, making everyone look at him.

"What do you mean they’ve been in mourning, Dad?" Romeo asked.

His gut said he already knew the answer, but he needed the confirmation from his father.

He felt as Helena’s grip tightened on his hand, she probably thought the same thing.

"When the heir to the Grand Warlock died, they all went into mourning," Raul sighed.

"Do you think they blame us?" Romeo asked his father as he looked at Helena.

"Either that or they’ve finally come to look for a new heir," Raul said as he gaze landed on Helena.