Claiming My Wolf
Chapter 42

~~Logan’s PoV~~

The next morning I meet my dad in the pack house kitchen before dawn.

“Have a big breakfast,” he warns me. “We might be gone for a while and I don’t know how much food they’ll have.”

We’re going to a neighbouring pack for a big meeting with all the Alphas of the other packs who have been affected by the mating problems. Each Alpha has been asked to bring a list of any pack members who died in the week or two prior to when the problem with the mates began. We’ll be reviewing all of them to try to identify who the vessel was and who might have wanted that person dead.

It still isn’t clear how that’s going to help us fix the problem, but at least it’s a place to start.

My dad goes over a few last things with Beta Aldric, who will be in charge of the pack while we’re away, and then we both head out to the car.

My dad’s security team is following us in another vehicle, but in the car, it’s just the two of us. It’s been a while since we were alone in a confined space like this for so long.

“We haven’t really talked about your birthday,” my dad says as we get out onto the highway. “With everything else going on, it’s kind of slipped through the cracks.”

I haven’t really given it much thought either. It’s only a few days away and usually there would be a pack-wide celebration for the next Alpha, to celebrate him gaining his wolf, and also to see if he found his mate. Since we’re unable to put any faith in the mate bond right now, the second part seems kind of pointless.

People will still want to see my wolf though. It’s important for the pack, so it’s important to me.

“We should do it,” I tell him. Normally the Luna would organize this kind of thing though, and I don’t have a clue where to start. “Who’s going to plan it?”

My dad laughs. “I thought maybe you and your friends could. You’ve been spending a lot of time with Sadie lately.”

He’s obviously fishing for information, so I refuse to answer. “That’s none of your business.”

He grins. “Which means there’s some business going on?”

I roll my eyes at this sudden interest in my personal life. “I’m not talking about this with you.”

“Why not?” he asks. “I’m sure I’m a much better source than a bunch of high school boys on how to woo a woman.”

“Woo? Seriously?” What century are we in?

“Court?” he suggests instead, his eyes twinkling with amusement. He’s obviously enjoying this.

“You’re 40, Dad, not 100,” I say, which makes him laugh. “And Sadie and I are just friends.”

“You can’t tell me I’m not old and then pretend I’m blind, Logan.” Once again I just roll my eyes, and he laughs again. “Fine, you don’t have to tell me, but just know I’m here if you have any questions.”

“Questions?” I don’t know what he’s talking about.

“Technical questions,” he clarifies. “How to do certain things.”

I can’t believe we’re talking about this. “I have the internet, Dad. I’ll be fine.”

“Don’t believe everything you see online,” he warns, still chuckling.

Thankfully he changes the subject and we talk about far less personal things for the rest of the trip, but I can’t stop the smile that pulls at my lips when it crosses my mind again. We haven’t had many regular father and son moments in the last year. It’s kind of nice, even when he is being totally embarrassing.

Most of the other Alphas are already there when we arrive, so my dad introduces me to everyone. I’ve met many of them before, but this is the first time I’m taking part in something like this in an official capacity. It’s clear to me how much respect everyone has for my dad, and I want more than ever to make him and my pack proud.

When everyone arrives, we sit down around the large oval table and start going through the lists that everyone brought with them. There aren’t that many deaths in the period we’re looking at, and most of them are obviously natural causes. There’s one accident in the Wild Prairie pack, but the Alpha lays out all the facts and it seems it was genuinely an accident. If someone planned it, they covered their tracks well.

It seems we’re at a dead end, until I remember one other accident that took place. The one that brought Sadie to our pack in the first place.

“Dad,” I whisper to get his attention. “What about Mrs Jennings?”

I see the realization dawn in his eyes too. She isn’t on our list because she technically wasn’t a pack member at the time. But she used to be part of our pack, and she was still a wolf who lived in the area, and her death coincides almost perfectly with the beginning of our troubles.

I already thought the ‘accident’ sounded a little suspicious and now there’s even more reason to think so.

And if Sadie’s mom was the vessel, and the powers got passed down to the vessel’s daughter…

I cover my hand to keep my gasp in. Holy f*ck. Sadie is the next vessel.

She just must not know it yet. Maybe it won’t take hold until she gets her wolf. Will the moon goddess actually appear to her?

The idea of skeptical Sadie coming face-to-face with the goddess almost makes me smile, until I realize one more thing.

If she’s the next vessel, that must be why someone wants her dead.