The Defiant Luna
Chapter 15

Jay-la POV

Jay- la found herself alone in the Alpha Suite when she got out of the shower, it seemed that Nathan had managed to convince the triplets to go downstairs with him for breakfast. It didn’t surprise her, the girls going with hirn, but Nate was not here, seems he had also been willing to go with his father. That could only be a good thing. He was going to come around.

She was mind- Inked by her father, Jodi, to ask her to please come and have breakfast with them, to at least go over and talk to them about what had happened. He understood that she was upset with them. Didn’t even blame her, but told her they really did want to sit down and talk about it with her.

She’d sighed, had finally agreed to go and talk te them, had thought about doing it more than once yesterday, didn’t really want to be fighting with her family, not when she’d just gotten them back. Did need to have it out with them so that she could understand or try to understand them and their actions.

Went through the walk- in to find clothes to wear, frowned at the options, everything seemed to be quite formal, blouses and slacks, several pant suits, there were jeans and tee-shirts, in the casual wear. She slid her hand along them looking for anything similar to what she would have worn on any given day he’d seen her in. Nothing she noted in the area of short skirts and silk singlet tops. Wondered if he’d not liked what she’d worn.

Would be working today, pulled out a simple black pencil skirt and paired it with a light blue long sleeved blouse. Found a pair of black 1 inch boots, noted no stilettos in the shoe sections. Seemed he expected her to dress like his mother. That was not going to happen, had her own style and he was going to have to get used to it or they were going to be arguing over it. Or she’d just bloody walk around naked.

Pulled the matching jacket to the pencil skirt on and headed on downstairs, leaving her hair loose down her back. She decided to take the stairs, only to come across Abbey as she stepped onto the fourth floor landing. She was walking with her Mate, Johnny. Jackson’s little brother, they’d not been Mated when she’d left, Abbey had been just 17, though not far off turning 18 at that time, was only 2 years younger than Nathan.

Felt Kora push forward all of a sudden and growl all aggressively at the woman, Johnny shot right in front of his Mate and they saw his eyes glaze over and knew he was calling for back up. Wondered briefly who he’d call for, his Alpha or the packs Beta, his own Brother.

Kora receded. She was just letting Abbey know that she was still displeased with her was all. She was not actually spoiling for a fight right this second, Jay- la turned and continued on down the staircase, stopped about four steps down and turned to look back at Abbey, “You and I are not done Abbey.” She stated, allowing her annoyance at the woman to show through.

“I’m sorry Jay- la.” She heard Abbey state.

It was too little too late in her book “We will have our day Abbey, when you’re not pregnant anymore.” She moved on down the stairs once more, could see both Jackson and Stephen heading up the stairs at full wolf speed, trying to get there to stop her, she guessed, she’d known Johnny had kalled for backup, called his brother it seemed

She glared at them both as they stopped on the stairs right next to her.

What do you think I’m so cruel as to attack a pregnant woman?” She shot at them both a little more than angry that they would think that of her. She’d stopped as had Kora that day, the moment they’d found out she was pregnant.

“I’m not some heartless bitch.” She grated out “That I would attack a fellow pack member for nothing.” She stated, knew they would all be listening to her even Abbey and her Mate would have heard her.

She had no intention of taking a piece of Abbey until she had had that pup and was back to being able to fight.

“Jay-la!” Jackson stated his disapproval showing, of her statement.

“Jackson!” She shot right back at him in that same tone, but didn’t stop walking at all, just continued on away from the woman that would only bring anger to her and Kora every time that they saw her.

Walked herself right out of the pack- house and into the gently falling snow and made her way to her parents’ house on the other side of the pack, it was a nice walk, a little on the brisk side. But it was good to be out in the fresh air.

She knew that everything would be reported to Nathan, her interaction,

Kora’s snarling at his little sister and the words she had used to insult the woman, didn’t particularly care. If he came at her and had a go at her for what she had stated, he wasn’t going to like the mouthful he would get from her for defending that woman, especially if he told her it was wrong of her.

She was now the Luna and he’d been the one that had told her she could punish pack members, had offered her to do it twice now, in fact. That was not her job, but she could if she saw fit. If he took Abbey’s side she might just see fit to do so. Didn’t even know what punishment Abbey had gotten.

Though likely it would have been on the lenient side of things, just like he had been with Michael, where no real punishment had been dealt out at all. The woman looked just fine to Jay- la, was currently walking about freely with her Mate, it seemed as though nothing had changed for her at all.

She walked into her parents’ house after two short raps on the front door, heard her mother call out for her to come inside and found both of them moving about the kitchen, seems they were both trying to prepare her favourite breakfast foods, the kitchen table was set and waiting for her to arrive. “Stop cooking.” She told them “just sit down and explain yourselves to me.” she stated as she sat down, wasn’t really in the mood to eat anything right this minute.

Food was placed in front of her as they both sat down opposite her. “Where do you want to start?” her father asked her, she’d already confronted him somewhat.

“How about, how on this goddess gifted earth we live on. You of all people could let Abbey talk you into letting her hurt mum like that? Your own Mate, who you vowed to protect at all times. Allowed her to purposefully hurt her.”

She watched as both of them sighed, and she saw uncertainty in their expressions, then her mother looked at her and stated softly “It wasn’t supposed to happen, I wasn’t supposed to be injured at all. It was supposed to just be a conversation between you and Brad, he was supposed to convince you to come back here, no harm to me at all. But he didn’t want to be inkolved and I knew, as did your father, if Jodi called you and wasn’t completely freaked out, you’d never believe him. So Brad was the one who had to make the call even though he didn’t want to be involved. You didn’t believe him anymore than you would have Jodi.”

“I didn’t.” she agreed “He’s not very good liar, never was, couldn’t even get you to believe he’d not sneaked out of the house. The guilt of a lie eats at him.”

She saw both of them smile and nodded, she knew she wasn’t wrong. “

When that plan failed.” Her mother stated, “Abbey thought that it would only work if I was actuallv injured. But that injury had to be serious enough for you to sense it and realise it was the truth, was the only way to get you to come Y home to us To the pack.”

“We did not agree right away, baby girl.” Her father told her “I was not in agreeance to it, like you said yourself, did not want Vera injured in anyway.”

“Then how did you let it happen?” she still didn’t understand it.

“The wolfsbane would render vour mother unconscious.”

“I wouldn’t feel anything, didn’t feel anything at all, I also knew I would heal up once Ivy was back with me.”

“And Ivv iust let this happen as well?” could hardly believe it. No wolf wanted to be severed even briefly from its human counterpart. It hurt them.

Left their human completely vulnerable to everything, including dying without them knowing.

“Yes, Ivy wanted you back as much as I did, we did.” She motioned to her Mate.

“We are sorry Jay- la, we just wanted you to come home. When Abbey told us Nathan was your Mate.” Saw him shake his head. “I didn’t believe her, neither did your mother for that matter, it took a lot of convincing I tell you.

After all you’d grown up here, not been mated to him at 18 like you would have, and after what he did to you, sent you away, we were not at all inclined to believe her.”

“Didn’t even bloody know you had been back inside the pack, until right before he was arrested, and for attacking you no less. Jackson and Blaine came right to us before we heard it from anyone else to explain what was going on and about to happen. That Nathan had brought you in, but you were scared and had managed to get away, flee from the pack.” Her mother told her.

“Proud of you for that, I hear attacked Jackson and got away from him. Can still out run the packs Beta, I see.” Saw her father smile “Also took on and killed a wolf without Kora, remembered all your training.” He sounded very proud of her she realised.

Simply nodded it wasn’t particularly something she was proud of, killing another, especially now she knew they’d had no intention of hurting her at all.

Hadn’t known that at the time, might have been different if she had.

Possibly.

“Scared is an understatement of how I felt that day.” Jay- la muttered “I was taken against my will, drugged and bound, separated from my children, believe being brought in to be punished by Nathan. Worst of the worst is what I heard him state when sending someone for me.”

Saw both of them frown, clearly didn’t know that, themselves. “Bloody fool. ” Her father muttered.

“I’m certain he never would have said that or brought you in if he’d known about you having a family.” Her mother sighed.

“We’ll never know, will we.” She sighed herself, ‘I still don’t know d understand how you think it is acceptable to allow yourself to be inured like that.”

“I just wanted you to come home, Nathan and your battle against coming home, Funderstand that a bit more now.” Saw her mother shake her head. « though I didn’t know about the triplets, and only a few here did, it wasn’t spoken of around the pack, kept quiet I think. If he had told us that, none of this would have happened, we, your dad and I would have volunteered to go to you.”

“He doesn’t think much sometimes, though I think that his wolf has a lot to do with it.” saw her father frown “That beast can take control anytime he wants. Seen it more than once myself, not exactly…something you want to see.

Havoc is aptly named, baby girl.”

She’d heard that more than once now, Havoc being able to take full control when he felt like it. Still wasn’t comfortable exactly with that thought, hadn’t seen it yet, well not the angry side of him anyway.

Jay- la frowned at both her parents now. “How could you not know, our battle included him talking publicly about the children?”

“Only those who work in the human world really knew what was going on, and there aren’t that many, most of us do work here in the pack have jobs with offices on the third floor, you know this. Jodi and I don’t really watch a lot of TV, we’d rather snuggle up and read a good book together.”

That, Jay- la did know on both accounts. Her parents even read the same book most of the time, always had seen her parents snuggled up on the lounge together reading the same book, either they liked the same genre or just enjoyed being together.

“We have also steered clear of him, since he sent you away.” Heard a bit of anger in her father’s voice. “I stopped training him and his unit as I’ve already told you, your mother actively avoided him, others would go and get Halley for her at pick up or drop off at the creche, if he was doing that for his mother.

Brad, as well just stands and says nothing, will acknowledge orders with a curt nod, but nothing more. Don’t believe he’s spoken a single word to Nathan, in the entire time vou were gone.”

“What we did Jay- la, we did with the best intentions, just wanted to get you to come home. But you are right. It was unacceptable, we know that now, in hindsight.”

Hindsight, was usually the only way peoples best intentions, that they meant to be right, were revealed to them as wrong and painful to others Blinded by their needs they didn’t see the possible ramifications of their actions.

She stared at them for a long, quiet minute. “Just so you know, I was completely broken, by what you did on purpose, allowed Abbey to do to you, just to bring me in. I couldn’t function, was so overwhelmed that my pain and grief affected the children as well. For them to see me like that,” shook her head, recalled their red- rimmed eves and concern for their own mother “I don’t ever want them to have to see that again, feel like that, do you both understand me?”

“Yes sweetie.” Her mother nodded.

“Good, I’m not exactly in a good place myself, Kora and I…” she didn’t even know how to explain it, what they had felt that night in the restaurant, just knew it wasn’t a good thing “and what you did, did not help us. Just made us worse.”

“Baby girl?”

“I don’t know how to explain how we are or.. I don’t even know what it is” and she didn’t, not really, shook her head “but fear, pain, we’re effected by it more so than others, I can only say it overloads us, we don’t cope with it at all.”

“You were never like that before.” Her mother stated, sounded concerned.

“No we weren’t, I, we, Kora and I. We only know it comes from being afraid for so long, our need to protect the triplets. Something is wrong with our flight or fight response.”

“What do vou mean?” her father asked.

«I don’t know.” She shook her head “I think we’ve been in flight response for so long we don’t know anything else. Makes us…overwhelm easily.” It was the only way she could explain it.

They were all quiet now, saw her father tap the plate in front of her. “Please eat something, baby girl.” She looked down at the plate, it did look good, hashbrowns and a bacon and egg roll. Nodded and stayed to eat with them.

Was headed out the door a little while later when her mother touched her on the arm, “Sweetie, about your Luna Ceremony, do you have a colour in mind?”

Stared right at her now, she didn’t even know there was one being worked on. “When is it?” she asked instead, had no idea about it, knew there was a dress for it, Nathan had picked it out, and bought it himself. It was in the walk-in. Though Nathan had not even announced her to the pack yet, as far as she was aware.

Saw her mother blink up at her, seemed more than shocked by her question

“In 8 days on the full moon.”

“That’s news to me.” She shrugged “The dress he bought that I’m to wear is blue, go with that. I guess that’s what he wants.”

“Jay-la, the day is about you.”

“Well, considering I know nothing about it. I guess it’s about him.” she muttered and turned and walked away as she saw her mother frown deeply. It seemed people were planning things for her, without even asking her what she wanted.

Walked herself back to the pack- house and hunted her children down.

They were in the games room with Luna Darla and Halley, got an introduction to little Halley. She had the same blue eyes, like all of them did, but had Blaines dark hair not Darla’s blonde. She was pretty cute and got along with the triplets, it seemed, very well.

Saw Darla smile right at her, then sighed a little on the heavy side “I’m sorry Jay- la, I thought my son would have told you when the Luna Ceremony was, and that your mother and I were in the process of planning it.”

She shrugged “I guess he didn’t think it was necessary.” Likely wasn’t to him, not from what she’d seen or how she felt.

“He’s just caught up in your Mate Bond is all I’m sure.” Darla smiled at her, was trying to reassure her, Jay- la realised.

Jav-la iust raised an evebrow “Or he wants what he wants. Is used to getting what he wants all the time.” He’d told her as much last night

“Sweetie, I’m certain it just slipped his mind.”

“And I’m certain, you will go and tell him to tell me now.” Looked at her and knew she would “I’m going to go and work on Rae Rae’s prenup, is she with Michael?”

“Yes they are together.”

Jay-la nodded, walked over to the triplets and smiled down at them, even Nate was playing with the other children today. That was a good thing to see.

Interacting with the other pack kids. “How was breakfast?” she asked them.

She knew that they would all have been allowed to eat whatever they wanted to. Got to see them all smiling up at her and tell her all about what they’d eaten and all the choices they had to chose from, seems they had enjoyed eating breakfast in the pack dining room. It was good to hear.

She asked if they wanted to come upstairs with her or stay down here and play with Halley and the other children, wasn’t surprised they wanted to stay here than be up in the suite while she worked. Left them with Darla, who said she’d watch them, she could see the two omegas standing by as well, likely Halley’s nanny’s for when Darla was busy.