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“Ronan is your brother. We only want you two to reconcile.” his mother insisted softly. “I know he’s made some mistakes, but you should forgive him. Plus he has alpha blood, if you place him in the Beta position he can regain some of his old candor.”

I stopped just outside, my hand on the cool wood of the doorframe. Through the crack, I saw Rylan standing behind his desk, shoulders rigid. Ronan, the same brother whose ambition had left our parents and Elise in graves. The same one who’d traded secrets to rogues and brought war to our borders. The one who’d murdered us both in another life.

Rylan’s jaw tightened. “This isn’t a discussion. He’s not fit for the position or any position in this pack. His decisions made that very clear.”

I pushed the door open. The conversation cut off instantly. His parents turned, their eyes widening slightly when they saw me. They knew what I was… what I could do.

“What’s going on?” I asked, my voice soft and quiet.

His mother looked at the floor. His father shifted uncomfortably. They knew what Ronan and Candice did to me, and yet they still shamelessly came here.

“Nothing,” he muttered. “Just family matters.”

“Am I not family?”

“That’s not what we meant.” Former Alpha Roland Laurent tries to hurry and correct himself. We both know that’s exactly what he meant. He’s just used to the meek little girl who was bullied, so he turned a blind eye to it.

“Then what did you mean?”

Former Luna Vivienne Laurent hurriedly tries to put on a sweet smile and interjects, “It’s good to see you my dear. How have you been?”

“I’m well, and how are you… Mom. Dad?” I’m enjoying their shift in stance, as I watch them stiffen.

“We’ve been well. Selena, my darling, if you ever need help learning Luna duties or with your Luna duties. Remember, you can always come to me.” There it is, the reason she was being polite to me.

“The tutor that the Former Gamma Vale found for me is very helpful. Thank you for the offer, but no thank you. If anything changes, I’ll keep you in mind.” I say as polite as I can while my Lycan is huffing in my mind.

I don’t like them.

“You don’t have to like them. We should just be respectful because they are Rylan’s parents.”

They left without another word, the tension lingering like a scent. Once they were gone, I turned to Rylan. “Why do they always defend him? I understand defending your child, but enabling his wrongdoings and trying to minimize something he deserves to rot in prison for. It’s just…”

Rylan ran a hand through his hair. “They raised Ronan, but my great grandfather, Great Elder Raphael, raised me mostly,” he said. “He sits as one of the Five Great Elders for forty years. Called my father a numbskull to his face once… I was there.” My mate takes a sip of water and I can feel his heartbreak through our bond. I move around the desk and stand beside him, sliding my hand across his back. His shoulders loosen slightly beneath my palm.

“My great grandfather passed his contacts to me instead. Every ally, every informant. Said I’d earned them.” He looked at the desk. Rylan was quiet for a moment. “Great grandpa used to say that a network built on fear collapses the moment someone stops being afraid. He believed in integrity, building loyalty, building something you and your future generations could be proud of. He is a man of honor. It took him forty years to build his contacts and network and then at the age of fifty five he became one of The Five Great Elders in the magical realm.”

He set down the glass. “He’s been there for forty years. He watched my father inherit the title after my grandfather who he never wanted to be alpha but the laws were different back then. He watched as my grandfather spent a decade calling in favors for the wrong reasons. Watched Ronan do worse. He never said anything to either of them directly. If wouldn’t have mattered if he did. All it would have taught them was to be wiser so they wouldn’t get caught… plus, that wasn’t his way. He just... stopped including them when he networked and when people brought up their names, he said he wouldn’t interfere… He stopped some of their schemes behind closed doors from both the opposing party, my grandfather, father, and Ronan. He’s the one who recommended your father to be Gamma, Former Gamma Ashford, may he rest in peace. Father couldn’t refuse. But inside the pack, people have a way of keeping information from reaching him.”

A faint, tired almost smile. “He returned me to my parents care when I was fifteen right before I had to go to Alpha training.” I reach up and run my fingers through his hair, letting my nails lightly graze his scalp. His eyes close for a second before he continues.

“The morning I turned twenty after finding my mate and returning from alpha training, when Ronan was fifteen, there was a letter on my desk. Every contact, every ally, every informant. All of it.”

“My father only kept his Alpha seat because I was underage. The moment I found Elise, when I was eighteen, that was supposed to change.” A beat. “Then she died. And suddenly my father and Ronan had every reason to keep things exactly as they were, while I was…” He stopped. “While I was otherwise grieving. They sent Ronan to the Alpha training academy.”

My hand moves from his hair to the back of his neck. I step closer until my body rests against his side, then rub slow circles between his shoulder blades. He doesn't have to explain the rest. I can feel it through our bond.

“What about your mother?”

“She was terrified of losing her Luna title, and of any future Luna slipping out from under her control. Elise went so far as to petition the council herself, asking for a neighboring Luna to guide her, or to be sent to the academy. That kind of request is almost unheard of when a current Luna is still living.” He paused. “And capable.”

“So that’s why she favored Candice.”

“Greed and power hungry people can be ruthless. Even to their own pups. But not everyone who came from the nobility is like my parents. Take my great grandpa for instance. He instilled values in me and that’s why I am the man you know today.”

“When the Lycan Council came eight months ago… they didn’t just come because I asked. They came because he authorized it. One of five people in the world who could.”

“That’s why I will find my right hand man. My Beta who is a man of integrity. Who can protect you and the pack if I’m not around. Who can hold his own against my parents, the elders, the council.”