Chapter 1 Two Alphas

• The moon hangs like a silk portrait above the holy grove of the Ordo Luna, her soft light shining down through the canopy of fir trees down upon the carved white marble walls that sheltered the priestesses. A grand mansion, dome roofed, mighty pillars carved with words of obeisance to the Moon Goddess, stood in a clearing far from any urban area, a small dirt road the only path to and from the mansion to the outside world. The mighty mansion has stood for countless millennia, and will stand when all the priestesses within have long gone. Outside, overlooked by the mahogany paned windows of the mansion, is a vast garden, carefully tended and blossoming with various flowers.
• Moon Priestess Eliza stood upon the marble steps that led from the mansion to the garden, dressed lightly in a soft white dress that matched the glow of the moonlight. Atop this dress she wore a deep blue hooded cloak, her face covered in shadow. The cool air drifted past her hood, stroking her cheeks like a comforting lover.
• She felt no comfort, now. Before her two wolf packs stood upon the grass, trampling the midnight dew with their paws and claws. Eliza smelled the bloodlust in the air, chiefly from the two of the largest, most powerful wolves of both packs. Alphas, the leaders of each pack, stood staring at each other, murder plain in their faces.
• How had it come to this? Eliza thought, as she moved down the stairs, silk slippers making no sound as she stepped down to the grass. No violence was allowed on the grounds of the Ordo’s mansion. And yet, here both packs are.
• Eliza stood defiantly between the two wolves as they stared at each other, bloodlust plain on their faces. "You will not fight," she told them, her voice clear and commanding.
• "Why not?" growled Viktor Redclaw, Alpha of the Redclaw pack. He was tall and handsome, with a touch of gray around his fur that only made him seem more distinguished. "He's a traitor to his own kind."
• "You're a monster!" Lucas Redclaw shouted back, his fists clenched tightly at his sides. Lucas was younger than his father, Viktor, but no less muscular and fierce. "I should kill you right now, old man!"
• Viktor snarled and dropped low to the ground, fangs bared. Behind him, the Redclaw pack howled and snarled, ready to defend their Alpha. "You're welcome to try, insolent pup!"
• "You will not fight!" Eliza shouted. "This is holy ground to the Moon Goddess and home to the Ordo Luna. I won't allow this feud here."
• "Then you should have considered that before inviting us," Viktor snapped.
• Eliza didn't flinch, but inside she felt a twinge of fear. She'd been expecting the situation to be tense, but not quite so explosive.
• She met Viktor's gaze steadily, even as it shifted from her to Lucas. The air between them crackled with tension. Eliza took another glance toward the younger male werewolf. He snarled at her threateningly. She ignored him and continued to stare at them, warning them against violence in this holy place.
• A wooden tapping came from behind Eliza. "What a sad day it is," an old, wheezy voice floated through the air, "When werewolves dare to kill on the Goddess' Land. Do they wish to be cursed again, I wonder?"
• Eliza bowed low to her grandmother, who walked slowly with a gnarled cane to support her. The wolves stepped back and bowed as well, right fists placed upon their hearts in a salute of respect. Not even they dared challenge Grand Matriarch Imelda. Eliza could feel their submission radiating off their skin, their postures slumping slightly as the old woman made her way with some difficulty down the marble steps.
• "Greetings, Grand Matriarch," Eliza said formally, though she was, in truth, annoyed. Her grandmother never seemed to trust her to handle anything important alone.
• Her grandmother just nodded at her before turning to look up at the two wolves. "My granddaughter may be young, but she speaks with the same authority I do. And we both speak with the authority of the Goddess."
• Grand Matriarch Imelda, Eliza’s grandmother, was a small woman hunched over under her thick, black, woolen robes. Though she walked with a cane, had wispy grey hair and had eyes covered over with cataracts, she commanded the respect of her station simply by speaking and being present. None, neither human, werewolf or priestess of the Ordo Luna, dared to defy this old woman, except maybe Eliza, in private and when she felt like being a brat to the woman who raised her.
• "I apologize for my rudeness, Grand Matriarch," Lucas growled through gritted teeth.
• "My apologies, Grand Matriarch," Viktor said formally. "It was not my intention to offend anyone here."
• "Then listen to my granddaughter, damn your furry hides. She's wiser than she looks." The Grand Matriarch sighed, and walked to the edge of the garden where a stone bench for viewing the garden sat. She heaved herself up upon the bench with a sigh, and sat patiently, fingers drumming the head of her cane, watching the proceedings intently.
• Eliza turned to the two wolves, satisfied that her grandmother was leaving things in her hands. "Can there be no peaceful resolution? This is a sad day indeed if father and son kill each other."
• "He has already killed his son," Lucas snarled, "That is why we are here. That is why we have gathered today. He should be punished."
• "He challenged me for Alpha!" Viktor snapped back, his temper rising again. "It's not my fault he was too weak!"
• Lucas snarled angrily. "Weak? Richard was your own son! He was only doing it for me! He had no desire to be Alpha!"
• Eliza placed herself between them once more. "Enough! You're both here for the same reason. You've come to claim your right as the true Alpha of the werewolves. We have decided to use the oldest method of choosing an alpha."
• "And what would that be?" Viktor sneered. "Omens and signs, a pack of tarot cards?"
• Eliza put her face closer to Viktor's, smirking up at him. "I was thinking of reading wolf entrails. Maybe yours, Alpha Viktor."
• Viktor's hot breath was on Eliza's skin, making her shiver despite the heat. The tension between them crackled like lightning, their eyes locked on each other's. Eliza licked her dry lips. They stayed there for several moments, neither of them moving. She could hear his heart pounding in his chest, feel the blood rushing through him. If they moved even an inch closer...
• Eliza blinked, and stepped back, fighting to keep her head. She turned to the younger Alpha, Lucas, and approached him. "Have you nothing to say, Alpha Lucas? Or has your father cowed you already?"
• Lucas bared his fangs at her. "Careful, priestess. You're cute. But not that cute."
• Eliza gulped. The younger wolf had a muscular chest, strong, powerful arms and thick legs that rippled with muscle as he shifted in place. His eyes shone gold, his skin glistening in the light of the full moon rising above them. Her mouth felt dry, and her lips parted. Something stirred deep within Eliza's stomach, something she'd never felt before.
• "Well, Eliza?" Imelda called, and Eliza stepped away from Lucas. "Do you know which of them it is?"
• Eliza looked at Viktor and Lucas, who both stared at her silently, not knowing what was happening.
• "I...I'm sorry, Grand Matriarch. I don't know."
• "Know what?" Lucas said.
• "What are you women blabbering about?" Viktor said, as lost as his son was.
• Imelda rose to her feet and approached them, chuckling, the tapping of her cane echoing in the open space. "Oh, take your snouts out of your asses. You can't deny what you are feeling when you look at her." She gestured with her cane at Eliza. "Look at her. Really look. Look at her face, her skin, the shape of her body under those robes."
• "Grandmother!" Eliza scolded, blushing red. She moved her hands unconsciously to pull her cloak tighter around her, aware of the werewolves’ golden eyes traveling across her. She didn’t like that. The idea that both Viktor and Lucas was undressing her with their eyes made her blush, and now was not the time for her to seem weak in front of the wolves.
• "Just look at her," Imelda continued, seemingly oblivious to Eliza’s discomfort. "And search your feelings."
• The wolves eyed Eliza like a piece of meat, and she gulped. Viktor's eyes narrowed, while Lucas' eyes flashed golden. Eliza’s heart beat fast as they both looked her over, and a blush rose in her cheeks. She couldn't help but stare back, comparing and contrasting them. Both were strong, powerful, masculine werewolves in their own ways, and she couldn't deny that she desired them both.
• That was precisely the problem.
• "Fated Mate," Viktor breathed, realisation dawning in his eyes. “You’re my Fated Mate!”