Mated to the Alpha Twins novel Chapter 121

Two Months Later
One deep breath, and then another. “Relax, Aurora.” Zayne’s flat voice sounded from a few feet in front of me, icy eyes pivoting across the lounge to meet my own.
Ever since his father’s d***h, there were moments where he seemed carved from ice. The only one able to thaw him was currently waiting along with the rest of the crowd. “Whether they know it or not, they’re looking for a leader, someone better to replace Marcus.

Speak with confidence and they’ll listen.” “He isn’t wrong.” Brandon Fox shrugged. The only similarities between Jaspar and his eldest son were the piercing eyes and lazy grin. Everything else, including the golden hair, came from his mother. “Still, she is not wrong to be worried.
There are some that won’t be happy with this decision.” Isaiah chimed in, the voice of reason as he stood second in line. “What do you think?” I asked the last member of the High Table, who stood at the front of the line. Isabella Garcia was only two years older than me, from a large pack that took up most of New Mexico and Arizona.

Her warriors had been too far away to aid in the battle, but her pack had its own history with helping white wolves. As the sole child of an Alpha, she was beside herself when I sent the invitation. She swallowed heavily, eyes still wide and nervous. “I think if he wants to make up for his family’s mistakes, this is the best place to do that.” Her voice was strong, her thick accent almost musical.
“Alright, is everyone ready?” Carrie Heald, an event planner from Garrett’s pack barged into the room, her wheat hair pulled into a tight bun. He had hired her two months ago, when I decided to take my place at the High Table. Sticking from the back of her bun was the pen she would continuously lose. Even with her frazzled state, she was utterly amazing at her job.
Once the twin’s and our family decided on a safe location for the High Table’s headquarters, Carrie took control of orchestrating the entire event. The concert hall had been renovated just a year ago and was the perfect size. Our warriors scoured the building while Carrie transformed it.
“Alright, Isabella you’re going to head out first. Count to thirty and then go.” Carrie grinned encouragingly, nudging her to the set of doors that lead downstairs and to the stage. “Aurora you’re last.” As Isabella descended the stairs, I took a steadying breath. “I hear your Luna ceremony is this weekend.” Brandon murmured over his shoulder, his grin mirroring Jaspar’s.
His voice held an air of mock offense, “Is there any particular reason I didn’t receive an invite? Are we not friends, Aurora?” Isaiah followed soon after, my heart thundered with each step I took. “I didn’t know you’d want to go.” I snorted at him, feeling some of my nerves skitter away at his teasing voice. “I’m twenty-three and unmated,” He smirked, and I swallowed heavily as it was now Zayne’s turn. “Of course, I want to go.” “Consider yourself invited.” I said breathlessly, doing my best to return the encouraging smile he threw my way. As Brandon exited down to the stage, I headed towards the doors as well.
“Deep breaths, Aurora.” Carrie clasped my sweaty hand in her own. It wasn’t her words that gave me the strength to press forward and follow the other table members, but the confidence in her emotions. This woman I had met a handful of times, had spoken to only once during her task of setting everything up, believed in me wholeheartedly. I emerged through a set of double doors, squaring my shoulders as I was met with a small crowd of reporters. Velvet ropes and dark clothed warriors from all three of my packs served as the barrier between the reporters and me. Their questions thundered in my ears, almost as loud as my thundering heartbeat.
Keep your head straight and answer no questions until you’re seated on stage. That’s what Carrie had told me, and I followed her advice as I lifted my chin and headed downstairs. I could feel several guards at my back. They were looming presences that felt a little overbearing at times, but the twin’s insisted they were a necessity. My stomach dropped as I descended the stairs, feeling the weight of the crowd and their emotions nearby. Tugging at the edges of my mind as they loomed closer and closer.
The sound of my own heartbeat dulled, replaced by silence so deafening my ears began to ring. My footsteps pattered against the smooth floor; the crowd grew quiet. White-hot lights were bright as they illuminated the stage, and I made my way across to stand at the center, lodged between Zayne and Brandon. A million thoughts were streaming through my head, the most concerning were the loudest.
Could they see how frazzled I was? How entirely new this all felt? Did they know how desperately I wanted to fix things? That when the nightmares continued to claim me, I’d stay up all night searching for solutions? ‘You look as calm as ever, doll.’ Alec’s smooth voice trickled into my thoughts, sanding down the harsh edges of my panic. ‘Like a natural born leader.’ ‘The only ones who can tell how you’re feeling is us.’
Kade chimed in, his voice a bit raspier than his brothers. I strained my eyes to peer out into the crowd, immediately finding where my family and mates sat. Much like in Marcus’s old council room, we divided the seating in the concert hall to fit the various packs that wished to attend. All the Alpha’s and Luna’s were seated towards the front. Each were given a microphone to speak, so that their voice could be heard as well. They would remain off while the five of us were speaking, but it was a way to give the smaller pack’s a voice. It was the twin’s dark stares that kept the sea of emotions from barreling over me.
There were so many people, and nerves were still raw from the devastation and change that rocked the world. I stood tall, and braced myself against the torrents of wariness, indecision, and worry. A whisper of hostility hovered in the air, but the desperation for any semblance of peace was far more vicious ‘Will they revolt?’ Kade asked softly, his voice making the hairs on the back of my neck lift. I gave the barest shake of my head before stepping forward, leveling my eyes with the crowd like Carrie instructed. “I understand that many of you are wary.” I began, hardening my nerves until my voice came out steady and smooth.
My expression was one of compassion and understanding, something Marcus was incapable of showing. “I will not speak for Zayne Novak, but he does have the full support of the High Table. All I ask is that you listen to what he has to say.” “There is no apology I can make that will give back the lives lost, or the pain that has been endured. I am not here to ask for your forgiveness.” Zayne’s face was smooth granite, his voice heavy even though it lacked the snowstorm of emotion he currently felt. I couldn’t help but zero in on where his eyes were straying, to the redhead in the front row. Something had happened recently between my best-friend and her mate.
It sent Zayne’s emotional wall crumbling down, but still he hid the rawest and darkest parts of himself. He had fled back to his pack last week, and Tori had been furious ever since. One thing I could feel for certain, no matter how hard he tried to hide it. He had fallen in love with my best-friend. “My fear condemned thousands of wolves, and it is a debt I’ll never be able to repay. Those I rescued behind Marcus’s back were a mere shadow of what I could have saved, should I have stood up to him.
I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to fix the damage my family has wrought.” There was little sympathy for Zayne, but he hadn’t asked for any to begin with. The grim determination on his face followed by the dark shadows around his eyes soothed some, but others would prove harder to convince. The five of us spent the next hour discussing the changes that would be implemented immediately, both within our respective packs and throughout the country.
It had taken us all a month to plan and agree on our plans, but what we had produced was just the beginning. Before the new year, all the freed white wolves would be successfully implemented into whatever pack they happened to choose. Children would enroll in schools; parents would receive jobs and educations. Houses will be filled, and families given the necessary aid to help them begin healing. It would never be enough, but their future generations will no longer fear the ghost of Marcus Novak. The five of us were opening our borders to all white wolves in search of a place to call home. There were even a few that chose to remain in Zayne’s pack, those who sided more with Zayne and the difference he had made. My favorite change of law, which happened to be one of the largest in our history, took time and planning.
No longer would Luna’s be prohibited from taking a seat at the High Table. No longer would only daughters of Alpha’s forfeit their rights to their pack, the people they had been raised beside and taught to love. Garrett and Julian had broken that rule when first meeting me, because gender was not nearly as important as the wellbeing of their people. It had taken five minutes of convincing to sway Zayne, and the threat of Tori spazzing on him. There was no way she’d stay quiet if he voted no on this.
Brandon agreed with a cheeky grin that made me roll my eyes, and Isaiah was more than happy to give strong Luna’s like Mera a chance at making history. Isabella gave the fifth vote, and the law was passed. Towards the end, we allowed the Alpha’s and Luna’s in attendance to ask questions. Some were sharp of tongue and narrow eyed, but none seemed in the mood to fight. Their questions were all based out of genuine concern. Even the packs that hid and cowered had a chance at speaking.
One Luna in particular stood and spoke softly into her microphone. Her hair was cropped short and the fine lines on her face led me to assume she was in her early forties. Her eyes were a warm shade of brown, brimming with curiosity and hesitance. “Hello, Luna Aurora. I hope you take no offense to my question, but where are the previous members of the High Table? Sebastian Stan, Brayton Cliff, and Nico Deville? I am only asking because I do not see them in attendance tonight. It is not strange of me to wonder how these new packs grew in size, especially after the downfall of so many large houses.” I took a shallow breath, repeating the words of Alec and Kade as they trickled through my head.
Their warm stares on my skin chased away the nerves, giving me the confidence to speak clearly. “Sebastian Stan was rumored to have fled his land due to an uprising. His remains were found two weeks ago, still within his pack’s territory.” My voice turned dark, and I remembered when his body had been found. His own people had torn him apart and scattered the remains. “Brayton Cliff and Nico Deville have both been removed from their position and are currently undergoing extensive investigations to ensure no white wolves are unwillingly living on their lands.”