Shadows of Destiny

20 Shocking and Unwelcomed

-Leo-

I received Tamia’s letter and was shocked

that the wolf Lord would help her send it.

Tamia was a loveable woman; I could imagine what she was doing there. The letters made it clear that

she was okay, and I felt a bit jealous that she was happy without

I wasn’t happy. My heart was still broken, and I had lost a part of me when I released her.

I wonder who was helping her through the difficult moment.

Amanda had moved back into the house and was gradually busy furnishing the living

room.

I did not let her move into the room I shared

with Tamia.

I wanted to hold on to her scent until time

faded it away.

Rebuilding the damage caused by the attack had taken most of my time, and I had stopped attending

the regional meetings.

I received two summon letters that I did not

honour.

I could not help but blame Kyle for what happened to me.

People might argue that my marriage was over before the attackers came, but I was trying to fix it. 2

I felt stuck. Even though Amanda and I were fated and my feelings for her were strong, I felt stuck. I

felt fate had stolen my free will and fucked with my life; the Wolf lord took Tamia from

I wished her the best, but I prayed that one day, soon, the Wolf Lord would release her, and she will

come home. I will be waiting

with open arms, loving her with all my heart, and never making her cry again. It was a promise I made

to myself.

I was sitting in my office when Casper

brought me a parcel. It was huge, and a letter was attached to it.

“Who sent it?” I asked my Beta, and he looked worried.

“The Wolf Lord,” he said, and I saw blood on the parcel. I became scared it was Tamia. My hands were

shaking when I began to undo the strings that secured the box.

I opened it and saw the head of an eastern warrior. As gory and sad as the sight was, I was relieved

that it wasn’t Tamia.

I opened the letter.

“Alpha Leonardo Albert. I was kind to receive your letter and deliver it to your ex- wife. I was kind to

allow her to send you a letter so you would have closure. I believe

you are an honourable man, but I have

issues with the east now.

Your region teamed up with Alpha Devin and sent men to attack my sanctuary in the

north to abduct Tamia from me.

They came with poisoned gas and tried to eliminate my people.

This is to let you know that I won’t sit idly by while your people insult me. I am sending you this parcel

because I know you are in charge of the east.

Let this be a warning. I will not take another attack lightly.

I know your packs are yet to recover from the last one, which makes this a stupid move.

The only reason I won’t strike now is

because of Tamia.

I know she will be mad if I hurt you, but do

not push me, Alpha Leonardo. Whatever you

have going on with Devin should remain between the east and south. Tamia belongs

to me now. She is mine; I will see another

attempt to steal her as an act of war.

I won’t be taking trophies, and I won’t accept peace offerings.

I will burn the entire east to the ground. Sylvester Volkov.” It read, and my hands

shook.

I could feel his rage from reading the letter. I also noticed that he was possessive of Tamia.

I did not need to guess. He had made exceptions for her, which was against his character. He might

have fallen for her.

I did not understand why Devin would send men to the north to rescue Tamia; I also wondered who

gave him the eastern soldiers he needed. Missing the meeting had left me

in the dark.

It was time for me to stop grieving over my loss and be the leader I was supposed to be. It was time to

take the reigns.

I looked at my Beta.

“Casper, do you know of the attack?” I asked

him.

“I just heard, Alpha. Apparently, Alpha Max wanted Avery back, and teamed up with

Devin to get Avery and Tamia back,” he said, and I became angry.

“Without my consent? Who the fuck do they think they are? I am in charge of the east. I

feel insulted,” I said, and Casper was silent.

“Call a meeting and invite that bastard. Devin. I want to know why he and Max will do this to us.” I said,

and Casper left.

I wondered what gave Devin the right to risk

a war over Tamia.

They met once. Danced once, and he

suddenly felt he could.

Was he trying to say I did not love her

enough to go after them?

Tamia gave herself up so that people would

live.

If my life was all that was at stake, I would have risked it all to get her back, or died

trying.

I called Kyle immediately because he was the

one that brought Devin into our lives.

“Hello,” He said, sounding drunk on the

phone.

I did not know how he was drinking, but I

didn’t bother to ask him why.

“Do you know about the attack?” I asked him, and he was silent.

“I just heard about it. I can’t believe Max and Devin will put us in this situation. I am

afraid right now, Leo. I have nothing to give

the Wolf Lord if he retaliates,” he said, and I

could understand why he was drinking.

“We better hope he doesn’t because he

doesn’t plan to take anything. He sent me a message that he would burn the east to the

ground,” I told him, and he exclaimed.

“We need to prove to him we had no hand in

it,” Kyle said.

“And Max?” I asked, and he sighed.

“He dug his grave,” he said

“But you were the one that brought Devin to the east. You made us forge the alliance with the

scumbag; since then, we have had

nothing but trouble. The wolf Lord never

bothered with us, and we never looked for

his trouble until we made the alliance with

the south,” I said.

“What are you saying, Leo?” He asked, and I sighed.

“If you said you didn’t stage the first attack, then who do you think will do it on your behalf?” I asked,

and he was silent. I knew he understood what I was driving at, but he was too afraid to say it.

“Do you think that Bane is trying to get us in trouble with the wolf lord?” he asked, and I laughed.

“I am not sure, but I suspect he has a hand in it. Hence why he will attack the north by joining forces

with Max. We both know he

knew he could not win. This is the wolf lord

we are talking about.” I said, and Kyle was

silent.

“I will see you at the meeting tonight. Come sober,” I told him and hung up.

After talking to Kyle, I thought of my

deductions.

Bane was smart, it was supposed to be a get in get out mission, but Max was his fail- safe. If his

warriors do not succeed, the south won’t be the only region implicated. The east will be implicated, too,

forcing us to join forces and go after the north if the Wolf

lord tries to retaliate.

I hoped for all our sakes I am wrong because if that is the case, we are fucked. I fought the northern

warriors, and they were too skilled

and strong.

On my way home, my phone rang, and I

answered; it was Max.

“Leo, I am sorry,” were his first words.

“It sounded like a good idea at then. He

didn’t tell me he was going for Tamia. He just said he would help me get my Avery

back.” Max said, and I felt it was weird that

he would want Avery back after all he made

her endure because of Michelle. I heard he

used to beat Avery. Why will he want her back so badly?

“I thought you wanted her out of your lives? ” I asked him, and he sighed.

“I want her back. My life hasn’t been the

same. It’s been almost a month, and everything is falling apart. All Michelle is good for is fucking, and

she has a terrible attitude. I am beginning to suspect the

things she said Avery did to her were lies.

She just wanted my wife out of the picture. I regret everything. I should have given them Michelle. I am

doing my job and Luna’s duty

now. Michelle is so dumb, and I am mad fate

will join me with such a useless piece of shit.

You know the fucked up part, I can’t hate

her. Whenever she is with me, I feel like a

fool. My wolf just gives in. I should have

risked being weak and rejected her.” he said,

ranting, and I sighed. 1

“Still, you had no right to go after her now. The Wolf Lord is mad,” I said, and he growled.

“I did not care,” he said, and I growled back.

“I care. I fucking care, damn it. People died last time; how many more are we willing to sacrifice? Let it

go. I am sure she is fine. The

man is treating them well,” I said so he

could be at peace.

“And how do you know this? That man is a

sick fuck. Do you know what the north does to Lunas they capture?” he said, and I sighed.

“He is different, Max. Tamia sent me a letter saying she was fine. If anything was wrong, she would

have found a way to put it in the letter without letting them know. I am sure Avery has accepted that she

belongs to the north and moved on. Do the same,” I said,

and he was silent. 1

“See you at the meeting tonight, and make sure Devin shows up,” I said and hung up. I

returned to the house, and Amanda was weeping at the table.

I knew her blackmail tactics, and I was

numb to them. So I walked to my bedroom. I

showered and dressed, then returned to the

living room to wait for the meeting.

“Leo,” Amanda said, coming to join me on the couch with puffy eyes.

“You haven’t touched me since I returned. I

did not do anything to deserve this.” She

said, and I looked into her eyes. She was sad, even though I knew it wasn’t her fault. I was

still in mourning. Black wanted to comfort

her, but I held back.

“Give me time,” I said gently and kissed her

forehead.

No matter how mad I was, I couldn’t hate

her. She remained with me on the couch

until it was time for the meeting. I did not

want her to follow me, but she insisted, so I let her. I waited for Amanda to get dressed,

so I knew I would arrive at the meeting late.

When I arrived at the meeting hall, there was a full-blown argument, and I realised Max was trying to

fight Devin, claiming he had

tricked him. 1

“You wanted Avery, and I wanted Tamia. How did I trick you?” Devin said, stating what transpired. I

walked up to him and tried to punch him, but he caught my fist.

“You won’t hit me twice, Alpha Leo. I will give you your respect because of our alliance, but do not try to

hit me again,” He warned me, and his yellowish wolf eyes

flashed.

“The Alliance is off. Go back to your region. You have done enough,” I said.

There was no need to have a lengthy discussion. They had admitted what they had done, and

everyone knew what might ensue. The only thing left was a response to their

actions.

Devin looked around, wanting to see if they shared the same opinion, but no one

1

countered me.

“I may not be as famous or as powerful as you are, but this is my region, these are my people, and I

am the head. Kyle made that alliance with my permission. I am breaking it tonight,” I said, and he

nodded, accepting

defeat.

“You will regret this, Alpha Leo. The north can’t be trusted. The Lord of the north is sly and wicked, and

he will come for all of you when you least expected it,” He said, and I laughed.

“What does taking Tamia from the north have to do with conquering it?” I asked him, pointing out the

stupidity of his words.

He looked at me funny.

“It wasn’t a crime trying to get Tamia away from that bastard. She deserves better, Leo.

You might not feel anything for her, but she deserves better than being a fuck toy for the wolf lord and

his officers,” He said with pain and anger, and I could swear he was in love.

with Tamia. I had never seen Devin break

character before. What the fuck was his

problem? They only met once.