After Thorsbane moved Victoria to his office he calmed down enough to get Pitch under control. Her fear and the infants rage pouring into him had only served to piss his wolf off further. He had finally shut down the shouting match and successfully separated the warring factions of his pack by ordering kole to an extra patrol. He could see why his best friend was upset. He did usually keep him updated on the going ons in the pack, but Titan had no idea Simon would be his mate and had no reason to include him as someone that Kole would be entitled to an update of their standing.
"You four come with me." He said to the four boys and led them to an empty conference room on the second floor. He sighed as they all entered. "Wait here." He said and went to his room to change.
When he returned the four boys were shouting at each other. It seemed that the council of elder alphas representatives had arrived and Hendrecks head stepped up to begin the process of illegitimizing the claim Erle Storm had on his Victoria. "He would sacrifice any of us to save his own hide! Why the fuck should we show him any loyalty?" One with medium brown hair shot at a younger burnette. "Or have you forgotten what happened to Chelsie?"
"Zach this isn't how we do this! You don't sell out your pack!" The younger boy shot back.
"What pack? All I see is a bunch of low life rougues and warriors too fucking weak to do anything about it!" Simon chimed in.
"Simon stop! You know that isn't true!" Zach's younger brother shouted back. "Am I the only one here with any sense of loyalty?"
"No, your not. But when it is misplaced loyalty amounts to nothing." Titan said calmly and everyone looked at him as he took a seat at the table. "Simon, I know this is hard for you. Your changing packs and I get that you want to save your friends. It's difficult enough with out this whole mess we find ourselves in. Why don't you tell the elders what is really happening in the Texas Storm pack."
Simon sighed and launched into a tale of abuse and mistreatment by pack elders and the alpha court. He even gave specific names and dates and by the end of it he was near tears. He cast his eyes down in the heavy silence that followed.
"Simon, was it? You do realize that everything you have told us, condems Alpha Storm and his son to death? They will be executed and your pack will be disbanded. They will either join other packs or will turn rougue."
"Simon is my Beta's mate. I have already accepted him into my pack." Titan stated as the door opened and Thorsbane brought Victoria in. "As for the execution of Erle Storm, I will challenge his claim on Victoria at the ceremony. As is only proper. He won't be walking away alive. I would also like to request that Luna Storm by remanded into my custody instead of sharing her Alpha's fate. She is a victim in the abuse as well."
"How can we know that, alpha North?"
"Last month I had a human friend who was going to help me smugle Luna Annabeth and Victoria across the country to New York. " Simon sighed. I was caught by Erle who killed my friend and proceeded to pump me full of wolvesbane. When his mother tried to stop him Alpha Storm stripped her naked in front of the pack and took a silver tipped whip to her back. He said a woman should never interfere with pack affairs and then sent her to the cells where he let anyone with a mind to rape her. If you don't think she is a victim in all of this than you're wrong." Horrified silence followed his statement. How could anyone treat their mate like that. Titan felt Pitch's rage and clenched his jaw to try keeping him undercontrol. But it was not nearly enough.
The sound of the table breaking in half had everyone leaping back and the door burst open as fifteen of his strongest warriors charged in. He felt the sedative dart pierce his neck and howled in rage as he turned on the man that shot him. The sedative was fast acting but in the face of his rage it only served to slow him down and blur his vision. "Everyone out!" A man's voice bellowed close by. He shifted, his canines lengthening, his snout taking shape, and his jet black fur that moved like smoke growing.
"Nightmar." He heard Thorsbane breath quietly as he attempted to pull a shifting Victoria to safety. Her wispy silver fur flowing as she jerked away from him violently. Thorsbane dropped her and darted out as the two stood facing one another.
It had been so longe since Nightmar had fully shifted. He was massive even by werewolf standards. His fur was black as pine pitch and moved like smoke That stung the eyes. His eyes glowed red like flames as he watched his mate move closer. He growled ominously at her. Not a threat but a warning.
She stopped moving and whined pitifully at him.she was all white except for five black, smokey slashes that ran form the base of her skull down the left side of her neck and left shoulder, all the way over her chest to her right hip. His mark, and his curse. The dark reminder of his unforgivable atrocity. He had marked her tiny body the night before. She was barely larger than any wolf you would find in the woods. Her eyes glowed silver like drifting snow in the moon light and she had a calming aura around her. But he was determined to not have his rage Quailed this time.
She whined at him once again and lifted her paw off the floor. He grumbled and looked away from her as she moved right to him and nuzzled his front leg. Then she layed down on her back with her tail between her legs, covering her most intimate parts. She whined again and he layed down, placing his head on her stomach. Her scent was intoxicating. She smelled of fresh snow in a pine forest just before dawn. Soon he stopped fighting the sedative and slept.
****
She wasn't sure how long they slept like that but it was the best sleep she'd had in a long time. When they woke up it was too a pounding on the door. Nightmar grumbled in annoyance and stood up. His eyes were no longer glowing red. She licked his snout when he stretched out. The door opened and the beta entered apprehensively.
"Are you calm now?" He asked meekly. Pitch growled low and moved away from him. "Look I know you don't think much of me. But you don't need to be such a bastard when I didn't do anything, Pitch. It is almost time for the Luna ceremony. Hendrecks said you wanted to challenge Erle. Take out your rage on that rat bastard not me." Pitch growled again and bit her mark as he stared the beta down. Snow whimpered in pleasure as Victoria moved to the closed off back of her mind.
"Yes I know I get it. She's yours and you can fuck her later. But right now she needs to get ready for the ceremony. Now are we turning this into your ceremony with her or....."
"Rghr!"
"Or not okay." With that he moved out of the door and let Snow slip by him and go towards the stairs that would wrap around to the fifth floor. She huffed when she saw That the door was closed.
"I'm here! I'm Here!" Hannah gasped as she ran up and opened the door. "Dear gods you are stunning." She said as Snow sniffed the scrap of cloth draped over her arm. It was a beautiful shade of blood red. "This? Oh it's your dress. Since you have to be close enough to get sprayed with blood, I figured it wouldn't be completely ruined by that." With that they both made their way up the stairs to the room.