Astor’s Pov
The low, venomous laughter and words from the kitchen had been like a punch to my gut. Each cruel laugh they aimed at Faith twisted something inside me. I’d heard enough to know they’d been humiliating her, laughing at her, making her feel small. And then I saw her face,the way her shoulders slumped, the unshed tears in her eyes. It was a sight that made my wolf roar. Fury, cold and sharp, ignited in my chest.
I took a deep breath, letting my presence expand, forcing the air out of the room. The chattering stopped abruptly. Silence, thick and heavy, fell. My voice, low but laced with steel, cut through it. “Everyone. To the main hall.
Now.”
A shiver went through the pack members nearby. I didn’t need to yell. They
knew that tone.
“George, Liam, I want every single pack member in the main hall within five minutes,” I mind–linked my Beta and Lead Enforcer. “No exceptions. This is not a request.” My command echoed in their minds, carrying the weight of
my anger.
I turned to Faith, her head still bowed slightly. My heart ached for her. She was trying so hard to be strong, but I could see the cracks. I stepped closer, closing the distance between us. Her eyes, shining with unshed tears, finally met mine. I gave her the most reassuring smile I could manage, a silent promise that everything was about to change. She flinched a little, unsure, but I gently took her hand in mine. Her fingers were cold. I squeezed them, a silent message: You are not alone. I am here.
As we walked towards the hall, I felt a familiar, irritating presence. Alice. She stepped into my path, a simpering smile on her face, trying to catch my eye.” Astor, darling, are you alright? You look upset-”
Chapter 40
I didn’t even break my stride. My gaze remained fixed forward, my hand firmly holding Faith’s. I walked straight past Alice as if she were a piece of furniture, not even bothering to acknowledge her presence. Her voice died in
her throat, a frustrated gasp the only sound she made. My complete indifference was a clear message to her, and to anyone else paying attention. My priority, my only focus, was the woman whose hand I held.
The great hall buzzed with nervous energy when we arrived. Pack members, from the oldest elders to the youngest adults, were already gathering, hushed and expectant. My mind–link had worked. As Faith and I entered, a ripple of silence spread, every eye snapping to us. I could feel the tension, the fear, the curiosity.
I stopped in the center of the hall, my posture rigid, my eyes sweeping over the faces of my pack. There were the women from the kitchen, looking pale and suddenly very small. Good.
“I have made it clear, time and again,” I began, my voice steady, carrying to every corner of the room, “that my mate will not be disrespected. Yet, today, I witnessed it with my own eyes.” My gaze sharpened, landing directly on the group of women who had been in the kitchen. “I witnessed my mate, the Luna of this pack, being humiliated by some of you in the kitchen.”
A collective gasp went through the hall. The women I was looking at paled further, some dropping their eyes to the floor.
“Because of this,” I continued, my voice gaining a dangerous edge, “every single one of you who was in that kitchen, participating in or allowing that disrespect, is hereby stripped of their positions. Any duties you held, any authority you thought you had, is gone. You are lucky,” I added, my voice dropping, becoming a menacing growl, “because everyone in this pack knows what happens when someone shows disrespect to Faith. Do you remember Chase? My Gamma? The man who was like a brother to me?”
I let the question hang in the air, the memory of Chase’s banishment a stark
warning. No one spoke. They remembered. They remembered the fury I had
unleashed, And they better not forget
“He was banished,” I stated, answering my own question, “because he disrespected my mate. He lost everything. Consider yourselves fortunate that you are simply losing your positions today. But let me be clear: this will not be happening again. Not to Faith. Not to my Luna. From this moment forward, if you have a problem with her, if you wish to speak ill of her, if you wish to disrespect her in any way, you will first have to face me. You will face your Alpha. And I promise you, that will be a meeting you will regret for the rest of your days.”
The silence that followed was absolute. No one dared to move, no one dared to speak. My message was understood.
Then, a brave, or perhaps foolish, voice broke the stillness. It belonged to a younger pack member, barely out of her teens. “Alpha Astor… is it true that Alice is having your baby?”
The air in the room seemed to crackle. All eyes swiveled from me to Alice, who stood frozen, her face a mixture of happiness and defiance.
I took a moment, letting the question hang. Then I looked directly at the young woman who had asked, my expression unreadable. “Yes,” I said, my voice flat, devoid of emotion. “It is true. Alice is carrying a pup that is biologically mine.”
A murmur rippled through the pack. Faith’s hand in mine tightened almost imperceptibly, and I squeezed back, a silent anchor.
“But let me be equally clear,” I continued, my voice ringing with absolute finality, “that fact means absolutely nothing to me. Emotionally. Spiritually. That baby does not, and will not, change who my mate is. It does not change who I am. I messed up,” I admitted, my voice hard with self–loathing, “I made a mistake. A colossal, unforgivable mistake. But that mistake does not mean
that I value my mate, Faith, any less. It does not mean my loyalty, my devotion, my entire being, is not here and hers alone.”
My gaze swept over the pack once more, ensuring every person understood. “The only person in this pack, or in this world, that I owe an explanation to for that mistake, is my mate, Faith. And I will give her that explanation, in private, at a time and place of her choosing. But it is not for any of you to question, or to judge, or to use as an excuse to disrespect the woman standing beside
me.”
I looked down at Faith, whose head was now lifted, her eyes wide, searching mine. I saw a flicker of hope, of understanding, and a deep, raw pain.
Without another word, I squeezed Faith’s hand once more, a powerful reassurance. Then, I turned, keeping her hand held firmly in mine, and we walked away from the stunned silence of the hall, towards the private chambers that awaited us. The pack parted like the Red Sea, their eyes following us until we were out of sight. My message, I knew, had been delivered. And for Faith, I would burn the world to make it stick.
