Chapter 123 - Artem - Getting To Business
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Artem
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The introduction of the Alpha King and the Luna Queen had been quite a bit more exciting than I had expected it to be. I never would have guessed that my little Star would find family among the group that had come to visit us. Still, I was just glad that things seemed to be going smoothly right now. Not to mention that the Alpha King and Luna Queen were both really nice, as far as I could tell.
Once the excitement died down a little I invited everyone inside. With everyone combined there were quite a few of us so we had decided to settle in the largest meeting room on the first floor. There were four on the first floor alone but none of the other rooms would hold more than fifteen people.
I had instructed the recently hired staff to bring refreshments to the room after we were all seated. The items they brought included water coffee, juice, and various plates covered in small cookies and cracker-like things that the new chef had made. It all made for quite the display and array. Also, this particular meeting room came equipped with a fully stocked bar.
"Can I get anyone a drink?" I asked them all as I still stood near the empty fireplace.
"I\'ll just have some water." The Luna Queen smiled at me.
"Same." The women who had been introduced as Juniper, Acacia and Lana asked for the same. The other three women asked for coffee as did Griffin. Gabriel, Vincent, Paul and Cedar asked for water. The Alpha King was the only one who took me up on the offer of alcohol.
"I\'ll have something strong, whatever you have that you suggest." He framed his request ambiguously so as not to offend me if I didn\'t have the drink he asked for.
I wanted to prove to him that I have the good stuff so I prepared a drink for him quickly and then offered it to him with a smile. He grabbed the drink and took a sip. The smile that I got in return told me he had enjoyed the taste.
"What is this?" There was curiosity in his voice now.
"I call it a hidden paw. I got a little good at mixing drinks back when I was in college." That earned me a robust laugh as the Alpha King held his stomach.
"I\'d say you got a little more than a little good." His words gave me a sense of pride and satisfaction. "I just hope you managed to graduate with how drunk you must have been."
"Who said they were all for me." I smirked at him.
"Good point. How many people did you cause to fail?"
"I plead the fifth on that one." This banter between us felt easy, light, and natural. I was quite enjoying how this visit was going.
Once everyone had their drinks and I finally sat down, next to Star, it was time to get to business. I looked around briefly at the group and saw that the man Gabriel had sat out of politeness but he and two of the females were itching to stand. Were they guards or something? I also saw that the witch, Leelin, had sat close to Doc. And lastly, the man Griffin and his mate Lana were sitting close to Star\'s Grandpa, Daniel. I was glad that there was a connection between us all that would make it that much easier for us to cooperate.
I was just about to begin the conversation but it seemed that Star was a little more eager than I was.
"I want to thank you all for coming. I know that all of us here would greatly appreciate any and all assistance that you can offer us."
"Of course. It is our job after all. Being the Luna Queen means that the entire world of shifters is nothing more than an extension of our pack. Furthermore, as the Queen of the Witches and Warlocks it is also my duty to come here and help to fix the havoc that one or two unsavory individuals among my people have caused."
"I\'m sorry, did you say the Queen of the Witches and Warlocks?" I couldn\'t help myself, the question slipped out before I could stop it.
There was a smile that spread across the Alpha King and the Luna Queen\'s faces. They were quite enjoying seeing the shock on our faces.
"Yes, my Trinity is quite special." The Alpha King, Reece, looked into his mates eyes with a look so filled with love that it was easy to tell that fate was giving them something truly special.
Following that they worked together to tell us the story of how the woman sitting before us, Trinity Gray, went from being a girl who thought she was half human to being half wolf and warlock with a double blessing from the Gods that gave her sovereignty over two different types of people. It was quite the riveting story, that was for sure.
"There, now that you know my story, and hopefully trust me, can you tell me about the issue that you are all experiencing right now?" The Luna Queen asked with a smile on her face. She was definitely a good person, I could sense that in the way she acted, the way she smelled, and just by what my gut was telling me.
"Well, we currently have several boys that need help." Star started to explain everything. This was starting to become a meeting of the Lunas instead of a group meeting.
Star explained what had happened with the warlock, Edmond, all those years ago. She had learned the full story from many different perspectives and was providing a detailed timeline of events that explained the histories.
Following the information about the pack\'s background she moved onto what happened to the boys over the last several years. She explained how many of them have died at the hands of their abusers. Though I noticed she left out the details of her past.
Finally, Star began to explain what happened here last month. She told them how the boys had been screaming in pain after collapsing. She told them how the boys slipped into comas shortly after that and they have yet to wake up.
I could tell that the group that had come to help had not been expecting everything that had been revealed. They were looking at us with their mouths gaped open and their eyes filled with shock.
"I see there has been much misfortune for this pack. And it seems that Edmond was just as much of a thorn in your sides as he was in ours." Alpha King Reece spoke with a hint of formality in his voice.
"I\'d say that\'s an understatement Fi-, Reece. I would say that dear old dad was a massive dick to these good people. And I\'d say that some of his friends he sent our way were left overs from when he was here." I didn\'t understand all of what she was saying there, but I had just received confirmation of what I had been told before. The Luna Queen, Trinity, was Edmond\'s daughter. That was still a shock to think about.
"Please, tell me if there is anything else we should know about." The man named Gabriel spoke next.
"Well." Star looked uncomfortable and turned to look at me. I could tell that she was not ready to relay her story herself. She wanted me to do it instead.
"The boys weren\'t the only ones imprisoned. There was one more person that I rescued from a life of torture."
"Who?" The Alpha King looked at me seriously, like he might already know but needed to hear it anyway.
"My mate."
I then proceeded to tell them all that had happened from the night that Kent ran into Star in the woods and the rescue mission. I skirted over the issue at the beach house, but I had told them about the attempted kidnapping at the mall and the kidnapping when she was driving home with Chay. I explained how I had tracked them down and destroyed the man who both told me and showed me that he was half demon. I did my best to tell them the full story.
"You said that you confirmed that Star was not a full wolf. Was that why you asked for someone who knew about the Fae?" The Luna Queen was quick to understand all of this.
"Yes."
"Do you know what type of Fae you are?" The woman named Acacia asked. She was pretty but didn\'t give off the scent or the vibe of a wolf.
"No I don\'t. I just know that my father was around Colorado Springs when my mother met him." She hung her head and the woman looked saddened by the lack of information. "Oh, but I do know his name. Well, at least the name my mother wrote in her journal."
"That is a good start. I could look for him based on his name."
"My mother wrote that his name was Aaron Fields, but I-." Whatever Star was going to add got cut off abruptly.
"Oh my! You can\'t be serious."
"Is that wrong?" Star looked worried. "I might not have the name right."
"Oh I am sure you do." The woman, Acacia, just smiled at Star. "Aaron Fields is indeed a Fae, and he happens to be my cousin."