Page 90 of Fated to the Rogue

“Zephyr!”

“Speak of the devil,”I quipped.“Is everything alright, man?”

“No!” His affliction immediately contaminated me, making me tense. “Dude, you’ll never believe what just happened. I was in the kitchen grabbing a few packs of beer when…poof! That crazy witch appeared out of thin air! Scared me shitless!”

“Wait. Cassiopeia is here?” I cocked my head to the side in confusion.

“Yeah. She said she wants to talk to you.”

“I’m on my way.”

As soon as I cut our connection, I realized all eyes were on me.

“Is everything okay?” Amaya’s voice broke the silence. She leaned forward in her seat, clearly agitated.

“Yes. Malin just ran into Cassiopeia.” A sigh of relief broke through her lips at my revelation.

“Isn’t that the witch who works for the National Elder Council?” Nisha pondered.

“Yup. I gotta go check why she’s here. Feel free to carry on without me,” I told them as I turned around to leave, but before I could, Tina’s gentle fingers wrapped around my wrist, pulling me back.

“Do you want me to go with you?” my mate whispered.

Remembering how distressed she was the last time we talked to Cass, I shook my head. “No need. I got this.” Showing her a smile, I brought her hand up to my lips, planting a soft kiss on the back of it. “I’ll be back soon.”

Rushing out of the pack house, I quickly made my way to the dining hall in hopes of figuring out the reason behind Cassiopeia’s sudden appearance. The cooks’ shift had ended an hour ago, but the cleaning staff was still finishing tidying up the place. The atmosphere in the kitchen was tense, and whenI noticed the cleaners’ gaze focused on our unexpected guest, I understood why.

“Oh, hello, Zephyr!” The witch greeted me first, stretching her hand out to me.

“Hi.” I reluctantly shook her hand, still a little confused about the whole situation. “I’m sorry. May I know why you’re here?”

“She seems to have a liking for jumpscaring unknowing wolves,” my best friend complained. He was leaning against the refrigerator, his eyes locked on Cass.

“I won’t confirm nor deny that,” she teased him before her attention fell back on me. “Perhaps we should talk in private, little Alpha.”

Not again, I thought to myself. A second later, I forced a smile. “Sure. Come with me.”

As I guided the witch into the pack house and towards my soundproof office, I changed my mind and decided to mindlink Valentina. My initial intention was to solve the issue quickly without getting her involved, but it seemed like that wouldn’t be possible. Since she was my Luna, I would rather have her by my side during all important meetings. After Cass and I arrived there, I waited for Tina to get there too before locking the door.

“Alright, shoot.” I sighed, running my hands through my hair in distress as I addressed our guest. This time, I didn’t even bother sitting down.

“Don’t look at me like I’m a bad omen, little Alpha. I bring good news for once.” The mysterious woman smiled playfully. Judging by my mate’s stoic expression, she wasn’t too convinced. “I’ve talked to the council about the prophecy, and we all agreed it will be best if I spent some time here, training the two of you.”

Shocked, I remained silent for a moment, processing the information. “Uh…I appreciate your initiative to assist us, Cass. I really do. It’s just that, decisions like this-”

“You’re welcome to stay with us,” Valentina interrupted me. I widened my eyes at her, both surprised by the way she abruptly took charge of the situation, and a little concerned.

“Are you sure?” I whispered, looking straight into her eyes. After she gave me a determined nod, I turned to Cassiopeia again. “Okay then. I’ll tell my Delta to get one of the guest suites ready for you. While your room is being prepared, would you like to have dinner with us?” Thinking quickly, I figured that would be a good way to let my Elite members know about the sudden news.

“That’d be nice,” she agreed with a satisfied smile.

Upon our return to the game room, I proceeded to tell my friends about Cassiopeia’s indefinite stay. Aside from asking Alex to clear a room for our guest, I also asked her to organize a formal lunch the next day, where I would inform the pack about our visitor. Since werewolves could be wary of witches, I wanted to avoid unnecessary conflict, especially when the tension was already high at Wind Howlers.

Although we had eaten shortly before the start of our game night, wolves were always hungry. We put together a quick meal to welcome Cass. By the time we were done, Alex let us know that the guest suite was ready. While my friends went back to their rooms, Tina and I accompanied the witch to her room.

After unlocking the door, I pushed it open, gesturing for Cass to walk in. “Hope it’s good enough for you.”

“It’s spacious. A bit too bright, but I do like the forest green walls,” she observed, taking a look around. In the end, she spun around to face me again. “Mind if I redecorate it a little?”

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