Page 264 of His Sunshine Baby

Some of them won’t listen and keep yelling. It’s frankly annoying to be facing such an undisciplined crowd. Werewolves are so damn stubborn.

“Stop it!” I yell, releasing all of my Alpha Aura.

Everyone shuts up as if a wave had hit them. I don’t think I’ve ever used so much of my aura before, but here we are.

“This pack has enough issues as it is. Remember what happened just four years ago? All those that we lost? You want to avoid more deaths next time? Then stop acting so stubborn and listen, for once!”

A long silence follows my words. Some exchange glances and frowns, as if they were trying to reach a common ground. I take a deep breath and look sideways at Clark. My godfather smiles and nods.

“We will lose more people if we don’t work as one with the Blood Moon clan,” I explain.

“We are already on good terms with them, Elena!”

“I don’t mean an alliance. I mean we need to fuse the White Moon pack with the Blood Moon pack.”

I’m hit by a wave of protests. Some people are just speechless or hesitant, but some of them are completely against the idea.

“No fucking way! We are the White Moon clan! We won’t become someone else’s property!”

“Elena, what the hell! Is this Black’s idea?”

“Shut up and listen!” I growl again. “It is my idea. Not Clark’s or anyone else’s. This isn’t just about our turfs or our pack anymore. We have an army coming. An army of vampires, and a witch leading them. The same one that attacked us before!”

I undo my shirt, showing them my injury, still fresh.

“See that? I can’t stand against her! We can’t, okay? We are lucky enough to have a witch on our side. You think we won the previous fight? Well, listen up, we didn’t! Sylviana, the witch of Silver City, saved our asses! Otherwise, what do you think would have happened?”

I catch my breath, looking at the crowd. I’ve managed to make them doubt. People are remembering, I know they can’t have possibly forgotten. Not with the number of wounded people we had, or the ones we buried.

Next to me, Orpheus nods.

“Just try to remember the hell it was,” he adds. “The water attacking us. Even with the Blood Moon helping us, it was a fucking nightmare!”

“Everyone lost a friend or a family member back then,” says Isabella.

I know everyone in the pack is thinking about her son, Eric, who was among the victims. This is what we need to focus on. How many people we can save, what will be left after the fight,and what we could lose. I see a lot of them finally stop protesting, glancing at each other with worry.

“This won’t be a regular fight,” I declare. “There will be deaths. It’s the sad truth, I won’t lie to you. We will lose people. All I want is for us to lose as few as possible. I want the best outcome; I want us to win this fight. We can’t afford to lose, because if we do lose, it will be the end. Not only the end of our pack, but the end of everything we know and love. I don’t care anymore about the packs, the borders. We are werewolves. We are the werewolves of Silver City, one large pack. I know I won’t fear a witch, no matter how many vampires she brings, if I can stand with my people. My family, my friends, all of my kind, as one.”

I let a bit of silence float after my words, hoping it will reach them.

“If we fuse with the Blood Moon clan, we will truly become one pack. All together, hundreds of wolves, able to mind-link as one body. The strongest clan this city has ever seen.”

“… What about the other packs?” asks someone. “How do we know they will allow that too?”

“You know how loved and popular the Luna is,” says Levi. “She’s a Royal, people will rally to her. The Sapphire Moon and Jade Moon clans are already completely loyal to her. Most packs will follow her lead. We can follow Elena’s.”

Whoa, wait. When did I say anything about following me? I glare at Levi, wondering what the hell he is thinking, but I see him exchange glances with Clark and Danny instead. What are they planning?

“Clark will be leading,” I warn them.

“No, Elena, you will,” suddenly declares Clark, turning to me. “For this fight, we need you to act as the Alpha.”

What the hell! I just decided I won’t be an Alpha! I’m fine not being anyone’s Alpha, why are they doing this to me now?

“You said it yourself, Elena, all the werewolves must act as one. We will need all the Alphas to act together to lead them. And no one is more capable of doing that than you.”

I growl at Orpheus, annoyed that he is part of this freaking trap too.