Page 5 of Hybrid Moon Rising

The air grewsilent as the last of the pack crowded into the meeting hall that doubled as the only bar in their one-stop-sign town. The early summer heat was beginning to take hold, but the evening wind still held a bite. The half moon that graced the sky had the pack feeling at ease. They were halfway to the full moon which meant halfway to their monthly run and uniting with their wolves.

As each member entered the Howler and greeted him with a smile and a nod, Draven tried to ignore the gut feeling that everything was about to go wrong. His father was probably right, the majority of the pack would support him, but Draven expected a fight from the elders. His father was still relatively young and Draven was still practically a pup in their eyes. He just didn’t know how far they’d go to keep his father in charge.

Not that it mattered.

Draven knew how far he’d go. He’d fight until his dying breath for the honor of the Moon Ridge Pack and his rightful place protecting them as their Alpha. Young or old, hybrid blood or not, it was his birthright, and they weren’t going to take it away from him as long as he was breathing. He was pack.

…Not that they knew about the hybrid bit. That would absolutely give them a reason to deny his claim when his father stepped down.

His heritage was not common knowledge and would need it to remain that way, at least for the time being. He’d kept it a secret from the pack his entire life, what was a few more decades? It wouldn’t become an issue until they realized he wasn’t aging, at which point he’d name an heir that wasn’t his blood, and he’d leave Moon Ridge. It went against the nature of his wolf, who was all Alpha, but it was what he had been trained to believe was the right thing. It’s partially why his father was stepping down. So Draven would have more years as Alpha and could make a difference within the pack. The other part was because his father wanted time with his mother.

His parents were one of two moon mates pairings he knew of and their bond was something no one understood fully, despite his father trying to explain it. He assured Draven that one day he would find his own, but that wasn’t in the cards for a hybrid like him. Still, he could honor his father’s wishes to spend more time with his mate. Running a pack wasn’t for the faint of heart, and his father had more than earned his right to live out his days with his mate.

A loud crack filled the empty street and ricocheted through the valley.

Draven whipped his head to the eastern woods toward the sound. As it dissipated, only an eerie silence met his ears. No second shot or scuffle. No telltale sign of animals scurrying away.

Fuck.Draven shook his head. He needed the night to go right, but of course that wasn’t going to happen. Fuckin’ Murphy’s Law. He needed Murphy, whoever that asshole was, to take the night off.

Joplin and Mateo were assigned to patrol that side of the valley. If it had been anyone else with the young, trigger-happy wolf, he would’ve taken off to investigate, but Mateo was his lead enforcer and Draven trusted him with every bone in his body. It’s why he was out there instead of at his side. If anything went wrong after his father broke the news to the pack, Draven wanted to know he had all his bases covered. That his pack would be protected.

The planks beneath his feet creaked as Kade’s hulking form came to stand beside him. “Everything okay, boss?”

A hint of a smile pulled at Draven’s lips despite the pit in his stomach. He hated the formality Kade, his second in command, liked to use, and the asshole knew it. They’d grown up together, fought together, shared countless deep conversations and even more women together. The two of them and Mateo were brothers as far as he was concerned, but outside of his private residence, Kade always treated him as the future Alpha of the Moon Ridge Pack. He demanded respect for him and the title from the entire pack, and wasn’t afraid to lead by example.

Draven shook his head. “Something’s not right.”

It wasn’t only the gunshot that had him on edge; there was a pull in the air that didn’t sit well with him. It curled around his chest and squeezed with each breath.

Kade sighed beside him, and Draven didn’t need to look in his direction to know he wore a tired smile. “You can’t stall any longer, Draven. The pack is going to accept you.” He lowered his voice to barely a whisper, knowing Draven would hear him. “We did.”

Mateo and Kade were the only two in the pack aside from his parents who knew he wasn’t only a wolf. They thought he should trust the pack with his heritage, but it wasn’t something Draven was ready to do. He wanted to believe Kade. Wanted to believe his pack would see past his heritage. Past the father who sired him and tainted him with blood lust. But his gut told him it wasn’t going to be as easy as his second believed.

Draven side-eyed Kade and cocked a brow. “You and Mateo have questionable morals.”

“Questionable morals or not, most of those crotchety old farts would be doing an injustice to you and our kind by shunning you.”

“Don’t let them hear you call them that.” Draven let out a soft chuckle.

The problem was not everyone saw the poor treatment of hybrids as an injustice. Being half-wolf, half-other wasn’t a sin under pack law, or under any law really, but it might as well have been.

Hybrids outside the United States were in hiding, presenting the illusion that they were full-blooded members of their given faction to avoid the harsh reality that they would never be accepted. Not fully anyway. It was a shitty way to live, but it was better than the alternative in most cases. He’d seen packs in Europe kill for less.

Although the packs of America weren’t any less fierce, they were known for their hospitality toward all factions, hybrids included. But Draven wasn’t just any member of the pack. He was the beta. The heir. He would one day rule in his father’s stead and be expected to produce his own heir. A hybrid had never been of royal blood so there wasn’t a precedent for it. Change inspired fear of the unknown, and fear could fuel a wildfire.

“It’s time.”

Draven gave one last look to the moon above, finding strength in its presence, and nodded before following Kade into The Howler.

The smell of freshly poured stouts tangled with the bite of whiskey and mixed with the dull roar of pack drama being shared. It was to be expected when the Alpha made attendance mandatory, even for those who typically lived isolated in the deep woods of their pack lands. At least the pack was well on their way to loosening up. He wasn’t sure if their drinking would help or hurt his case, but as long as he broke the news before gossiping turned to fist fights, he had hope.

With a stoic smile plastered on his face, Draven navigated his way through the bar, shaking hands with members of his pack.

“Do you know what this is about?” Gunther asked with a raised brow. “My old lady says change is coming. She thinks those of us who sit back and do nothing will meet our death. You know how she is.”

Oh he did. The hair on the back of his neck rose, and Draven did his best to hide his hard swallow at the mention of Gunther's wife. Old Letty was bat-shit crazy, and that was putting it nicely. Her observations always held an air of truth; the problem was there was no way of knowing which part was fact and which was fiction. He’d learned his lesson after believing her when she told him that he’d lose time with those he’d love. He thought it was a prediction of his death. Really, his alarm clock batteries died, and he missed his mother’s birthday party.

Draven clapped the old wolf on the back and reassured him. “Then I suppose we better learn to embrace change.”

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