Luna Revealed

Chapter Eleven

When I finally exit the bathroom, I see that the broken lamp has been cleared away. Cass is sitting on the edge of the bed, her hands twisting in her lap.

When she sees me, she begins to cry, standing to hug me. "Oh, Dahlia. No one would tell me what happened to you. Caine told me to leave you alone, but I've been so worried." She rambles on, wiping tears from her cheeks. "They told me your father was here, and the Alpha from Aurora. Mike and the others wouldn't let us downstairs, but I could hear so many wolves shifting. Were you hurt?"

I attempt to reassure her with a smile. "I'm okay, Cass." My words only cause her to sob and pull me back into a hug. I pat her on the back, shushing her.

"We should go down and eat," I say as I pull her gently towards the door, glad for the distraction from my thoughts.

Cass sniffles and looks at me, her eyes swimming with tears. She looks like more of a mess than I do. Her dyed hair is pulled back into a messy bun and her usually perfect makeup is smeared below her eyes. Had she been so worried about me that she cried while I was asleep? My heart both warms and breaks at the thought.

We make it down the stairs and towards the kitchen, following the sound of pack members' conversations. I pause at a bathroom and grab a tissue, helping Cass wipe the makeup from under her eyes. Evan and Fiona intercept us at the entrance to the kitchen.

They pull me from Cass and hug me, my body squished between theirs. "Lia, you're okay!" Fiona's voice causes my eyes to prick with tears. Were they all worried about me?

Our hug is interrupted by Mikhail, who talks over Evan and Fiona's questions about what happened this afternoon. "Glad to see you're mostly back to normal, Luna." I narrow my eyes at the honorific and Mikhail smiles, patting me on the back. "Let's head in and eat."

We walk into the kitchen as a group and I spot a dozen serving plates of food on the bar. It seems almost like a holiday feast, but without the special occasion.

The ladies who are putting the final touches on the meal look at me and smile. "Good evening, Luna," one says. Another follows quickly behind, "We wanted to put together a special meal in celebration of you joining the pack."

They speak normally, with no sense of concern or hesitation. It seems that the events from this afternoon hadn't reached the rest of the pack yet. I smile back at them and nod. "Thank you." They return to their cooking and I turn away, looking at Mikhail.

He gives me a knowing look and whispers, "Most of the house members were out this afternoon. We'll fill them in after our formal meeting with Alpha Julian."

"Of course," I whisper back, looking back towards the women who have sparked conversation with each other about children's TV programs. That explains why they seem so unworried.

Mikhail leads me towards the dining hall off of the kitchen, a room I hadn't had the chance to explore yet. Its grandeur surprises me. This pack house seems to be very cozy, but this room is straight out of a fairytale.

Cass notices my amazement and giggles. "That's everyone's first reaction when they first come in here. Our pack hosts dinner conferences and events for packs all over the continent, so we have a dining hall to match the importance."

My gaze continues around the vast room as she explains. The ceilings are vaulted, like the rest of the first floor, and two massive metal and crystal chandeliers hang from them.

Shorter tables line the edges of the room, facing the one long table in the middle. It almost feels like a conference room, but the elegance of the tables and chairs take away from the clinical feel. At the head of the long table sits two chairs, almost like thrones.