Destiny's POV
I stared at the man in disbelief, unable to formulate the words needed to convey my anger. Marriage? And not even if but when? I felt Kayia growl in unison with my growing anger. I felt the ice rising to my call and consciously forced my breathing to steady. I came too far to ruin it all now.
My father seemed just as angry, but had many more years experience controlling it. The glow of his blue eyes could easily be mistaken as passion and fury. Not the power he kept hidden from outsiders.
"Dominic, " my father spoke deliberately and carefully. Any fool could feel the tension in his words "I've already told you. No." The last word was pushed past gritted teeth.
Dominic Ironclaw was the Alpha of the Black Ridge pack. The largest pack south of our border. He was responsible for creating the treaty among the four southern packs; Black Ridge, Red Cliff , Grey Moon and Crescent Peak, and in doing so had become their unofficial leader. The petty wars between the packs kept them from seeing his maneuvering until it was too late. The pride of each Alpha prevented them from challenging Dominic and instead they acted like it was part of the plan all along.
Only us in the Artic Moon pack saw the truth if it. Dominic conquered the Southern packs more effectively than any warlord, and he didn't lose a single pack member in the process. He was a dangerous Alpha. He craved power, but was charismatic enough to do quiet and effective manipulations behind the scenes. Artic Moon, it seemed was next on his to do list.
I forced myself to relax my clenched jaw and take a deep breath. The initial shock began to wear off and I started to think clearly. This was just another round of politics. I knew how to do that. I stood to my full height and looked directly at him.
"Alpha Dominic, you seem to be passionate about this matter, please sit and tell us your proposal"
My father looked like he'd rather eat a rat then entertain the idea any further, but Dominic inclined his head at the invitation and took a seat. "At least someone in this pack has some sense" he retorted unpleasantly. Aldrich stiffened at the insult to his Alpha and Angela shifted a brief glance in my father's direction. He was clearly fighting for control. I needed to take charge.
"Must be hard recognizing sense when you're not used to being around it" I quipped annoyed with the insult .
Dominic stared at me in complete shock. Blue eyes wide and mouth slightly opened as if trying to comprehend what just happened. Then he threw his head back and laughed in what I could only described as a guffaw. Deep belly laughs shook his whole body. The tension in the room relaxed slightly as he laughed and I couldn't help but like him a little bit more than 10 minutes ago. He had a sense of humor at least.
He wiped a tear from his eye as the last chuckles snuck their way out. Looking at me he said bluntly "You would be perfect for my son"
Resisting the urge to roll my eyes I asked "And why exactly should I consider marrying a man I never met" I looked around the room as if searching for something. "He's not even here to ask me himself, is your son a coward? Or just lazy?"
Dominic smiled in acknowledgement of the inpropriety of the situation "Because, my Lady Destiny, he doesn't know I'm doing this."
My eyebrows raised in surprise. "Why" I asked bluntly.
Dominic leaned back in the chair and assessed me. I saw the flash of decision cross his face. He wasn't going to hide his agenda from me.
"Besides the obvious optics of two very powerful wolves joining together to unite the region, I need you to help me solve a delicate problem. My brother has been planning a challenge for my pack. He claims that my sons lack of Luna makes us weak when he takes my position.
Unfortunately he is succeeding in causing distrust among my pack. I am getting reports of gammas and omegas whispering we are too weak. That we are going to be invaded. He's undermining the foundation we have work so hard to achieve."
He nodded towards my father, who at this point was now in full control of his emotions. "Alpha Riker, you have a reputation of being a fair and just ruler. Your resume boasts the longest period of peace in our generations history. And you Destiny are creating your own name. You are seen a stone and dependable, many already look up you for guidance. If we joined our packs mo one would doubt the Black Ridges ability to keep the peace. You would unite us all"
"That's all very well and good Dominic ," my Father replied , " but like I told you last time, using our good name to solve your own problem's does not carry any benefit to us. We want not part of your family drama."
"I think you might change your mind" Dominic turned to me."I know you've been gathering support amongst the packs. Don't worry", he held up his hand to forstall my denial, "you have been very discreet. I only stumbled upon it by happenstance when visiting the Crescent Peak pack. I stumbled upon a letter indicating you had approached Alpha Jax with a compelling argument."
In otherwords he snooped through Alpha Jax's personal correspondence to gain useful information. He clearly found something of use during his perusal, and he was going to blackmail me into marrying his son. I felt hopelessly frustrated about the situation. Damn Jax, I told him to be careful!
Then Dominic surprised me once more.
"If you do this, I will help you succeed in your mission. You've been gathering support to change the interspecies marriage laws and to stop the deaths of hybrids. If you marry my son, it will be guaranteed."