CHAPTER 226: BREAK THE BOND

How Jared managed remain alive and unharmed, even after everything he had said, was a mystery. Well, perhaps not a mystery - obviously, he had only been spared because it would both reflect on the Bloodmoon Pack badly, which wouldn’t do them any good in their current tense situation, and also would make Felix’s situation more troublesome. They needed the Moonhill Pack to fix the issue with his ’missing’ status and give him a legitimate identity, to ensure that other people would have less negative things to gossip about...

But it was still quite a miracle. Kade clearly wanted nothing more but to tear Jared apart, and Felix would gladly join in, even though he had never killed another werewolf before. Einar and Lorelei were very displeased with the Alpha as well, and even the elder, who had the least connection to Felix and hardly knew the Omega, wouldn’t mind personally disposing of Jared. Although, to be honest, the latter three were primarily angry for Kade’s sake, since the Omega that he liked was being insulted, rather than for Felix’s.

Still, even though Felix understood it, he couldn’t help but feel a little bit warm about their anger. Back at the pack, no one cared if he was being bullied or insulted, not even for Wilder’s sake, nor for Jared’s, even though everyone knew that Felix was his fated mate. So, experiencing this much care, even if only by proxy, was something new to him.

Either way, going against Kade, Jared ended up completely defeated. Not that he had any chance from the start, but it was still satisfying to see. With no arguments left, at least none that he could come up with on the spot, he had no choice but to shut up and listen, as Einar finally explained what exactly they had summoned him for.

"As you can see, Felix has already been accepted as a member of our pack," he said calmly, as if the whole argument hadn’t happened, even though his eyes were dark and the air around him cold. "Please withdraw the missing report and clarify that it was a misunderstanding."

’A temporary member,’ Felix had an urge to correct, but he remained silent. It was hardly the right time to argue about it, especially in front of Jared.

Jared furrowed his brows. Although defeated, he still struggled to accept it. "How am I going to explain it?" he asked, his tone grim. "Felix has been missing for well over a year. How could that be a misunderstanding? People are bound to be curious."

"You can say it’s classified information."

Classified information? Yes, no one really had the right to dig into other packs’ internal issues, so if he said it, most people would have to shut up, even if they were still curious... However, considering the circumstances, it would be obvious that the Moonhill Pack was trying to cover up something shameful. They had made a lot of fuss, reporting one of their members as missing, and now they were suddenly saying that it was a misunderstanding? Who would believe that? Of course, it would be the Moonhill Pack that suffered the most embarrassment, rather than Felix, who had obtained a high status in one of the supreme packs...

But that made it even harder to accept for Jared. He was the leader of the Moonhill Pack, after all. The pack’s reputation and his own reputation were so intertwined that they were practically one and the same.

There was nothing he could do about it, though. Einar might have said ’please’, but even Jared knew that it was no request... Nothing good would await him if he dared to reject it.

Which left him with only one last option.

"What am I supposed to tell his father?" he said, worried. Truly worried this time, not putting on a pathetic act. "Felix’s father surely won’t be happy with his son being taken away like that..."

Right, he might not be. Of course, it would be possible that while he originally planned to have Felix become Jared’s Luna, he might like the idea of his offspring becoming the Luna of the Bloodmoon Pack even more, but Felix couldn’t quite tell. Wilder might have been his father, but he didn’t really know the man very well... If at all. And he had never been interested in learning more, at least until now.

He opened his mouth, about to say something, but Kade was faster. "Ask him to contact us. We will discuss it with him personally," he calmly said.

’Well, whatever.’ Felix closed his mouth again. That was more or less what he was going to say as well. He had some questions he wanted to ask that father of his, after all, so they had to get in touch eventually. And it would be easier to do through the Bloodmoon Pack, since he was staying here now, and would continue to do so for... who knows how long. Quite a while, probably.

Jared had no way to argue with it either. Although he didn’t look too pleased with it all, he could only nod his head in defeat. "I understand. I... will do as you say."

"Great." A wide grin blossomed on Kade’s face. "Now, there’s just one last thing left... That is, breaking the bond."

"...What?" Jared lifted his head, looking at Kade in shock, as if he had no idea what the Alpha was talking about. Kade returned the gaze, looking at Jared as if he were a complete idiot who couldn’t even understand that one plus one equals two, and clarified,

"I need you to break your bond with Felix. I can possibly allow my mate to stay tied up to some other Alpha, now can I?"

Of course, that was logical. Absolutely to be expected. However...

Jared was unwilling. Leaving Felix behind in the Bloodmoon Pack or rescinding his ’missing’ status were still acceptable, even if only barely... But the fated mate bond that connected them was the strongest claim that Jared had to Felix. The moment he broke it, he would have to kiss his chances with the Omega goodbye forever. Even if Felix’s father intervened later, taking his side, with Felix being the mother of Kade’s pup, it was obvious who would have the stronger claim...

But what did his unwillingness mean to the Blackstones? When Lorelei noticed his reluctance, he calmly said, "I advise you to think carefully. I assume the Moonhill Pack would prefer to maintain amicable relations with our Bloodmoon Pack, wouldn’t it?"

...Indeed they would. The Bloodmoon Pack wasn’t just any other pack, they were one of the supremes! If Jared ended up turning them into the Moonhill Pack’s enemies, then he probably would end up getting kicked out of his leader’s seat by the elders before Wilder could even do anything. He might have been chosen by the former leader, and everyone respected that decision until now, but no one would want such a problematic leader! It would only bring the Moonhill Pack to its destruction.

Backed into a corner, Jared couldn’t help but sigh.

There was no way out, now was there? At least none that he could see from where he was now...

Reluctantly, he opened his mouth and slowly said,

"I, Jared Thorne, the leader of the Moonhill Pack, reject you, Felix Embermane, as my Luna and mate..."