CHAPTER 254: RUNS IN THE FAMILY

Everyone but Wilder knew that Felix was lying, or at least distorting the truth a lot. No one bothered to correct him, though, because why would they? Felix was Wilder’s son, he knew the Alpha the best among the people gathered, thus he surely knew what he was doing.

"Ah, that’s unfortunate," Wilder sighed, feigning worry. It looked pretty genuine though, real enough to fool the others. If Felix didn’t know any better, he might have actually believed that Wilder was truly concerned about Vivi, and not just disappointed that his granddaughter was a weak pup. "I guess it runs in the family... You also used to be weak as a pup, after all."

Felix immediately stiffened. Wilder had said it like it was just an offhand comment, without any thought or intention behind it. As if talking about Vivi reminded him of how Felix used to be when he was little.

However, Felix knew that it couldn’t be the case. Although his father looked, well, a little wild, he was a smart man. Nothing he did was ever accidental. And while Felix often didn’t know what he was thinking, this time, it wasn’t that hard to figure out - Wilder was trying to lower Felix’s value as Kade’s potential mate by exposing that he used to be weak. It wasn’t something that would immediately disqualify him, since he grew stronger with age, but it surely would give Kade’s parents more reasons to feel concerned.

It seemed that Wilder wasn’t interested in Felix marrying into the Bloodmoon Pack, not even to become the Luna. And while Felix also shared this sentiment - he still had no intentions of becoming Kade’s Luna, his stay in the Bloodmoon Pack hadn’t changed his mind at all - their reasons were vastly different... Felix just wanted to live in peace.

Meanwhile, Wilder most likely wanted to drag him back to the Moonhill Pack. Otherwise, he would have no motive to get in the way. After all, wouldn’t he and the Moonhill Pack also benefit from this connection? Unless Wilder was worried that once Felix became the mate of the heir to a supreme pack, he would no longer be able to control him...

But that also didn’t make sense, since he had never tried to control Felix before, besides enforcing the pack rules, which was the norm. They had rarely talked when Wilder had been the leader of the pack, and after he had stepped from the position and gone out to do who knows what, they hadn’t been keeping in touch at all. Even when Felix had run away from the Moonhill Pack, he hadn’t done anything, if he even had known about it. So, it was really hard to understand...

"Ahem," Kade cleared his throat, interrupting the uncomfortable silence that had fallen after Wilder’s last words. "Should we head inside? It looks like it’s starting to rain again."

It wasn’t. While the sky was dark with rain clouds, it wasn’t actually starting to rain. It COULD start soon, yes, but so far, not a single raindrop had fallen. Kade was just saying it to rush everyone inside, and to change the topic, averting everyone’s attention from Felix’s past health issues. He was, naturally, already aware of the fact that Felix had used to be frail... But his parents weren’t.

And that most certainly wasn’t the best moment to discuss it with them. Even if they had to learn about it eventually - which... Was it really necessary? It was all in the past, years ago. Felix was all healthy now, and so was his pup, so who cared if he used to be frail and sickly at some point? Well, Kade of course had, but as long as Felix was alright, no one else needed to know - it wasn’t the right time for that. Perhaps sometime in the future, when they also got attached to Felix. Preferably when Kade and Felix were already mated and marked, so it would be irreversible.

After all, while they were supportive of the two of them right now... And it would be unlikely that they would change their minds because of something so minor... Kade didn’t want to give them any reason to be hesitant. His mate was one thing, but it was also about the future Luna of the pack. And that’s where things like Felix’s health, and the potential health conditions he could pass on to his pups, mattered a lot.

Lorelei gave Kade a long look. His reaction didn’t escape her attention. She instantly knew that Kade knew more about Felix and his past than he had told them.

She didn’t expose him, though - they were in public, and in the company of an outsider. Just as Kade, she also thought that it was hardly the time for having such a conversation - and instead, she turned to Wilder, "We have prepared some refreshments to welcome you to the pack. Would you like to have a light lunch first, or would you prefer to rest in your room?"

Wilder glanced between Felix, Kade, Einar, and Lorelei, quickly analyzing the situation, before smiling. It was a polite smile, at least on the surface, but it gave Felix chills. He felt that although his father had only just arrived, he already understood his situation and the dynamics between him and Kade’s family much better than he did. Which shouldn’t be surprising, since Wilder had far more life experience...

But it gave Felix an ominous feeling. As if he had already lost, and was now just helplessly waiting for everything to unfold.

"Lunch sounds great. I would like to eat first, if that’s alright," Wilder said. Although he had just spent hours behind the wheel - the road from the Moonhill Pack to the Bloodmoon Pack was long, and the spot from which Kade had picked him up was less than half an hour’s drive away - he still didn’t want to rest at all, not even a short nap.

Was it because he wasn’t tired at all? Well, that was probably partially true - Wilder was a werewolf, and an Alpha on top of that, so that wasn’t enough to exhaust him - but his main reason was probably because he wanted to delay the time when Felix, Kade, and Kade’s parents could have a talk in private to discuss the issue of Felix’s health, and perhaps sprinkle a few more inconvenient facts beforehand.

Or at least that’s what Felix suspected. It’s not like he could tell for sure... Wilder wasn’t like Jared, whose motives he could easily understand.