Authors note:

This book has been fully edited and has some major changes from the first draft! I'm currently working on book two and will republish one chapter at a time!

Chapter One:

"Kendall, can you come down here a minute?" Dad called from somewhere downstairs; likely his home office.

I sighed and rolled off my queen sized bed, throwing the book I was reading aside. I strolled out of my bedroom and downstairs. I enhanced my hearing to listen for my Dad. I could hear his and two other heartbeats from his office. No surprise there. I quickly let my hearing go back to normal and strode the rest of the way to his office.

I opened the door without knocking; not something I usually do, except when he calls for me. I pushed the cherry oak door shut behind me and took in my surroundings. Dad was sitting in the desk chair, casually learned back. I didn't let his casual body language fool me though; his face was pinched with tension.

My oldest brother, and future Alpha, Brody stood to the right and slightly behind Dad. His six foot four inch body leaned against the wall parallel to the door, his muscular arms crossed over his chest and a blank look on his face, although I could see a look of hesitance in his eyes that wasn't usually there.

My other brother, Matt, was sitting on the couch on the right side of the office. He looked prepared for a fight, which startled me.

All three men looked eerily similar. They all had the same shade of espresso brown hair and midnight blue eyes. The only real differences between them was that Matt had shoulder length curly hair and a slightly crooked nose and Brody had thinner lips and a wider face. Dad looked older than the boys, with a few gray hairs peppering into locks and lines deepening in the crease of his eyes, but he still didn't look his real age.

With the slow aging of werewolves once they reached adulthood, he looked to be more in his late thirties, instead of nearly two hundred years old. Brody certainly didn't look twenty years my senior.

"What's going on?" I asked apprehensively.

"Sit down, Kenny." Dad said, gesturing to one of the two chairs in front of his desk.

I glared at him for the use of my childhood nickname, but didn't comment on it. Now wasn't the time, I could tell. As I took a seat, I felt oddly like a child again. Anytime we needed reprimanding as kids, we would have to sit here across from our stern Alpha father. I had spent countless amounts of time here during my teenage years, along with my sister, Selena. It felt oddly like I was seventeen again, instead of twenty-three.

I raised an eyebrow at each of the men, waiting for one of them to start. My father did.

"As you probably know, I've been working on earning a seat on the council for some time now." He paused.

I was quite aware of this fact. The council was made up of the strongest Alpha's. They helped the King to make decisions about werewolf matters. I didn't completely know what those matters entailed, but I did know that they were important and being asked to join the council was a huge honor.

Dad had been trying for years to receive an invitation, but to no avail. He was a strong Alpha; there was no doubt about that. But we didn't exactly have the largest pack around. Dad had always sort of straddled the line of power. While he was never the most powerful Alpha, he wasn't the least powerful either.

The King was very specific about who he added to the council. He had completely disbanded the council his father and the deceased former king had created when he took the throne almost twenty five years ago. He started from scratch, forming his own council that he had vetted and trusted. Dad had been trying to make the cut ever since.

I nodded and he continued.

"Well I have received a letter that I am finally being considered. They've asked that I send representatives to stay for a few months. I can't possibly leave the pack that long, so they want me to send someone I trust in my place to try and earn a spot for the pack."

"Congratulations, Dad. I'm happy for you. I know how much this means for you." I smiled brightly at him, a weight lifting off my shoulders. This wasn't bad news at all. "Is Matt or Brody going?" I asked as an afterthought.

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Brody can't go; he's needed here. Instead, I'll be sending Matt. Of course Kat will be joining him." He said, referring to Matt's mate and my best friend since kindergarten. She was also the daughter of the pack's witch. She was a strong witch in training.

"I'll miss you guys." I looked over at Matt with a frown. He looked uncomfortable.

"That's the thing, Kendall. You'll be joining them." Dad added in a 'this isn't up for discussion' tone.

Just like that, the weight settled back over my shoulders and in my stomach. I felt defiance bubble up inside of me, the Keating family temper coming to play.

"Are you kidding me?" I gripped the wooden chair handles, my claws extending and puncturing the dense oak. Wouldn't be the first time.

"I assure you, I am not kidding." Dad added, still calm and collected.

"You can't do that. Why the hell do I need to go?" My voice had taken on the shrill tone it did when I was angry.

"I can, in fact, do that. I need you there. I can't have Selena go, for obvious reasons. That leaves you."

I knew Selena couldn't go. She would just embarrass him. I loved Selena to death, but she wasn't exactly reliable.  She cared more about partying and finding her next boyfriend than she did helping dad with pack business.  It was no secret in our family that he was perpetually disappointed in her.

"Why aren't Matt and Kat enough?" I demanded.

"I need to show the King that I'm serious about this. Sending two of my children, along with my daughter-in-law and pack witch, will show that. I need as much representation as I can get, and I don't trust anyone with else with this. Well, aside from Dalton. He'll be accompanying you as well."

I threw my head back and groaned dramatically. I couldn't stand Dalton. He was the pack's future Beta, being Beta Wes's son. He was also the pack's current douche bag. We grew up together and we never got along, although he and Selena were somehow best friends.

"You can't do this to me, Dad. Please. You know I hate that asshat." I spat.

"Language, Kendall." He warned.

I rolled my eyes.

"Daddy, please." I went for a different tactic. I widened my green eyes. I blinked a couple of times, feeling them mist over slightly. I pouted my lower lip and put on the saddest look I could muster.

"That might have worked when you were ten, but you're an adult now. You said you wanted to be more involved with the pack. This is your chance."

I dropped the act. "That isn't what I meant and you know it. I just spent four years in college getting my accounting degree. I didn't do all that work to go kiss the King's ass. I did it to help with pack finances and to help run your businesses." I snapped.

In the werewolf world, Dad was Alpha Jefferson Keating. To the human world, he was businessman and entrepreneur Jefferson Keating. He owned several businesses around the state. It's how he made his money and how he kept the pack afloat. He wasn't short on finances. Our pack was rather wealthy thanks to him and my grandparents.

I decided after high school that I wanted to be involved somehow. As the youngest of four children, I would never be Alpha, but I could help out. Brody and Matt helped Dad run things, but he could always use more help. So I had spent the last four years attending the university forty-five minutes from home. As I was taking classes, Matt and Brody had slowly been teaching me as well. I had just graduated three months ago, and I was ready to get more involved. This wasn't exactly what I had in mind.

I wasn't trying to be difficult, but this wasn't something I wanted to do. I dealt with numbers; I was a math person. I wasn't interested in werewolf politics.  I knew this would be amazing for our pack, but I felt like I would be more useful elsewhere. I wasn't privy to all pack business. What good would I do representing us? Look pretty? Show how serious Dad was by sending his little girl? Ugh, gag me.

"I don't know anything about pack politics, Dad." I crossed my arms over my chest and glared at him.

"You won't need to. That will be Matt's job. You just need to show how serious we are about this. Just be respectful and polite. Matt will take care of everything else."

"This isn't right. This wasn't the plan." I huffed.

"I know, Kenny. It will only be for a couple of months. Can you please just do this for me? Then when you get back, you can have whatever job you want."

I felt my anger deflating, knowing it wouldn't get me out of this. Despite him asking just now, I knew there were no if's, and's, or but's about this. He was my Alpha. I couldn't just tell him no. If I agreed now, I knew he would keep his end of the bargain.

"Fine. But when I get back I don't want to be micro-managed all the time. I want you three to trust me to do my job. I'm college educated now and you three have taught me everything I need to know. I want you to promise me that."

He thought it over for a second, then finally looked back at me.

"Fine. You have a deal."

"Fine." I nodded back. "When do we leave?"

"Tomorrow."

My annoyance spiked again and I quickly stood and made my leave before my Keating temper took over.

************************

"It won't be so bad." Kat said, lounging on my bed. She looked the picture of relaxation. Her cat like green eyes were filled with amusement, her full lips pulled up in the corners from trying to repress a grin.

"Yes, it absolutely will." I muttered.

I walked to my closet again and picked out another arm full of clothes. I walked back to my room and proceeded to start folding them into my suitcase. Kat was apparently already packed and ready to go. She seemed completely fine with going. I knew it was only because she got to be with Matt.

They had been together since she turned eighteen and they were still disgustingly in love. I knew it was the mate bond, but it still grossed me out sometimes. Matt, being ten years older than us, knew Kat was his mate when she was just a kid. He never acted on it until she was of age, acting more as a protective older sibling when we were young. That wasn't unusual, since werewolf's aging slowed drastically, it was normal to have big age gaps. Hell, my Dad was almost twenty years older than my Mom.

Kat, now that she was marked and mated, would age as a werewolf. Witches lives were like humans, unless they were mated. It was a blessing in disguise I suppose; now my best friend would age the same as me, and not die when I still looked thirty.

"Maybe not. Keep an open mind, Kendall. You might actually like it there."

Always the voice of reason. She had kept me out of a lot of bad situations. As a witch, her intuition was never wrong. I had still managed to find trouble, but I'm sure I avoided a lot of it as well because of her - when I wasn't being stubborn at least.

"I don't need to keep an open mind. I know this'll suck."

Before she could say anything else, the door to my bedroom burst open and Selena stormed in, glaring daggers at me. I rolled my eyes at her.

"You bitch." She spat.

"What now?" I glared back at her, not in the mood.

I couldn't exactly kick her out. This was her room too. We had lived in the same bedroom since I was born. One of us could have moved into Brody's bedroom once he moved out, but we just never did. We had lived together for so long, it just didn't feel right. As much as I hated her sometimes, the thought of not bickering with her every morning made me sad. A pang went through me at the thought of being away from her for two months. I would actually miss her.

"What now? You get to go stay at Castle Cahill for two months. That's freaking what. Why the hell do you get to go and I don't?" She demanded. She crossed her arms over her chest, much like I had in Dad's office.

"Maybe if you weren't such an embarrassment, Dad could trust you to go." I raised a mocking eyebrow at her.

"She's got you there." Kat added, chuckling.

"You two are both bitches."

We just laughed at her. Kat and Selena bickered too, but they were friends as well. Kat was our sister. Maybe not our blood sister, but she was a part of the family. She would be even if she and Matt weren't mates. Kat, Selena, and I had grown up together. We fought, but at the end of the day we loved each other and had each other's backs.

"Maybe so, but at least no one has to worry about us jumping the King." Kat told her, grinning widely.

"I am so going to enjoy a break from you two." She muttered, walking past me. She threw herself on her queen sized bed on the other side of the room from mine.

Her side of the room was messy, but I couldn't say much. Mine was just as cluttered. Maybe that's why we could tolerate sharing a room. Clothes were strewn across the room, some hers, some mine. Both of our beds were messy and wrinkled. Dust covered our entertainment center and bookshelf. Our bathroom didn't look much better. It was clean, but very disorganized.

"That's mine." She growled after a few minutes. She was looking at the tank top I was folding.

"Um, no it's not. You just take it upon yourself to wear all of my clothes whenever you please." I argued back.

"Yes, it is. And you wear my clothes all the time too."

"No I don't. Your fat ass stretches everything out so I can't wear it."

"It's not fat, sweetheart. It's called having curves and not looking like a twelve year old boy."

"Oh really?" I drawled, throwing the tank top in my bag anyways. "Is that why Grandma gave you that dieting cookbook?"

Kat snickered and Selena growled.

"You know she only gave me that because I said I was going to start eating healthy." She defended herself.

I didn't really feel bad about insulting her. That was the type of relationship we had; we were bitches to each other. She could give as much as she got, neither of us overly sensitive. The one thing we had done for each other was give each other thick skin.  She knew she wasn't really fat, just like I knew I didn't look like a pre-pubescent male.

"You sure you can't leave tonight?" She growled out.

Our bickering continued back and forth for a while. It helped to take my mind off the next few months. Eventually, she went downstairs to help Mom cook.

She helped do stuff around the house. She didn't like school, even though she was smart, so she didn't go to college after high school. She didn't get a job either. Selena wasn't really made for a real job; she was too rebellious and had authority issues. She and Dad butted heads a lot because of it, although he let her get away with a lot. Because of her lack of schooling and employment, our parents agreed to keep supporting her, so long as she helped out around the house and helping Mom with her Luna duties. She did it since it was really her only option until she met her mate. Lord help the poor guy when she did find him. She was going to be a handful.

After another hour or so and another suitcase, I was all packed. I had two big suitcases and a smaller bag with toiletries and beauty products. I didn't know what I would be doing exactly, so I packed for any occasion.

By the time I was finished, Mom was calling us down for dinner. I frowned, knowing that it would be my last family dinner for a while.

Kat walked down beside me and plopped down next to Matt, whom immediately kissed her cheek lovingly. I sat next to Kat and across from Selena.

We all fixed our plates, passing around the dishes and making small talk as we went. Once all of our plates were fixed, we all started eating hungrily. As werewolves, we all, except for Kat, had a big appetite. It made for a hefty grocery bill.

"So, are you three excited about tomorrow?" Mom asked, looking down my side of the table.

"I am. I hear the castle is beautiful. And they have a Petrova witch. I'm hoping I might be able to study with her while I'm there." Kat said excitedly.

I could tell why she was excited. Kat was from a powerful witch line, the Caldwell's, but the Petrova's were the most powerful witch line. They had been working with the royal family for centuries, back before they even relocated from Europe to America in the seventeen hundreds.

"Actually, they have three Petrova witches. And I'm sure it will be no problem studying under one of them. I'll make a call in the morning." Dad told her happily. Having a strong witch could greatly benefit a pack. Kat could help this pack, especially if she impressed the right people while we were there.

"Really? Thanks, Jeff." She bounced in her seat a little. Matt looked at her adoringly.

"What about you, Kenny? You excited?" Mom turned her attention to me.

"Not really." I muttered.

"Why not? I'm sure you'll have fun. And you'll get to meet the King. I'm excited for you." She sounded so enthusiastic. I wanted to make a sarcastic comment, but my Mom was the sweetest woman ever, so I didn't want to hurt her feelings.

"That doesn't really excite me. Plus, I'm sure I'll only meet him for, like, a few seconds."

"Maybe not. Besides, he is very handsome." She hinted. Dad growled at that and she ignored him.

"So? It's not like it matters. We both have mate's out there somewhere. His looks aren't going to help me in this situation."

If I was honest, I had no idea what the King looked like. I had never been to the castle before. All of my family, besides Selena, had. The King threw a mating ball every year. It was basically a giant party that anyone could attend to help them find their mates. I never cared enough to go.

"Well that's something to look forward to. Maybe you'll meet your mate while you're there." She always tried to find the bright side of things. I was a little more pessimistic than her.

Truth be told, I didn't want to find my mate there. I wanted a mate, sure. What wolf didn't? They were the other half of your soul. But I knew that if I met him at the castle, then he was bound to be important. I'd have to leave my family and pack and the only life I've ever known. I wasn't ready for that. I just wanted my mate to be someone who could join my pack, not the other way around. As selfish as that sounds, I didn't want to leave my family.

I just hummed in response to her. I didn't dare say I didn't want to meet him. That would lead to a long lecture about the importance of mates. Not something I wanted to hear tonight. I just wanted to have a sleepover with Selena and Kat like old times. We were going to binge watch Netflix and eat junk food all night.

She soon moved on and dinner continued for a while. Soon enough, it was over. We had helped Selena clean the kitchen up and loaded up on junk food.

Now we were all sitting on my bed, some crappy horror movie playing while we ate ice cream. We also had a pack of Oreos and three different kinds of chips spread out on the comforter in front of us.

"I'm really going to miss you two." Selena said from beside me, having one of her rare moments of sincerity.

"I'm going to miss you too, Sel." I told her honestly.

"Me too. The Three Amiga's have never been separated before." Kat pouted.

"I really wish I was going with y'all."

I was stunned into silence when I saw tears fill her eyes and spill over. She wasn't a crier, so this was unusual. She angrily swiped them away.

"I wish you were too. I'm nervous about going." I admitted.

"Me too." Kat told her.

"Maybe Dad will change his mind." I added and Kat nodded in agreement.

"You know he won't. He thinks all I'm good for is cooking and cleaning. He doesn't trust me with this. He doesn't trust me with anything. He trusts everyone, but me." A few more tears fell. Her voice cracked, sounding so sad, it broke my heart. I had no idea she felt this way.

"Sel, that's not true. You don't give yourself enough credit."

"I give myself the credit he gives me."

"I'm going to be completely honest with you right now, okay?" She nodded, so I continued. "You're so smart, Selena. You have so much to offer, you just don't act like you do or believe that you do. If you want Dad to take you seriously and to let you get more involved, you have to show him that he can trust you. Dad will come around eventually."

"You really think so?" She asked, her tears drying up.

"I do."

"You're right."

"Never thought I'd hear you say that to me." I joked, lightening the mood.

"And you never will again." Kat and I both laughed at that. "Now enough of this sentimental crap. My ice cream's melting."

The rest of the night went by smoothly. We got back to bickering like usual. It was like it never happened, but something seemed different about her. I hoped Dad would go easy on her.

After two more movies and a ton of junk food, we all laid down to go to sleep. They were on either side of me. They had both fallen asleep, but I laid awake.

Matt came in about thirty minutes after they fell asleep and taken Kat back to his room. I shook my head at that. Alphas were ridiculous. He couldn't be away from her for one night.

I couldn't help but thinking about tomorrow. I had this feeling deep in my gut, my wolf antsy. I couldn't explain it, I just felt anxious about the whole thing. Eventually I gave up on sleep and decided to go for a run. I needed to let my wolf out and get rid of some of this pent up energy.

I quickly snuck out of bed and downstairs. Luckily, everyone was asleep, so I was able to leave without interference. I walked from the back patio to the tree line. I stood behind the biggest tree, in case someone decided to come outside, and stripped off my pajamas.

I called my wolf forth, which she happily complied with, and let the shift take over my body. It didn't hurt; it actually felt freeing. It happened quickly, within fifteen seconds.  I was small, but I was fast and strong for my size.

I shook off my glossy brown coat and started running. As I darted through the forest, swerving around trees and bushes, I started to feel better. The restless energy was wearing off, but for some reason I still had a nagging feeling in my gut.

I ignored and decided not to worry about it. I'd find out soon enough anyways.