Gavin’s POV “Have you thought more about my offer?” Zachary asked as we stepped into his office. He didn’t bother with pleasantries; he was the kind of man who got straight to the point. He reminded me of my father in that aspect. I lost my father so long ago that I almost forgot what kind of man he was…I suppose I never really knew the kind of man he was. But Zachary reminded me of him, and I was still trying to decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. If I hadn’t been around at that time, I wouldn’t have believed that they were ever friends. But I do remember them being best friends at one point… I was close to Zachary’s son, Noah. Then, one day, my father and Zachary stopped speaking to each other. All ties were severed between our families, and I wasn’t allowed to hang out with Noah anymore. “I have,” I said, sitting in the chair in front of his desk. His office hadn’t changed since I was here before. The same old wood, a heavy curtain, and shelves that screamed of wealth. “I guess I’m just a little confused about why you want this collaboration with the Landry Foundation so badly? You’ve been off the radar for some time now, and suddenly you’ve re-emerged with this whole plan.” Zachary sat down at his desk chair and leaned back, his eyes never leaving my face. “I understand your skepticism, and I don’t blame you for it. Your father would have said the same thing, honestly. At one point, we were friends; your father and I. We're going to do this business together, until the day he betrayed me and my family.” “So, why would you want to go in headfirst with me?” “You aren’t your father,” he remarked. “You wouldn’t make the same mistakes that he did.” He was right about that; I would never do what my father had done. However, it still didn’t make sense that Zachary wanted to merge our companies and become business partners. I would have never even thought of such a thing; we were two successful foundations, and though merging them could increase our revenue, expand our market, and offer a broader range of protection, I still wasn’t sure why the sudden offer. He was willing to go as far as to open their trading routes for my territory and pledge themselves under my rule. It went against everything the Blackwells were about, and I didn’t understand why there was a sudden change in heart. The Blackwells had a way of getting things, and everyone knew their trading routes were the best in the world because of their connections and the deals that they made to get what they wanted. If there was something we needed, the Blackwells could get it. If they were to open their trading routes for the rest of my territory, it would make my packs extremely happy, and they would never go without anything. Not that they were desperate for things, but it was hard to please everyone when our own trading routes were so limited. “You didn’t answer my question,” I said, narrowing my eyes at him from across his desk. “Why do you want this so badly? What’s in it for you?”“Besides the same benefits as you?” He asked. I nodded. Zachary was quiet for a long moment, and I wasn’t sure if he was going to answer. But then he let out a breath, and I could see the defeat in his eyes. “We’ve been off the radar for so long that my franchise is plummeting,” he admitted. “I haven’t told any of my people about it yet, and I was hoping to save face.” “And your people wouldn’t mind pledging themselves to a territory? Doesn’t that stand for everything they are against?” Zachary sighed and ran his fingers through his hair; for once, the mask fell from his face, and I could see the vulnerability beneath it. Zachary led a large group in his territory, which most people referred to as either the Dark Lands or the Shadow Region. Their whole thing was that they didn’t want to be ruled by the council and live by pack rules. I found it hard to believe that they would willingly go along with this merger if they knew they’d be a part of my territory, under my leadership. “If they knew what we were up against… then they would be fine with it,” Zachary said, his eyes finding mine. “We have enemies that are willing to do whatever it takes to take us down, and I’m afraid things are only going to get worse. We aren’t able to hide from the radar any longer, and I’m worried that our enemies will retaliate.” “Are your enemies those we need to worry about?” I asked. “The last thing I need is to put my territory in danger. As you might already know, we’ve had a stressful year, and my mate is pregnant.” “I believe with us combined, my enemies won’t be a problem,” he said, folding his hands in front of him and leaning forward. “I wouldn’t put your mate in danger just like I wouldn’t put my family in danger.” “What exactly are your enemies after?” Zachary let out a breath. “Let’s just say your father wasn’t the only one who wanted the Moon Gem,” he replied. “The gem held the powers of our daughter, Lila. When she was born, she was born with more power than any of us combined. A Seer had told us that her power would be both her greatest weakness and strength. However, it was too much for her infant body to handle, so she put her magic in the Moon Gem. We were going to give it to her once she turned 18 and could handle that kind of power…” “But it was stolen before you got the chance,” I finished the story for him. Zachary nodded. “Word about this kind of power got out fast; it caused enemies to form all over, and we couldn’t trust many outsiders. Your father made it clear that even your closest friends couldn’t be trusted. That was why we went off the radar. We spent all this time in hiding, protecting ourselves the best we could. But now that we have the gem back and it’s in our daughter's custody again, we don’t need to be in hiding anymore.” Now it was my turn to nod. “I’ll have to speak with my Beta and with my mate. I won’t make any decisions until I get them both on board,” I told him, my eyes narrowed. “You’re very honorable,” Zachary stated with a faint smile on his lips. “I was right when I said you were nothing like your father.” “My father was greedy and would do anything for power and money,” I told him honestly. “I would do anything for my family and for my territory.” Zachary nodded. “Which is why I’d like to do this collab with you above anyone else,” he said. “I could have gone to a different Lycan, but I chose you for that reason. Who your father was has nothing to do with this and everything to do with who you are as a man.” Talking to Zachary made me realize that maybe I was wrong about him and his family. Maybe he could be trusted; I wasn’t detecting any lies from him, and honestly, it was kind of nice having someone as old as my father complimenting me in such a way…like a father figure of a sort. Which was insane for me to admit because I was a 39-year-old man…I shouldn’t be having daddy issues this late in life.But my own father never complimented me; it was as if I could never do anything right in his eyes. Hearing that Zachary Blackwell sees and appreciates me gives me a good feeling. “I appreciate that,” I finally said after a long pause. I put my hands on my knees and pushed myself to my feet. “I should get back to Judy. I don’t want to leave her alone for too long.” Zachary also stood, his eyes warm with understanding. “Of course, I wouldn’t want to keep you from her,” he said, holding out his hand for me to shake. “You’ll keep in touch, though, right? And give me a decision soon?” I clasped my hand in his and nodded. “Yes, I’ll be in touch,” I told him. “Now that I have more information and you aren’t being as cryptic, I don’t see why this collab wouldn’t work. Let me talk to my family, and I’ll let you know.” He smiled.“That’s all I ask for,” he said. With that, I turned and left his office. I traveled down the long hallway and rounded the corner. I didn’t need to know the layout of this place to know where Judy was; I had her scent and my wolf’s instincts. Both my wolf and I could track her just about anywhere. Just as I went around another corner, I heard some distinct voices. I’m not sure what made me want to follow the voices, but my feet had a mind of their own, and before I knew it, I was standing outside of a room that had its door open slightly. “It burns me…” a woman said. “I don’t know what to do.” “How long has it been glowing like that?” Another, more familiar voice asked. “For the last 30 minutes… it started right after I ran into… her.” “Judy?” “Yes,” this time her voice came out as a hiss. I furrowed my brows at the mention of Judy’s name and the venom in their voices when speaking about her. It made me inch closer, peering my head through the opening to see who was speaking; my heart nearly stopped in my chest. Lila and Daisy? What the hell were they doing together? “I ran into her earlier,” Lila continued. “And ever since then, this damn thing hadn’t stopped glowing, and then it burned me. It won’t let me touch it. Even through the cloth.” My eyes narrowed when I spotted what they were talking about. Sitting on the table between them was the Moon Gem, and as Lila had said… it was glowing!