"By chance, are you going to announce yourself as his mate?"

"No," was Lia's instant response.

Judith's hope was crushed and her face fell. She had been hoping that somehow the girl might just, you know, tell the whole truth and give the people a bit of hope.

The good news would uplift the spirit of the pack right now, the mood was just so damn melancholic. They needed someone who would inspire them.

"No, I'm not," Lia made it clear the second time, "But if I'm going to lie to them that I'm Daniel's girlfriend, I might as well work harder than a Luna,"

And that being said, Lia turned around and whistled to the crowd before Judith could stop her.

"Everyone listen up," Lia clapped her hands once everyone turned to the source of the voice.

"I know some of you here might know me and most might not, but I'm going to introduce myself for the sake of the others," she said.

There arose murmuring from the crowd as they discussed her. Hands were being pointed in her direction and Lia could sense disdain from some of them, especially the males.

"I'm Lia Darlington, girlfriend to your Alpha, Daniel" she announced and the murmuring heightened.

This time Lia could see a display of contempt on the faces of most females she thought were on her side.

"Why are the girls staring like they want to rip out my throat right now?" Lia couldn't help but lean back, asking Judith.

"Alpha Daniel is the most eligible bachelor out here but then, here comes the girlfriend- not even the mate- commanding their ass? How would you feel if you were in their shoes?" Was the answer Judith gave her.

She added, "Also, you should also know that werewolves are arrogant egomaniac animals. So unless you give a display of power, you're about to be treated to a disobedient audience; only the strongest can command us,"

"You're seriously not suggesting that I hurt them," Lia asked in disbelief," Wouldn't they hate me?"

"Teach one a lesson and the others learn. Hate you or not, werewolves are hierarchy creatures and unless you show them a reason to fear and respect you, then better give up on this," Judith warned her on time.

Lia's mouth almost dropped after hearing her words and turned to the ground when the murmuring became greater.

"Silence!" She yelled, however, no one listened to her.

"Stop it now!" Lia roared which caused them to give their attention- but not full of it.

"All of you just went through a devastating war and the truth is that yes, you won but the war was brought to your home, hence suffering the most damages"

They listened but Lia could still feel their resistance, it was going to be a hard task bringing them into submission without violence.

"Thankfully, your Alpha survived"

At the mention of Alpha, there was a great sigh of relief from the crowd. They must love Daniel so much.

"But he's in no state to handle the pack affairs right now. So I -"

"What about the Beta, this is Ryan's responsibility," someone shouted from their midst.

"Overwhelmed with duties as we speak, our enemies must be extinguished to the last," said Lia but they understood her point.

Moonlight pack might have won the battle, but Tristan's beta, Zach had escaped and must be preparing to come for a second attack.

After a war like this, the now leaderless conquered pack must merge as one with the newly dominant pack or roam to find another which makes them loner wolves and with time might become rogues.

There was no guarantee that the conquered wolves would be treated- depending on the type of alpha - but once they swore allegiance to the new pack, they would be accepted as one of them.

This was why both Alphas fought to the death with all manner of seriousness. Each was vying for properties, manpower, and the comfort of their own people. Hence, only one could emerge a victor.

However, there was a possibility Zach might take over as Alpha and return to finish what was started by Tristan. So Ryan after confirming Daniel was okay, took the rest of the warriors still on their feet, to give pursuit. They had to stop them before they asked for reinforcement from allies.

"So?" Another werewolf said from the mass.

"Excuse me? I don't quite get you," Lia plastered a fake smile on her face for polite sake.

"Who made you our leader? What can you even do?" Sneered another.

"Yes!" The onlookers supported

"Even if the Beta isn't here, we can organize ourselves and don't need a cheap slut like you for a Leader,"

And that did.

Judith gnarled disapprovingly at the she-wolf who made that dubious and insulting remark. Even if Lia was not Daniel's mate - as they believe- she deserves to be respected for merely being associated with him.

Sadly, Lia reacted before Judith could step in, springing into the center of the crowd where that bitch stood.

It happened that Lia had shifted halfway in the air, so when she landed on the ground, all the people saw was a white wolf pinning exactly that rude girl to the ground. The crowd when they saw Lia jump at them earlier, dispersed automatically leaving only the offender in the center.

Tackling the girl who looked older than her to the ground, Lia bared her teeth at her viciously.

The girl who had not expected such a response, turned her face away from the animal's hot breath while squeezing her eyes shut. She did not expect the girl to be this strong nor did she think she was a werewolf and a rare one at that!

Everyone gasped at the sight of the white wolf. Canis lupus arctos, as they were called, are a rare species of wolf if not extinct and one could only find variations from cross-breeding done by their earlier ancestors.

"If I hear another derisive remark from you, I'll rip out your throat and watch you bleed to death. And stay away from Daniel bitch, he's mine!" Lia growled a warning.

When the hybrid lets go of the girl, she had expected to see respect and fear on their faces as said by Judith, but the awe they displayed, surprised her.

Lia glanced down, oh, she was in her wolf form, she had changed in a moment of anger. Even if Daniel didn't tell her, she had looked around and found out the rarity of spotless white wolves.

By the time the hybrid shifted, Judith was already there in a twinkle of an eye with a towel which she used to cover the girl's nakedness while hissing at the teenage males ogling her. Daniel would wring their immature neck if he hears of this.

"Do I still need to prove myself or are we good to go ?!" Lia asked the crowd who shook their heads.

"Good to go!" Was their response in unison.

"Good," her eyes roved over them, meeting each and everyone in the eyes which made them lower their heads. It was said, looking straight in the eyes of a higher wolf was a sign of disrespect.

"The first batch of supply would be coming in and the priority would be the nursing mothers, pups, and kids from the age of ten downwards. The rest would be tended accordingly later" Lia disclosed the plan.

Werewolves had a fast metabolism, hence kids from eleven upwards were regarded as teenagers due to their fast growth and mentality.

"That would be all for now, Judith here would give further instructions," Lia summarized and was led back to the hospital where she changed into manageable pants and shirt they were able to salvage from the ruins.

"Your friend is here," Lia was informed while she was making cooking arrangements with some older she-wolf about the cooking arrangements.

"Alright," She followed after the wolf and as expected, saw the grinning idiot leaning against a pick-up truck.

"That's a new one," Lia observed the car.

"You should see my garage, perks of being rich," he boasted yet his smile thinned when his eyes took in the environment.

"Damn it, this is horrible," Ben sighed, then went around to pull off the tarpaulin used to cover the supplies on the truck bed

"Whoah, Ben!" Lia blanched, seeing the enormous stuff he brought over, "Did you empty your house or something?"

"Hmm, kind of," He intentionally rubbed his chin contemplatively, "But I did extra shopping," Ben broke into a smile.

"I don't know how I'm going to thank you for this," She pulled him into a hug, dropping a peck on his cheeks.

Ben somehow wished that the peck accidentally landed on his lips. Thankfully, Asher can't read thoughts - he would have to avoid Dan though.

Lia began to unload the goods from the truck and the werewolves joined without being told.

"She's going to make a good Luna, isn't she?"

"Of course," Judith answered without much thoughts while glancing at Lia coordinate the werewolves. But her expression distorted when she realized what she just blurted and to who.

"A-ha, I knew it!" Aunt Phoebe punched the air victoriously. She finally got the truth.

Judith gritted her teeth, that sly old woman.