Three minutes before noon, Angelica and her mother came running out of the terminal and across the tarmac. As they rushed towards the plane, a huge sense of relief flooded me.

When they ran up the boarding stairs and entered, I wrapped my arms around Angelica and pulled her into the plane. Gabriel came to help her mother, and closed the door from the inside and told us to take a seat. We had to get off the ground before the alphas figured out what was happening.

Once the aircraft was sealed shut, Gabriel rapped on the door to the cockpit with his fist. Almost immediately the plane began rolling down the runway.

The jerk of the sudden motion didn’t even tilt him, and he walked steadily back to his seat beside Emma.

After I sat Angelica down, I buckled us both into our seats. My seatbelt fastened, I took her hand, and looking into her eyes I said, “I refuse your rejection. You are mine!”

She leaned over to put her hands on my face and kissed me hard for a long time until she needed to breathe. It was like a dam burst. The link previously cut between us came together again, snapping back into place with all the passion, love, and strength of its former glory.

We cuddled together the best we could with our seatbelts in separate seats.

The smile on Angelica’s face made her seem like she was a real angel. I sent up a prayer to the goddess that we would live to a very old age and always be together.

After a few sweet murmurings to one another, Angelica turned her gaze to her mom and my eyes followed hers.

Diane had taken the seat across from Gabriel and Emma and was quietly listening to Gabriel relay the plan. If all went well, David and their other relatives would arrive in Montana to reunite with us within a few days.

Emma watched Diane closely and said, “Are you going to be alright?”

Diane sighed heavily. Her shoulders seemed to relax as she glanced over at Angelica and me then smiled softly, “As long as they can be together, then everything’s good.”

A comfortable silence fell over us all and some of us took naps as the plane hummed through the sky. The seats were slightly wider and plushier than a regular first-class seat. They also had a reclining feature that raised a footrest while the backrest tilted backward.

The flight took about three hours, and then we were touching down on Montana soil. Because we were on Gabriel’s private jet and traveling to his private ranch, we were able to fly directly into the ranch’s small airstrip.

As we taxied to the ranch’s hangar, I peered out of the window to take in the Montana landscape. I could see mountains in the distance, still capped with blankets of white at the tops. I was surprised to see so much green, even though it was the end of winter.

I had seen from the sky many forests surrounding the main areas of the ranch. The land around the airstrip was cleared of trees. The ground surrounding the landing strip and hangar was plush with grass that seemed damp. The snow must have recently melted. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, making the mountains even more prominent in the landscape. What a beautiful place.

When the aircraft tucked into the hangar, everyone - except the vampires - stood and stretched their limbs. We waited as the aircraft steps were wheeled into place and the door was unsealed.

All filtered out of the jet and the hangar to climb into a long SUV limo. Somehow, we all managed to squeeze in together with Tristan and I pulling our mates onto our laps.

Angelica wrapped her arms around my neck and rested her cheek on the top of my head with a sigh. I could feel her satisfaction and serenity through our bond. My happiness was evident in the sudden purr that rumbled through my chest.

The drive to the main house didn’t take long. The hangar wasn’t far from it - only a few miles away. Before I knew it, we were climbing out of the vehicle onto a large circle driveway in front of an enormous house that was three stories high.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

The gorgeous modern structure had two sleek wings that angled back from the central structure of the home. The third floor was smaller than the other two. It appeared to be surrounded by a rooftop deck that covered the top of the second floor. Several sets of modern plate glass doors stood open to the patio, probably airing out the space with the gentle, crisp Montana breeze.

It was a beautiful mansion composed of all natural woods and many large floor-to-ceiling black framed plate glass windows. The views into and through the house were breathtaking.

We all stared up at it in awe as Gabriel stood next to Tristan. He smiled as he put a hand on Tristan’s shoulder and said, “Welcome to your new home, Alpha Tristan.”

Once the phrase was uttered, I gasped at the change in Tristan. There was an actual, physical, and magical response to Gabriel declaring Tristan an Alpha of this land.

Because of his preoccupation with the new place, Tristan didn’t notice the change until all of us made noises in varying degrees of astonishment. He suddenly looked down at Jane, then over at the rest of us and asked, “What is it?”

I began to laugh, “You really didn’t notice?”

“Notice what?”

Jane was staring up at him in total and complete adoration. I couldn’t blame her because something appealing and amazing had occurred.

No one else was answering him, so as his Beta, I did.

“When Gabriel called you Alpha Tristan, you literally grew,” I informed him.

“I grew?” he asked in confusion.

“You grew a lot,” I replied with a grin.

He tilted his head to consider this for a minute, then ran to the door of the lodge, flinging it open. He rushed through the house, opening interior doors looking for something. I assumed it was a mirror.

I followed him and watched as he finally found a gym with an entire wall mirror on one wall, and he turned to examine himself.

He had grown at least two inches in height, and his shoulders had broadened significantly. His muscles had toned more and bulked up a bit, and instead of looking like a fit eighteen-year-old as he had earlier, he now looked like a body-building man of twenty-five.

Gabriel walked into the gym behind us with Jane and explained, “It’s the Alpha mantle. When an Alpha comes to power, he is enhanced with the mantle of authority. When I welcomed you to your new pack territory and addressed you as Alpha, the goddess anointed you with the Alpha mantle. This also endows your voice with the ability to force wolves in your pack to obey.”

“Ooooh, try it out!” I said.

Gabriel chuckled, “You have to pledge allegiance to him first and accept the Beta position.”

“No time like the present,” I said.

I knelt before him and recited the pledge all wolves learn from childhood.

“I, Avery MacKenzie, pledge my allegiance to you, Tristan Martin, as my Alpha. This pack shall be my family and where you go shall be my home as long as I shall live.”

Tristan responded to me with his Alpha pledge.

“I, Tristan Martin, pledge to you, Avery MacKenzie, to be a strong and just Alpha. Protecting and leading this pack as my family as long as I shall live. Stand to your feet, Beta Avery of the First Montana Pack.”

He clasped my forearm and I clasped his as he pulled me up. I bowed my head to him as a sign of my submission to him as our pack’s authority. There was something washing over us, binding us together as a pack. I felt the severing of my link to my father’s pack like a pinprick, and a refreshing new light bathing me with a sense of belonging and home.

I sighed in contentment and looked up at Tristan.

“Now try it,” I smirked with glee.

Tristan tilted his head to one side, his fingers stroking his chin as his mind chewed on the idea. I could feel a bit of his amusement through the newly established pack link.

“Do ten jumping jacks,” he ordered in his alpha tone.

“Really?” I laughed as my body moved of its own accord and began to work through the exercise.

“Hey, I could have told you to do one hundred...or burpees,” he grinned wickedly.

“Ok, ok,” I held my hands up in surrender as I completed my tenth jack.

I stepped back and turned to Jane as she stepped up to Tristan with a smile, kneeling at his feet.

“I, Jane Marie Brown, pledge my allegiance to you, Tristan Martin, as my Alpha. This pack shall be my family, and where you go shall be my home as long as I shall live.”

Tristan’s eyes were full of love and pride as he replied, “I, Tristan Martin, pledge to you, Jane Marie Brown, to be a strong and just Alpha. Protecting and leading this pack as my family as long as I shall live. I accept and honor you as my mate and the Luna of our pack. Stand to your feet, Luna Jane of the First Montana Pack.”

He took both of her hands then pulled her into a giant bear hug as I felt Jane’s presence enter the pack link. It was warm and loving, adding depth and wisdom to our pack’s presence.

Each time a new person entered our pack and made their pledge, we’d all feel a sense of who they are. It wouldn’t be a complete understanding but a general note of their essence and being.

Jane’s presence was extraordinary. I’d certainly never felt such an incredible, beautiful, and homey addition to my father’s pack. I wondered what Tristan had felt when he received me. Perhaps later, I would ask him.

The feel of the pack bonds being established, and the mind-link forming was perfect. I had no doubt that our pack would be something new and amazing.

Avery came forward and made her pledge to Tristan and the pack, and Diane after her.

We were only a small pack of five tonight, but for now, it was enough. In the coming days, there would be more.