The Shadow of a Luna
Chapter 19

Chapter 19: Chapter 19

Tyler was looking between me and Adam who was still on the floor and I was waiting for Adam to say something. When I realized that he wasn’t going to say anything at all then I was about to open my mouth.

"I owe them a lot of money." Adam blurted out. And I looked at him curiously.

"What?" Tyler asked confused.

"Tessa heard me on the phone this morning. I was telling her not to tell you. But she heard me and it was a loan shark. I got into gambling and I owe this guy a lot of money. That’s why mom and dad kicked me out. They were sick of covering my ass. So I came here. You’ve got enough money to help me." Adam explained standing up.

By this point we had gathered quite an audience of not just our friends but warriors that heard the commotion and came in to see what was going on.

"So, that’s why you’re here. Because you need money. Well, don’t think for one fucking second that you’re getting any from me. If you don’t want them to break your legs then you find a way to pay off your own debts. And if you ever threaten my mate again, or lay a finger on her, I will break your legs myself." Tyler growled getting right in Adam’s face.

"Alright. I’m sorry. I went too far." Adam says.

"So, what was all that shit about thinking I was a pathetic depressed mate that wasn’t leaving the bedroom. What did that have to do with anything. Because that’s what you said on the phone." I announced. And Tyler turned back and growled again.

"That’s what I was told. That you were Tyler’s mate and that you’d been attacked really badly and that you weren’t leaving the bedroom. You were depressed and people were taking bets on weather you were going to kill yourself or not." Adam says.

"Were people in this pack making that bet?" I asked.

"No. Other packs. They all knew what was going on here. And that’s why these people said that Tessa wouldn’t be a problem or try and convince you, Tyler, not to give me any money." Adam explained and I scoffed.

"I have never once told Tyler what to do with his money. Why the hell would I start now?" I asked.

"Well, how the hell was I supposed to know that. I didn’t even know Tyler had a mate until a few days ago." Adam says.

"I am not giving you a cent for your addiction. You deal with it." Tyler growled.

"Alright Tyler. Let’s get out of here. We’re meant to be having fun today. Not worrying about him." I say. So Tyler turned back to look at me and grabbed the keys and we left the packhouse.

The drive into town was quiet and I could tell that Tyler was seething. I wasn’t sure if he was mad at me though for not telling him earlier about the phone call I overheard. That’s what I was worried about. But I don’t think he picked up on any of that.

We pulled up in the main street of town and I looked around at all the people moving around and enjoying themselves. Going about their business. But then I felt Tyler take my hand.

"Are you alright?" He asked.

"Yeah. I think so. I just keep thinking that their going to see me as that pathetic Luna lying in a hospital bed after being attacked and not being able to protect myself." I admit.

"None of them think of you like that. They actually think you’re strong and wonderful and powerful and a great Luna because you survived such an attack. They know about the wolfsbane and that you couldn’t fight back. So no one here thinks that you’re weak." He assured me.

"Alright then. Let’s get started." I say opening the car door.

So we got out of the car and Tyler took my hand as we started walking down the road and it wasn’t long before a man stopped with his mate and their little pup.

"Tessa. This is William. He is one of our foremen on the construction crew. And his mate Ruth and their 3-year-old daughter Gracie." Tyler introduced me and I shook all their hands. Even Gracie’s.

"It’s so nice to meet all of you. And especially you Gracie. That is a beautiful little dress you have on." I say.

"Thank you." She said shyly. "My mommy made it." She says.

"Well, I think your mommy did an amazing job. And you mommy is very talented." I say and she smiled sweetly at me.

"It’s nothing special. Just something I through together." Ruth says.

"If that is something that you just through together then I might have to give you a job around the pack as a designer. That’s a beautiful dress." I say.

"Thank you. I appreciate that very much." She says.

"Hey, I was just thinking. I know that we always have dinner with the others that live in the packhouse. But why don’t we arrange a dinner with William and Ruth and little Gracie here? Just us in the formal dining room for a change?" I asked Tyler. And he smiled at me.

"I think that sounds like a great idea." Tyler says.

"Oh no. We don’t want to put you guys out." William says.

"Absolutely not. We would be honored. I know I will be. How about tomorrow night?" I asked.

"That sounds great. Thank you." Ruth says.

"Absolutely." I say. And we continued on our way.

"Are you going to invited everyone to private dinners?" Tyler whispered in my ear.

"No. But I am going to invite the ones that I think can do a lot of good for this pack." I say. And Tyler cocked his eyebrow at me.

"William is already the foreman on the construction crew." Tyler says.

"I’m talking about Ruth. Does she have a job?" I asked.

"No. She’s a stay at home mother." He says.

"Well, I think it might be a good idea to introduce a new designer to the pack. Help bring in a little revenue perhaps. If her clothes are good enough then people from other packs might hear of her. It might work in our favor. There’s only one way to find out." I say.

"Holy shit. You are a natural at this. I would never have even thought that." He says.

"That’s because you’re a man and because the man of that family is working you think that it’s fine. She might want to work as well. Especially if it’s something she’s passionate about. What a fascist." I say teasingly.

"I am not. Leave me alone." He says.

"Nope. Sorry. Can’t do that." I say. And he started poking me in the side and started tickling me and I squealed and kept trying to push him away.

We made the most of that day and I met hundreds of pack members. But by the time I got back home, I was feeling exhausted and drained. Dinner had already come and gone so Tyler and I just got something quick to eat and we sat in the kitchen eating when Adam walked in.

Tyler rolled his eyes and looked away from him. Not wanting to acknowledge that Adam was even there. So Adam went over to the fridge and got a beer out and sat on the other side of the table from us.

"I’m really sorry about this morning Tessa. I didn’t mean to grab you the way that I did. I was just frustrated and a little pissed that you heard me on the phone." Adam admitted.

"No. You were just pissed that you got caught." Tyler snapped at him.

"Yeah. Alright, I’m sorry. I should have told you when I got here. But I knew what you would have done. Just slammed the door in my face. You wouldn’t have let me stay here. I need your help Tyler. This loan shark isn’t human. It’s another werewolf and so are his bodyguards and they are fucking dangerous." Adam explained.

"You decided to loan money from them. It’s your problem. Not ours. Everyone in the world knows to stay away from loan sharks and now you want me to bail you out. It’s not happening." Tyler insisted.

"What am I supposed to do. I don’t have that kind of money." Adam says.

"How much are we talking about?" I asked.

"$55 000." He admitted lowering his head. And Tyler started choking on his food so I started patting him on the back.

"You stupid son of a bitch." Tyler yelled.

"How am I going to make the money?" Adam asked.

"You can work for it." I say. And Tyler looked at me. " I’m sure that there are plenty of jobs around the territory that needs to be done. Adam here can work for the money. He can stay here rent free, free food, everything. But no drinking, no going out and picking up chicks. Everything you earn goes straight to that loan shark. Do you hear me?" I asked demandingly.

"I hear you. Is that alright Tyler?" Adam asked. And Tyler looked at me while he was thinking it over in his head.

"Yeah. That’s fine. But you better fucking behave while you’re here. This is my reputation you are messing with. And you stay the fuck away from gambling while you’re here otherwise you’re gone." Tyler demanded.

"Absolutely. Thank you. I’ll see if he will let me set up a plan like that. I’ll have to give him a number though. How much I can pay back a week." Adam says. And I looked at Tyler for that answer.

"I’ll let you know. Just tell him that you’re sorting it out and you will get back to him with a payment plan." Tyler growled.

When we finished dinner Tyler took my hand as we walked up the stairs and I could tell that his brother really did push his buttons. And when we got to our room I pulled some pajama’s out of the wardrobe.

"Are you pissed at me for suggesting that?" I asked.

"No. I’m not pissed at you. I’m pissed at him. He always gets himself into trouble and expects everyone else to bail him out. I actually like you’re idea. Because they need some more sewer workers." Tyler said with a grin and I started laughing.

"That’s exactly the type of work that I was thinking of. The really crappy jobs that no one else wants." I say and Tyler started laughing and reached out to pull me in his arms.

"I love you. You know that." He says.

"I know. I love you too." I say and he kissed me.

ADAM POV

Once Tyler and Tessa went upstairs I headed out the patio doors and away from the packhouse where I knew that no one could hear me. I also stayed away from the woods because I knew that there would be patrols running through there.

I pulled out my phone and dialed a number.

"Well?" The man asked.

"It’s all set up. I’m staying here for a bit. I lied about owing money to a loan shark and they took pity on me. It was Tessa’s idea to let me stay here and work it off. It might be easier to gain her trust then I thought." I say.

"You better be right. Because if I don’t get what I want then it’s your head." He gritted through his teeth.

"Geez Josiah. You will get what you want. Don’t worry about that. I am gaining her trust and then you can stick it to Angelo as much as you want." I tell him.

"Once I have Angelo’s daughter in my dungeon then that son of a bitch will regret ever fucking with me. You hurry up and get it done. I will not wait forever." Josiah roared at me over the phone.

"I said that I will get it done. But don’t you forget the rest of our deal. You get Tessa, kill Tyler and the pack is mine." I reminded him.

"I haven’t forgotten. I will kill that mutt for you so you can have his pack. But that’s where it ends. I never want to hear from you again after Tessa is here." Josiah says.

"That’s fine with me." I say hanging up.

I turn around and look back towards the packhouse that was about 200 feet away and I saw Tessa sitting on a chair next to the window with it cracked open slightly while she was having a cigarette. I knew that she couldn’t hear me. And she wasn’t even looking in my direction, so she couldn’t see me. But I stood there staring at her. She was in her pyjama’s and obviously ready for bed. And all I could think was ’How the fuck does my brother get everything?’ I honestly saw Tessa as the most gorgeous thing on the planet. She was the most beautiful women I have ever seen and my idiot brother hasn’t even marked her yet. What is he waiting for. I would have done it the first night we met. There’s no way I would let anything take her away from me. Maybe it’s because she’s still only 17.

I know what the mate bond is like. I’ve been told about it my whole life. She’s underage so she only just feels the pull towards Tyler. She doesn’t feel the bond yet. When they are marked then he will be able to find her anywhere. It’s like a beacon for their mate. But if they aren’t marked, then they can’t find each other. I had to get this done before he marked her. Otherwise Josiah would have to use every trick under the sun to be able to block that signal from Tyler. And he was stronger than most Alpha’s. And I was beginning to learn that she was a lot stronger than people led me to believe. This wasn’t going to be easy, but I was going to get what I want. This place would soon be mine.