Northwood

It took a long time for Adline to pull herself together.

She left Neal, Babel and new baby Kane to themselves. She didn’t want to ruin for them what was no doubt the best day of their lives. She wanted them to be immersed in their own little bubble of joy and love and genuine contentedness after all that had happened.

Picking herself up off of the floor a very tired and surly Adline dragged herself to the gaming room where she knew alcohol was hidden in abundance.

Wandering through the halls of the home it was quiet and lonesome and it bothered her greatly. Such a large home shouldn’t sit so lifeless and cold.

Before long she threw open one of the doors to the room and sighed as she entered. To her surprise others had beaten her to the stash as she eyed Esmerelda and Dustin sat with half empty glasses and sour looks on their faces.

“Why aren’t you two working?” Adline barked as she slammed the door closed behind her. Dustin didn’t speak but stood to retrieve another glass from the hiding hole before pouring a shot of whiskey and pushing it in Adline’s direction.

“Our last orders were to take care of you and if need be give our lives for you,” Esme replied rather angrily.

“Can’t you find something else to do other than sit and drink?!” She couldn’t help but bite back quickly.

“Like what? There are no borders to protect anymore. You are self proclaimed Alpha of three territories.” It sounded to Adline that no one had faith in her to lead. No one had faith in her to do anything.

Walking towards the little table the pair sat at Adline snatched the glass and emptied its contents into her mouth quickly. “Well help me.” She placed her glass down on the table and shook it at Dustin for a refill. “Some of you are mad at me that i killed Kane and the rest are bitching about me not being able to fill his shoes.” She heard a scoff and saw Esme grow red in the face as she choked on her alcohol momentarily.

“That obvious is it?” She mumbled into her glass.

“You’re all like Kane.” Adline found herself smiling at her own statement as both Esme and Dustin eyed her off suspiciously. “All any of you know how to do is be angry.” She recounted her first days among them and marvelled at how far away it all felt and how far they had all come in such a short time. “I’m not Kane. I’m not like him and I can’t be like him.” She admitted as she sipped her second shot slowly. “I don’t know what I’m doing and all of you are so quick to judge me instead of offering to help me.”

Dustin’s eyebrows raised momentarily before he broke out chuckling. “And what have you got to say to that Esme?! Not a damn thing you grumpy cow.” Adline was glad someone found amusement in the situation. “She called you out. Gotta give her that one.”

Esme seemed to be contemplating something as Dusting carried on smiling a smug little smile. “You are the daughter of an Alpha aren’t you?!” Esme replied rather forcefully. “You should know what you’re doing. All Alpha kids know what they are doing.” Of that she was adamant.

“Well then call me the exception!” Adline was determined not to give up before she had given it a good go, but none of them were making it easy on her.

“Lord help me,” Esme mumbled as she turned fully to Adline and looked her from head to toe in one long drag. “You are clueless aren’t you?” She questioned the woman she had to call Alpha.

“Inexperienced.” Adline corrected quickly.

“Well, whatever it is I can only teach you what I know,” Esme replied rather confidently. “Where shall I start?” Over the years the young guard had learned many things being in the company of Kane and the rest of the Northwood family and felt she had picked up enough to be a little help to the very clueless Adline. Though Esme admired the fire, she displayed to want to learn and grow it was discouraging to see just how clueless she was and she didn’t want the rest of the pack seeing that. Adline would make them all targets, and even though she had acquired three packs, it meant nothing if she couldn’t keep them in line. It meant nothing if she couldn’t make them loyal to her.

The night dragged on as minutes turned to hours and soon hours felt like an eternity. In the small room, the three souls gathered discussed ideas and swapped information and taught the young Alpha female what she needed to know to demand some level of respect from her pack mates. The bottle of decanted whiskey disappeared before dawn but as the sun rose on another day, the trio still sat deep in conversation. Occasionally one stood and walked around to emphasise a point or stretch out cramped joints.

“So,” Esme began again as she yawned loudly. Sleep had been hard to come by for her lately and even though her children with her parents she still couldn’t settle at night. “Tonight as the sun sets and the moon rises the funeral pyres need to be lit,” Esme continued. She had tired many hours ago, but Adline had far too many questions for her to try and sleep comfortably.

“Why?” Adline questioned quickly.

“We don’t bury our dead in Northwood. We send their spirits, their souls up to the Moon Goddess by freeing them of their bodies. Their ashes then fertilize forests and fields. They feed the fish in the rivers and the animals around the area. The circle of life here is continuous and mostly uninterrupted.” Esme had respected the long standing tradition of not burying the dead.

The only problem with that was that there was no one burial site to visit, there was no one place to pay respects but instead it forced loved ones out into the wilderness to explore the land around them. It forced them to think of death as something else other than sadness and despair and though Esme still wallowed in the grief of losing her mate the peace she found every single time she ran the fields or tip toed through the forest was more than she could ever hope for. Now and then the wind would carry his scent and would remind her that he was never truly gone, just in a different place. It made dealing with loss easier on everyone.

It was a completely foreign concept for Adline to comprehend but it seemed the sentiment behind it was rather beautiful.

“Have Harvey sort it out,” Adline demanded of Esme. “Tonight we’ll burn the pyres.” standing from her seat Adline walked towards the door. She needed rest.

Later that afternoon as the sun began sinking Adline pulled herself together again and headed downstairs. There was a flurry of activity as everyone ushered each other around. A great sense of togetherness filled the air around her as she found herself suddenly swept up in the commotion.

The sun had set over the horizon by the time everyone reached the funeral pyres in the designated field.

Stepping from the vehicle Adline was soon joined by others. Her enforcers and guards. Her brothers had made the short journey back to Northwood to pay their respects to the dead.

The large, open field chosen for the ceremony was as secluded as anyone could get. Mountains bordered three sides of the field with a large open plain stretching as far as the eye could see.

Against the darkness of the sky she could see stacks in the distance, “Are they all pyres?” She questioned quietly as she looked towards Harvey who nodded once.

“Not everyone was strong enough to block Nox out,” his voice sounded sad which pulled at Adlines heart. “Family members of those that have died are gathered around their pyres,” he mused quickly filling in the gaps for Adline.

Squinting her eyes as if to wee through the darkness Adline saw figures loitering around various stacks. Some sat sadly while other looked jovial and content. In the middle of it all stood one massive pyre that stretched towards the sky, “whose is that?” Adline couldn’t help but question as she and those that had arrived with her moved towards it.

“Myrna and whatever we could scrape up of Luce,” There seemed to be a hint of amusement in Harveys words as the hairs on Adline’s arms rose and stood on end.

A renewed sense of sadness hit her like a ton of bricks. Loss again reared it’s sad head as they walked through the grass that had largely been flattened by those that had prepared the pyres through the day.

Arriving at the base of the structure a sour scent filled Adline’s nostrils quickly. The stench of death that they all knew well thanks to Nox.

Adline was instructed to take a seat a short distance away. The heater a burning pyre was far too much for humans to handle but thankfully those gathered were all quite different.

Casting her glance around the field Adline noted the many small lights appear as small fires were lit. “We usually have a priest to say some words before the burning,” Esme called back to Adline, “But he died too.”

The words seemingly did not phase Adline as she stared off into the distance at a light that seemed far too bright to be a flame.

“What’s that?” Adline asked as light began creeping up the sides of the tall wooden structures dotted around.

“Probably just the headlights of someone’s car,” Taylor replied bluntly as he muttered profanities beneath his breath.

Not too sure she believed him Adline turned her attention back to the burning pyres that were now totally ablaze but something kept bugging her about the light she saw at the far side of the field.

Before long they all heard grass rustling and someone panting. A young man’s face became illuminated by the light of the burning pyre.

“What is it?” Harvey growled at the young man who had interrupted them.

Before the young man could say anything screams and cries filled the night air punctuating the burning and crackling of the funeral pyres. Those that sat at the center pyre stood staring in the direction of the loudest screams. Everyone strained their ears trying to figure out what it was.

The screams seemed surprised and astonished. Not scared or panicked like Adline had expected.

“Who is it?” Adline fixed her gaze on the young man. What caused such a reaction?

“It’s Alpha Kane,” he seemed almost breathless as he contemplated what he was about to say. He had seen it with his own eyes but he wasn’t too sure he believed it himself. “He’s alive, he’s here.”