Moon Goddess, Name Him

chapter 14

POV Theo

The emergency pack meeting erupted in chaos before I'd even called it to order.

"Three humans with professional cameras were spotted at Miller's Ridge," Scout captain Derek Frost announced, his face grim. "They're asking questions about wolf sightings, taking pictures of everything."

Tension crackled through the community center as twenty-five pack members turned their eyes toward me. This was exactly the kind of crisis Dad had warned me about. Real leadership decisions made under pressure, with no time for second-guessing.

"We need to assess the situation carefully before responding," I said, my mind racing through possibilities. "Hasty decisions could expose us all."

Elder warrior Calvin Brooks shot to his feet, weathered face flushed with anger. "While you're 'assessing,' they could be broadcasting our existence to the world. We need those humans dealt with now."

"Dealt with how exactly?" I challenged. "We can't just attack innocent people."

"Innocent?" Brooks scoffed. "They're trespassing on our territory, threatening pack security. That makes them hostile."

Other voices joined in, the room dividing between those who wanted immediate action and those willing to wait for my decision. But I could see the doubt creeping into faces that had supported me moments before.

"Give me thirty minutes to consult with my father and develop a proper response," I said finally.

"Thirty minutes?" Brooks threw his hands up in disgust. "By then they'll have uploaded everything to the internet."

But I held firm, believing careful planning would serve us better than rash action.

I was catastrophically wrong.

By the time I authorized a team to approach the humans diplomatically, their photos were already spreading across social media.

Pack members worked frantically to flood the platforms with debunking comments, claiming the images were hoaxes or digitally manipulated. The damage control might work, but the threat had been real.

After the meeting dissolved in frustrated murmurs, Benji cornered me in the parking lot.

"Your indecision tonight put every pack member at risk," he said bluntly. "Leaders can't second-guess themselves when lives are at stake."

The criticism stung because I knew he was right. "I was trying to avoid making things worse."

"Sometimes making no decision is the worst decision of all." Benji's voice carried disappointment rather than anger, which hurt more than shouting would have. "People need to trust that their leader will act when action is required."

"I'm not my father."

"No, you're not. But the pack needs an alpha who can make hard choices quickly. Tonight proved you're not ready for that responsibility."

His words followed me as I drove toward Cassidy's cottage, seeking comfort from the only person who didn't expect me to have all the answers.

I found her struggling with warped porch boards, hammer in one hand and a mouthful of nails making her speech incomprehensible.

"Need help?" I asked, grateful for a problem I actually knew how to solve.

She spat the nails into her palm and grinned. "Please. These boards are winning the war."

Working alongside her felt natural, peaceful. My hands knew how to measure, cut, nail down replacement planks. Physical labor quieted the chaos in my head, at least temporarily.

"You seem distracted," Cassidy observed after we'd worked in silence for twenty minutes.

"Pack meeting didn't go well."

"Want to talk about it?"

I set down my hammer and sat on the porch steps, suddenly exhausted. "I froze tonight. Made the wrong call and potentially exposed everyone to danger."

Cassidy settled beside me, close enough that her warmth eased some of the tension in my shoulders.

"What happened?"

I explained the situation with the photographers, my hesitation, the consequences of my caution. Her expression grew thoughtful as I talked.

"You care so much about doing right by everyone," she said when I finished. "Then don't fight the photos," Cassidy said, calm as a lake. "Own them."

I blinked. "Own…?"

"Say they're Photoshopped—festival promo. Playful, tourist-bait. Make it boring and local. If it’s a joke, it's our joke."

The knot in my chest eased a fraction. "Tourism angle."

"Yep. 'Moon Hollow Myth & Harvest Trail'—local artists blend wildlife stock with night shots. Everyone posts the same caption within ten minutes. Hashtag something cheeky. Offer the photographers a booth at the festival and a pancake feature at June’s diner."

"Turn a scare into a souvenir," I murmured.

"Exactly. Give the internet a better story to share."

Her words made sense, it looks like a good problem solution. So I called and ordered Benji to handle the situation with Cassidy’s plan and went back to repair the porch.

Inside, Cassidy warmed soup as I handled the last of the porch fixes, while the internet blew up over the town’s new commercial.

"Your plan worked," I said, and it surprised me how much I needed to say it to her. "Tourists are filming pancakes, not tree lines."

"Told you," she said, smiling. "Own the story."

"Thank you," I said, meaning every syllable.

"Leaders listen," she replied. "That counts." At her door, she turned into my arms, eyes warm.

I kissed her—not to plug a hole in my doubt, but to say thank you without words. When she pulled back, worry still flickered behind her calm, like a storm far out over the ridge.

"Everything will work out," she whispered. "You’ll figure it out."

"If you believe in me," I said, “then I will.”

She nodded and smiled. I left the kiss on her forehead and went toward my car.

The drive home took fifteen minutes through dark mountain roads. As I pulled into our driveway, headlights swept across an unexpected scene that made my blood turn cold.

Eight pack members stood clustered around Xander in our front yard. They leaned in as he spoke, nodding at his words, their body language focused and attentive.

They didn't see authority in me, so they'd come to my brother for advice.

Not to me.

They still saw me as Xander's little brother, not the future Alpha.

The realization knocked the air from my lungs as I sat frozen behind the wheel, watching the pack members who didn’t try to believe in me turn to the man who'd once betrayed us all.