▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

CHAPTER 30: SECRETS AND COCKROACHES

❝ no pressure or anything. ❞

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

SECRETS ARE A STRANGE THING. There are three kinds of secrets that could make or break you starting with the secret that everyone knows about. The sort you need at least two people for. One to keep it. One to never know.

The second is a harder kind of secret: one you keep from yourself. Every day, thousands of confessions are kept from their would-be-confessors, none of these people knowing that their never admitted secrets all boil down to the same three words; I am afraid.

And then there is the third kind of secret, the most hidden kind. A secret no one knows about. Perhaps it was known once, but was taken to the grave. Or maybe it is a useless mystery. Arcane and lonely, unfound because no one ever looked for it.

Sometimes, some rare times, a secret stays undiscovered because it is something too big for the mind to hold. It is too strange, too vast, too terrifying to contemplate. All of us have secrets in our lives. We are keepers or kept-from, players or played. Secrets and cockroaches—that is what will be left at the end of it all; that is what will keep us going; that is what will bring us all together.

That is what Enola believed. All she had to do was find a secret worth keeping; a secret that would change the tides of this war. There was only one question remaining. What kind of secret was it? The kind that everyone knows? The kind that you keep from yourself? Or that kind that no one knows about? Only time will tell.

"The wolves are freaking out," Aiden expressed. "They know it must be an insider who took down Vincent last night seeing as no one could have been anywhere near him."

"Anybody suspect it was you?" Jackson questioned.

"No. Not yet." Aiden shook his head. "But they're gonna figure it out which pretty much means I'm screwed unless we come up with a plan."

"Call a meeting. The whole pack. Tonight." Hayley demanded. "If they are so scared, now is the perfect time to convince them they need to ditch Esther."

"She gave them moonlight rings," Aiden reminded, waving his ring in the air like some sort of trophy.

"Those rings make you slaves," Hayley pointed out

"No, they make us powerful." Aiden corrected. "We were exiles before and now we run the city. The vampires are scared of us. And no one—including me—is just going to walk away from that."

"Set the damn meeting," Jackson growled.

Enola shared a look with both Hayley and Aiden as Jackson stormed away. They were in the middle of a silent battle—the first one to look away had to go after their so-called alpha. She was unfortunate enough to be that person. So with a deep sigh, she followed him out onto the dock just as he cracked open yet another beer.

"So are you gonna work on a rousing speech or just get day drunk?" Enola hummed.

"Little bit of both," Jackson shrugged.

"It is ten in the morning," Enola reminded.

Enola took the beer can away from Jackson with an annoyed huff. He sighed as she held the drink hostage. He hobbled on over to the nearby table before grabbing a leather bound journal as she watched in a mixture of confusion and curiosity.

"For months, I wrote down every single word Ansel said. An entire history of our people. If only I'd known he was Klaus' father, I would have asked him a hell of a lot more." Jackson confessed. "I was up all night looking through this, trying to find something—anything—that will help get our people back together."

"Let me guess," Enola sighed. "No such luck?"

"Nothing viable," Jackson sighed, tossing the journal back onto the table with a sad sigh. "And now Ansel is dead. Along with Ollie." He snatched the beer back with a raised brow. "So forgive me if I need a beer. Because right now, I can use all the help I can get."

Enola watched as Jackson disappeared around the corner before slowly turning towards the leather bound journal. She supposed a second set of eyes couldn't hurt. So she took the object into her own hands and began flipping through.

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

Enola honestly did not expect much from the journal. She had thought that it would all be werewolf customs. She had thought there would be nothing that would be of any use to them now. But she had been wrong. In fact, she stumbled on a page that would solve all of their problems. It was called the unification ceremony.

Werewolf bloodlines used to be distinct—some had speed, some had strength, some could sense enemies from miles away. To evolve, they would perform a certain ritual. A shaman would marry the alpha of two different bloodlines and the two special abilities of each bloodline would be mystically inherited by everyone who participated in the ritual. But that wasn't the only thing the pack would inherit. They would all become one. However, after a few centuries, everyone inherited the same abilities so alpha marriages became more political.

Hayley and Enola and Klaus had a unique ability—they could change at will. So if this mystical marriage thing works, Jackson relinquishes control over the pack, Enola and Klaus get married, moonlight rings are no longer needed. But before these plans can be set in motion, this was something that needed to be looked into.

Enola glanced over her shoulder at Cami who did not look so good. They were digging through the abundance of dark objects and mystical ledgers Father Kirean had left behind. They were looking for something—anything—that would explain more about this unification ceremony and whether or not it was real. They needed something real.

"Are you sure you are okay?" Enola inquired.

"Yeah," Cami reassured. "I must be coming down with something."

"I'm sorry to drag you out of bed for this," Enola apologized.

"Please," Cami waved a lazy hand in the air. "You just discovered an ancient marriage ritual with pretty drastic supernatural and personal implications. The least I could do is get out of bed."

"Thank you," Enola smiled softly.

"Of course," Cami grinned before clearing her throat before moving over to showcase some sort of book "So this is everything I found in my Uncle's files about werewolf ceremonies and rituals. Mostly it sounds like old folklore and fables. But I'm guessing you're not here looking for some kind of proof."

"I don't know what I'm looking for," Enola sighed

Enola and Klaus had been engaged for months and they hadn't even begun the wedding preparations. They never really had the time with enemy after enemy popping up. They should at least speak about it before rushing into things. She just wanted to make sure that she had all of the facts before telling him about the unification ceremony.

"Not to pry, but does Klaus have any answers?" Cami inquired. "He is part werewolf too."

"I haven't even told him about all of this," Enola confessed. "We have been engaged for months and we haven't even spoken about our wedding. I don't think he wants to put me in that position."

"What position?" Cami wondered.

"I have been struggling with postpartum depression," Enola whispered in shame. "He has been so patient with me and I feel like I am letting him down."

"There is no right answer to this. You just have to figure out what is best for you." Cami expressed, tying her hair into a messy bun on top of her head. "And think long and hard about your decision because you're the one that's going to have to live with it."

"No pressure or anything," Enola chuckled. Cami smiled. She watched her turn back to the ledger before spotting something strange. "What the hell is that?"

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

Jackson stood on the altar with Hayley and Aiden off to the side. They had called a meeting in hopes of fixing this predicament they now found themselves in. They wished that there was an easier way to go about this but the truth was that none of them had a clue what they were doing. Why do you think most of them turned to the witches for guidance?

"I know you are angry and scared," Jackson began. "But we are a pack no matter what."

"You have been checked out for months," Pablo reminded, standing to address the self proclaimed alpha. "Why should we listen to you?"

"Because he is the alpha," Hayley glared. "You got a problem with that?"

"I want to hear what Jackson has to say," Everyone turned towards the entrance of the church just as Enola stepped out into the open.

"This is a pack meeting," Pablo spat. "You're not one of us. You never were."

"No?" Enola hummed. She walked further into the room before holding a single hand up for everyone to see. She slowly began to rearrange the bones in her hand without so much as a grimace before addressing her people with pride. "I am a werewolf who doesn't need any magical rings to control when or how I change. You want the same? Then sit down, shut up, and listen."

"Enola?" Hayley asked questioningly.

"What you think of me doesn't matter," Enola announced. "I found a way to help us all."

"How?" Aiden questioned, stepping forward in curiosity.

"I don't know how many of you here grew up on the unification myth, but it is true and it is real." Enola explained. "Which means that if two alphas with the ability to control their transformation were to get married, anyone with the guts to turn up to the ceremony has as much control over their wolf form as they do." Her eyes flickered around the many surprised faces. This isn't just about uniting our pack. It's about forming a new community. The ceremony will change everything for us. It'll give us the strength we need to defend ourselves. Then and only then will we finally have peace. The choice is yours."

Unsure murmurs filled the air as everyone turned towards one another in uncertainty. No one was sure what to think or who to trust. Thankfully someone was. Aiden stepped up, dropping the moonlight ring at Enola's feet as if crowning her queen.

"I'm in,"

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

"I'm sorry I sprung that on you guys,"

Enola sat on the altar with Hayley and Jackson. They had all gone over the logistics of the unification ceremony. All that was left was for them to discuss their more personal business surrounding this topic. None of them really knew where to begin nor where to end. But this was a discussion that needed to be had.

"So," Hayley began. "The unification ceremony."

"Who exactly is getting married?" Jackson inquired.

Enola had been waiting for that question. Jackson and Hayley getting married was the obvious choice. But that wasn't fair for either of them seeing as Hayley was in love with Elijah which left Jackson married to someone who cannot love him the way he deserved. It was only practical that they relinquished their control of the pack to Enola and Klaus. Now all that was left was to convince them of that.

"I want to start this by saying that the both of you are amazing alphas," Enola said. "But I think that Klaus and I could be even greater."

"Wait, wait, wait." Hayley held up a hand. "What the hell are you talking about?"

"The unification ceremony is not just some party. If the vows are not honored, it will not work. It has to be a real marriage in every way for the rest of your lives." Enola explained. "Are the both of you up for that?"

"No," Jackson muttered.

"What?" Hayley blinked.

"Hayley—you are in love with Elijah. Asking you to marry me wouldn't be fair to either of us." Jackson spoke earnestly. "Enola would make a great alpha. Even with Klaus by her side."

"I—" Hayley went to argue before pausing to take a deep breath to face her friend with soft eyes. "Only if you are sure."

"I am," Enola nodded.

"Then let's do this," Hayley hummed.

Enola and Hayley left Jackson behind to find Klaus. They had agreed to talk to him together. They weren't sure if he would be okay using their wedding as some sort of mystical ritual, but they had to at least try and hope for the best. They caught him just as he was storming across the courtyard of the compound.

"Nik," Enola began nervously. "There is something I would like to talk to you about—"

Klaus silenced Enola with a passionate kiss. They hadn't seen each other all day seeing as he had been busy with his brothers while she figured out how to help her pack. Their kiss was short lived when he pulled back to give her a bright smile.

"What was that for?" Enola quirked a brow.

"Do I need a reason to kiss my lovely fiancé?" Klaus grinned.

"I suppose not," Enola shrugged.

"Perfect," Klaus smiled, interlocking his hand with hers. "Now let's go."

"Where?" Enola frowned.

"To see our daughter,"

▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄▄

AUTHORS NOTE.
how would you guys feel about enola and klaus getting married instead of hayley and jackson. i feel like the way i made them get married last time was too rushed and not special. they literally eloped and had no one there to witness it except for their one year old daughter. i figured this would be better. anywore,, thank you so much for reading. until next time, my loves!!!