A male shifter got to his feet. "You said we don't date outside our own kind," he called out to Roman.
Shit. He knew this was coming. The guy had every right to question him. "You're right. I was wrong, and I’m very sorry about that. I believed that rule so fiercely that I gave up my mate for five years. I broke up with her because I thought it was the right thing to do." He went on to explain how he’d bought into the old traditions, and he hadn’t listened to other perspectives. He talked for a good ten minutes about how wrong he’d been. He hoped they could see how sorry he was.
"What changed your mind?" a female shifter asked.
"The love we have for each other and our bond. It survived five years of a breakup. I might as well tell you now, we have a daughter together. Neither of us were aware of that fact when I broke up with her, but now we're going to raise her together. She is going to be part of this pack. I will say that as long as I'm Alpha, she will be accepted just as her mother is. If you cannot find it in your hearts to evolve, then I will leave the pack."
At that point there was a collective gasp, but Roman kept going. "I realize this is a hard pill to swallow. I realize my decisions have affected our pack.”
A large wolf shifter approached Roman. "I'll call you out on this. You're a piece of shit. Years ago, I wanted to date a fox shifter and you said no."
"I'm very sorry for that. I hate that I caused you pain. I wish that I could take it back. Any shifters are welcome in this pack from now on. We still need to have some boundaries with humans, because they can't know about our secret, but we'd love to meet any shifters."
A female shifter, who was older than him by quite a few years was next. "You said you have a child? And she’s moving here? Is she a bear shifter too? How does that work?"
"Yes, I do. I don't want to go into details about my child right now. She’s a shifter, and her mother is a shifter, and she will be moving here."
"When are they moving here?" the woman asked.
"We haven't discussed that yet, but I’ll keep you all updated."
Seemingly satisfied, the female sat down.
Another male came forward. "This is bullshit. You shouldn't be allowed anywhere near other people. You certainly shouldn't be allowed to run a pack. I want you gone." His face turned a mottled reddish-purple. He hopped up on stage and raised his arms in the air. "Who's with me? Who wants this motherfucker gone for good?"
No one raised their hands, and no one spoke up. To Roman’s shock, Derek stood up. "You know, I was against mating outside our own kind for a long time. Now that I've heard our Alpha is willing to give the pack up for true love, I feel a little bit differently about it. I can respect that he feels that way. He fell in love, and he learned what’s important." Derek started walking toward the angry shifter.
The other shifterwasn't finished yet. With a sudden swift movement. he transformed, shifting into his wolf. He didn't bother to shed his clothes first and they ripped along the seams as he brushed past Derek and lunged at Roman.
Roman was ready for him. He was an Alpha and he was strong and he was fast. He’d also spent years sparring with other males in his pack.
He caught the shifter around the waist and flung him to the ground. He didn't want to hurt him, but he could not allow this kind of attack. He knelt down and put his hand on the shifter’s chest. Underneath him, the shifter growled and snapped.
"You have one more chance. If you do not get control of yourself, you will be exiled from this pack. Your banishment will be permanent." He looked down at the shifter right in his eyes. "If you ever threaten my mate or my pup, then I will snap your neck. No healer can help you with that."
He put his hands around the wolf's throat and then on his jaw, demonstrating. The shifter closed his eyes and acquiesced. He didn’t fight Roman at all.
"Are you going to respect my mate?" Roman asked.
The shifter nodded his head.
"Are you going to cause problems?"
The shifter shook his head.
"Get up. Go get dressed and come back. We’ll have a discussion. You are free to voice any concerns to me publicly or privately. But we are not going to attack each other. We have enough problems without turning on each other."
With the shifter still smashed against the ground, Roman looked up at the crowd. "Is there anyone else here who would like to challenge me? Is there anyone else here who would like to threaten my family?"
Everyone shook their heads. There was a collective hush of silence.
“Good. I will not tolerate violence amongst ourselves. As I said before, if you have a concern, come talk to me. I apologize for being gone so much lately. I was going back and forth between here and Juneau, where my mate lives. She is moving here, so we’ll be fully immersed in pack life.”
He looked down at the shifter.
"Are you ready to get up?"
The shifter nodded.