From Book 14
Alberto was gaining a new perspective on his place among Wolf Society and, as they left a large dairy complex, he took Tosco's hand in his, "Lord Prince and Friend, you have shown me my purpose, please, when we return to our home, show me how to be a Wolf and a Clan Alpha to my people." Roberto was standing next to Alberto, "I shall be Proxy to my Alberto and shall assist him to become all that he can be. Together, we shall return Clan Domingo to its proper place in Family Met."
Chapter 1 - THE RETURN HOME
Tosco felt that Family Met was on its way to recovery, both he and Jonal were tired. They had been away from home and those they loved for two years and Tosco longed to be helped by his own Papa, Jeremiah, he knew he needed more knowledge, more skills and more experience to be the Prince of Family Ced as well be the Prince Alpha of their Clan of the Southeast that Jeremiah needed.
Jonal was Chief Warrior to Family Ced and he wanted to get on with his life. He knew he had an army to build.
John said very little, but he, also, was making plans. It would be an eye-opening shock when he revealed those plans to Lord Jeremiah, but, in his own heart, he knew his Papa would do as he asked.
They made their "goodbyes" to their friends of Family Met, the young Lord, Alfredo was showing great promise as a leader and his cousin, Corsa, was his Proxy. Between the two, they had the Family well in hand and were going forth with needed reforms. Their businesses were turning profitable and they were now on a firm financial foundation. Funds were growing at a brisk pace in their bank account and were being used to update equipment and purchase needed cattle and other stock.
Tosco contacted Chief Pilot Harvey Myers and told him to ready the plane for a flight back to Charlotte, with a stop at Novo Bairro to return the borrowed Warriors and the Clan Alpha, Alberto, to their home.
The Chief Pilot told Tosco the plane would be ready the next day and Tosco ordered everyone to make ready for departure. It was a sorrowful farewell; the Wolf Folk of Casa Met had come to be very fond of their rescuers, more than a few tears were shed as they headed back to their parked airplane the next morning.
Again, Tosco had to work a little memory magic on the officials at the airpark, but that was becoming second nature to the talented young wolf. They encountered no problems with the officials and were wished a safe flight.
As soon as they were in the air, Tosco pushed his seat into a reclining position and asked Jonal to wake him when they got near Novo Bairro. Before they were out of Argentine airspace, he was fast asleep.
Tosco was caught up in a dream, his Papa, Jeremiah, was talking to him, teaching him what the young Wolf Prince needed to know. He woke with a start as the plane began its descent into Novo Bairro.
When he was fully awake, he heard in his mind, "I am extremely pleased my son, you are a Prince of whom I am proud. Hurry home that I may behold you before me."
Tosco's eye flew wide open as he thought, "PAPA?"
He heard a chuckling, "My beloved son, do you really think I would have not been there for you?"
Tears came unbidden to eyes of the young Wolf Noble, "Papa, did I do it right? Did I do as you would have done?"
Jeremiah sent in return, "My son, you did exceptionally well, but no, you did not do it as I would have done the job, you did it as LORD PRINCE TOSCO would have done it. BETTER!"
Jonal noticed that Tosco was upset and crying, so he went back to sit with the Prince, asking him what the problem was. Tosco smiled at Jonal, "He is pleased with me and is proud of the job I have done in his name!"
Jonal had a clear picture of his Lord, Jeremiah standing, with a pleased smile on his face and his arms open in welcome to the two of them. Jonal hugged Tosco and said, "My Prince, he is, indeed, proud and welcomes us both home."
As much as they would have preferred, they could not just dump off those of Bairro Novo and depart, there were formalities to be performed in returning the Warriors to their Alpha and the Prince of Ced to be honored. Jonal bowed to Tomas and said, "War Leader Tomas, to you I return your Warriors. They performed well and were a credit to you.
Tomas returned the bow and replied, "My Lord Prince of Warriors, on behalf of my Alpha Wolf, Alfonso, I thank you for your assistance and would welcome your return anytime.
The small wolfling, not yet ready to be Alpha, but for the murder of his Father, knelt before Tosco and placed his head in Tosco's hands, "Great Prince Tosco, Son of the Lord of Ced, accept my gratitude on behalf of my people for your assistance. May the Great Lord of Wolves, Above Us All, be with you all of your days." The youngster then stood and clasped his arms around Tosco, who held him until the boy's sobs had quieted.
Tosco asked him, "Someday, would you like to come to my home and be a guest of my Papa while you attend the University?"
The young Clan Prince looked into Tosco's eyes, looking for deceit and found none. He straightened up and said formally, "Lord Prince of Ced, I accept your invitation and would be pleased to attend University in your cidade, eeer, village, as soon as I am old enough."
Tosco smiled, "It is a bit more than a village, but you will be very welcome. Have your Uncle contact my Papa when you are ready and we will come here to get you as would be proper for a Clan Alpha Wolf!" The young Wolf visibly swelled in pride at Prince Tosco's words.
They made ready to depart, young Paulo said goodbye to all his friends before rejoining his new Papa, John. He had packed his few treasures in a battered suitcase, held together with string and rope, and headed to the Red Wolf, holding John's hand in a death grip. He was heading to a new life that did not include suitcases held together with string and rope, only he did not know it yet. His Grandpapa was one of the richest and most powerful individuals on the planet!
As soon as all were aboard, Pilot Myers started the plane's engines and lined the plane up on the runway. It was a short runway, so he slammed the throttles all the way forward and began rotation as soon as possible. They cleared the surrounding trees and climbed into the sky, headed northward and Greystone Manor.
As soon as they were airborne, Tosco mind-called his Papa and let him know they were on their way home.
Paulo had never flown before, except for the brief, clandestine flight to Maurtinho. He was fascinated in everything that was going on. Tim Barkley, the co-pilot allowed the youngster to sit in the cockpit for a while, so he could attend to "some matters" in the main cabin. The child was on "cloud nine" and was determined he would be an airplane pilot just as soon as he was old enough.
It is a common dream of boys, but this one had been through so much, he was no longer a "common boy". It would take him a few years, but he was destined to replace Chief Wolf Pilot Harley Myers and would command the fleet of airplanes that Jeremiah, Lord of Ced and beyond, would acquire. He did not know it yet, but he would become Chief Pilot to the King of The Wolves!
Chapter 2 - JOHN'S PLAN
John had been working on his plan for the last two years, unknown to him his shields were not well developed to someone as powerful as Tosco. John was sitting in the plane seat planning on what and how he was going to present his plan to his Papa, Lord Jeremiah. Tosco came and sat beside John, whispering in his ear, "I will help you, Brother. Together, we can get our Papa to agree." John looked frightened, "yu Yuuu Know what I plan?"
Tosco smiled and sent, "Yes my Brother and so also does Uncle Peter. We will both help you in this." John looked up and saw Peter, his eyes glowing in pride for his Nephew and shaking his head in a "yes", John could hardly believe his Brother and his Uncle would assist him to convince the Lord of Ced to take in an impoverished Clan and make them a part of his Family.
Tosco chided his Brother, "John, have you not understood that Papa considers all Wolves his Family? If you are hungry, he will feed you. If you are tired, he will give you a bed. If you are frightened, he will defend you. If you are Wolf, you are his Family."
John heard Peter, "Nephew, much has been done already, I ask that you hang onto my neck when we leave this aircraft, lest thee be injured." John wanted to ask Peter what he was talking about, but Peter made it plain that he had said all he was going to say on the subject.
They landed in Miami to refuel and go through the formality of Customs and Immigration. With Tosco working on the officials' minds, it was brief and presented no problems.
Paulo was proud to present his new AMERICAN passport and had to show everyone on the plane the official stamp that said "ADMITTED"! He crowed, "ME BOY MERICAN!"
As soon as they were airborne again, Tosco encouraged everyone to take a nap, "It will be a long night before any of us get to see our pillows again." It was only a two hour flight to Charlotte and when Chief Pilot Harvey Myers eased the plane into the hanger, they saw a thousand Wolf Warriors drawn up in formation to greet them.
Everyone hung back, letting Peter and John step out into the disembarkation platform first. As soon as they did, Chub was at the bottom of the steps and he beat his staff on the metal threshold of the ladder, "ALL HAIL, JOHN JEREMIAH TATE, PRINCE OF FAMILY CED, LORD ALPHA WOLF OF THE OUTER BANKS CLAN ARRIVES. HAIL LORD JOHN."
John started to stumble and Peter sent, "I warned you, Nephew. Now, hold on to me as we climb down this stair." As John got down to the ground level, he spotted his people from Canada drawn up behind Jeremiah.
Again, Chub pounded his staff, "GREETINGS, LORD JOHN. WE WELCOME YOUR RETURN HOME, THE HOME OF YOU AND YOUR FOLK. BE AT EASE AMONG YOUR PEOPLE AND FAMILY."
Jeremiah stepped forward and said, "Welcome Home my son, your folk are here to greet you as well. Your Folk of The Outer Banks await you. It was then that John understood, his Papa had taken in his lost people and settled them in his own lands. They were now part of the Family Ced!
He felt something being slipped into his hand, it was a Golden Wolf's Head on a gold chain; the Wolf's head had a silver crown on it, the symbol of a Clan Alpha Wolf! The young Alpha Wolf could no longer hold his tears back, he threw his arms around his benefactor, Jeremiah Franklin Tate, and cried.
As soon as he could, John dropped to one knee and gave the oath to his new Lord. All his people did also as their Alpha gave an oath.
Jeremiah responded, "Rise, Lord Alpha Wolf of the Outer Banks Clan and present thy son, Prince Alpha Paul." Paul had a death grip on John's other hand, John brought him around and they both knelt, "I, John of The Outer Banks, present to you, my Lord of Ced, my son and heir Prince Alpha Paul John Tate of the Outer Banks Clan."
Little Paul stood and bowed, "Hail my Lord of Ced, in the name of my Father, Lord Alpha Wolf of the Outer Banks, I greet thee and give you our Pledge unto the end of our days."
Jeremiah stepped back and the Warriors opened a break in their formation to allow John's People to greet their young Alpha and to assure themselves he was alive and well. The last they had seen of him, he was being rescued by strangers and they were being chased by religious fanatics. Now, he was an Adult Wolf Warrior with a son and heir of his own.
They were anxious to show him their new homes and his own great home on the Carolina shore. The Outer Banks Clan was prospering and new children were being born to them, they were a growing clan again, living in a favorable place to raise their children free of want and fear.
John looked around him, his people's faces radiated happiness and it was obvious they were well-fed and content. In the days that followed, they took him to their small village, Wolfton, and his new home there. It was not so grand as Jeremiah's home, but it was generations beyond the rough log cabin in which he had been born.
His folk were prospering and he could stand on his porch and see children playing in complete safety, with no fear. He was delighted when Gordon, a childhood friend, asked him if he could serve his Alpha Wolf as Proxy and another friend from his childhood bowed and said, "Lord Alpha, remember me? I am Terrence and I have been trained as your Chief Warrior. Will you have me, my Lord?"
John looked the huge young wolf up and down and replied, "Terry, I would have never recognized you! Yes, I will have you as my Chief Warrior and my Friend, will you have ME?" The two hugged each other and pledged their mutual respect and honor.
It would be many weeks before John would be completely comfortable in his new surroundings, but he had the close support of his Family to ease him into it. Peter was a frequent visitor and there was always his beloved son, Paul to break any tensions that might arise.
Paul's drive and love of life soon made him a leader of his age group, more than once he was dragged home, dripping wet by his Great Uncle, Peter. Peter would never tell John what the boy had been into, but, gradually those occurrences tapered off and before John was ready for it, Paul was as tall as he was and mighty muscles bulged his shirt sleeves and trouser legs that looked like they held tree trunks!
He was becoming a mighty young wolf warrior!
TBC
Next, we shall see young Paul Tate become a diplomat for his Papa and his Lord.