TWENTY-TWO. The Girl

POV – Elijah

I’ve been so busy working with Brent in his office that I’ve almost forgotten about the girl at the petrol station. I say almost because Blaze hasn’t forgotten her; he talks about her constantly. He talks about how her hair flows past her shoulders and how beautiful her face is. I roll my eyes, knowing that we didn’t get that good a look at her.

Blaze’s constant daydreams about this girl remind me that I have yet to speak to Beta Liam to see if he got the license plate information from the teller of the station. Liam will ask why I wanted it and what he wants me to do with it.

Because my wolf is infatuated - I think. Blaze just rolls his eyes at my thoughts.

Blaze and I know that lone wolves travel through different pack territories, and especially in Worthington, this is common. Some wolves go this way to get to Hecate, the capital city where Alpha Training Academy is and near where our Royal families reside.

The girl is definitely supernatural. I could smell that she was a werewolf, but I could tell she wasn’t a pure wolf. That’s okay. Maybe she was half-human or something? If so, she might not know she’s a werewolf, which would explain why she has yet to get any supernatural identification. Her mum might be mated to a wolf, which is the only way she would have been conceived, and they could have divorced. Who knows? Humans are weird in that respect. They don’t have blessed mates like us supernatural’s. They also don’t have to stay with their mates forever, like we do. The whole concept of human relationships is unnatural.

The girl wasn’t a rogue either, which piques my interest. Why was she heading north? What is her agenda? Is she a security risk, and if so, how?

- She’s not a security risk - Blaze scoffs at my thoughts.

- Yeah, but she could be -

- Not. She smells like our mate would –

- And you would know what our mate smells like? – I ask.

- I will once she get’s her wolf – he replies.

I shake my head in amusement at Blaze. He’s adamant there’s something about that girl, and he’s like a lovesick puppy.

“Penny for your thoughts?” A seductive voice asks, hands wrapping around my bicep.

“Not now, Olivia,” I say.

“If not, when?” she asks. I shake my head.

“I’m busy,” I reply, not wanting to give her any definite answers.

“You’re always busy,” she complains.

“Yeah, I’m an Alpha. It’s part of the job description,” I say, shaking her hands off me and walking away. Blaze chuckles at Olivia’s anger in my head. Where once he liked her as a person, he’s slowly growing to hate her, and I’m with him in that feeling.

- Alpha, there’s someone here who’s given me the password, saucepan man, to come through the gates. No ID. Should I let them through? – Robbie links me. I recall that he’s on gate duty.

- Sorry, what was the password? – I ask.

- Saucepan man – he says again. Saucepan man, saucepan man. The word sounds familiar, but I’m unsure where I’ve heard it from. I think about passwords, and then it occurs to me, the list of passwords to grant people access to the pack. Saucepan man was on the list.

- Send them to the service entrance. How many people are there? – I ask.

- Two females – Robbie tells me, shutting off his link. I nod to myself before thinking. I’ve sent them to the service entrance because, in the two years, I’ve been here, that password is one I’ve never heard being used. At least at the service entrance, there will be less disruption if anything terrible happens.

- Oh, come on, they’re females – Blaze scoffs.

- Yeah, females who are using an unused password – I retort.

I ask Kev to meet me at the service entrance and make my way there. It’s about a fifteen-minute drive from the gate to the pack house, so I know I have time before I need to be there. One of the pack mothers holds me up, walking with her baby in her arms.

“Alpha,” she smiles at me.

“Yvonne. How old is your baby now?” I ask.

- I want one! – Blaze cries out, surprising me.

“Nine months, Alpha. She’s teething,” Yvonne says, rolling her eyes.

“Good times, huh?” I ask.

“Not really, she’s been unsettled,” Yvonne complains. I nod, not really understanding.

“Well, see you later, Alpha,” Yvonne smiles.

“Yes,” I reply, heading for the service entrance of the building.

As I approach, the flowery smell hits my nose, and Blaze starts to get excited in my head, yelling at me that she’s here. Kev nods when he sees me, Alexi and Chris with him.

“Please, we’ve travelled for days,” I hear someone plead to Shoshanna, our receptionist.

“Not without an appointment,” Shoshanna says nastily. Although I can’t see them, I’m not surprised at Shoshanna’s reaction to the girl; she’s one of Olivia’s friends.

A loud thump is heard, followed by a scream by the girl. I run in, followed by Kev, Chris and Alexi.

“What is all this yelling?” I ask, looking at the scene before me. The girl from two days ago, wearing the same clothes as the other day, leans over another woman, who lies on the ground in the recovery position.

“Please help my mother,” she pleads again, tears running down her face.

“Why are you here?” I ask, not really registering what’s going on. Blaze doesn’t help as he shouts at me to go to her, help her, hold her. All the things that I just can’t do right now.

“My mum is from this pack. She wanted to see her father one more time before she died,” the girl cries, holding her mother’s hand. I look at Kevin and nod at him. Kev picks up the woman from the floor and rushes her to the hospital wing.

The girl tries to follow Kev, but I ask her who her mother’s father is, making her stop and look at me.

“Where are you taking my mum?” she asks, not answering my question, trying to walk past me. I grab her arm to stop her, and faint tingles radiate through my hand. I drop my hand from her arm and look at her strangely.

- Mate! I think she is our mate! – Blaze yells in my head.

“Where are you taking my mum?” she asks again, trying to push past me. She has no idea of the soft sparks that hit my skin as she attempts to walk past.

“Who is your mums’ father?” I ask more nicely this time.

“Brent Redclaw, I think. Please, where have you taken my mum?” she asks.

I’m stunned at this revelation, stepping back without thinking. I know Brent had a daughter, but she disappeared years ago. It’s why I’m here.

I watch as she enters the hallway and looks for Kev and her mother.

- We’re all good here, Alexi, Chris – I link, dismissing them.

“Which way?” she asks, begging.

“The hospital wing….” I reply.

- Our mates’ mother is sick. Mate is sad – Blaze whimpers. The girl doesn’t let me finish my sentence, instead running right towards the hospital.

- Follow, mate. Be with mate! – Blaze orders me.

- Hold your horses – I snap back.

- I am a big strong wolf, not a horse! – Blaze scoffs.

I watch as the girl jogs ahead, and I follow behind. This girl intrigues me. She is the epitome of beauty, and the need to get to know her pulls me. She turns halfway after noticing people ahead bow toward me.

I watch as she stops a nurse and asks her about her mother. The nurse looks at me, and I nod, allowing her to tell the girl.

“I think I heard Doctor Parnell say to take her to observation room eight,” the nurse replies. The girl asks where that is and thanks her.

I watch her begin to run off in the direction given, allowing her space. I’m not stalking her…

- We are – Blaze interjects. I shake my head at Blaze’s cheekiness.

- No, I’m just making sure she’s not a security risk – I tell my wolf. He scoffs but doesn’t say anything.

“I’ll come with you,” I say, taking her hand as she runs off. Tingles ignite at our touch. Does she feel it too?

- Of course not. She doesn’t have a wolf, dingbat – Blaze jests.

“Sure,” the girl replies, turning away from me.

I watch as she enters the observation room, following her to room eight.

Kev is standing in the room, talking to the doctor.

“This is the daughter,” Kev tells Doctor Parnell.

“Firstly, do you know what’s wrong with her?” Kev asks the girl. She doesn’t answer, only breathing in, her breath betraying her want to cry.

“What’s her name?” Doctor Parnell asks, more caring than Kev.

“Aviary,” She replies. Oh fuck.

- Brent, there’s a woman and her daughter in emergency room eight. The daughter says her mother’s name is Aviary. They came on to pack lands with the password saucepan man – I quickly linked the Alpha.

- I’m coming – Brent replies straight away.

I watch as I link Brent as Clive, the other doctor, asks the girl to sit so they can ask her questions about her mother’s condition.

“Do you know what is wrong with your mother?” Dr Parnell asks.

“Yes. She has cancer,” the girl says, pulling her chair closer to her mother’s bed.

“Why would you bring your mother, who is obviously very sick, to our pack?” Kev asks, anger and annoyance in his voice.

- Kevin – I chastise. Kev looks at me, his face softening.

- Sorry, Eli – he replies.

“She wanted to see her dad one last time. I promised her,” the girl replies to Kev, tears rolling down her face.

“And who is her father?” I ask again. She looks at me, and I know she’s questioning my question.

“Brent Redclaw,” she says, returning to her mother and resting her head on the bed, her face turned away from us.

The room plunges into quiet. Doctor Parnell looks at Doctor Wilkens, and they return to their tasks, making notes on their tablet and adjusting things.

- You can go, Kev. Thank you for your help – I link Kev. He nods. I stand and watch everything that goes on in the room. The girl’s heartbeat is less erratic; she seems calmer now.

“Aviary?” Brent asks as he walks into the room.

~

Edited with Grammarly