Chapter 55 NEVER GOING BACK
HAILEY'S POV
Groggily, I forced my lids open to the fluorescent morning light in the room. As I had kept the windows open last night, the birds' nonrhythmic chirping pinched my ears, and the morning air refreshingly invigorated my room.
Whispering sounds entered my hearing and I suddenly realized that someone was in the room with me, like more than one person.
My smelling senses kicked in as I tried to detect who the intruders were, while my eyes tweaked. I pulled my sluggard body to sit upright and stared at them with my distorted morning face and disoriented appearance.
"You should give your sister the privacy that she needs. Storming into her room like this while she's sleeping is rude, Duke." "I need answers and I'm getting them today."
"But so early in the morning, she hasn't had breakfast as yet."
"Then my sweet darling, why don't you go and help the omegas with breakfast?"
"Duke!" She whisper yelled but he shooed a vexed Keisha away.
He stood in the center at the end of the bed. His eyes typically assessed my condition to discover how awakened I was. I sighed heavily. What have I done now?
"You are finally up." This big brother act was overbearing sometimes. With arms folded across his chest, and his face fixed, getting rid of him would be no easy task.
"You woke me up!" I scoffed and shouted accusingly.
"What did that bastard do to you?" His face held a demanding expression.
It was time for the truth to be known but I was famished. "Duke, I'm hungry and tired."
"Then speak quickly. Keisha is whipping up our breakfast."
I wasn't in the mood for this big brother performance. A yawn finally found its way out of my mouth. He stood there in silence, waiting.
"We had a disagreement." Choosing my words carefully was important, or he'd march right over to the White Clovers Pack to throttle Raj.
"About?"
"His mom," I terse.
"Explain."
This was like a replay of my high school days. Will he ever change and realize that I am trying to manage my own life now? Though it may not be going well at the moment, I would get a handle on my relationship as soon as the hurting subsided.
"Raj was engaged to another she-wolf whom his mother loved dearly. When Raj brought me home as his mate, his mother threw a fit and refused to accept me. She demanded that he rejects me but Raj dismissed her." I was giving him a handful of my plight. "But she does not stop making me feel like I was not good enough. I wanted him to do more to pacify the situation, but he acts as though he's literally afraid of his mom."
Like seriously, he wanted the whole damn story. I rolled my eyes and continued. "Both his ex-girlfriend and his mom hate my guts and they give me a hard time to make it look like I am incompetent. He defends them all the time and blows things off. So I left."
"When did my sister become a quitter?" A surprising response. "We are Smithsons. We don't back down from anything, Hailey." This reaction was not what I fathomed. "I had to get away to clear my head."
Duke came to the right side of the bed and sat beside me. Half-truths are forgivable, right?
"I love you sis, and you are always welcome here anytime. He only deserves you if he treats you right. Don't ever forget that." His voice was incredibly worried, and it could be seen in his eyes as well. He stood up and was about to leave. "I can't protect you if you hide things from me."
I nodded as he left my room. Raj made me feel overlooked and undervalued. Then he went and carved a hole in my heart when I stumbled upon him cheating with his ex. The mate bond was burning in the hollow parts of my soul.
He had been good to me except when it came to his mother, and she was a tyrant. But now, my world had tumbled down. That family life I wanted was not going to happen. I was going to be a single mom. What will my parents say? I cried with my face in the pillow, attempting to dull the resurfacing pain, before I went to freshen up.
I sang the lyrics of the theme song from the Mulan movie in my head, Brave, Loyal and True. The words helped me to draw on my inner strength as I descended the stairs and walked to the breakfast table.
Being here in my original pack felt homely. I haven't spoken to Raj as I had vowed. The baby and my well-being were going to be my focal points.
I have to tell Duke about the infidelity soon, but only when I was prepared for the mayhem that it would create.
My plate had freshly chopped herbs mixed in my scrambled egg with avocado toast and pineapple juice. The smell of it was delightful. I dived in while Duke and Keisha chatted. Their relationship had a smooth flow to it.
I took out my phone to routinely check the media feed, but my attention diverted to a woman who entered the kitchen. She shared herself a plate. Next, a kid ran to her side asking for her breakfast. She smiled and spoke nicely to the child.
She brought both plates to the table and sat down with the little girl who was anxious to eat. She caught my attention and greeted me.
"Hi, this is my first time meeting you. I'm Sammy, the babysitter." She wiped her fingers in the napkin and stretched her hand over the table to shake with mine.
"I'm Hailey, the Beta's kid sister." I looked at the child, wondering about the connection between the two. I rest the phone on the table to absorb the conversation.
"Oh," She clarified immediately, "This is Zoe, she is the daughter of the mountain rogue female leader."
"Hi Zoe," I waved my hand and she smiled timidly at me.
"They will join our pack soon." Keisha testified, "Once everything gets settled."
"Yes, Cleopatra will be the Gamma Female," Duke mentioned quickly as he checked his Rolex watch. He would have to do his rounds and meet with the Alpha.
I choked on my juice when my brain interpreted the message of his words. "Holy shit! Is she Blayne's mate?" My eyebrows raised at the shocking news. "When the hell did he meet his mate?"
CHAPTER 55 - NEVER GOING BACK
+40 Bonus
No one told me about the playboy meeting his match. My gaze took in everyone in the room. Keisha chuckled and my brother cleared his plate, taking it to the sink and washing it.
"Will someone say something?" I was past begging.
"We naturally assumed that Sianna kept you updated on everything that goes on here." Duke shrugged, kissed his mate teasingly, and left to do his rounds. I'm going to get her for that. I wanted all the juicy details. This was important to know, so why didn't she tell me?
"On the first meeting of the mountain rogue was how they met," Keisha warned. "But they haven't accepted each other as mates yet so please be nice with that mouth of yours."
"Then this kid would be Blayne's," I cracked up because he must be going crazy with having to leave his wanton lifestyle to suddenly take on an entire family. "Daddy Blayne."
I laughed even harder at the impossibility of him being faithful to one woman, and especially to have a kid added to the equation. The radical shift in his lifestyle must be torture for him. The moon goddess finally gave him a scourging wake-up call. Keisha was giving me that stern look until she burst out laughing too. Imagining him as the father figure was rather comical. "Cleo has him swooning over her, so don't worry. He adores Zoe just as much." Keisha said when she stopped laughing. "Now that, I've got to see." I pointed out.
Zoe looked at us but continued eating as Sammy kept her attention out of what we were saying. I needed to talk to my bestie. I wanted the full scoop.
Keisha shook her head at me and cleared the table. She volunteered to do the dishes. I remained at the table watching the cute little girl.
"Come on Zoe, it's time for your bath and then your lessons." Sammy excused herself and went through the corridor to Zoe's
room.
Briefly afterward, I went to my room on the fourth floor. I brushed my teeth and climbed into bed. Placing my hand on my tummy, I thought about how to fit back into this pack after leaving.
A job, that was what I needed. I took out my laptop to work on my resume. My phone vibrated. A new email message was in my notifications and I tapped to read it.
It was from a medical center with an attachment. The body of the message is stated for your information. I downloaded the attachment and opened it.
The document of the blood work sample from the White Clovers Pack Health Center. Raj's full name was at the top. The rest of the details outlined what the test was analyzed for.
Checking the dates, it was done the afternoon of the day I caught him red-handedly humping on the other woman. And the blood work was completed yesterday, which showed the presence of something in his system.
I didn't know medical terms so this didn't tell me much. As a resolute, I forwarded the document to Dr. Stone asking for an explanation of what the results meant.
As I flicked from the screen to close out the emails, another unread message was in my messages.
Nicole: Party at the Hound-Jam Club tomorrow to celebrate my birthday. Everything starts at 8 pm. Gifts can be delivered to the pack house in the care of Madeline, the matron. See you there!
Wow, in the nick of time, a party was exactly what I needed to relax and unwind. Sounds good to me.
Me: Wouldn't miss it for the world! I will be there.
Nicole: Damn girl, are you back?
Me: Visiting.
She didn't need to know my business. Nicole was one of the girls I hung out with but we weren't tight like Sianna and me. Nicole: I'm excited that you will be at my party. We get to hang out like old times. Bring Sianna with you. Please, please, please (
smiley face emoji).
Me: We will be there. Your party better be lit! Don't disappoint.
Nicole: Girl, I throw the best parties around here. I'm looking out for you guys. Remember to deliver your gifts.
After that little chat, I saved my resume with satisfaction with the amendments that I made. I opened up the browser to search for work in our area based on my skillset.
Receptionist......nah! Marketing Officer....nah! I scrolled down without finding one that I favored.
Then my email opened up on my phone from Dr. Stone. She was unable to discuss in-depth the contents of the blood work done due to confidentiality rights. However, she could speak only of the substance itself.
It was a combination of old herbs given in a tea form and used for the effect of heightening the sex drive. In a nutshell, it causes that person to go into a rut or heat and is effective on both genders. The side-effect is a clouded memory as it slowly leaves the blood system after a five- eight hour period.
She also validated that the document was real because she was acquainted with the person who did the test. Hoping that she was helpful, I responded to let her know how greatly I appreciated the prompt feedback.
"Oh my goddess," My breathing hitched. "Raj was drugged!"
The faces of his mother, and his ex, Adhira were stuck in my head. If they were willing to go that far to split us up, what else would they be capable of? There's no way that I am going back to that pack like a sheep to the slaughterer.