Chapter 7

The forest was dark like it always was. Even the light of the full moon didn’t seem to erase the eeriness of the forest. This night was the same as any other.

In a way, this was reassuring to the woman who raced desperately through the forest with a child in her arms. She knew the way out, she just needed to get them there. To do that, she needed to ignore the wolves' howls coming from a distance and focus only on their survival.

“It’s going to be okay honey”, the woman said to the little girl in her arms as she ran through the woods.

She couldn’t mask the fear and panic in her voice no matter how much she tried. So she kept running, occasionally turning back to see if they were still being chased. She didn’t know how fast she could run with the injured little girl in her arms, but she ran as fast as she could while holding onto her as gently as she could.

The little girl tried to look up from where she was resting her face on her mother’s shoulder, but her mother quickly held her head down and pulled the hood back over her face. However much she tried to hide the little girl’s face, a lock of her silver hair still fell out from behind the hood and danced in the wind that blew past them.

“No peanut, don’t look back”, she said patting her daughter’s head. “I’ll get us somewhere safe, I promise.”

She knew there was no guarantee that she would get them to safety, but she still tried to reassure her daughter to avoid either of them panicking.

“Don’t tell lies!” growled a voice from behind them.

Just then, the little girl looked up to see a massive black wolf lunge at her and her mother as the woman screamed.

***

Amelia woke up in a cold sweat and out of breath.

She felt a little flushed and weak, but something on her forehead felt cool and helped to bring her temperature back down. She raised her hand wanting to use whatever that was to cool down her neck as well. When she raised her arm, she noticed that she realized that there was an IV line taped to her hand. It would seem that the effects of surviving her ordeal were starting to catch up with her.

It was a bit of a struggle to lift herself from the bed. As soon as she managed to sit up, Patrick walked into the room holding a bowl of water and another cloth.

“Hey baby girl, don’t get up yet”, Patrick said as he propped up her pillows and eased her back down on her bed. He then picked up the cloth that was on her forehead and dipped it in the cold water to cool it again before placing it back on her forehead.

“Thank you”, she said, appreciating that she had someone to look after her for the first time in such a long time.

Patrick smiled at her but he looked sad as she dipped the other cloth back into the bowl of cold water. He squeezed it dry before placing the wet cloth on her neck and shoulder.

“I’m sorry peanut”, Patrick finally said. “You sounded like you were having a nightmare but I couldn’t wake you up. So I had Doc Miller take a look at you, and turns out that you were running a fever. Wolves run warm so I couldn’t tell without her help.”

Every interaction she had with her grandpa made Amelia wonder how she managed to overcome the things she did without his warmth. He has done nothing but care for her, but he was still worried that he hasn’t done enough. The only person who has ever treated her like that was her mother.

”That’s okay, you’ve already done more than enough”, she said with a weak smile. “I’m sorry to take up so much of your time.”

Amelia tried to get up again. She wasn’t used to staying still in one place, and she needed to make things work here so she needed to get up and pull her own weight. Patrick stopped her again from standing up and picked up her hand and patted it between his hands while letting out a strained sigh.

“Amelia…. I know you’ve been through a lot, and you probably don’t know if you can trust us yet. Considering what other wolves may have done to you. I just want you to know that our love for you is not conditional. So let me take care of you, okay?”

“Okay….”, Amelia conceded, lowering herself back to the bed.

This was not something that Amelia was used to. Most places she stayed at or most people she worked for always wanted something from her for their help. But now she had a grandfather who wanted nothing from her and who seemed completely unbothered at his human granddaughter’s weakness. The whole situation seemed like something she had dreamed that would never become reality for her.

Patrick then continued to soak the cloth in the cold water and dab her forehead as Amelia closed her eyes and let the soothing sensation coax her back to sleep.

***

Amelia had fallen into a deep slumber.

It almost felt like she was floating and sinking at the same time. Her whole body felt heavy and at moments when she would regain consciousness momentarily, she still couldn’t move a muscle. The years of running, fighting and barely eating and sleeping were starting to take a toll on her body. She often wondered how she had survived for so long, but now she realized that she barely did.

As she lay there giving her body time to recover, something felt out of place. There was a gentle caress on her cheek, a light touch with rough hands that touched her like she was something precious. She wanted to know who was there but she felt too weak to look up. She however managed to pry her eyes open a bit trying to see who was there with her.

“No, don’t wake up. Go back to sleep”, a voice said. It sounded like the Alpha, only a lot gentler. She wondered if maybe he had a brother she hadn’t met yet, because there was no way a big bad Alpha would ever speak like that to anyone.

So she did. She went back to sleep. For the first time in years, she slept without the fear of the possibility of getting attacked in her sleep.

***

Patrick watched as the cold water from the tap filled up the bowl in the sink. He was still mad at himself for not noticing just how ill Amelia was the night before. Although she smelled similar to a wolf, she was human and therefore a lot more vulnerable than the rest of them. He became overwhelmed with the need to ‘human proof’ his entire life. He was not going to lose Amelia again, not like he lost her mother.

“Her fever seems to have gotten a little better”, Alpha Jason said from behind him as he walked into the room.

Patrick turned off the tap and walked over to a cupboard and retrieved a couple of glasses and placed them on the counter. He then retrieved a bottle of scotch whiskey and poured a shot in both glasses and passed one to the Alpha who was now sitting on a stool at the island.

He needed a drink, and by the look on the Alpha’s face, so did he.

Neither of them ever expected to see Amelia again. She was a breath of fresh air and a ghost from a painful past. But most importantly, she was alive and somewhat well.

“Patrick I…”, Alpha Jason said. He paused for a moment then took a swig of his drink before continuing. “My feelings haven’t changed.”

Of course Patrick knew this, there was no way Jason would ever forget the bond that he shared with Amelia. To deny what he felt for Amelia would be the same as denying himself the very breath he needed to live.

“I know kid”, Patrick said. “Just… give her some time to get used to life here first.”

“Of course! I would never force her into anything!” the Alpha almost seemed insulted by the implication of Patrick’s words.

“I know…” Patrick said with a reassuring smile. He was confident that the Alpha would do everything in his power to keep Amelia safe in his absence.

The two men seemed to reach an understanding, so they sat there and enjoyed the rest of their drink.