Chapter 12 Eleven

Chapter 12 Eleven
Chapter Eleven

Soleil

I don’t know where to go.

Quillon and Shade are at the clearing, and I remembered that Kat said she’ll fish, so she must be in the river. Those two don’t look like a good place to hang out at the moment.
I decided to walk the other way, towards the deep parts of the forest, but before I could take a turn, a cheery, high-pitched voice called to me.
“Yoohoo! Come here!”
The girl, Kat, was on my left side, and behind her was the gushing river. She was waving her hand with a grin on her face.
I pointed at myself. “Me?”
“Yes! Come join me!”
I contemplated whether to accept her invitation or not. There’s nothing wrong with being friendly, but it’ll also mean I’d talk with a stranger.
Whatever, Quillon knows her. She might be as harmless as he.
I walked over to her, shaking my head to clear my thoughts.
Did I just think that Quillon was harmless? I must be losing my head.
“I’ve already caught some, five to be exact,” She was bending over a rusty bucket where the fish flopped inside. “Two trout, two bass, and look,” She pulled one out and showed me a big shiny salmon. “I got lucky.” She grinned widely.
I arched my brows. “Wow. I’ve never caught a salmon before.”
“Here? Me neither. Just got lucky today.” She placed the salmon back in the bucket. “So, what’s your name?”
Harmless, maybe. Right?
‘It’s just a name. No one knew about you here.’ My wolf said, and I sighed.
“I’m Soleil. Kat, right?”
She wiped her hand on her denim shorts.
“Nice meeting you. It’s Katerina, but you can call me Kat, yeah.”
I shook hands with her, letting go quickly, and slumped on a log nearby.
“Nice to meet you, too.”
“So...” She sat beside me. “You’re Quillon’s what?”
I frowned at her question.
Isn’t she his girlfriend or something? Why would she ask me that?
’Maybe she’s ‘fishing’” My wolf guessed, and the double-meaning joke almost made me snort.
I cleared my throat and looked at the river.
“We’re neighbors.”
“Huh.” She said in a huff. “Interesting.”
“Why’d you say that?”
She shrugged. “We asked to camp out here with him before, but he never let us.”
“Aren’t you his girlfriend?” I couldn’t stop myself and asking.
Kat laughed, slapping her palm on the log. She laughed so hard, she almost choked.
“Me?” She snorted. “Nope!” Then she sighed, still smiling. “But I wished.”
The glimmer in her eyes was laced with sadness. Though it quickly faded, it didn’t escape my eyes.
So, she likes him. They’re not together.
And she’s so carefree to open such a topic with a stranger like me.
I silently sighed.
I don’t know what to say after her confession.
“How old are you?” I asked instead.
She groaned and closed her eyes as if she was tired of hearing that question.
“Why’s everyone asking me that as if that’s a big deal?” She asked her thoughts aloud. “It’s not like I’ll hit an age, and he’ll like me back.”
“I don’t know the reason of others, but I’m only asking because if you haven’t reached the mating age, then your feelings towards him might change once you do.”
She chuckled. “It’s not that deep, my feelings for Kill.” She looked far. “Sometimes I see him as a brother, other times I feel too safe with him, I couldn’t stop thinking how I wanted to be with him forever.”
Kat gave me a grin that I answered with a small smile.
I understand that part. Quillon just has this aura around him that could match an Alpha. He’s strong, intelligent, and he knows a lot. Sometimes I feel like I’ll survive an apocalypse if Quillon’s on my side.
Hence, the reason why I forced my stay.
“Enough about my stupid feelings, let’s talk about you, Soleil. Where did you come from?”
My spine straightened from her question. Every pore of the barrier in my body comes alive, and I couldn’t help but feel defensive.
Did she just talk about a sensitive part of her life so she could find out the same with mine?
“I... It’s far.”
She rolled her eyes. “Our realm only has four cardinal points, just say yours.”
I shifted on my seat. “I don’t really like talking about my pack.”
The way her eyes studied me feels like she’s getting through my shield, and it’s a hell of discomfort.
“North, South, East, West. Which one?” It was like she never heard my words. “I won’t ask which pack, I promise.”
My sigh came out shaky. There’s only one pack from the East, and it’s not like she’ll know anything about my real pack. Still, telling the truth doesn’t sound smart right now.
“West.” I lied.
Now she could make guesses about which of the four packs in the West I might belong.
I thought she would pry some more, but she nodded her head, acknowledging my lie.
Relief washed through me.
“So, how long have you been neighbors with Kill?”
“A week and two days now,” I said with a shrug. “And it’s a good thing you’re not camping out with him; he’s not a very good neighbor to live with.”
Kat’s laugh was so carefree that I also chuckled with her.
“I can’t imagine that. Kill has always been kind to me; it’s hard to picture that.”
Or maybe he just really hates me that he acts that way towards me.
‘Jerking off with the thought of you means hate? That’s new.’
I scowled at my wolf for her unsolicited comment and ignored her.
My cheeks burned from the memory of Quillon touching himself, though.
“He was always helpful, kind, and had a space for everyone in his thoughts. Even now that he’s far from us, he often calls out and asks if we’re okay.”
“Calls out?”
“Yeah. He has a burner phone with him. You should borrow it if you want to call some friends from your old pack. It’s untraceable.”
“I didn’t know werewolves from around here use phones.”
The East has a more modern and civilized way of living. I heard that North was the least likely to use mobiles because they rely more on the pack bond and mind portals.
Maybe that’s old news, huh?
“Of course we do,” She laughed and slapped me on my back.
Ugh. Alright. She’s the kind of person who hits anything or anyone when laughing.
“Damn, you’re funny.”
I could only smile at her remark.
“Back to the topic, Kill is just a whole package. Kind, helpful, and responsible, he took every good trait there is. You’re lucky you’re close to him; he’ll make sure you’re safe.”
I scoffed. “I couldn’t relate at all. He’s been a huge pain in my ass recently.”
Kat laughed, and I felt her hand on my shoulder this time.
“Oh, believe me. He’ll still make you safe. I wonder why you haven’t heard of him. He’s famous, you know, even from the West.”
Famous?
“He is?”
Her eyes widened. “You really haven’t heard of him? Kill? Kill, The Pack Slayer?”
I really haven’t heard of that alias in our pack.
“Pack Slayer?” I snorted. “That’s a weird name to brand someone.”
“Ha! I know! I’ve been teasing him about it, too. But that’s what people called him after he’d gone rogue.”
My curiosity was piqued by what she said. She mentioned something about Quillon’s personal life.
Maybe she’ll tell me what Shade refuses to.
“Why was he called that?”
She frowned at me, and her stare watched me for a beat longer.
“You really don’t know him.” She stated. “Huh.” Then she looked away and seemed to be lost in thought.
My hope to know more about my neighbor almost died down from her silence.
But then she said something that made my eyes grow wide and parted my lips in shock.
“Well, don’t tell him you heard it from me. Kill? He annihilated a whole pack once. All by himself.