Gamma's Energy Attracts

Part 11

Caly’s POV

‘I cannot believe you, Athena!’ My goodness, I hope no one heard her lewd mewlings last night. I had to play third wheel last night while she encouraged Stav to have me do all kinds of embarrassing things. I am boiling away my sinful and guilty thoughts in the shower.

‘It's a newer home, I’m sure there’s adequate soundproofing, just like this never-ending hot water tank. What are you getting bent out of shape about, anyway? I am fairly certain phone s*x has been around since phones came into existence. I had to take over because you can’t follow simple directions, Babe.  For future reference, the answer is always ‘Yes, Alpha’.  

My wolf has no shame!

‘I heard that thought. Did you once think about the poor Alpha home alone in his bed? I don’t know how he lasted six months in the beginning while you stubbornly hung onto our V-card. Let's be realistic, he can barely manage six hours most days.’ She’s not wrong, that wolf is insatiable and whines miserably when I go away overnight. 

I slam open the shower door, then wince at my own actions. I need to calm down and take a breather. ‘I’m going down to get you breakfast, if I get a single weird look, I’m blaming you.’ 

I’m still standing in a towel when Terri arrives unannounced. “Morning, my Queen.”

“Mornin’ Terri. Where did you sneak off to last night?” She has a pensive look on her face. I know from experience that with Terri, that usually means she is mentally redacting the truth she plans on telling me. “Please tell me the whole truth.”

“Fine.”  It’s obviously not fine. She rubs her hands over her face, and I realize she hasn’t even done her hair and make-up. “Can it wait til we are at work? I had to put in a workout this morning.”

“How many warriors did you damage this time?!” Terri only considers training an actual workout when she has to teach someone a lesson. The warriors all know Terri, surely they wouldn’t be stupid enough to challenge her?

“One. C’mon, there’s cinnamon buns and coffee downstairs.”

“Don’t try to evade my questions with sweets,” I say pointedly, and the corner of her lip tips up in a fraction of a smile, she knows she’s been caught.  She waits while I dress, we will likely be at Blackheart Media all day, so I need to be office formal. As soon as I step out of my bedroom, Athena becomes aware that cinnamon buns are indeed on the menu, and starts demanding three of them. She doesn’t even know how big they are yet!

No one exchanges weird glances so I am relieved. Terri asks Elder Darryl if he plans on joining us today. She seems tense, and Darryl notices it as well.

“I planned to, yes. You and Micah took training very seriously this morning,” He waits for Terri to give a reaction, but in true Terri fashion, she gives nothing away.

“I had to convince him I needed his help with something.” Darryl just ‘Hmms’ at her.

Terri drives Julia and I to the media building, Aggie stays back with Tree. Julia doesn’t want to go, but Terri doesn’t trust her to stay with a guard, and I know she’ll play on her phone and miss another day of school work. Even though she ate a half dozen rolls this morning, me just mentioning school work fouls her mood. I suggest she starts with her art project. No point in her trying to do something taxing while she’s still feeling the effects of her sugar buzz.

“The whole office building stayed late last night to scan files. The first thing I am going to do is search how many contain the acronym WIC,” Terri tells me after she’s checked the room for bugs and opened her laptop.

“Oh? Do you have any idea what it is?”

“This is me we are talking about. Of course, I looked into it, but you aren’t going to like what you hear. We need to wait until everyone gets here," she grumbles.

I hadn’t seen Tucker at breakfast, but he lives at the Packhouse and usually eats there. His Father is with him. We exchange pleasantries and chit-chat. I look at Terri, but she indicates we are waiting for one more.

Micah arrives, he’s wearing a button-up shirt and jeans, which is as formal as he gets. His sleeves are rolled to the elbows and I can see gashes that are still trying to heal and a very noticeable black eye, and swollen cheek.

“Good Morning, Micah,” I say hesitantly since I have a good idea it was Terri that had roughed him up.

“What’s so good about it?” he sneers and plunks his @ss in a chair, startling Julia. He glares right at her and she quickly looks back to her paper, using her arm protectively to prevent him from seeing her work. She shuffles nervously in her seat, putting her back to him at an angle and picks up a coloured pencil. Terri just shakes her head at the two of them.

“You’re still walking, ain’t ya?” Terri gives him a hard look, almost daring him to say something back to her.

“No thanks to you. I said I would come here and explain, so that’s what I’m going to do. Then I have other sh*t to do today, so I won’t be sticking around,” he spits his words at Terri, and naturally, she growls right back at him.

“I will decide how long we need you for, Micah,” Darryl says with authority. He has a deep timbre to his voice, but I don’t think he’s as compelling as Tucker is. Tucker’s commands are nearly at my level, but way less than Stavros.

“There are 144 files containing WIC,” Theressa announces to no one in particular.

Micah curses under his breath. He takes out a cigarette and his lighter, but Tucker says, “You are not lighting up in this office. Besides, the water sprinklers are very sensitive and I won’t have you ruining all the files in here.” Micah curses again. “Start talking,” Tucker’s voice booms out, leaving him no choice.

“Terri stopped by my place last night to discuss the Elder Council’s good ol’days, looking at the moving patterns of these files.”

“These are she-wolves, Micah. Each of these files represents a living, breathing person. Someone who was sucked into doing the Council’s bidding and ended up missing. Don’t lose sight of that,” I tell him. I know he’s reluctant to help or Terri wouldn’t have felt the need to beat him into submission, I need to remind him that he’s a good guy underneath a hardened shell. “Were they kidnapped and put in cages? Like me?”

Emerald eyes look in my direction, studying me. “The Council wouldn’t keep records that ended nowhere. They never stop trailing a person no matter what. If they did just stop you would be able to phone up their last Pack and their Alpha could tell you if they were alive or dead.”

“What if someone was not seen as gifted enough, Tabitha was told she wasn’t terribly useful,” I ask. Would the she-wolf simply be discharged from the program or something?

“Didn’t she end up in the cage next to you? Doesn’t sound like they just left her alone, to me,” Micah’s voice is flat. He leans forward to put his elbows on the table, and buries his head in his hands. “You were all going to be redistributed to other Packs, or sold to WIC. The only reason I helped you is that I felt the guilt gnawing on me, if you were going to another Pack I could sleep at night thinking you would be taken care of. But I knew WIC was getting a discount because they helped kidnap all the she-wolves. We weren’t privy to who was going where, that info was need to know, and us guards didn’t need to know. I told you that night that I didn’t want you to be one of the chicks being sold to the highest bidder. You would have ended up at WIC. Even though your Daddy wanted you, there’s no way he had pockets deeper than WIC.”

“So what is WIC, anyway?”

“We’re Information Collective. A huge shell Corporation that launders the money they receive. On the outside, it looks like they specialize in finding and selling rare goods. They are an international black market run by the there own version of the Mafia. They will sell anything that nets a profit, including other supernaturals. I didn’t know it when I met you, but you are quite rare, Alpha Caly. Only two known Amperes, the other is guarded inside the Royal Palace and seen as too much of a risk to attain. So is the little girl colouring over there,” he motions his bent head at Julia.

“Julia is an adult, don’t be disrespectful,” Micah is suddenly grating on my nerves, I’m not sure if it’s just his attitude or the fact that he hit the nail on the head about us being valuable and still easily accessible. Suddenly I have the urge to call my Mate and ask him to bring the kids early, needing to feel secure and protected and everyone together.

“Stick to the facts. Tell us what we need to know, and why you’re so hell-bent on avoiding them!” Terri growls before she stands up and starts pacing.

“It’s not worth the risks, Terri. I told you that already!”

“You need to let us decide that, Micah,” Elder Darryl says with a deadly undertone. “Caly call Darius. He should be hearing this as well. We may need to put this to vote with the Council before we go ahead. If Micah has any additional information on Elders Council corruption, we need to hear that as well.” I can tell Darryl isn’t very happy with Micah withholding info from him. He should have come clean years ago, when it could have helped the most.

We listen in silence as the whole dismal truth comes out. So many she-wolves sold to who knows and for what reason. Who knows if they are alive or in what condition. They weren’t sold as slaves or s*x workers, they were far too valuable for that, but who knows what they would have been subjected to once the payment went through.

By the time Micah finishes talking, I feel nauseous. Athena has been growling and pacing in my head, and my head feels about ready to explode. It’s mid-afternoon, but I am done for today.

I look up at Julia at the far end of the table, she looks ghostly pale and shell-shocked.

Terri’s phone has been buzzing, but she hasn’t even checked it until now. She excuses herself, so I look between Darryl and Tucker. “I think Julia and I could use a break, maybe some lunch for her.”

“I agree, we’ll head back to the house and give ourselves some time to digest this new information,” the Elder tells me.

“Calypso, please take it easy for now. We will figure something out. I have another meeting to go to, but I will see you tomorrow,” Darius tells me, trying to hide his emotions from me. This was all just confirmation that his worst fears could have come true.

I do the only thing I can, I nod and say, “See you tomorrow.”

Micah makes some excuse to leave and crosses paths with Terri in the doorway. He brushes against her and I’m honestly surprised she didn’t lash out at him. Terri isn’t very touchy-feely unless she’s the one doing the touching.

“Alpha T, we are about to get company,” Terri informs him.

*****

Stavros’s POV

“Will you please sit down and quit your pacing? You’re driving me to drink,” Colin angrily types on his phone without even looking at me.  “What the hell is wrong with you?”

What is my problem? I feel antsy about something and I’m not sure why. “I don’t know! I just feel uneasy and my chest is tight.”

“That’s the Bond. You’re just worked up because Caly hasn’t been down here to check on you for the past two days, that’s all it is. This is right about the time each afternoon you seek each other out and pretend you have something important to discuss, then you come back with a stupid smile on your face and reeking of your Mate, while I pretend not to notice you skipped off work to get laid.” He gives me a look that dares me to deny it.

“You can’t tell Caly you know that,” I tell him. She may be a wolf, but her human side is still sensitive about all kinds of weird things.

“You just don’t want your afternoon nookie sessions to get cut off.”

“Exactly!” Colin just shakes his head at me.

I feel a tingle in my head, someone is trying to mind-link me. I must have been ignoring it while I was pacing. ‘Alpha, it’s the Den Mother. Carrissa says she’s not feeling very well. She doesn’t have a fever or anything, but she’s looking a bit pale. I don’t think she needs to see the Doctor, but perhaps she would feel better if she could lay down for a nap. It’s too noisy here for her to get any rest.’

‘I’ll be right there, I’ll pick them both up, if you wouldn’t mind getting their coats and boots on.’ 

‘Yes, Alpha.’.

“Who was that?” Colin asks.

“Den Mother. Carrissa is sick,” I tell him as I shut down my laptop and tuck it away.

“We don’t get sick,” he says worriedly, “I’ll mind-link Caro.”

“Hold off, maybe she’s just tired,” it’s too early for him to start panicking. I'm the parent, it's my job.

“I’m coming with you then,” He grabs his suit jacket and pockets his phone.

I roll my eyes pretending to be perturbed with him, but silently I’m thankful. He’ll be more equipped to tell me if this serious or not. I can’t be an overreacting to everything Alpha, but I can’t ignore my Princess if she’s really sick. 

I wish Caly was home right now. 

The Den Mother looks less than thrilled, she’s probably terrified that she had to call me down here two days in a row. Carrissa is sitting curled up in a tight ball on a bean bag chair, and Atlas is on his hands and knees, crawling in a circle around her and rolling a toy truck.

“Hey, Little Ones. The Den Mother called Daddy to come to get you.” Carrissa holds her arms up waiting for me to carry her, I hold her against my chest and she lays her head limply on my shoulder. “Are you okay, my Princess?” she only nods. Atlas has already grabbed Colin’s hand, pulling him towards the door. 

We start heading home to the Packhouse. It’s gotten windy out, so we don’t try to holler over the noise outside. When we are in the apartment, I put Carrissa down on the couch to take her rubber galoshes and coat off.

Colin observes her for a minute, “What seems to be the trouble young lady-wolf?” 

“Bia is sad, she says Mama doesn’t feel too good. It’s making me and Bia tired.”

“Is it only tired? Did you sleep okay last night?” I ask her

“I sleep good. Bia says it’s Mama who’s not okay.” She leans her head on the arm of the couch. “Daddy, put on Mama’s special movie.” She means the movie that was her Mother's favourite when she was a young pup. It’s a fairytale with all kinds of animals as the cast. I pop it in the DVD player for her, and she spaces out in front of the TV.

‘Call Doc.’ I mind-link to Colin.

‘I already did,’ he says back.

I hear the sound of a chair being dragged along the kitchen floor, I go check up on what Atlas is doing. He’s already standing on the counter, reaching for the cookie cupboard. I pick him up and set him on the floor. “You know Mom doesn’t like you climbing in the kitchen.” I grab two small bowls and put a handful of animal cookies in each. I smile, thinking that when Caly was pregnant, this is exactly what she smelled like. “Milk or apple juice?” 

“Juice.” Juice is probably better for a sick pup anyway. I pour him a cup and he sits at the table. “Rissy eat?”

“We are going to see what Doctor --Caroline says first,” I almost called her Doctor Spitfire. I haven’t called her that in a long time, but little wolves have big ears, and I don’t need him to go repeat that to her.

Colin lets Caroline in, she’s brought a medical bag with her. She tries asking Carrissa her questions, but the replies are all Bia this and Bia is sick not me. I think this whole Bia thing has gotten out of hand. Maybe Caly was right to be concerned.

My Princess’s vitals are all fine, there’s no reason for her to be feeling sick. I follow Caroline outside into the hall to speak with her.

“Well, Doc, what do you think?”

“Has Caly discussed with you her concerns about Bia?” Doc looks at me pointedly, I know she already knows the answer to that question.

“Having an imaginary friend is normal, right?” 

Caroline frowns at me. “Have you spoken with Caly today?” she asks.

“No, but she’s been really busy with Council stuff, that’s why she left early.”

“Perhaps you should try calling Theressa. I would be interested to know if the Luna is in fact tired or unhappy. It would help confirm my suspicions.” 

I’m a bit shocked, but I’m already dialling Terr’s number. “Yes, Boss?” She sounds p*ssy, I don’t think that’s a good sign.

“Hey, I can’t get hold of Caly. I had a strange feeling earlier, is she okay?”

“Not really. This Council thing is worse than we thought. Her and Julia looked tapped out. I’m taking them back to Elder Darryl’s place to chill and get some food other than frosted pastries into them. Maybe you should head out early tomorrow.”

“We are coming tonight. I’ll see you in a few hours,” I was feeling antsy for a reason, and not just horny like stupid Colin said. 

“You got it, Boss. I’ll let her and Tucker know.” 

I look at the Doctor, I know she heard every word. “Will Carrissa be okay in the car for a few hours?”

“I think she’ll sleep most of the trip, and she will in all likelihood feel much better after a nap and when she can see her Mom is okay. Caly can also sense when people close to her are in distress. I think your daughter takes after her mother in more ways than one.”