Talons

Chapter 47: The Welcoming

Raven’s POV

Winter break has almost ended when I get a call from my mother telling me that Emma is in labor. I know she thinks B and I still live together, but I haven’t seen my sister in person for weeks although we are now on speaking terms.

I don’t know what happened, but after she changed her number, she started answering my calls. She is afraid of being targeted, and I hate that I don’t have any comforting words for her.

I miss my sister and I want to ask her to come back home, but I never want to snap at her like that again, and I think she is safer on campus.

The only way a werewolf would risk being caught trying to hurt her is if they were a rogue, and B lives with a she-wolf who would smell danger before it got into their dorm. On top of that, the building she is in has excellent security.

I immediately call B, who tells me that she will be ready by the time I make it to the school. I’m shocked that she didn’t insist on having me drive behind a taxi, because the last time we had to go home, that is exactly what she did. I appreciate the fact that she trusts me a bit more now, and I will take whatever progress I can make.

When I see B, I first notice that while she has slimmed down; her cheeks are still puffy and it's obvious she is out of shape. I didn't focus on that for long, because I saw her intimately hug one of the players she tutors before she ran toward my car.

As soon as she climbs inside, I know that she and the male she was with spend a lot of time together by her scent alone. I don’t say anything because I don’t want to assume, but there is no way a man as handsome as the one she hugged is interested in her, and I must be misreading.

It’s late, and he probably walked her to the front of the campus for safety reasons. I also know that she works out with the guys she tutors, and for all I know, he is her physical trainer. I mention his scent to her, but she simply shrugs my comment away.

B is not like me; she does not have a goddess ordained fated mate out there and she can do whatever she wants. I find myself envious of that fact, but at the same time, I am worried that my sister might be being used by the human.

We get to the alliance hospital, and I immediately hear people gossiping about B. Many people have not seen her since the lashing, and those nurses who are familiar with her are shocked to see what she looks like now.

I know this is supposed to be a happy occasion, but my mood has been soured. I don’t understand how B can hear people talking about her but ignore it. It’s something I was never able to do and never will be able to tolerate.

Rhea’s POV

I excitedly barge into Emma’s room, making Lark smile before his face falls. I don’t even pay attention to him as I approach his mate, who looks at me with a troubled expression before handing me my brand-new nephew.

He is adorable, and like his parents, he has beautiful blue eyes. Lark was the only one of us to inherit my father's eye color, and he obviously passed it along to his little boy.

The baby’s eyes don’t stay open for long, and I gently kiss the small cap he is wearing, wishing I could smell him. It's an instinct that wolves have in order to build strong connections, but I no longer have that ability.

“Did you know that the Pyrrhura Emma is a species of bird?” I ask. I am looking at my nephew, but I am obviously talking to his mother.

“I didn’t,” she replies, as I sit in the only chair in the room. I am surprised that my parents are not around, but my nephew’s tiny face is holding and keeping my undivided attention.

“Hello little Drake,” I say, and I hear Emma gasp. I look up, worried that she may not like the name I chose. “Do you not like it?”

“I love it,” she replies, and my brother gives the okay for the rest of the family to enter the room.

I suddenly realize that I have broken protocol by entering without the alpha’s permission, but Lark hasn’t said anything to me yet, so I ignore the worry that had been building within me.

Everyone enters the room, and they immediately start to gush over Drake, who I am still holding. I look to my brother for help because if the infant were mine, I wouldn't feel comfortable freely handing him over to anyone except my parents.

Lark saves little Drake from becoming a hot potato, and he puts him in a bassinet that is positioned in a way that allows everyone to huddle around him. Not entirely satisfied, he pulls the bassinet closer to him and Emma, making everyone in the room laugh.

They know that my brother doesn’t mean anything by his actions, but he is a first-time parent, a wolf and an alpha; it is expected for him to be overprotective of his young.

“You smell very human and very male,” Luke says, and I shrug at his comment. “Can we at least know his name?” My brother is sitting near his mate, but I can tell he is mind linking his beta for details.

“Not yet. For now, I’m happy and I don’t want you or Lark to scare him away.” Luke pats my head and Robin comes to take his place.

"That may work with them, but you and I are going to have a long talk." I shake my head at her, and she gives me a warning look that I wipe away by rubbing her belly and telling her that she’s next.

The next day, Raven and I went back to the pack grounds. I am not a member, but I have been called to give the pack advice on their freshly harvested orchards. It's a dangerous move, but the council cannot prove otherwise unless someone confesses to it.

After Drake’s meet and greet with the pack, alliance members start showing up, and by that time, I regret coming. The only good thing is that I know I will see Mandy.

As soon as she comes, she and I run to embrace each other the way couples do in movies before falling into laughter. She pokes at my tummy, asking me if I had eaten her little cousin. I laugh at her joke, but she and I don't get much time to speak because she is summoned away by Alpha Stone.

I start heading toward the packhouse, knowing that I likely will not be able to see her for a while and I overhear a female voice saying something about me being a prostitute.

I snap my head in the direction of the insult, and my blood freezes when I see Colton murderously staring at me.

He downs his drink and starts to approach me. I am so scared that my legs go weak, and I feel my wolf retreat to the back of my mind. She too is terrified of Colton, and on a much larger scale.

The whole time she was trying to heal me, she was tormented by memories of the man. She told me that it was like a nightmare, except it would happen at random times and she had to wait for them to pass.

Colton stands in front of me, and his green eyes are just as terrifying as I remember. His blonde hair is waxed in place and the white dress shirt he is wearing does little to hide his intimidating muscle.

“People say you're a prostitute, but I don’t believe it.” He reaches out and I stumble back, falling into a puddle and making the girl he was speaking to laugh. “No one would ever pay to f*ck a r*tard as ugly as you.” He squats down to my level and uses two fingers to flick mud into my face before wiping his hands on my jeans and walking away.

I stand, run back to the packhouse, shower at record speed, and then text Raven, telling her that I'm ready to leave. We say goodbye to our nephew one last time before we head back.

The first thing I do when I’m in the dorms is call Mike. As soon as he shows up, I just hug him, and he silently hugs me back. Once again, I start to feel uncomfortable in his arms, so I squirm away, and his face takes on a worried expression.

"You look like you need a drink." I chuckle. I’m underage to drink in the human world, but even in the wolf world I don’t do it.

"I don't drink," I admit.

"Well, that’s good because seeing you in a bad mood has made me angry and now, I need a drink. Will you take care of me?" I go red as Mike pushes a stray lock of my hair out of my face, and I realize that the motion is the same one that Colton was doing before I fell. I push the thought away as I respond to Mike.

"Is this your way of inviting me to a party?" Mike pulls me in close, resting his chin on my head.

"You don't have to come, but I will text you the details." He kisses my forehead and tells me that he has to go. He has film with his team and can't miss it.

Colton's POV

Hearing pack members who know B tell me that she is a prostitute doesn't sound like the truth, but she wouldn't be the only woman of our kind to take that path. I know she is packless, and it’s probably hard for her to survive, but seeing how big she has gotten has pushed all those thoughts aside.

Still, I am angry with her for embarrassing me, so I do what I do best, I make her fall. The sad part is that I was hoping she wouldn’t have had that sort of reaction, but it's clear that she is still terrified of me.

The pathetic expression she wore when I splashed mud into her face should have made me feel better, but it only made me feel like crap. I know I shouldn’t care, but I really disliked seeing her so deflated.