Talons

Chapter 131: The Completion

Rhea’s POV

My heart feels like it’s breaking into a million pieces, and I’m not entirely sure why. Sylvia has been abnormally quiet as well, and if it weren’t for the fact that I could feel her concern, I would be worried that she left me again.

“I’m not going anywhere. I just don’t understand what happened.”

My wolf and I have been confused since we woke, and although it was uncomfortable, Colton laying on our lap was not the reason we were startled, so something must have happened while we were asleep.

“Maybe he tried to mark me?” I offer, but Sylvia doubts he would have been able to get that close to our neck without us noticing.

The only other thing I can think of is magic, but I would have seen a witch in the room, and there is no way Colton fed me anything because I haven’t eaten since breakfast.

However, there is a slight chance that someone is doing something to me from a distance, and if it’s not Colton, it’s one of his girlfriends.

“Kill her if you have to,” Sylvia says, and I wholeheartedly agree.

I inspect my feet for a while, making sure not too much damage has been done, but Sylvia has already been working on them, so they look fine, although the skin still feels a little too soft. I left my boots at the worksite, so after getting ready, I slid into my house shoes and made my way to the area.

I need to take my mind off my emotions and a hard day's work will help me with that, except when I got to the school, everything was put away and aside from the small garden, it looked completely finished.

I rush inside of the building, shocked to find, not only Colton, but a few other men sleeping inside of the room, but what has my attention is how perfect everything is. I slowly creep around the area, trying hard not to wake the men who clearly worked through the night.

The carpeting has been installed, the posters have been put up, all the toys have been opened and arranged exactly how I imagined, and I’m overwhelmed by how good it looks. If I come in to see the television on now, I will know it's because the nannies are lazy, not underprivileged.

As I slowly take in the scene, my eyes get pulled to a large drawing toward the designated nap area. The small cots are artfully arranged and seeing them puts a smile on my face.

I get closer to the image, furrowing my brow at the familiarity. I may be imagining things, but I could swear that it’s a drawing of me sleeping in a flower field when I was a child. The girl in the picture looks peaceful and at home, and while I often went there to cry, I sometimes went just to be alone.

“Do you like it?” Colton asks, and I jump in fright. I didn't hear him come up behind me, so  his voice startled me.

“I... Did.... Did you do all of this?” Colton’s eyes are fixed on the drawing, so when he answers me, I’m free to study his facial expression without feeling fear.

“I didn’t do it alone, but yes.” I scan the area again, seeing that many of the men have started to wake and are groggily rubbing their faces.

“How did you-” Colton must have anticipated my question because he answered before I could finish.

“I remembered what you told Mandy. I hope I got it right.”

Colton’s POV

By the time we finished with everything it was already 4AM and I was too tired to make my way back to the Packhouse, so I curled up into a ball and slept where I was. 

Some of the men who worked with me took permission to do the same, and I found myself wondering if they really thought I would deny their request. They have done me a huge favor in completing this project a full day early.

By far, my favorite thing in the school is the painting I asked Jared for. I still dislike the man for carrying my mate, but he has done well in perfectly capturing what I described, so my tolerance for him has improved.

He is extremely good at what he does, and I plan to reward him by introducing him to Holly. She’s into things like art exhibits and indie art, so she may be able to give him a few pointers. He showed me some of his personal work that he had pictures of on his phone, and truthfully, I’m not sure why the man hasn’t been permitted to use his skill around the territory.

My father has commissioned several custom works from human artists, and he paid them well, so I don’t understand why Jared hasn’t been given the same opportunity.

Although I’m not used to sleeping on the floor, the carpeting is soft, so I had no trouble falling asleep, and when I awoke, it was to the smell of my mate, who I noticed was carefully creeping around the room, looking at everything.

Her hand is over her chest as if she can’t believe what she is seeing, and when she spots the drawing of her, she stops in front of it as if she is confused by its depiction.

I use the opportunity to walk up behind her, and while I don’t want to scare her, I also don’t want to disturb whatever mood she’s in. She was clearly depressed before we went to bed, but from the moment I noticed her, I could see that the sadness in her eyes was gone.

“Do you like it?” I ask, making Rhea jump, but she isn’t frightened for long, and immediately answers me with a question.

“Did... Did you do all of this?” Rhea is talking to me, but my eyes have been drawn to the drawing of her, which perfectly captures my mate’s features as a child. I don’t know how I was ever mean to someone so cute and tiny; she did have a big head though.

“I didn’t do it alone, but yes.” My mate looks around again, clearly confused about how I knew where everything went.

“How did you-”

“I remembered what you told Mandy. I hope I got it right.” I cut my mate off because I already knew what she was going to ask. I also would have wondered the same thing. 

Some of the men in the room have woken, so my mate and I are no longer having a private conversation, so I gesture for her to step outside.

To my surprise, she does so without question, greeting each man by name as she passes them.

“She’s going to be the best luna,” Orlin says, and although our opinion may be biased, I completely agree.

I could see on their faces that they weren’t expecting a word from either of us, and the fact that my mate was able to address them personally made broad smiles appear on their faces.

My mate walks to where her boots are laying, and it’s then that I notice she has sandals on her feet, and judging by the color and material, they aren’t meant for walking outside.

“I have something of yours.” I hand Rhea her phone and she looks up at me in shock before tears start to fall from her eyes and she turns away from me.

“S-Sorry,” she says, but the frown on my face hasn’t moved.

“What’s wrong?” I question, but my mate shrugs.

“I really don’t know,” she replies, wiping her eyes before turning to face me.

“Do you at least like it?’ I question, and my mate looks around me and back at the school.

“I love it,” she replies.

Rhea’s POV

I hadn’t eaten breakfast when I woke up, so when I got back to Colton’s suite, I prepared a thank you meal for the man. I don’t think he was expecting anything, but he gladly accepted. My wolf is extremely quiet because like me, she is weary of what Colton has planned for us, but just for now, I want to enjoy the fact that something good was done.

I may not trust in the bond, but if it can yield positive changes from people who otherwise would have remained unmoved, I’m okay with it.

“I don’t know Rhea; this may be an act.” I agree with my wolf, which is why, despite my shift in opinion, I will not be accepting Colton’s mark.

Something drastic would have to happen for me to agree to being with him, and I do mean drastic. 

“Are you feeling any better?” Colton suddenly asked, and it snapped me from my conversation with Sylvia.

“A little, but I'm worried about Miracle and Dolton.” Colton nods, and I can tell that he is mind-linking someone. 

“Dolton says we should mind our f*cking business.” I chuckle because I can imagine the man saying those words, and something tells me that Miracle hasn’t forgiven him yet.

Colton’s POV

I have no idea what’s happening between Rhea and I, but I love it. I don’t want to make things ‘weird’ like she said by pointing it out, so when I sensed that the good moment between us was becoming awkward, I went to work in my study, while she went to the garden.

I was able to get a lot of work done without the fear that I would come back to a missing mate, and Trey was grateful, because apparently, there are a ton of men and women who are waiting for medical approvals.

I knew that my father was strict, but I didn’t realize that he made our pack Doctor report to him before treating someone, which is cruel. Without delay, I approved all of the serious matters, and of the less serious ones, like having a nose professionally broken and reset, or cast removals, I gave the doctor permission to handle it as he best saw fit.

There are nurses in this pack who can do some of the tasks he is being asked to perform, but because of my father’s backward policies, his hands are tied. The only other physician available is Jessica’s father, and he hasn’t been around since my father took his vacation.

My phone buzzes and I quickly shoot up from my desk, knowing that it's already 7PM. I’m excited to see Rhea and because of who she is, I know she will make dinner for us both, but when I open the door, I’m confronted by the sight of Miracle and Dolton staring down my extremely conflicted looking mate.