The Quiet Luna

Chapter 6. Torin

“Sorry for c*ckblocking you, man,” Wynne said in a tone that said he wasn’t entirely sorry. I supposed I’d had that coming. I had dragged him away from Candice a few times over the years.

“No, it’s ok,” I sighed and rubbed a hand over my face. “I shouldn’t be pushing her so fast. I don’t want her to feel pressured.”

“I’m not sure I’d say she was feeling pressured,” he smirked at me. “She was looking pretty into it.”

I glanced at him and rolled my eyes. “With everything she’s been through, I don’t want to add any more stress.”

Wynne sighed and sat down, putting a stack of papers on the desk between us. “I get it, man. She’s my Luna, I don’t want her to deal with any additional sh*t either.” He fixed me with a hard look. “But don’t wait forever! She’ll start thinking you don’t really want her if you lollygag.”

“Lollygag?” I snorted. “I’m not lollygagging. I just want to make sure she’s ok with everything. So, first we need to establish some way of communicating with each other.”

“Hmmm… if only there was somehow, as werewolves, we could communicate without actually speaking out loud,” Wynne linked me.

“You know why I can’t mark her yet,” I growled at him.

“She could simply join the pack,” he suggested.

“Not without breaking ties from Deep Waters,” I pointed out. “I don’t think it will work if she can’t say it out loud. And you know Drake won’t willingly let her go.”

“We could petition the council to-“

“You heard what they said this morning,” I interrupted. We’d gotten an early meeting with the council to file a formal complaint against Alpha Drake and the entire Deep Waters pack. They were somewhat less than helpful. They told us that they would have to get Drake’s side of the story before moving forward, despite the medical evidence I had. They just kept saying it wasn’t enough. And with Odessa not able to tell her side of the story… I let out a sigh.

Wynne gave me a sympathetic look as Zade came into the office and collapsed in a chair. “So, I owe your mate a debt of gratitude,” he said.

I raised an eyebrow at him. “Hello to you, too. Why do you owe her?”

“Because Ginger found out you brought our Luna home,” he grinned at me. “She’s cutting her visit with her sister short and coming home early. She should be here tomorrow morning. Pretty sure she’s going to squeal at a level only we can hear when she meets the Luna.”

I wasn’t sure how I felt about that. On one hand, I really liked Ginger. She was from one of our ally packs, and was bubbly and friendly. She could also be a bit too enthusiastic at times. “Did you tell her Odessa is still recovering? I don’t want Ginger wearing her out with her schemes.”

Both Wynne’s and Zade’s heads snapped to me. “Odessa?” Wynne asked. “You found out her name and didn’t tell me immediately?”

“Yeah, she wrote it down for me,” I said, looking at the paper with her name scrawled across it. It was obvious she hadn’t written anything in a long time, and probably hadn’t had much practice before… well, before, but to me it was the most beautiful piece of paper. I slipped it in the top drawer of my desk to keep it safe.

“Odessa,” Zade tested her name out and smiled. “Unusual name, Ginger is going to love her. And don’t worry,” he added with an eye roll, “I’ve already told her the Luna needs time to heal.”

I smiled at him and tossed him a file. There was still tension in me not being able to mate and mark Odessa, but at least she was here and safe. Her scent lingering around my desk helped to calm me and, for the first time in a very long time, I felt like I could breathe again.

We worked our way through the pile of disputes. Most were petty squabbling and easily resolved. The more complicated ones we set to the side so we could all discuss them and look further into the situations. A knock on the door brought me out of reading the latest complaint Mrs. Higgins filed about the kids walking home from school too loudly. “Come in!” I called out.

Dr. Patel slipped inside holding a file, her face composed in that professional way she always used when she had bad news. I set my pen down and gestured to the chair that Zade had gotten up from when she came in. She sat stiffly and slid the file across to me without a word. Opening the file, I quickly scanned the words, drawing in a breath through my teeth with a slight hiss.

My eyes snapped back to hers. “You’re sure?”

Doctor Patel nodded solemnly. “I am.” She glanced at Wynne and Zade and lifted an eyebrow in question. I nodded, indicating she could speak freely in front of them. “She has Alpha blood for sure, as well as Elemental,” Wynne’s jaw dropped at the bombshell as Zade dropped onto the loveseat. “I can’t tell percentages, however, because unlike most other blood types, Elementals don’t show up in tests very well. The fact she even exists is close to a miracle.”

“What do you mean?” Zade asked before I could voice the same question.

“Elementals… can be dangerous,” Dr. Patel said slowly. “Even when they are fated mates to another race, they are more likely to reject or kill their mate than accept the bond. I don’t think there has ever been a mixed race between Elemental and any other race before.”

“Is she in danger?” I asked, worried that if the Elementals were that protective of their purity, maybe they wouldn’t want a hybrid running around.

Dr. Patel shifted slightly in her chair, the only outward sign she was nervous. “I…. don’t really know,” she said finally. “If she doesn’t know what she is, she could be a danger to the pack if she can’t control her powers.”

Hunter pushed forward and let out a low warning growl. “She is not dangerous.”

“Alpha, I need you to think about this logically,” Dr. Patel said quietly. “If she can’t control her abilities, she could hurt someone without intending to. She could kill someone.”

“She won’t hurt anyone,” I growled, trying to push Hunter to the back of my mind to stop him from growling in rage.

“Mate is not dangerous!” He kept ranting. “Mate is perfect!”

“Is that why Drake… did what he did?” Wynne asked carefully.

“Drake did what he did because he’s a psychopath!” I bellowed loud enough to make the three of them wince.

Dr. Patel turned to look at Wynne, avoiding my eyes. “It’s possible,” she admitted. “It’s possible that the Luna is powerful enough to pose a threat because she was never trained in her abilities. It’s also possible that she was trained by her mother, who… possibly didn’t care for Drake… maybe taught her how to hurt werewolves…. This is all conjecture, of course,” she finished quietly.

“Her mother?” I was grateful for Wynne being able to form words while I struggled not to turn my desk into kindling. It was only because the paper with Odessa’s name on it was tucked inside that was stopping me. “You don’t think her father was the elemental? Maybe her mother was a she-wolf with Alpha lineage.”

Dr. Patel shook her head. “No, elemental magic is always passed down from the mother. I don’t know how Drake managed to keep it quiet that he had an elemental as his mate, nor do I know how he hid that they had a child. Not just any child, but a female child! Nothing he did to either of them could be good,” she sounded distracted, like she was still trying to think through the possibilities.

“Do you think she knows who her parents are?” Zade asked quietly.

Dr. Patel shrugged a shoulder and I suddenly realized just how tense she was. “I really can’t say. We need to establish a form of communication with her,” she fixed me with a hard look. “I really think it would be a good idea to ask Moira to see her.” Moira was the pack’s psychologist. She was very good at getting people to open up, but I couldn’t see how that would work with Odessa being unable to speak.

“I can’t mark her right now,” I mumbled miserably. Why was it so hard for people to understand that it was what I wanted to do more than anything, but I couldn’t risk hurting her?

“I know that,” Dr. Patel’s voice held a bit of annoyance, and I c****d an eyebrow at her while she huffed out a sigh and tried to control herself again. “She’s still too weak and an alpha’s mark could do more harm than good right now. But maybe… I don’t know. Can she read? Maybe she could write?”

I thought about the paper with her name on it in my desk. It had taken her a lot of effort to write just her name, and she had seemed a little embarrassed by it. I wasn’t sure asking her to write down every thought would work well. I sighed and sat back in my chair. I had to figure out a way to help her. It was my job as her mate.

“I’m sure we’ll come up with something,” Dr. Patel said softly as she stood up to go. “Do you mind if I check on her before I leave? I’d like to keep a close eye on her until I’m sure she’s healing well.”

“Of course,” I nodded, distracted. “Candice, where are you?” I linked.

“In the Luna office,” her response came almost immediately.

“Dr. Patel is here. She’d like to see Odessa before she leaves. I’ll send her to you.”

I could feel Candice’s hesitation through our link. “Ummm… so I’m assuming Odessa is my new bestie’s name?”

I mentally slapped myself. I should issue an Alpha announcement that our Luna’s name was Odessa. “Yes, sorry, everything sort of happened quickly. Can you let her know that Dr. Patel wants to see her?”

Again, there was hesitation. “I thought she was with you?”

With me? Why would she think Odessa was with me? “Felix, are you with the Luna?”

“No, Alpha, I thought she was with you,” came the immediate reply.

“F*ck,” I whispered under my breath.

“Torin?” Wynne’s concern came through in his tone.

“No one knows where she is,” I said, fighting off the panic.

“Mate is close,” Hunter tried to reassure me, but I felt like the worst mate ever. I had let her walk out of my office and hadn’t even thought of assigning anyone to show her around. Where would she go?

I stood up to pace, trying to decide where to start looking for her. I was such a bad mate that I didn’t even know where her favorite place would be. I thought about her face this morning sitting on the bench in the garden, the look of joy and contentment she had when she closed her eyes and let the sun bathe her. Of course! I pushed past the doctor and ran down the hall, startling Madrona, our lead Omega, as I flew by her. Running out to the garden, I could tell instantly that Odessa wasn’t out there, and my heart sank.

I started pacing again, ignoring the stares from Wynne and Zade, who had followed me out. My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I had forgotten about lunch. Lunch! Odessa had been starved and now she knew she had access to food whenever she wanted! I sprinted past Wynne and Zade again, heading for the kitchen.

The door to the dining room banged loudly against the wall as I burst inside. Several warriors were sitting around the tables, all their heads snapped in my direction as I stood in the doorway scowling. She wasn’t there either.

Frustrated and losing my tenuous grip on my panic, I turned and stomped away, slamming the door behind me.

“Torin, maybe you need to slow down,” Wynne suggested. “If you slam into wherever she is like that, you’ll terrify her.”

I growled at him. He was right, but my mate was missing and I wasn’t feeling very logical.

Candice trotted up to us and c****d her head at me, letting out a low whistle. “Ok, so this isn’t going well,” she quipped. I growled at her, but she ignored me, turning instead to Wynne and Zade. “Dr. Patel had to get back to the hospital, but she said she would check in later. So, where have you checked so far?”

“The garden and the dining room,” Zade said. “And the places in between… sort of… in kind of a hurry.”

Candice shook her head with a small laugh. “You didn’t think to check her room first? She probably needed a nap!”

It was official- I was an i***t! I took off again, nearly ripping the front door off it’s hinges, and almost knocking Madrona off her feet. “Alpha, wait!” she called after me, but I took the stairs three at a time.

“Torin! Don’t just bust in-“ Wynne’s warning was lost as I crashed into Odessa’s room.

I stood there, panting, looking around the empty room in confusion. She wasn’t there either. Where could she be? Did something happen? Was she hurt? She needed me!

“Mate is fine,” Hunter said quietly. I could tell he was worried that we couldn’t find her, though.

I turned and shoved Wynne and Zade out of the way, prepared to tear the entire pack house apart looking for her, when Madrona appeared and gave me the withering look she had perfected on Wynne, Zade, and I when we were pups and would tear through the house, leaving a trail of mud and debris behind us. “Alpha, if you go thundering through this house again, so Goddess help me I will put you over my knee!” she growled at me. No other pack member would have gotten away with speaking to me like that, but Madrona had practically raised me.

“Madrona, I can’t stop!” I told her. “Odessa… my mate, she’s missing and I-“

“She’s not missing!” she interrupted me. “I’ve been trying to explain, but you keep rushing around here like a wild animal. I took her to the library. She’s been there happily reading all day.”

My jaw dropped and I stared at her, dumbfounded. “The library?”

“Yes,” Madrona huffed at me. “And you will walk there and not terrify the poor girl, not to mention everyone else here. Is that understood?” She turned without waiting for an answer, muttering about crazy men.

I wrapped my arms around her in a hug and lifted her up, making her squeal. “Thank you, Madrona!” I said happily, before setting her down with a kiss on her cheek and hurrying back down the stairs.

“Walk!” she shouted after me.

I walked as fast as I could to the library and peeked inside. Curled up on a couch in the sun was Odessa, sound asleep, a book on the floor beside her that had obviously dropped from her hand. There was a plate on a table nearby with crumbs from the sandwich Madrona must have brought her for lunch, and a glass with a few drops left of milk in it. I slipped inside, throwing a quick thumbs up to Wynne, Zade, and Candice, who rolled her eyes at me, before quietly shutting the door and padding across the room. She looked so peaceful sleeping with her head on her arm, her small body curled into a corner of the couch. I breathed in her scent, letting it calm me down. My fingers itched to touch her, but I didn’t want to wake her up. With a sigh, I bent down to pick up the discarded book and sat gently on the couch next to her, watching carefully for any sign that I was disturbing her.

She continued to sleep peacefully, so I looked at what she had been reading. It was a fantasy book by one of my favorite authors. I guess this means she can read, I thought with a smile. Maybe we could teach her to type, that might help her to be able to tell her side of the story to the council, and maybe even give her a way to communicate until we could make her the official Luna. I smiled to myself at the thought of having her by my side.

I stretched my legs out in front of me, and attempted to read, but I was too distracted by thoughts of what life would be like with Odessa in it. Picturing our pups running and playing in the sun, walking hand in hand along the river bank, long quiet nights wrapped around her.

I let out a sigh, knowing those types of thoughts would only lead to frustration. I glanced over at her, startled to find her mesmerizing green eyes were staring at me. “Oh! You’re awake,” I said, feeling foolish. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

She shook her head, her lips hinting at a small smile, and she shifted so she was sitting facing me.

“I… um… I just wanted to make sure you… um… were ok,” I muttered. I felt like an awkward teenager again, stumbling over my words and not knowing how to act like a normal person.

Odessa smiled shyly at me and bit her lower lip. It was almost too much to resist, and I had to remind myself harshly that I was not, in fact, a horny, awkward teenager, but the responsible Alpha of my pack and jumping my mate right now would not be a good idea. She gestured to the room, her smile growing bit by bit, before looking back at me. She brushed her hand up her chest twice and I got the feeling she was trying to tell me something, but I wasn’t sure what.

“You like to read?” I asked her.

Her smile turned shy again and a faint pink hue colored her cheeks, but she nodded at me.

I couldn’t help the smile that broke across my face. “Me, too!” I said a little too loudly. “I mean… you’re welcome to anything here, anytime.”

She bit her lip again, then touched her fingers to her chin before pulling her hand away towards me. I c****d my head at her, once again getting the feeling she was trying to tell me something. Without thinking, I reached out and caressed her bottom lip with my thumb, letting my fingers trail along the soft skin of her cheek. Her clear green eyes watched me intently, her pink lips parted slightly as I leaned in close. I could hear her heart pounding, her breath caught in her throat, and her scent intensified. My hand slid through her hair to cup the back of her neck, pulling her even closer to me. She was a breath away when the library door banged open and a group of teenagers piled in laughing and joking with each other. They froze at the sight of Odessa and I on the couch, muttering their apologies and baring their necks. Odessa pulled away from me, blushing furiously while I growled low in frustration.

The group of teens left as quickly as they had come, leaving Odessa and I alone once again, but the moment had passed and she refused to look at me, playing with the hem of her t-shirt. Sighing in defeat, I ran my hand through my hair and gave her a sheepish grin. “Want to take a walk with me?” I asked.

She glanced at me through her eyelashes and gave a tiny nod. I stood up and offered her my hand to help her up, then refused to let her hand go as I led her out of the house and down to the river. Maybe I needed to plan a romantic dinner to ensure we weren’t interrupted so I could finally kiss my mate.