For the next two years, Jake checks the cave twice-weekly, but there is never any sign that anyone has been there. Tom refuses to let Jake go to Smokey pack to find her or try to contact her through official channels.
Every week, on Wednesday and Sunday, Jake checks the cave. He has forgotten her voice and long forgotten what she looks like. He just remembers her sweetness, her brilliance and the way she saved him.
On one Sunday morning, Jake wakes up and Anna hands him his packed picnic lunch like every day for the past two years. Anna has given up trying to convince him and started to change to the viewpoint that it is good to actually persist with an activity for such a long time.
"Buddy, when will you stop doing this?"
"When I talk to her again"
"There is a possibility that she may never go back to her spot"
"Then I will start searching the schools"
Anna watches her son walk off, proud of his caring heart and stubbornness. But not sure how to break the news that she may be dead. If a father is able to beat his daughter like that when she was so young, it will only get worse.
Jake walks the very well worn path to the cave.
He opens the tendrils the same as always and unpacks the can of peaches to add to the mountain of peach cans already in the cave.
He turns suddenly when he hears the faintest breathing sound. His eyes adjust to the low light properly, and he notices that the pile of bedding is slightly disturbed. He rushes over to it, after coping with the disappointment for so long, he is actually surprised by the sign of life. He is almost too scared to ask, worried that it is an illusion.
"Piper?"
A whimper is all that comes out from below the pile of material which is much dirtier than it was when he used it many years before. He looks at her pale face and destroyed body. The hope and joy turning to fear in an instant.
"Piper, I will save you"
Even as a fourteen-year-old. He is incredibly strong, he carefully wraps her in a quilt and carries her tiny body with him. Her heartbeat is soft and her breathing is so frail that he is scared it is going to stop at any moment.
The warriors intercept him on the border.
"Future Alpha let us do it"
"Don't touch her. Link the luna, I need a doctor at the alphas house now"
"Yes future Alpha"
Jake carries her as fast as he can but so carefully, as if scared to hurt the treasure he has been looking for all these years. She is pressed tightly to his chest, she has long been unconscious and is most definitely on the brink of death.
Anna runs up to Jake as he reaches the house.
"I found her mum"
"What is wrong with her?"
"She is really hurt. I am not sure exactly"
"Bring her in, the doctor will get here in a minute"
Anna helps Jake bring her inside. They lay her down on the bed in the spare bedroom. Anna gently unwraps the quilt from Piper's tiny frame. She can't even hide her gasp of shock, even in front of her son who she is trying to reassure. Tom enters the room, he knew the minute she entered the pack and had to see the situation for himself.
"Get Jake out of here now"
"No mum, I am not leaving her"
Anna covers up Piper the best she can without doing anymore damage. Looking at Jake with a firm expression, one that rarely graces her beautiful face.
"This is not negotiable. You can see her when the doctors are finished. You can't disrupt his work"
She nods at her mate and Tom drags Jake away kicking and screaming.
Anna slowly uncovers the quilt again. Tears fall from her eyes, she has seen a lot of blood, injury and even death in her life, but she has never seen anything as gruesome as this.
Piper is skin and bones, not a single ounce of fat on her, this isn't a one-time injury, this is years of neglect and abuse. Her pale skin is barely visible through the heavy bruising.
All four of her small limbs are broken. A bone actually hanging out of the skin on her shin. Dirt is embedded in the wounds as she has obviously dragged herself the long distance to her spot.
Anna's heart breaks, she knows that Piper would have endured unspeakable pain to drag herself to her spot, probably with the only thought of just dying in peace. She probably never guessed that Jake would still go there.
The doctor walks in. Anna grabs him and shakes him, despair and steely determination written all over her face. There is no way that they can let Piper die. Never in a million years would she be able to tell Jake about the death of his friend that he has desperately wanted to see for two whole years.
"You have to save her"
Anna begs, her voice has never sounded so distressed. The doctor looks at the little girl, his eyes widen, he has never seen anyone in such a bad state, and this girl is far from the age to get her wolf.
"I will do my best"
Jake enters the room seven hours later. Piper is laying on the bed, heavily bandaged, with an IV attached to her arm. Anna is sitting beside Piper holding her hand. She stealthily wipes her tears when Jake walks in. She looks up at Jake, throwing him a pressed lip smile.
"She is going to be fine"
Jake sighs in relief, Piper's heartbeat and breathing a lot stronger than before but she is still not conscious. Anna walks outside to leave Jake alone with Piper. She walks up to Tom and sits next to him. Her whole body is fatigued. She stayed for the entire time. Piper's injuries were much worse than on initial inspection, it is like she felt every wound hat the poor little girl endured.
"Tom, she is going to be fine, but she was close to death, so very close"
Tom looks at Anna, pulling her into his tight embrace, offering comfort to his mate. Once in his embrace the tears that she has been able to keep at bay fall, soaking Tom's shirt in an instant. He lets her cry, just rubbing her back until the sobbing quietens.
"So what do you want to do?"
He knows his wife well enough, he knows she is coming up with some sort of wild plan.
"I want to change her identity and adopt her"
Tom grabs her by the shoulders and pushes her back slightly looking into her eyes.
"Are you serious?"
He expected a war with the smokey pack before that request.
"Yes Tom, I want to ask Jake first, but I think he will be all for it"
"No, they have a connection Anna. We can't make them brother and sister"
"Well, I would like it if Samuel and Gabby could take her, but she would end up in as bad situation living with Wendy"
"Look how much he already cares for her, there is no way he is not going to form a romantic attachment"
For a young boy to be so dedicated to an activity that only brings repeated disappointment without moving on, there is something there already. Of course if Tom can see it, Anna can see it clearly.
"That is why we are going to call it, adopting his best friend"
"This is your most insane idea yet"
"You should have seen her Tom. I can't even imagine her fear and pain. If we fix her up and send her back, how long do you think it will be till he is carrying home her corpse?"
Anna has thought about it many times over the years, she was scared the girl was dead and it played on her conscious, she now has a second chance to fix that.
"You will have to ask Jake"
"Of course I will"
"Ask me what?"
Both Anna and Tom look over as Jake enters the room.
"Do you want Piper to come live with us?"
"Like join our family?"
"No, like a live in best friend"
Jake only has to think it over for three seconds.
"Yes"
"But Jake, we will have to change her name, is that alright? And, of course, we have to ask her opinion"
"I am sure she will be happy"
"Me too buddy"
Jake looks back in the room excitedly. He kept hoping, but he was starting to think that he would never actually see her again. Now he will get to keep her around. It is the best outcome that he could think of.
Anna looks at Jake's excited face happily. She is not apprehensive in the slightest about the decision. Tom looks on at the situation with a helpless expression. It is hardly as easy as his mate makes it out to be, but if it makes his mate and son happy, he will do his best to make it happen. He will never forget that he owes his son's life to Piper. He has never been one to shy away from debts, so he will deal with anything that arises from the decision so he can repay his debt to her.