5

5

Adam didn’t push her any further that night. After the war room, after the maps and the weight of everything she had just stepped back into, he simply nodded toward the hallway.

“Come on,” he said. “I’ll show you where you’re staying.” Not your room. Not home. Just… where you’re staying. Lotty appreciated that more than she expected. The packhouse felt different at night.

Quieter, but not peaceful. There was a constant undercurrent now, a low hum of movement and awareness. Boots on floors. Doors opening and closing. The distant sound of voices that never fully settled. War didn’t sleep. Neither did the pack.

Adam led her up the main staircase, then higher to the third floor. That alone made her pause. She hadn’t been up here much growing up. This level had always been reserved for higher-ranking members, guests of importance, or family. Her chest tightened.

“You didn’t have to put me up here,” she said quietly.

Adam didn’t slow. “You’re not just anyone visiting.”

She didn’t respond. At the end of the hall, he stopped in front of a door and pushed it open. The room inside was simple but warm. Large bed. Dresser. A small seating area by the window that overlooked the trees. Clean. Quiet. Prepared.

“You can lock it,” Adam added, gesturing to the door. “Extra reinforcement too.”

Lotty raised a brow. “You expecting me to be attacked in my sleep?”

His expression didn’t change. “I’m expecting you to be safe.”

That answer sat heavier than she liked. She stepped inside, setting her bag down slowly, taking it in. “This used to be…” she started, then stopped.

Adam nodded once. “Yeah.”

Their mother’s old guest room. A ghost of a memory settled in her chest.

“Bathroom’s through there,” he said, pointing. “If you need anything, Matthew’s down the hall. I’m at the end.”

She turned back to him. “You’re not going to hover?”

A faint smirk touched his mouth. “Not tonight.”

Good. Because she didn’t think she could handle that yet.

He hesitated a second, like there was something else he wanted to say. Then he just nodded. “Get some rest.”

“Yeah,” she said. “You too.”

He left quietly, closing the door behind him. The silence that followed felt… strange. Not empty. Full.

Lotty stood there for a long moment before moving to the window. The forest stretched out beyond the glass, dark and endless, the moon just beginning to rise above the trees. Somewhere in the distance, a howl echoed. Her chest tightened but she didn’t flinch. Not this time.

“Home,” she whispered. But it didn’t feel like the word it used to be.

The next morning came with purpose.

Lotty had expected Adam to be waiting for her, pushing, planning but instead, he gave her space.Breakfast was quiet but not cold. A few nods. A few cautious smiles. Some curious looks.

Then Adam appeared at her side. “Come on,” he said. “I’ll show you around.” She grabbed her jacket without arguing.

The town hadn’t changed as much as she thought it would. That was the first thing she noticed. The same streets. Same buildings. Same small-town feel that made it easy to forget what lived beneath the surface.

But there were differences. More patrols. More eyes. More tension.

They walked side by side, Adam greeting people as they passed. Some bowed their heads slightly in respect. Others approached him directly with updates of quick, efficient exchanges that never lasted long. Alpha. He carried it easily.

Lotty stayed quiet, observing. Some people recognized her immediately.

“Lotty?”

“Is that really you?”

“You’re back?”

The reactions varied from surprise, relief, curiosity. A few even smiled warmly, stepping in for brief hugs or hand squeezes. But not everyone. Some of the looks were sharper. Guarded. Suspicious. Like she didn’t quite belong here anymore. And maybe she didn’t.

They stopped at the edge of town, where the trees opened into a small clearing. Lotty knew what was there before she saw it. Her steps slowed. Adam didn’t say anything as they approached. Two headstones stood side by side. Simple.Strong. Just like them. Lotty’s throat tightened as she stepped closer. She hadn’t been here. Her fingers brushed over the engraved names, tracing the letters like she could feel them through stone.

“They kept it clean,” she said quietly.

“Every week,” Adam replied.

`She nodded, swallowing hard. Silence settled between them. Not uncomfortable. Just… heavy. “I should’ve come back,” she said after a moment.

Adam shook his head. “No. You stayed alive.”

She huffed softly, blinking back the burn in her eyes. “You always were better at the whole ‘looking at the bright side’ thing.”

He didn’t smile. “Not really,” he said.

She glanced at him, catching something in his expression, something darker. Guilt. Regret. Maybe both. She didn’t push. Instead, she crouched slightly, resting her hand against the cool stone.

“I’m here now,” she murmured. The wind shifted, brushing through the trees like a quiet answer.

After a few more minutes, Adam stepped back. “We should go.”

Lotty nodded, standing slowly. The weight didn’t leave her but it settled into something she could carry. For now.

The hospital was the last stop. Lotty felt it before she even stepped inside. The energy. Familiar. Controlled chaos. The scent of antiseptic and blood hit her the second the doors opened, and something in her clicked into place automatically. This she understood. This she could handle.

“It still smells the same,” she muttered.

Adam glanced at her. “You okay?”

“Yeah,” she said, already scanning. “Better here than anywhere else right now.” That earned a faint nod.

Inside, the ER was moving fast. Not overwhelmed but close. Stretchers lined one side. Nurses moved quickly between patients. A doctor stood near a charting station, giving orders in a clipped, efficient tone.

Lotty’s eyes tracked everything. Staffing levels. Supply stations. Patient flow. Instinct. “This is your current lead?” she asked quietly.

Adam followed her gaze. “Dr. Hensley.”

Lotty nodded once. He was competent. She could see that immediately. But also… Tired. Frustrated. Pushing too hard to hold everything together.

Adam stepped forward first. “Hensley.”

The doctor turned, immediately straightening. “Alpha.”

Professional. Respectful. Then his eyes shifted to Lotty. Recognition flickered. Followed quickly by something else. Not warmth. Not relief. Something colder.

“This is my sister, Alotta,” Adam said. “She’ll be assisting while she’s here.” Assisting. Not replacing. Smart.

Lotty held out her hand. “Lotty’s fine.”

Hensley hesitated a fraction too long before shaking it. “Doctor,” he said, tone polite but tight.

She caught it immediately. “I’m not here to step on your toes,” she said evenly.

His jaw flexed slightly. “Good.” There it was. Not subtle. Not hidden.

Adam’s gaze sharpened, but Lotty stepped in before he could say anything.

“I’m here to help,” she continued calmly. “That’s it.”

Hensley gave a short nod, but his eyes said everything else. We were managing before you got here. We don’t need you. You don’t belong here. Lotty had seen that look before. Human hospitals. New hires. Outsiders.

But this was different. Because here, she wasn’t just another doctor. She was the Alpha’s sister. And that made everything more complicated.

A nurse approached quickly. “We’ve got another incoming, possible mauling, north sector.”

Lotty’s stomach dropped slightly.

Hensley turned immediately. “Prep trauma bay two.” Then, almost as an afterthought, he glanced at Lotty. “You can observe.” Not assist. Not lead. Observe.

Lotty nodded once. “Of course.”

Adam didn’t miss it. Neither did she. The tension was clear. The divide. Pack. Outsider. Even here. Even now.

As the team moved, Lotty stepped back slightly, watching but her mind was already working. Assessing. Adjusting. Planning. Because whether they liked it or not she could already see the cracks. And if the war kept pushing the way it was. Those cracks were going to break wide open.

Adam stepped closer to her, voice low. “You don’t have to prove anything to them.”

Lotty kept her eyes on the trauma bay doors. “I’m not,” she said quietly.

But they both knew. That wasn’t entirely true. Because out there, on the roads, in the woods, people were being hunted. And here, they were running out of time. And whether they trusted her or not, she wasn’t going to stand by and just observe. Not anymore.