There was a lot to say today, so you get two.
One Year LaterQuirināCome on, Quirin! You can punch harder than that,ā Henry, my best friend and closest thing that I have to a brother, says to me.āItās your birthday, Henry. I donāt want to make you cry before we celebrate your big day,ā I taunt.Where Henry is a shining star of happiness, Iām a black cloud of anger. Being around him helps to keep the darkness at bay, but no one can remove the darkness that has consumed me since the day that I watched my father die.I had planned my revenge on Alpha Warren for years, had intended to take everything that he loved from him. But all that changed a year ago when his mate saved my life. Not only had she saved my life, sheād insisted that I live. She, like Henry, had a bright golden light that shines around her. Sheād taken my face in her hands and told me that I wasnāt allowed to die. I had been ready to die, ready to give up the grief that Iāve held so deep in my heart, but she wouldnāt allow it. How that woman saved my life is beyon
Five Years LaterYaraIf you had asked me six years ago what my life would look like now, Iām not sure I would have ever imagined this. My life is filled with love, happiness, work, school, the pack, and most importantly, family.My mate is as perfect a father as I knew he would be. He LOVES being a father and I love watching him with our pups. I never thought I could love that man more than I did, but seeing him being the incredible father that he is with our pups, Iāve just kept falling more deeply in love with him and wanting to give him more pups. After the twins, we decided to wait a bit. Our original plan was to wait a few years while we adjusted to being parents to two babies. Warren wanted to focus on getting the pack financially stable and increasing the packās income and I wanted to focus on going back to school and turning our hospital into a teaching hospital.It took about six months of negotiation with the closest werewolf university and a lot of conversations with their
WarrenItās been several months since we killed Brady and Dr. Stephens. It took a while, but the pack has settled into what I guess is a more normal routine. We spar, we run patrols, Charlie and I run the pack, Yara and Noelle run the hospital, Haynes and Laney train and manage the warriors.Now that life has settled down, our pack is having a baby boom. Iām pretty sure every one of my mated she-wolves is pregnant and some who arenāt mated are pregnant as well. Yara and I talked about that and weāve agreed that if both parents are fine with remaining unmated, they can. The ones who donāt agree, have to speak to both of us so we can come to a resolution. Thankfully, now that weāre having pack gatherings with Alpha Harold and his pack, there are fewer unmated adult men and women in our pack.Today, Yara is in the pack hospital making last minute preparations before our twins come. Iām watching Charlie and Haynes working with Carson. Itās been a long, grueling road for him. Heās struggled
AnnaWhen the pack came back after attacking Alpha Bradyās pack, they brought Dr. Stephens with them.Dr. Stephens, the man I have despised ever since I started working in the hospital. All of us, the nurses, knew that he was hurting our pack, but there was very little we could do about it. At the time, we were in a constant state of war. We could barely keep the pack going in between battles, and Dr. Stephens had been part of that problem.Weād all turned to Savannah. She was younger than Erika and Katie, but she had more medical experience. Without any conscious discussion about it, we had all deferred to her when we questioned Dr. Stephens' methods. Goddess knows, you never questioned him to his face. Heād berate you in front of anyone and everyone in the room. He was a horrible man for so many reasons.As I stare at the man, who is currently on his knees in front of Alpha Warren, I remember the day I lost the man that Iām pretty sure was my mate. I was almost eighteen. I had actual
WarrenAfter making love to my mate for hours and sleeping off the exhaustion of the battle, I wake up feeling fantastic. While I slept, Arric healed what was left of my wounds, my mate is safe, happy, and pregnant with my pups, and all thatās left is Dr. Stephens who is currently residing in my cells.Thereās one more thing that I need to take care of before I deal with Dr. Stephens, and thatās Carson. Yara told me that he wanted to die when he came in. I understand his fear. Not having a place in a pack is a terrible feeling for pack members. While we get ready this morning, Yara and I talk about the options and how we can possibly keep him running patrols. She explains to me about prosthetics and that it will take modifications on our part and his, but once he and his wolf gets used to wearing one, they can continue to remain at warrior status and help defend the pack.But before that, we need to say goodbye to our allies and send them off.When we get downstairs, the feeling in the
YaraThe flow of warriors coming into the hospital finally starts to slow down. When we get one warrior with a spike through his foot, he tells us that theyāve breached the packhouse and the battle is winding down. Iāve periodically felt Warrenās emotions, his pain, but nothing that my mate and his wolf canāt handle.Now that itās settling down, the fatigue of the day and night is starting to set in. But I know I wonāt be able to sleep until my mate is home and Iāve checked him over.Iām still working with the warrior who got the spike through his foot, holding his bones in place while his wolf starts the healing process when I hear a commotion out in the front.āTheyāre back, Luna,ā Savannah says, coming into the room.āGo, Noelle. Go check on Charlie. Iāll be out as soon as Iām done here,ā I tell her. She and Savannah rush out of the room.āYou should go too, Luna,ā the warrior says.āI will, once the bones in your foot are back in place,ā I tell him, putting another one together and
WarrenAs expected, we ended up having to send a large group of warriors back as soon as we blew the bombs. Iād heard Carson screaming in my head and told some of my warriors with minimal injuries to get him to Yara as quickly as possible. I have to hope that my mate can work the miracles she always seems to and because I know sheāll do everything she can, I remain focused on the battle.Itās been long enough since they last attacked my pack, that Bradyās warriors are healed. But Franklin and Haroldās men severely decimated their numbers. Even with the number of wolves that weāre having to send back to the pack, weāre still outnumbering them. Add to that, we have two Alphas and two Betas leading this attack on four fronts and it doesnāt take Arric long to get to the packhouse. I send half of the warriors i my group to help the others as I prepare to enter the packhouse. With Brady, you never know what types of traps heās set.āAlpha, Franklin and I have Alpha Brady. Do you want us to k
YaraWe only had a couple of hours before the injured started coming in. The first thing I realize is that every single one of them has splinters all over them. Because they blew the bombs with wood, theyāve all been hit with various sizes and amounts of debris.āMake sure you get every piece of wood out of them. If you donāt, theyāll become infected. Warriors, you need to let my team know if you feel pain somewhere so we can get all these wood pieces out of you. If we donāt and you get an infection, Iāll pull you from duty until youāre healed.āāYes, Luna,ā they say with varying degrees of strength in their voice.Savannah and I begin doing triage and I take the worst ones while she takes the ones that she can handle.The first group that comes in have large pieces of tree that punctured through them. Iām guessing others did as well, but this group couldnāt pull these pieces out without causing more damage to their bodies. I take the one with a large piece of wood in the thigh, and Sa
WarrenAfter dinner, I take her upstairs so we can celebrate properly. I donāt spend the hours that I want to with my mate, but when I return, Iāll make it up to her.Iām up before dawn the next morning, Arric and I ready for battle. I shower quickly, letting my mate sleep in. I know that soon enough, sheāll be overwhelmed in the hospital.When I get out of the shower, sheās sitting up in bed. The sheet is laying across her lap, but her breasts are bare for my view. Any other morning, Iād be crawling back into bed. But today, my mind stays focused on the battle ahead.āWhy donāt you go back to sleep, baby? Weāll be sending warriors back to you soon enough,ā I tell her.She shakes her head. āIām coming down to see everyone off. I want our warriors to know that I love them and Iām here if and when they are brought back.āI go to her, kissing her deeply, drawing strength for what I have to do today. I know itās a possibility that weāll lose warriors. I hate it, hate it even more than I us