Chapter 9 – Let Me Help You
“Helping those in need is not charity, it’s humanity.“–Abhijit Naskar
Neron
“You want to split the trainees into <b>teams</b>?”
“Yes. Let them fight it out in a battle royale on the course.”
Kiya and I are discussing the obstacle course test for the pup trainees in my office. Separated by my desk, I watch my mate work her mind as her fingers flip through the progress reports of our newly shifted wolves. A concentrated look on her face told me the tale of her focus and critical thinking. She’s serious and calcted in her thoughts of my proposal, humming to herself.
“Wolves do likepetition…” She muttered. As their chief trainer, it’s only fitting to <b>run </b>proposals and ns by her first before implementing them. Before my eyes, I’ve seen the young pups blossom extraordinarily from their early days of wolfhood. Many train together after hours with Kiya’s enthusiasm, pushing them to do their best. Strict, but fair. Serious, butpassionate. I’ve receivedments and apuse from the parents and families of the trainees remarking how strong their child or children have be under Kiya’s tutge.
They shouldn’t direct their words of praise to me. It belongs <b>to </b>her. I could tell that she feels ufortable. by the admiration<b>, </b>often glossing it over as her duty as a Delta. It’ll only be a matter of time before the pups receive a <b>new </b>trainer after Kiya’s departure, and I can only hope he or she will keep up the same streak as my
<b>mate</b>.
There are glitters of hope shimmering in the eyes of my pack members as they spar
nces at <b>Kiya </b>whenever she walks by. Sometimes, I can’t help but stare at her too. She’s beautiful as she’s fearsome. Many have asked me when she’ll be ceremonially inducted as Zircon Moon’s Luna.
And it hurts to see those glitters fade as I reveal that she won’t be Luna. I understand their disappointment; my mate has the makings to be a mighty Luna wielding her hand on the side of justice. As my destined partner, that automatically makes her destiny to my Luna. The heart of the Alpha. <b>She’s </b>strong, determined, stubborn to a fault, and fantastic with children<b>.</b>
But that’s <b>not </b>the path she wants. Despite possessing all the markers of a fine leader, she chooses not to pursue it. I cannot ignore the dark past buried underneath the foundation of mynd. Who, in their right mind, would <b>want </b>to rule over a pack that’s brutalized them for years? It’s not Kiya’s job to heal Zircon Moon when we, once, didn’t give a damn about her healing.
Goddamnit. It doesn’t make my dreams any less <b>real</b>. In a <b>perfect </b>world, we’d rule side by side. We’re married. We’d <b>have </b>pups. But that’s all it is. A wishful utopia. One that <b>no </b><b>one </b>can force on her. We, as a pack, can continue to dream and hope for our future Luna, but we must face the facts sooner thanter that it will not
happen.
And I don’t know what that means for future heirs. Yet, none of that takes precedence. I don’t care about that.
“Let’s do it.” Kiya perked up. “I like thepetition route. It’ll make it more fun for the pups and the <b>pack </b>can witness the spectacle.”
I care about her.
<b>1/4</b>
“Perfect,” A smile made its way to my face. “We split the pups into two teams, and we’ll lead them.”
“We?” <b>She </b>arched <b>an </b>eyebrow. “You’re getting involved?”
“Yes. It’s part of my job to oversee potential candidates advance from pup trainee to a full trainee,” I shrugged my shoulders. “And it’ll give them more motivation to do better if their Alpha is in their presence,”
“Ah.” <b>Kiya </b>nodded. “Fine. I’ll let this slide. You don’t want them to ck off, I guess with you around, it’ll make thepetition that much meaningful.” <b>She </b><b>leans </b><b>back </b>in her chair and crosses her arms underneath her chest. My mind zipped to a forbidden ce when my eyes caught the slight liggle of her mounds,
“I bet they’re soft <b>like </b>pillows!”
“Fucking hell, Onyx!” Ignoring his boisterous <bughter</b>, I mmed down walls both for him and other stray sinful thoughts that <b>threaten </b>to show me solt porn.
“However…” Her voice pulled me back into reality. “The trainees are impressionable. They want to impress their leader. They’ll fight to be on your team if it gets them noticed by you.”
“What <b>can </b>I say?” I chuckle amusingly. “What do you propose?”
“Randomization. Instead of <b>picking </b>which team they want to be on, they’ll draw from a hat. Thirty trainees. divided by both of us will yield fifteen members on each team. And since this is apetition, there should be a <b>prize</b><b>.</b>”
“Bragging <b>rights</b>?” I suggested,
“<b>That’s </b><b>an </b>automatic <b>reward</b>.” My mate chuckled. I’d pay any amount of money to hear thatugh for the rest of my life. “I’ll think of something before tomorrow. Any ideas for team names?“
“Creative names <b>aren’t </b>my forte.” It’s true<b>. </b>Coming up with names is just as bad as leaming how to bake. It gets messy, I never came up with names for my past drawings for this exact renson,
“Fine. Let’s keep it simple: Team <b>Alpha </b>versus Team Delta.”
I liked it! This will, for sure, get those kiddos excited for what ising. After the talk, Kiya craned her neck from side to side to rid stress knots, but I didn’t miss the faraway look in her eyes. Something’s upying her <b>mind </b>and it’s bothering her. From the tired expel of breath to the heavy exhaustion written <b>on </b>her cheeks. Her hand rubs the side of her neck absentmindedly, but I didn’t miss the redness encircled around the junction
where her neck <b>and </b>shoulder met.
“Kiya?” I asked. At first, she didn’t answer me. Silent as a mouse with that distant look. I know she isn’t talking to Artemis; I’d see her eyes zed over. I called her name out again and met no response.
So what did I do? The most annoying thing <b>a </b>person can do. I poked her arm. <b>And </b>that brought her <b>back </b>from her brief trance, ring at me with daggers.
“What?”
“Are you okay? <b>You </b>seemed…preupied.”
The re instantly softened <b>as </b><b>she </b>expelled a sigh. “Yeah, I’m fine. It’s nothing to worry about.”
Chapter 9 Let Me Help You
“Have you been sleeping?”
“Sort of.”
“Have your friends checked your room?”
“Yep. They found nothing.”
“I could <b>have </b><b>you </b>moved to another room if that’ll help you sleep better.”
“No, don’t trouble yourself with that. <b>I’m </b>fine.”
“Have you been <b>eating</b>?”
“Are you my mother?”
I blinked. I admit this <b>line </b>of questioning sounds like what a mother would do. Always checking in and fussing over their <b>child</b>. That’s not my goal at all; I’m simply a man worried about their mate.
“No, I’m not. I just want to know <b>how </b>you’re doing and if you’re okay. You know I’m here if you need to talk.” Her eyes averted away from me nervously, her <b>hand </b>continuously rubbing that one spot on her neck for a ridiculously long time. There’s something on her mind. There’s <b>something </b>she wants to tell me but can’t. “How did you get that bruise on your neck?”
“Huh? What bruise?”
Fishing through my bottom <b>drawer</b>, I pulled out apact mirror. Gold with diamonds encrusted around the rim. It belonged to my mother, and I’ve kept it ever since. I never pulled it out until this day, but I know it’s safe in Kiya’s hands. Handing it to her, she opened it and checked her neck until she spotted the aforementioned bruising.
Emotions <b>danced </b><b>across </b>her face in rapid session<b>. </b>Confusion. Sadness. Anger. Worry. Her nimble fingers delicately touched the red bruise like its tender, but Kiya doesn’t express pain. Either there is none, or she’s <b>good </b>at hiding it. Bruises don’t <bst </b>on werewolf flesh; they heal within minutes. That redness has been ever- so–present since the beginning of our meeting.
Sighing heavily, she shut thepact mirror delicately and handed it back. “I’m…not sure. I didn’t know it <b>was </b>there.”
“May I check it?” The apprehension on her face is palpable. She didn’t want me to touch her <b>and </b>judging by the zed look in her eyes, she’s <b>speaking </b>with Artemis. Or Artemis is convincing her. After a minute<b>, </b>she expelled <b>a </b>defeated sigh and nodded.
“Fine<b>.</b>
Rising from my desk, I walked <b>over </b>to her and gently tilted her head to the side for a better look at the bruise. Electricity propelled through me like rockets from my fingers touching her skin from our mate bond. Kiya didn’t even flinch. Does she no longer feel the destined sparks? My heart jumped in fear at the thought because I don’t <b>know </b>what her side of the mate bond is like. I only know mine.
The bruise is rather small, but red enough to show through her brown skin. It resembled a splotch of color, like when a painter flings their brush against their canvas. I gently pressed a finger against it, only to retract it within seconds because of the heat.
Chapter 9 Let Me Help You
It practically burned me! I do not know the anatomy of the human body, but I know for damn sure bruises. don’t burn other people.
“Kiya, is there something else going on with you?” I asked worryingly as she faced me again. “You know you can tell me, right?”
<b>Her </b><b>deep </b>pools of brown <b>stared </b>deep <b>into </b>my own, <b>waves </b>of emotion crashing against the shore of her lens as
of Kiya
<b>she </b>enters <b>an </b><b>internal </b>battle. To tell or not to tell. The thought carrying a secret burden hurt. She
deserves to be free, not tormented by a secret. Even as her eyes zed over inmunication with her wolf, I still look into them. So beautiful.
And I feel that indescribable, maic pull.
Unconsciously, my hand cradled her cheek. And happiness burst forward as she nuzzled into r
my warmth with
a gentle hum. Onyx yips and jumps within my mind, excited at our mate’s response to our touch. An uncontained smile sprung forth on my face while my thumb caresses her cheek.
“There’s…” She sighed heavily. “There’s something you need to know. Something has been bothering me and I know what it is.”
“Tell <b>me</b><b>,</b><b>” </b><b>I </b>whispered, kneeling on one knee to appear less intimidating. “Tell me so I can help you.”
“Okay<b>…</b>” <b>The </b><b>thudding </b>of her rapid heart echoes in the space between us, slowing down with every breath <b>she </b>takes. My hand hadn’t left her cheek, and Kiya has yet to reject my touch. It’s a small step, but no words can express just how happy I am. “The thing that’s been bothering me is-!”
The doors to my office abruptly swung open and the person who entered forced the temperature to plunge several degrees. He’s also the same person who turned the soft moment between my mate and <b>me </b><b>into </b>a sour one. Because Kiya nted her feet firmly onto the ground and pushed her chair away from me.
The sweetness in her <b>eyes </b>burned to ash under the mes of hatred.
“Ah, I’m interrupting something.” My father chuckled as if it was the funniest thing in the world, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. I have never wanted tomit patricide more at this moment.
“I was just leaving,” Kiya growled darkly. She stood erect from her chair <b>and </b>walked out of the room, only to be blocked by my father.
“Dear, you need not leave. Do stay.”
“Kiss my ass.” I bit my tongue to prevent augh from exiting my mouth. My mate ducked under his arm and marched out of <b>my </b>office with detestation permeating with <b>every </b><b>step</b>. The office <b>got </b>colder with <b>her </b><b>absence</b>N?velDrama.Org ? content.
<b>and </b>it made me angrier.
Dad better have a damn <b>good </b><b>reason </b>for his interruption.
Chapter Comments
I HATE it when ever they start getting close SOME BODY INTERRUPTS THEM FAAAARK