Chapter 67: Chapter 5

HALEY

I stand in the doorway of my very own room, awestruck. Kenneth brushes past me to place the shopping bags on the bed. “The bathroom is the next door and Glory’s room is the next.”

“Thank you,” I whisper, taking a step forward.

Kenneth gives me a half smile and I notice the mate mark on his neck. Damn… Oh well, it’s not like we’re even remotely close in age. He gives me a nod then leaves me in my room, closing the door behind him.

The bed is screaming at me to jump on it. I waste no time rushing forward and flying through the air. My body bounces then stills into the softest mattress I’ve ever laid on.

I take a deep breath and relax into my bed. My bed. My very own bed with my very own soft bedding in my very own room.

I’m giddy as I look around at my matching curtains and my dark dresser. Might as well get everything put away. I smile as I fold my very own, brand new, clean clothes.

A knock sounds on my door and I don’t recognize the scent. An older woman with a warm smile and a wide body looks me over. “Which one are you?”

“I’m Haley, ma’am.”

She lifts my chin and takes time to study my face. “I’m Louisa. You’re quite a pretty little thing. You have the look of mischief and wisdom. Is that a possible combination, little wolf?”

My face splits into a smile. “I brought you a hamper. Keep it in your closet for your dirty clothes. I wash the linens on Fridays.”

“Thank you,” is all I say as she waddles into the room to set the hamper down.

“Dinner is at six. Do you have any favorites?” I shake my head. She pats my chin then softly smiles. She leaves me to head toward Glory’s room, grabbing another hamper on the way.

I close my door and look around my room again. This is incredible! I hoped to find Uncle Ryan, but this exceeds all my expectations.

~Haley. Have you seen Aunt Lilah?~ Glory asks through the link.

An ominous feeling hits me and I already know where she is. ~I think she’s dead, Glory.~

~Why would you suggest such a thing? That’s horrible!~

~She would have been the first one to greet us.~

~She could just be in town or something…?~ I don’t answer her. Instead, I lay on my bed and take my normal “meditation” pose. Thoughts of Aunt Lilah flash through my mind.

She and Uncle Ryan are dancing. Aunt Lilah is big-bellied pregnant with Blaine. Uncle Ryan kisses her cheek as they walk hand in hand in the woods.

Aunt Lilah jumps into Uncle Ryan’s arms and he tosses her onto their bed.

Aunt Lilah kisses Uncle Ryan before buckling into a car. Her car swerves to miss a road gator. The car crashes into a tree and a low branch pierces her chest.

I gasp as I sit up, holding my chest as if the branch pierced me instead. Tears begin to fall down my cheeks. She is dead, oh, shit.

Poor Uncle Ryan and poor Blaine. They don’t seem too fazed, maybe it happened a while ago? Damn, Uncle Ryan is strong to survive the bond being ripped apart. He is an alpha, I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised.

A knock sounds at my door. “Haley?” Uncle Ryan calls to me. I wipe my tears and open the door. He pulls me into a hug as soon as the door is open. “What happened? I felt your grief.”

Oh, yeah. The alpha bond. It’s going to be really hard keeping my visions from him. My tears turn into sobs. “When was Aunt Lilah killed?” I ask.

He kisses the top of my head. “She died two years ago. How did you know?” He pulls back just enough to look at my face.

I shake my head and squish my face back into his hard abdomen. “I didn’t know. Glory asked about her and I guess I figured it out. She would’ve been with you when you got us. You survived, you didn’t go with her.”

“You’re right, she would’ve insisted. She loved you two. I stayed for Blaine and my pack. It hurts to think about her, but Blaine and I press on. We’re strong.”

I nod my head then wipe at my face. Uncle Ryan wipes my face with his giant hand. “I’ll tell Glory you’re all right and inform her about Lilah. I’m so relieved to know you two are here and safe. We were all so worried about you.” He kisses my head then goes to find Glory.

The ache in my chest has faded and I decide to focus on getting settled in. I’m still in the scrubs from Alpha Redd, but they’re actually comfy and it’s late in the day. It would be pointless to change now.

I wash my face in the bathroom and look around. It has two sinks, a large mirror, and a big bathtub with a shower head. Glory’s toiletries are already placed and the hair accessories and tools are stashed in a drawer in the middle of the sinks.

Blaine’s scent is nowhere in here, so this bathroom must be just for the two of us.

There’s a commotion downstairs and Glory growls. I rush down to find her playing a game with Blaine who’s laughing his ass off. Glory growls again and huffs with her arms crossed. “You’ve played this before. I’m not that bad.”

Blaine wipes his eyes. “You killed yourself. I didn’t even have to touch you.”

“Well, are there stages that I can’t fall off of?”

Blaine shakes his head and shoves the controller back into Glory’s hands. “Nope, it’s kind of the point in Smash Bros.”

I leave them to play their game and head to the kitchen where Louisa is peeling potatoes. “Can I get you anything, Haley?”

“No, ma’am. I came to see if I can help.”

“You may call me Louisa, or Grammy if you’re comfortable. My Lilah used to talk about her favorite twins. I even helped in the search from time to time. Where were you?”

She pulls out a cutting board and a really sharp knife. “Wash up first.”

“Yes, Louisa. I’m sorry, I’m not comfortable just yet. Thank you for helping search for us. We lived in a camp, but I want to talk to Uncle Ryan about it too. Do you mind waiting for our story?”

“Not at all, dear,” Louisa instructs me on how to cut the potatoes before dropping them into a pot of hot water. She teaches me how to cook, and I hang on to her every instruction.

We set the table. Uncle Ryan emerges from his office, followed by Blaine, Glory, and a man I haven’t met yet. “This is my mate, Edgar,” he introduces with a soft smile as he greets me and Glory.

“Haley, Louisa mentioned you girls were at a camp?” Uncle Ryan asks over dinner.

“That’s right. We were found by the pack mother—that’s what we call her. Martha keeps the males away and everyone fed. She’s in charge. If anyone steps out of line, she decides if they stay or go.”

“Does Martha have a last name?” Uncle Ryan inquires.

Glory and I both shrug our shoulders. “We’ve known her for years, but she’s not one to share her backstory,” Glory answers.

“Are there a lot of people in the camp?” Edgar asks.

“It’s pretty large. There were only pups, she-wolves, and a few humans that had pups.”

Louisa nearly chokes on her food. “Humans?”

Glory answers, “Yeah, their pups are half-breeds, so no alpha would let them in their pack.”

Louisa looks to Ryan in question. ~Humans can mate with Weres?~ I bite my lip and look between them. How the hell did I hear her?

Uncle Ryan subtly nods, but whatever his answer is, I don’t hear it.

“Grammy, can I have more, please?” Glory asks. Her plate is pretty much empty. I look at mine and it’s still almost full.

I start eating, but my stomach is in knots. It’s been quite a day—finding family, a new home, visions, and now hearing someone else’s mental communication. It’s all too much.

I leave the table and rush off to my room. My nerves are going haywire and visions start scrolling through my head as if a video were on fast forward. I don’t even make it to my bed and my brain hurts as the visions continue to flick, yet I’m not making sense of anything or anyone.

My body shakes and I hold my head.

I feel my body floating through the air then I’m laying in a cloud. The visions continue and I can’t handle it anymore. I scream as my head feels like it’s going to pop.

The next thing I know, I’m doused in cold water and I gasp from the shock, waking me from the visual headlock I was trapped in. I look up to Glory and Louisa’s worried faces. I crawl from the bathtub and throw up into the toilet.

Louisa grabs a warm washcloth and dabs at my face.

“What happened to me? How did I get in here?” I croak out.

“Ryan went after you. He found you curled up on the floor holding your head. He laid you in your bed, but he couldn’t get your attention. You were like that for some time. He tried linking you, Glory tried too,” Louisa explains.

Glory hands me some water. “Uncle Ryan tried to alpha command you to answer him, but even that didn’t work. Shit, Haley. I was really worried. We all were.”

“Language, Glory,” Louisa admonishes.

“Sorry, Grammy. Haley, what happened? You were freaking out for like two hours.”

“Two hours?” I mumble to myself. The snippets made no sense whatsoever, but I did recognize some people.

Louisa throws a thick towel around my soaked naked body. She turns off the cold shower and begins filling the tub. “She’s fine, Ryan. You can come in now, she’s covered.”

I hold the towel tighter around my body and Glory helps me to sit on the toilet lid.

Uncle Ryan squats in front of me and looks into my eyes. He gently moves wet hair from my forehead. “You gave us quite the scare.” His voice and his eyes are so gentle.

I close my eyes and let out a breath. “Haley?”

I open my eyes. “I’m okay now. I’m sorry, Uncle Ryan. I didn’t mean to worry anyone.”

“No need to be sorry. I just want to make sure you’re all right.”

“I think it’s just stress. It’s been a crazy two days.” I can see that Uncle Ryan doesn’t buy my generic answer, but I don’t exactly have a better one.

He gives me a nod. “I’ll let you to it. Louisa drew you a bath.” Glory pours in the bubble bath and Ryan chuckles. “A bubble bath. Take the time to relax. Once you’re more settled into our family and pack, we’ll talk. Tomorrow, Kenneth and I will show you both around. Okay?”

I only nod, but Glory gets excited. “That sounds awesome!”

“Thank you, Uncle Ryan,” I manage to whisper out. He kisses mine and Glory’s head then leaves us.

“I’m going to clean up. Glory, come help me. Let’s let Haley relax,” Louisa says, taking Glory’s hand and leaving me in the bathroom.

I step one foot at a time into the hot water and my legs almost instantly relax. I let out a breath and lean against the cushy pillow that’s suction cupped to the tub. I could get used to this.

After a long while of my muscles completely relaxing, I shave then wash up.