Hunter's Secret
Chapter 15 - A Balloon

Titus’ POV

As I am walking back to the pack house, I am completely lost in my thoughts.

‘I just said yes to a witch. A very powerful witch. I told her she could live here. Why did I do that?’

‘Because she is like you, a little lost and in need of some help,’ Ryker states.

Maybe he is right. As much as she surprised me, I don’t sense evil in her. She seemed honest and I believe her intentions are good. I don’t know why I feel this way, but I do. Maybe this is what my pack needs right now. I finally make it back to the pack house and immediately go find Lillian. She is in the bedroom, just staring out the window.

Without turning to look at me, she plainly asks, “Everything okay?”

I walk up behind her and give her a hug and tell her yes. She doesn’t return my hug and shrugs me off, going to lay down in the bed. I take a deep breath to try and steady myself. Her constant rejection is starting to really wear on me. I thought she might be doing okay after our walk today, but I guess not. I know the mate bond lets her feel my hurt, but I also know her numbness keeps her from actually feeling it.

‘She just needs more time, Titus,’ Ryker tells me. I know in my heart he is right, but I just want someone to want me.

I go lay down on the couch and wait for sleep to come. It never does. Thankfully, Lillian is sleeping. I get up and carefully move her hair off her face so I can kiss her forehead. I revel in the feeling of her skin against my lips. I just want to climb into bed with her and hold her, but I know she doesn’t want me there right now. I decide to go for a walk to clear my head. The fresh air brings a sense of peace that I desperately need. A cold finger tapping my shoulder scares me back into the present. I whip around to see Ash standing there.

“You can’t do that! You scared me! Why didn’t I hear you or smell you?” I shout, trying to not wake everyone else from their peaceful slumbers.

“I have skills,” Ash brags, a smirk on her face.

“Why are you even here right now?” I question, my frustration coming out more than I wanted it to.

“I could ask you the same question, Titus,” She responds.

“How do you know my name? I am pretty sure I didn’t tell you.”

“Geez, you ask a lot of questions. I know your name because I have been secretly, *not creepily though* watching your pack for a few months now. When you seemed safe enough to talk to, I introduced myself.”

“It’s still kind of creepy. So, you masked your scent the whole time?”

“It is not creepy, it’s resourceful,” she argues back, “and yes, I covered my scent until I felt like you wouldn’t kill me. Wolves are not exactly “friends” with my kind. Why did you trust me anyway?”

“I honestly don’t. But Ryker does so here we are,” I admit and turn to start walking again.

She falls into step with me, “you are different from what I thought you would be.”

“How so?”

“For starters, you aren’t trying to kill me. You know how to keep your emotions in check. You lead with your heart and your head. You are very wise for being what nineteen, twenty?”

“Eighteen.” I correct her.

“That makes you even more impressive,” she states before changing the topic, “So, why is your pack so small? I have watched several families pack up and leave. You only have what like twenty wolves living here now?”

I sigh and unfortunately agree with her. My pack is small right now. The families she is asking about are ones that decided to break their loyalty to me by severing the pack bond and become rogue with the hopes that another pack would take them in. I have requested help from the kingdom several times now but there has been no response.

“Don’t be so sad. I can help you now. I know several people who would appreciate a place to live too, and they would be loyal to you, Alpha Titus.”

I eye her skeptically but honestly; I am throwing all my precautions to the wind now. I don’t know why I am going along with her crazy plan. I don’t have anything left to lose though, so, why not? Change starts with one person. I think I am the only pack in the history of werewolves to accept a witch into a pack.

“Sure. Tell them to come. I don’t really have the resources for more mouths to feed but I also don’t have the resources to say no. My pack is dwindling, and I need the warm bodies.”

“Don’t you worry about resources. I will take care of it all as long as you promise to protect us and house us.”

I nod in response, and she disappears as quickly as she came.

***Four Months Later***

Today is my nineteenth birthday. On one hand, I am proud of how far I have come in the past few months. My pack is slowly growing as Ash keeps bringing the outcasts, misfits, and unwanted home. She has somehow used her magic to provide enough resources for everyone. I don’t even question it at this point. Everyone she has brought back has been nothing but respectful and loyal to me and I see little parts of myself in all of them. They are broken, rejected, and tired of being tired. They just want someone to want them, a feeling I feel in every cell of my body, and I can give that to them.

However, on the other hand, I am incredibly sad. Lillian is still technically my mate, but she has stopped speaking to me. She won’t look at me anymore either. The grief has completely consumed her, and I don’t think I will ever get her back now. I refuse to leave her though. She is mine. Made for me. But she is ill, and I can’t help her because she won’t let me try anymore.

I hear a knock on the front door, and I open it to find a smiling Ash holding ‘conGRADulations’ balloon.

“Happy Birthday!” She cheerfully greets me. I raise my eyebrow at the balloon, and she explains, “It was the only one that I could find around here so this is what you get. I wanted you to have a balloon.”

I welcome her into the house, and she ties the balloon to a kitchen chair. “Thank you, Ash. That is very thoughtful.”

“It only seemed fair after all you have done for me these past few months,” she states before thinking of something else, “I have someone new I want you to meet too!”

I just smile and follow her. We get down to the main building that she created to serve as the introduction to the pack. It has temporary rooms set up for people to use until they are able to move into a house. They receive full meals, medical attention, and a comfortable place to sleep. Most of the people Ash brings back are malnourished, injured, traumatized, or have been kicked out. My pack has kind of become the safe haven for all those who are broken. My pack has grown from about twenty wolves to almost sixty wolves, witches, and even humans. We all live in peaceful harmony, mostly because there is just a general understanding that if you are here, you have nowhere else to go.

Entering the building, I see nurses rushing around to attend to the newest group of members. Ash leads me over to one of the more private rooms and with deliberate carefulness, pulls back the curtain a little. She looks in and I try to follow her, but she puts her hand out behind her, pushing against my chest, stopping me. I am a little surprised at her contact as she knows it is disrespectful to push an Alpha back, but I am not offended because I trust her judgment. I wait patiently outside the room while she goes in and I hear her softly whisper, “I brought someone to see you. He is really nice, I promise. He just wants to say hello.” Sᴇaʀ*ᴄh the FindNʘᴠᴇl.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality.

I see her hand stick out from behind the curtain again and she waves me in. I slowly move into the room, careful to keep my Alpha aura at bay to not scare the person behind the curtain. I see Ash crouched down by a little girl sitting in the fetal position on the farthest corner of the bed. She is not a witch, and she doesn’t smell like a wolf, so she must be a human.

I take in her appearance and my heart sinks. She has matted hair which I can’t tell if it is brown or just covered in dried mud. Her feet are all cut up, probably from being barefoot. Her clothes are basically rags and she has an obviously broken wrist, but she just holds it to her chest. I crouch down to introduce myself and when she looks at me, I have to choke back tears. Her beautiful hazel eyes are filled with terror. I move my hand to run it through my hair and she flinches. My heart breaks when I realize that she thought I was going to hit her. She can’t be much older than three or four.

“What is your name, little one? My name is Titus.” I softly ask her, trying my best to make myself seem as the least intimidating as possible.

“Raine,” she replies, her voice hoarse and quiet.

“Hi, Raine. Do you think we could look at your wrist? It looks like it hurts,” Ash asks.

She slowly nods her head yes, her eyes big and scared. Ash cautiously leans over the bed and Raine starts shaking her head and backs up more, pointing to me with her good hand.

“Him.”

I look at Ash and she just shrugs her shoulders. Shaking my head, I gently scoop Raine up and carry her over to the x-ray room. She is so light; I am afraid I am going to crush her by just holding her. She snuggles into my arms and lets out a little sigh. I set her down on the table and let out a breath I didn’t know I was holding. The nurse comes over to take care of her and I step out of the room and back into the main hall.

“Ash, where did you find her? What happened to her?”

“She was just walking in the woods all by herself. The nearest human town is over thirty miles from here. It looks like she has not eaten or drank anything for a few days, so I have no idea how long she was wandering around for. I already checked with all the humans I know, and no one recognizes her. I will keep trying to find her family. They are probably searching for her.”

“Alpha Titus, can I talk to you over here please?” The nurse waves me over. She points to the x-rays and explains, “her wrist is broken, like you can see here, but what concerns me more are these lines here and there. These are spiral fractures that never healed correctly.”

“Spiral fractures? How does that happen?”

Solemnly, she lowers her voice, “Spiral fractures are caused by the bone being twisted from its normal position. This injury can be seen in warriors and highly active people, but she is too young for that. This was caused by someone twisting her arms until they broke. This was on purpose, Alpha Titus.”

My heart breaks for her. She didn’t deserve this.

Turning back to Ash, I speak, a little firmer than I intended, “Ash don’t bother looking for her family. She is staying here.”

“What if they come looking for her here?”

“They won’t and if they do, I will kill them. Her injuries were not caused by her recent walk in the woods. She was injured on purpose by someone she knew. Did you see the way she flinched earlier? I won’t let anyone else hurt her like that ever again. I need to let Ryker out before he tears someone’s head off, so I am going to leave. Please bring her to the pack house when she is all cleaned up.”

Ash nods, tears pricking her eyes. I turn and run out of the building. I can’t stand to be in there anymore. How could those people do that to her? She is basically a baby still. For the first time in a long time, I feel something other than sadness: I feel anger.

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