Ch. 281..290

Chapter 0281

“Back to Audrina though. She’s jealous that you came in and took her place as the favorite. Although, I think being the favorite was all in her head. From what I hear, most people didn’t like to work with her because of her superiority complex. She tears people down and makes them, instead of giving constructive criticism to work on and get better like you do.”

“I still think you’re crazy. There’s nothing to be jealous of. I’m just me, I just want to fight, nothing spectacular.”

“We’ll agree to disagree, I’m not arguing with you about this. It’s almost time, do you think we should grab anything? We’re going overnight, but didn’t get a whole lot of information.”

“I guess I might bring a sweatshirt to have a layer if they make us shift on the fly. I wish someone would teach me the whole ‘shift and keep your clothes’ thing.” I say as we take our things back to the kitchen.

We both run upstairs to grab an extra layer and then sit and wait in the foyer. Neither of us talk or discuss anything. I know we are both nervous and excited all at the same time, but once of the best things about Mina is she doesn’t need to fill the silence with noise or talking, we are both just here, together, and that’s all that is needed for comfort at this point.

At eight on the dot the door opens with Warrior Nickolas’ wide imposing frame filling the doorway, but not stepping in. His light hair and blue eyes normally leave him looking, not inviting, but not scary. But just like at the meeting his gaze is hard and judgemental. He was forced to collect us and he is openly not happy about it. He does not want us or me on this mission and my heart falls a little more. Those old feelings of not being wanted, not being good enough from my dad creeping back in. I have to mentally shake it off. I can’t go back to being that girl again, she was abused and neglected and everything that I have worked for is to make sure no one feels like that ever, including myself.

Do I confront him? Say anything? Or just live with this, pretend like it isn’t the elephant in the room and hope for the best? At least Mina is with me, we’ll just truck through this recon mission and I will keep my eye on the goal, to gain experience and knowledge about mission protocols. Nothing else matters, not him and his feelings, Audrina, Kaley, the guys, no one. I am here, living out my dream. That has to stay my focus.

He turns from the door without a word and walks off. We hurry behind him not wanting to be left behind. There’s a black SUV parked out front with dark tinted windows. We both move to the back and climb in. No one is in the passenger seat, but neither of us want to be alone with Nickolas in whatever neverending mood he seems to be stuck in.

He looks in the rearview mirror from the driver’s side, huffs a sound out of his nose and then shifts his eyes back to the front before he starts to drive away. The windows are so dark that it’s hard to see out in the last rays of light from the day. We are traveling away from the compound and the castle and everything I have been to since being in this pack. The butterflies in my stomach are back and my senses are on fire waiting to be used. I have to fight the smile that really wants to spread on my face. A real mission where I get to use real skills.

I sink back into the seat and just watch the forest fly by in blurred shadows and silhouettes thinking about all the training I have ever gone through, all the skill building games I did with the kids to hone isolated senses.

One game I miss is hide and seek. My wolf and I loved that game so we could refine our sense of smell. The kids would mill about in a section of forest near the training grounds, leaving their scents behind and one would hide when the rest came back to me and I had to figure out who was missing and then find them. We always had a great time. It taught them to start to use the forest around them to mask their scent and as they got better I had to improve my tracking skills to find them.

Chapter 0282

We hit a bump in the road that brings me out of that happy memory.

“Hang on. The rest of the ride is going to be rough. We usually run out here.” Nickolas’ gruff voice carries back as we slow down slightly to accommodate the dips and bumps in the trail.

“Why not make us run then? I don’t understand why we are being driven in if that isn’t the norm.”

I don’t mean to sound like a teenager, but frankly I am and my anger at my situation, the way some of the trainers and some of the warriors view me and my position here, while better than when I started still isn’t the best and it’s pissing me off. But I can’t blame them either. When I’m supposed to be doing the same things as everyone else, told what to expect, but not a minute later someone is trying to intervene and make something more comfortable and change the directive we were all given, but the change is only for me. It’s bullsh*t and I’m over it.

“I don’t understand the motive here. Do you and the mission team think we’re too weak to do this and want to prove that by making us take a car? You clearly don’t want us here. Audrina and her idiot cronies think that I’m sleeping with all of you to keep my place here, thanks to the perceived special treatment. Even though all of you have a brand that should make that physically impossible. I just wish someone would explain what the hell is going on already and give me real expectations.” I rub my face and take a deep breath to try and calm down. “If I’m not ready, or if you think I should go home, then send me home.”

“Do you want to leave?” His voice sounds too hopeful.

I scowl at him in the rearview. “Of course not.” Now both me and my wolf are irritated, which is not a good combination. “That truly is a stupid question and shows you know nothing about me at all. This is the one thing I have worked for. The only thing I have ever wanted for myself. The one thing that I chose, with no outside influence. The one thing I am good at. I need to be here, but that doesn’t mean I have to be here now if my age or inexperience or whatever the hell is going on is a problem.

I’m here to get better, not ruin everyone’s chances by being a distraction.” I finish by rolling my eyes and look out the window at nothing now that the darkness has fully taken over in the 45 minute drive.

Mina is tense next to me. She knows a little of what has gone on with me, but I try to keep what happened in my past, back home, tucked away in a tight little corner of my mind. I am here now, away from all of that sh*t and I really want it to stay that way, but I can’t seem to get people to see past my physical presence. My age and my size will always be a problem, no matter what I do. I get that now. I just have to continue to be more. I have to work more, study more, prepare more, show up more. It’s the only thing I can control.

I hope when I get my brand some of the emotions surrounding these thoughts are tamped down, cause I am so tired of the emotional roller coaster.

Nickolas growls in his chest. Good, at least he feels some of the irritation that I do.

“You have to understand. All the trainers are aware of you and your affiliation with the Alpha King…”

Oh hell no! I cut him off. “I’m going to stop you right there.” I raise my hand up. “You don’t give Xander the same porcelain doll treatment, and he’s the next in line to be king! So rethink your argument.”

He grunts again. “You’re right, I don’t want you on this mission, I have a bad feeling about it. I have since we started it. I can’t explain it, so I’m not going to try since you have a death wish anyway.” He just leaves it at that answer finish the drive in silence.

Chapter 0283

I start to doze off, but can’t quite find sleep. I have no idea how long we have been driving at this point, but my butt is numb, even in these cushy leather seats. Mina is out like a light next to me, but I can’t seem to get Nickolas’ words out of my head.

‘I have a bad feeling about this mission, I have since it started.’ I know that I trust my wolf’s instincts, Osiston is the same way. I know we train so hard to get better and be reliable, but out in the real world, trusting your gut can sometimes mean the difference between coming home alive or dying on the battlefield. If his gut says this whole thing is going to go wrong, it probably will and we need to be ready for that.

I know he’s great at what he does, it’s why he has been in and out of Elite training since I have been here. He never misses a whole day, but he is constantly being pulled for information and insight. Osiston is the same, he’s just scheduled with us only once a week, maybe every other week if he’s on something important for Alpha Reggie.

We finally pull to a stop near a few other SUV’s that look exactly like this one. So at least we weren’t the only ones who drove in. That would have been helpful information for my bad mood when we started this journey. I fight another eye roll.

Mina stirs awake now that the constant hum of the car has stopped. We both stay silent climbing out of the same side, staying as close together as possible. We follow Nickolas silently to a cluster of tents set up military camp style literally in the middle of nowhere.

“Wh…” Mina starts to ask a question, but Nickolas just shakes his head and looks at both of us, giving a silent instruction not to talk for now.

We walk towards the largest tent and head in while Nickloas holds the flap open for us. It is not what I expected at all.

The outside looks just like a giant canvas tent you would see in an old war movie, but inside it looks like a computer nerd’s wet dream. There are tables everywhere covered in computer screens. Some look like they are running themselves as words scroll down, others are clearly camera feeds. There are only a couple of people here though. There’s no way the two of them monitor all of this.

They seem to be watching buildings and sidewalks, but I don’t recognize any of the locations from anything I’ve seen here on the Royal pack lands, but I haven’t been very far either. I’m lost in thought, checking out all of the camera feeds, my brain trying to memorize notable landmarks so I know where camera angles are when they finally send us out when there’s a tap on my shoulder.

I look over and Nickolas has a small smirk on his face, then he rolls his eyes and tilts his head wanting me to follow. It’s the first sign of humor I’ve seen in a while from him and at all today.

We walk behind a row of computers and come to a stop. Nickolas reaches to a portable keypad nestled in the mess of cords on the table behind the computers and punches in a quick code. It was too quick for me to get the whole thing but it's five or six digits and the first three are 769.

As soon as the code is in I hear a thunk and Nickolas reaches down to pull open a trapdoor, just sitting there in the ground. What?

The hydraulic hinges make the six inch thick hunk of metal pull up like it weighs no more than a piece of paper. Nickolas ducks and starts walking down the metal steps, so we follow. As soon as we get to the bottom he hits another button and the trap door shuts with a small hiss and we are plunged into darkness for a second.

My breath catches. This is just like when Kaley had her goons take me out to be whipped. I was pulled into that dark closet and had a bag thrown over my head, instant darkness. I can feel my breathing pick up and my heart is racing. I know this is different, but the panic is fighting to come out. My wolf is trying to calm me down too, but it sounds like she’s trying to talk to me through water. I can’t understand and she's getting further away.

“Hey. HEY! Breathe Midge, you have to get control, now!” I feel a grip on my shoulders, they are strong and demanding, but they don’t hurt me. “Take a deep breath and open your eyes.” The deep, gruff voice is softer now with a hint of concern. “What was that Midge?”

I open my eyes and look at Nickolas and he reminds me of Sam a bit when he’s this close. I blink a few times and just shake my head. “I’m good, I’m good. I just wasn’t expecting that.” I try to step out of his reach, but he won’t let me go and he’s bent down to get eye level with me.

“Have you talked to anyone?”

“Huh?!”

“Have you talked to anyone, professional I mean, about what has happened to you?”

“Umm…” I look around for anything else to talk about. This is not what I want to discuss at all right now.

“You know we all have to go through evaluations after every mission, right? You’re going to have to talk to someone to make sure that sh*t…” He points at the door. “Doesn’t happen on a mission.

I close my eyes and nod. What else was I supposed to do? If it’s required, it’s required and I will probably get benched from every mission from here on out. But, I will not be sidelined yet. I look past him.

“Where to now, boss?” When he says nothing, I look him dead in the eyes.

“So, that’s how it’s going to be, huh? You know I have to report that.” He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, rubbing his hands over his face then turns. “Let’s go.”

 

Chapter 0284

We walk in silence through the rest of the short hallway. It seems to be dark gray metal with I beams reinforcing the walls and ceilings every ten feet or so. I definitely get Batman vibes walking in the corridor. I don’t know what to expect at this point, but I’m not sure if I’m more excited or afraid of spy gadgets popping up out of the ground like in the movies. I really need to not let my imagination run away with me, but it’s hard with no information to work with and Nickolas still isn’t talking to us, just silently walking.

Nickolas takes us through a heavy metal door that has one handle on the outside, but several levers and handles on the inside. This place was meant to keep people out. We walk into a room that is still the drab gray metal, but there is a dim blue light illuminating the whole space. It seems to be coming from the additional screens, but also the walls too.

“Here.” Nickolas points us to a table where Osiston and three other warriors are sitting. I recognize all of them from our sparring classes, but none of them are ever there consistently. I guess this would be why. They are on a mission, no longer needing training, but attending to either stay in shape or to help with new recruits.

“Thank you for joining us, ladies. I’m hoping that your involvement will make this mission go a bit more quickly. We’ve been on this for a long time and have lost too many to the cause. It needs to end sooner rather than later. And now innocence is being taken, that we cannot allow.” The older of the two guys I only recognize by face. He’s starting to gray around the ears and he has lines around his eyes from either squinting or smiling a lot. The rest of his dark hair is cut very short on the sides and back and only long enough to comb back on top. His build is average for most of the warriors I know. About six feet tall and probably has to walk through a standard door sideways because of his shoulder width. In this light I can’t tell what color his eyes are, but they are dark and soulful, like he could see right through you.

“So we’re just going to throw innocence right at them then?” Nickolas asks next to me.

“We have heard from your point of view on this enough, Nickolas. They have agreed to help and the decision stands.”

“They agreed without all of the information. They are too young and eager to prove themselves. Of course they agreed.”

Catching on the same time I did, Mina speaks up. “They are standing right here and clearly this isn’t as formal as when we were asked to join this mission. You all might as well lay it out there. It is obvious that this mission is dangerous, that was made clear enough when we were volun-told to join this group. Might as well get out whatever it is that you have a problem with Warrior Nickolas, since you seem to be the only one to voice a negative to us being here.” She looks right at him, but my eyes are on Osiston who seems to be just as agitated as Nickolas.

“You are being set up and used as bait. Everyone who is for this bullsh*t plan is hoping that since both of you excel at fighting and have outmaneuvered everyone in this room on your own and as a team that you will be able to get yourselves out of trouble when, not if, but when an attempt to kidnap you happens. There are too many variables that we can’t account for, too much risk to your lives and those that will step in to help you.”

I take a deep breath, it’s basically what we thought. They have a lot of faith in our skills even though they have never been used in an actual battle situation. On that I agree with Nickolas, there are too many variables to think about, too many things that are out of our control. That’s not a plan. I don't expect anything foolproof, there’s no such thing, but having some kind of back up plan would be nice, but I don’t think we even really have a plan to make a backup for.

Chapter 0285

I rub my eyes with both hands. “So what’s the plan for tonight? We clearly aren’t going to be the bait now. What can we do to make this suck less?” I look around the room. “What are we looking for, what is the recon? How can we prepare for being taken? Since that seems to be the end goal, right? For one or both of us to get taken so we can be tracked to wherever they are holding these girls.”

“How are you so calm about this? No one should be okay with dangling pups, children, minors, whatever you want to be classified as, a treat for the bad guys to just come and get.” Nickolas sounds offended at my questions.

I roll my eyes. “Human punching bag, remember? This is right up my alley. I am the scapegoat, the target and I have been my entire minorhood. So let's not act like being young should play a part here. The only effect it has is that the ‘bad guys,’” I air quote. “Will more than likely underestimate us because of it.”

“You are a f*cking royal!” His voice is progressively getting louder, but no one moves to calm him down. “We would never send Xander out because of that fact alone!”

“I’m not high enough on the bracket for that to be a factor either. And everyone knows Xander, he can’t be sent into any type of undercover situation. No one knows me, I am just another girl on the street. I am also the right gender for the task.” Why I am negotiating with him while the rest of these guys just watch is beyond me. “I’m not fighting for my spot as a sacrificial lamb, but I also understand the value we both have in this mission. Can we please just get to the recon stuff, since I don’t think the bait part of this plan is the same as the info gathering.” I look at him with pleading eyes. He needs to let this go for now. “What type of info are we looking for and how are we,” I point between Mina and myself, “going to help you get it?”

Nickolas huffs and just stands there for a second, like he’s lost in thought. He eventually pulls out chairs for us and takes a seat next to me.

“This is what we know so far…” Jorge starts talking point to several photos in front of us and flipping between three aerial shots of a forest.

There is so much information and yet nothing to work with. They know that the rogues are coming in and out of Canada. It appears that most of the traffic is coming from the northeast, which would make sense since they can use the Atlantic Ocean as a means of travel with very little issue. It is assumed that Nova Scotia is where the Rogue King has been operating from, but no one has proof. No one even knows who the Rogue King is or what he looks like. He’s a phantom.

The best trackers that the Elite Warriors have followed the trails of a couple girls as far as Bangor, but lost the scent after that in a more populated area. An area that is mostly humans, which could be a problem. They followed the river North and noticed they also went past the University of Maine, which is mostly human, but wolves attend too depending on what they want to study. It’s also a great place to grab innocent girls only slightly older than Mina.

The problem is the scent trail just disappears. Even with methodical investigation, by the best of the best trackers in all directions. It just doesn’t make any sense. And there doesn’t seem to be a pattern to the girls taken, other than the ones that they were able to track for a small amount of time were wolves. There has to be something else going on, no scent just stops and vanishes into thin air.

Chapter 0286

We got to work getting familiar with the surrounding area from the overhead views of the pictures. Any idea we had about places that might be used for hideouts or holding areas, the team has already searched, but with the knowledge that scents cannot be tracked, they could very well be hiding in plain sight and we would never know.

We also started talking about what they could be using to block their scents. Since the girls that have been taken have also had their trails go cold. It is more than likely the work of a powerful witch or, according to Jorge, most likely a coven of witches working together. But no one has heard of a spell like that.

That is where the other two in the group come in. Alyssa and William have been contacting and working with covens near us to try and figure out what is working against our sense of smell. They have both been gone for the last month studying and learning. William took the more treacherous route, going north east, nearest to the Canadian border and most likely where the rogues are. Alyssa took the western part of the state where a large coven is. These witches have almost completely immersed themselves into the human cities and towns in the area. They have a really good handle on intermixing and keeping their existence a secret. They also have some of the most powerful leaders and elders that our group has found.

Everything I have ever heard about the different species is that none of us get along, so we never work together or socialize in any way. But, it seems like at least some of us can intermix without a problem. I’m sure everything I have heard is from idiots, like my dad, who have been taught their species is the best and only species that should be around. Your standard, run of the mill racism doing its job to spread hate. My dad also can’t stand that I am a female and want to be a warrior not a breeding machine, so I shouldn’t be surprised with other types of discrimination.

I have never had any interactions with species other than werewolves, so I can’t say whose opinions are right or better or whatever, but I do know that there are several werewolves that I love

and many I hate. So I’m sure it would be the same with anyone else.

Alyssa and William are currently working to find what type of spell or more likely potion is being used to mask not only the rogue's personal scent, but also the scent of their victim. They are both getting help from different Coven leaders, but witches keep their information close and don’t like to share with outsiders. Getting into their inner circles to even ask about things like that is hard and takes time, which is why everyone here is so agitated. They can’t do anything until we have more information and something to work with. Warriors don’t do well with downtime of any kind.

“Now that you have an idea of what we have been working on for the last eight months, this is where you both come in.” Jorge starts.

“We are going to take you into the cities where the most activity has been. The most kidnappings.” Warrior Osiston takes over. “Clearly they are looking for a female, but there isn’t a pattern of what they are looking for specifically, so we are working under the assumption that they just need women.”

“We have looked into each female that has been reported missing. There is always a possibility that the female is being used to control or blackmail her mate or family if they are high ranking. But they are of all different ranks and backgrounds, no connections that we can see, yet.” Jorge jumps in again.

“The problem is that we don’t think all of the women that have gone missing have been reported. Many times high ranking wolves will work in house because enemies will use that distraction to attack.” Nickolas scoffs.

“Is it just Alpha King Reggie’s kingdom that is being attacked? Are other King’s having the same problem? Have all the attacks happened in Royal Pack territory?” Mina fires off questions.

It’s almost like we can read each other’s thoughts. Although when I remember that I can actually mindlink, maybe I have been feeding my own exact same questions to her through it.

“That’s the thing, we all have attacks and people trying to overthrow their king for whatever reason, but this seems to be directed specifically at us. So we have to assume it is directed towards Alpha King Reggie.” Jorge says looking worried for the first time since we entered the room.

“For the next couple of weeks we will get you brought up to speed with all of our intel. As much as it seems like we don’t know anything, we have made some progress. It’s really the location of the Rogues and their captives that we can’t seem to get. Any rogues we capture die before we can question them. Another thing we need to figure out how they are doing because it’s not any form of su*cide that we can tell.” Osiston says, leaning forward in his chair. “You will still do your school days as normal. Your training will happen here with us unless you are out on recon missions. We travel at night and you will travel by vehicle to keep your scents hidden as much as possible.”

“Why do we need to keep it hidden that we are here?” I ask. As far as I can tell we aren’t off Royal Pack territory, so it shouldn’t matter.

“This location is a black sight. None of the trainees know that it is here and we want it to stay that way. As trainees yourself there are still things that we need to teach you about masking and we don’t need anyone catching your scents by accident on patrols and trying to follow you here.” He looks at me and I feel the weight of the implication.

Audrina would follow me here to try and find a reason to get me in trouble or kicked out and she would definitely make a big deal about my being on this mission, while her high and mightiness is still stuck at the training compound.

“Let’s run, we can show you our boundaries and get your time in.” Nickolas stands, like his pants are on fire.

Chapter 0287

We are getting deep into the fall and our recon missions have been going well, I think. I still don’t know what information we are getting and I have the feeling it is meant to be that way.

I guess I can see the appeal behind our lack of knowledge since the idea is for us to be taken. We really don’t know much. I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary as Mina and I walk through the streets of different neighborhoods and cities near where the most girls are being kidnapped.

Mina and I spend almost every weekend staying in a rental property with Nickolas posing as our uncle. The backstory for the humans is we are looking at the University, for the wolves we are traveling for Mina to find her mate. Hoping both stories get us noticed we aren’t super shy or reclusive, we both talk to everyone and play up the ‘girl vibe’ as Nickolas calls it. I am so exhausted after we are out all day acting like that, who knew being social could burn you out more than training? But it is working to get us noticed and I am being pushed, no thrown, out of my comfort zone acting like this and wearing trendy clothes, going to restaurants, shops and other heavily attended areas around Orono, which is the closest city to the University of Maine campus.

What Mina and I have gathered by accidentally overhearing bits and pieces of conversations is that some of the clubs and bars near campus and in Orono are becoming heavily attended recently by an unusually high amount of new guys to the area. Most around college age so the humans aren’t really suspicious yet since we are in the middle of a semester, but we know they are wolves. Some smell like rogues, but not all of them, which is making us suspicious.

No one has approached us, but that might be because of our chaperone who is less than pleased when any male walks our way. Nickolas is playing his protective part a little too well, but it does give us an excuse to rebel a little. We haven’t done anything yet, but we do plan on returning to this area in January with Mina attending classes at the University. If anyone asks, I’m being homeschooled until I can join her. It’s the most plausible story we have. So Mina and I have come up with a few

ways to ‘sneak out’ and meet up with a few of the other girls we have met while walking around when we get back.

We have our rental until the Thanksgiving holiday and then we need to move on for a bit to make our mate story more believable.

There are several conservation areas in this state and surrounding our position. While we have been working the people here, the rest of the team has been fanning out working methodically to search them for any signs of rogue camps or hideouts. They keep coming up empty handed, but that also could be the masking thing they have going on too.

I think everything is truly riding on Mina and I being taken. That is where we are going to get answers. I don’t know how I feel about that though. I know we have plans in place so our attackers won’t get far with us no matter how sedated or subdued we are. And we get to be temporarily branded sometime after the Thanksgiving break so they can track us. Since Mina will be 18 soon, I think whoever is holding up the branding process was waiting and hoping for her to find her mate, which would effectively put a stop to this part of the operation since no one in their right mind would let me out alone for this.

Nickolas and Osiston got their way though, since we venture further and further from them as we explore the city. They can’t be with us all the time and our mind link only goes so far. The magic of the brand is it covers any distance and Nickolas more than anyone has been fighting for us to get it done, especially now that we are in this mission fully.

Chapter 0288

“I can’t wait to go back to the compound, I want to train and run hard, my body needs it. I feel so lazy right now.” I whine at Mina in our shared room of the rental property.

We just got back from shopping and meeting up for dinner with some other college freshman we met a couple weeks ago. We have managed to keep people friendly but at a distance. We don’t go to people’s houses and they don’t come to ours. Having an overprotective ‘uncle’ is doing wonders to keep a certain level of separation.

“I can’t wait to go back and use the hot tub. My feet are killing me.”

“You were the idiot who chose to wear heels to the mall.” I scoff at her, but she smiles right back.

“Yeah, but it got their attention, didn’t it?”

I roll my eyes. “Of course it did, your legs look a mile long with them on and that short skirt. I still can’t force myself to wear those. These shorts are bad enough, there’s barely enough material to cover my hooha.”

“What are you talking about? You wear skimpier stuff to training. Those shorts are nothing.”

“My training gear isn’t going to intrigue anybody, we all wear the same stuff, it’s a uniform. This stuff we wear to the mall and everywhere else is a choice I would not normally make on my own.”

“Yeah, but you have to admit, they look good on you. You have this tiny, totally ripped body that you only show off during training. You really need to show it off more, you work too hard to hide it under the baggy crap you like to lounge in. Have your boys seen you in ‘normal’ clothes?” She air quotes at me.

“They have seen me in lots of stuff. I had to dress up for a couple things for Luna Ava, they’ve seen me in that kind of stuff.”

“But they haven’t seen you recently, have they? I mean you haven’t had the chance to message them while we have been on assignment. And I know you only sent the one letter after they all wrote you separately. You have put on some weight and gotten more definition since I met you. I’m sure you will look completely different to them.” She waggles her eyebrows at me. “I can’t wait for them to see you all glammed up the way Luna Queen Anne does. I bet they will all fall over from heart attacks.” She’s laughing at the prospect now.

She’s had more than a couple conversations with Sierra while we have been at school and apparently Sierra has some insight to my interactions with the guys she didn’t even bother to tell me. Now Mina likes to give me a hard time the way she does at their supposed infatuation.

“Okay! Stop! You’re making it weird now. They are my brother and friends. None of them see me as more than a little sister. And that is still only a year in the making, before that, I was nothing to them.”

“All the more reason to learn to flaunt it tastefully. Let them know what they are missing.” She Laughs again as I throw a pillow at her.

“Okay, for real, enough now. I need to finish this assignment. You may not care about your grades, but mine can’t slip. That is one of the stipulations of my being here. I have to stay ahead, no matter how distracting you are.”

Chapter 0289

I have been emailing in most of my assignments and logging in when the teacher can set up a video so I can follow along with the classes. For the most part, Mina joins in on those classes otherwise her dad would hear about her slacking and would pull her from this assignment. That is something we both learned the hard way.

She missed a lesson once and I thought the phone was going to break when he called to yell at her. It’s never happened again, that he is aware of. She has taken to hanging out with a few girls from around here that are high school seniors. She’s hoping that it will get us more invites to parties and other social scenes when we come back in January. Many of the girls know people who are going to the University and have invited us a few times to parties. We declined them all for now, but Mina promises she will be all in when she gets settled at school. It will be easier for me to tag along then too. I have met them all and they seem alright, but I am playing at being newly social and trying to get over my shyness. It’s not a total lie, so the story is easy to sell.

The boys have taken notice of Mina too, human and wolf. I mean, even I have to admit, she’s gorgeous so I can’t blame them. Her personality and general good nature draw people in. Her dark reddish brown hair flows down her back silkily, even when she is fighting. I’m kind of jealous really. I just look like a sweaty hot mess. Her average height makes it easy to look straight in her eyes to talk, no matter your own height. She’s in shape, obviously, and the boys around here really seem to appreciate her efforts.

“Sky!” Mina jumps off her bed. “Beth just messaged me and said that her brother told her that his best friend’s cousin is on the football team and they are planning a party after we all get back. They have a bi-week and will be free the first weekend after classes start.”

“Huh?! I understood ‘bi-week’ in all of that.” Mina speaking ‘girl’ is like trying to understand German sometimes.

“Basically, in your language, there is a football party when they all get back from the winter break. And she told me so we can plan on being here in time to go. That’s all that you need to know. Oh, and plan on wearing a skirt and doing your hair. I wish we could call Sierra in on this, she’s so much better at getting you to do the girly stuff than I am.” She throws out as an afterthought. Probably based on the look on my face.

I will wear anything Luna Anne asks me to, she’s the queen and image matters with all of the things she does. Sierra has become an extension of Luna Anne”s fashion arm and she has dressed me for the few meetings and tours in the pack that I have done with the Luna Queen. I have just learned not to fight against Sierra, she started recruiting Xander and Oscar to literally hold me down while she dressed me like a child. No matter how much I flailed she still got it on me, I gave up that fight afterwards and just asked her to make sure I can wear some type of shorts under the dress and I can be comfortable in the shoes.

“When are we supposed to leave again?” I know Mina knows this, she’s been asking everyday for a week. Something about going back to the compound has her antsy and itching to make the time go faster.

“The lease on our rental is up in two weeks. We really should start packing the non-essentials so we are ready when Nickolas is. The weather is starting to turn and I don’t want to be stuck here. I want to get back so the Elders can do the branding ceremony the way they want to with all the pomp and circumstance. I swear they just like being the center of attention and all these stupid ceremonies give each and every on e of them a job that puts them in the spotlight for their fifteen seconds.”

She laughs at me as she settles back on her bed. “You’re not wrong on all accounts. Do you think that we will get to spend some time with Xander and Oscar when we get back? I feel like it has been forever since we have all hung out.”

“They probably don’t trust the four of us together anymore after last time.”

“That was all Oscar! He was the one who decided we needed candles for movie night. The rest of us didn’t set the movie theater on fire.”

“It was sweet, he was trying to celebrate one of the anniversaries. I don’t know why every week, month, place has to be celebrated as an anniversary though. It seems like a lot of headache and makes the long term ones less exciting when you do hit the big milestones.”

“I have no idea what any of that is like. I never really dated anyone long enough to hit an anniversary worth celebrating.” She shrugs.

“Really?! You strike me as the person who had guys following you around like little pups. You are gorgeous and look like a model. I’m sure plenty of guys tried to date you.”

“It wasn’t for a lack of trying. My dad is big on mates. And while he didn’t stop me from dating, he also made it really clear that my mate is out there and it won’t be fair to someone else if I am monopolizing a person who might not belong with me. So I kept it casual and I was honest with them all.” She shrugs again, lost in thought. “I do think we probably have some kind of sixth sense about our mate though, because I was not interested in any guy for very long romantically. I did learn some fascinating things though.” She waggles her eyebrows and I can only imagine what types of things she ‘learned.’

“Oh yeah? Like what? You enjoy being on top?” I threw a pillow at her, completely joking.

“Absolutely! It is the best ride, and they don’t have to do a lot of work so it’s hard to screw it up!”

My jaw drops, she’s never been this candid before

Chapter 0290

I just blush and look at her, I have nor response to that at all.

Just watching her interact with all of the people we have come into contact with has been educational, but there really isn't a way to tell people ‘I’ve never even held a boy's hand before’ that isn’t embarrassing.

“Since we're on the subject, what is your favorite position"

She tilts her head and has this mischievous smile on her face like she was reading my mind and wants me to admit it out loud.

“Umm.” I play with my fingers. I don’t want to lie to her and end up in a position where I would have to prove anything, but I really don't want to tell her the truth either.

“Come on. You don't strike me as the sleep around type.

It's okay if your experience is minimal, there's nothing wrong with slowly easing into the s*x stuff.” She moves to sit by me on the bed.

“Umm...1 don't have one.” I look anywhere but at her and hope that she just reads between the lines and drops the topic. I can feel my face heating up. There isn't a lot that makes me blush, but this is one of those things that does I guess.

“So you're a virgin, that’s fine. I was until last year, but I decided that I wanted to know a few things before I found my mate. You know, just in case he's new at it too, then the s*x won't be boring.” She shrugs it off and I guess that does make some sense.

Most guys don't see a problem with practicing. My brother and his friends are well-versed in entertaining in the bedroom, if the sounds coming from my brother's room and the rumors about the others are to be believed.

My brother tried to explain it to me last year that their wolves, especially high-ranking wolves, almost require the release and the need to procreate (his words not mine, cause it sounds like a s*x-ed lesson) gets more intense as they get closer to their 18th birthday.

I got a full detailed overview of the fact that even though wolves can't get or spread STDs, Alpha Lucas drilled into them to wrap it up every time because no one wants to be a parent that young and there are some girls who will try and trap a ranked wolf by getting pregnant. Especially an Alpha and Beta, but all the guys are at risk for gold diggers.

"I'm not just a virgin, I have no experience when it comes to that stuff, like at all. I told you the guys really didn't pay any attention to me until last year and before that, having even a female friend was not a thing.”

"No way! I've seen Xander with you, he kisses you on the head all the time and holds your hand. I figured there was something there before he found Oscar and because you are such an understanding person, you let him be once he found his first mate and is on the lookout for their female.”

"Uh, no. We are just friends and all of that is show for the stupid girls who can’t take a hint that he doesn't want them throwing themselves at him." I roll my eyes. “The twins have held my hands and they all kiss me on the head, but I'm like everyone's little sister, nothing more.” I shrug.

Now that she’s talking about it, I feel like I should be practicing somehow so I'm not a disappointment to my mate when I find him. I don't want to be rejected because I can't please him. But I also don't want to be rejected because I didn't save myself for him. I drop my head into my hands.

“This is so confusing. What am I supposed to do? The thought of being with anyone that's not my mate makes me sick to my stomach, but what if he doesn’t want me because I don't have any idea what I'm doing?” I let out a little whiny noise.

“Or what if he doesn’t want me because I have done anything that wasn’t with him? I don't want to be rejected!” I can feel my panic start to rise, my chest is tightening and my breathing is getting quicker.