Chapter 4

Why is it that we can never catch a break? I contacted the Alpha King to inform him of the attack on our pack. Also, of what the rogues we captured had divulged, which wasn’t very much. We were asked to send the rogues to the Royal Dungeons for further interrogation by the Council. Why not?

Gamma Jacob arranged the transportation of the rogue wolves. Additionally, he made sure that only the ranked wolves knew of the transport and the route. We all held our breath when the transport left with the rogues. We didn’t really relax until they reached the Royal Dungeons three hours later. I think we were all afraid of another attack on a transport.

I don’t know why we were afraid. This was under our control, not the control of the Council or, better yet, under the control of Doyle Kessler. All rogues arrived unharmed and in the same condition in which they left. Perfect.

We all went about our duties as if we were not attacked. I continued to perform my duties at work and my Delta duties. Mr. Grey sent Alpha Richard an email with several designs for us to choose from. Alpha Richard forwarded the email to all of us and told us to choose our top two so we could discuss them at our meeting at the end of the day. Done.

Anthony was excited because he really liked all of the designs. I reminded him he had to choose two. He begrudgingly agreed to do so. I could only chuckle at his reluctance. He sounded like a two-year-old child throwing a tantrum. He had his favorites, and I had mine.

We all met with Alpha Richard at the end of the day to discuss the She-wolf Training Academy. “Okay, let’s discuss which design we want to use for our Academy. Mr. Grey sent over six designs. I had each of you pick your top two to see what you would all come up with. I had Beta Micah print them out so we could easily see each one and vote on them,” announced Alpha Richard.

We all got settled in our chairs and waited for the Alpha to continue. “Now, each design has the same format for the general areas, recreation area, and laundry area. Who likes design #1?” asked Alpha Richard.

No one raised their hand.

“Okay, who likes design #2?” asked Alpha Richard.

I raised my hand, and Gamma Jacob raised his hand.

“Two. Okay. Who likes design #3?” asked Alpha Richard.

Beta Micah raised his hand and no one else.

“One. Next, who likes design #4?” asked Alpha Richard.

We all raised our hands to that design.

“Everyone. Okay, good. Who likes design #5?” asked Alpha Richard.

Anthony and Beta Micah raised their hands.

“Two. Okay. Who likes design #6?” asked Alpha Richard.

We all raised our hands.

“Everyone. Okay. So, we need to decide between designs # 4 and # 6. What are the differences between the two of them? What do we like about them? What do we not like about them?” inquired Alpha Richard.

“I like how the dorms are laid out in design #4. They appear to have more room and appear to be less cramped. Also, the training rooms seem to have more natural lighting as opposed to design #6,” explained Beta Micah.

“I agree with Beta Micah. Design #4 seems to offer more natural lighting than #6 and more space to move around. I just like #4 more—it just looks better,” explained Gamma Jacob.

“Looking at the training rooms, I like design #4 better because of how he designed them. Yes, there is more natural lighting but the space is better utilized than design #6,” observed Anthony.

“Speaking as a she-wolf, I like the locker rooms. Design #4 nails it to a tee. We have certain needs that males do not, and let's face it, we need to be taken care of,” I explained to everyone.

“Okay, so I guess design #4 gets the green light. Beta Micah, call Mr. Grey and see when he can start this project. We will sign a contract with him for the completion of the She-wolf Training Academy,” commanded Alpha Richard.

“As you wish, Alpha Richard,” replied Beta Micah. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed Henry Grey’s number. I guess Mr. Grey was expecting his call because he picked up on the second ring.

He had the contract ready for Alpha Richard to sign, and he could begin as early as tomorrow on the project. Done. The meeting was adjourned, and we all left for the day.

Anthony was so excited to be getting his She-wolf Training Academy. When we arrived at home, Mom had dinner ready for us. We all sat down for dinner after I greeted Austin. He was asleep. Mom gave him a bottle before I got home, so I had to wait for him to wake up again to nurse him.

We told Mom and Dad about the She-wolf Training Academy design. They were excited that the construction was going to start tomorrow. Now, all Anthony had to do was finalize the training program. Easy right? He’s still working on it. Now that he knows what the Alpha wants, it will be easy for him to finalize everything to write up the proposal.

Mom was looking a little tired tonight, so I asked her, “Mom, are you okay? You look a little tired.”

“Yes, I am tired. I don’t know why. Austin was a good boy today and slept for most of it. I just feel drained,” she replied to me.

I looked over at Dad, who looked rather perplexed. “Why don’t we go home and you take a bath, sweetheart. I’ll fix you some Ginger Tea while you soak in the tub. Hmm?” asked Dad in a very concerned voice.

“Yes, a bath would be lovely. Thank you, my love. Melanie, I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” questioned Mom like she wasn’t so sure herself.

“Mom, why don’t you just relax tomorrow. I’ll take Austin to work with me. My office is equipped for me to take care of him if I need to, remember? No worries. Besides, it will give me an opportunity to talk with Kayla and Anderson about the Nanny position,” I stated as I watched her slowly walk toward the front door.

“Only if you’re okay with taking care of him tomorrow. I love you, Melanie. We’ll talk tomorrow. Goodnight, my baby girl,” cooed Mom as she hugged and kissed me goodnight.

“I love you too, Mom. Get some rest and enjoy your bath. I’m sure Dad will take good care of you,” I gushed as I released her from her hug and kissed her on her cheek.

‘Dad, let me know how she’s doing. Maybe she needs to go see Dr. Adams tomorrow if her energy level doesn’t pick up. I’m worried about her,” I said to my Dad as he escorted my Mom out the door.

‘I’ll let you know how she’s doing. I’ll take good care of her; you have my word. See you in the morning. Goodnight, Mellie,’ declared Dad as he ended our link.

Anthony closed the door behind my parents. He turned toward me and said, “I wonder what’s wrong with your Mom? She doesn’t look too well, does she?”

“No, she doesn’t. Ever since she protected Uncle Vladimir against an enemy two years ago, she has these spells where she gets so weak she can barely function. Anyway, Mom and Dad were visiting Uncle Vladimir for some special occasion, and there was a rogue attack at his villa. They were trying to kill Uncle Vladimir. It was an assassination attempt. He was fighting off three wolves. They had him pinned down. One was on his chest going for his jugular when Mom tackled him without thinking anything about it,” I shuddered as I remembered the story as it was told to me. I had tears running down my cheeks, and Anthony was trying to calm me down.

“Shh … it’s alright, my love. You don’t have to tell me the rest of the story. I can guess what happened next,” soothed Anthony as he rubbed circles on my back.

“Once the wolf shifted into his human form, he found a silver knife. He began to carve Mom’s wolf up. She couldn’t hold her wolf form any longer. She suffered from silver poisoning so badly that we almost lost her. She still has spells where she has to spend days in bed because she loses her strength. All because of that wolf,” I sobbed as I clutched Anthony’s shoulder for support.

He just let me sob. I couldn’t help it. Blame it on the pregnancy hormones. My Mom still suffers, but she doesn’t regret tackling that wolf because she saved her brother’s life that day. She still has her wolf but cannot shift into her true self. That was the price she paid for saving his life. She said she would do it all over again if she had to. He was worth it and still is.

Family is worth laying your life down for. They are everything to you. They will have your back no matter what when everyone else abandons you. Mom is living proof of that—Uncle Vladimir said that he is forever in her debt. How can you repay someone for saving your life, especially if that person is your sister?

I sent Uncle Vladimir a text telling him to check on Mom later and why. He said he would contact Dad later and thanked me for the heads up. Also, I contacted Danny in our family link to let him know that Mom was having one of her spells and that he needed to check on her tomorrow. He said he would. Our family definitely has each other’s backs no matter what.