Page 21 of Alpha's Rejected Warrior
Conan nods. “Jayme’s a little more aggressive than he needs to be.” He sits down on the end of my bed. “The Commander’s been trying to teach him control. The fact that you weren’t crushed shows restraint on his part.”
“Ah, you’re sayingJaymewas impressive.” I shake my head and laugh. “Good for him. And for me, I guess, being a weak little human.”
Conan snorts a laugh. “I don’t know if I’d go that far. You’ve got potential. You know, before Alpha Xander became, well, the Alpha, he started out pretty lousy at training too. Don’t tell anyone I said that though.”
I smile. I can see that he’s trying to make me feel better, but nothing about his demeanor is reading as false to me right now. “So, the Commander paired me up with someone who has a problem with self-control. What does that say about her concern for my wellbeing?”
“Oh, Rhiannon just wants to toughen you up. She’s been kicking my ass since we were whelps and it’s only made me stronger.”
“You two grew up together?”
Conan nods. “Yes, we were originally from the Lohalis Pack, one of the oldest noble bloodlines in Clarion.”
I tilt my head in wonder.Nobility. That sounds like a pretty big deal. “So, you and Rhiannon are. . .siblings?”
“Cousins,” he says. “I’d go into the whole family tree thing, but it’s really very boring. I doubt you’d want to hear about it.”
How wrong he is. I’d love to hear about it.It feels like overstepping, though, so I just reply, “If you say so.”
“Anyway, now Xander’s the fiercest of all of us. Well, next to Rhiannon anyway.” There it is again. That slight shift in his posture, the barely perceptible tightening around his mouth. He smiles, but looks a little sad when he says that. I wonder why.
The sadness that crossed his face vanishes just as quickly as it appeared. He throws a playful jab at my shoulder. “I’ll go tell Olcan you’re awake. Hopefully you’ll be back on the field before too long.”
I nod and watch him walk out, his footsteps echoing off the smooth stone floor. The door shuts behind him.
It’s much more peaceful than a human hospital. No beeping machines and noisy alarms. The infirmary’s quiet is broken only by the soft bubbling of something brewing on a Bunsen burner across the room and the distant chirping of unfamiliar birds outside the window. Once in a while, I hear faint footsteps walk by in the hall. The air feels cooler now, carrying the overly sweet scent of cough syrup and the medicinal aroma of healing salves lined in clay jars on nearby shelves.
Two sets of footsteps approach outside, and voices carry through the thick door.
“Is the human still here?” a deep male voice says. “Disgusting.”
“Alpha’s orders,” a female voice answers. “Luna’s pet gets special treatment.”
“Barely survived one training session. Pathetic. Should’ve snapped his neck and been done with it.”
“The Commander’s wasting resources having to babysit him.”
Their voices fade down the hall, but their words linger like thorns in my skin.
Luna’s pet, huh?Is that all I am?
I stare through the window at the sprawling forest stretching beyond the rooftops of tiny homes clustered around this stronghold. I guess there are worse things than being Thea’s pet human out here.
How did I let myself stay trapped in Creek Falls for so long?
No wonder Thea left and didn’t look back. With some distance from Creek Falls, I’m seeing my life differently, even while stuck in this hospital bed with a sore back. Maybe this bizarre situation will turn out to be exactly what I needed. If anything, at least it’s a hell of a lot more interesting than waiting tables at Cid’s.
The door opens again and Olcan comes in. He’s wearing his white lab coat, which actually looks more like a robe than a lab coat, if I’m being honest, and a small pair of glasses on the edge of his nose. His graying hair is cut short and conservative around his ears and above his collar. If I weren’t sitting in a strange land of werewolves, I would think that he was just a regular doctor working in an ordinary clinic.
“Well, hello there,” he says with a polite smile. “How are you feeling?”
“Sore,” I tell him. “But fine. When do I get out of here, Doc?”
“Doc?” He chuckles a little. “I’m still not used to Luna Thea calling me ‘Dr. Olcan.’ Now you too?”
His hands move over me, lifting my arms and pressing on my back and along my ribcage. Not gonna lie, it smarts with every touch, but the concussion Branson gave me before felt worse.
“Fascinating,” he says.
