Running Home

Two Worlds Collide

POV TYTUS

I don't like this one bit, I thought as I walked up to Alex's apartment. What the hell had happened between her storming out of the shop to Zander calling us last night saying she was in the hospital. I swear if that dog did anything to her I'll kill him. Kyle told me this job would be easy money for her, or I'd never agreed to let him ask her. I had hoped she'd make this big score and then would be done with this lifestyle. Not that I have some dreams of a little picket fence house with Alex, she's definitely not the type to even dream of that, but a somewhat normal life would be nice, maybe we even get married, I mean I'd have to ask her out first, but there just hasn't been a good time. Between her work taking her out of town and things with the shop, I'd barely had time to gauge her opinion of things, I mean I did finally convince her to settle in one place that HAD to mean something. I found Stella, Alex's little flower sitting on the windowsill right where she left it. I always thought it was funny that she named her plant, but the fact that everything else in this apartment were things I'd found or given to her, I was glad she had some sort of attachment in this house. I grabbed Stella and Alex's favorite jacket and headed back out the door to meet Kyle.

He was standing leaning on his bike looking out towards the road as I walked up. I had known Kyle since we were kids, his dad had moved into town when we were in third grade, taking a job in the city. Gablesville had been halfway between the Stonewall Pack territory and the city. It was normal for pack families to move into town for that reason, most of them kept to themselves, and typically once their kids became teens they moved them back to the territory. Kyle had gone back on pack grounds for schooling off and on but he remained in town with his father. When he'd came back to school at the start of high school he acted as if he forgot who I was, he thought he was some big shot even though he was easily three inches shorter than me. I barely saw him expect passing by, until the day he walked into the shop asking about Alex. 

"Are you ready to go?" I grumbled. "Yep, now remember follow me closely and for f***s sake do not do anything stupid" Kyle glared. "Yea Yea I get it" I said as I climbed onto my bike. I followed Kyle up the path around the mountain side up to the Stonewall Territory, two guards met us at the gate, then led us up to the biggest house I've ever seen. We walked up the stairs that were made from solid boulders harvested from the mountain, in through the massive double doors. "Jesus christ, don't tell me this is his house man?" I looked at Kyle. Kyle laughed "This is the pack house, but yea he owns it, he lives on the top floor, his office is towards the left." Kyle led me up the stairs into Zander's office, where he was sitting behind a large oak desk. He motioned for us to sit as he finished up an e-mail, then he silently moved and closed his door. "Did you bring the plant?" he scowled at me. "Yes I have her plant, where is she?" I demanded. Zander growled and his eyes flashed black, "You'll know when I want you to know." I slammed my chair back, standing chest to chest with Zander, "If you touched a hair on her head mutt I will" "Gentlemen!" Kyle jumped between us, putting a hand on each of us, "I think we can figure out what's best in this situation without any bloodshed." I glared back at Zander, by now his eyes were jet black and he looked like he wanted to rip me in half, I looked back at Kyle and took a step back, "you're right arguing with this beast does Alex no good." Zander seemed to calm himself and walked back behind his desk. "Tell me what you know about Alex" Zander stated. Kyle and I looked between us, Kyle began to speak, "Z I told you everything I knew." "No not you" Zander nodded to me. Kyle glanced at me, waiting for me to respond. "She'd ran jobs through town for two years before she moved into the apartment above my garage, she brought nothing with her but her motorcycle, she even refused to furnish her apartment other than this plant she loves so much" I replied. "No relationships, no stories from her past, where she has been?" Zander questioned. "No never, that girl is as closed up as a bank safe. I barely even know when she's going to be gone for work much less anything else. All I know of her is what she's let me know, and none of it is about where she came from." I searched Zander's face for answers, "Did someone come after her?" I questioned. "No nothing like that, it seems our friend knows as much about herself as you do" Zander exclaimed. "Lets go, you do want to see her don't you?" at that Zander proceeded to walk out the door. Kyle and I quickly followed him across the front of the house and towards the pack hospital. 

Before entering into Alex's room, Zander stopped short and turned to us. "I need to warn you that she may not be herself, it has been almost 24hrs, and I suspect she's starting to feel more like herself than she ever has. Kyle as an unmated male you could be walking into a very fiery environment." I glanced at Kyle wondering why he should be concerned, if Alex was a shifter we'd have known.