The Lycan's Curse

The Silence Breaks

One Week Later

It’d been days since half of the men in my pack were released from our lands. Some of their mates went with them but, most stayed, which was a shock. Dad said it was because they had children to think about but, Mom said it was because women stood by their sisters and the women in this pack were all my sisters. It’s a woman thing, mom had told me with a wink. I didn’t really understand what she meant. I never felt an obligation to stick my neck out for a particular gender. I shrugged to myself, maybe its one of those normal things I usually missed out on. Nothing really had changed much except maybe that my morning training now had much more women. Turns out a lot of my she-wolves had wanted to become warriors but, their mates forbade it. I bit my tongue when the rumor started spreading that the men who had left, were spreading rumors about the cunt Alpha of Silver Paradise. It didn’t matter, what mattered was running my pack and keeping my people safe. My uncle Fern had taken over training since my last temper outburst had broken every bone in Brent’s body and had him in a coma. I was on my way to visit him now; I did so every day. I felt awful about what I did. While I did mean to punch him, I didn’t mean to hit him so hard her flew into a tree and put him in a coma. The memory of his words and assault flashed through my eyes and I could feel the anger bubbling inside along with a wave of nausea. I usually sat there with his dad; we never said anything to each to each other even though the tension was thick. This time was different though. I went to the nurse’s station to let them know I was here. Leo, the head nurse smiled at me and told me that the doctor would be with me shortly. I swallowed hard; my nerves were threatening an anxiety attack. That’s when I heard it. A voice so deep and husky that I almost retched when I realized it was coming from inside of my head. It was not a woman’s voice.

Stop your whining girl, your panic is unnecessary. You will do what you need to, or I will.

No way. It’s not possible. That was a…. But, I couldn’t finish the thought. Dr. Milliken was on her way towards me with a grim look on her face. I shook my head clear of my whirling thoughts, at least for the moment and focused on the doctor.

“Hey Beth, you wanted me to talk to you before I went in to sit with Mr. Jensen and his son. What’s up?”

“Alpha-”

“Beth, for the love of the gods…”

“I’m joking, Ash. Look, I needed you to come down and tell you that I’m 90% positive that Brent will not wake up. The swelling in his brain won’t go down and it’s causing him seizures. So, here’s the deal. You either tell Mr. Jensen he needs to pull the plug OR you heal him.”

I wanted to puke again. Beth was my mentor; she absolutely inspired me but, I hated the way she would deliver intense news all in one breath without really giving anyone time to process what she was saying. I sat in silence for a minute or two, Beth’s face getting more impatient by the second. My voice was hoarse when I finally spoke, “Is there brain activity?”

“Yes.”

“I’ll talk to his dad.”

I got up and headed toward the Jensen’s room. I had told the hospital to give him one of the biggest rooms in the ICU. My little brother had questioned that one. He attacked you, he had said, why do you feel so guilty? I didn’t have an answer for him. I just stared at him quietly until he shrugged his shoulders and went to bed.

You have a guilt complex. Naïve child, guilt is for the weak.

I will deal with you later, I snarled. Do not mess with my head.

I stood outside of the door of the room; the curtains were drawn as usual. William Jensen was a man of honor and his son had shamed him. Still, he did not want the pack to come and ogle at the boy who was stupid enough to challenge the alpha. I stood at the door for a while and took a deep breath; I really needed to keep my composure. I was the alpha, I needed to put personal issues aside and do my job. I knocked on the door softly and walked inside. Brent looked better than he did when I first landed him in here, thank the gods. His wolf had given everything to heal his body but he couldn’t heal his brain. Beth had said his wolf was exhausted; any more exertion especially with something as delicate as the brain could be, could kill them both. Mr. Jensen was already there, staring at his son with the same vacant and sad eyes that he’d had for the past week. Tear tracks stained his cheeks as his breath hitched with silent sobs. The guilt crashed over me, I’m guessing that Beth had already told him that his son was not going to wake up. I fought a quick internal battle with myself, do I let the dude die and move on or do I have mercy and offer his dad another chance for his son? I steeled myself as the voice inside roared in disapproval at my decision. The words spilled out of my mouth, “Mr. Jensen, I can heal Brent. I know what Dr. Milliken said but, my healing is beyond her ability. I’ll only do it on one condition, once Brent makes a full recovery, he needs to leave my pack forever.”