Hiding from the Beta

Chapter Seven

Timothy’s pov

I opened the door to the diner and saw CJ sitting in a booth. He waved at me and I quickly walked over to him. “Hey, you said you wanted to talk?” He asked with a big smile.

I nodded my head and quickly sat down in the booth, “why did you bring a rogue here?” I asked him. “You know he doesn’t like rogues.”

“She needed help, okay, she said she is only going to be here for a few days. How is she doing anyways?” CJ asked as he glanced out the window.

I looked out the window as well and noticed Cullen’s car, his beta, Finn, was with him. They both climbed out of the vehicle and I watched as the alpha stopped and stared towards the motel. Within a minute he marched towards it. “Oh, well that’s not good.” CJ added.

I looked back at him, “not good? Ya think? Is that all you have to say?”

He shrugged his shoulders, “well, yes. Right now she needs help, honestly he is probably the best person to help her get through this right now.”

I sighed, I knew everything there was to know about the Night Shadows Pack. My grandparents were hunters, my parents were hunters. I was raised to be a hunter, however, I could never kill one. I came here, just like this young woman did. I ran, and forgot about my family. “Really, do you remember what happened to me when you didn’t tell the alpha you brought me home?” I asked him.

CJ sighed and sat up straight, “I am well aware of what happened when the alpha found you.” He said in a low voice. “Do you remember why he reacted the way he did?” He asked.

I sighed, “yes I know. He reacted terribly and nearly killed me all because he saw my hunters tattoo. It wasn’t my choice to get that damn thing in the first place.” I said subconsciously rubbing the side of my arm where the large tattoo rested.

To every human who loved supernatural creatures it would be the most amazing tattoo out there. However, there is a deep meaning behind it, every supernatural hunter has this tattoo. The tattoo is the hunters crest, inside the shield there is a g*n and knife crossed over. There are multiple creatures of the dark coming out from behind the shield. The words, sumus venatores pro deo et hominibus. Which translates to we are the hunters for God and man.

“I know it wasn’t your choice. I highly doubt you are the first hunter to defect from the calling of your ancestors.” CJ said then took a sip of his coffee.

I shook my head and let out a laugh. “What was I supposed to do? My own parents drugged me and then put this tattoo on me. They did that after performing an exorcism on me because I had told them I didn’t want to take part in the family business.” I said in a near whisper.

“I know, okay, once he learns what happened to her, he won’t let her go anywhere.” He glanced out the window again.

I just stared at him in awe. “What do you mean? What happened to her?” I asked him, also looking out the window.

He leaned back, “it’s not my story to tell.” He said before he dropped a twenty dollar bill on the table and stood up. “Look I need to get back to work, will you keep an eye on her?” He asked.

I turned in my seat to look at him. “Why does she need to be watched? Is she not trust worthy?” I asked.

He sighed and leaned down, “she is going to be sick, right now your kind would take full advantage of this type of situation.” He said sticking a toothpick into his cheek.

“What is that supposed to mean?” I asked.

He sighed, “your kind would take advantage of our mate being killed or just dying.” He said as he stood up and headed towards the door.

I turned in my seat and saw the alpha was talking to Doris. I knew what she was the day I came here, my parents always said I was gifted. I could sense a witch a mile away when I was a kid. The alpha walked past his vehicle and crossed the street to the bank.

I stood up and walked out of the diner and over to Doris, “what was all that about?” I asked her.

She smiled, “nothing hun, don’t you worry he was just introducing himself. He heard us talkin’ and figured he would come on over and say hi.” It was obvious that she was slightly uncomfortable.

I crossed my arms over my chest, “I know you’re lying.” I told her.

She looked at me shocked, I had never called her out on her lies before today. “I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about.” She said with a sassy attitude.

I walked towards the door to her room, “I am going to go check on her.” I walked over to the door, ignoring Doris, and knocked. I didn’t wait for an answer. I opened the door and saw her curled up on the floor, crying and shaking uncontrollably.

I walked over and gently placed my hand on her shoulder, “you okay?” I asked her quietly. She didn’t even use her voice, she just shook her head.

“What can we do to help, hun?” Doris asked quietly.

Again she shook her head as sobs escaped her lips. “We can’t help you if you don’t tell us.” I told her, I rubbed her arm in an attempt to soothe her.

“I don’t know.” She cried out, she looked me directly in the eyes.

In that moment my heart hurt, I could not only see how much she was hurting but I could feel it. Something had hurt her deep down and it was causing her physical pain. “Let’s then start with getting you up off of the floor.” I said softly.

She looked at me shocked, I reached my hands out and she hesitantly grabbed them. I pulled her to her feet, for a wolf she was a bit skinny. “How does that feel, hun?” Doris asked.

She bit her lip and looked down to the floor. I gently grabbed her chin, “you don’t need to hide your feelings here. You’re safe here.” I told her.

She instantly started to cry again and shook her head at the same time. “I can’t get through this. I am not strong enough.” She cried out as she gripped her chest.

I wrapped my arms around her and held her tight, “you are strong enough and you can get through this.” I told her. Seeing how much pain she was in I knew what had happened. I watched my father kill a woman who had just lost her mate. He didn’t hesitate and she didn’t even bother to try and stop him. That was the day I chose to run away, that was ten years ago and I was fourteen.

I looked down at the woman in my arms, she was breaking into a thousand tiny little pieces. I had no idea how to help her put them back together, but I wasn’t going to give up. Nobody deserves to be in this much pain.

I looked at the table and saw Doris’ homemade chocolate chip banana bread, “let’s try and get you something to eat.” I said as I inched us towards the chair that was near the table.

She shook her head, “I don’t want anything.” She said as the tears continued to streak down her face.

“Darlin’ you need to eat. You just need to, you won’t survive if you don’t take care of your body.” Doris said.

She looked at Doris for a few minutes, “I don’t think I can eat.” She said, her voice cracking from all the crying.

“That’s okay, you don’t have to eat a lot, just a few bites. You just need to get yourself feeling a little bit better.” I said, quite worried for her.

She turned to look at the banana bread and leaned forward taking a piece. I watched as she took the first bite. She sighed at the taste and took another bite. Doris smiled at me then looked back at her. She had eaten almost an entire piece when she suddenly stopped. She stood up and ran to the bathroom at the back of the room. She slammed the door behind her and we both could hear her throwing up.

I sighed, “it’s normal.” Doris said softly, “losing a mate is extremely difficult. Not only does she need to overcome the emotional grief, but her body has to overcome the physical part of the mate bond.”

I looked back at the door, “do you think she will survive?” I asked her.

She sighed, “mate bonds can be tricky business. However, there may be something we can try.” She said, then stopped and looked at me surprised. “I shouldn’t even be telling you all of this.” She said quickly and quietly.

I smiled and shook my head, “I knew you were a witch the second I walked through your door years ago.” I told her.

She looked at me in disbelief, “how?”

I chuckled, “that’s a long story. What can we do?” I asked her.

She shook her head, “not us, me. I will be in the kitchen, just make sure she gets some rest. I will be back in a little while with something that should stay in her stomach.” She turned and left.

I turned back to the bathroom as the door opened. “Feeling better?” I asked.

She nodded her head, then shook her head. I could feel her pain from here, it was obvious that she was losing the fight against the bond. “I can’t do this.” She whispered.

I sat in a chair as she crawled under the covers of the bed. “What can I do to help?” I asked her.

“Just leave me alone, right now that’s all I want.” She said, her voice hoarse as she started to cry again.

“I will not do that, however I will stay right here and keep quiet so you can rest. Okay?” I asked.

It looked like she wanted to say something but thought better of it. Instead she turned onto her side and curled up in a ball under the blankets. I grabbed my phone and sent a text to CJ. ‘Hey, what can I do to help her?’ I hit send and put the phone down.

It was only moments later when my phone buzzed in my hand. ‘Not a lot. She needs rest, her wolf needs to work through this. That’s the biggest thing, if her wolf doesn’t get better then her body never will. The human half is nothing without their wolf.’

I read the message seven or eight times before I responded, ‘can a witch do something?’

After a few minutes the phone buzzed again, ‘a witch? Sure, they could help with the symptoms. However, they could end up suppressing her wolf, which could be bad. If her wolf becomes suppressed then she could lose her wolf permanently.’

A small jet of panic rushed through me, ‘what would happen if we suppress her wolf?’

The phone buzzed quickly this time. ‘If her wolf is suppressed it would be okay for a day, maybe two. However, the longer a wolf is suppressed the harder it will be for her wolf to want to come back. When a wolf is suppressed by magic their souls are temporarily sent back to the moon goddess. Only there not really there, it’s like they’re behind a one way curtain. They can see everything going on but nobody can see them.’

I stared at the screen in front of me. That would be terrible, another message popped up on my screen. ‘I don’t suggest suppressing her wolf, but a witch may have remedies to help her with certain symptoms.’

‘Okay, thanks for the info.’ I messaged back. I looked back at the bump in the blankets. How could someone so young be forced to go through so much pain. I pulled up a puzzle game on my phone and waited for Doris to come back.

After a few hours of sitting there watching her sleep I must have fallen asleep too. I was startled awake by the sound of a key in the door. I sat up straight as Doris walked in, carrying a batch of small cookies. “What are those?” I asked, my voice rough from sleeping with my mouth open.

“These are cookies, my grandmother's old recipe.” She said as she placed them down on the table.

“What do they do?” She narrowed her eyes at me, “you know, that I know you’re a witch. What do they do?” I asked again.

“They were made for my grandmother’s best friend. She was a wolf and lost her mate at a fairly young age too. She made them specifically to stop the vomiting caused from the bond breaking. They also help alleviate the pain to where it is tolerable.” She said, quite annoyed.

“I just wanted to make sure you weren’t going to suppress her wolf.” I told her as I relaxed back into the chair.

She shook her head, “I was taught to never do such a thing. Doin’ that is dangerous and very tricky. Now I think it’s time that we wake her up and get her to eat a few of these.” She said as she grabbed two in a napkin and walked over to the bed. “Sweetheart, I need you to sit up.” She said as she gently shook her.

She responded by curling up further into a ball and pulling the blankets tightly around her. I leaned forward, “Tahlia, please, you need this.” I said, hoping that she would at least eat one.

She sighed and tried to sit up, her arms shook as she tried to lift herself up. She dropped back down onto the bed, “She is too weak, Tahlia, this will help.” Doris held a cookie to her mouth and she took a tiny bite. I hesitated but started to rub her back.

“Why did this have to happen?” She asked quietly.

“I don’t know, but we are here to help you.” I told her as I continued to rub her back. I felt bad that she had to go through this, nobody should have to. Thankfully I knew I was the only hunter within three hundred miles of here, hopefully it stayed that way.

After ten minutes she had managed to finish one whole cookie. She fell back to sleep, “she is so weak. I don’t know how she is still alive, this poor darlin’. I have never seen a wolf so weak before.” Doris said, pulling the covers back up over her shoulders.

“Well, we can go. I will swing by tomorrow to check on her.” I stood up and put the chair back by the small table.

“I will keep an eye on her tonight. See ya tomorrow Timmy.”

I walked out the door and headed to my pick up truck. Once I was back at my studio apartment I dropped down into my own bed. Who knew taking care of a very sick wolf would be so exhausting.

Anthony’s pov

I sat in my chair at the desk when the phone started to ring. “Beta Starwaski, how may I help you?” I said calmly into the receiver.

“Hello, my name is Mandy, I am the assistant to Alpha Nathaniel Heap. He is requesting a phone meeting with you, will you hold for one moment?” A female voice said.

My blood ran cold, “absolutely.”

The phone beeped twice and then elevator music started to play in my ear. “This isn’t good, you didn’t think about telling him that she ran away?” My wolf asked.

“Shut it, I didn’t think there would be a need. I thought we would have found her by now.” I growled back at him.

He huffed and put a wall up between us. I sighed and focused on the music coming over the phone. Suddenly it stopped and was replaced by a very deep voice. “Beta Anthony?” He asked, voice deep and harsh.

“Yes sir? How may I help you today?” I said in a relaxed voice, trying my best not to think about what it would mean if I didn’t deliver my end of the bargain.

“I am just checking in, I have a few friends there. They had some very interesting news for me today.” He said calmly.

I swallowed in an attempt to moisten my throat as it had suddenly become very dry. “Unfortunately we did run into a bit of a snag.” I didn’t like telling him this.

“Well I guess if you call your daughter running off with her goddess given mate a snag, then yes you did run into a snag.” He said, his voice suddenly cold. “You told me she had no mate. I informed you that I would not take mates from one another.” He growled.

“What would you like me to do? She is mateless, he died recently.” I said, trying not to enrage him. .

He sighed, “I expect you to find your daughter. I need to have an heir, I suggest you do so quickly.” He growled at me. “Otherwise I will reinstate your debt.”

“I will find her, I swear I will make sure that I do.” I told him, fear slowly creeping into my spine.

“You better, otherwise your debt will be paid with your enslavement.” I heard a loud click.

“I told you, you shouldn’t have gone to that casino. Human casinos are better, you’re less likely to piss off an alpha and promise something you can’t hold up your end of the deal.” My wolf yelled at me.

“What’s done is done, we just need to figure out where she is.” I snapped back.

He laughed, “well, start figuring it out, old man.”

I pulled up the bus schedule from that night, there was only one bus that had left, and that went to Minnesota. So that is where we will start.

I stood up and turned on the television, I tried to keep up with the human news. “Oh shit.” I growled as a picture of Andy flashed on the screen. “Will we ever have things go our way?” I asked out loud to nobody in particular.

“Well, you were the dumbass who decided to kill him for stupid selfish reasons.” I shook my head and ignored him. I turned off the television and stormed out of my office. I needed a run. “A run isn’t going to fix this.” My wolf yelled out.

“No, but it will clear our head.” I snapped back as I walked out of the room.