The Beta and the Lost

Chapter 3

“I am going to leave you to rest, I’ll be back in a while.” I quickly turned and left, heading straight to find Chris. I found him on the training grounds, and I started to fill him in on what I had learned.

“Lexi, the girl I found in the woods, said she saw what looked like a large wolf near the Forest Wind Trail.” Our pack does it’s best to steer clear of the trail in order to avoid being spotted by humans. While humans have theories about our existence, no one really knows the truth, and it is in our best interest to keep it that way.

With a concerned look on his face, he replied, “did she say anything else?”

“Just that she only saw one and when she tried to get a closer look and it took off. I don’t know who it could have been. Our pack knows to stay away from the trail. It had to have been a rogue or someone from another pack that isn’t familiar with the area.

Chris stared off into the distance, as if contemplating what I had told him. After a few minutes, he finally said, “I was worried something like this would happen. I fear we have been overconfident in the security of our territory. There was always a chance that someone might take advantage of the remoteness of our pack.” I had never seen Chris look worried. He has always been strong, if not stoic. He looked at me and continued, “see if you can get any more information about what she saw and report back to me.” “Yes, sir,” I instantly replied.

Being told to go back and keep talking with Lexi made my heart skip a beat. Even though I had just met her, I already missed being near her. It was strange that a feeling as strong as I was having could take hold so quickly. When I got back to her room, she was standing by the window, looking out at the surroundings of the compound. “Looks like you are feeling better,” I said. She must not have heard me coming, because she jumped at my words.

“Oh, hello. I didn’t hear you come in. Yes, I am. Thank you,” she stuttered in reply.

“I was wondering if you would mind if I asked you a few questions about what you saw on the trail?” I was try to sound calm, even though being close to her was once again affecting my concentration. Her scent was like a combination of jasmine and lavender, I had never smelled anything so amazing in my life. It made me think of all of the things I had heard about when you find your mate. But it didn’t make sense, how could she be my mate? She was human, and a destined mate could only be another wolf, or so I thought. I knew I needed to talk to Chris about it, but now was definitely not the time, we needed answers. No matter how much Jericho wanted to get to know his mate.

Lexi

As soon as I told Michael about the wolf that I had seen just off the trail, he became distracted and quickly left. After he left the room, I finally felt like I could relax. I felt so nervous whenever he was around and I had no idea why. I finished the breakfast he brought me faster than should have been possible for someone my size. Once I was done, I carefully climbed out of bed and walked across the room to look out the small window. The day was bright and there were people walking around in small groups. As I watched, I noticed that most of the people that I saw were tall, muscular men. I only saw a handful of women and it again made me wonder where I was. Surely there should be more women and children wandering around on a nice day like today. I really did need to find out where I was and figure out how I could get home.

I must have been lost in thought because I did not hear Michael re-enter the room. When he asked if I would mind if he asked me a few questions, I said it was fine. I didn’t see much, so I was not sure what else he wanted to know.

“Do you know where you were when you saw the wolf,” he asked.

“I started at the trailhead, and had been hiking for maybe an hour when I saw it.”

“You said it ran off; do you know which way it went?”

“I tried to follow it, so it must have come this direction.” This made him get quiet again.

Finally, he continued, “do you remember what it looked like?”

“Do I remember what it looked like?!” My response came out louder than I intended, “how often would I see a wolf that looked like to was as tall as me? It was mostly brown, with light grey on it’s chest.” He was quiet again. Something that I said had him looking concerned, I just wish I knew what it was. Then I remembered something else, “it also had a patch of white on it’s hip that, from a distance, looked like the moon.” This made him go still and without another word, he left.