Alpha's Winter Promise

Episode 14- Part 1: Stuck - Part 2: Helpless

****Stuck - Olivia's POV****

I had to admit we looked like a formidable pair.

We are stood off to the side together. I’m a head taller than she is, but she holds her own in the muscle department. Neither one of us fit the waifish look that seems to be popular among other female shifters at the moment.

“I’m gonna eat like TEN cheeseburgers after this. With bacon!” She announces.

“I’ve never eaten a cheeseburger.” I state.

She makes a guppy fish face in shock. “You can’t be serious. Never? Ever? Not even once? What about French fries? Or a milkshake?” She seems to have taken personal offense at my lack of experience with cheeseburgers.

“Not even once. Mother has always been strict about our nutrition, and cheeseburgers were off the list.” I shrug.

“We’ll hit the spa, and then go for cheeseburgers afterwards!” I’m starting to figure out that Abby is a force of nature that you can easily find yourself swept up in if you aren’t careful. I’m starting to forget, in the short span of our acquaintance, that I’m supposed to hate her.

A coordinator arrives and announces that we all need to head to the starting line. I start moving down the corridor when I notice everyone else moving in the other direction. Abby turns back and jogs over to me.

“Where are you going? Starting line is this way.” She jerks a thumb over her shoulder in the direction the other girls are going.

“I don’t understand…. We should be going to the other side of the stadium. I looked at the map last night.”

“OOOOOOOOOOOH. Come on, follow me, I’ll explain” And for the third time in the day, I’m being led around by my arm. “There was a problem with the pool this morning so the order and route changed. We’ll start with swimming like we were supposed to, and then do the running and cycling. The route will be marked with yellow flags so no need to memorize it.”

Swimming first….swimming first…..surely not…. “Abby, where are we swimming?” A cold knot starts to settle into my stomach.

“In the lake of course, silly goose!” And she laughs until she sees panic in my eyes. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, totally fine. I just don’t do well with unexpected changes.” She seems to accept that answer, nodding sagely.

We exit the building and march over to the starting line. There’s a bit of a run down a slope before hitting the water of the lake. The water is lapping at the beach head and I try to focus on the route. Everything feels in slow motion, all the sounds wrapped in cotton.

I have no way to exit this situation.

Mother would use her non-destroyed hand to murder me if I brought that kind of embarrassment to the family.

My breath is shallow as I fight back panic. In my tunnel vision, I don’t see Abby watching me.

The bang of the starting gun pushes me forward. Just breathe. One foot in front of the other. Feel the ground, feel the air rushing past. I am power and grace.

I’m in the lead when my feet hit the water and I am held there by some invisible hand - one that is squeezing the air out of me.

I can’t see the bottom. I can’t see the bottom. Anything could be in there. I taste bile. I smell the tang of blood and the stink of mud. Water is sloshing around my feet.

Just go forward, Olivia. Just go forward.

I can’t see the bottom. I don’t know how deep it is. What if I never come back up…

Other girls are rushing past me now, and I feel a deliberate shove forward. I stagger, my feet getting caught in the sucking mud, water up to my knees. I pitch forward, my hands reaching out to brace my fall. I swallow muddy water.

I can’t move. I need to get out. Every fiber of my body is screaming danger. But I can’t move.

Through the stars that are starting to form in my vision, i see somebody turn back and start splashing towards me. A shoulder braces me up. I think they are talking to me, but i’m stuck, don’t they understand that i’m stuck?

I’m sinking. Sinking. Never coming up for air.

****Helpless - Atticus POV****

I managed to land in first place for the obstacle course mostly thanks to the teamwork that Benni and I put into things like that. There are always better solutions to problems if you work as a team. It was exhilarating when he sent me skyward, though his adrenaline must have really been pumping because he sent me a lot higher than I expected.

After showering and changing into clean clothes, I made my way over to the glass elevator. I looked out over the lake as it rose, confused by the yellow flags that had been hoisted in a curved line from the beach head to the other side of an inlet.

I thought the next event was the women’s triathlon, but they were using the pool for the swimming portion. Maybe it’s for something after that. I hadn’t paid much attention to the rest of the schedule after seeing Olivia wasn’t going to be involved in anything other than the triathlon.

The elevator door dings and I step into the VIP box. I immediately see Simon and he waves me over.

“Slumming it today with the unmated, mi’lord?” I make a sweeping bow and put on a very bad English accent.

“Just this once, I suppose. But only because Abby is also competing. Somebody has to keep her chair warm.” He motions to the empty seat next to him and I gladly take him up on the offer. “Where did Benni go? I was thinking about asking you two to form a circus troupe together after that performance.”

“He’s probably shoving food in his face as we speak, Simon.” I flag down a waiter and order a beer.

“That’s a shame, I know Abby wants cheeseburgers after her run. I was interested in seeing who could eat more of them in a single sitting. I think she’d give him a run for his money.” My friend carries the weight of being the youngest Alpha ever to take over his pack and the last several years had not been kind to him. But, seeing him now and the way he looks when talking about Abby, I don't think I need to worry any more.

The server hands me my beer and I take a long drink from the glass.

“Any luck with the Match-Maker?” Simon asks. I know he just wants me to be happy and settled as well.

“Nah, it was strange. They got excited about something and then told me they couldn't help. Have you ever heard of that happening?”

He tilts his head in thought. “Not that I know of, but I can send someone looking through the archives, see if we have any records of something similar if you think that would help.”

I shake my head. “No need to bother. They told me to have patience. Jericho told me to have patience. So, patience I shall have.” I pull out my phone and look at the event list. “Next is the triathlon isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I feel bad about it though. We had to change it up at the last minute. There was an issue with the pool back at the training facility, so we moved the swimming portion to the lake instead.”

I sat up, alert. “To the lake? Are you out of your mind?” I start scanning around and I locate Edwin on the far side of the balcony. He doesn’t look concerned. Maybe it’s not a problem.

“Atti, it’s been years, and surely if there was still an issue she wouldn’t run the race. I could hardly cancel the whole thing for one participant.” He admonishes me.

The jumbotron lights up - there’s video feed from drones along the route. The starting line is not very far from here at all. The feed shows the girls lined up together. Abby is being Abby and talking at Olivia. But Olivia is staring off into the distance.

The starting gun fires and the girls take off running. Olivia’s stride carries her to the front of the pack, long braid whipping out behind her. But when her feet hit the water, she stops.

I stand. Simon stands. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Edwin stand.

We watch her take a few halting steps forward. The drone captures a close up of her face and her eyes are wide in terror. She looks like she is struggling to breathe.

The camera pans back out and I watch in horror as one of the other girls shoves her forward and she falls to her hands and knees in the water.

The crowd doesn’t know what's going on, they are simply cheering for their favorites, no one else seems to notice something is very wrong.

Except Abby - She was in the lead, but I see her bob in the water, looking back towards shore. Then she starts to swim back. It’s an excruciating sixty seconds of watching Abby get closer to the shore and put her shoulder under Olivia to pull her upright. She’s struggling to get Olivia out of the water.

My body is moving before I know what’s happening. I”m reaching for the banister, readying myself to jump when Simon pulls me back.

“Let me go, Simon.” He shakes his head and then points - Edwin is already in mid-shift, hitting full wolf form as he flies over the banister and into the unsuspecting crowd below.

I stop trying to break free.

Edwin bounds down the tiered seating, hits the floor of the arena and takes off towards the nearest exit. I turn my attention back to the live feed, helplessly watching Abby. She’s given up on trying to pull her from the water, instead doing everything she can to keep her from falling back in face-first.

It’s not two minutes later when Edwin’s wolf appears, and he shifts back. He tenderly lifts Olivia in his arms, her arms limp as a ragdoll having finally lost consciousness.

The camera cuts away from them, and focuses back on the rest of the racers.

Simon and I both collapse into our chairs. I start to speak but he raises a hand to stop me. “I owe you an apology. However, you can’t get involved in whatever that was, Atticus. Let Edwin handle it.”

In the end, I know he’s right. What could I even do? Bust down the door of the hospital, demand to be let into her room, stand there like a rabid guard dog to someone who likely wouldn’t appreciate it?

I have to remind myself again and again that Olivia is forever out of my reach.