The Reluctant Queen

Chapter4

Lucta's Pov

The next day, when I woke up, I could barely feel any pain. I was properly healed. As a werewolf my body was designed to heal quickly, especially with proper medical attention.

The nurse smiled at me. "It's your discharge day," she said.

"What's my discharge day?" I asked.

"You get to leave the hospital," she replied.

I laughed. "Oh, really? That's too bad. I'd barely been here."

Nurse Florence chuckled. "This isn't a place you wish to stay in. Hospitals are for sick people."

I nodded in agreement. "It's about time I got to see the other omegas."

Nurse Florence smiled. "Yes, it's about time. They're probably waiting for you."

“Waiting for me?” I chuckled “Of course, they are. They're probably waiting to beat my ass up. I literally almost died.”

Nurse Florence giggled. "Well, that's what happens when you're friends. They're worried about you and don't want you dead. You can't die when you have friends who love you."

I smiled, feeling a bit of warmth in my heart. "Thank you”

"What's your name?" I asked, curious.

“Florence,” she replied.

“What is your name?” She asked.

I hesitated for a moment “Lucta”

She looked at me very surprised.

I knew why she was surprised. The meaning of my name wasn't something good. It wasn't a popular name either but the few people who knew it always reacted like this or even worse.

They probably wondered why someone would name their child that.

But Nurse Florence's expression changed my perspective. "The meaning doesn't matter," she said. "You're the one who matters."

I felt a lump in my throat. "Thank you."

"Can I call you Nurse Florence?" I asked.

"Yes, please do," she replied with a warm smile.

I left the hospital, and Soren sent a car to pick me up. It was a luxury vehicle, far better than the old clunker my dad had. I had seen cars like this on TV, but I never thought I'd ride in one.

The driver, who introduced himself as Soren's personal driver, took me on a tour of the city. I marveled at the sights and sounds of the bustling metropolis. The park I came from was small and cramped, but this place was vast and beautiful.

As we drove, I saw big TVs on the streets displaying various shows and artworks. "Wow!" I exclaimed. "This is amazing!" The driver smiled, clearly proud of the park.

We eventually arrived at a community center filled with children running around. A lady in a white dress approached me, smiling. "You must be lucta," she said.

I nodded, feeling a bit self-conscious about my appearance compared to hers. "Welcome," she said, beaming. "This is our community center for orphans, widows, and homeless people."

I followed her, intrigued. "But you're not interested in that," she said with a knowing smile. "You're here to see your omega friends, right?"

I nodded, and she led me to a room where the omegas were waiting. As soon as they saw me, they rushed over, screaming with happiness.

"Lucta! Oh my God, you're alive!" they exclaimed, hugging me tightly. I smiled, feeling a sense of belonging and relief.

"Yes, I'm alive," I said with a smile.

Cynthia hugged me tightly, tears streaming down her face. "Oh my God, we thought we'd lost you!"

The other omegas chimed in, relieved and happy to see me. They pulled me to a corner and started telling me everything about the park. They were just as confused as I was about its vastness and beauty.

They told me about the country and how big the park was, and how nice the people were. I raised an eyebrow, skeptical. Omegas were usually considered inferior, and it was hard to believe that this park was different.

As we talked, they asked me about Soren. "Who was he to you?" they asked.

I hesitated, unsure how much to reveal. But something about their curious expressions made me open up.

"Don't lie about this," Emily said, as if reading my mind.

I took a deep breath. "When I was young, you know how Dad held a young boy hostage?"

Cynthia's eyes widened. "You mean the one he wouldn't let anyone near?"

I nodded. "Yes. Well, I helped him escape."

The omegas exchanged surprised glances. "Wasn't that just a rumor?" someone asked.

I shook my head. "No, it was real. And that boy...he's the one who gave me his contact information. He told me that if I was ever in trouble, I should reach out to him."

Cynthia's eyes sparkled with curiosity. "And you thought it was a joke?"

I chuckled. "Yeah, I did. But somehow, that number actually worked."

Jeremy asked. "So when you said you knew just who to call it was just a gamble?”

I grinned sheepishly. "Yeah, I guess it was”

And the room went silent.

Cynthia broke the silence, "What actually matters is that we survived." We all nodded in agreement, and then she addressed the elephant in the room. "So, What next?" I knew exactly what she meant. What next exactly? Were we part of this park or not?

In our world, you couldn't just join a wolf pack. You had to meet the alpha and go through a formal acceptance process. We hadn't done that, so what did our presence here mean?

Joan tried to articulate our situation. "It's going to be hard for the people here to accept us. We're different, and we're not from here. Even if the alpha wolf did accept us, they might still not accept us. They'll just see us as visitors, and we all know what happens when visitors overstay their welcome."

Jeremy spoke up, "Can we just forget about this for now and enjoy the moment?"

But Cynthia countered, "What happens after we enjoy the moment? What comes next? Are we just going to keep enjoying the moment and not try to do something?"

I bit my lip, thinking. What was going to come next?

"Can we just forget about it for now and accept that not just us but the kids have a place to lay their head for now?" I suggested. "I'll speak to So- the alpha so we could understand our situation more ok?”

The omegas nodded in agreement, but then I asked, "Have you guys even been back to our park to see what happened?" They all shook their heads.

“Honestly, I don't want to go back there” Amber said in a quiet voice and the omegas nodded in agreement.

Neither did I to be honest but something about it felt unfinished. "Yeah, but that's our park. We have to check if anyone else survived," I said.

Cynthia's expression turned somber. "From what the people who saved

us said, it seems like we were the only ones who survived. But who knows, there might be people there who survived.”