Hidden Creek

Chapter Fifteen

Haven

“How many?” I asked Davidee as he greeted me at the entrance to the sprawling estate the ranked members shared.

He briefly tilted his face to the ceiling. “Seven I think.”

“We’ll take them one at a time. Minimize the stress.” I sighed. “It’s easier for me that way, but I think it’ll be easier for them to adjust to the idea as well.” Davidee and I took the stairs to my office where a line of people fidgeted nervously in the hallway. “I’ll get to you one at a time.” 

“What am I doing here?” A short, stocky girl asked as I brushed past. 

“You’ll get answers shortly. I promise.” I smiled down at her. I nodded to a tall girl at the front of the line, god is she taller than me? “Come with me.” 

We stepped into my office where Lyla was seated in one of the plush chairs with Bammiuk staring angrily at the wall, perched on my desk. “Lyla? Who are these people?” The girl whispered, her eyes darting nervously around the room.

“Don’t worry. They’re the people I told you about. The ones who can change your life.” She smiled sweetly, and the girl relaxed minutely. “Heather, this is Haven, Bammiuk, and Davidee.” She motioned to us each in turn. “There’s a weird s****l tension between Haven and Bammiuk but don’t ask them about it.” She stage whispered with a wink. 

Bammiuk and I rolled our eyes as Davidee snickered. “Okay.” I muttered. “Moving on to the matter at hand. Heather, right?” She nodded quickly. “Heather, do you know why you’re here?” 

“Uh... No...” She cast her gaze to the floor. “Lyla told me I didn’t have to keep-” She stopped short, her eyes going wide as she glanced at Lyla who nodded once. “She told me I didn’t have to keep hooking. That my life could change and I could be powerful and interesting. Self sufficient.”

“Quite the pitch.” I smiled. “She’s not wrong. There are responsibilities that come with this life, but in my opinion, they’re worth it for the power.” I stepped forward and inhaled deeply. She’s definitely healthy. “Do you want to be here? With us?” Heather nodded enthusiastically. “Do you want a new life full of adventure and ecstasy?”

“Ecstasy like... Like the drug?” She murmured.

I bit my lip, fighting a smile. “No, hon. Like happiness.”

“Oh!” She let out a relieved sigh. “Yeah. Yes. I do, more than anything.”

“Good. Stay still.” The wolf in me stirred, howling in excitement. “Don’t scream.” My voice was low and hoarse, animalistic, as my bones broke and my body took on the shape of a large black wolf. 

“Oh my god...” Heather collapsed to the floor, hyperventilating as her wide eyes locked on me. “I knew it!” She cried, crawling toward me on the floor. “Do it.” She whispered. So I did. I clamped my jaws down on her thigh, and a high pitched cry filled the room. “Thank you...” She fainted.

Turning back, my eyes locked on Bammiuk. “You smell different.” He practically hissed. 

“She’s naked, Bammiuk. Turn around.” Davidee barked as he passed me my long robe. 

Lyla rolled her eyes. “There’s too much testosterone in this room. Why did she faint?”

“It can be incredibly overwhelming.” I shrugged. “It’s a terrifying experience, and some people can’t really rationalize it.”

“Huh.” Lyla bent down and checked her pulse. “Well, she’s still alive. That’s a good sign, right?”

“Yeah.” I smiled at her. She’s going to fit in great here. “We should get Parsa in here.” I turned to Davidee and nodded. “Make it happen.” He nodded back before his eyes lightly glazed. “Once Parsa gives the all clear on her, we’ll keep going through the line. Hopefully, not too many of them faint and we can get through this relatively quickly.” 

“The next one smells really nice.” Lyla took on a dreamy stare as Bammiuk and I glanced at each other. “Hopefully he survives.” She murmured.

Parsa stuck her head into the room and smiled at Davidee. “Permission to come in, Alpha?” She turned her attention to me briefly before locking eyes with Davidee again.

“Of course, Parsa. You’re ranked now.” I waved her in. 

As soon as she saw the girl laying unconscious on the ground, she gasped and bolted to her side. “How long has she been unconscious?” She checked out the bite wound on Heather’s thigh and sighed.

“About four minutes.” 

“She’s transitioning?” She phrased it as a question, but it came out as more of a statement. “I can’t believe we’re doing this.”

“Parsa has a lot of opinions about this.” Davidee smirked.

“And I’m sure I’ll hear all about them in tomorrow morning's meeting.” I watched her hands move quickly as she checked Heather’s pulse, her eye dilation, and her breathing.

“She’ll be fine. Her pulse is strong and already picking up. She should regain conciousness any minute now.”

Davidee placed a hand on her shoulder, spinning her around to face him as she stood. The outline of a bite peeked from under her t-shirt as he brushed her hair from her shoulder. He marked her... The thought warmed me inside. Nobody deserves happiness more than him. “Maybe you should stick around. The line in the hallway are potential turns. It makes sense for you to be here just in case.”

“Yeah, okay.” Her eyes were full of love as she gazed up at him. “But-” She turned her attention to me, her eyes turning hard. “I don’t want there to be any misconception. I’m here out of duty to you and my responsibility as Iota in training. I do not agree with what you’re doing here.”

“Noted.” I sighed. “Just do your job and you can tell me every reason you think this is a bad idea tomorrow.” A self-satisfied smirk spread over my lips. “And then I can tell you every reason you’re wrong.”

We locked eyes, and after a second, she nodded and cast her gaze to the toes of her shoes. “Yes, Alpha.”

***

Eight new wolves... Fifty-four pack members... It’s not nearly enough. I leaned back in my oversize bed, staring at the ceiling. Our numbers will never get high enough to rise from Ternion Clan at this rate. My phone buzzed on the nightstand, and my hand quickly shot out to grab it. Nik. “Hey.” I said, attempting to sound nonchalant. 

“I got anxious. I’m sorry if I did something to make you run today.” He murmured. 

“No, you didn’t. There’s just so much responsibility here. It’s so rare that I get any time at all to myself, let alone as much time as I got with you today. It was the best three hours I’ve had in a while.” 

“Good. I’m glad to hear that.” He chuckled lightly. “We should do it again sometime.” He murmured.

“Yeah? Maybe you should come over.” 

“Are you sure?” I could hear his smile through the phone, and it made my heart soar. “I wouldn’t want to piss anyone off.”

“Oh, you mean Bammi? Who gives a s**t about him. Meet me outside the gates and I’ll let you in.” I quickly gave him the directions before heading to the bathroom. I showered as quickly as possible, and as I stepped out into my bedroom, I stopped dead in my tracks. “What are you doing here?” I hissed. 

“I thought you might be tired. Turning and then turning back that many times in just a couple of hours has to be exhausting. So, I brought you some food.” Bammiuk held up a small basket.

“Oh...” I stepped forward and lifted the lid. Dried whale fat, salmon, squash, and strawberries. “That’s really sweet of you, BamBam. Thanks.” I smiled up at him, momentarily transported to a simpler time when we were still a team. 

He gazed down at me, pain flashing behind his dark eyes. “You were with that human tonight weren’t you?” His voice was barely a whisper. “When you left the territory.”

“Yeah.” I sighed.

“Did you know we could be mates again?”

“I just found out.” 

“I made a mistake, Ven.” His brows pinched together, and he looked like he were on the verge of tears. 

“Bammi-” I started, but he cut me off.

“Just listen, okay?” He took a deep breath, closing his eyes. “I still love you. I’ve always loved you. I want you back, Haven.” He opened his eyes as he slowly lowered himself to one knee.

“What the f**k are you doing?” I hissed.

He took another deep breath, exhaling it slowly. “Haven Waska, will you accept me as your mate and marry me?” 

I let out a shaky breath as the room spun around me. “I-I have to go.” I stuttered. Yanking the door open, I bolted from my room. As fast as I could move, I ran. I managed to end up at the gate on the edge of our territory. As I skidded to a stop, I saw Nik’s dark green sedan pull up to the gate. Good thing I didn’t shift... Let him in. I mind linked Aponivi.

Yes, Alpha. He responded as the gate shuddered open.

Panting, I tried to collect myself. It’s going to be alright. It’s not even that big of a deal. “Hey, Haven.” Nik smiled at through his open window.” 

“Hey.” Just act normal. “Come on, I’ll show you where to park.” I hopped into the passenger seat and leaned back, squeezing my eyes shut. 

“Is everything okay?” Nik murmured, patting my knee.

“Everything’s great.” I lied. “Just keep going straight until you see the pa-” I cut myself off just in time. “The mansion. I guess. I don’t like to think of it that way.” 

“Well, it seemed like a lot of people live there with you, so it’s not really a mansion mansion. It’s just kind of shared housing, right?”

“Something like that.” I chuckled. “Okay, take this left road around the back of the house. There’s a garage back there you can park in.” 

“So... How many people actually live in the house with you?” Nik asked.

“Well, currently eleven not including me. There will probably be more soon.”

“Wow...” He murmured. “Who all is included in the twelve?” Do I tell him about Bammi? No? No, that would be lying. Well, it’s not really lying, it’s just omitting certain truths. Still wrong, though. “You still in there?” Nik smirked. The memory of us in the warehouse flashed through my mind, making me shift in my seat.

“Uh.” I stalled. Just be honest. Nothing good is going to come from not mentioning Bammiuk and then him finding out later. That just makes me look guilty. “I have the entire third floor to myself. On the second floor is my brother, his girlfriend Parsa, my uncle Nuna and my cousin Goo. Oh, and Alo just moved in. On the third floor is Bammiuk and his sister Meeka, Noovik, Amittu and her boyfriend and brother, Otaktay and Mato.”

He was silent as the garage door slid up. “So you and Bammiuk live in the same house? Does that not get weird?”

“He’s on the first floor, I’m on the third.” I shrugged. “We don’t see each other very often.”

Nik pulled into the garage slowly. “This place is huge.”

Chuckling, I nodded. “Yeah, we have to have enough parking for twelve, and a few of us have a couple of vehicles.” He circled around, finally finding a spot to park. “Come on. I’ll show you my room.” I grinned.