Chapter 3 Lyra
1052 Words
"The girl needs space. Your hovering over her won't help a thing," Lyra heard as consciousness came to her. The voice belonged to an older woman, probably around Maggie's age.
"I just want to see her, Audrey. Sitting next to her won't hurt her, will it?" That voice was decidedly male and it didn't sound like he was asking permission. In fact, in Lyra's experience, males who used that tone, didn't ask for permission to do anything. The world was for the taking if you were the biggest and meanest male who wanted it. Hal had a voice like that.
"You'll be in my way," was all the older woman said, and Lyra was glad she was standing up to this male, whoever he was. She was glad the older woman wasn't intimated, but also, she was glad that she wasn't letting the male stay. Lyra had a string of bad luck where males were concerned. She didn't want to deal with another one, especially when she had a hell of a headache brewing.
"I'll be sitting in a corner, Audrey. How can I be in your way?"
"Considering you're big enough to take up half the room, I don't see how you can't be in the way." Lyra wanted to applaud the woman, before she heard her voice soften. "I know she was in rough shape when you brought her in, Max." This had been the man that had brought her in? This growling animal? "I know you are worried about her. She is stable, though. She just needs to sleep off her pain and recover at her own pace. There was no permanent damage," she reassured him, "as I have told you over and over."
"But I -"
"I don't want to hear it. You may be the Alpha of the pack but I am the healer. You need to let me do my job." Her voice was final and damn, if it didn't work.
"Fine, Audrey. But I will expect an update every hour."
"As you say, Alpha." Lyra could tell the woman was humoring him and that made his heavy, clunking footsteps even more amusing as he left.
"He's gone now," the woman said to her, a smile in her voice. "No need to fake it anymore."
"How did you know?" Lyra asked, grimacing at being caught. "And where am I?"
"You are in my trailer at Long Fang Park." The woman, Audrey, continued cutting bandages as she spoke. "I serve the pack as the healer. Looks like you got into a scrape?"
Lyra didn't know how much the woman already knew and didn't want to give anything away. The last thing she needed was any of this, especially her current location, getting back to Hal. Though she had to admit, she had a feeling the man who brought her wouldn't want the details getting out. If it did, though, she knew he would face the fall out head on. He seemed the type.
"Just a friend of an old friend who doesn't care much for me."
"I should say not from the state of you. You're lucky that Alpha took to you so quickly." Audrey spoke kindly but Lyra could hear the question in her voice as well. Lyra couldn't offer any insight. She didn't know why Max was so set on helping her either.
In her experience, men only helped women for one reason. But Max had wanted to stay with her. He'd already helped her by bringing her here, and she already owed him for that.
So why had he been so keen to get an update on her healing?
"Is he a good man? Your Alpha, I mean?" She hoped she didn't sound obvious, but she was curious about him, as more than a hero.
"He is," Audrey said, nodding. "Fairer than many we've had in the past and even tempered, despite the blood on his knuckles and boots when he returned." Audrey shot her a look. "I imagine that had something to do with your friend of an old friend."
Lyra knew she didn't have to confirm, but nodded anyway, head hanging a bit. "I hadn't meant to cause him any trouble. I didn't even know he was there and definitely didn't ask him to jump in."
"Oh, I'm not blaming you for that, hon. Max may be even tempered, but he also had strong morals and can't stand to see a woman in trouble," the older woman reassured her before muttering, "Even when they look for trouble themselves."
The words hit Lyra and hurt more than one of Hal's punches.
Audrey must have seem the horror on her face because she quickly added, "I don't mean you, dear." She sighed as if she were about to tell of a tale of long suffering. "Max was with a woman named Sherry for years. A female of our pack. She was always stirring up some drama. Flirting with the other males. Picking fights with any woman she thought was competition. Max had to settle many disputes in the pack and deal with some of the men himself. Finally he got over her nonsense and ended things."
"It sounds like he tried."
"He did, but it didn't work out and eventually, when the engagement ended, I think she regretted some of what she'd done. Not enough to not go after Eli, our Beta, though."
Audrey finished applying salve to Lyra's minor cuts along her arms. It was cooling and helped ease the ache that Lyra hadn't even been aware of. Her head had stolen all her attention from her other pains.
She felt intrusive, learning the private business between this woman, Sherry, and her rescuer. Still, she wanted to know even more.
Lyra couldn't explain why, but she felt the need to know all of Max's secrets and hold them in her heart.
"Well, that's all I can do for you, Lyra. Are you ready to face the pack? They're awfully curious about the pretty, little deer that Max brought back."
Dread filled Lyra's stomach. Facing new people, and looking like this, no less. Still, she tried to put on a brave face. "Sure. Sounds fun."
"It will be, I'm sure," Audrey agreed. "More or less."
"What's the less?"
"Sherry is already sizing you up."
- Writer
