Aa

Chapter 3. Fort Knox

My eyes feel heavy as I manage to slightly open them. My vision is somewhat blurry but I try to take in my surroundings.

Soft, buttery light filters in from a nearby window and I raise my head when I realize I'm in an unfamiliar room.

I spot movement in the corner of my eye and I quickly sit up, directing my attention to the unknown man standing from a chair.

"I'll let Luna Amari know you're awake."

Where the f**k am I and who is he? Hold on.. Luna Amari? Am I at the pack house?!

He moves towards the door in long strides. "Wait. Who are you?"

His hand pauses on the door knob but he doesn't turn his head to look back at me. "Knox."

He opens the door and exits, softly closing the door behind him.

Utterly confused, I look around the room and notice it's pristine condition. The too white walls with ornate crown molding and the spotless stone flooring when the fact that I'm likely at the pack house dawns on me again. The same house that Asher lives in.

Nope. Not happening.

I move to get up just as the door opens and Luna Amari walks in, a sympathetic smile crossing her beautiful face. Her long black hair is gathered into a single thick braid over her shoulder and her pale yellow sundress compliments her flawless brown skin.

She takes a seat in the large, overstuffed chair next to the bed I'm currently occupying and fixes her chesnut eyes on me. "How are you feeling?"

I clutch the sheets at my sides remembering exactly what happened.. and who did it. When I don't readily answer, she exhales.

"Asher had his reasons, Winter. I'm sure once you two can talk about it, you'll understand."

I nearly choke on her words. "I do not want to talk to him."

My raised voice causes her to bristle and arch a single, perfectly manicured brow at me but she quickly regains her composure.

"I'm happy to see you are finally up, you were out for two days. We were all worried about you. Including Asher."

Two days?! And f**k Asher.. "Why am I here and how did I get here?"

I faintly remember someone picking me up, wrapping me in their large arms and tucking me into their chest.

"Knox, at your Alpha's request. As for why, given that you live alone, we thought it best that you were brought here to ensure you'd be okay during your recovery since your ordeal was so intense"

"Ordeal.." I want to scoff at her words but I refrain. An ordeal couldn't possibly sum up what that was.

"As strong as Asher is, it brought him to his knees too. We assume the Alpha bond made the consequences a bit more severe for the both of you."

I ignore her statement suddenly realizing that I can't feel my wolf. 'Aanika?'

No response. I start to panic but before I can react to it, Luna Amari places a hand on my arm. "It's normal not to be able to reach your wolf immediately after such a... traumatic experience."

She pauses as if reliving a personal memory or maybe she just didn't want to call it an ordeal again. "Don't fret, she will be back soon."

I trust her words and nod solemnly but my lack of words has her frowning, concern evident in her typically soft features.

"You can stay as long as you want. Knox will take care of anything you need."

Negative. "Not necessary. I'd like to go home"

She gives me a small smile in acknowledgement and stands from the chair. "I'll send Knox to walk you home"

I open my mouth to decline but she raises a hand up silencing my refusal. "It would appease me to have you escorted since you're not at your full strength."

An obvious order, despite the kindness attached to it. I nod in response and she exits the room.

I move to quickly stand from the bed but my legs are wobbly and I feel faint. I lean back against the bed waiting for the dizziness to pass and once I gain my bearings, I look down and notice I'm wearing a nightgown that doesn't belong to me.

I don't even want to know who bathed and changed me nor where my stupid dress is but I can't exactly walk out of here wearing just this.

I start to rummage around for any other clothing but come up empty handed with the exception of my sandals. Both the armoire and chest of drawers were absolutely empty.

As if on cue, Knox walks in with a neatly folded stack of regular gray sweats. He looks at me, his eyes trailing over me for a mere second before holding out the clothes. "I suppose you'll want these?"

He hands me them and I accept them with a small smile. "Thank you."

He stands there for a moment before realization hits him. "Right. I'll just be right outside the door."

As I start to change, I try to reach for Aanika again but fail. I feel a sudden sharp pain in my chest thinking about the sounds that had come from her and now I don't even know if she's okay.

I have no idea why Asher rejected me and right now, I'm not sure I even care. He did what he did and I'll never forget what that did to me. To Aanika.

I make my way out the door and find Knox leaning against the wallpapered wall across the hallway from me, waiting. He unfolds his arms from his muscular chest and pushes off the wall when he sees me.

His golden blonde hair lays perfectly, not a single hair out of place and his angular facial features are quite attractive. His piercing blue eyes suddenly meet mine and I'm pretty sure he caught me staring at him.

Flustered, I start walking and then stop suddenly, realizing I have no clue where I'm going. I spin around to Knox who still standing in the same spot.

"This way, Bambi"He turns and walks in the opposite direction from where I was heading and I follow.

"Bambi?"

"Mhm"

I stop walking, crossing my arms over my chest. "Whats that supposed to mean?"

He stops and turns to face me, his stoic expression still in tact.

"I didn't mean the reference because you're an orphan. It was only because you looked lost."

I hadn't even thought of all that. I shrug my shoulders. "Fitting all around, I suppose."

His brows raise not expecting that answer and I initiate our walking again.

We silently make our way through another hallway before descending the wooden stairs down into the main hall. I've been in this part of the packhouse before, the familiar space just as bright and pristine as the room I was in.

My sandals click against the freshly waxed tiles and it makes me want to take them off. "How did you know I was an orphan?"

Without looking at me, he responds. "Doesn't everyone know?"

I want to ask why I have never seen him before but as we make it into the foyer, the large stained wood door opens and a few of the packs patrol comes walking in.

They pay me little attention as they pass and I breathe a sigh of relief. Albeit a little too soon.

The last person comes striding in just as we reach the door and my breath absolutely siezes.

Asher stops in his tracks and looks at me, then at Knox, his eyes narrowing at him. A growl escapes from Asher but Knox simply smirks at him before gently grabbing my elbow and escorting me out the door.

My steps are hurried in an attempt to keep up with Knox and after we make it a few yards away from the pack house, I look over my shoulder and see Asher standing in the doorway. I quickly turn back around.

"Thank you."

Knox slows his stride slightly but still remains a few foot paces ahead. "For what?"

I guess I could be thanking him for walking me home but I'm sure he knew what I was referring to. "You know what."

He nods nonchalantly and slows his steps further so that we are now on pace together. "You don't have to thank me for being a good person."

"Noted.. " I pause, curiosity getting the best of me. "Do you two not get along?"

His brows furrow and he looks ahead in the distance. "Why would you ask that?"

"He growled at you."

He tilts his head, glancing at me. "Wolves growl. Plus.. I'm pretty sure you're the reason he did it."

"Why would I be the reason he growls at you?"

He stops walking and looks at me as if I just asked the dumbest question ever. "Because you're his mate and you were with me."

"I was his mate for all of five seconds before he rejected me so why would he care?"

He shakes his head and continues walking. I don't remember seeing a guide to mate rejection in the library and it wasn't something I had an in depth conversation about with Evan. It's not like there were a bunch of rejected shifters running around either.

"He may have rejected you but it doesn't break the bond fully. He will still have some pull to you and you to him and being that he is who he is, Alpha blood and all, he may still be possessive over you."

I scoff loudly. "Well, that won't work for me."

His snort is barely audible and I look over at him. I notice a tattoo of a dandelion on his neck.

"How come I've never seen you before?"

His eyes narrow and there's a slight scrunch to his nose. Obviously not a question he wanted me to ask.. or he's just annoyed. I can't really tell.

"My father and I left the pack when I was young.. long story short, after he passed away, I found out I was born in this pack. I felt an urge to reunite with my bloodline and Alpha Mason and Luna Amari accepted me back."

"Isn't it rare to be accepted back once you leave?"

He doesn't answer right away, clearly not enjoying this topic. He pulls off a twig from a nearby tree branch and widdles it between his fingers.

"I was young.. unable to choose for myself. They were sympathetic to that."

It made me think about what I could remember from when i was younger. They were always kind to me. Despite being treated differently by others, they never made me feel unwanted. Wary of me maybe.. but never mean.

"I'm sorry about your Father. Was it just you and him?"

"Yes."

He doesn't elaborate so I switch gears. "Has the pack been welcoming to you at least?"

"As much as they can be I suppose."

Knox was at least born to this pack so I guess I couldn't really compare our situations. "I wasn't born in this pack but since you already knew I was an orphan, I assume you knew that too."

He nods in confirmation. "Alpha Mason told me a little about you after I brought you to the pack house."

I pause just before getting to my front door. "Can I ask you a question?"

His eyebrows raise. "Isn't that all you've been doing?"

I'll take that as a solid yes."Who undressed me and put me in that awful nightgown?"

His deep laugh is a pleasant surprise and the first sign that he isn't completely closed off.

"It wasn't me, if that's what you're worried about."

I open my front door and turn to face him. "I was never worried about it being you."

He just looks at me, not sure how to respond. I leave him with that little nugget and head inside.

Flirting right after getting rejected.. classy, Winter. Real classy.