Divided

Chapter 3: Welcome

As I drew closer to the pack house, I could feel my spirit lifting. The girl forced me once again, to face the harsh reality of how things were on the outside world. But I took comfort in the lively sound of my family going about their daily routine. I knew that because of the ranch, they would remain safe and unscathed. And I would do anything in my power to keep it that way.

I passed the stables, and saw Tom with one of the horses, bending down to inspect its hoof. Pete was sitting on a log nearby, making sure his nephew cut no corners. He saw me and threw up his hand in greeting. I returned the gesture, but walked on. The house came into view, and I smiled. A couple of boys ran past me heading for the lake, most likely an attempt to avoid either the classroom, or their chores. There were women hanging washing, men harvesting in the fields, and the sound of a piano coming from the house. On the porch three girls were busy sewing under the supervision of their mother, and smiled shyly as I nodded in greeting.

As I stepped through the front door – which was always open – I heard laughter and little voices singing along with the piano. Alex animatedly played as a bunch of children encircled her. She saw me and winked. My little sister, Alex, who was not so little anymore. She was busy with her final year in Philosophy when she was summoned home. Our 'rebel without a cause' has transformed into one of the best teachers the ranch ever had.

I walked past the cheery bunch and found Tanya in the study, frowning at a book one of her students held out to her. "Looks intense." I said, approaching them. She looked up at me, and her face changed from pensive to angry. She took the book and dismissed the boy with a tight smile.

"You stayed at the barracks last night." She stated as soon as the boy was out of the door, "A heads up would have been nice." Realizing that the conversation was clearly going to take a turn for the worst, I closed the door behind the boy.

"It was late. I was tired." I tried, but my excuse wasn't enough, because her expression remained unchanged. "I did send a message, T."

"I heard it's a female - an impressively large one." And there it was. With a single sentence my mind raced back to the girl. And I had to fight the urge to phone Ryan to inquire about her.

"You heard right." I walked up to her, and bent down to give her a kiss, but she turned her cheek.

"I can smell her on you." She said coldly. I knew she was exaggerating. The only contact I had with the girl was last night and in the meantime, I showered and changed clothes. This was one of her many tests. She was jealous – as always. Which was partly my fault, because I could never find the patience to put her suspicions to bed.

"Yes, obviously. She stayed at the barracks last night." I sighed, "If you smell past her scent, you will find Ryan, Tom, Tim and even Pete's lingering." She looked at me for a moment, then ran her hands through her blonde hair.

"She smells feral." She wrinkled her nose, disgusted.

"You can come meet her this afternoon, if you want to." She shifted her weight, and looked at me puzzled. "At the barracks." I walked to the door. "She will stay there for now. I don't trust her among the rest of the pack."

"Well if that's the case, maybe we need to pass her along. You obviously thinks she's dangerous. Why not send her to a pack where they know how to deal with freaks." She looked at her nails, not making eye contact. Then her eyes shot up at me - challenging, "When you and Ryan started this rescue party, everyone agreed that you would do nothing that'll put the safety of the pack at risk. And people are talking, Jack. No one wants a wolf in our pack that we can't control."

"Who said we can't control her?" I frowned.

"According to the rumors, her wolf almost stands as tall as Ryan's." Her eyes were wide, begging for me to stand on her side.

"I am taking the necessary precautions."

"There are some bad wolves out there, and for all we know you just invited one of them into our pack!"

"She just needs time. For heaven's sake, she hasn't even opened her mouth. How can we condemn her?" I realized that this was the exact same conversation I had with Ryan, but now I was the one defending the girl. "We give everyone a chance, don't we?" She got up and turned around, staring out of the window. With her back towards me and her delicate hands resting on the windowsill, I admired her for a moment. The sunlight clung to her, playing on her skin and running through her hair. The rays turned her yellow curls to gold. Her skin - healthy, sun-kissed, with tiny freckles on her shoulders, begged to be caressed. She was in peek condition, with muscles bulging in all the right places and just enough soft curves to make me want to see more. I smiled inwardly. She's perfect, isn't she?

"I'll come to the barracks." She said stiffly, "I'll judge for myself." still not turning around. "If she is staying, I suggest that you keep your contact with her to a minimum." When I let out a stunned snort, she swung around, "You have opened our doors to her. You've done your part, now let the others take care of her." She said with contempt dripping from her words.

"This jealousy-thing is beneath you, T." I paused, and added honestly, "It makes you look weak."

"You make me look weak!" She shouted acidly, "Laughing at my advice, preferring to sleep at the barracks rather than in our bed." She walked towards me, "You make me look weak." She poked her finger in my chest, "You, and nothing or no one else."

"And on that note." I turned around opened the door. "This afternoon, after lunch."

"If you don't respect me, the pack won't either." She shouted in a low tone, realizing that anyone close enough might hear her.

I wanted to end it better, but I found myself once again, with too little patience. So I slammed the door shut behind me without another word, and headed out.

I had to take my daily drive along the border of the ranch, to check on the fence and the motion censor cameras, but I was very eager to get back to the barracks. Tanya talking about the girl, made me want to see her again. Maybe she does have reason to be cautious. If Tanya was right, and there were others who shared her concern, I had to handle this situation very delicately.

* * *

When I got back to the barracks, I smelled her scent before I saw her. It was starting to drive me mad. She was sitting on one of the couches in the general area. And even though it wasn't cold outside, she was covered with a blanket, cradling a cup of tea. "Hi." For a split second her big green eyes shot up at me with a blank expression. As expected, I received no reply.

"Well hello." Ryan's voice beamed from the kitchen, before he appeared in the doorway. "We are not on speaking terms yet, but she seems comfortable."

"What did Phil say?" Ryan shifted his weight uncomfortably.

"He said everything seems fine." In the years I've known Ryan, he never lied to me, sometimes he just omits the truth for the sake of civility. This was definitely one of those times. At my frown he added quickly, "He'll check up on her when she's settled down." He widened his eyes - a sign that I should stop asking questions. Which made me realized that it was probably inappropriate to talk about the girl, in front of the girl. Ryan ducked back into the kitchen again.

"So, by the way, Tanya's coming over to welcome our new guest." I shouted after him getting only a grunt in reply. The girl's mood on the other hand, quickly shifted from nothing at all to something edging on hostility. "Up for it?" I asked her and she lifted those green eyes up to me again. "A name would be nice, since I'll be making the introductions." But she lost interest and stared down at her cup. "Or not." I added more to myself.

"Jack, may I have a word?" Ryan's voice beamed, so I left her and headed to the kitchen.

"What's on your mind?" I pushed past him and grabbed a beer from the fridge.

"Do you think it's a good idea to throw Tanya at her?" he asked skeptically.

"It might be selfish, but for me to live in peace, I really need this meeting to take place."

"She giving you a hard time because of our new guest?"

I sighed, "Maybe I should just marry her and get it over with. It seems like the only solution. This childish jealousy she displays each time we welcome a new female to the pack is getting the better of me."

"Of course you should! What have you been waiting for?" He raised his voice joyously, "We haven't had a wedding in a long time!" He chuckled, "Besides marriage is known for fixing all problems, and for supplying a strong foundation to a shaky relationship."

"I never have and never will, appreciate your sarcasm." I handed him a beer.

"On a more serious note." He nudged his head towards the girl, "Things didn't go so well with Phil." He said in a lower tone. "She wouldn't let him come near her."

"Well, now I'm second guessing the meeting with Tanya."

"Talking about me?" Tanya appeared on the porch with a couple of her curious friends. She probably heard most of the conversation, which meant trouble.

"Tea?" Ryan's eyes stretched as he turned around and busied himself with the kettle, not waiting for a reply.

"So where is she?" Tanya entered the kitchen with her entourage. "I have heard rumors about the girl with the big bad wolf, and I literally can't wait to meet her!" Ryan who realized that tea was the last thing on anyone's mind abandoned mission, and gestured towards the general area.

"This way." I said and led them through the kitchen to the girl, who was still sitting inanimate on the couch staring into the distance. The hostility I sensed earlier grew stronger as she looked up towards the crowd that was approaching her. I could see her grip growing tighter around the now empty cup. "Hi, again." I tried. Was that annoyance I saw in her eyes as she glanced in my direction? "This is Tanya, Gary and Jess." I said as I pointed to each in turn.

When Tanya saw the scrawny figure on the couch, she smiled triumphantly. "Not much to look at, I'll tell you that."

"Did you really just say that?" I turned towards her, shocked.

"Forgive me," She added sourly, ignoring me and addressing the girl directly, "It's just that, you haven't even been here a day, and the talk about you is driving me crazy." She smiled, "You are basically the only topic of conversation at the house." She took a step forward, and the girl's posture stiffened. She gave the girl a once over and added, "So, I just expected more," she paused, "More than..." Taking a step forward, she added, "You know..." She didn't finish her sentence but waved her hand over the girl. A snort erupted from behind me, and I swung around to see Jess suppressing a smile.

"That is enough." I commanded sternly, placing my hand on Tanya's shoulder, turning her around and away from the girl.

"But we just arrived. I have so many questions." She pulled a fake sad face and turned back around, "I really need to see your wolf. I'm guessing she's in no better condition than you are."

"He said it's enough." Ryan said louder, his voice demanding respect. "You got what you came for. Now leave." Tanya's eyes grew wide and she looked at me, embarrassed.

"Are you going to let him talk to me like that?" She whispered.

"I will see you at dinner." I added, ignoring her question. "Leave." I ordered in a low threatening tone.

My reply wounded her, I could see it. But her reaction shocked me to the core. A fight between us will soon follow, I knew that. She swung around to look at the girl once more, and I could swear I heard a snarl coming from Tanya. Then she stormed out, Jess and Gary following her uneasily – not wanting to be on the wrong side of their alpha.

"Well that was intense." Ryan sighed before he took a big swig of his beer. "I have a feeling that whatever you tried to do with this meeting, might have the opposite result."

"Sorry." Was all I could offer the fragile girl on the couch, who stared at Tanya's back with no expression.