0063
Dane.
"Why is this happening to me?" Jess asks me quietly. Her blue eyes are wide as she stares at me. "Why me?"
"As much as I hate to say it, you were just in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Right." Her voice is hollow and she blinks back the tears
"We can help you."
"Why do you even care?" I hear the resentment in her question.
"Because my mate was just like you. She wasn't changed, but she was lied to and made to believe she was something else her entire life. When Neah found out the truth, she called herself a monster too." "Right." She didn't believe me
"You should spend more time with her. Come stay in the packhouse. Eric is there most of the time anyway, especially now his boys have left with their grandparents."
Her eyebrows knit together, and thankfully the tears have stopped. "You...you won't hurt me?"
I smile, I had no intention of hurting a kid. "No."
"Can you find out if my family is okay?"
"Of course."
She sighs. "What will happen to me?"
"What do you mean?"
"You said that I wouldn't be able to see my family again. You said you were a Wolf even though you look like a Vampire from the TV shows. You said I'm a Lycan, so where do I go?"
"I suggest that you stay here, and become a permanent member of the pack. You will be safe, you will be protected. You will have to learn what it's like to live here. We have expectations." She nods her head at me, her red hair swaying around her face.
"One of those being that you don't intentionally hurt yourself."
She hadn't just been covered in claw wounds. Her arms were covered in old scars too. One that happened before she was turned. A pink tinge creeps up her cheeks and she nods her head at me. "Follow me," I mutter, rising to my feet. She follows me from the blood-splattered room, keeping her eyes low.
"Jess," I murmur, stopping by my sister and Klaus. "You already know Klaus, but this is my younger sister, Raven." "Are you okay?" Raven asks
Jess nods her head and continues to keep her eyes low and her lips pressed together.
"I'm taking her to the packhouse."
"Are you sure?" I could hear my sister's concern.
"Yes. Neah is the only one who can give her the advice she needs."
Raven doesn't answer, her dark eyes remain on Jess. She didn't trust her, not in the slightest. I don't blame her after the Devon incident.
In the packhouse, I show Jess around just like I had done with Raven. Her eyes are like saucers as she takes everything in.
"You are not the only pack?" She asks as we move up the stairs.
"No."
"Are all the main houses like this?"
"I guess so."
"Are you like a millionaire? Like how deep are your pockets?"
I cock an eyebrow at her. She wasn't afraid of asking questions.
"Right. Too personal, sorry."
I led her down to the end of the hallway. "This will be your room. I called ahead already, there should be some clothes for you on the bed."
"Thanks," she whispers. She gasps as she steps into the bedroom. "This....this is bigger than the ground floor of my home. Thank you."
"Sure," I glance back down the hallway, towards my bedroom. Neah was stirring but something wasn't right. "I just need to go check on Neah, will you be alright?"
Jess nods her head at me as her eyes dart quickly around the room.
Heading to my bedroom, I find Neah sitting on the edge of the bed. One hand gripped around one of the posts. Sweat dripped down her face and I saw she was fighting the urge to vomit.
"I don't feel good." she croaks. "I think I've caught....." she gags again and runs to the door where the toilet is. Pulling her hair back from her face, I gently rub her back, waiting for her to be done. She sits back against my legs and lets out a tired sigh.
"You are not sick. Besides, we heal from standard illnesses."
She pauses for a second, taking in my words, and slowly tips her head back to look at me. "You're saying...."
"I am, I scented it this morning when you were still sleeping."
Her eyebrows raise. "It worked?"
"Are you doubting my abilities?"
"No....my own. Raven didn't say anything about throwing my guts up!"
Helping her to her feet, I guide her to the large chair by the window. "I've moved Jess into the house." I hoped it would take her mind off of how bad she was feeling. "Oh...okay? She didn't leave."
"No. I went to find Raven. She and Klaus had Jess in one of the rooms at the hospital."
"Is she okay?"
"No. She shifted." I see Neah's eyes widen. "In fact, she has shifted multiple times. She tried hurting herself. And it's not the first time." "What do you mean?"
"She is covered in scars, from before she was turned. Her arms and shoulders are littered with thin silvery lines. She hides it well, but I think there is more to her past than she shares. I want to keep an eye on her. And maybe you should spend some time with her." "Me?"
"She called herself a monster."
I wait for Neah to say something but she just slowly nods her head at me.
"She needs someone to look up to. Maybe you can be like a big sister to her, show her that it's not all bad."
"Not so mean after all?" she muses as I move to the basin to grab her a glass of water.
"Is that what you think?" I cock an eyebrow at her as I hand her the glass.
She doesn't respond. Instead she chooses to press her lips to the glass and I see a tiny curve at the corners that she is fighting to hide as she sips the water.
"There are people arriving today." I remind her
"At least I don't have to lie now." She smiles with her lips but it doesn't quite meet her eyes
"No, but you should be aware that many of these people won't want to be here."
"But they are contracted to do so?" Neah asks
"Yes, they also will not be afraid to make their feelings clear."
"Right." She sighs, "What exactly does it say in the contracts?"
"That they will protect any of my heirs at all costs."
"And if they don't?"
"Do you really want me to answer that?"
Wrinkles appear on her forehead. She opens her mouth to say something, but the words disappear as she makes a beeline to the toilet, thrusting the glass into my stomach on her way.
I wait for her to finish and when she looks at me, her skin has that same grey complexion as when I first met her. "Nyx thinks something is wrong."
"It's just the change in your hormones. I've seen it happen before." Though the grey skin worried me, I wasn't going to tell her that. "If it makes you feel better, we can go and see Raven." "You're still here?" I mutter to Klaus as we walk into the pack hospital.
"I've been helping Raven clean the mess. Jess did quite a number." he flicks through a trashy magazine that Raven insisted on buying.
"Where is Raven?"
"She went to change. Should be back in a minute. Is everything okay?" His eyes settle on Neah. "You don't exactly......"
He trails off when he sees my head shake and before Neah has a chance to say something, Raven comes hurtling in. "Klaus, can you head over to the house? Jess is in the room at the end of the hallway. Just keep an eye on her." I instruct "Sure."
"You're pregnant?" Raven asks as soon as the door is closed behind Klaus. "You have to be, otherwise you wouldn't be here. Though I can't smell the changes yet."
"Can you just check her over?"
"I've told you Dane. Nothing will show up, not until she is a few weeks along and even then it will be a tiny speck, if anything." she turns to Neah and smiles, "All I can suggest is try to up your fluid intake, if you are feeling queasy."
"It's not normal for a Wolf." The words tumble from my mouth in irritation from Aero pushing forward before I even have a chance to think or force him back.
"She's not a Wolf." Raven snaps, folding her arms across her chest. "Look I can do a scan, but right now, that is all I can offer and I'm telling you, it won't show anything."
She leads us to a bed and grabs a small machine, absentmindedly running the wand over Neah's stomach. "To be honest Dane, I'm a little surprised you can smell anything. Most mates can't tell until their partner is at least a month along." She suddenly stops, holding the little want in one position. "Huh."
I see the panic in my mate's eyes. "What do you mean, huh?" Neah cries
She fiddles with something on the side of the small monitor. A heartbeat echoes around the room followed by an extra beat.
"Neah, you are further along. Give or take six weeks."
"I am?"
"You didn't know?"
"No."
"What's wrong with the heartbeat?" I demand
"Nothing, it is just what it sounds like when a mother is carrying twins."