26. Recovery
Recovery
Dakota
M y bear basked in delight at having our family whole.
The time apart from our mate was more difficult on my alter because he just couldn’t comprehend the idea of a highly infectious illness, wanting to fight whatever threatened our mate and cub.
The human part of me had struggled with missing Jasper, but it was easier for me to be rational about it.
In the days following the mass wake up of all the remaining betas, we saw them recover at different rates. As the elves had surmised, the youngest took the longest, and it was a week before Angelica spent any time out of bed.
With things returning to normalcy, Jasper returned to the school to share lesson plans, just working a couple of hours a day.
I continued to work from home so that I could be there for Angelica.
Roan, Kade and Blake were all traveling to our house daily so that they could work with me and share the childcare duties.
Kade wanted to work on his bond with his sister, so this was ideal.
Having Angel come to the mansion where there were daily issues within the pack was a bad idea and I was grateful to them for saving me the stress of fielding questions.
For Roan, an escape from the house was necessary, with tensions still high between him and several alphas.
Not even Chase could diffuse the situation, meaning it was pretty dire.
Roan tried to be his usual upbeat self around Kade, but no-one was fooled.
If Teárlach wasn’t staying above our garage, then I would have offered Roan the room to get him out of the mansion.
As it was, we had the elf staying with us and the two beta guards we couldn’t seem to get rid of.
Grady and Trey were hinting at staying in the area permanently.
Part of me wished it wasn’t true after that long, painful week with them before the sickness.
Then I would catch a quiet moment between the pair.
They were so in love and cared so much about Jasper and Angelica that I couldn’t help but soften towards them.
Once they were more mobile, they made it possible for me to return to the mansion occasionally for work and to check on the factory in person, so they were useful to have around.
“Daddy, could I come see the factory one day?” Angelica asked. “I want to meet Shelby.”
I flashed a look over at Kade, and he fought to hide his laugh. Shelby had grown more colorful in her use of language since working for Sweetwater Brewery. “Um—“
“Please, Daddy!” When my daughter asked me like that, I was doomed. There was no denying her.
“Okay, but we’ll have to have a few people with us for when you get tired.” I glanced at my alpha, son, and Roan. “You’ve got too much to do for a factory visit.”
“How about you take the elves for a visit?” Blake suggested. “I know Hakeem wanted to see how it all worked.”
Kade muttered something about separating Axel and Teárlach, who were on yet another walk around the woodlands that wrapped around one side of the house. We often found the pair together.
“We can ask T when they get back.” I’d taken to shortening his name, much to his amusement.
ívarr wasn’t a fan of the nickname and I avoided using it in his presence.
I hoped the elves would like to visit the sprawling factory just outside the compound.
Jasper couldn’t carry Angel if she got tired, and I’d likely be too busy to carry her.
Last time I’d visited, I’d ended up fixing a few machines, so I wanted to have my hands free.
Angel liked the elves, having expressed more than once how pretty Teagan’s hair was. Though she admitted T was her favorite.
“We can help with Angel.” Grady offered.
Internally, I swallowed a groan. I’d wanted a few hours without them. My face was carefully blank. Years of working in customer service perfecting my mask.
“Actually, I wanted to go over paperwork for you joining the pack and the house that you were looking at.” Blake saved my day.
Thank you, alpha. He winked at me, unseen by the betas who were still the bane of my life. Then I realized what he’d said. “You’ve picked a house?”
“We think so.” Trey admitted. “It hasn’t been empty for long, so it doesn’t need much done to it. We should be able to move straight in once the sale goes through.” Those words were music to my ears.
“We really don’t want to take on a project right now.”
I made a sympathetic noise. “I get that. You’ve been through a lot.”
Something passed between us and I felt like I’d passed a test. The moment broke as T and Axel entered through the French doors off the dining room.
Teárlach’s tinkling laugh preceded him. Axel looked tired but happy as he leaned against the elf.
He couldn’t walk long distances without help of some kind and, more often than not, it was T that was by his side.
Blake and Kade exchanged a weighted look, and I hoped they wouldn’t do anything to discourage what was blooming between the wolf and the elf.
“It’s okay, Dad. We just want them to be careful.
There’s a lot that wouldn’t accept a mixed species mating and we’re still trying to weed them out of the pack.
It’s about safety, not prejudice.” Kade’s voice was soft as he whispered into my ear so that the others wouldn’t overhear.
“I’m sorry. I know better.” It was true. Guilt rose at my doubt. Blake was a progressive alpha. I shouldn’t have questioned his feelings. Of course he would only want happiness for his brother. For any of his pack. Kade wrapped an arm around me, giving me a squeeze.
“Daddy, can you ask him?” Angelica piped up from her place on the sofa with a coloring book in her lap. Roan was holding the crayons and discussing her color choices. She was shy about asking the elves anything directly, but would speak when spoken to.
“T, would you like to visit the factory tomorrow? Angelica would like to take a tour, but I might be called to fix something or sign paperwork, so don’t want us to go alone. I know Hakeem wanted to go there. The school children do a tour, but that isn’t until after Christmas.”
Teárlach looked confused at the word, and Axel muttered some words to him that had him nodding. “Ah, the human winter holiday. I would love a tour. Axel, will you be up to it?”
The beta gave a tired yawn and sat heavily on the sofa. “If we could shift and walk over, that would be great. Dr Flemming says that I have to shift more. I managed an hour the other day.”
“I’d love to meet your wolf properly.” T blushed and added, “and your bear, Dakota. I’m sure Miss Angelica’s fox is very impressive.”
Angelica gave a little giggle, happy that she was getting her own way.
Four elves walked beside a wolf, bear and fox towards the sprawling factory where Shelby, the nymph I’d once worked with, was waiting. It hadn’t taken her long to climb the ranks, and now she was one of the assistant managers.
“Goddess! Is this your daughter, Dakota? She’s so pretty in fox form! I have a little space for you to shift back and some hard helmets for you all to wear when we go onto the factory floor. I know Angelica doesn’t need to be told not to touch anything because she’s a clever little girl.”
Our elven guests laughed as Shelby intended and waited to the side while I ushered Axel and Angel into the room so we could shift.
There was a small screened off area that Angel dipped behind.
I left her clothes in easy reach and let the shift take over.
Quickly dressing, I checked on Angel as Axel’s shift took that bit longer than usual, like his wolf was fighting him.
He sat in a chair to get dressed and I nearly went to him to offer my help.
Something about the mulish set of his jaw had me holding back.
Axel finished dressing, took a deep breath, and stood carefully. His face was pale, and I thought I detected beads of sweat along his forehead. “I’m fine, Dakota. I swear.”
I didn’t argue.
We shuffled into the vestibule where the rest of our party was waiting. Immediately, T gravitated to Axel’s side, and I saw the younger man mouth something to the elf before leaning on him slightly.
The tour began with Shelby pointing out features and our more diverse workforce. Instead of a purely shifter staff, we now had Shelby, a nymph, the ogres, and even a couple of vampires from a different coven to that of Isaac’s.
As predicted, I was called upon to sign things before we got halfway around. Angelica was tired, so I ended up carrying her. “Here, let me carry the girl.” Teagan offered.
“Thanks.”
Angelica was happy to go to Teagan, and I left them to whisper together.
The elves had admitted that they missed having children, so the pack was a refreshing change.
Far from feeling frostiness from the elves over our lowly shifter nature, there was an eagerness we hadn’t expected.
If a shifter parent wanted some time to themselves, there was usually a willing elf ready to provide childcare.
“Hey, Dakota? Would you mind looking at this machine? It’s stuck fast.” Avery called. They were standing by a top loading press and the conveyor belt for the apples was jammed.
I looked down at the smart button down I’d picked out for the day.
It was a light gray that made me look more tanned.
Jasper loved this shirt on me and peeling me out of it.
He’d kill me if I ruined it with dirt and oil.
I removed the shirt, handing it to a smirking Hakeem.
“Look after this, would you?” Then I stepped onto the factory floor to wrestle with the machine.