Crossing Paths With The White Wolf

Helios

P o V

turned on the AC.

This was a mistake. They weren't ready. It hadn't been enough time. I should have just sent Sebastian. I was on the plane for the short 1-hour trip to Arizona two days after my phone call. I was sweating pretty heavily despite the flight attendant having already "Relax Helios. They both agreed for you to come. That has to mean something," Gonzalo whispered to me.

"Oh, they aren't mad at you anymore," Evergreen piped up. Damn werewolf hearing. "Alpha was at first. He thought you'd come back and try to take Luna again, but not after we confirmed the stuff with the Managua. He begrudgingly admitted that Luna was right and that you weren't planning on showing up at midnight to take her away again."

"So that's why he started answering his emails with more than single word responses," I mused.

"Yeah, well, that was part of the deal," he said. "Deal?"

"Yes, Luna told him that if she could prove you were serious about helping them, he would have to make an effort with you. She insists you need more friends and I probably shouldn't have told you that last part. I'm so getting fired," he said, sitting down and dropping his head onto the back of the seat.

"Your secret is safe with me," I laughed. I was actually feeling very grateful he word-vomited all of that. It eased my nerves considerably.

We arrived at the airport and there was a black SUV waiting for us. I had expected this. What I had not expected was Markus coming to pick us up personally. I briefly wondered if this whole thing was a ruse and I was being dispatched before even getting a chance to see Celeste and their pups.

Markus extended his hand out as we got closer. "Helios. Thanks for coming," he said, trying to smile.

"Alpha Markus, please take no offense to this, but, you look like s**t," I said as I shook his hand.

He laughed, "Well, after what you told my mate about the Nahual and Alû, she won't let me sleep more than two hours at night and she is only letting me sneak in naps during the day."

I winced. "Sorry, that was not my intention, but it may well be saving your life. You all look like s**t to be honest. Who knows how long they have been feeding." I motioned to his warriors and his Beta.

"Well, let's hope you're right and this comes to an end quickly. We got the materials you requested," he said as we got into the SUV.

"It shouldn't take more than one or two days. Gonzalo and I can see them, so we should only need a night or two before we find them and dispatch them."

"The timing is right for it. Tomorrow is the full moon and I've sent most unmated members off to a neighboring pack for the full moon celebration. Most of the girls will set up camp in the pup's daycare room for the next couple of nights in case they need to be protected. Honestly, we need to f*****g sleep. Everyone is moody and on edge, so I apologize in advance if you are met with a bit more hostility than you normally would. Everyone's aware of all the help you've provided us, and should be on their best behavior, but let's just say that I've had to send a few warriors down to the cells just to cool off."

"I appreciate the heads up. Hopefully your pack goes back to normal once they get a good night's sleep. Evergreen was night and day after the first night of rest," I said, pointing to where Evergreen was already working on his laptop on his way back. "He could barely keep his head up at the meeting," I said and I saw him blush but pretended he couldn't hear.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

"Sorry about that. He's the best we've got, even exhausted, but I probably should have asked him to take an energy drink before that."

"He got his feet under him after resting. Don't even worry about it. Your products are top quality and I do agree, he's the best even at half capacity." Markus seemed happy to hear that and I could see how much pride in his company he had.

"Just a quick warning," he said, slightly embarrassed, "Celeste is at that stage of exhaustion where she's super energized and emotional. If she hugs you, just don't make it awkward for her," he laughed. "I'll do my best to control my temper too, but it's been 72 hours since I've had any kind of restful sleep. Just ignore me," he said.

"I grew to like Celeste while I had her in my house, but I can assure you, Alpha Markus, I want nothing more than to be her friend and try to make up for everything I did to both of you," I said earnestly.

"I know. I doubted it at first, but I believe you Helios, and please, it's just Markus," he said as we pulled into his packgrounds.

Celeste was waiting outside with a stroller along with those who I knew to be Maya, Gillian, Camila and Daniel from all her emails and photos. We got out of the SUV.

"Alpha, I'm going to go see Valeria. I'll brief you tomorrow?" He asked, already walking toward a building on our left.

"She's almost done with her shift. Celeste had her dismissed early so you could come to dinner. She's cooking." Markus called after him. Evergreen's eyes brightened up at that and ran faster.

"Helios!" Celeste came up to me and gave me a hug that I returned awkwardly at first, but then she squeezed me tighter. I hugged her back, remembering Markus' words on the ride over. "I'm making a mole. I learned to make it when I visited Mexico the first time. I want you to tell me how close to the original recipe it is. It's all from memory," she said brightly at me.

"Ah, well, I can help you cook if you want. It's one of my favorite recipes," I said.

"Yes! Someone as old as you should know the right way to make it!" she chirped and I understood what Markus said about being super energized.

"Yeah old timer. You should know," Gonzalo laughed at me.

"Celeste, Gonzalo will make tamales for you before we leave. It's his specialty." I smirked at him.

"Oh come on, that's like 5 hours of work!" he whined.

"Is that too much effort for you, old timer?" I teased.

"Fine, but I'm comping that to the company card as 'business dinner," he said, and Celeste grabbed him and dragged him into the house chatting at him away about what ingredients he would need.

"I love you too, Tuli. The ride was fine. I'm not tired at all," Markus huffed as he pushed the stroller up the little ramp I hadn't seen the times I'd briefly been here before. It must be a new addition now that the ranked females have children. I chuckled as I caught up with him with my bag over my shoulder. I peeked down at the stroller and smiled at the two pups. The boy was sleeping but little Bellarose was looking everywhere with her inquisitive grey eyes.

I pulled out one of the two glo worms I had bought for them. "May I?" I asked. Markus stopped and nodded at me. I squeezed the little worm so the cheeks lit up and a soft lullaby started playing. "I have another one for Cory, but I don't want to wake him, so you can just give it to him later," I told Markus as I started hearing Bellarose babbling happily. "Can we take a walk after dinner? I want to try to find where the Nahual and the Alû might be hiding. If we can find them while they sleep, it will be easier," I asked him. "Yes, we can show you around. I'll walk you to your suite," he said, and one of the warriors handed him Gonzalo's bag. "His suite is next to yours," he explained as we headed to some small double doors. He pushed a button and the elevator opened up behind the doors. "It's only on the second floor, but with the stroller, this is the best way," he said, and I nodded in understanding.

I helped Celeste cook while Gonzalo checked over all the materials we would need for both the Nahual and the Alû. We had also brought a few more items in case we were wrong, but Sebastian's contact had confirmed that the Nahual had made a contract with a nightmare demon. He couldn't say for sure which one it was, but the Alû seemed to be the right guess as he hadn't seen it in the underground for a few weeks.

Surprisingly, whoever taught Celeste to make mole, taught her correctly because she didn't really need my help. She was patient and treated the spices delicately. Shortly before dinner, people started passing by to see what was cooking and gave me curious looks as I sat on the kitchen counter with Markus as we talked and I bounced little Cory on my knee as he played with the buttons on my shirt. The little rascal kept trying to eat them until Celeste handed him a frozen waffle, explaining that he was teething. "So, what's the plan for the spirits? You said we couldn't see them. How can we help get rid of them?" Markus asked as he held a frozen waffle in front of Bellarose.

"Celeste seems to be able to see them. She can help. To be honest, the main target is you, Markus, so we will likely have to use you as bait."

"No." Came from Celeste.