Page 31 of The Night Wolf
He snapped his gaze to the door and found Dani standing there, smirking at him.
“Yes, I was. And if you stay quiet for a few moments, I’ll be doing it again.” He sighed. He’d made her his advisor, so maybe it was time to ask for advice. “Can you sit, please?”
“Of course.” She came and took the chair Caleb had occupied not long ago. She sat, her legs crossed at the ankles, and leaned in. “You look troubled.”
“I thought you were going to sleep?”
“I got to my room and then realized I had too much to do. I’ve never been one for being idle.”
“Yes, I’m aware.” He handed her his phone. “This was taken last night.”
She looked down at the screen, then up at him. “But…. This is impossible. I went to bed after dinner.”
“I saw you, Dani. I saw all of you. I stood at the window until first light, when everyone went off toward their houses. I spoke with Caleb, and he tells the same story. He doesn’t remember being out there, and he also says it’s impossible.”
“And what were we all doing?”
“Would you believe that for six hours, you all sat there and stared up at Sean’s window?”
She squinted at him. “I don’t understand.”
“That makes two of us. Well, three if you count Caleb.”
“Have you spoken with Sean?”
“I’m not sure if that’s a good idea. To be honest, that’s what I wanted your counsel about.”
“You’re taking this whole advisor thing seriously, aren’t you?”
“I am. For years, you’ve been my most trusted person next to Lyram. And before you ask, I do intend on talking with him as well. For now, though, I want your opinion. Do I talk to him? The reason I hesitate is because… something happened in Sean’s past, and I worry about pushing him. What happens if he doesn’t even know about what happened but gets scared and runs? I—we—can’t protect him.”
“I, huh?” She smirked, looking all smug.
“Caleb is right. Never do that again.”
Dani huffed a sigh. “You’ve given me the details—very clinically, I might add. What you haven’t told me is what this is really about.”
Gareth didn’t want to say the words, but he couldn’t see where he had much choice. “My wolf is… I don’t even know how to say it. It’s protective of him. If any wolf dared to challenge me, my wolf would go berserk. When Sean does it, my wolf… for lack of a better word, laughs. And the night I went to Sean to demand answers about who hurt him, my wolf tried to protect Sean from me.”
If he thought Dani would be shocked, he was mistaken. She steepled her fingers under her chin. “Fascinating.”
“And the other thing…. When I called Franklin and Lyram and told them Sean’s old Alpha might be looking for him, they both went nuts and growled that Sean was, in their words,ours. When I snapped at them, they were back to normal, but neither of them remembers the conversation taking place.” Gareth tapped his fingers on his desk. “I’ll be honest with you. I’m at a loss here.”
“Judging by what you’ve told me, which I admit is sketchy at best, I have to wonder if Sean is gifted like Caleb. Maybe—wait—is it possible? Could Sean be an Omega?”
“There hasn’t been an Omega found in more than two hundred years.” But…. “It would make sense. The first instinct of any pack is to protect its Alpha and its Omega. Frank and Caleb told me that being around Sean made them feel good. That would explain why you were all outside last night, watching his window.”
“And it would also show why your wolf is so bent on protecting him.” She leaned back and looked up at the ceiling. “But that doesn’t explain why others hurt him. If anything, they should have been willing to give their lives to keep him safe.”
“If Ryker is psychotic, maybe that’s part of the problem. It could be that he has no regard for an Omega other than as property.”
Dani nodded sagely. “It would also go a long way to explaining the reactions from our pack.”
Gareth grabbed his phone and dialed Lyram.
“Yes, Alpha?”
“I know you’re going to see Dr. Franklin today, but I was hoping you wouldn’t mind doing something else for me.”
