Chapter 47 Balanced Life

~Rigel~

The pack was recovering from the attack. I was forbidden to involve myself in the cleanup and other matters that needed my attention by none other than the one woman who controlled my life – my Mom. We’re all we had since Dad died in an attack, and she’d been looking after me like I was still a child. So here I was, lying in bed, nursing my recovering wound, bored out of my mind.

The thought of Gale picking up the slack made me happy – poor kid. None of them contacted me yet today, and it was already seven past two in the afternoon. Must be busy.

Mom was in the kitchen – she was working overtime again to feed everyone. While she was my biological mom, everyone in the pack considered her their paternal mom, and so everyone had a soft spot for her. Strict in the kitchen but was a real softie inside – I should know.

Sighing, I swung my legs to the side and stared at the ceiling. The cool draft from the window right above the headboard made the heat bearable. My wolf wanted to run, but it might open up the wound so he could only whimper, and he’d been whimpering since this morning.

“Shut up, will you? Can’t you stay quiet for five minutes?”

“I’m bored,” he replied.

“So am I. Now keep quiet.”

“Can’t we go outside?”

“I’m bored and hungry. We’ll take a walk when Mom gets back,” I answered.

Lunch was over hours ago, and I was waiting on my Mom for my lunch. I could fix something, but I felt too lazy today to do… something as boring as making a sandwich.

Our conversation was cut short when a familiar voice came from below.

“Hello?”

I immediately sat up, rubbed my ears, and listened in again.

“Aunty J, are you home?”

My wolf growled. She wasn’t supposed to be here! Footsteps thudded on the stairs.

“Aunty J?” she asked again.

“She’s not here!” I yelled from my room.

The door opened, and she peeked in before opening it wide. She stood by the doorway with a grin on her face. Pink crop top and skintight jeans showed off her skin and figure, and she had light make-up on. Drop-dead gorgeous; it could drive any person at her mercy until they found out what kind of person she really was.

“What are you doing here?” I asked, growling. “Who gave you permission to be here?”

She rolled her eyes at me and crossed her arms across her chest.

“Seriously, cuz? For once, can’t you be happy to see me?”

“No.”

“Where’s Aunty J?” she asked, leaning on the frame.

“How did you get in?”

Right after the attack, she was suddenly paying a visit?

I didn’t buy it. She wasn’t allowed within the territory, so how did she get this far without anyone apprehending her? “You’re banned from the territory.”

“Am I? Your guards didn’t think so,” she replied, making quotation marks in the air with her fingers as she said “guards”.

I growled. Nobody insulted my warriors.

She eyed me up and down then scoffed. “What happened to you?”

My stomach was wrapped in bandages and I had bruises and cuts all over. I raised a brow at her.

“Don’t act like you don’t know. I asked you a question, Salina. I expect an answer,” I said, getting up and walking over to her.

“Aunty J missed me, and I missed her. Guess who asked me to come over?” she said, raising her brow higher. “If she’s in the kitchen, I hope you don’t mind me waiting for her. I’ll also be staying for a couple of days… or a week. I don’t have any plans on leaving anytime soon.”

The pack knew about my Mom’s condition. She was her usual self in front of them, but within these walls, she needed help. While Sarina’s death affected all of us, she took it hardest. Mom saw Sarina in Salina, and just like me, she treated my cousin as a little girl. They were close like they were mother and daughter and I had no problem with it, but it wasn’t healthy for her.

The more time Salina spent with Mom, she became convinced that Sarina was still alive. At times, I caught her calling my cousin Sarina and asking for Salina instead. I thought it was an honest mistake the first time it happened, but it was occurring more frequently recently.

“You shouldn’t be around her,” I said, grabbing her wrist but she pulled her arm back. “You have to leave now.”

She had to go before Mom found out she was here. However, I was too late for I heard Mom yell from below.

“Rigel Axia Johnson! Why is the front door open, young man?”

Salina smirked at me and said loudly, “Hi, Aunty J! Guess who’s here?”

My mom shrieked in excitement.

I had to cover my ears.

“Sarina? Is that you?”

There she was again. This bitch was aware, and she was letting it happen!

“Don’t,” I warned, glaring at her.

“I’m not what you think of me, Rigel,” she spat as she turned around and went down the stairs.

“Aunty, it’s me, Salina!” she whined. “You didn’t miss me at all!”

My mom laughed. Only Salina could make her laugh right now. I was spending more and more of my days and nights out of this house just to get away from her. It was just the two of us, but she never smiled or laughed around me. Since I took after my Dad, the more I grew, the more she was reminded of him. It should explain why her eyes never lit up the way they did whenever Salina was around.

“Should we tell Liam?” asked Rain.

To be honest, I didn’t know. “What do you think?”

“It’s too much of a coincidence,” he replied.

“Agreed.”

“So how do we do this?” he asked, wagging his tail.

I locked the door and went to the window; pulled myself up then jumped right out. My feet landed on the grass. They were talking and giggling in the living room. Now was my chance. I sneaked over to the next house before speed walking it out of there.

“Can’t you heal me faster?” I asked, annoyed that the wound was throbbing now.

“Wolfsbane, man. You should blame yourself for your hero syndrome.”

“You’re fucking lazy. And I don’t have a hero syndrome,” I retorted.

I eventually reached the mansion. Hopefully, this wouldn’t end up like that morning. I shrugged at the memory.

Why bring it up now!

I found Anna and Liam in the dining room. They stopped talking at my arrival.

“Rigel!!!” Anna screamed as she pushed back her chair and excitedly ran over to me. She hugged me tightly as she jumped up and down, rubbing herself on my front.

“I haven’t seen you all day! How’s your wound?” she asked, pulling away, ignoring the growling Alpha.

I smirked at him. He glared back. It was always fun to annoy him.

“I’m doing well, princess. Do you mind if I join you for lunch?”

“Not at all!” she said.

She grabbed my arm and led me to sit on the chair beside her. Liam glared at me as she fixed me a plate of vegetable stew. She even got me a glass of pomegranate juice.

She’s sweet.

“Thank you, princess. You didn’t have to do this,” I said, ruffling her hair.

“I don’t mind,” she replied. “I’d like to do something for my knight too.”

By this time, Liam was silently drinking from his glass.

Anna got up from her chair, saying, “Oh, grow up, will you?” then moved beside him to place a kiss on his cheek before quickly sitting back down.

She just shut the Alpha up and made him blush.

Now that’s a sight you don’t see every day.

“Should’ve brought my phone,” I said, fake sighing.

Giggling, she reached up and kissed my cheek too.

“I’m glad you’re back, Rigel,” she said, smiling up at me.

I smiled back at her.

“Get the fuck out,” Liam said in a mind-link.

It was more fun with the two of them around. I should’ve left the house sooner. I learned to my side to whisper something in her ear and she giggled.

Then we both started eating as nothing had just happened.

Liam glared at us. If a glare could kill…

When we were done, Liam asked me to go with him to his office. Anna gave me a worried look. I winked at her. Standing, I ruffled her hair as I said, “I’ll see you later, princess.”

She nodded.

Once in his office, Liam sat on his chair and took a deep breath.

“Happy?”

“Yeah. I was bored back at the house. It’s fun hanging out with you two. I might do it more often,” I replied, plopping down on a chair opposite him.

“Goddess, when will you grow up…” he said, sighing.

“Beats me,” I said, shrugging. I was in my late twenties now. Werewolves usually found their mate by eighteen. Then again, having a mate would cost me my freedom so I was just fine with things as they were now. Also, there was too much shit that went into relationships.

“Why are you here, Rigel? Last I heard, you were grounded.”

“Grounded?” I asked, sounding annoyed.

He chuckled. “Yeah, grounded. Your mom’s been telling everyone since this morning. You’re trending again.”

Fuck, that’s fucking embarrassing.

“Where’s Gale at?”

“Doing what you’re supposed to,” he answered.

I really was covered for now.

“So, what are you here for?”

“Salina’s at the house,” I replied.

His brows furrowed as he leaned forward on his table.

“Fuck,” he said, turning his head to the side. “She’s banned! How did she get in?”

He was barely keeping it together because this was my Mom.

“Mom invited her over.”

“What about the guards?” he asked. “Goddess, Rigel, we just had an attack! We already talked about this.”

“I know, I know,” I said, trying to calm him down. “I’ll ask her to leave but let her stay with my Mom for now. She’s been missing her lately.”

Liam sighed. I knew this was difficult to ask of him, and as much as I didn’t like her presence, it was the only thing I could do for my Mom right now. Until we had concrete evidence that the Blue Moon Pack was involved in the attacks and that Alpha Myron planned to poison Liam, Salina was in a way, neutral.

Fuck! Something about this whole thing didn’t settle well with me. Everything about this and that bothered me.

His swivel chair turned.

“Two days, one night. Nothing more,” he said. “She’ll be tailed for the duration of her stay and a kilometer from the borders when she leaves. I’ll take care of the guards.”

“Thanks, Liam,” I said, getting up.

“It’s for Aunty J. As much as I don’t want to do this to her, she has to accept that she can’t entertain Salina within the territory, again. If she wants to meet her, she has to do it outside the pack lands,” he said firmly. “I’m sorry, Rigel. I can’t risk it.”

“It’s more than what I hoped for. Thank you for doing this,” I said, and I meant it.

“Now get out of here. Hearing you thank me is sickening.”

Laughing, I left his office and went out of the mansion. It was peaceful again. The tension in the air was gone and the stench of death cleared off. I could hear the warriors training, and there were children playing hide and seek in the woods near the mansion.

The pack was recovering. They had their own tasks and I had mine. Sighing, I disappeared into the woods, into the opposite direction of where the children were playing. A sudden gust of wind came from their direction, carrying with it the scent of arousal.

It’s fucking mid-afternoon for Goddess’s sake!

I mind-linked my team. The wound was healing, but other wounds needed treatment.

I sighed. There was much work to be done. I might need a certain form of… relaxation.