Watch Her
Nessa
The nursery at Blood Moon was attached to the school. If a building could be held together with love, that’s how I would describe it. When they rebuilt the pack, a lot of effort and pride went into this building. I could see Val and Anthony loving every minute of this project—well, of all the projects. Warmth touched it in a way I had never experienced before. Where I grew up was beautiful, yet sterile. Whoever built our palace wanted it to be grand. No one thought about the average citizen who would live there.
Anthony painted murals on every wall, painstakingly designed to bring calm to the children of Blood Moon. I felt his presence when I studied them. It was a side of him that only a few people at the palace ever got to see. A side I only knew from afar. People don’t want to think of the mighty alpha-king as having a soft, artistic side. Here, as alpha of Blood Moon, they adored him for it.
One of the teachers showed me around and gushed about how impressed she was by how much attention education was given. The pack she was part of before she went rogue almost twenty years ago did not bother. Apparently, she was one of the pack’s first teachers after it was rebuilt. In her opinion, coming here was the best decision she ever made. Her children grew up in a safe place, and all three were alive. Sadly, that was her bar for a good life.
All of the staff here were so grateful they were allowed to update books and technology at their discretion. Different people showed me around as I discovered each room. There were areas where the kids could put up artwork or papers in which they were proud. The playground looked safe, and all the equipment was updated on a regular basis to ensure any wear was kept to a minimum.
Of particular interest to me was the nursery. It was almost the size of the rest of the school. Everyone was friendly and cared about the babies a lot. None were dirty or neglected. They were actively engaged throughout the day, and each child had their designated area of the fridge to keep formula or breastmilk. Everything in the nursery was sanitized each evening, and the parents were expected to help on a rotating schedule. They also signed up to help during the day if they were able, based on other work they did around the pack. No one was exempt from it, no matter the ranking. According to one of the teachers, when the luna-queen and alpha-king were there, they each took a shift daily.
On paper, the place was perfect—a warm, inviting place any parent would want to send their child. However, there is no way in hell I am leaving Issac there all day.
As I walked back to the packhouse, my skin crawled thinking of him being without me all day. First of all, he would not get the attention he needed. I counted at least thirty children his age and only five people attending to them. That was not a ratio I was ready for, even though I found it acceptable.
My thoughts sound crazy and entitled, but with medication, I’m only halfway to my anxiety being under control. Second, what if Issac started to shift again? No one would be around to talk him out of it, as crazy as thinking it may be a problem felt. To take it a step further, what if he successfully shifted? Would he understand what happened to him? Did the people here know that Val’s and Anthony’s kids could do that? Third, would they care enough to save Issac if something happened and everyone needed to evacuate? He was not a member of the pack and half vampire. No one made it seem they would care, but I found that hard to believe. Anthony was a hybrid, and Walter wasn’t a wolf at all, but they earned the respect of the people. I had not, and the wolves were at war with the vampires. Why would they trust me? Publicly, I declared my intention to fight with them, but what if they didn’t see that?
If there was no other option, he could go. There might be times when I need extra help. Every day was excessive. Cayden was adamant he wanted me to stay here with Eliza and Issac, and while I should have argued, I didn’t. Because of that, I would be here and able to care for him. Not helping was hard, but someone had to be around to help protect the kids if something happened. I was willing to be that someone, which is why I had a gun permanently attached to my waistband. My daughter did as well, which made me feel so inadequate. My baby shouldn’t need to be militarized at such a young age. Cayden assured me it was common in wolves. Perhaps that’s why they have survived.
By the time I reached the house, everyone was back already, running around. It felt too early for them to have finished with the tunnels based on the distance they needed to dig to all the different kingdoms and territories. However, what did I know? This is the first time I have met a dragon.
“Cayden?” My eyes went wide, looking at my mate. He was covered in dirt and looked like someone had died. They weren’t supposed to be back until dinner. It was still barely lunchtime. The unthinkable was entirely possible. “What happened? Why are you back so soon?”
“Nessa.” He hugged me tight, nearly crushing our son between us. “You should go inside.”
“I-I was. But what is going on?”
“It’s Kassie.” Whatever happened, he was still processing. Getting it out of him clearly would take some time. Cayden loved his little sister. Anything happening to her would be another blow to his sanity. I hoped we wouldn’t be answering the question of how much he was capable of handling. Burying her in a tiny coffin would break this entire family.
“What do you mean it’s Kassie?” I thought she was here at the house, declining to go to art class to play with her brothers outside. If something went wrong, they knew to get an adult. They were young, but the little wolves could understand that much.
“She fell through the entrance of the Strygzi kingdom. Steven went to try and find her.”
“What?” I didn’t want to believe I heard that right. “Why was she near it? Who was watching everyone? I thought Ezra was here.”
“He went to training. Stephanie and Jax were watching but went inside for something and didn’t see them chasing a bird.”
“A bird?” That was ridiculous for them to do and get themselves in trouble. Anthony came toward the house carrying Val, who was passed out. “Is Val okay?”
“Her dad did something to get her to pass out. She’s not okay, but we couldn’t let her charge in. We already had to get her out once. We might not be so lucky the second time.” That was such a stupid question. I would have been scratching their eyes out to get to Eliza or Issac in this situation. Also, I know why they would knock her out and not let her go after her. They didn’t need to have two people prisoner.
“We need to get her before she wakes up. I can help Steven. They don’t know me well enough, and I’m a vampire. I could blend in.” There were places I could, but they couldn’t. I spent some time there going unnoticed. The right outfit would keep me hidden.
“Nessa, this is bad enough. I appreciate you saying that and even agree to some extent, but if you get caught, we will only compound the problem. You can help with the plan, though. You spent time there, and the information would be helpful if we needed to do something drastic.”
“Dad?” Eliza ran over, carrying a painting she did in her art class. She was getting quite good and looked so proud of it. This one was some abstract flowers. It reminded me of something you might see in a modern art museum. Maybe I could take her to some of my favorites when this all quiets down. “Do you like my painting?”
“It’s beautiful, Pup.” He hugged her tightly, swaying her slightly.
“Is everything alright?” Neither of us was hiding our worry well. She could see it all over our faces.
“Eliza, Kassie got lost. She is in the Strygzi kingdom.” She dropped the painting and started to cry, clinging to her dad.
“I-I can help. I-I-I’ve b-b-een there. The cells are in the basement. They kept us there. I remember the path in. She will be there too.”
“Eliza, we will bring Kassie home, but I need you to stay with Mom like we already discussed. If you go and get hurt, Kassie will never forgive herself.” For the rest of her life, that place would trigger her PTSD, yet she was willing to get her friend. I admired and hated that about her.
“A-and I’ll never forgive myself if I do nothing and they hurt her the way they did me! Y-you don’t know what it’s like for prisoners there.”
“I know we don’t, Eliza.” I brushed her hair with my fingers. She begged me with her eyes to let her go.
“But we know you getting hurt again doesn’t help anything.” Cayden was gripping her arms tightly, ready to pick her up if she tried to run off.
“She saved me once. Kassie would come for me.” She started biting her nails. A new habit she formed when things were tense. It was better than drinking, which was my preferred coping mechanism these days.
“And I would tell her to wait here and let me handle it.”
“Code silver.” Cayden let her go, and she wrapped her arms around my waist, desperate for comfort.
“Exactly. Come on inside? I think Mimzy and Anthony could use help with the younger pups while we figure this out.” I plastered on a smile to cover my panic. “You are an expert at it now. After their bedtime, maybe we can find a place to hang up your painting.”
“Everyone has their orders. These are yours.” Those were the words she needed from her father to convince her to focus on things here.
“I can do that.” We watched Eliza disappear into the house. The door opening for a moment revealed the tense energy. I almost didn’t want to go inside.
“I need you to watch her. I can’t have her running off and playing hero.”
“Do you think she would do that?”
“The night I told you she confronted Taro, I didn’t tell you the full story.” He looked guilty. “You were struggling so much. I didn’t want to add to it.”
“What does that have to do with this?” This conversation stopped making sense to me. So what if she confronted Taro? It made sense she would, and he deserved to get yelled at by someone. Cayden asked me to let it go for Ivan’s sake, but I didn’t forgive that man for a second.
“She held a gun on him, preparing to kill him to protect me and everyone else.” I could see it, and it horrified me. I would not care if Taro were killed, but I didn’t want Eliza to be the one who pulled the trigger.
“I will watch her. I promise.”
