My friends are just watching the conversation like a tennis match. If I was on the outside looking in, I would probably find it very funny.
“In all honesty, you don’t know. But, I have clearly been looked into by Warrior Osisten, the Alpha King and whoever else handles all of that and been found to be trustworthy for this job. If you don’t agree with the decision, I suggest you take it up with that team. I will continue to follow orders.” I stood up and grabbed what’s left of my food. I know I need to finish it, but I’m done talking to her and she won’t leave so I have to.
I grab the shaker bottle from my bag too so I can take it into the kitchens to Stella and Jack and take up just a little more time. When I get back to the table Lillian has my bag and all my friends are waiting for me, Lillian has a big sh*t eating grin on her face.
“You should have seen her after you walked off and basically dismissed her. She isn’t done trying to imply that you shouldn’t be here. She’s just mad because she isn’t the favorite she thought she was. She’s had a bit of a hero worship problem with Warrior Brogen and sticks to him like a shadow. He has never treated her any differently, even as a team leader, she’s treated the same as the rest of them, I just don’t think she sees it.”
“It is a little weird though,” Nathaniel says as we start walking back out to the open space behind the bunkhouse. “It’s almost like she has a crush on him, but that’s impossible with the brand. We don’t get any of those emotions. Love, lust, infatuation, desire of any kind is overridden by the warrior brand. No one dates here, no secret hook-ups. We just don’t get those desires at all. We can’t afford to have the drama that relationships can cause, especially being with each other twenty four seven.”
“Maybe it’s from before she got her brand. She remembers him saving her, it could be just that, hero-worship.” I say. “Does anyone know anything about her pack or what happened? Maybe she lost her mate. If she was eighteen, it could have been shortly after finding him and she transferred her feelings in her grief and that’s the last of that type of emotion she remembers.”
“It still doesn’t excuse the way she keeps treating you, so stop trying to make me feel bad for her.” Lillian snaps playfully at me.
“I’m not. I just want to get to the bottom of it. I can’t control how she acts, but if I understand why she acts that way I can control my reactions and responses.”
“Are you sure you’re only fifteen? That sounds like something my mom would say.” Nathaniel laughs.
“When you spend a lot of time teaching pups, you learn to look at the bigger picture and not react emotionally, no matter how bad you want to. I won’t give anyone control over my emotions. It’s the one thing that no one can take from me, my control on how I react.”
He’s saved the necessity of responding when Warrior Nickolas steps in front of us. “We are sparring as wolves today, so we won’t divide like we normally do. We are working on evasion and submissions today. There should be no injuries. The goal is to capture your opponent with no way for them to escape or need medical attention from you. You should always have at least one person to interrogate, especially when they are attacking. Head to the green and Warrior Brogen and I will divide you up.’
We all start moving and I can feel myself start to get anxious. This means I will have to change in front of these people and I don’t want to have to answer any questions. I can feel my breathing pick up as we move closer to the open space he called the green.
