Julia's Pack.

Chapter 13 - Storms

Julia stared at Susan for a long time, blinking, waiting for this bad dream to end. But Susan's white face didn't fade, no monkeys came to swing across the room or something weird and dream like, and Julia lay there a long time. Susan came to sit on the bed, inhaling slowly, probably aware that Levi slept here. She saw it, this flash of fear and grief cross Susan's face, and felt it flare in herself too.

So it was real then. The boat had really gone missing.

“What do you mean?”

“We have to talk in the Alpha study.” But Susan didn't want to leave this scent, this smell of her son, Julia knew. She understood. They sat there a long time. Julia's heart thudded painfully in her chest, brain twisting over this, fear creeping over her as the wind made the windows shake and flashes of lightning hit the ocean and the island.

“Let's go talk then.” She said quietly. Tried to get out of bed, tried to leave Levi's smell and Oliver's fading scent, the two of them heading downstairs quietly.

Julia felt her head start to pound as she started outside, like something was trying to crack it into two, the wind, rain and thunder really going for it now. She didn't dress, just tugged some of the gumboots on, and tied her hair back. She grabbed the front door, Susan helping, as the wind tried to blow it away and the two of them shoved it closed.

They hurried through the garden, roses swinging around, snagging on PJ and the wetness making the dirt muddy. They slipped into the Pack Hall and Julia threw her muddy shoes to one side as did Susan.

“He's in the study.”

Julia nodded. Susan had to mean Randy. Even if he wasn't officially the Alpha she knew his role made him more or less apart of this kind of thing anyway. Pack Protector and Pack Enforcer roles tended to mix and merge a little bit. With Tim, the official Pack Protector, on the mainland it meant that Randy acted a little as Pack Protector.

Randy already had food out and they sat there in the warm study, the thunderstorm raging, his computer running.

“So what do you mean, the boat's gone? They left before lunch. Long before a storm.” Julia took a pepsi. She wasn't hungry but she was tired and this should help. She stared at him and then at Susan. “Doesn't it have GPS anyway?”

“Yes, it should have.” Randy was sitting at the computer. He frowned. “But there's nothing. No signal. Tim sent an email around dinner time saying that there was no sign of the boat. There's still no sign of the boat, he's sending half hourly updates, so they've set the kids up in your house on the mainland. Crowded but it works.”

Julia felt panic flood her, threatneing to take away logic, threatening to take away any ability to think. They'd not asked her to come here as Julia, Levi's wife. They'd wanted her here as Alpha. Right? Or else they'd have all the families in a meeting. She breathed in, slowly, and out, using her breathing to try and calm down the panic. It smelt like Susan was struggling to be 'Beta' and not 'Levi's mom and Andy's wife' as well.

“Susan, you should try breathing. Count to three, breathe in, count to five, breathe out. It's what meditation uses to help keep relaxed.” Julia muttered. Susan blinked at her but she went to stare at the computer.

“This is where the GPS was last.”

“So halfway there.”

Randy nodded. He glanced over his shoulder at Julia. “You're surprisingly calm.”

“Well, you wanted Alpha, didn't you?” She hadn't quite yet figured out how to do the 'Voice' and the 'Face' but she could at least put on calm. Julia's teeth grinded against each other, slowly, still trying to make her breathing go slow and calm. Oliver wasn't here. Levi was ...no, she corrected herself, Pack was missing. Levi was missing too, sure, but she had to focus on the bigger picture.