Beyond the Curtain

21 | rule 14

He inhaled. "I have, back when I was first bitten. My brother heard about the pack through word of mouth and thought bringing me here would be redemption for what led me to be a werewolf in the first place."

"I remember." I tapped a finger on my lip. "That you said becoming a werewolf was part of the price of traveling with your brother. Did he—"

I stopped talking when I saw two distant figures emerge from the base of the mountains, right around where Rowan said the den was situated. At my abrupt change, Rowan turned around and looked behind his back. Immediately, a smile emerged on his face. He motioned for me to follow him as we met our incoming welcome party halfway.

A woman, not much younger than myself, stood beside a stocky man. From their similar rounded noses, brown hair, and brown eyes, I could tell they were related. The genes within their blood ran strong.

Despite the arctic-like temperature, the two of them were dressed in loose fitting coats. Their feet were bare as they crunched their way to meet us. I tried to normalize the rapid pitter-patter of my heart, but each new site I set my eyes on had my heart rate skyrocketing.

"Rowan," the man nodded his head in approval. "Long time no see. I wasn't quite sure you didn't get gobbled up by some bear when you left us last."

"You forget I am an Alpha, Malakai," Rowan breathed, running his hands over his bare arms.

"I have not known you as such," Malakai responded, tapping his foot in the snow. "And who—" Malakai turned toward me. "Is this?"

A small smile traveled its way up the woman's delicate lips as she said, "I know you said you did not have enough time to give me all the details, but I'm sure you could have told me you found your mate, Rowan."

Rowan chuckled, rubbing his hands over his exposed arms. "I didn't want to ruin the surprise."

The female Alpha turned toward me. "He's the worst at surprises, isn't he?"

My face heated—even in the freezing cold temperatures—as I nodded. A bit of an unknown emotion burrowed in my stomach. This female Alpha knew Rowan, maybe better than I did, and I couldn't quite figure out how I felt about it.

"The absolute worst."

"I'm Hana." Her smile grew bigger as she stretched out her hand. I accepted her firm handshake. "And this is my older brother, Malakai."

"Beta Malakai, at your service." He tipped his head. "Hana here likes to forget the Beta part of my title, as you've just heard."

"That's Alpha Hana to you," she corrected with wide eyes.

Malakai rolled his eyes and whispered, "Just because I let you have the title of Alpha does not mean you need to rub it in my face."

"Let me have it?" She shook her head, crossing her arms over her chest.

"You know what I mean," he exasperated, pressing his foot down into the ground in defiance.

Releasing a hefty sigh, Hana reoriented herself and said, "I apologize for my brother" She looked in Rowan's direction. Turning toward me, Hana asked, "Now, I apologize again, but I didn't catch your name."

"Olive."

"Well, Olive, welcome to Yukinawa," she beamed, motioning around the landscape. "It doesn't look like much, but we pride ourselves on our survival instincts."

Taking a tentative step forward, I asked, "I have to ask because I can't be sure Rowan wasn't lying to me—" I gave him a playful glare. "But do you all really live in a den? With no bathroom?"

Hana laughed, her chest rising up and down. Her short hair had been pulled back with a piece of twine, which was unraveling at the seams. Hana readjusted the coat over her chest, turning her face to the side to try and hide her grin.

Malakai, on the other hand, puffed out his chest, folding his arms over one another. "I've been telling her to build an outhouse for months now, but she doesn't listen to me. Being Beta means nothing in this pack," he remarked, throwing his hands in the air.

Shaking her head, Hana responded, "Please, forgive his dramatics. He likes to entertain, but he's not wrong. We don't have an outhouse. Our den has all we need, and nature provides the rest. I take it Rowan did not tell you as such before coming all this way?"

"I didn't find it pertinent," Rowan gruffed, rubbing his hand over his chin.

"Of course not." Hana blinked, eyes dilating. "It's no matter really, Olive. I'm sure you'll get into the swing of things in a short time. Most wolves delight in going back to the ways of old."

"I—" I bit my tongue. "I wouldn't be so sure."

Hana squinted. "What makes you think so? Your wolf will surely adjust to the cold within a few days."

Malakai added, "Or weeks."

Wincing, I said, "I don't know if that applies to me. I'm, well, I'm not connected to my wolf."

Hana's eyes dilated into large saucers, and her body instinctively leaned forward. "Rowan," she scolded, her words hot. "You didn't think this was important information either, I take it?"

"It's the reason I brought her here," he explained, bracing himself for a verbal impact.

Pacing side to side, she said, "You know this is dangerous. I don't want her blood on my hands, Rowan."

"My blood?" I asked without pause.

Stopping her pacing to throw a half-hazard smile my way, she continued to pace, her hand stationed at the edge of her chin. "What you are—what you've done, suppressing your wolf—is a dangerous thing. Rowan should have known—"

"Hana," Rowan's voice strained. "She's my mate."

"And—" She looked expectantly at Rowan before she continued. "I assure you I would not like to have your mate's blood on my hands and don't look at me like that. I know you're going to try and bring her wolf to the surface. It's dangerous business."

"Her blood won't be on your hands," he gulped. "It will be on mine."

"Heroic," she muttered. "But her blood will still be shed on my territory, and I don't want that, Rowan."

"She'll make it through," he snarled. "I'm assured of it."

"I can't say I hold your same confidence. No offense, Olive, but I have never seen a situation like this end in the human's favor. Rowan, after—"

"We don't need to bring up the past," he chided, stretching his limbs. "All we can do is learn from the past and make better decisions because of it."

She paused to think, stopping in her tracks. She closed her eyes before looking back at Rowan with a slight nod. "Very well, but her blood will rest on your shoulders. I will try to do the best I can—as a friend—but I cannot make any promises."