THE MAN clutched a little girl to his chest tightly. Both of them disheveled and covered in muck and grime. Covering them from head to toe. Their features covered with it. All that were seen from them was their white eyes, wide with fear. There were enough chairs for all of them to be comfortable, but they chose to sit on the one. Abagail had even pointed out that they could sit in either seat, but had met with fear and silence.
Abagail kept her face stoic, void of expression, as she sat infront of them. First the Beta gets a feel of the situation, and then the Alpha steps in. Abagail was in here alone, for as long as she needed, before she brought Caden in.
The man had pale eyes and a haunted expression, clutching the wide-eyed five year old against him. Abagail offered the small girl a smile, her only break in stone cold character, she waved shyly back. Her father tightened his arms around her.
"I... I know we trespassed on your lands but we didn't mean to. If you would just let us go..." he trailed off. His voice shaking. He seemed to suddenly notice her age. He turned the five-year-olds gaze away from her, pressing her head into his chest. Sheltering her.
"I am Beta-in-line Abagail, our patrol said you were running from something, what was it?" Abagail asked, proffessionally nice. She rested her arms on the table, leaning forward. Both respectful but authorative. She had done interrogations like this at least fifty times, by herself and with others. Watching, and learning. Fear stuck out in his eyes, his heart beat quickening.
"Nothing... It was nothing," He lied poorly, his gaze flicking to the two way mirror. His daughter yawned, rubbing her eyes, trying to cuddle into his grip. She was tired, they both were.
But Abagail needed to ask these question, now.
"For the sake of my pack, and your child, what was chasing you?" Abagail pressed, staring with an authoritative intensity. She wasn't the Alpha's right hand man for nothing. She was as strong willed as any Alpha.
Again the man was reluctant, but Abagail was getting close, because he was holding his weakness to his chest just across the table from her.
"Nothing," He whispered, staring into his daughters eyes. The five year old stared up at him.
"Sir, I do not like having to ask this question over and over again. Because when I am finished with you and your offspring, you will be let free with a warning to never cross our borders without permission," Her voice rung with that hardened authority. It leaned a little away from nice to just plain proffesional. Almost the tone of an Alpha. She had picked up on it when living with Caden and his family. That was how she kept her position. "That means going back out there," Panic. He panicked.
"Hunters. Hunters that used to work with the Wolf Killer. They... They're only killing rogues," the man ranted. He was absolutely terrified. The little girl caught on, clutching her Fathers shirt tighter, tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "They won't attack packs, too big for them. They're picking us off."
"That's what they all say," She said with a sigh, leaning back in her chair. "Why are you in our territory?"
"I... I was just running with Jessie. We were so scared, when I crossed the border it was too late," He ranted. His heart beat was again erratic. Jessie moved in his arms, obviously sensing her Father's uneasiness. It was working her up, too.
"I'm going to have to ask you to calm down," She warned, sliding the bottle of water towards them. Trying to comfort them.
"Please don't kill us," He begged. It seemed her previous words had gone over his head. They would let him and his daughter go, they were not a threat. She needed to reassure that.
"Don't give us a reason to," She answered, watching his groveling stop, his grip on his daughter tighter. Abagail was surprised she was still breathing. She was not good at the nice proffessional.
"How old are you?" Jessie piped up, moving in her Fathers arms to see the Beta. She blinked with thick eyelashes up at her, lashes still wet.
"I'm seventeen," She answered, trying to sound appealing to the child. She watched both their reactions. Jessie seemed in awe, while her Father was in dread. Dirt caked and crusted both their faces, eyes still wild and anxious from their previous chase. "Is there any other information?" She tried to press, when they didn't answer.
"They... They answer to someone named Zedd. That's all we know," He said, hiking his daughter further up his leg as she yawned. Abagail could see the silent demand, he was trying to keep her awake.
"Thank you, may I have both your names?" She asked. Picking up the sharpie whoever had left on the table, with a single piece of overused paper. She noticed a few male genitalia littering the pages, some even had speech bubbles, and dialogue. She didn't doubt this wasn't Caden's doing. Doodling, instead of listening.
"Anthon Montgomery, and Jessie, she has the same last name," He told her, rubbing at his eyes, the two were both tired. Too tired to be sitting in an interrogation room. "When can we leave? I have to find my wife."
"Where is your wife, Mr Montgomery?" She pressed, writing their names down in a free corner of the second hand page. She watched Anthon hesitate, his tired face was taunt, but he knew he had to admit.
"We were going to meet at the lake," He confided, gulping nervously. "Her name is Felicè," He gave her barely any information but she took whatever she could get.
"Because the Hunters are tracking you, the two of you will have to remain on our side of the borders as the problem passes. You will be sworn into the pack, provided with lodgings, a wage along with job opportunities. Your daughter will be instantly signed into a school of your choice, her education is important, after all. Anything else can be brought up at a later date," Abagail speeled, reciting everything she knew. Everything they promised and meant.
Jessie smiled at the mention of school, that caused Abagail nearly to blurt out a laugh. She was excited to hear about school. But Abagail could have laughed... Because the only reason the older girl went to school half the time was to be with her boyfriend.
"What?" Anthon demanded, blinking back as he absorbed the overload of information. "What about my wife?"
"I have men right now going to collect your wife and bring her to you," She answered, rising from her chair. Jessie smiled at her and Abagail was instantly reminded of her little cousins. But neither of them got up to follow.
Abagail stared at them, shifting for a moment. Her signal to hint that this was over apparently had gone over their heads.
"Why?" He croaked, watching the younger werewolf stare down at them both. "Is this a sick joke? My kind aren't welcomed or treated nicely in any pack," He spat, on the verge of tears. She had offered his daughter an education.
"As long as you don't pose a threat, you're just another werewolf," Abagail said, eyeing the man. With that, she walked out the room, leaving Jessie and Anthon in the capable hands of one of the older wolves. Who would do everything she promised them.
She could feel their stare as the door slowly closed behind her. Following her as she made her way out the hut. Stepping out into the now completely risen sun, she sighed. If only she hadn't spent so much time talking with everyone who had interviewed Anthon and Jessie. It wouldn't have taken her away from her mate from so long. Everyone who had interviewed the man and his daughter hadn't been able to get so much as a name from them. None of them could get the Rogues to tell them their names. But Abagail got them easily.
Beta-in-line gift, or perhaps she had been the only one to bring up the perks that came with joining their pack.
She should have just walked in, and did her thing. Not ask questions to the werewolves who were on guard, and those who had found them and brought them in. Yet, she wanted to study them through the one-way mirror, watching their reactions with Caden. Before she took it upon herself to sit in the room and wait.
But if she had just gone in there and gotten everything they needed to get done quicker, she could be waking up beside Daniel right now. Could have gone back to him and climbed into bed like she never left.
She had to stop thinking like that. Had to remind herself that they had forever now. That they weren't sneaking around and having to make up time with each other. They were together indefinitely.
There was no need to rush their time together.