Hunt

Chapter 50: A Forked Road

As we return to the others I'm pleasantly surprised to find that Nick and Natasha were interacting with the other members of the Silverlock pack. Laughing over a joke I didn't hear. But their conversations are cut short by our return as they quickly excuse themselves, approaching me quickly.

"What're your symptoms?" Natasha asks sternly, getting right to the point.

"I... uh..." I stammer, suddenly put on the spot.

"Dizziness, pain, loss of consciousness, an aversion to light. Does that sound about right?Reyna quickly asks me, to which I give a small nod.

Natasha shakes her head slowly, "It's sounding more and more like a concussion. He needs to get home. To rest."

"W-wait! Hold on!" I quickly say in protest, "There's too much—"

"Dammit Kyle you'll just get yourself or someone else hurt! Paul must've told you to not be a liability out in the field." Nick argues, shutting me up quickly. "Just take the vacation. You can't be here right now. We'll cover for you."

Our sudden and loud disagreement had drawn the attention of the crowd. A few familiar faces pop out to me as I finally grumble in agreement to Nick. "Fine..."

"I can take him home." Reyna volunteers quickly. "You two can get to work, we need to discern who is the best fit for certain roles..."

I lose the rest of the conversation as I'm quickly pulled off to the side by Nyx, who had been trying to get my attention for a while. "Hey Kyle. Have you got a second?"

"What's up?" I ask, trying to follow her gaze.

She turns her blue eyes to me. "It's about Reyna... I swore to protect her, to be there for her..."

I nod, "Her 'royal guard' right?"

"Y-yeah... that." She stammers, the smallest of blushes springing up in her cheeks. "Look. I know her very well. Maybe even better than her father does... anyways. She needs someone to lean on. Someone outside her family."

Furrowing my brow I shoot a glance towards Reyna. She was standing in the center of the crowd, giving orders to everyone, looking like a natural leader. "What're you getting at?" I ask.

"When the pack split apart it really got to her. More than anyone else. She really blames herself for what happened. She needs you more than you know." Nyx says, crossing her arms.

A sigh escapes my lips, "Look. I'm just here to help prepare the pack for a war..."

Nyx opens her mouth to reply but is cut short when Reyna calls out for me, signaling it was my time to go. I give Nyx a small nod before turning to leave. I couldn't be a therapist right now. Between my own issues and the problems at hand there aren't enough hours in the day to juggle it all.

"What was that about?" Reyna asks, gesturing about my conversation with Nyx.

I lie, "She was just checking up on me."

We remain silent for the entire walk to my car. It gave me some time to try to get my jumbled thoughts in order. Hard to believe how much happened in one day, yet I feel like that's been normal lately. So many events and emotions all bundled into what was really just a couple of short hours. We stop at the car, Reyna blocking me from the driver side door.

"Okay. Keys." Reyna orders with an outstretched hand.

I shake my head. "No. I can—"

"Like hell you are Kyle!" Reyna snaps, a growl audible in her voice. "Not a chance!"

Without the energy to continue to fight further, I begrudgingly begin digging through my pockets. Dropping the keys into her outstretched palm. Rounding the car I pull open the passenger door. Which is the weirdest feeling... Riding passenger in your own car.