Chrysalis (Book 1.5 in the Wolfen Brethren Series)

Grief

16 years old
Mai

"Hey, Neema" I called waving my fingers in her face to try and get her attention but she wasn't seeing me. Her hands were buried in her face as she looked on the brink of tears.

I could hear her murmuring under her breath, her words an unintelligible jumble. She was clearly distressed by something, her shoulders drooped low and her lids were wet with tears.

Roarke and Reina were toddling around on their fat little legs as their mamma had a midlife crisis. None the wiser to her turmoil. I almost found the situation funny if I wasn't genuinely worried about Neema. She never cried, well not in front of anyone unless it was happy tears and these were not happy tears.

"Hey mama what's wrong?" My fingers stroking through the mess her own fingers had created. I gently pulled the digits out as I continued to message her scalp. Slowly uncoiling every piece of matted and knotted hair she had.

"Come, on tell me what's up" I prompted, my fingers working out her tangles in a melodic motion. It was a meticulous process but I could see that it was having the desired affect on her. I could see her muscles unwinding and the tension melting from her shoulders.

She heaved a sigh as her deep brown orbs met mine, they were such expressive eyes.

"I'm pregnant" the good news sounded more like a death toll to my ears but I knew that she couldn't be feeling that way. She loved kids, she was like the poster woman for all things wolf, mate and child.

"Congratulations" my voice unsure if it was excitement or depression I should be channeling.

"It's not congratulations I need!" She was coming at me full force with her anger. I tried not to be offended but she was pretty intimidating when mad.

"I can't deal with another godamn child, I'm barely coping with the ones I have."

She was mad alright, cursing Khan under her breath. I didn't understand the issue but it was definitely hers to have. I was not getting involved in this storm waiting to happen.

"This couldn't have come at a worse time," she cried. My arms wrapped around her as I murmured my comforts.

They seemed to snap her out of whatever Khan missing funk she was in because she was back to being happy in no time.

"Ugh, Khan just needs to come home. I can't deal with him being in another continent."

I understood where she was coming from because Carson was also with Khan. They had gone to Africa to attend the World Regional Alpha Conference. It was being hosted in Mali this year, every year some African country hosted the conference mainly because they were least affected by the nuclear warfare of the old world.

They also had loads of natural resources that most up and coming countries needed. It made them the leading power in the world though the wolf committee were trying to stop that from being the case. It was a dangerous world when a select few countries held all the power.

Khan was there for longer because he was having issues with officially giving Jana his surname. Many wolves in the committee where against it.

It was a struggle that took Khan away from Neema longer than normal but I was glad because the same conference meant that Carson was gone as well.