From The Ashes.

Chapter 18

That night was one of the strangest ones in my memory. It was both one of the longest nights of my life and one of the shortest. It got to the point that when the door was finally pulled open and the dark oranges of sunrise leaked in that I wasn't at all sure that I'd slept a wink. Dot, Andrea and I were three of the last people to leave as Julie cried in my ear for her breakfast. As I stepped out of the room and into the dining hall, I was immediately met with a large black man who seemed incredibly agitated.

"Julie!" He dove forward and swept the baby from my arms with a relieved sigh. Sitting her on his hip, he smoothed her hair down with a small smile. "Thank you for looking after her, Dot." I felt a tug on my pants and looked down to take Codys hand. It didn't bother me that the man was thanking Dot exclusively, after all I was a stranger staying with his family during what was obviously a dangerous time. So, it surprised me when Dot suddenly rested her hand on my shoulder and smiled.

"Don't thank me, Tera kept her settled for the whole night." It was so unexpected that I couldn't help but blurt out.

"And Cody! He kept her amused several times last night." The man looked at me and Cody, who was hiding behind my legs.

"Oh! Sorry about that. Thankyou for looking after her." He smiled at me before hurrying over to a woman that had just come inside. It seemed they were both soldiers as she seemed just as exhausted as him.

"She should've taken some more time off." Dot said, frowning.

"You really expect someone like Dara to ignore the fact the pack needs everyone available?" Hana wrapped her arm around my waist, making us all jump as she grinned.

"Where the heck did you come from?" I exclaimed and they all laughed. Like the others coming in from outside, Hana looked positively exhausted, her skin pale and drawn as she yawned beside me.

"You should go to bed, we can bring food out to you." Dot said, nodding towards the extremely long dining table that was quickly being covered in what looked to be last minute meals. Hana shook her head, still midyawn.

"Nah, after last night I need to spend some time with my girls." I frowned and raised an eyebrow at her. She grinned and tugged on the end of my braid. "As long as you're involved with this pack, you're my girl." ANd, under her breath so only I could hear. "I know what it's like to be lonely." I looked down at her. I don't know if it was because she was so close or because I found myself looking for them but the raised black scars on the inside of Hanas dark brown wrists were suddenly as obvious as a pair of spotlights. However, I didn't say anything as Dot grabbed my hand and dragged all of us over to the table.

"I don't know about you guys but I'm starving." As soon as she said, the smell of cooking meat wafted towards me and my stomach gave a very loud growl of protest.

"Jesus, Tera, when was the last time you ate?" Hana asked as I lifted Cody onto the seat next to the table. I paused for a moment, resting my hand on his hair as I tilted my head in thought.

"Do you know, I don't think I've eaten anything since I got here." Hana, who was in the middle of climbing into her own seat on the other side of the table, and Dot both froze as they stared at me. Only then did I realise how bad that must have seemed. "With everything thats happened, I guess I forgot to eat for awhile." I shrugged, trying to defuse their suspicions. Dot and Hana looked at each other, exchanged looks and then shrugged.

"As long as you're okay-" Dot started.

"You should have told me." I spun around to find Zak standing behind me, his dark blue eyes filled with concern.

"It's fine-"

"No, it's not." He interrupted. I glared at him and he sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "All I mean is that if you need something, don't keep it to yourself. It's my job to make sure you're happy." Cody looked up at me and I frowned. I could have been wrong but looking at Zak I almost thought he felt guilty.