Crimson Mist ✔️

20: The alarm goes off.

Uno's office is lighter than I imagined. All wooden, of course, but it's a light hue, contrasting the dark timber walls. It's cozy, with lots of pictures of his whole family on the walls, along with a few others I don't recognize. It's probably extended family, I guess, or close family friends I have yet to meet.

Michael and I are sitting on the chairs facing the large desk in the middle of the room, like we're in the middle of a job interview, or maybe an interrogation. It feels more like the latter, but at the same time, Uno makes me feel at home, as if he just wants to listen to our story and our explanation as to why an assumed extinct pack is now headed directly towards his home, where his very pregnant daughter, and already-born grandchildren are, with the very scary-sounding Alpha in the lead. Neither Michael nor I can explain how we so quickly gave up our location, but Uno has already applauded us for leading our pack here, where more people can protect us if anything goes wrong, instead of telling them where we were at that exact moment, alone and vulnerable.

At least like this, he feels like he can help us regain some control, and help us make it known that we're not full-blown members of the Gibbous pack yet. As far as I've understood, we have to complete our training, with every element of it being approved by our Alpha. Then we can be called Gibbous for real.

My nails pick on the studded edge of the armrest in my chair, as I await further instructions from the male wolf behind the desk. To his right is Paul, Tyler's dad. A well-built authority figure with blonde hair and icy blue eyes, making it really easy to see who his son is. To Uno's left is his eldest son, and my biggest fan, Nathan, with Trevor leaning against the far wall, arms and legs crossed like the laidback dude he is. He doesn't look like a man who is about to become a father, but his brother-in-law looks like his daughter is already coming home from her senior prom, drunk, with obvious bed-head and her bra over her arm. And I'm his beloved daughter's date..

"You don't know their names, either?" Paul asks, raising his eyebrow at both of us, as he stands there with his arms crossed.

"One of them told us her name was Jean," I answer, feeling a little out of place.

Paul nods, and I'm sure that tiny bit of information didn't do him any good at all. I see him stiffen a little bit, and Uno does too, so I know they're talking to each other. I wonder what they're discussing for a second, until Nathan clears his throat and steps forward.

"This just adds to what I've been saying all along," he says, and turns to his father. "Danielle should never have left that basement on her first day, she can't be trusted. She is clearly not mate material, for anyone, especially not my little bro-"

"Nathan," Uno growls loudly, staring angrily at his son. "That's enough. You are entitled to have your own opinion, but you're not the Alpha yet, I am. And I decide that Danielle and Michael are both under our protection, until we know their pack has good intentions."

"Dad, she forced him to go into Rogue territory, they were found, and let go. Rogues never let anyone go, one of them must have a foot on the other side," Nathan protests, shaking his hands in front of him as if he's showing us all some kind of evidence.

He has a point. After what I heard, and how we prepared for that trip with potions and healing-water, it felt odd that they just let us go like that. Something is up, and I don't like to think about how, what, when or where the repercussions are going to haunt us. I'm already nervous as hell for the meeting with my pack.

"She didn't force anyone," Uno states, "they all went of their own, free will. Now, moving on, we'll have to get ready for this. Since we know, we're at an advantage. We can increase the border patrols, and bring more wolves to guard our houses, just in case."