Beautiful Omega

Four

The house was deathly silent for the first time in a while.

Grey had taken the other wolves to patrol the territory. They still did not know how the female had been left in the forest or where the possible intruders that brought her crossed the border. Half of the group were in full wolf form, and Blake could feel the apprehension within them all from the possibility of a fight. Uncertainty lingered in the others however as they searched for any more strays that may have been left in the underbrush.

Blake had been left behind in the house to guard Cole and the female that he now treated in one of the lower rooms of the house. He had not bothered to go to the room though, his mind remained too muddled from the lake. The possibility of another mate was too confusing for him.

From his perch on the balcony railing, Blake could see the other two wolves that had been left behind roaming around the house. One was a tall wolf with sleek grey fur that seemed to glimmer beneath the late evening light, the other wolf was smaller with a coat of dark bronze.

Blake twirled the ring around his finger absently, the smooth carved wood gliding easily. It had been a gift from Grey before they had fully realized the bond between them. He glanced down at the ring, seeing the familiar and comforting scenery of trees and a sole wolf carved into the polished surface. His mate had a matching one, that hung around his neck by a simple string.

"I figured you would be out here moping around."

Blake lowered his hand and looked up suddenly to see Cole leaning against the threshold of the door with his arms crossed. His dark hair had been pushed behind his ears, with the silver dog tag around his neck catching the glint of sunlight. He never explained why he wore it, but Blake could feel a distinct enough feeling from it that it was something highly personal.

"I'm not moping," Blake huffed.

Cole crossed the balcony to lean against the railing beside him.

"Is she awake yet?"

"No. She's still downstairs resting, but it could be any minute now that she wakes up," Cole said.

Something about the answer did not feel comforting to Blake as he thought it would. He began to fidget with the ring again.

"Of course when she wakes up, there'll be a shitstorm to deal with."

Blake looked at Cole again, who was staring off towards the treeline in the distance.

"The pack hasn't seen a female member since Grey's mother. . . well you know."

"Yeah," Blake said lowly. He remembered the summer the sickness came down from the north after a border skirmish. It had ravaged their pack indiscriminately in much the same as others on the continent, striking down anyone who came into contact with it. Females had been especially vulnerable to the sickness, causing many of them to flee the pack for their own safety. What remained now of Bloodlust was nothing more of a gaggle of young and untrained wolves that all depended on Grey and in some ways him as well.

"Her waking might stir up some - primal feelings within some of the other guys. Who knows how many would want to claim her for themselves if they can-"

"Grey wouldn't allow it," Blake said firmly.

"They're young Blake," Cole pressed. "They won't have the same sense of loyalty as a mature wolf. They're already doubtful within you and Grey as is, I know you can feel it."

Blake mulled over Cole's words. There was no way he could outright deny his statement, he had felt doubt even at the lake.

"And what of you Cole? Do you feel the same as them," Blake asked. Agitation had now seized his insides, but he kept his voice even as he spoke. "Are you going to stake a claim on her when she wakes?"