Chapter 81: Career Paths.
Yara.
Haynes congratulations party was wonderful. The happiness in the pack is contagious and everyone laughed and enjoyed themselves. It feels like the bonds that weave a pack together are strengthening and the pack itself is becoming stronger because of it.
I was even more excited when Charlie and Noelle pulled Warren and I aside to tell us that they are expecting and that they wanted to announce it at the party.
“Do you mind waiting until the pack ceremony?” Warren asked.
“No, we can wait. I think,” Charlie says, smiling at Noelle. He looks like I feel, ready to burst with the news. And apparently, I already did. “But is there a reason you don’t want us to add to the celebratory feeling tonight?”
Warren had smiled down at me.
“What?” Noelle gasped, reaching out to take my arm. “You’re…?”
I nod excitedly and we’d hugged, doing a strange jumping, rocking motion while we hugged and our mates just smiled at us.
“You’re good with both of us announcing together?” Warren asked Charlie.
“I hope you’re planning a HUGE celebration. This pack is going to go nuts!”
Warren’s happiness and excitement had rippled through the bond. I love feeling my mate so happy. “How about Noelle and I take care of the party arrangements and you two do. whatever you do,” I tell them.
Warren smiled at me, then looked at Charlie. “I guess we’ll get Haynes and do ‘whatever we do’.” “Yeah, whatever that is,” Charlie smirked, winking at his mate.
I looked at Noelle who raised an eyebrow. “Running the pack?” she asks.
“Managing the finances?” I add.
“Keeping us safe?”
“Keeping our warriors strong?”
“Keeping us fed,” she and I begin counting off all the things our mates do for us and the pack.
Warren pulled me to him. “I’m pretty sure it’s OUR mates who keep our pack strong, but the rest…yeah. And let’s not forget our most important job.”
“What’s more important than the pack’s safety?” Noelle asks.
“Loving our mates,” Charlie says.
“Making sure we give them pups,” Warren says.
“Making sure they’re always happy.”
“Making sure they always have flowers.”
“Making sure they know they are more important to us than anyone.”
Noelle and I begin laughing. “Okay, okay. Damn, you two. You should have been brothers.”
“We’re brothers from different mothers,” Charlie says, smiling.
“Let’s go, bro. Let’s go find our little bro and harass him,” Warren says.
“YES! That’s what big brothers do,” Charlie says, excitedly.
Noelle and I watch them walk off to find Haynes.
“Is it me, or is their happiness intoxicating?” I ask.
“I feel like I’m getting high on it,” she murmurs.
The next couple of days go by in a blur. Since there’s no one in the hospital, I do inventory, showing everyone how to check the supplies, and we make a list of what we need. I have Anna call Savannah to find out who we order from and then have her put in the order for more medical supplies.
Right now, things are good. But we have one more Alpha to destroy and I know Warren is going to talk to Harold this weekend about taking Brady out. There’s no way our pack will walk away unscathed, so I want to be prepared and ready for anything.
While we’re there, pack members come and go, finally able to bring in pups who have scaped knees or have gotten splinters in the hands and feet. Pregnant she wolves who want to get their unborn pup
checked and other minor, everyday reasons that a pack needs a medical facility.
I
I keep Noelle by my side and I realize that if this becomes our norm, I will be able to go back to school. Maybe, since Noelle is just starting her classes, we can work it so that one of us is always available in case someone needs us. With that in mind, she and I sit down and research online medical courses, focusing on werewolf facilities that are more likely to let us do our practical work in our packs rather than at the university.
Piper has also shown an interest, but in nursing, as has Anna. So, the four of us look at classes and I have the three of them sign up. I’m waiting until after the war to make sure that I’ll have time to give to continuing my education.”
When Katie and Erica hear about the classes, they also want to join, although, Katie decides to wait another semester so that her pup is a bit older before she starts.
“Luna, you realize we’re going to have the largest, most well-trained medical team, possibly in the country?” Noelle says.
I stop and look at her. “You’re right.”
“You know, many packs need medical professionals. I don’t know what it’s like everywhere else, Luna, but here, we could provide them with hands-on training, especially for doctors. We could charge them for the service, maybe have them come a week at a time, monthly or quarterly, so they could learn with us, like what you’re doing with me. It would be a great way to increase the income of the pack and make a name for ourselves. We both know that the universities can’t give doctors the same experience that we’re getting here.”
breaks
“And sparring accidents happen all the time. There’s always someone who dislocates something, so no matter when they came in, we’d have medical needs. We could even rotate and have students coming in every week. We’d have to figure out the limit, we wouldn’t want too many at once because then they wouldn’t get the hand’s on training they need, but…that’s a fantastic idea.”
We looked at the hospital layout and realized that the side of the building where both Piper and I were attacked is unused, even during wartime.
“This could be our classroom area and teaching area,” Noelle says.
I nod, picturing it in my head.
You don’t have to talk to me about it. If you want to do it, just do it,’
Warren’s voice filters into my mind. He’s always listening in to my thoughts. I wonder if he knows I
accidentally told Bradley and Anna about our pup.
‘Of course I know, baby. You mumble all the time, it was inevitable. But you haven’t done it so much that the secret is out and we’ll be telling the pack this weekend, so we’re good,’ he says, and I can feel him chuckling.
‘I’m glad you’re not angry.’
I know my mate, and I love you and your mumblings,’ he says, before closing the link.
“Warren says to do it. Once Brady is gone, let’s figure it out and talk to the university about partnering with them.”
“EEEK! I’m so excited!” Noelle says, and honestly, I am too. This isn’t exactly what I thought my career path would be, but I like it. It feels good to know that I can help others gain the skills they need to keep their packs strong.
On Friday, Alpha Harold, Alpha Henry, and Farrah arrive. From the moment they step out of the car, I can tell they can feel the happiness in our pack. As I said, it’s contagious, but it’s also something that these packs, our packs, haven’t had in our lifetime.
“Welcome to our pack. We’re very glad to have you,” Warren says.
I say hello to Alpha Harold and Alpha Henry, but my focus is on Farrah, the woman who saved my life so I could have this life.
I walk up and take her hands in mine. “It’s good to see you again, Farrah.”
She looks almost embarrassed with my attention. “Thank you, Luna. It’s nice to be back, especially under different circumstances.”
I notice that she isn’t wearing a new mark, but she’s here, and I take that as a good sign. I loop my arm through hers and lead her inside.
When we step inside, I see everyone milling around, working to prepare for our pack ceremony and celebration tomorrow.
“Attention everyone!” I say, getting the pack’s attention and waiting until the room is quiet. I hear Warren, Harold, and Henry walk in behind us.
“For those of you who don’t know, this is Farrah,” I say turning to look at her. She gives me a look like she’s worried about what I’m going to say. From the corner of my eye, I see Harold take a step forward as if he’s coming to protect his mate, but Warren puts a hand on his arm, holding him back.
“I wanted all of you to know that this is the woman that helped me escape from Simon. She put herself at risk to free me and then she guided me to Alpha Harold’s pack so that Warren could get to me. I’m sure you all would have found me eventually. Of that, I’m positive. But Farrah got to me before Simon could do anything more than leave a few bruises on me. I wanted all of you to know that this is woman who is responsible for bringing me back to you.”
As I knew they would, the pack presses forward, thanking Farrah for what she did, letting her know how much they appreciate her and if there is ever anything that they, or we as a pack, can do to repay her, we will.
I step back, letting the love of my pack embrace Farrah.
“I didn’t do anything,” she says softly, tears starting to fall.
As Harold walks up to stand behind her, lending her his strength, Warren wraps his arms around me, and
our pack assures her that she gave them back one of their greatest gifts and that we will always
remember and be thankful what she did for us.