I stayed in wolf form until Opaline woke up the next morning and the nurse basically shooed me away. My mate begged for me to stay, but the nurse wouldn't have it, so I shifted in the bathroom, got dressed, and came back out. I almost laughed at the glare Opal gave the interfering nurse. When I sat beside her on the opposite side of the bed, my mate smiled at me, softening her face and had me pull her into my lap, keeping her arms tightly around my neck.
Klyn came in with a large box in hand, setting it on the bedside table and pulling out clothes, shoes, and toiletries for Opaline, who blushed when she saw the underthings he had picked out. I glared at Klyn, who only chuckled and threw everything in the box again and put it in the bathroom. I held Opal for a while longer until Truent came in.
He didn't take long at all. He looked at the stitches on her ribs and collarbone, then told her the same as he told me, before saying she was free to go. Barely contained excitement shone in her eyes as I helped her to the bathroom to wash up. This time, she let me help her and didn't hide herself once or blush. We didn't shower together, but I did help her into the bath where I sat on the toilet and helped her when asked. Opaline then let the drain out and waited for me to grab a towel before carefully standing up and holding her arms up.
Once she was dried and dressed, I carried her back to the bed and let her eat before we left. Darion came up and told us the car was ready and that Klyn was there as well, then said he was heading back to the pack. Opaline finished half her plate, brushed her teeth, and smiled softly. I took her hand and led her down the hallways and outside where a cobalt blue car was waiting, Klyn in the driver's seat. I helped Opal in the backseat with her seatbelt, then went around the other side and got in beside her.
"Want to go anywhere before home?" he asked us.
Opaline shook her head, resting it on the headrest behind her. I said, "Just take us home. She's exhausted."
My mate fell asleep on the way, and didn't wake up when we arrived, so I carried her up to my room and laid her down. Kissing her head, I covered her up and walked over to the windows to shut the curtains when I saw Aryn walking up to my house. My wolf growled, angry he was here when our mate was vulnerable. Sighing, I went down and met him at the door. "Lykaon, we have a matter to discuss."
"And what would that be?"
"Your mate," he said in a dangerous tone. His eyes narrowed and he took in a deep breath, eyes going amber from his wolf. "She's here!"
"Of course, she's here. She lives here, but you aren't going to see her."
Aryn stepped towards me, only putting us at a few inches apart. "You can't stop me. I want to see what wolf she has and if she's my mate's killer."
"She isn't your mate's killer!" I snarled.
"How do you know?"
"Because she doesn't have the strength to kill a woman who is innocent." I leaned forward, making him back away a half step. "My mate would rather protect Maybelle if she saw her hurt than kill her."
"Or, she's just playing you to get you to trust her, while she does horrible things behind your back?"
"Aryn!" Klyn said from behind the Alpha. "What are you doing here?" he asked cheerfully.
I sighed inwardly, making a note to thank him later. Aryn turned and put on a smooth façade. "Beta Klyn, I was just checking in on your Alpha. I wanted to make sure he is doing well while being new at this job."
Klyn walked up beside me and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. "He's a great alpha, seriously. The pack loves him and their Luna."
"Do they now?" he says more to himself than to us, nodding his head slowly. "I see, well I should be going. I have a meeting soon and wouldn't want to miss that!"
I give him a closed lip smile. "Good luck."
Aryn walks away and Klyn follows me back into the house and up to my office. "What was that about?"
"Opaline." I sit down at my desk and take a deep breath before I start throwing shit around and breaking them. "I'm not sure if making her Luna is going to be the best idea."
"Lykaon, she needs to become Luna if she's properly going to do her duty as their leader. You can't take that right away from her."
"Aryn will kill her!" I hiss.
"Only if he has an open opportunity!" Klyn said evenly.
"I can't take that risk!"
"He won't have an opportunity because I'll stay with her!" he growled. I pause, waiting to hear him out. "I will keep guard over her if she leaves the ceremony or from your side. I won't let anyone hurt her."
"You can't fight him and win," I say.
"No, but I can distract him long enough so she can get back to you for help."
"And get killed in the process."
He shrugs. "At least I did my deed by protecting my Luna."
"Lykaon?"
"What is it?"
"Where are you?"
"My office with Klyn." I look at my friend. "Fine, I'll let you. But only because I trust you more than anyone else in the pack."
He nods and a soft knock on the door made us look over, seeing my mate walk in and look at me. Her eyes fill with relief and she walks swiftly over to embrace me. Klyn raises his brows, but I barely shake my head, not knowing what was wrong. "I'll see you two around."
"Klyn," I say and he pauses by the door to look at me. "Three days." He nods and leaves the room. I pull Opaline into my lap and rub her back. "What is wrong?"
"Nightmare," she whispers into my neck.
"I see, and what was it about?"
"I'm not sure," she says. "I don't remember, just that I was scared when I didn't see you."
I nod and make her sit up, wiping her cheeks clean of tear stains then pushing her hair back. "Opaline, I'm going to make you Luna in three days. Are you ready?"
Her celeste eyes widen then brighten as her mouth turns into a smile. "Yes!" she gasps. "I'm very ready!"
I smile and rest my hands on her hips. "Do you know what that means?"
"I will finally be accepted into the pack?" she asks softly.
I nod and rub my thumbs across her skin. "It also means a few of our neighboring packs will be joining us for your ceremony to celebrate. With Luna Ceremonies, everyone wants to see who the strong woman is that will be beside the Alpha's side, so a few packs are going to join us. We will have a larger audience than when we were on our run."
She thinks about this for a moment, her body showing nothing of how she feels. Finally, she said, "I don't mind, as long as I stay close to you."
This makes me smile wider. "I'll make sure you're close." I kiss her softly before pulling back and watching her for a moment while she plays with my shirt. "Opaline, there is one Alpha that will try to hurt you, if not more. He will stop at nothing to get you alone and do what he pleases."
"Who and why?"
I hesitate for a minute before telling her. "Do you know Aryn from the Vengeful Star Pack?" She shakes her head. "He is the pack that separates us from your parent's pack. That was why I was so careful with you when we were coming here."
"Why does he want me?"
"For who he thinks you are because of your wolf type."
She furrows her brows in confusion. "Who does he think I am?"
I sigh. "He will think you killed his mate because he swears his Beta saw a Himalayan wolf kill her, or is the cause for her death."
"How would he know I killed her just by seeing my wolf?"
"I don't know, baby." I reposition myself and cup her face. "Let me ask you a question. Do you remember what girl those rogues were trying to attack? What did she look like or what her wolf looked like?"
"I didn't see her wolf," she said honestly. "I only saw her human form crumpled on the ground before trying to finish saving her life. Next thing I know is I'm in a hospital. But she found me when I got home and asked for shelter, so I did."
"What does the girl look like?"
Opal shrugs. "Golden hair and I think blue eyes, but they might be green. I really don't know. It's dark when I used to meet her in the cellars."
"And you said you heard her in pain and ran to help?" She nods, frowning. "Would you let me meet her?"
Her eyes widen with horror. "No!"
I'm taken aback, but ask, "Why not?"
My mate looks around and tries to get free of my hold. "I can't!"
I tighten my hold on her and say softly, "Hey, calm down." She looks down at me with tears in her eyes. I narrow my eyes slightly but keep my curiosity hidden. "It was just a question, Opal. I just wanted to meet the girl who you risked your life for."
"I can't," she whimpers.
"Okay," I say and she relaxes. "I won't ask again."
Opal nods and breathes in deeply. "She made me promise not to let anyone see her, not even my parents. She didn't want to be recognized and sent back to wherever she was before."
"Did she tell you where that was?"
"No."
I sigh, then try a new tactic. "Your family is worried about you. Would you like to go see them?"
Her head tilts to the side a little but nods. "When?"
I shrug. "We can go tomorrow and come back the next day, or go tomorrow and leave the next night to be back in time for the ceremony."
"Okay. I want to go see them, especially Jacques." Her smile appears and she visibly brightens. "He should be Alpha soon since he's coming of age in a couple weeks. I want to wish him good luck."
I smile and lift her up as I stand. "We can do that. Let me send a letter to your father with the request, and I'll let you know."
Opaline suddenly stiffens. I look down to see her nearly in tears. "I won't be able to shift, though."
"You can ride on my back. I'm large enough to support you and you're small enough that you won't weigh me down."
"But my wolf wants out," she whispers.
"Both you and your wolf need to heal before shifting," I say sternly. "Your wolf needs to wait for a couple of weeks."
She nods and wraps her arms around my neck again as I go towards the kitchen. "Who visited you at the hospital?"
"What do you mean?"
"Klyn said someone visited you. An old friend or something."
I roll my eyes and set her on the counter. "Her name is Bree. We were friends as pups. Now she is Luna of Black Rock with her mate, Deryn."
Opal's eyes light up once again. "Luna Bree?"
I nod. "Do you know her?"
"She visited right before my accident three years ago! I know her, but she doesn't know me. She was doing Luna business with Alpha Deryn." My mate sighs. "She's beautiful! I always watched her and wished she noticed me like she did other girls."
Surprised by this, I ask, "Were you hiding?"
Opaline shrugs. "Mostly, because I was stalking her."
At this I laugh. "Why didn't you just go up to her?"
"Even before going deaf, I kept to myself mostly. Jacques always had a group of friends wherever he went, but I didn't. I had one or two, but mostly I had my sketch book."
"Did you draw Bree?"
She shakes her head. "I wasn't that creepy, Lykaon!" I hold my hands up in surrender, then kiss her. She says, "I didn't know she was part of your pack at one time."
"Mhm. Bree and I grew up together then she found her mate and left. I haven't seen her since until the other day in the hospital." I pause, looking into my mate's eyes and saying, "She saw you. After you nearly tried to kill Klyn, she saw you sleeping and told me you were going to be a perfect Luna."
"She did?"
I nod. "Maybe I can invite her over sometime so you two can hang out. I think you would be perfect friends."
Opaline shook her head in horror. "No! Don't do that!"
"Why not?"
"I don't want to actually befriend her and…and…"
"Opaline, you're talking nonsense. You just said you wished she'd notice you."
"Yeah, but I didn't say I wished she would be my friend!"
I chuckle and roll my eyes. "I'm writing to her later to ask her to come."
"What!"
"You heard me." I say as I go to the fridge to find some food.
I hear her get off the counter and huff. "You can't!"
I put a bowl on the counter and look over my shoulder at her. "I can, baby. And I will."
Sticking her tongue out, Opaline grabs plates and silverware. She changes the subject. "Where is Nadine?"