After two hours of reading, Turk signed the papers and chuckled to himself. His friend knew how to negotiate to make everyone happy. When he was finished, he went to Owain's office and knocked.
"Come in," he heard and entered. Owain sat at a small desk with a paper in his hand. He put the paper down when he saw Turk and smiled. "Turk, how are you?"
"I'm fine." He handed over the bundle of papers. "I signed. You really should stop being so nice. It's annoying."
Owain laughed as he took the bundle and set it on his desk. "How's Mazelina?"
Turk shrugged. "She's very good at walking in on a difficult situation that I'm dealing with."
"How so?"
Turk told him about Josiah and what he said, then said, "Mazelina said he never showed any feelings towards her before. Why the sudden protection?"
Owain leaned against a window and crossed his arms. "Josiah and Mazelina have been close since pups. While he never showed signs of liking her, everyone noticed how she adored him." Turk tensed, but Owain continued. "They have heard of the terrors wrought by your brother. They have made many silly vows of what they'd do if confronted by him. The point is that while Josiah doesn't see her as an attractive female, he does see her as a sister or maybe a cousin, and bonds like that can become tiresome when one is put into a difficult situation."
"But can he not see how happy she is?"
Owain shrugged. "Probably not. He's blinded by hatred for what he believes to be your brother. He doesn't see that instead of saving Mazelina, he's hurting her.'
Turk scowled. "How do I keep her away from him? How do I stop him from hurting her more?"
Owain looked down at his feet. "I'm afraid we don't do anything unless it becomes urgent. Josiah would never intentionally harm Mazelina, I don't think. But he might if he finds that she can't be swayed."
A knock on the door made both males straighten and Owain cleared his throat as Turk said, "We are leaving tomorrow afternoon. Thank you for your hospitality and for convincing me to stay."
"You are welcome, friend. If you need me again, I will always be willing to help."
Turk nodded and opened the door. A female stood there with a stack of books in her arms. He stepped aside to let her in, then left.
When he got outside, Mazelina ran up to him and said, "I have something to show you."
He quirked a brow at her. "Should I be worried?"
She snorted and pulled him away from the building. "Hardly! Come on!"
Turk let Mazelina steer him towards a large obstacle course where males and females traversed and either failed and splashed into the pool below or succeeded across. He stared and took in each scenario with a calculating gaze, then looked at his mate with a scowl. "I'm not going on that!"
She frowned. "What's wrong?"
He waved a hand at it. "This is pup's play. If an alpha couldn't get across that, I'd be insulted."
Mazelina scrutinized the obstacle course, furrowing her brow. "It's hard though."
Turk went behind Mazelina and pointed. "If you look closely, you'll see how the wolf who made this has tricked you."
She squinted, then her eyes widened. She turned to him with a broad smile. "How did you know?"
"I used them as a boy. Figured out how to get passed every time after only a few tries." He shrugged. "What you need is something natural, not made."
"What do you mean?"
He took her by the hand and left the course. "I mean use the elements around you as your obstacle course. It'll always be the closest thing to the real deal. No matter what happens when you're out on your own, nature will always be around you and will always throw dangers in your way."
Mazelina gazed up at him. "Will you show me?"
"Yes." He leaned down and lightly brushed his lips over her cheek. She beamed as he pulled back. He said, "Go spend time with your friends. You won't have much time tomorrow."
"Come with me?"
Turk shook his head. "No. I need to see Rudi and make plans. Our trip will be a few days and full of stops where we have to go through other territories. I need to arrange who's going to be where at each spot."
"Why?"
"Because many will be curious to know who my mate is and I don't like showing off my pack. I don't like gossip."
Mazelina sighed and stepped back. "Okay then. I will see you later, I guess."
Before she could turn away, Turk grabbed her wrist and made her look up at him. "I mean no disrespect, Lina. I just don't want any surprises. I would like our trip home to be smooth without complications."
She nodded then said, "Promise you'll be back by dark?"
He bowed his head. "Of course."
After spending three hours with Rudi and Anju, Turk returned to his cabin where he saw no sign of Mazelina. He had expected her to be back, but she was nowhere to be seen. He stepped back outside and was about to go deeper into the territory when bushes nearby rustled. He stopped and watched as a brown-grey wolf emerged shyly. The eyes were purple and anxious.
Turk knelt and held out his hand, being careful not to spook her. She slowly came forward, whining softly. When she touched her nose to his palm, he began to stroke. "I was curious about this side of you," he admitted softly and ran a hand down her back.
She brushed herself along him, coating him in her scent. He let her, knowing he'd be doing the same at some point.