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33

33 - Truces and Torches

ZARA

     The soft glow of morning filtered through the windows, casting a warm ambiance in the kitchen. I sat across from Natalia, scuffing down the pancakes made by the elderly woman in the kitchen, with Natalia giggling at my behavior.

"You can slow down you know," she joked. "The pancakes aren't going anywhere."

"You don't know that," I retorted.

"Very true, my dear, the way these boys flock this kitchen in unseemly," the elderly woman chimed in, winking at me as she wiped her hands down on her apron and whisked herself away to another task. The morning conversation unfolded as the aroma of brewing coffee filled the air. The events of the previous night lingered in the background, overshadowed by the desire for normalcy.

"So the attack on Redwood," I started.

Natalia paused mid-bite, glancing at me before she continued chewing.

"What about it?" she questioned.

"It was all pretty terrible. I mean, Haden came back with deep wounds but everyone seemed to do pretty well for themselves,"

She nodded. "I'd like to think so. The attack was so unexpected! One minute I was in the living room chatting as if everything was normal and the next, I was being shuffled off in hiding because the pack was under attack."

"Yeah, I'd be too stunned to function," I took another bite as I looked at her. She smiled tightly at me before reaching for another bite, her fork pausing by her lips when I asked my next question.

"So what were you doing there?"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"What were you doing in Redwoods?"

She put her fork down and reached for her orange juice, taking a sip before she answered me. "Oh, I was... meeting with Alpha Bryon to discuss reinstating the allegiance between us and them."

I raised a brow at her.

"And that included being in their territory at night?"

Her eyes narrowed at me.

"What exactly are you insinuating?" she snapped at me.

I simply shrugged. "I'm only asking questions, Natalia. It's just a little odd is all. I feel like I'm not seeing the entire picture."

She opened her mouth but snapped it shut again, brushing a blonde strand of hair out of her face. She sighed and continued eating and a few minutes passed before she spoke again.

"The Redwood Pack has been an ally to us for decades, and Haden and Bryon had been friends for ages. It wasn't right for them to end their alliance because of a misunderstanding. That's all there is to the picture."

I hummed in response and finished up the pancakes before me then chugged the orange juice down.

"What about you though?" she asked.

"Me?" I glanced at her.

"Well, I can see that fresh new mark on your neck," she continued with a grin. "Come on, spill!"

I rolled my eyes at her antics and when she playfully pushed my shoulder, I said, "Alright, alright! So he marked me."

"Details! What did it feel like? How do you –"