The Pack's Doctor

Chapter 64: The Gift. Harold.

When Franklin returned after attacking Brady's pack, he let me know that Brady survived, but his pack has been nearly decimated. I sent scouts to watch his pack and make sure that he doesn't leave. I doubt he will, but now that our pack is getting stronger, I can afford to send a couple of warriors to keep watch. Savannah was beside herself wanting to go back to her old pack to help, especially after hearing that Yara had been kidnapped by Simon. I told her what Beta Charlie said and she'd become even more distraught.

"Bradley was shot? Even I wouldn't know how to save him. Poor Noelle," he said. Franklin had taken her to their room and tried to console her. I'd waited a few hours and called Beta Charlie.

"Alpha Harold?" he answered, sounding exhausted.

"I'm sorry, Beta. Did I wake you?"

"It's okay, Alpha Warren isn't back yet, so I'm still running the pack."

"I wanted to update you on Brady and find out what happened with Alpha Quinton."

"Quinton turned himself in, basically gave his life for his son's. He's in our cells. Luna Yasmin and Alpha Quirin are gone," he says. I hear him move around and then I hear a soft voice murmuring beside him. "No, it's Alpha Harold," he says, I'm guessing to his mate.

"So, your Luna is still missing?" I ask.

"Yeah. I doubt Warren will come home until he's found her," he says.

"We haven't felt the tether to her snap, so we know she's still alive, but none of us can hear her, so she's either unconscious or too far away to connect. Tell me about Brady."

"Franklin and my warriors were able to take out several of his warriors while they ran to their pack. Brady's alive but the pack is severely impacted. I've got warriors watching him to make sure he doesn't go anywhere."

"We need to figure out a way to get past his barricades," he says. "Agreed. Once your Luna is safe, we can talk about that. And ...

Savannah was concerned about Bradley. Did he survive?"

This time, Charlie's tone is full of pride. "Yeah, he did. My mate was able to get the bullet out. She's not sure if she stitched his lung up properly, but hopefully his wolf will get strong and be able to help him heal. If not, maybe when Luna Yara returns, she can check and make sure he's stitched properly. For now, we're keeping him sedated. But, the important thing is that he's alive."

"That's good to hear. I'll let Savannah know, thank you. And if you need anything at all, please let me know."

"Thank you very much, Alpha Harold. Just dealing with Brady is a huge help."

We hang up and I mind link Franklin to let him know about Bradley.noveldrama

"What can I do, Dad?" Henry asks, walking into my office.

I smile at my son, so very proud of the young man that he is. I order dinner for us and we talk through all

of the things that are happening, how they could impact our pack and what our next steps should be. My

on is very intuitive and inquisitive, asking intelligent questions and making thoughtful suggestions.

I decide to try some of his suggestions, even though I think they'll fail. If they do, it's a good learning experience for him and if they don't, it's a good learning experience for me.

Before I send him off to bed, I tell him to close his eyes. When he does, I do the same.

"Open your mind to the pack. Don't focus on any one person, just open your mind to the entire pack."

I give him a few moments, helping to mentally guide him to opening his mind. When he does, I sit back, letting his stretch his mind link.

"What do you feel?" I ask him.

I wait, letting him sift through the feelings in the pack. It's hard at first, trying to focus on the overall feeling, not on individual feelings. Some are sweet and happy, some are frustrated or angry, some are lustful and intimate, but the overall feeling of the pack has become much more settled, happier, since we entered into the alliance with Warren, and Yara came to help heal our pack members.

"It feels good," he says, finally. He opens his eyes and looks at me.

"Right?"

I smile. "Yeah. It's been a long time since it felt this good in our pack.

That's a very good thing. Now, you have to think about what has caused the shift, the happiness in the pack. What did we, as their Alphas, do for the pack to feel this way?"

"We entered into an alliance with Alpha Warren."

"Yes, but it's more than that. An alliance is merely a piece of paper to the pack. They don't have the relationship with him that we do."

I watch him frown, thinking through what changed. "But that alliance has brought healing to our pack." "Correct."

"And healing has strengthened the pack which makes them feel more confident in our leadership as Alphas."

"Absolutely correct. Making the pack

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strong, makes us stronger but that's partly because the pack becomes more confident in our leadership, accepting their Alpha more fully which also makes us stronger in d role. So, today's lesson to you, my son and Alpha heir, is to make sure you're keeping tabs on the feel of your pack. If this feeling that you have right now begins to change or lessen, you need to ask yourself why. What are you, as their leader, not doing or doing wrong?

Figure out what it is and change it, if you can. Because you can only lead if the pack will follow. Okay?" He nods, smiling.

"Alright, off to bed with you," I tell him. He hops up, coming to hug me before heading to bed.

I do a little more work before I go to my own bedroom. As always, I look at my empty, cold bed. I'm not sure why I never took another mate, but when you find your fated mate and she's everything to you, nothing less will do. I enjoyed the few years that the Moon Goddess gave us and that has to be enough to get me through the rest of my life.

I get ready for bed, and fall asleep easily now that the pack is content. I have no idea how long I've been asleep when there's a howl that there are intruders at the border.

I leap out of bed and shift. I'm running before I open the mind link to the patrols.

Who is it? Who's attacking?' I ask, used to being woken in the middle of the night and rushing into battle. 'Not an attack, Alpha. It's Farrah...and she has Luna Yara with her.'

'Are you sure?' I ask the patrols, Conrad pushing harder to get to the border. It feels good to have my wolf back and getting stronger again.

'It feels good to be back,' Conrad says.

'Yes, Alpha,' the patrols respond.

'Franklin,' I call in the mind link.

'Are we under attack?' he asks.

'No. It's Luna Yara. I'm going to confirm, but once I do, I need you to call Alpha Warren. I don't want to call until I know for sure that it's her.'

'How did she get here?' he asks.

'No idea,' I say, just as the sweetest scent I've ever smelled enters my nose, earthy and daintily floral. I cut the link with Franklin.

'Conrad?' I ask. I've only ever smelled something this delicious once before. When I found my mate. When I get close, I can see the two of them standing there, Luna Yara and...

'Mate,' Conrad says.

I watch Farrah's eyes go wide and I know her wolf must have just announced us as her mate as well.

I shift, staring at Farrah before dragging my eyes to Luna Yara. When I do, I see that her face is horribly swollen and bruised.

"Luna, let's get you to the pack hospital."

"I need to call my mate," she says.

'Franklin, it's her. Call Alpha Warren and get him here now.'

'Yes, Alpha. Savannah is on her way,' he says just as I hear paws pounding behind me.

Savannah shifts and rushes up to her previous Luna, wrapping her arms around her in a tight hug.

"Oh my goddess, Luna. We've been so worried about you. Oh, that fucker hit you? Alpha Warren will flay

him. Come on," she says, taking charge and leading her toward the pack hospital.

"I need to call Warren," she says again.

"Franklin's calling him right now. He'll meet us at the pack hospital,"

she says as they walk away.

I watch the for a moment before turning to my mate.

"Farrah," I say, extending my hand

for her to join me. She hasn't crossed back into the pack yet. The last time she was here, her mate and son were murdered, and she was captured and taken away, forced into another mate bond and from what I understand raped until she became pregnant. Then, she nearly killed herself trying to end her pregnancy.

She looks resigned but steps into my pack lands. She reaches out and when her hand touches mine, the tingles that I haven't felt in years, light up in my body. I see tears well in Farrah's eyes and I know she feels the same.

I lead her to a place where we can have some privacy then I turn to her.

"You and I need to talk. Now is not the time, I need to be available when Alpha Warren gets here and I need to guard his mate until he arrives.

But...rejection is not open for

discussion, Farrah. I know you've

been through a lot, I know you wanted to die, and I know you may not want this. But you are gift, given to me by the Moon Goddess, one never expected to receive. So few people get one fated mate in their lives, and now you and I have both been blessed with two. Before you think about throwing that away, I want to talk. I want to see if we can find a way to come together. There's a reason the Moon Goddess put us together, Farrah. Don't throw this away without giving it a chance."

I watch as she looks at me, then looks around. I can feel her sadness, her sorrow at the memories that

she has here.

"Okay, Alpha," she says, finally looking back at me.

"Call me Harold, Farrah."