Chapter 29

**Nova**


I have never seen anything like this. Charles is rearranging nature like it answers his call. I'm amazed by his power much to Asher's displeasure. He grumbles something before storming off to do who knows what. I'm transfixed until the little boy I'm holding starts to squirm. He looks up at me with big brown eyes and my heart breaks. Who is his family?

"Hi. Can you tell me your name?" I try to keep my voice soft and warm to keep him at ease.

He doesn't say anything at first. His head tilts as he takes me in and I do the same. As I suspected, he's very young but his eyes are too sad for someone his age. Like he's seen too much darkness already. For a moment I wonder if my eyes look the same.

"I know you're scared, but we won't hurt you I promise."

He looks unsure but nods and I smile at him.

"So can you tell me your name now that we're friends?" I ask again.

He opens his mouth and closes it again like he isn't sure if his voice still works. By the second time he does his voice is barely louder than a whisper.

"Josiah." He finally says and I smile happily at him.

"It's very nice to meet you, Josiah. Are you feeling better now? You were hurt pretty bad."

He nods. "I'm okay."

"That's good. Are you hungry?" I don't exactly know how to take care of a child but that seems to be a safe enough question.

He shakes his head.

"Okay. Well, can you tell me where you came from? Where's your family?"

His face falls and he shuts down right in front of my eyes. I decided to try again later and instead I find us a fallen tree log to sit on and watch Charles work. He snuggles rather against my chest and I wrap my arms around him. Like I was when the guys first found me, he isn't wearing many clothes. That must mean he came from one of the labs, right?

There is a lot we don't know and it's starting to get frustrating. After that odd trip to the past, I realize that I was too scared to pay attention to anything. if I can get back there Maybe I can finally be brave enough to do more than just survive.

A nip on my arm makes me jolt in surprise and I realize Josiah is trying to get my attention.

"What's up, little guy? Are you hungry after all?"

He is looking at me over his shoulder and nods. "I wasn't hungry but now I am."

"That's okay. What do you want to eat?" What do wolf kids eat?

His eyes turn red and his fangs slowly extend and I get my answer. I lift my arm to his mouth and sink into my skin without hesitation. The feeling is different than feeding from an adult. It's as if my body knows this is a child seeking sustenance and not a grown male mating with me.

"Again?" Eli's voice makes me jump a little. "Did he not just feed from you?"

"Not enough to fill him up and children feed far more often than adults do."

His eyes narrow on the boy and I feel my hackles rise.

"He needs our help Eli, and if that means he needs to feed from me then so be it." My voice is harsh and his eyes widen as if he wasn't expecting me to get so angry.

That shocked expression slowly melts into a smirk. "I enjoy seeing my mate show such protective instincts toward a child. It will make me even more proud when it is our young one you fight for."

The reminder of what Chase and I had been talking about brings back my worries. These men consider a mate as someone who can provide them with children, but what if I can't? Will they choose to leave? What would happen then to our mate-calling thing?

"Eli, I don't-"

"This should suffice for tonight," Charles says pulling our attention to him.

I hadn't noticed how much he had done while I wasn't paying attention. Looking past him I see a house the size of a studio apartment.

"It's a little small even for one night," Asher says as he walks around it and examines it.

"It is big enough for now." Charles gives Asher a challenging stare, but my wolf mate doesn't say another word.

"It's impressive but I don't see how you can add more to it. It's rounded at the top." I point at the highest point of the roof.

The house looks more like a yurt made from long crooked pieces of wood.

"We will extend it outward instead of up. Each of us will have a small hut in a similar style and this one can be made into the main room." Charles explains.

"What a good idea! I like it. What do you think Josiah?" The little boy unlatches from my wrist and looks around.

"I like it." He says before jumping down from my lap and running toward it.

The door opens easily when he pulls on it and he disappears inside.

"I guess the kid likes it." Asher follows the boy and walks into the small house.

Eli is next. Charles waits until everyone is inside before he takes my hand and pulls me to my feet. He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me close to him.

"What-"

He lowers his head and rests his forehead against mine. My eyes close automatically and I take a deep breath. He smells like the wind after a long rain, and I love it.

"So much has happened since we first found you, but I hope you know we wouldn't trade any of this to go back to our old lives. I felt as if I was growing apart from my people long ago, and it took your call to finally push me to leave home. I thank you for that. I just hope that whatever my father's involvement in this is that it won't make you think of me any different."

His voice doesn't sound as unmoved as it usually does. Is he worried that I would throw him away because of his father?

"I wouldn't do that Charles. Your father is not you. Besides it's like you said...you didn't know he was a part of this. So how could I blame you?"

He moves his head back and gives me an unsure look. I want to reassure him as much as possible, but I don't know if it will do any good. It's hard to feel reassured by anyone when you find out someone you know and trust isn't who they seemed to be. It has to be even harder because it's his father. Strained relationship or not the betrayal must hurt all the same.

Of course, I could be wrong and he simply feels guilty for the fact his father could have hurt me. Still, I am not ruling out the fact that those men weren't after me. There is too much we don't understand, but I hope that is about to change. Seeing the boy has shaken a couple of memories free. I know where the hidden sanctuary of my people is, and that is where we're going as soon as we can.

They will either give us sanctuary or help us to safety until these bad things pass. This will simply be a blip in history and everyone will forget all of this happened.

Except the idea of hiding away and waiting for all of this to pass over time doesn't hold the appeal I thought it would. I don't want to wait and see if mortal creatures will come to their senses and change. I want to help those still trapped like I was. How could I not?

So do we bother searching for the hidden sanctuary or do I focus our energy on finding out the location of these labs?

My head starts to ache as my thoughts spin around and around. Things were so much simpler when I was locked away. I knew one day I would die so every day I was alive felt like a gift. Now there is so much happening around me and I'm free to choose what I do now.

It's making it hard for me to know what the best decision is to make. Charles seems the best option to talk this stuff through, so I decide thinking this through with him is better than battling my thoughts on my own.

"Charles...there is something I want to ask you." He releases me and steps back.

"Of course. What is it?" He is all business again.

"I remembered something from when I was a child. There is a hidden sanctuary where my people go to wait during shifts in time. I think I know where it is. We would be safe there, but if we go there then all of the people still suffering in the labs like the one I was in are forgotten. Our leaders won't help them. I don't know what to do."

He doesn't say anything right away, but when he does speak he says something I wasn't expecting.

"It is up to you to decide for us what we should do. I know you all seem to look to me for what to do but that is not my place in our family. The decisions are and will always be yours. Most cultures rely on power as the gauge for who shall lead, and out of all of us, you are the most powerful. So stop looking to me and lead us."

He gives me a small smile before moving to walk past me. He stops next to me and kisses me on the temple before continuing toward our little yurt house.

I lead them? That can't be right. I can't lead anyone...