51. Rain

**Rain**

I watch how Conon leads Katherine away from the training room. An air of happiness floats around them, and I smell their sweet scents. After Conon left the dining room, I could sense Katherine’s pain and sadness. I experienced that pain too when Jordan rejected me, and I felt as if my heart had been shattered. But I am glad Conon decided to talk to Katherine. Soulmates should be together.

Just as I am with mine.

Caleb’s warm hand holds mine, and I know I am always safe with him. I look at Caleb—my soulmate and best friend—and I can’t believe how lucky I am to have been given a second chance.

I know Katherine has done terrible things, but I can’t blame her, as I can’t blame Caleb for being forced to fuck other slaves in the Vampire Palace. I know how much Caleb hates what he has done, and a part of me suspects he had built this pack as a way to redeem himself.

Caleb kisses the top of my head. A warm, happy feeling spreads through my body. “What it is, Red?” His voice is calm.

While I might never see his face, there have been times when I touched it with my fingers. Sometimes Caleb would catch my hand and kiss all my fingers before placing them back on his face. “I am happy for Katherine and Conon. And I hope we will celebrate their mating soon.” Elton stands, giving Caleb and me space to speak. He goes and studies some weapons that are on a wall. “Caleb, I know we haven’t spoken about Katherine being my Theta Knight, and I want to be sure you are fine with it.”

“It does not matter what I think; the Goddess had made her choice. And let us not forget that Katherine will also be the Beta female of the pack. But I think she is good for Conon. After our mating ceremony, when the pack will be legally recognized, you work with Katherine. I am glad she is your Theta Knight; it will bring you two closer.” Caleb stands. “Well, time to start training.”

Caleb and I go over to Elton. He is still looking at the weapons—knives, throwing stars, nunchakus, bows, crossbows, firearms, and others. “As an Omega, I never liked weapons,” Elton says. His eyes are glued on the crossbow and bows. “But as a Theta Kight, I discovered I like bows, crossbows, and the throwing stars.”

Caleb nods. “You can start learning how to use them if it is what you want. We will work on your stamina, attack, defense, and other things. I remember you said your mother is an Enforcer? I don’t know if you trained before.”

Elton rubs the back of his neck. “I had basic training. My mother forced me.” He shrugs. “I know how to protect myself.”

I snort. “With an umbrella?” I tease him.

“I was outnumbered!” Elton protest.

I fold my arms. “Still an umbrella.” Elton huffs. I bite the interior of my cheeks so I don’t start laughing.

Caleb clears his throat. “That’s why we should train and have the pack better protected, so situations like that won’t happen again. Once the Elders recognize the pack, I can ask for Elite Enforcers.”

Once the pack stops being a rogue one, Caleb and I can ask for more than Elite Enforcers from the Council of Elders. More territory or education opportunities for children or adults. If the pack continues to grow, we can have more jobs for males or females. I still dream of studying art and, one day, teaching art in the pack’s school.

At the back of the training room, Holgan is training with a group of males. Caleb makes a sign, and Holgan comes to us.

Holgan is a Delta and one of Caleb’s most trusted Enforcers. He is tall and well built, kind of Hulk style, except he is not green. The way he moves intimidates me because he gives me the impression that no matter what you do or how fast you run, he will catch you and beat you into tomorrow and ask you questions later.

“Caleb?” Holgan asks.

Even his voice scares me. I know he won’t do any harm to me, but when Jordan rejected me, the Enforcers from the Crescent Moon Pack were the ones that harmed me the most. I can still feel how they hit my stomach or my back. How my bones crack under the force of their attack, and I take a step back. Holgan never hurt me, but I can't stop this irrational fear I have of Enforcers. Jeremy is the only Enforcer I don’t fear. Probably because he has been with Caleb on the day he found me. And he is Sarah’s companion.

“I want you to teach Red how to fight,” Caleb says to Holgan.

The Enforcer looks at me. Studies me. I feel like a tinny bug under a microscope. My hands tremble, and I shove them into the pocket of my gym pants. “Are you sure?” Holgan asks. “Rain seems to be afraid of me,” he says as a matter of fact.

“I am not afraid!” I protest.

Holgan takes a step toward me, and I flinch. I have to fight the urge to take two to three steps back.

Caleb looks at me. “Red, I can train you.”

I tilt my head back and look at Holgan. Some light coming from the Sun enters through the windows, and his brown hair seems blonde in some parts. “It’s ok,” I say. My voice is shaky, and I take a deep breath. “I want to train with Holgan!” I say in a firm voice.

Caleb sighs. “Use your safety word when you need it!” I nod. “If you change your mind, I will be more than happy to teach you,” Caleb tells me.

I want to say that I won’t change my mind, but instead, I smile sweetly at Caleb. “I will keep that in mind!”

Elton and Caleb go to some gym machines, and I remain alone with Holgan.

He lifts his right hand and points with the thumb behind him. I almost jump to the side at the sudden movement. “Let’s go to the tatami,” he says before walking away.

I follow Holgan to the back of the training room. He takes his shoes off, and I do the same before we go to the center of the tatami. My heart beats fast in my chest, and I watch each movement he makes. I try to shove all my fear and trauma to the back of my mind, and I look at Holgan as nothing more than my new self-defense instructor.

Holgan comes closer to me, and my hands shake. “This will not work if you fear me, Rain. I am going to touch you, throw you to the ground, and keep you there! It is not going to be easy. You will panic and scream at me to let go of you. I won’t! Your panic will get worse before it gets better! So think well if you want to train with me!”

From Holgan’s scent, I know he is serious about my training. “I won’t panic!” I say.

“You will,” Holgan says, his tone serious as he comes to me.

I fight my instinct to flee, and I keep my ground. Holgan puts his hands on my arms and brings me closer to him. Panic rises inside of me, and my fear snakes around me. ‘He will hurt you! He will pin you to the ground and make fun of you!’ my thoughts scream at me. My Fire comes to the surface, trying to protect me, and it takes all my will not to let it free.

An earth-shattering scream leaves my lips. “Stop touching me!” My chest rises and falls fast—a lump forms in my throat. I want to tell Holgan I am sorry for screaming bloody murder at him, but I can’t get the words out.

Holgan lets go of me and takes a few steps back, putting his hands in the air.

Caleb and Elton run to me. Elton growls loudly at Holgan. “Don’t touch her!” Elton snaps.

I never expected Elton to be so protective of me. I wonder if it is because he is my Knight.

“Red, you are not ready! I will train with you!” Caleb says in a serious tone.

I know Caleb wants to help me, but I need to learn how to overcome my trauma. I shake my head. “Holgan has to be my instructor!” My eyes go to Caleb, and I hope he will understand. “I need this, Caleb. Soon I will be the Luna of the pack. I don’t want to hide under the bed, or the bunker, when an attack happens. You are my half, and I want to be next to you, fighting and protecting our territory!”

Holgan shakes his head. “You are still dealing with a lot of traumas! I only touched you, and you panicked. What are you going to do when I will show you self-defense, and I will grab you from behind? Piss your pants?”

“I will learn how to deal with my shit!” I snap at him.

Caleb looks at me for a few minutes, and I keep my eyes on him, my chin high. He probably sees something in me because he steps to the side. Elton is still growling at Holgan. It is quite funny to see Elton, who is not yet an adult trying to protect me from Hulk.

I go to him. “You can go with Caleb. Holgan won’t hurt me,” I say softly. Elton leaves, and I look at Holgan. “Train me!”

Holgan stands there, and I feel his gaze on my face. I focus as hard as I can on his eyes, and I see a glimpse of hazel. He takes one step, and my knees begin to shake, but I don’t make an attempt to move. My Fire tickles the tips of my fingers, and I push it down, down, down. I don’t need it now. But I should try a training session with Caleb using our magic. It would be a good idea to learn how to use our Fire and Ice during an attack.

“Fine,” Holgan finally says. He walks, getting behind me. Suddenly, he grabs my arms. I flinch; fear travels through my bloodstream, spreading all over my body. “Lesson number one, Rain. When I move, you move with me. Never permit me to get behind you! And more importantly, never turn your back on your enemies!”

Holgan lets go of me, and I feel my panic disappearing. I inhale deeply and turn to look at him. “If someone grabs me from behind, what do I do?”

“I am going to show you how to do it slowly. Come here,” Holgan says, and I put my back to him. Holgan puts his hand around my mouth but leaves enough space for me to talk. “Grab my hand and bit as hard as you can while you hit my stomach with your elbow! If you can’t move my hand to bite it, grab my pinky and yank it as much as possible. In most cases, the attacker will let go of you. If that happens, you can either shift or continue to fight him. If you are outnumbered, run. Ready to try?”

I go over what Holgan said, and I nod. Holgan tightens his hold on me, and panic surges inside of me. I try to focus on my breathing while I grab Holgan’s hand, trying to bite it. He is strong, and I try to push back all those memories that happened over four months ago. Hands grab me, hitting and hurting me. My Fire reaches for Holgan, and I hear him hissing in pain.

Holgan lets go of me and looks at his hand. I see the burns on it in the form of my fingers. A gasp leaves my mouth. “I am so sorry, Holgan! I tried to keep it back!” I try to explain.

Caleb rushes to Holgan and me.

Holgan looks at me. “What are you?”

My heart shrinks, thinking he will say I am cursed.

“The Goddess blessed her with the ability to control the Fire,” Caleb says.

Holgan laughs. “So, you can basically burn this place to the ground, but you want to learn to fight with like a normal werewolf? Why?”

I stare at him, trying my best to fix my gaze on his eyes. “Because each time a male I don’t trust tries to touch me, I panic. What use will my Fire be if I will lose my shit in a fight and let my magic free? I can kill everyone in the pack if I am not careful!”

Holgan thinks for a moment. “Let me put some ointment on the burns, and we can try again.”

I spend the next two hours in the training room with Holgan. After we finish training for today, I look at his hands. “Perhaps some fireproof gloves would be necessary until I learn how to control my panic.”

Holgan shrugs. “I don’t have any, but I can buy some.”

*Hi everyone! Sorry for the super late update, but unfortunately I have to stay more hours at my work and I have less time to write. But this will last until the 5th of* *August. After that I will have holidays and more time to write. But I will update more until then. As for how many more chapters - I am not sure. But interesting things* *will happens soon!*