88
Lucy
David nodded. “One of them is a member of his pack. The other is a rogue.”
He shook his head. “Sorry, that it turned into this, but did you at least enjoy the part before the fight?”
I smiled at him. “It’s the best… and maybe if we play a few more rounds, we’ll forget all about it.”
He grinned back. “Deal.”
The weekend passed in a blur. We got back so late on Friday night that I didn’t even have a chance to read anyone’s messages. Tina and Stacey teased me most of the morning on Saturday, but they let me do my homework in peace. By the time Monday came. The drama of the fight seemed like it happened so long ago.
I had to focus on my first physical training class, and it was starting to make me think that there was no way I was going to make it as an officer.
“Keep going! You’ve still got thirty seconds.”
I could barely breathe. I felt dizzy, but I tried to jump back up and raise my hands. Burpees is what the woman running the class called them. I hated them. I didn’t care how it was supposed to help me do whatever she said before we started.
“Ten seconds! Don’t slack off now!”
The girl next to me wheezed, bending over as she tried to get back on the ground. My arms trembled. They felt like jelly as sweat continued to roll down my face.
“Nine!”
My stomach lurched, but I hadn’t eaten anything.
“Eight!”
My ears were ringing.
“Seven!”
With each jump and drop, I felt myself getting dizzier.
“Six!”
I felt my head getting fuzzy, but I kept pushing through it. “Five!”
“Four!”
My heart felt like it was pounding in my head.
“Three!”
I couldn’t breathe.
“Two!”
I couldn’t breathe.
“One!”
My arms flopped down. My legs gave out and the floor rose up towards me as everything went dark. The next thing I knew, I was lying on the cool, hard floor. My classmates and the instructor were leaning over me. Their voices were muffled and distant, like I was hearing them through water.
“Lucy, are you okay? Can you hear me?"
“Someone call the healer’s office. We need a gurney.”
“Get her some water.”
"Lucy, can you hear me?" The woman asked. "Take deep breaths. You fainted during the workout. Just rest for now. We’ll get you to the infirmary soon, okay?"
I blinked. My head was pounding. I couldn’t understand what she was saying, exactly, but I felt hot and embarrassed. I tried to sit up, but the room spun, and my surroundings became a blur and everything else vanished.
As I opened my eyes again. Light shifted around me and I felt someone walking into the room. I groaned and turned over. I wasn’t in the gym anymore. I was on a mattress.
“Hello?” I asked weakly. I groaned looking up at the IV hanging from the pole beside the bed.
“Hey, champ,” David said softly. “You gave everyone a hell of a scare.”
He sat down beside me. “I heard you pushed yourself too hard.”
I groaned and put my arm over my face. “I… hate burpees.”
“Everyone hates burpees. Have you had your anchor recharged?”
I frowned and looked down at the necklace. It was completely dark and my heart lurched.
“N-No, I—”
“Shhh,’ he whispered and placed a hand on mine. “Calm down. It’s okay. When was the last time it was charged?”
“I… I can’t remember.”
“That’s okay. I’ll call Luke up here, okay?”
My eyes watered. “W-What if I made it worse.”
“I think it would be best for Luke to answer that.” He poured a glass of water. “How about some water and maybe some food, hm?”
I nodded and let him help me sit up. He pushed a tray beside me so I could reach the glass, but my hands were shaking. Then, a straw appeared in my water.
“Thank you,” I leaned forward as he shook a bottle and set it on the table.
“It’s not a meal, but it’s better than nothing, and it’s peach flavored.”
I smiled and thanked him again.
Luke came in a little while later with a tray of food and a disapproving look.
“I knew you were a tough one, but to pass out on the first day? There’s a limit, young lady.”
I ducked my head. “Sorry.”
He set the tray on the table and held out his hand. “Your anchor.”
I swallowed and pulled it off, handing it to him. He tutted and closed his hand over it. It started to glow as his hand started to glow. I watched amazed. David stared at him, eyes wide and amazed. He handed it back to me, fully glowing again.
“That should help. You need to eat more for sure, but it’s a start.” He glanced at David. There was something in his eyes. “You’ll look after her, won’t you?”
He smiled. “Until she stops letting me.”
Luke laughed. “Good answer.”
He left and just behind him, Riley, Stacey and two other women entered the room. Riley glanced between the two of us. David stood.
“I believe that means I have to leave.”
Riley glanced at me and nodded. “I believe that would be best, Alpha Blood Moon.”
He nodded and cupped my cheek. “I’ll be back when you’re done.”
I frowned. My stomach churned, but I nodded. David nodded at them all and left the room. Stacey eyed with a smile.
“Hell of an upgrade,” Stacey said.
The door closed behind him and Riley cast a spell around the room, covering the walls in golden light before she took a seat beside my bed.
“This is your legal team, Eva and Emily. Don’t be fooled by their sweet demeanors. They are vicious.”
I smiled and offered my hand to the two women. They shook my hand and smiled.
“We’ve heard a bit about your situation, Miss Graves. We’ll do everything we can to make sure they pay on both sides of the law.”
“Thank you.”
Eva sat in a chair and took out her tablet. “I’m going to be honest, Miss Graves. Your case is an opportunity to right a lot of the wrongs in the supernatural community, especially with regards to werewolves.”
I frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Black Moon and Blue Moon have been known to… abuse werewolf mythology and the Council’s unwillingness to stand up to them for years. Stealing people, supernatural and not, and calling them mates and holding them captive: breaking whole families apart over it. Some say that the war started over a similar situation as you’re facing.”
I licked my lips and fiddled with the blanket. “No one should be forced to… be in that position. What can I do?”
“We’d like to through the whole book at them,” she said. “That means you can’t accept a settlement deal, no matter what they offer.”
“I-I’d rather not talk to them at all.”
“And you won’t have to,” Stacey said. “Riley will be your official representative, and you can designate another.”
I nodded. “I’ll think about it.”
“Are you close with Alpha Blood Moon?” Riley asked. Her eyes narrowed.
I blinked. “David? Well… we’re not as close as we used to be, but close enough.”
She looked at Eva and Emily. Emily nodded.
“Do you think he would be supportive?”
I nodded. “I think so.”
“Good, I’ll put him on the witness list. Was there for your mating ceremony?”
I shuddered and nodded. “He was.”
“Good to know. We’ll be reaching out to other women who have been forced in similar situations to present a massive case. That may mean he or his predecessor will be implicated depending on the timing.”
I thought back to when he told me he’d rather die than let me go back to Matt and Tony and nodded. “I understand. I don’t think that will matter to him… David has a good heart. He always has.”
“Good,” Eva said. “So, let’s talk about the details.”
It seemed like hours passed. I didn’t understand all of the legal term or how tit would all work out, but I could tell from Riley and Stacey’s faces that these two women weren’t going to back down. When they left, Stacey took my hand.
“I know all of that was a lot, but we're in this together, Lucy. We'll fight for what's right and ensure that they get what the deserve and no one has to be put through this again.”
“You couldn’t have gotten a better team unless we found people with personal vendettas against them,” Riley said. “Hell, they might know some. It’s not like those two have done anyone a lot of favors over the years.”
“Thank you,” I said. “I’m just glad it can really be over soon.”
Stacey nodded. “Let’s get you back home so you can rest on a proper bed, hm?”
I nodded and got into the wheelchair that Stacey brought. When we left, David was walking away with Eva and Emily, and I felt good.
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