25. Cade

Cade

We finished cutting the first ten by late in the afternoon. Once back in the room, I noticed a mess of things. All my clothes and some of Kaya's furs had been thrown onto the bed. Had she slept in the chaos? I took time to hang all the clothes up. Where was she? I knew she wanted to pick up some things for the BBQ, but I wondered why she would have left so early. I mind-linked Mark.

"Where is Kaya? Do you know?" "She went out with Helen early this morning. Helen said she wanted to go out hunting for the BBQ." I thought she had meant the store. I should have known that she would think meat came from the wild. I trusted her to do this. For goddess's sake, I knew she had taken on a polar bear. She knew how to hunt. I slept for a few hours when I felt someone's mind link me. "Alpha, you better come down."

I got up and threw on some of my clothes. I raced down the steps. I smelt a faint scent. I knew that scent was Kaya. But why was it so light. I followed it outside. That is when I saw her. She was covered in blood. She was handing people meat to bring into the house. She looked up at me, and a smile crossed her face.

I quickly approached her and Helen. I guessed the blood was from killing and breaking down the animal she was hauling from side by side. I looked over the meat. It was from a large animal, no doubt. She pulled me in and gave me a kiss. Her mouth tasted sweet, but it was mixed with something metallic.

I pulled back and looked at her so she could read my lips. "Why do you taste like metal." Helen grabbed Kaya's shoulder, letting her know she would speak. "Oh, that is because she insisted on having the moose heart for breakfast." I looked back at my small mate. She ate a moose heart. How had she stomached it? There were so many differences in how she was used to living. I wondered if she would ever fully acclimate to living as we do.

"Oh, and just so you know, she also decided to take on a full-grown bull moose." I looked down at her small stature. I even knew that was a careless thing to do. Some moose over the years had gored some of my wolves who got too close out on patrol. I would need to talk to her about how foolish that was. I barked out orders for the bystanders.

"Take the meat into the kitchen. Ensure enough gets refrigerated for the BBQ; later, the rest goes into the freezer, take the hide, and set it off to the side. Also, get the side-by-side put back." I figured she would want the hide for something, so it was best to set it aside for her. I mind-linked her. "Let's go get you cleaned up." She nodded, and I began to lead her up to our room. Once there, I turned to face her so she could read my lips. I knew she would respond in my head, but I just wanted to speak.

"You went after a moose?" She just nodded. "You realize that was super foolish." "I do; I will never do that alone again." I thought she would disagree with me, but she must have realized she was in over her head out in the forest. I saw no reason to scold her.

"Can I ask why you thought it was a good idea?" "I just wanted to provide for the pack. 600 pounds seemed like a good way to contribute." I had to chuckle slightly at her response. She then frantically looked around the room. She started to whine. What was going on? She then moved closer to me and rubbed herself all over me. Her head rubbed my chest, and I moved my arms around her, pulling her into me.

"What is wrong, Hun?" "The clothes, where did they go? I left them on the bed?" "I put them away." "Why would you do that?" She mind-linked as she pulled away from me. "They were all messed up on the bed." "I need them there. I need the scent all over the room, just yours and mine. They changed the mattress, and your smell was gone." "So that is why the bed suddenly was much firmer." "Cade." She whimpered again. Then she rushed out to the closet, grabbed the clothes, and tossed them out. Picking them up and throwing them on the bed.

"I don't get it." "Our den." "What is that?" I asked. She had mentioned it before, and in truth, I was curious. "It is our den. I am surprised you don't have these in the South. It is instinctual." "It isn't here." "Well, it is our space. Only our family is allowed here; by that, I mean only you and me and our kids when we have them. It is the reason you meant my family outside of their tent. You were not welcome to come invade their space. It is why the furs are on the bed. We mated on them. They smell like us, so I want them close to me while we sleep."

"So that is a den." "Yes, and it shouldn't take too long to have the smell just right, but until then, I insist clothes stay in the room, not the closet." "Do they have to be on the bed?" "No, not when you are sleeping on the bed with me; they can be on the couch." "What about your clothes."

"They don't smell like me yet." "Oh." "Anything else I need to know about our den." "Yes, if someone enters, I will try to kill them. Doesn't matter who they are. It is just in my nature. Especially after our scents permeate the room." "What about cleaning the bedding." "I will do that and with unscented soap. Same with our clothes. I don't want anyone touching our stuff."

"Is it like that for everyone in the north?" "Yes and no. The den is normal, and the soap is always unscented when it comes to washing. But others can help with washing, but not for me. I have a heightened sense of smell because I have lost my hearing. Which makes me not want to smell other scents on you or have them brought into my space."

I had forgotten her nose was extra sensitive. How did it impact her in crowded places? I would have to be also sensitive about the den. I could tell she felt very strongly about it. I mean, it was more than that, though. It was a characteristic of the North, something primal for her. I would need to remember that about her.

"Also, Cade, if someone comes in here and moves anything once the den is established, it will send me into a frenzy. Like I could really hurt myself or someone else in my anguish. It is one of the worst things to happen. It is so serious that the law in the North dictates dens as sacred spaces."

What? I had no idea it was so severe. It was a comforting thing, but I could see it was a huge thing that would have to be established in the people who worked in the house. I need to make sure no one comes up on this floor. I wouldn't risk someone seriously hurting my mate.

"How is it then you can have the moose blood scent on you in the den." "Oh, this is an animal, not one of us. My instincts tell me it is food, and food is no threat. "I took a closer look at her again. She had dried blood all over her. I even could see where she had wiped the blood from around her mouth. Then I remembered Helen said she had eaten the moose heart. I wanted to know how she stomached it. Also, how could she eat that much? Was it not like 3 pounds of meat.