Chapter 57: Grace
I took a deep breath and leaned out of my chair as far as I could before eventually just getting up and putting a little space between us.
“Oh,” Arlo said in surprise when he looked up and realized I had moved. “I’m sorry, Grace. I wasn’t thinking about how close I was to you.”
He then took several steps back, which allowed me to retake my seat, even though I didn’t really want to. “That’s okay.” I mumbled.
He gave me a smile and gestured to my untouched tea. “I promise the tea’s not poisoned,” He laughed a little.
I tried to smile back, but my heart was racing. Kinsley had claimed the tea wasn’t poisoned too, but it most definitely was. I had no way of knowing it was poisoned then, and no way of knowing it now. I’m sure it wasn’t, but I wouldn’t be drinking anything till Rhys came back, and even that was questionable.
Arlo moved to the other side of the table and retook his seat. He then reached across the table for my papers which I handed to him, careful not to touch him.
“Very good, Grace,” He beamed after looking over my work. “These are nearly perfect. You must be very bright.”
He handed my back my papers, and we moved on to the next subject which was math. Arlo said that we were only going to learn the basics for math, and I found it to be my hardest subject so far, but Arlo worked with me patiently till I understood the very basics.
“Let’s practice some conversation, okay? Give your mind and hand a little break.” He said after a while.
“Okay...” I said slowly, wondering what he really meant by that.
“So, Rhys was telling me that your wolf is bound, do you have any idea why?” He asked, looking at me curiously.
I really wished that Rhys hadn’t left as I whispered, “No.” I really didn’t want to talk about my bound wolf.
“Do you know how long you’ve been bound?” He asked, and I frowned wondering why I was getting the 3rd degree over my wolf that wasn’t really a wolf.
“No.” I responded uneasily. I didn’t know how he knew about my wolf or Lycan, but I didn’t like it. I couldn’t figure out why he would be asking about it. It’s not like that was a normal conversation starter with others...
“It must be hard to be disconnected from yourself like that,” He sighed.
“I’m not sure,” I answered hesitantly, not sure I really wanted to get into the details with him about this. “I’ve never known anything else.”
“I’m sorry,” Arlo chuckled slightly at himself. “It’s just that I really empathize with you, Grace. I remember what it was like when my wolf was bound, and it was terrible. I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy.”
“Your wolf was bound?” I asked in surprise.
“Oh yea,” Arlo sighed at the memory. “I used to have a bit of a drinking and gambling problem when I was younger, and I, in a moment of stupidity, bet my wolf. I didn’t even know you could bound someone’s wolf like that, I thought it was an empty threat. But to my surprise, that was my punishment, and you could in fact ‘lose’ your wolf. For 3 years, my wolf and I were disconnected. I tried to get my life together during that time, which was not easy. However, that’s when I met Alpha King Rhys and Beta Leon. They saved me during a rogue attack and brought me back here. They were able to get my wolf unbound eventually, and I owe them everything. They saved my life in more ways than one.”
I nodded, feeling frozen. Rhys had unbound another wolf before me, and now he was my tutor. There had to be a point to this... But I felt tricked or used or something. I didn’t know what I felt exactly, but I didn’t like it.
The front door swung open, and Rhys strolled through it as if he owned the place, and that made me feel worse.
“How’s it going, love?” He asked, but I just stared at him, not answering.
He frowned and turned to Arlo. “How’d she do, Arlo?”
“She did really well,” Arlo smiled broadly. “We accomplished a lot today. She should practice every day, but she’s further along than I expected and a very quick learner. Her pronunciations will come the more she talks, and everything else will come with time.”
“That’s great!” Rhys said happily, turning back to me to gage my reaction.
“Can we go now?” I asked quietly fuming at the deceit I was feeling the more I thought about everything.
“Sure,” Rhys seemed confused by my demeanor, but didn’t comment. “Thanks, Arlo, for everything. We’ll see you soon.”
Arlo waved his goodbye as he walked us out, assuring us it was nothing, and only closing the door once was we were back on the path to the packhouse.
“Did you take me to Arlo because he has been bound before too?” I asked when we were far enough away.
“Yea,” Rhys admitted easily. “His story is obviously different than yours, but I thought it would be good for you to meet someone who has experienced something that you’re going through, He’s a good guy, and I thought it might help you feel less alone. Did it help to talk to him?”
“I didn’t really appreciate you leaving me alone with him.” I told him honestly, still feeling uneasy over the whole thing.
“I was outside the whole time, love,” He answered, lowkey dismissing my concern. “He’s a good guy. Plus, I would know if anything inappropriate happened.”
I felt my anger intensify. He was testing me? How fucking dare he... First the stupid girl shows up, and now he tried to set me up to see where my loyalties lied? It wasn’t fair. None of this was actually for me. It didn’t matter what he said, he clearly didn’t trust me. ‘He would know if anything inappropriate happened.’ Was he waiting for something inappropriate to happen? The thought made me feel icky inside. I might have passed his stupid test, but I was livid I was being tested in the first place.
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