24.

“Who is Namia?” Farryn opened her eyes up, her lips parting to give him an answer before she froze. She was going to have to go through her whole history again. Her eyes darted away from Xavier’s gentle smile quickly as she cleared her throat.

“Namia is Farryn’s original partner given to her by the Moon Goddess.” Chandler’s voice caused Farryn to jump in surprise. Even Xavier flinched, pulling himself away from Farryn to place a bit more space between the two of them. Xavier’s smile had evaporated and was replaced with a frown as he turned to Chandler who was leaned casually on the frame of the doorway. His arms crossed over his chest and his eyes fixated on Farryn before slowly looking to Xavier.

“Seems she hasn’t told you much about her.” Farryn’s face flushed at the hint of pride in Chandler’s voice. Xavier’s back straightened slightly before bringing a hand through his hair.

“I don’t feel the need to pester her for her life story. When she is comfortable with me, I’ll be happy to listen to anything she has to say.” Xavier smirked as his eyes drifted to Farryn, who’s face had turned as red as a tomato at this point.

“Stop, both of you just stop! Chandler, you have no right to tell anyone anything about me. It’s not your information to share, and I already told you once to leave.” Farryn was doing her best to sound stern but her voice wavered as she looked up at his brown eyes. There was an unreadable emotion as he held her gaze.

Chandler was the first to look away, dipping his chin just slightly before flashing her a small smile. “Do you realize that your eyes have stopped changing?” His question took Farryn by surprise. Her hands cupped her cheeks quickly, each pinky brushed the tops of her cheek bones.

“They did.” She confirmed with a relieved smile. Her vision was solid again and even her head seemed to have cleared. Xavier reached out and placed the back of his hand to her forehead, causing her to look away from Chandler.

“Your fever doesn’t seem as bad either. That’s great.” Xavier looked relieved as he pulled his hand away but Farryn knew better. She glanced at Chandler from the corner of her eye and knew Chandler had the same thought in his head. Xavier looked between the two of them before clearing his throat sharply. He didn’t like the fact that he was subconsciously being excluded.

“Come on Alpha, let’s get you off of the bathroom floor.” The male rose to his feet and extended a hand and a charming smile. Farryn’s shoulders relaxed, as if a small weight had come off of her in the presence of both males. She extended her right hand, but as their fingertips brushed Chandler was at her side helping her to her feet with a protective arm wrapped around her shoulders.

Xavier curled his fingers as he placed his hand to his side with a slight scoff. It was loud enough to be heard but quiet enough to be passed off as just a heavy breath. The flush returned to Farryn’s face as she fidgeted uneasily at Chandler’s side. The tension between the two males was heavy enough to fill the small bathroom they all stood in, and Farryn was sure she could feel the beginnings of a growl rising from Chandler. Farryn shrugged her Beta’s arm off over her shoulders and a smug look flashed across Xavier’s face but just for a brief second until he noticed Farryn looking his way.

“Both of you need to stop, I don’t know what’s going on between you two, but I need you both to get along. Xavier, thank you for listening but I need to talk to my Beta now.” Xavier’s eyes widened just slightly. He was surprised that she was dismissing him. His amber gaze darkened as he lowered his head in a bow. When his head lifted there was a cold chill that ran down Farryn’s spine at the look her gave Chandler. Chandler on the other hand did not flinch or give the other male any sort of reaction in return. His eyes remained glued on the male until he was out of the bathroom. The air in the room seemed to change the moment Xavier left. It became heavier, especially as Chandler’s gaze returned to Farryn who moved to the sink to put distance between the two of them.

“I don’t like him being around you, he’s hiding something and he’s dangerous.” Farryn turned on the cold water as she peered at her Beta through the mirror.

“We’re all hiding something Chandler, if you’re worried because of what I had said earlier, about my suspicions I had? I think I was wrong. Nothing has happened since he’s been here.” Chandler sighed deeply before approaching her slowly, watching to see if she would make an attempt to run away from him.

“Or could it be that nothing has happened because he’s living here? You are letting him get to close to you.” Farryn rolled her eyes sharply before closing them as she ran her hands under the cold water then dabbing at her cheeks. “Farryn.” His voice came out as a soft whine, desperate to have her look at him when he was speaking, to see how serious he was about this topic. When she opened her eyes again, she could see the blue bleeding into his gaze as he extended a hand to gently brush his fingers along the exposed skin of her arm. Farryn’s breath caught in her throat as she forced her body to remain still despite wanting to shiver at his touch.

“He is dangerous, and in your current state it would be easy for him to hurt you.” Chandler’s obvious statement brought a flurry of opinions to her mind, the white wolf who had slowly been growing quieter and quieter reared her head in fury that he would suggest she was growing weak. While Namia was touched that he cared so openly about her. Farryn winced at the barrage on her mind. Chandler’s hand stilled on her arm at the sight before he stepped closer, leaving just a small space between their bodies as he watched her in the mirror.

“I’m drawn to you Farryn. I am drawn to your scent, your beautiful gaze, even your cold words. Everything about you is mesmerizing and I don’t want to look away. I don’t want to miss a single thing.” Chandler moved his hand down Farryn’s arm until his fingers wrapped around her wrist. He pulled her arm and turned her around, pressing her body against the sink and watching the way her gaze flicked down to his lips for a heartbeat.

“Chandler don’t…” Her voice was a meek whisper as he leaned in towards her. Chandler cupped her cheek as he brushed his thumb over her bottom lip.

“Then stop me, Alpha.” For a moment, her eyes flashed blue with a silent rage at the teasing tone he used when addressing her title. Once their lips connected the blue was gone. She inhaled sharply through her nose as his free hand grasped her waist desperately, as if he was afraid she would slip away. A weak whimper escaped from Farryn as Chandler brushed his tongue over her bottom lip, silently asking for permission rather than assuming. The gesture was shocking.

Farryn slowly lifted her hands, her fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt to pull him closer as her lips parted. His hand on her waist relaxed, his fingers shifting under the fabric to feel the smooth skin of her waist. The electricity that followed his fingertips and his tongue dancing along with her own drew a moan out of Farryn. Chandler’s fingertips had just reached the bottom of her ribs when the sound of her bedroom door slamming against the wall. Farryn quickly pushed the male away from her with widened eyes, her cheeks flushed while Chandler stumbled away a handful of steps before flashing her a lopsided grin.

“Alpha! Amelia has gone missing and Emily is on a rampage!” Ian had burst into her bedroom without a second thought and froze near the doorway of her bathroom at the sight of her flustered face and Chandler keeping his eyes solely on her. “Sorry to interrupt. But it’s an emergency.” His words were clipped as he glared at the male who slowly turned his gaze away from Farryn. His gaze hardened the moment his spotted Ian. He still blamed the smaller male for his loss of title but in this moment, he was a male intruding where he didn’t belong.

“I heard you Ian I’m coming.” Farryn quickly moved out of the bathroom, not missing Chandler moving out of the corner of her eye as if he would attempt to stop her. Farryn grasped Ian’s upper arm and began to pull him out of her bedroom, the sounds of Chandler’s growl followed behind them as he trailed behind.

“You’ve changed.” Ian grumbled under his breath as he shook her hand from his arm. Farryn’s eyes flickered blue then bright green, where they remained as she assessed Ian closely.

“Have I changed or am I remembering who I used to be Ian, before you shoved me into this position.” She growled through her teeth before quickly running her hands over her face. She had hardly left her home since falling ill and she knew how weak she would look to the pack at the moment. They deserved someone better than her. “Chandler, go find Xavier.” She ordered over her shoulder. His steps faltered for a moment, hesitating whether he should listen or not. When his footsteps didn’t follow, she knew he was begrudgingly listening to his Alpha.

“How long has she been missing and why are we not thinking she just went into the forest for a bit?” Ian was silent as he opened the front door to Farryn’s home, his eyes downcast as he avoided her questioning gaze. Her lip curled into the beginnings of a snarl but froze at the sight before her home. Emily’s large black wolf was pinned to the ground by Tony’s brown wolf who was using his large paws to keep her shoulders down. His jaws clamped shut firmly on the scruff of her neck as she snarled in rage. Her maw was beginning to froth in her frenzy.

Farryn could see that many of the females who had pups, had shuffled them inside their homes quickly. The moment Emily’s eyes spotted Farryn it seemed to trigger a new wave of strength. Her nostrils flared as she forced Tony off of her and charged at her Alpha. There was a collective gasp as many knew that she had been bedridden for the last few days. The adrenaline that kicked in at the sight of the large black wolf seemed to slow time down.

Farryn pushed Ian out of Emily’s way as the large beast collided with Farryn, forcing her back into the house as her body hit the floor. Farryn used a hand at Emily’s throat to keep her from mauling her face. With a deep growl Farryn wrapped her legs around the wolf’s hips and rolled them over quickly. Once Emily tried snapping her jaws shut again Farryn grabbed the wolf’s muzzle with both hands and forced her head to the ground. The wolf whined as she pawed at her Alpha’s shoulders but without the rage she had just a moment ago.

“I need to talk to Emily. I need to know what is going on here.” The wolf whined once more, attempting to shake her head in refusal before Farryn leaned down closer. She could hear a handful of the packmates shuffling closer to the front door, watching the exchange. “What happened to Amelia?” the question drew a low growl of pain from the wolf. The two females maintained eye contact for a moment longer before finally the wolf relinquished control back to Emily and shifted. To Farryn’s surprise Emily was crying.

“This is all your fault.” The young woman choked out between sobs, prompting Farryn to sit up in surprise.

“W-What?”

“Tony told you! He told you at the border, that if you ignored… if you ignored the message you would get us all killed. First Darius, now my sister!” Emily covered her eyes with her hands as her body shook. Farryn stood up, watching Emily as she curled into the fetal position. Farryn had to resist the urge to fidget with her fingers as she moved away from the female, allowing another female to step forward and help Emily to her feet and shuffle the young woman out of the house. Chandler emerged from the back of the building; his eyes dark as he approached Farryn slowly.

“Xavier is missing as well… again.”