“Obviously, we don’t know that, Juda,” his toned changed. A very recognizable attitude began to show instead of his Alpha professionalism. This was no longer the Alpha speaking to one of his people. It was a big brother show his annoyance towards his little sister.
I did not get a chance to fire back at him because the moment I had been waiting for finally happened. The handle to the hospital wing door turned and the door opened. Kory appeared when it was all the way against the inside wall wearing a smile. I knew that meant they were awake. Why else we he be smiling? He was not the smiling kind of guy and was serious all the time. His sister and second in command had to be awake. There was no other explanation for his happiness.
I rushed past him, hitting his shoulder on the way to Kota. He did not stop me, which was another sign that Kota and Nathan were awake. I heard him talking to Juno, but I did not pay close enough attention to the specifics. I raced towards the end of the room where Kota and Nathan were sitting up in their beds talking with one another. I did not stop until I reached Kota and wrapped my arms around her neck, squeezing her tightly. She wrapped her own arms around my back and seemed genuinely happy to see me. When I pulled away I walked over to Nathan and gave him a much a gentler hug.
“I’m so glad you two are alright,” I said as I pulled away from the muscular sorcerer. “What the hell happened to you guys out there?”
“I don’t even know how to explain it,” Kota laughed awkwardly. She knew it was not a laughing matter, but she clearly had no other way to express what was going through her head. She did not get a chance to explain to me what happened because the hospital wing door slammed open again and three familiar faces began sprinting towards us. Luna was the first to reach us. She squatted down in the middle of the two beds so that she could talk to both Kota and Nathan. Nova ran all the way around to Kota’s side, stopping just before she could run into her and possibly hurt her. Deja was the calm one, stopping a few feet away from Nathan’s bed and taking it all in. Must be nice to be calm like a fairy.
“How are you guys feeling?” Luna asked her head moving to look at Nathan and then at Kota at least twice signaling that the question was for both of them. I do not know when Roman, Declan, Hudson, and Gavin joined us but when I glanced over my shoulder they were all standing at the foot of the two beds. It makes sense. The guys have grown pretty close over the last two months.
“I feel like I just woke up from a nap,” Nathan answered as he brushed his palm through his dark brown hair.
“Oh, like you just got ran over by a wagon?” she assumed as if she knew exactly what he was talking about.
“Luna!” I scolded.
“What?” she snapped. “You heard what he said.”
“Let me rephrase that,” he chuckled. “I feel like I woke up from a well-rested nap.”
“I wouldn’t know what that feels like,” Luna muttered as she turned to look at Kota.
“Honestly, it’s as if nothing ever happened,” she replied. “I don’t feel weak at all.”
“You’ve been passed out all afternoon,” Luna continued. “You don’t feel any different.”
“Stronger,” she answered.
“Come again?” Luna seemed confused. The rest of us laughed at her reaction but, in reality, we were all just as curious by what she had just said.
“I don’t know how to explain it,” she said. “I honestly feel stronger now than I did before the ceremony. It has to do with us binding, doesn’t it?”
“Who the hell knows?” Nova sighed. “This whole thing has been a complete mystery. Your hands were glowing when they touched and then you guys passed out. No one knows what they hell happened in there. You guys are branded now.”
“What?” Kota and Nathan questioned together.
“Who branded us?” Nathan asked as he began to search his body for the marking.
“It’s on your back,” Roman told him. “And no one did it to you. It just showed up.”
“And you guys healed your hands somehow,” Deja added. “When you guys let go of each other and the glowing stopped it was like your palms were never cut to begin with.”
Nathan and Kota began examining their hands only to find that what Deja had told them was correct. They glanced over at each other, almost like they were communicating without the rest of us hearing them. I could not shake the feeling that they were hiding something from all of us. I did not notice it at first, but they were definitely holding back although I was not sure about what just yet.
“I really need to get out of this bed,” Kota finally said breaking the awkward silence.
“Not until we’re sure everything is okay,” Kory said as he walked up to the group. Kody was with him, both of them looking happy that their sister and best friend were okay.
“I’ve already told you that there’s nothing wrong with us,” Kota argued. “Whatever it was it probably had to do with the ceremony.”
“We still can’t explain why the ceremony went like that and until we do you two aren’t going anywhere,” Kory spoke sternly expecting his decision to be taken seriously.
“I’m not going to stay in this bed, Kory,” Kota yelled as she stood up from where she sat, now standing on the mattress towering over all of us girls. She was only slightly taller than the guys.
“Get down!” Kory shouted.
“I’m not Luna!” she countered. “I know how to keep my balance.”
“That was unnecessary,” Luna moaned while the rest of us tried not to giggle.
“I will put a lock on these doors, Kota,” Kory threatened. “You’re not going anywhere.”
“Why aren’t you helping me?” Kota asked Nathan who was sitting there quietly with his hands resting on his lap. He was a smart guy. He knew better than to get in the middle of the Alpha and his sister, even if the Alpha’s sister was now his wife.
He hesitated to answer Kota as he looked back and forth between her and Kory. Each time he looked at them an entirely new expression of fear grew on his face. It was actually quite amusing. “I have nothing to add to this argument.”
“Kota, get down from the bed,” Kory asked nicely. “We can discuss your current quarantine when you start acting normal again.”
“Quarantine!” the girls and I yelled in unison.
“I don’t need you four putting ideas in her head,” Kory explained. “You five are nothing but trouble when you’re together.”
“And what kind of trouble do you and the other Alphas get in before you became the Alphas?” Kota asked as she continued to stand on the mattress. She was right about one thing: she did have better balance than Luna.
“That’s not the point,” Kory shook his head.
“We were doing just fine before you got here, Kory,” Nova told him.
“Fine, I’ll lock you all in here,” Kory shrugged his shoulders as he motioned for Kody to follow him out of the hospital wing.
“Get off the damn bed, Kota,” Luna scolded. “You got us all in trouble.”
“I don’t think I’m in trouble,” Nathan reminded Kota of his obedience during the showdown.
“Shut up, Nathan,” we said in unison again.
He rolled his eyes and then sighed looking up at the guys who were trying to show sympathy and hiding their laughter at the same time.
“I don’t know what I got myself into,” Nathan spoke quietly.
“Okay, let’s get back to the important stuff,” Luna stopped Nathan before he could dig himself a deeper hole. “What happened after you two grabbed hands? That seems to be where the weird stuff started to happen.”
“I don’t know,” Kota replied as she bounced off the mattress, returning to her original spot in bed. “I remember the gold light, but I don’t remember it coming from our hands and there was this burning sensation in my chest but other than that I don’t remember anything else. The next thing I knew, I woke up here.”
“Did you feel the burning, too?” she turned to ask Nathan who shook his he
ad ‘yes’.
“You guys should’ve felt the power coming off of you guys,” I told them. “It was like your strength was combining and it was overpowering the rest of us.”
“That’s how I feel now,” Kota pointed in my direction. “That’s what I meant when I was saying that I feel stronger.”
We sat silently as we took in the information that we desperately needed to figure out what had happened to them. We soon realized that, even with all this information, we knew nothing. We were not able to determine anything other than what we already knew. We all had our theories and most of them stemmed from the prophecy as well as the original four families. It did seem strange that after two thousand years fate brought the four founding families back together through bindings. Even though only one of us was actually bound, it seemed pretty clear that it had to do with the prophecy. I do not think it is a coincidence that the late Alphas all had daughters during the same time period when the other three families had children around the same age. Especially with our lifespan, children were born during all stages of life. Our fathers were the first ones to be born within the same year as each other but their fathers were all different ages. Uncle Ben’s father was fifty years older than Uncle Alex’s father. This all started with our fathers, but it looked like it was going to finish with us, their children, and the descendants of the three other founding families. I had no proof of any of this but the more I pieced together the more it was starting to make a little bit of sense.
“Why aren’t you guys out searching for Malachi?” Kota asked.
“The Alphas sent the guards out to search today,” I told her. “We’ll go out and search when you guys are feeling better.”
“How many times do I have to tell you guys?” Kota growled. “I have literally never felt stronger. We should be out there searching right now. You guys are worse than Kory.”
“That was rude,” Nova said bluntly.
“You know what I meant,” Kota rolled her eyes.
“I don’t think I do,” Nova played dumb, which did not suit her well. She was too smart and did not play the part well at all.
“All I’m saying is we should be out there right now,” Kota continued. “We’re better now.”
“It’s getting dark,” Roman pointed out. “The guards will be returning from their search for the night. I’ll try to convince Nico that we can go out tomorrow.”
He began to walk towards the double doors to go find Nico, but he was stopped by the spelled lock on the other side. He tried to pull it a couple of times before he turned around to face the rest of us. “I never got in trouble before I started hanging out with you guys on a daily basis.”
“Whose fault is that?” Nova asked, a smirk covering her face.
“I never should have come to bring your kid to work day,” he sighed.
“I’m surprised your dad even brought you,” Nova jabbed. It was a low blow, but it did not seem to bother Roman. Bring your kid to work day was not something that happened every year. Uncle Ben was so involved in his children’s upbringing and loved them more than anything that they thought it would be fun to have them around while they worked for a day. He got the Council involved but realized quickly that they were not in favor of the idea because they apparently all hate their children. It only happened once before Nova was born but Roman’s father brought him along like the Alpha told him to, where he met Nico and Nero who were four and two at the time. Roman was three and quickly became friends with the Alpha’s sons. Their friendship only grew from there.
Roman walked back over to the group and draped his arm around Nova’s shoulders, pulling her into his side. I heard her whisper that she was sorry only to have him tell her that he knew she was joking. It was nice to see them get along so well. I could not say the same for Hudson and I. We bickered a lot to the point where it was so annoying that people left the room. There was this draw between us though, that neither one of us could deny. No matter how much we argued we both knew that no one would support one another more than we would. He had my back when my father had been captured by Malachi. He stalled the acting Alphas for as long as he could, and he did not hesitate to do it. Poor guy got a broken nose for it but that did not seem to change his mind. He continued to lie for us.
I knew that I loved Hudson, but I could ignore the fact that we argued more than I would like. It was always over stupid stuff but, still, it happened all the time. I was not sure if we would ever move past that, which is why I am constantly telling Juno not to tell anyone that we were engaged because that was not even close to the truth. I think, deep down, I knew we would get there eventually but I had no idea if that was going to be this year or the next or even ten years down the line. We cannot all be like Kota and just give in. Actually, according to Kory and Kody, they had been secretly seeing each other for a while so I guess she did not give in. I am still a little upset that she never told us about it. I think she was worried that we would judge her or make fun of her, which is not true at all, but I have to admit that I understand why she thought that. The five of us have been known to poke fun at things that really should not be made fun of.
“Luna, get back in that room!” a voice yelled from outside. The next thing I heard was a murderous scream coming from Luna who was hanging outside the window. I did not see her go over there but apparently, she was tired of being cooped up in the hospital wing and planned an escape. Kory was one step ahead of her though and was waiting for her to slip outside. She jumped back inside before turning back around to face Kory.
“Just wait, Kory, the next time I see you I’m going to rip your throat out!” she yelled before she slammed the window shut. She turned back towards us looking furious but stayed completely silent as she sat down on the bed across from Kota.
About an hour later Kory let us out of the hospital wing, including Kota and Nathan. They were not allowed to do anything other than take it easy but at least they were able to get out of bed. Since we were not going out to search the forest as planned, Nico secretly had the maids and butlers ready the dining hall for a special dinner to celebrate Kota and Nathan. It may have been a weird and sometimes stressful day but putting all of that aside, Kota and Nathan were starting their new lives together and it should be celebrated.
I found myself sitting down at the dining hall table before anyone else. I am not really sure what possessed me to do this, but I liked the silence that I got by being in here by myself. It was rare for any bit of quite to happen within these four walls, but I do not think I would have dinner any other way. Oddly enough, I thought about Hudson and I, and whether or not we were actually compatible. Since arriving at Werewolf Castle, I think I have secretly been jealous of the developing relationships between the girls and the men their fathers suggested to them. I constantly tell myself that I wanted nothing to do with being in a relationship and starting a family, but I think deep down I say those things to make myself feel better. I have no interest in starting a family any time soon but there is a part of me that does crave the love of another, who adores you and only you for the rest of their lives. I am not sure what brought these thoughts on. Maybe it was the Binding Ceremony this morning or maybe something within me was triggered somehow that made me think about my relationship with Hudson more seriously.
“If you keep thinking that hard you might actually brake,” Hudson laughed as he pulled the chair out next to me. He sat down, leaning back comfortably as he waited for me to respond. “What are you doing in here by yourself anyways?”
“Just thinking, I guess,” I told him. Technically, it was not a lie, but I could see in his eyes that he knew I was holding something back. I must have learned that from Kota and Nathan. I still want to know whatever it is that they are keeping from us.
“Thinking about what?” he pressured. He just could not let it go. There were times when this habit of his made me laugh but then there were times when I was not in the mood for it. I would say I am in between right now.
&
nbsp; “Kota and Nathan,” I answered. “Binding Ceremonies in general. I don’t really know. I guess my mind is all over the place.”
“Are you overthinking everything like you usually do,” he laughed but when I shot an angry glance at him he at least tried to hide the smile.
“I’m not trying to overthink it,” I replied. “But I guess that is what I’m doing.”
“Let me guess,” he interrupted. “You’re trying to figure out why the others seem to have loving relationships, but you and I don’t.”
“How did you know that?” my mouth dropped as I turned my body in his direction. Facing him now, the look on my face demanded that he tell me what he knew.
“The guys may have brought it up earlier today while we waited for Kota and Nathan to wake up,” he said. “Apparently, you and I don’t act like we like each other very much.”
“I don’t hate you, Hudson,” I attempted to convince him. It was the truth. I love him, but I am not sure yet if it is the way he loves me.
“I know you don’t,” he assured me. “But I also don’t think you like me either, but I’m okay with that.”
“Why would you be okay with someone not liking you?” I questioned finding it weird that anyone would be okay with something like that.
“Because I think it works for us,” he explained. “I think we love each other but there are times when we don’t like each other very much but that doesn’t mean our feelings change. Giants aren’t overly attached to their partners, Juda, you know that.”
This was true as well. My parents loved each other, adored each other even more, but they were also perfectly content with a little bit of distance. They never strayed from one another, but they did not have to spend all their time together either. Even with all of that, it was still clear that there was no one else in the world for them than the other. I never thought about it this way before and maybe it is because I have been around the other girls who have this fantasy of having a true love. It was a nice thought, but it always seemed unrealistic to me. This explanation that Hudson has just given me kind of explains why I have always been negative when it came to love and finding the perfect partner. If I was being really honest with myself, I would admit that Hudson is the perfect partner. Our relationship may not be perfect, but everything else was.
Deprived (Daughter of an Alpha Book 2) Page 8