Fated for Two

Brenton stepped inside the front room of the house and saw Farrah standing there.

“What do you want me to do with the blanket?” Farrah asked.

“Lay it down on the carpet so I can put him down on it,” Brenton answered. “The doctor said he could randomly shift, so putting him on the couch wouldn’t be a good idea.”

“No, probably wouldn’t be,” Farrah agreed as she spread the blanket out.

Once it was smoothed out, Brenton carefully lay wolf Everard down and then stayed kneeling beside him. Reaching out, he began to run a hand down the side of the wolf.

Farrah softly said, “He’ll be fine.”

“I know, but I still feel guilty that he’s like this,” Brenton said just as softly. Taking a deep breath to calm himself as he felt his anger at Everard being hurt rising, he stood up. Gruffly, he mentioned, “I should go clean up a bit.”

Farrah moved to sit next to Everard as she said, “We’re going to need some clothes.”

Brenton huffed and muttered, “I didn’t think of that. I could have had Owen bring some.”

Farrah laughed, bringing Brenton’s gaze from the floor to her. So, she told him, “As if your clothes would fit Everard, he’d be swimming in them.”

Brenton chuckled, “You’re right, he would. Well, let me go clean up and put on my shorts that are in the office, I’ll bring Everard’s out for you because I’ll be locking the office back up. Then I’ll go and grab some clothes from Everard’s house for all of us. We may be here for a couple of days at least.”

Farrah stood up and walked over to him to pull him into her embrace. “Brenton, are you okay with being here?”

Brenton closed his eyes before he shoved his face into her hair and began taking deep breaths. His body was tense but slowly relaxed as he answered, “I have to be and it’s not as hard as it was when we first walked in. I won’t say it doesn’t still hurt, but Everard was right, I have good memories of this place. Plus, we’ve made a few memories of our own here now.”

Farrah hummed as she moved her fingers over his bare chest, thinking about those memories.

“Everard is in no condition to be moved and I still need to look for those papers. Since the rogues followed us here, we’ve given them a new place to look. So, I believe if we leave now, they will ransack the place looking for those papers themselves. I want to beat them to the punch,” Brenton finished, capturing her roving fingers and kissing them.

“You’re right,” Farrah agreed. “They would have a new place to look, a stone that is yet unturned.”

“If they have been watching me all along, and have a mole in my pack, then they know how I feel about this place,” Brenton added.

Farrah sighed, saying, “And by us coming here…”

“They know something important must be here.”

“I didn’t think of that when we spoke of coming,” Farrah admitted, feeling guilty.

Brenton stepped back as he stated, “Not your fault, Darlin’, I didn’t either until they attacked. I think their plan was to take me out because most of the rogues went after me, all they did was keep the two of you busy. If they could take me out, then they could search the place, but my warriors got here too quick.”

“You had them on alert, didn’t you?”

“I did,” Brenton agreed. “I told five of them to run a perimeter of the area when we left out this morning. I knew there was a chance that the mole would find out, but I still did it and I’m glad I did. When we needed help, they didn’t have to come all the way from the pack-house because they were close.”

“So… if they had been as far as the pack-house…”

“They would have been far enough away, which means the rogues would have had time to send someone in to search while the others kept us busy,” Brenton stated.

Farrah took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. She then pulled back and allowed her eyes to lock with his as she told him, “Brenton, I think we need to beef up security around here and up training. I think they’re getting desperate if what they did today is any indication, and desperate people do desperate things. They had to know that even if your warriors came from the pack-house they wouldn’t have time to do a complete search. I think it proves how desperate they are.”

“I agree, so tonight I will tear dad’s office apart if I have to and find those papers. I think at this point it’s safe to say this is about more than just Dad and Alpha Steward having an agreement to combine packs. There is something on this land, or on Steward land, that someone wants and they’re willing to do anything they have to, to get it,” Benton told her. “For now, you stay with Everard, and I’ll go get us some clothes. Oh, and I have some women coming to clean, so keep an eye out for them.”

Farrah nodded and after giving her another kiss, Brenton left the room. She went and sat down on the couch next to where Everard lay on the floor. She began to gently rub his side with her barefoot as she said, “Get well soon, Honey, we need you to help us figure out this mess.”

Brenton quickly moved down the hallway toward the office. Stepping inside he closed the door and leaned back against it. He took a few shuddering breaths, pushing back the anger that was always just under the surface. His pack was once more under attack, only now it wasn’t just him he had to worry about, but Farrah, his mate, and Everard his wolf brother.

He growled moving to the desk and slamming his fist into it before grunting out, “Why? What do they want? What could we possibly have that would keep them continually coming for us?”

He turned away from the desk and made his way to the window. Almost pulling the drapes down, he yanked them over so he could look out the one-way window. He stared at the driveway, lined by trees that would take him from this house directly to his pack-house. Turning his head, slightly, he looked at the path that was now overgrown because it hadn’t been used in years. It was a path that would lead him directly to Everard’s house on Steward land if he were to take it.

“Is it Everard’s uncle doing this? Or does he now have children who are taking up the cause? Why rogues, does he not have a pack? Or are they not rogues, but his pack? So many questions and I have no answers to any of them,” he growled. “I need answers, and Dad, if you hid those papers, I hope you hid them in the hiding places that I remember and not somewhere new.”

Turning from the window, he yanked the drapes back into place. He quickly pulled his shorts back on before grabbing hold of Everard’s clothes to give to Farrah. Walking out of the office, he made sure the door was locked and the key in his pocket before he headed back to the front room.

Walking in, Brenton started to speak, only to quickly close his mouth. Wolf Everard lay on the floor and behind him, Farrah now lay, her arm around his neck, her face against the top of his head between his ears. Brenton smiled and placed the clothes on the end of the couch before turning and walking out, leaving the two to sleep.

He stepped out the front door just as two cars pulled up. When women began to step out, he waited. One of the women moved toward him as the others began dragging cleaning supplies from the trunk of one of the cars.

“Alpha Phillips,” the woman said as she gave a head nod of respect. “I’m Emily, and Warrior Chad said you wished for us to do some cleaning today.”

“I do,” Brenton agreed. “You will be paid well for your services today. I want the kitchen cleaned because we may be here a couple of days and your Lady Alpha likes to cook. I’ll let her tell you what kind of food will be needed. Also, the last bedroom upstairs, it’s the only one with the door open, clean it and the bathroom. If the washer and dryer still work, wash the bedding and the towels if they’re usable. If not, let Beta Owen know, he should be here soon, and he’ll get all those things that are needing replacement.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Emily agreed.

Brenton rubbed his chin in thought, then added, “When I get back and the bedroom is clean, I’ll move Alpha Steward there so the front room can be cleaned. Take the drapes down and either clean or scrap them and find new ones…” he huffed, having no clue about cleaning. So, with a growl, he said, “Take that up with your Lady Alpha.”

“Yes, Alpha,” Emily agreed once more.

Brenton took off down the steps and headed for his truck as the women headed into the house. Cranking up, he headed off down the driveway to go to Everard’s house for clothes.

Farrah awakened when she heard a door slam. Raising her head, she looked around, trying to sort out the unfamiliar room. Hearing light wheezing from below her, she glanced down to find wolf Everard and the day’s events came tumbling back into her mind.

“Excuse me, Lady Alpha?”

A female voice from the doorway behind her had Farrah turning to ask, “Yes?”

“Alpha Phillips asked us to do some cleaning,” the female said. “I’m Emily, and I’m the head housekeeper’s second-in-command at the pack-house.”

Farrah stood and gave the woman a smile. Emily looked to be in her thirties with long dark hair pulled back in a braid and a sturdy build of one used to working hard for a living. Stepping forward she held out her hand and said, “I’m Farrah, it’s very nice to meet you, Emily. The first thing that needs to be cleaned is the bedroom because as soon as it’s clean Alpha Phillips would like to move Alpha Steward into the room. I’ll show you what I want to be done if you’ll follow me.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Emily answered when a slight bow of her head.

Farrah led the women up the stairs and down the hallway to Brenton’s childhood room. Because they didn’t know who they could really trust at this point, she hoped that what they were looking for wasn’t in Brenton’s room but locked in a safe in the elder Alpha Phillips’ office. With an internal sigh, she took a quick glance around, then said, “Okay, I believe the curtains need to be taken down and the windows opened. I would suggest cleaning the ceiling fan first so you can turn it on since there is no air conditioning running at this point.”

“Shouldn’t we turn it on, cool the house down?” One of the women asked.

Farrah turned and shook her head, saying, “No. There is too much dust in this house and who knows how much in the vents. I’ll have Alpha Phillips get someone to investigate it when he gets back, so for now, let’s just open the windows up. Now, the bathroom also needs to be cleaned, in fact, clean this one and the one in the next room. The two alphas usually rise at about the same time and tend to shower at roughly the same time too. I’ll check the towels and see if they’re worth trying to wash. Also, let’s go ahead and vacuum the hall carpet or dust will just be tracked right back in here.”

“Lady Alpha, we brought a dust broom also, along with a mop,” a shy young girl with blonde hair spoke up to say. “I noticed the front hall had wood floors, so would you like us to clean those also?”

Farrah smiled at the girl and asked, “What is your name?”

“Bethany.”

“Then, yes, Bethany, I think that would be a wonderful idea,” Farrah replied. “It wouldn’t hurt to also do the side hall that leads to the master bedroom and office.”

“Alpha asked that we clean the kitchen,” Emily told Farrah. “I’ll have Bethany clean those halls, then move on to the kitchen along with Melba. Martha will go and start on the second bathroom while Jenny and I get started in here.”

Farrah nodded and told her, “Good plan, divide and conquer and the sooner this dust is conquered the better. I’ll help in the kitchen since the doctor gave Alpha Steward something to help him sleep.”

“Will Alpha Steward be, okay?” Emily asked with a concerned look.

“Yes, he just needs to rest and heal,” Farrah answered. “The doctor said his wolf will know when it’s safe to shift and he’ll probably do it randomly. So, now we wait. For now, I believe I’ll go and clean the ceiling fan in the front room so it can be turned on. With Alpha Steward still being in his wolf form, he’s probably close to melting by now.”

The women all gave her a respectful nod and they went their separate ways to get to work.