“If it was Aurelia’s idea, she has plans to fund it,” he confides. “You want to do it, don’t you? If you put all the other factors aside, you would love to give it a shot.”
“Yes,” I admit.
“Then do it,” he says. “You have the opportunity now. Grasp it.”
“Grasp it,” I repeat.
“Yes,” he grins. “If life throws you a chance, it’s on you to take it!”
Sometimes he says things that leave me stunned. He says it so easily with so much optimism and joy, and while it sounds simple, it’s truly not. It’s beyond me that anyone could think Felix isn’t deep; he is.
“Alright.” My heart makes a leap of joy. I can finally do something I will really enjoy. Somehow, the thought makes me feel guilty and anxious. I am scared of failure and disappointing everyone, but at the same time, there is this urge in me that I really want to give it a shot. “What about you? Did you come to a decision?” He has been thinking about his future as well, wondering if he should learn a trade or maybe do something IT-related.
However, it seems like he came to a whole different conclusion.
“Partly. I will definitely take a first-aid class so I can have something that sets me aside from the other warriors in the pack. Then I am going to take an environmental management class. The local college offers one. It just doesn’t end with adegree. So, the thing is, it will give me the practical tools to maintain and monitor our forest wildlife here. I think together with being a warrior, this could take me on the road to being a sentinel later on.”
I look at him. “That is totally you,” I exclaim.
“Right?” He looks happy. “I could do it without a class, but I want to have some sort of qualification, just in case. Dad already approved. And it would also mean I could work more for the pack. I am so pumped!”
“And it’s mostly outside work,” I note.
“Yes! Exactly what I wanted.”
I look at him, then I laugh. “We two trulyarea match, aren’t we? You with the forest, me with the animals.”
He nods earnestly before showing me a crooked smile. “Like the goddess knew what she was doing?”
I bump against his shoulder. “She did.”
Felix takes my hand into his again. Every time he does that, it makes me feel so safe and secure, although it’s such a small thing. “Lunch?” Felix asks me hopefully. “I am starving.”
“Then let’s go. I think I saw spaghetti aglio e olio on the menu! It’s honestly so amazing that you provide new veggie dishes regularly. I love spaghetti!”
“I will remember that,” he beams.
Making our way to lunch, we meet Dario and Aurelia. We all grab something to eat from the buffet before sitting down together. Tori and Lion, two of Aurelia’s best friends and her future gamma and delta, join us too. I have met them briefly, but wasn’t able to interact a lot with them. This is a good chance to get to know some more of the pack members. Dario seems a little distracted, checking something on his phone while frowning, but the others are happy to chat.
“Where is Arden?” Lion asks. “It’s rare to see you without him.”
“He is in a meeting,” Aurelia explains. “Mom dragged him to a luna meeting.”
“So, he is really taking over most luna tasks?”
“That’s the plan.”
“Where is your beta?” Dario asks. “Nox?”
“He and his mate went on a weekend trip,” she explains. “Around this time…” her voice trails off. “This is not her preferred time of the year,” she finally says. “They usually try to get away around this date.”
“I see.”
Her words piqued my interest.What’s the story behind that?I link Felix.
Meg was a trafficking victim,he tells me.I don’t know many details, but I think she was kidnapped around this time of the year.
Oh no! I had no idea!
