Chapter 32 : Back to the Pound

**Mateo

Aside from that one "Dad" and the slap across the face, Lucia had not communicated with me at all. For days. The moment we arrived back at our mansion, Lucia had gone to her room and refused to come out.

"Lucia," I said outside her door for what must have been the hundredth time, "please come out so we can talk about what's bothering you."

Silence.

"Did he hurt you?" I asked, my gut clenching. It hadn't really unclenched since I'd seen the condition her body was in. I had a doctor who was seeing to a healthy diet plan to bulk her back up, but that didn't mitigate what I'd seen.

More silence.

I sighed and put her tray down in front of the door. "I'm going to my office."

I knew there was no point in waiting for her to come out. She was using her wolf senses to see if I actually left, so I wasn't tricking her.

In my office, the desk was stacked high with requests. Now that Mateo Castillas was back from the dead, everyone and their brother was petitioning to join my