Chapter 5

Benji’s POV

I knock on apartment building door no. 9 and wait for a response. The subtle signs of wear and tear of the paint catches my attention. Red paint is peeling away exposing the previous brown paint underneath. This was my home away from home when I was feeling lonely. I could hear the muffled sounds of someone moving around and I knew he was probably trying to pick up his mess.

The door swung open and my favorite, very HUMAN cousin, Bennet, stands there with a grin on his face. “Hey Bee! Come on in. You know the deal, shoes off…”

I walked in and did the routine after handing him the pizza and beer. Kissed both his cheeks, removed my shoes, then walked into the living room to plop myself down on his couch. “So, how’s Auntie Wendy doing?” I ask already knowing the answer.

Bennet rolls his eyes as he enters the living room with the food, plates and beer. “You know my mother. Always the drama queen, always the hypochondriac. Just because I am a doctor doesn’t mean I can diagnose every one of her potential illnesses.”

I chuckle. “You know she does it so you will talk to her more.” I reach for a slice of the cheesy goodness. “You are her favorite and we all know it.”

Bennet sighs, slumping his shoulders. He brushes away his dark wavy hair from his hazel eyes before looking at me. “Ever since mom told me I was adopted at sixteen, she’s been overcompensating for it. I mean, I already knew I was different when everyone else got their wolves and I didn’t. Truth be told, I honestly don’t care. I have the best family a human could ask for! Mom and Dad need to stop worrying. If I had any intention of finding my real parents, I would have done it years ago. I am 23 years old and almost done with getting my medical license, I have more important things to do then search for people who didn’t want me to begin with.”

Bennet is my favorite cousin and only second to Ciara Bear in the best friend category. My Aunt and Uncle had gone to a charity event for children with cancer. As one of the wealthiest families in their pack, they were constantly giving back to the community especially anything associated with children. It didn’t matter if it was human or magical children. At the age of two, Bennet was an unnamed child with leukemia, just a picture with a description as a center piece decoration at the charity. When my aunt saw his picture, she knew she had fallen in love. With tons of love and good medical treatment, the cancer went into remission, and a healthy boy came to join our family.

We eat in comfortable silence on the couch when Bennet’s phone chimes. He picks it up, scowls, then puts it back down.

“Issue with Mr. Right now?” I ask.

“Girl! He is Mr. No thank you! He had the audacity… THE AUDACITY! To say I am too much of a drama queen for him just because I have standards! Umm HELLO? If he wanted to see other people than he should have just told me. No harm, no foul. Just don’t lie to me.”

I touch his knee and give it a gentle squeeze. “Want to talk about it?”  

Bennet finishes his beer, “Not really. Tony wasn’t really my type anyways. Too much meat, not enough brains.” He chuckles to himself. “What I want to talk about is why you are here… You’re giving off a vibe and it’s throwing off the positivity of my living room. I feel like I need some holy water or burn some sage just to clean out the sulking negative energy.”  

“Ciara Bear thinks I need to get away for a while.” I say, my mind thinking of her sorrow filled face.

“She texted me after I got off the phone with you. She knew you would come here after your refusal to have dinner at the palace packhouse.” He pulls another slice of pizza from the box and gives me the side eye. A twang of guilt runs through me. Why do best friends always know when you are lying?

“I just didn’t feel right staying there.” What can I say? How do I say that it hurts to see all my friends with their mates and babies?

“You know she knows right? She understands that being around happy couples with their babies hurts you. I hate to bring up old wounds, but it has to be said. The night Gregory died, you didn’t just lose your mate, but you lost your unborn baby. You miscarried because of the bond breaking. It wasn’t your fault. I may not be a werewolf, but that kind of heart break would be a lot for anyone to handle. So, I see Ciara’s point of wanting you to get away for a bit, but what brought on the sudden idea?”

I reach for my oversize bag that’s on the floor, pull out the file that Alpha King Mars gave me and hand it to Bennet. He eyes it curiously. It didn’t take him long to give me the same reaction I had earlier in the Alpha King’s office.

“This can’t be real… it’s like some sort of zombie apocalypse…” Bennet continues to read through the file; his eyes glued to the documents as he flips through them. I can sense his heartbeat picking up with each page turn. His hazel eyes now hidden under a deeply furrow eyebrow. “What does all this mean?” He finally looks up at me.

I take another swig of my beer, steeling myself for the discussion. I tell him the details about how wolves are turning feral, attacking pack members then dying. He listens to every word and doesn’t interrupt me. “So basically, Alpha King Mars wants me to go there and fix the problem.” I use my fingers to make air quotes around the word fix. “But I don’t know. I don’t see how I can help. It’s a cluster mess of mystery. Plus, I don’t have time.” I try to deflect the obvious avoidance.

“Liar…” Bennet crosses his arms and gives me a look that clearly states he’s onto my bullshit. “Benjamina Louise Mason. I have known you for almost twenty years and your Pinocchio nose is showing right now. When have you ever backed down from a challenge? I mean even in our old pack you were a force to be reckoned with. So, spill!”

Fear. That was what was gripping me. I blinked away the tears and took a deep breath to calm my nerves. “It would be the first time in over five years, that I will be away from...” I trail off. Grief grips my heart, and I can’t bring myself to say it.

“The home Gregory built for you and him to live in and the place where you would have raised your pup.” Bennet slides over and wraps his arms around me as tears fill my eyes. Even after all this time, it still hurts. “And you are afraid of being away from that safe space.”

“My mate is gone, my baby is gone, and I still feel his presence there even though his scent has vanished. I don’t know if I can leave it.” I pull away and wipe away the wetness from my eyes with the back of my hand.

“Do you know why I followed you to the Blue Eclipse Pack?” Bennet says as he hands me a tissue to wipe my nose with. “Because I wanted to work with the best doctor this world has ever seen, and I think the North needs the best right now.”

I sigh, “It’s overseas, Bennet. This isn’t some vacation or day trip to the beach. This is so much more, and we could be gone for months. I can’t leave him.”

“Bee, you are not leaving him or your baby because they are in your heart not in some house. Love transcends materialistic items. Gregory was a good man, and he will never be forgotten. Buildings eventually break down, but memories always remain. Even though you didn’t get to hold your baby, that doesn’t mean you can’t hold them in your heart.”

I sit deep in thought as I pick at the cheese of my pizza. I knew what Bennet was saying was true, but it was more than that. It was my safe haven, my bubble.  

Traveling overseas is such a big step for me. So far, all the medical mysteries I had solved were either just an outreach via virtual meeting or a day trip away. But then my mind wandered back to the medical folder sitting on the coffee table filled with the deaths of helpless wolves who lost their lives to this strange illness. I suddenly felt guilty for being selfish of wanting to stay in my safe space with my memories. “Do you think this is a good idea? To go to the North?”

Bennet gives me a half smile and squeezes my hand. “Well, we can look at it from several angles. This could be the medical mystery that sets you apart from the rest. You would be a hero. Or it could be a dumpster fire that sends your career imploding into a pile of ash. We won’t know until we try. Tomorrow is a brand-new day that’s never been touched.”

“You’ve been watching the tv series “Modern Love” again, haven’t you?” A weak smile touches my lips, and I can’t help but chuckle at him.

“Guzmin is like a vending machine of wisdom! The words he spits out are pure magic! I just wish he could screen my potential boyfriends for me.” He fakes fainting into my lap and I laugh at his theatrics.

“Yeah, you are definitely a drama queen.” I say trying to push him off of me, but he just smiles and winks at me.

“So, what’s the decision?” He looks up at me with his head in my lap and I brush away the hair from his eyes.

I always knew the answer but was afraid to say it out loud. It was time to move on with my life and not let fear hold me back anymore. “Guess we better assemble the team.”