The Broken Warrior's Daughter

My dad gives me a side—eye glance. “If it were up to me, I’d make it last longer, but it’s up to you, now that you are back on your feet.”

| smile at my dad and as we pull up to the house, he turns to face me. “And...you may be willing to forgive them much faster than lam.”

“Why is that?”

“Liam left a gift for you on Sunday when he was here. Well, | guess it is the final product of the gift Cyran gave Artemis.” | frown as we walk into the house. “What are you talking about Dad?”

He wheels over to the largest gift bag I've ever seen. “What is it?”

“Open it and see for yourself.” Dad says.

| do and it’s the bear. Or should | say, it’s the bearskin rug that needed to be processed. It’s soft and thick and will be perfect on the hardwood floors in my bedroom. “Whoa!” | look at my dad. “This is amazing!”

“I'm going to take it upstairs and call him to say thanks.” | take the bearskin upstairs and lay in on my floor. Then | stand on it barefoot, closing my eyes and feeling the softness of the fur on my feet. Even Artemis purrs in my head. ‘Nice, right?‘ | ask her.

‘I can’t wait until | can shift and roll around on it.‘ She replies. Now | have that image in my head. ‘Eww.* She snickers before laying down in my head.

I call Liam and it goes to voicemail. | let him know that | got released and that | got the bearskin, which is now a rug on my bedroom floor and Artemis can’t wait to roll on it. Who knows, maybe Cyran will appreciate that little nugget of information.

| stare at my phone. Everyone in the pack has the phone number for both our Alphas. | look at the clock and see that it is after 6pm. Rik will be done with warrior training. | take a chance and send a text.

Me: Hey Alpha Rik. | hear | owe you a big thanks for rescuing me.Têxt belongs to NôvelDrama.Org.

Rik: Cara. | was surprised to see you leaving the hospital. How are you feeling? Me: I'm better thank you and in part thanks to you

+15 BONOS:

Rik: What kind of an Alpha would | be if | left you at the hands of that murderer. Me: Why do | feel like there’s more to that story than | know?

Rik: Maybe a conversation for another time.

Rik: You should focus on getting healthy and strong. | hear you keep taking out my warriors in training and | think it’s time we go head-to-head.

Me: Alpha Rik, are you sure you want your pack to watch as | show you your ass?

Rik: It takes more than a little Guardian to bring me down.

Me: Well, then, challenge accepted. Although, if you want a fair fight, it will have to be a few more days. Artemis is still healing.

Rik: | will absolutely wait. And, in the meantime, your father is training us in the mornings. We can both work on getting stronger before the big matchup.

Me: Well, don’t say | didn’t warn you when you end up crying like a little girl in front of your pack Alpha. Rik: Get some rest my Little Guardian. | hope to see you soon. Me: Thanks again Alpha. | really do appreciate everything, and that includes all those gifts from before as well.

Rik: Call me Rik and anytime.

| set my phone down. My heart was lighter.