He turned, his eyes almost closed as he squinted at her, every muscle in his body tense and the scent pouring from him to fill the room was nothing short of pure fear. Hell. Sheba had never, not ever, known her Beta to be scared of anything in his damn life. But here he was scared for her. Shit. “Hey, Ray, I’m sorry. You were right. I should’ve come to see Tilly sooner, it’s my fault, not hers. Calm down, big guy.”
Ray shook his head, turning away to pace back to the door and returning to apologize. “I’m sorry, Healer, but I’m understandably concerned for our Alpha. If you can please shed any light on what’s going on we would be grateful.”
Tilly raised an eyebrow, spearing Ray with one of her legendary cold looks before she sniffed loudly and reverted her attention to Sheba. “I’m sorry for my delay in responding, Sheba. It’s just that I’ve only heard of this Hunger, and yes, that word is with a capital H. That’s because it’s written in our Legends of History Tomes. It’s not something I’ve witnessed first-hand but only read about and heard stories from Healers from my homeland when I was but a bairn. I was never sure that it was real, until now, of course.”
Ray butted in before Sheba had time to draw a breath, far less ask any questions. “What? So you know what this is? This Hunger? Can you help Sheba? Heal her?”
Tilly didn’t look up at Ray, her eyes locked on Sheba’s and the look was one so serious that Sheba wasn’t sure she wanted the Healer to utter any words at all. However, Tilly opened her mouth and Sheba couldn’t help but hear what she said. “I can’t heal her. Nobody can. But all is not lost, Sheba. You are not ill, not in the sense of a disease anyway. The Hunger you have is . . . not easy to explain.”
Ray’s hand slammed down on the table, making it shake, the noise loud and causing Tilly to jump back, her eyes wide and angry as he shouted, “I don’t care how hard it is . . . explain now!”
Sheba reacted instantly, snarling as she rose, pushing Ray away and placing herself between her irate Beta and a just as angry Healer. “Back off, now, Beta! I won’t tell you again!”
As his nostrils flared, she allowed her Alpha power to flow from her, but seeing him flinch didn’t make her happy. In fact, it hurt her, caused her physical pain as he stepped back, lowering his gaze in submission, she followed, toe to toe with him. Sheba reached up, cupping his jaw. “Ray, you’re my closest friend, but you can’t scare people like that because you’re angry, or worried for me. I can’t allow you to act like that. Not as your friend, nor as your Alpha.”
There was silence for long seconds that seemed like minutes stretching between them and she worried that his anger was too far gone, but then she saw his muscles relax, slightly. His eyes rose, meeting hers briefly as he spoke quietly. “I’m worried sick about you, little one. You have no idea. I’ve barely slept since this started. Not knowing how to help you has been the worst thing I’ve ever had to endure. I’m your Beta and my job is to protect you, yet how do I do that from something neither of us can understand? I’ve been going out of my mind, Sheba. I can’t stand the thought of losing you to some . . . Hunger.”
She was lost for words. That was a first. His pain washed over her, leaving her breathless and feeling like the worst friend and Alpha ever. Tilly joined them, gently pushing between them, her hands resting on both as she gazed up at Ray’s giant form.
“It’s all right, Raylon, I have the solution . . . if the Alpha believes me and is willing to embark on a path that may prove fraught with danger.”
“What?” Both of them asked at the same time, although Sheba’s voice was a mere squeak while Ray’s was a growl filled with menace.
Ray’s body thrummed with barely restrained power as he towered over Tilly, his Beta power pouring from him in waves as he glowered at the Healer who shrank back from him in fear. Sheba was too concerned with what she’d said to react to him as she cocked her head, staring hard at the smaller woman.
“Excuse me? What did you say? Fraught with danger . . . what the hell does that mean?”
Tilly’s eyes were locked on Ray as his lips curled back in a snarl. “Are you threatening your Alpha?” he asked.
Tilly’s eyes widened, her hands shooting up in front of her as she backtracked to the table, her ass hitting her seat hard. “No, of course not! Don’t be silly, Beta, I would never, not ever threaten, Sheba. I’m merely stating what I know of the Hunger and what it means when it strikes.”
Sheba saw her shivering, not something that happened often, shoot, scratch that . . . ever. Tilly wasn’t one to back down from anyone. She’d stand up to any Wolf, toe to toe, and to see her so scared now didn’t sit right with Sheba. Hell. So she turned to Ray, waving him back and raising her eyebrow. “Cool it,” she said quietly before making her way to sit back at the table. “Why don’t we start again and try and do it without the theatrics, Tilly. Maybe that way we won’t have Ray here trying to go all Beta on your ass. Okay?”
Tilly took a deep breath in, as did Ray when he walked around, attempting to cram his six foot six frame onto one of the
