Chapter 3 – North
Rafe
I stare out the window of the train as it chugs north, passively admiring the beauty of this area of my country. Mountains climb high in the distance, their white tops sloping down to gorgeous green fields below, bordering deep valleys filled with mist and fog. It is absolutely stunning up here and I suddenly feel remiss that I haven’t spent much time here before.
But I can barely admire the beauty, distracted as I am by the anxiety that roils in my heart. My wolf howls, pacing in slow circles, knowing that we’re drawing near. And that even if I can’t wait to get there… the next few months are going to be hell.
“Why so glum, Sinclair?” One of my men slumps into the booth seat across from me.
I turn my head and sigh as I take in Will Fraser, another of the six first-year warrior Cadets who volunteered to aid the Northern campaign. Unlike some of the others who volunteered for the reconnaissance team and were rejected for having lower Academy marks than my dad thought was acceptable, Will, like me, actually volunteered for this guard duty.
I frown at him, my eyes moving quickly over his tall form, the blonde hair that flops into his face. Will – he’s a perfectly competent Alpha warrior, but he’s never distinguished himself beyond a penchant for friendly conversation. “Why are you so excited?”
“Because it’s going to be great!” he says, laughing and stretching his arms out to the side before tucking them neatly behind his head, looking relaxed. “At least an entire summer of hanging out with a bunch of nursing students? Most of whom are going to be girls? Very little duties and all the Academy credit?” He beams. “It’s a dream gig.”
I shake my head at him, a little disappointed. “This is work, Will. Not play.”
He rolls his eyes at me. “You need to learn to relax a bit, Sinclair. You look like your dad but you don’t have to act like him. You’re not King yet.”
I turn my head to look out the window, thinking Will’s a little short-sighted there. Even if I’m not King, it’s no excuse to live a life of leisure and excess until my father hands over the crown.
“Seriously,” Will says, dropping his hands into his lap and leaning towards me. “You’re not excited about the prospect of all these girls? At all?”
“No,” I say, turning my head to glower at him a little bit. Demonstrating at least a little bit of wisdom, Will leans away from me, giving deference to the more powerful Alpha who is his superior officer. “And if you know what’s good for you, you’ll back off that line of thinking. We’re here to protect these people – not date them. Fraternization will be frowned upon.”
Will’s face drops for a second as he realizes that I’m completely serious. But then his mouth quirks back into a smile. “Frowned upon…but not forbidden, right?”
I just sigh and turn away, missing Jesse and Ariel a great deal.
“Hey, I think we’re here!” another Cadet calls. I look beyond Will to see Frank Jones leaning against the foremost window, peering at something ahead. “I see like…a platform, I think.”
The train begins to slow as if in confirmation and I nod, standing up. “All right, everyone gather your stuff,” I call out. Dad put me in charge, of course. “I want this carriage as empty as we found it. Nothing left behind.”
My Cadets all call out their confirmations, packing anything they used during the six-hour journey and slinging packs over their shoulders. Each takes one of the rifles poised by the door too – standard gear for military proceedings like this.
I sigh again, taking the last rifle as my men gather by the door, ready to disembark.
“Like, your eighth sigh in as many minutes, Captain,” Will murmurs, giving me a worried frown.
I just glance at him and don’t respond, even if he’s right.
Anxiety is at war with excitement in me, my wolf picking up his pace as he continues to wear a track in my soul, unable to settle. Because we’re going to see her – I know we are. I made sure of it, checking the list of volunteer nurses even before dad came to the Academy seeking anyone to guard them.
But Maryam? I have a very strong feeling that she has no idea I’m going to be getting off this train.
And…it’s not going to be good.
I grit my teeth, running a hand through my hair, my eyes set on the door as the train pulls to a stop. While I can handle pretty much anyone being angry with me…I don’t know. Something about Maryam just…sets me off.
I never lose my temper with pretty much anyone else. But Maryam Nasser? God, she’s got a finger on some hairpin trigger or something. The lightest touch and I’m just…gone.
I exhale slowly, stroking a hand over my wolf’s anxious head. Cool, cool, I murmur to him, to myself. We’re going to be cool. My wolf gives a steady growl in response, determined.
The doors open and my men file out onto the makeshift platform, which was only built just about a week ago for this very campaign.
“Damn,” Frank murmurs, looking around as he adjusts his cap, peering into the dimmed light of an already-setting sun. “There is…not much here, is there?”
“We didn’t promise you a realm of entertainment, soldier,” I snap, glaring at him and then looking towards the road where I hear the rumble of some approaching vehicles. “You’re here to do a job.”
“All right, all right,” Frank says, sending me a little frown. “I wasn’t complaining. Just observing.”
My five men and I all stand in a neat line, watching as two large vans appear from the south, both white and marked with Cairnmor Medical College. I turn my head north, watching as two more vehicles approach – military transport this time, all green and brown.
Good. Right on time.
“Let’s go down, men,” I say, nodding to the Cadets. They follow my charge readily, stepping off the platform and standing by as both sets of vans pull up. A driver steps out of the military vehicle and approaches me with a clipboard, confirming that everything is in order.
I look through his commands, confirming everything even as my heart pounds, my ear attuned to the sound of twenty volunteer nursing students climbing out of their vans.
Just as I hand the clipboard back to the driver, nodding to indicate that it’s all correct, I hear a gasp that rings through me. My wolf turns in an eager circle, yipping to the sky even as I close my eyes, dreading this.
“Oh my god,” she groans. “You have got to be kidding me. This is such bullshit.”
I turn, sighing out my nose, meeting Maryam’s eyes as she stands slump-shouldered next to a shorter girl with long, straight red hair and a lovely round face. The new girl looks between us, shocked.
I just take a deep breath, clenching my jaw, holding Maryam’s gaze steadily and not saying anything. Just…letting her see with my complete intransigence that I’m not kidding. Not at all.
“Wait,” the redhead says, her eyes going wide with surprise and then delight. “Seriously? Is that him!? The Alpha who claimed you!?”
Maryam doesn’t respond, just standing straighter now that her initial surprise has passed. She crosses her arms over her chest and glares so hard at me that, were it Ariel, I’d honestly wonder if she was preparing to light me on fire.
“Wait, what?” Another young woman with wavy light-brown hair steps to Maryam’s other side and stares between me and my mate. “Is that – is that him!?”
“It’s him!” The redhead hisses, grinning eagerly at her friend.
“Well, what the hell, Maryam!” the brunette says, smacking Maryam on the arm. “You didn’t tell us the Alpha was Rafe Sinclair! The goddamn Prince!”
Maryam
“Um, should we get going?” The military driver’s voice rings out awkwardly in the clearing. He stands looking between our two groups of nurses and Alpha jerks, probably because we’re just standing here gawking at each other, unmoving and silent.
Rafe breaks first, to my delight.
“Let’s go,” he says, looking to his men and pointing to us. “You know what to do.”
As one they start to move, hefting their guns up and starting to walk around us, herding us forward like they’re sheepdogs and we’re their new flock. My pride rankles as Rafe, head border collie, turns towards the trucks and waves for us all to follow.
I cross my arms, digging my heels in, ready to refuse. But Shannon places a hand between my shoulder blades and gives me a hearty shove.
“What was that for!?” I gasp, stumbling forward and whipping my head up to glare at her next.
“You’re being weird!” she snaps back, shaking her head at me. “What are you going to do, quit the mission just because your boyfriend showed up?”
“He is not my boyfriend-“
“Oh, leave her be, Shan,” Emma sighs, rolling her eyes and walking steadily at my side. “You can tell she’s upset!”
“About what!?” Shannon asks, laughing and looking forward at Rafe’s tall form as we follow him to the trucks. “Seriously, Maryam, I was pissed for you when you told the story – but you didn’t say he was hot –“
I gasp at Shan, livid, opening my mouth to say that whether or not he’s hot has nothing to do with how fucking wrong it is to just claim a woman as your mate in front of your whole family without even consulting her about it –
But my outrage turns to complete mortification when Rafe turns at the transport, pulling the door open, a shitty little grin on his lips – his complete change in mood evidence of the fact that he definitely, definitely heard what Shannon just said.
Inwardly I groan again, remembering that these Alpha wolves have like, insanely good hearing or some shit.
“Welcome,” Rafe says, offering his hand to Shannon first, giving her his most gorgeous smile. “Can I help you up into the vehicle?”
“Oh, you can help me any time!” Shan says, beaming as she steps forward and slips her hand into his.
“My pleasure,” Rafe murmurs, his voice dropping low and…well, sexy. Fine – yes – it’s sexy. I can admit that. It’s just facts, after all. Shan blushes gorgeously and lets out a tinkling little laugh that makes me roll my eyes as she leans on Rafe a little too much, allowing him to help her into the transport.
He turns to me, his grin turning a bit wicked, holding out his hand to help me next. “Miss Nasser?”
“I’m good,” I snap, narrowing my eyes at him and grabbing the bar next to the high step into the transport van. I don’t look at him again as I swing myself up inside and move to sit on a bench seat next to Shannon, who is now my ex-friend and utterly dead to me.
“Seriously, Maymay,” Shannon says, laughing and peeking around me to get another look at Rafe. “If you don’t want him, sign me the fuck up –“
“Enough, Shan,” I snarl, teeth clenched, shutting my eyes to block out the sight of that Alpha prick.
“He can claim me any time he wants – he can call me up at 2 am for a claiming and I’ll jump out of my bed – I won’t even change out of my jammies before I -“
“Shannon!” I gasp, pissed off and turning to glare at her. But she’s ready for me, grinning her wild grin, and I stop in my proverbial tracks when I realize that she’s just teasing. We both burst out laughing as Shan wraps her arms around me, hugging me close and rocking me a little, trying to get me to laugh it off too. And I give in – because Shan is irresistible and always knows how to break me out of my moods. I lean against my friend as Emma comes to sit next to us, joining in as we all laugh at the horrible irony of this.
That I came North to try to do something good – and to get further away from Rafe Sinclair.
And of course – of course – it’s just my rotten luck that he was already here.
Waiting for me.