Tatum and Henry
10. Family

It has been a week since Andre’s death, and the official end of the war. There have been some ‘aftershocks,’ though. Not all of Andre’s camps were taken care of and have been flaring up, and Dale and Tank were quickly reassigned to help.

After a few days, Julie and Jennine, with permission from Alpha Quade, left to go to their home packs, and Jude finally left my house to go home to his parents, leaving Clayton with me. His coven was destroyed in the war and was currently in limbo. I moved out of the master bedroom for Clayton and shared a room with Rhiannon. Clayton was upset at first, but I assured him this was an easy swap.

Clayton began working for the pack in their technology department, and I was assigned a role in the pack hospital because of my applied sciences background. Holly? We haven’t found out about Holly yet, and I can only think of the worst when it comes to her.

//\\//\\//\\

I drop Jed off at school and then return to the packhouse and drop Rhiannon off at the daycentre. I have spent my last two days in an office with other university students who were doing medical-type degrees from the pack, studying essentials of anatomy and physiology and clinical medicine books. This is what we have been assigned to do after the war. I’m not sure when we’re allowed to go back to university. I walk into the small office a little before everyone else and pour myself a coffee.

Breathing in the heavenly scent of coffee beans I sit in the seat I’d been occupying the past couple of days and wait for everyone else to trickle in while drinking my morning brew. We’ve had a few doctors or nurses come in and guide us through the books they had brought us and I was still going through joint structures of the book I was reading.

“Thank goddess you’re here,” Nurse Pamela states as she pushes through the door shortly after I sit. I look up at her with a questioning look.

“We’ve had this she-wolf in our care since the beginning and to put it mildly, she’s a bitch. Please help?” Pamela asks. I look around to see if she’s talking to me.

“Who me?” I state, pointing to myself. Pamela gives me a small smile and nods.

“You were the one that calmed the fight at sign-in, right?” she asks.

“Uh...” I think, the fight at sign in. What fight?

“You know, when people were signing up for the war, you calmed everyone down and told people that our pack is made up of mismatched mixed wolves and that we cannot make people decide whether to defend our packs ideals for them. Right?” Pamela asks.

“Yeah… I said something like that,” I begin.

“A lot of people joined because of that speech Miss. Sullivan. Please? Help?” she asks again.

“Sure… I guess,” I shrug, standing up from my seat.

Pamela smiles with a grateful look on her face.

“Thank you, thank you,” she says. I nod and walk with her through the hallways towards the woman’s ward.

“Tell me about this she-wolf,” I ask as we walk.

“Well, she’s the daughter of a beta, and she’s only had her wolf for a little while. She was pulled out of the war early with a large laceration to her gastrocnemius muscle and calcaneal tendon on her right leg. The wound has healed but the muscles are causing her pain. She won’t let anyone help her. Refuses to take any herbs or potions from the witches, she’s even refusing human medicine,” Pamela sighs.

“What of her family?” I ask, thinking that maybe they could help soothe her.

“Her dad and brother were in the war, so…” she says. I nod. There must be some anxiety there too.

“Okay, which bed,” I ask.

“Room fourteen. She’s a VIP,” Pamela says. I raise my eyebrows at her.

“Great. And you asked for me?” I stammer. Pamela nods and shrugs at the same time.

We walk up to the door and Pamela knocks before she walks in. I roll my eyes. What a princess this girl must be.

“Leora, I brought someone to help you…” Pamela begins before being cut off by the girl.

“I don’t need any help! I’m fine,” the girl yells. I shake my head and pick up her file from the end of her bed. Quickly I flick through her paperwork, before looking at her.

“Leo, from number one to ten, ten being the highest, what level of pain are you in?” I ask.

The girl turns and looks at me.

“Tatum?” she asks. I nod and she leans forward with her arms open as I walk over and give her a hug.

“Hey you,” I smile into her ear.

“Nurse Pamela, this is my mates’ sister,” I say, answering the surprised question on her face. Pamela slowly nods in understanding.

“Why… how are you here?” Leora asks.

“First, from one to ten, what is your pain level?” I ask.

“Three,” Leora states. I raise my eyebrow at her.

“Fine, nine. It hurts so much Tatum!” Leora cries. I hug her again.

“I know,” I whisper.

“Pamela, can we get her some medicine for her pain?” I ask. Pamela nods and leaves the room.

“I have family in this area and was in my second year at university studying physiotherapy, so that’s how I’m here,” I smile.

“I was in the war. Dad and Henry didn’t want me to, but…”

“It was your choice?” I smile at Leora. She nods.

“I was in the war too. I had my own team,” I add. Leora turns to me.

“You were?”

“Yeah. Weapons expert, remember?” I wink, smiling.

“Anyway, can I see your leg?” I ask. Leora nods and pushes the blanket down for me to see. The laceration has healed nicely but I assume the muscle hasn’t healed as well. I touch her leg and Leora cries out in pain. Pamela comes in then and gives her some medicine. Before taking it, Leora looks at me and I nod before she does.

“How is Jed, Rhiannon?” Leora asks after she takes her medicine.

“Jed’s good. He’s almost eleven and already has a fangirl base from Genesis pack,” I smile. Leora raises her eyebrows at me.

“We have friends in Genesis pack. Jed’s best friend is my cousin’s son,” I say, sort of explaining myself.

“And Rhiannon. How old is she now?” Leora asks.

“She’s almost three. Talking all the time. She looks a lot like you, except her eyes are blue,” I say, smiling. I see Rhiannon in Leora. She could be Leora’s doppelganger, except for the eye colour.

Leora smiles, and I begin to adjust her bed so I can massage her leg.

Pamela leaves me after that and I spend forty minutes with Leora, massaging her muscles and stretching her leg. We talk and laugh like we used to.

“I have to go now, but I’ll bring Rhiannon and Jed to visit after school ends?” I ask.

“Yes please!” Leora smiles. I return her smile as I exit her room to find the nurses’ station. I’m not looking when I hit someone turning the corner, hard.

“I’m so sorry,” I begin, trying to step away.

“Tatum?” I look up at the person I walked into. Fuck.

“Rick. Sabrina,” I state, looking at Henry’s parents.

“Oh! Tatum!” Sabrina cries out, immediately pulling me into a hug. I smile and hug her back. Sabrina has long blonde hair and blue eyes and is slightly shorter than me, and Rick is taller than me, an older version of Henry with black hair and green eyes.

“What are you doing here?” Sabrina asks, tears going down her face. I knew I hurt them when I left, but I was lonely and suffering, and needed to put my family first.

“Oh um, all medical students have been assigned here after the war, I just finished with Leora, she’s awake,” I say, feeling awkward.

“Medical students?” Rick asks.

“Yes sir. I was in my second year at university before the war,” I answer.

“You weren’t in the war though, were you?” Sabrina asks.

“I was in the frontline. Sharpshooter. Look, I should go… but we’ll catch up?” I ask.

“No Tatum, you should stay,” Rick states.

I gulp as I look at him.

“As long as you don’t tell Henry I’m here, or where I am,” I reply.

“Done,” Sabrina smiles, grabbing my hand.

Reluctantly I’m walked back to Leora’s room. Leora hugs and kisses her parents, and they ask her heaps of questions, before turning to me. After telling them what I’ve been up to for the past three years, including school and my work at Waning Moon pack, I suggest we pick up Rhiannon from day care and have lunch together.

“Really?” Sabrina smiles.

“Really,” I nod. They say goodbye to Leora and walk with me through the packhouse. As we walk, they ask about Jed and are impressed that Genesis pack have allowed him to train with them.

“My cousin’s cousin is a werewolf from Genesis Pack, and it helps that Jed is best friends with their son, William,” I explain. I watch as they smile at this.

I open the door to the day care centre and let them walk in before me. Walking over to the sign-in and out table I tap my phone number into the tablet and sign Rhiannon out for the day.

“This way,” I say, pointing down the hall. The pack day care had two rooms, babies to two-year olds and then three- to five-year-olds.

I knock on the door and walk in, keeping the door open so Rick and Sabrina can follow behind me. The room is full of children playing and a small group of children is being read to by the day care worker.

“Tatum,” Eliza, one of the day care workers greets me, with a smile.

“Hi Eliza. I’m pulling Rhiannon out early today, her grandparents are here,” I say, indicating Rick and Sabrina.

“Well, she was naughty today,” Eliza whispers. I raise an eyebrow.

“What did she do?” I asked.

“Todd pulled her hair, so she punched him, she had time out, but they’re fine now,” Eliza explains. I smile. Todd is a little bit older than her and tries to tell her what to do, but he hates it because she doesn’t listen to him. I think that’s her beta blood coming through.

“I’ll talk to her,” I say. Eliza smiles.

I walk through the room and find Rhiannon playing happily with Todd.

“Hey baby,” I call out.

“Mummy!” Rhiannon grins, running over to me and grabbing my legs.

“Come on baby, let’s go have lunch, I have some people I want you to meet,” I say, picking her up on my hip and grabbing her bag.

“Not working?” Rhiannon asks.

“Not today baby,” I smile, walking her over to Rick and Sabrina.

“Rhiannon, I would like you to meet your grandparents,” I say as I stand next to them.

“Hello,” Sabrina and Rick say, smiling at Rhiannon. Rhiannon buries her face in my neck, making me laugh.

“What happened to my feisty little girl?” I tease. Rhiannon looks up at them.

“Hello,” she says to them.

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