Bay

As we approached the compound I was aware of the tense looks that were directed at the tall, powerful Keeper following behind me. The gates opened and a familiar figure was waiting with a thunderous look I was used to. Our similar features were a clear indication we were related. His dark brown eyes flared with anger.

"Where the hell have you been?" James, my older brother, asked me angrily before his gaze went to the Keeper who followed me into the compound.

"What happened?" He looked down at my grazed knees.

"I fell." He, like Flynn, was making a big fuss over nothing but I was used to it from my overprotective older brother.

"What's he doing with you?" was his next question as he sent a glare in Flynn's direction.

I didn't want to have it out with my brother in front of the whole pack but I refused to allow him to treat me the way he was. He shot a look between Flynn and I but I pushed past him, refusing to allow him to pull me into an argument.

James stopped me with a hand wrapped around my wrist and I turned to pin my brother with a glare that told him to let me go.

"Remove your hand." The quiet threat came from the Keeper who had followed us. His dark eyes were fixed on where my brother's hand gripped me.

Flynn could be intimidating when he wanted to be. The way he looked at my brother left him with no doubt that he would physically remove his hand if he didn't let me go.

My brother's hold slackened as he shot a questioning look at me. I shrugged a shoulder, refusing to explain why the Keeper was interfering in something that didn't concern him. I shot a glare at Flynn as I pulled my hand free.

Flynn relaxed slightly but he still gave off an air of danger.

"I don't know who you think you are but she's my sister," James told him, directing his anger from me to the Keeper. Flynn made no attempt to argue back or even acknowledge he was listening. His eyes met mine in a bold stare but I quickly looked away.

I wanted to make my escape before the situation blew up and everyone discovered why the Keeper was so concerned about me. I would leave them to it.

"Bay." The forceful voice stopped me in my tracks. I looked back at Flynn, who had left my brother and followed me.

"You need to go to medical to get your knees seen to."

I stared at him while I contemplated what he would do if I ignored him. Knowing him, he wouldn't let it go, and I didn't want to make a scene bigger than what we had already put on for the pack. Some of the pack members were already watching us with interest.

Annoyed, I changed direction to the medical center. At this stage just putting some distance between us would do. Inside the center, I sat down and waited to be seen.

It was such a waste of time but it was either this or face a mate I didn't want anything to do with. It sounded harsh but he had no interest in me in that way either. It was a mutual decision to ignore the fact that we were mates destined to be together forever.

I suppressed a hysterical laugh that I would never have what other werewolves took for granted. Watching a couple across from me look dreamily into each other's eyes like no one else existed only reinforced what I would never have. And it hurt.

I don't need it, I told myself. I would find someone else who could fill the gap that Flynn didn't want to fill. I put my head in my hands briefly, trying to get myself together.

"What did you do?" a voice asked and I dropped my hands to look up at Emma. She was a few years older than me but she looked so petite it made her look much younger. Her warm caramel eyes matched her long honey blonde hair, which she usually tied up in a ponytail.

"I fell."

She bent down to take a closer look. "They just need to be cleaned." I followed her into a nearby room and got on the bed while she got some cotton and dabbed some liquid onto it.

I hissed when she pressed it to the open wound.

"It'll burn a bit but it shouldn't hurt for long." I nodded my head, clenching my teeth as it continued to burn.

After she cleaned them I hopped off the bed.

"Thanks, Emma," I said as I stopped briefly at the door.

"You're welcome."

I gave her the faintest smile. She was always happy and smiling. It was enough to feel like my dark mood was caused by an imaginary dark cloud that followed only me. Or it was just a tall and darkly handsome Keeper who made me feel this way.

I couldn't blame him for everything. It wasn't his fault I had parents who hadn't had enough love for two children. And at least my parents didn't live within the compound. Seeing them daily would be more than I could handle.

I was lucky enough to have a brother who cared even if at times he cared so much it was smothering. It hadn't been easy for him, trying to make up for what had lacked from our parents.

Outside the medical center, I nearly walked straight into the Keeper who I was trying to avoid. Thank goodness I had stopped in time so we didn't make the mistake of touching.

"What are you doing here?" I hissed, looking around to see if anyone was watching us. I brushed a strand of hair out of my face.

"I wanted to check on you." His voice was strong but hard. It sounded annoyed.

"I scraped my knees, the verdict is I'll live." My words only reminded me of a time when I had been badly injured after the encounter with the Keepers and he hadn't been around. My throat clogged up with the emotion I felt when I remembered how alone I had felt afterwards.

And he had left to go back to the Keepers with Harrison. He hadn't even bothered to see me. His actions spoke volumes.

He continued to stare at me before his gaze broke away from mine.

"I need to find Harrison," he said before he turned abruptly and left.

I stared at his retreating form, trying to figure out what had caused his sudden departure. I should have gone to my room but the need to know why the Keepers were here was more important. There was no way they were here for just a casual visit. As far as I had been able to gather, they had been keeping in contact with Kyle. So the fact that they had come in person was a sure indicator things weren't going smoothly.

It was part curiosity and part concern for the mate whom I cared for despite all valid reasons why I shouldn't. He hadn't cared when he'd hurt the people I loved. If it wasn't for the fact that I was his mate, he would have killed me without a second thought along with them.

Whatever was going on with the Keepers, I wanted to know. There was no guarantee Kyle would tell me so I wanted to make sure I was around so if the opportunity arose I would be able to eavesdrop.

I ended up in the kitchen to see Crystal nursing a cup of coffee at the kitchen table. She smiled as I greeted her.

"How are you, Bay?" she asked softly. She was a startling beauty with fiery red hair and the prettiest green eyes.

I made a point of pepping myself and putting a tight smile to my face.

"I'm good." I tipped my smile higher to back up my statement.

"What happened to your knees?" she asked with a frown. I looked down at the scrapes.

"It's nothing. I fell in the forest." I walked over to the table and took the seat across from her.

"The Keepers are here," she revealed, watching for a reaction, but she got nothing more than a reserved look as I nodded at her news.

"You know?" she asked, watching me closely. It was nothing new from what I'd been subject to since the whole Keeper incident.

"I saw Flynn."

She looked intrigued at my admission.

"How did it go?" she asked softly. She knew it had been the first time I'd seen him since he had saved us from Travis the crazy Keeper, who had been set on wiping us out.

I shrugged. "Okay I guess."

I couldn't reveal that it had been sad and heartbreaking. Of all the people who could have been picked for me it was my luck to be partnered with someone who didn't believe in the destiny that tied us together. I repressed the accompanying disappointment and sadness.

The repercussions of not having a mate were still unravelling in my thoughts. I would be alone forever. It only added to the inadequate feeling that I had grown up with.

She didn't look like she believed me but she didn't push the subject. I was relieved that I wouldn't be more closely questioned about it.

"What are they doing here?" I asked her, hoping this would be the easiest way to find out what was going on.

"Harrison wanted to give us an update." My eyes narrowed as I scanned her features, trying to pinpoint if she was being deceptive.

"Why did he have to do that in person?" I wasn't going to give up that easily. She would be easier to crack than Kyle or my brother, who was Kyle's beta.

I wondered if Flynn would tell me. I'd been too preoccupied with him being here to think about questioning him further, but now that my head was clearer it was my top priority.

"I'm not sure," she answered.

"Isn't it dangerous for them to be here?" I asked, continuing my investigative inquisition.

"Yes," she said abruptly, giving me a sympathetic smile before she stood. For a moment her attention on me stilled and I knew she was communicating with someone through a mind-link. "I need to go. Kyle wants me in the study."

I turned to watch her put her coffee cup in the sink before she hurried out of the kitchen.