HUNTED

Aila and Damon sauntered into the kitchen in the morning, where the other pack leaders were already eating at the kitchen island. The atmosphere was light, if not quiet. But it was expected after a day of mourning, not one person but many in the pack. Aila could still feel the weight of every loss, and this was without knowing most of them. 

When Aila sat down with her plate full of food, she couldn't help but glance between Chiara and Ajax. They were acting so normal, sitting across from each other, although Chiara kept her gaze down each time Ajax seemed to try and catch it. Aila had to glance down herself after the Gamma caught her stare, so she quickly shoved some scrambled egg into her mouth nervously. Chiara narrowed her eyes slightly but went back to brooding.

Aila held back a smile and glanced at Ajax. Like she said she would, the previous night, Aila left the wake after not hearing anything from Ajax, she tried to mind-link him, but it rang on an empty mind. He had either blocked her from entering his mind, which Aila thought was impossible as so far only she could do such a thing, he didn't listen, or Chiara probably knocked him out. 

With the latter thought in her mind, she had rushed over in their direction. Aila followed the scent of Chiara and Ajax until she was strolling through the maze. She rounded the corner and stopped, immediately jumping behind a bush with a huge grin forming on her face. 

Ajax and Chiara were in a loving embrace, staring at each other, his hands cupping her face. Aila could see from her position a tearful Chiara and the end of a conversation that Aila knew she should not be a part of. This was confirmed when he brought his forehead to hers, and they stayed still in each other's arms. 

"Aila, I know I'm sexy, but at least stare at me when your mate isn't in the room sitting next to you."

Aila blinked back the memory of the previous night and saw herself staring into Ajax' eyes. A low growl vibrated from the other side of her, and she rolled her eyes. "I was deep in thought, Ajax. Not checking you out." She whipped her head back to Damon, whose face was unreadable, but as soon as he glanced at her, she heard his thoughts loud and clear.

Damon had been flicking through the images in her mind, and his shoulders relaxed. She could also hear his conflicting thoughts about the pair; he was a little overprotective about Chiara. Which Aila found odd as the Gamma could easily take care of herself. But when she delved deeper, she realised he looked at her as a younger sister. 

The Alpha then narrowed his eyes at how Ajax was still flirting with Aila in front of Chiara and him. Aila had to stop herself from rolling her eyes again, even without access to her thoughts or having a mate bond; he should know by now that Ajax knew how to get under his skin. And he did it on purpose.

"Yeah, yeah, that's what they all say," Ajax winked, and Chiara stood up, turning her back to him as she started to play around with the coffee machine on the other counter. 

"Hey, Gamma.." Aila ignored Ajax. Chiara turned her head to only look at Aila, ignoring the shapeshifter whose eyes were now trained on her. "Did you want to train? I'm feeling a little lethargic."

"Must be from all the scrambled egg you barely chewed on," Chiara raised a brow. "But sure, at lunchtime, let's spar."

After breakfast, the pack leaders split off to do their own tasks. Beta Kane and Nairi were still allowed to rest, but Kane was becoming restless and decided to patrol with Damon while they discussed a few pack matters. The black wolf was followed quickly by the golden one into the forest, with many pack members bowing to them as they raced past them. Nairi was happy to recover in the living room joined by Ajax, and the pair either played video games or watched tv. 

Aila and Chiara were sparring outside. Even though there was no training on, it seemed the pair needed to exercise. Chiara's arm swung forwards, and Aila dodged it without breaking a sweat, grabbing it and twisting it before making the Gamma lose her balance and tap out from the strain on her arm. It used to be that Chiara, her teacher, was better than Aila, then they became equals but very quickly, Aila began to show how a true Cross werewolf was like. 

Her speed and strength were superior to most, and so the Gamma found herself losing more than she was used to. But from the smile on her face and the proud nod she gave Aila, the Gamma had no hard feelings, as Aila helped her up after being tackled and held to the ground.

"I know you think something is going on between Ajax and me.." Chiara began a mind-link as she dabbed at her face with a towel before throwing it to the ground, so they could go for a jog. Finn followed behind them while scanning their surroundings. He hadn't left Aila's side, as was his role as the new Delta. Occasionally he cheered both girls on as they tackled each other earlier.

"Hmm? I'm not saying anything. Your secret is safe with me," Aila pretended to zip her mouth, lock it with an imaginary key before putting this fictional key into her shorts pocket.

Chiara rolled her eyes. "It's not a secret. Nothing is going on."

"Uhuh, is that what happened yesterday when I saw you in each other's arms," Aila muttered back. 

The Gamma's eyes rounded as her head whipped to the side and look at the Luna in shock. "I wasn't spying. I was making sure there wasn't another death in the family," Both Aila and Chiara smirked. Their humour was quite dark and similar, which was how they had become good friends over the weeks. 

It was one of the reasons Aila asked for a training session with her. Unlike Nairi, who would happily gossip and bleed her heart out over food or chilling in her bedroom, Chiara preferred to keep her feelings hidden away. Which was no good for anybody. The pair chatted more during and after working out. Her little plan succeeded in getting Chiara to talk about Ajax, but only as much as she wanted to.