Filed to story: Sorry Alpha I Am Wolfless Novel
“Joaquin!” She squealed and then laughed. “You’re a dork.”
“But you love me.” I rubbed my face against the back of her leg that was pressed against it.
“Yes. Yes, I do.” She hung the name on the two hooks that I had ready for it. It hung perfectly centered over the crib and was the last little detail that the room had needed.
“How is it, Little Bunny?” I asked her as I turned her in my arms, letting her slide down until our faces were level.
“It’s perfect Joaquin, as always. Thank you. And you as well, Juniper.” She was beaming at us both and I felt a swelling of pride. I loved that I was able to make her happy like this.
****
Riviana
****
Now that the nursery was done, Joaquin felt like we needed more and more family time together. I knew that he felt like my pregnancy was speeding by, hell even I felt that way, but we couldn’t focus on just that. It was just a couple days into November for crying out loud. I still had four months left before the baby came. And I didn’t really want to take away from the life that we were living right now. We needed to be here, right now, in the moment with the children and the other people that were around us. We would focus on the delivery when it was more imminent.
At the moment, the kids were in school, Joaquin was at work, and I was here at home with just the staff and some cheesy soap operas. I swear, they have been making these damned things for ninety years now[1], and they are still not any better than they used to be. Then again, what does that say about me since I am watching it right now.
I even had a bowl of ice cream that I was eating as I watched the show. I was so engrossed in the over the top acting and the cheesy drama filled plotline that I didn’t even notice Gabriel coming into the living room. It even took him a few tries of calling out to me before I realized that he was trying to talk to me.
“Riviana.” He called one last time and I jerked to awareness.
“Gah!” I jumped and looked at him. “Gabriel, I didn’t even notice you there.” He looked at the TV screen and smiled before he started to speak again.
“Rawlynne is here to see you. She said that it is urgent and would like to speak with you immediately.”
…..
“Alright.” I nodded and rose from the chair.
“She is waiting in your office.” Gabriel took the bowl from me and held it out toward Roisin. I noticed that their hands brushed intimately as they passed it between them. It was just one of the little things they did to stay connected with each other while working.
“Hmm, I guess that it must be serious, if she is in my office waiting for me rather than coming up here.”
“I believe that it is.” He said as he started to escort me downstairs. He and all the others still treated me like I was fragile and weak, especially when I was pregnant. It was a little annoying, but it was sweet as well. They all wanted me to be safe when they were around me. So, I guess that they acted like they needed to be the ones to protect me. That, or Joaquin was just rubbing off on them.
It didn’t take long for me to get down to my office and see Rawlynne waiting for me. She looked a little on the panicked side as she paced from side to side across my office. I could tell that if it had taken me longer to get here, she would have worn a hole into my floor. Or at least a rut.
“Hello Rawlynne, what can I do for you today?” I asked her as I walked to my desk. Gabriel was pulling my chair out from the desk and making it easier for me to sit down. I watched on as Rawlynne stopped pacing, returned to the middle of the room, and then stared at me with wild looking eyes. She then looked at Gabriel and then back to me like she wasn’t sure if he should be here right now.
“It’s OK, Rawlynne. You know that Gabriel is my lead advisor. He will most likely hear anything that you need to tell me anyway. This will just help me to eliminate a step in the process.” I didn’t know why I needed to remind her of this, but the fact that I did was unsettling.
“Yes. Of course.” She nodded and paced a few more times. “Alright, here it goes. Riviana, I think that we’re in trouble.”
“Trouble?” I looked at her with one eyebrow raised. “What kind of trouble? I mean, we just cleared up those murders, and I doubt that anything could be as bad as all that was.” I hoped that nothing bad was coming our way again. That would just be way too soon. And I was supposed to be taking time off of work before the baby got here. I needed to be able to rest. I needed to be able to spend time with all of my kids as well as Joaquin. Another problem like that would be a disaster.
“It’s not like the murders.” Rawlynne said in a tense tone, but before I could relax too much, she continued to speak. “It’s because of the murders.”
“Come again?” I asked her in a stunned tone. “What is because of the murders?”
“A man came to see me yesterday. I wanted to come and tell you right away, but I didn’t want to do it while the kids were here. I had hoped that Joaquin was going to be here today, but he wasn’t. I am sorry about the bad timing.”
“It’s fine, Rawlynne, just go on.” I encouraged her as I leaned forward over the desk. “What is happening? Who came to see you?”
“Special Agent Orson of the NSA.” I saw the color drain from her face. “They are asking about your involvement in the investigation and why I brought you in on it all. They are out to destroy me, and possibly you, Riviana. I am so sorry.”
“It’s fine, Rawlynne. You didn’t do anything wrong. I would have been involved even if you hadn’t made it official. Those were my people that were being slaughtered. I needed to be there to help them. It was my responsibility.”
“I know, Riviana. And that is why I included you in it right away. But now I fear that we have a whole new problem, one that won’t be so easily dealt with. The man that came to see me was human. And if he digs too deeply, Riviana, he might find things that he isn’t supposed to. He even accused me of being an imposter because I look too young to be my age now.” I saw the shock and fear that was in her eyes. That wasn’t anything new to me though. I had just heard that on my date with Joaquin. There are people that are wondering about the seemingly eternal beings in our city. And I can guess that it would be happening all over the world as well. This wasn’t good. Not good at all.
I was thinking about things, silently pressing my hands together while resting my chin on the tips of my fingers. I was so lost in thought that I think I was scaring Rawlynne, who already looked to be at her wit’s end. She had sat on this knowledge since yesterday, and that had taken its toll on her.
“Riviana?” She asked me, leaning in a little as if she were trying to see if I had fallen asleep or something.
“I am still here, Rawlynne. I am just thinking.”
“Wh..what do you think that we should do? How do we stop this investigation?”
“We don’t.” I told her honestly. “If we stop it, then Orson will know that we have something to hide. And that will just make him want to look that much more. No, our best option here is strategic transparency. We need to be open and honest with him about almost everything. The almost including all things to do with the case, while also excluding everything that explains who and what we really are. We need to make sure that there are no missteps here. We have to be careful.”
“Alright. And what exactly do you want me to do?” I could see how desperately Rawlynne needed guidance at the moment. If she wasn’t someone that I was so close with, I might have worried about her resolve and sanity. I knew Rawlynne though, and I knew that she took her job and her life in my kingdom very seriously. She wanted to make both work for her, she always had, and now they were clashing her. It was like her two lives, the professional one and the personal one, were warring with each other and trying to make her choose between them. It didn’t look pleasant either.
I tried to think of something that would make her feel better at the moment, but I needed to talk to Joaquin about this investigation. I needed to know what was going on, and how he thought we should handle it. I mean, I had already told Rawlynne what my idea was, but there might be more to it than that.