The Story of the Exile (The Belesone Pack #2)

Chapter 32

I promise, you'll be with me soon. I will never leave you, Leo's voice spoke the words that finally woke Katarina from her dream walk.

She was so startled to hear her own words, and more, coming from his mind that she gasped. But when she looked, Leo was still asleep. And she had a recollection of a hint of warmth and love creeping into Angel's haunting dark eyes, hidden in shadow. It tore at her heart to see them in so much pain, yet so clearly focused on one another.

Katarina slipped off the bed and left Leo to sleep in peace. When she got downstairs, she found Milo in the kitchen, drinking from a bottle of water and trying to treat a few cuts and scrapes by himself.

"What happened?" she asked with a knowing sigh.

He turned and beamed at her innocently. "Our trap worked," Milo answered, as if that was all the answer she needed.

There was a cut on the back of his neck that he was trying and failing to put a plaster over. Katarina sighed and moved across to the drawer under the sink, to remove the first aid kit.

Milo gave up his pretence with a sigh and plonked himself down on one of the bar stools at the center aisle. He relaxed, letting his head drop forward, as she cleaned the scrape and placed a piece of iodine gauze over it. That would ensure that it didn't get infected, because of the dirt he would have kicked up in the forest.

"Tell me what happened and I'll tell you about the dream walk I just had," She asked him to trade stories with her.

Although he pulled away from her attempt to clean a scrape on his forehead, she ignored the arched eyebrow of curiosity. She was an Oracle after all, so he sat still, letting her work and recounted his capture of Nathaniel, and Cletus' surprise self return to pack headquarters. Algar had put him in a cell as soon as he turned himself in. He also explained the agreement that he, Grene and Carlton had come to about the future.

Katarina took a seat beside him, once she was finished making sure he was cleaned up, and listened eagerly. She was thrilled that her father would be around on a more permanent basis. She also grudgingly accepted that both her half sisters, and Janet, would have to be disciplined.

That discipline would begin once the packs were merged, so they had a brief few weeks of reprieve and then they would have no choice.

Katarina understood that. She was happy to hear that the pack were moving and they were going to exchange traditions and ideals. It was progress, but neither knew whether it would be for their pack, into a more traditional pack life, or if it would be for Carlton's people, into a more modern existence. They might even find a happy medium.

"You missed the sentencing. Carlton thought it was best that I announced it to the pack and we implement it together," he explained, calmly. "So I sentenced Nathaniel to fifty lashes, to be dealt by Carlton since the crime was against his people, to take place after the two packs have merged," he explained briefly. "I've told them all that he's only alive because Marlan is innocent and doesn't deserve to lose his whole family over an insane grudge."

Katarina nodded in agreement.

"Now tell me about this dream walk you had," Milo asked as soon as he was finished talking and had given Katarina a few minutes to give her opinion and process everything.

"I saw his mate...Angel," Katarina explained, much to Milo's surprise. She shared the experience with him, as she would with Leo once he woke, to let him see, hear and sense everything as she had. "I'm not sure he can take much more. He was angry at me, when I first spoke to him," she giggled as she finished explaining Angel's reaction to her.