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That was probably a lie, but she didn’t need to know anything. Not yet, at least.
I stepped into the lobby and Lucille followed. “Is there anything I can help you with? Read some reports? Maybe write some reports? Or—”
I spun around and faced her. I had nothing against Lucille, but I was already in a bad mood, and pushing me like this didn’t help.
“Lucille, I’ve got a headache,” I lied. “I really could use some peace and quiet right now.”
“Oh.” Her shoulders sagged. “It’s … yeah, you should rest. Take something for the pain and rest. I’ll see you later, then.” She offered me a forced smile, then walked out of the town hall.
Dom walked in after she left. “Well done.”
“Don’t start,” I said with a snarl.
“What? Just because she has been into you since we were five years old? You kept pulling and pushing her all of our teenage years. If she’s still holding on to hope that you will pull again, it’s your fault.”
I groaned. He was damn right. I really had to talk to her. Maybe even tell her the truth about Raika and me. That way, she would finally understand we would never get back together.
“Just … shut up,” I told him as I headed toward my office. I regretted my words, but I wouldn’t take them back now.
Unfazed, Dom followed me into my office. Vallin, with whom I didn’t have much of a relationship, stayed outside.
Dom plopped down on one of the chairs across the desk. “You need to relax, boss.”
“Don’t call me that.” I didn’t sit on my chair. Instead, I went to the window and looked out at the town. From here, I had a good view of the main square, the school, the infirmary, and the library. A handful of wolves walked up and down, going on about their chores.
“That’s what you are now.”
I turned my back to the window, but rested my thighs against the windowsill. “I would rather you still considered me your friend.”
“I do, but now you’re a friend who can boss me around.” I groaned. Dom chuckled. “Relax, man. I can hear your teeth grinding from here. One day, your jaw will unhinge from the force.”
“It’s hard to relax where there’s so much going wrong,” I confessed.
A beat passed. “Want to talk about that?”
I shook my head. “How about you tell me something.”
“What do you want to know?”
I shrugged. “About the town. About the people. About yourself.” I shrugged. “What are the people saying behind my back? Are they happy overall? Are they disappointed in me? Are you?”
Dom stared at me for a moment too long. “People seemed to be relieved you hadn’t abandoned us as we thought you did.” I almost winced. That statement still hurt me. Hurt them. “But they are anxious. Things haven’t been easy. Everyone lost loved ones, the town is half-burned and half-broken, there are important positions in town missing, like … even a hairdresser. We don’t have someone to cut our hair anymore. Vianna is trying, but she has no training.” He ran a hand over his messy mop. Now that he mentioned it, I could see his sideburns were slightly uneven. “When you think about it, it sounds silly compared with all the rest we’re dealing with, but to them, that’s life. That was their day-to-day. They can’t move on without those.”
I let out a sigh. “I can’t suddenly revive the rest of the pack so they can take over their places. They are gone and we need to adapt. Some of us will need to learn new trades. For other things, we’ll need to leave town to get it done, like a haircut, at least until time passes, the pack grows, more generations are born, and we can become self-sufficient again.” That could take decades.
“I know. When I hear someone talking about It, I try squeezing myself into the conversation and making them understand that there’s only so much we can do, and that you’re definitely working overtime to provide for us all.”
I nodded. “Thank you.”
Dom frowned. “I’m sorry, man.”
“For?”
“For this burden. I know you were trained to be alpha your entire life, but it was for a fully functioning town, with lots of people to help you through it. Also, the crystals were intact, the barrier was still up, and there wasn’t a huge gap in the middle of town, and a creature who might wake up and come out at any time.”
I scoffed. “Thanks.”
“My pleasure,” he teased.
