Chapter 4: Goodbyes
"Della, there has to be another way," Jared watched his sister pack the last box of things she would take with her, tears flowing down his cheeks. "What am I going to do without you?"
"You are going to lead this pack and be the best Alpha the werewolf world has ever known," Della told him, fighting back her own tears. It had been a month since she had been cruelly rejected, and it was now obvious that she was carrying a pup. She hadn't left the Pack House in weeks, and only then to see Trish, in the middle of the night. Now, she would leave her home behind, sneaking into the night like a criminal. She wasn't taking much with her, she would be able to buy whatever she needed once she got to her destination. Her family's fortune went back many generations, and Della was grateful she would be starting her new life in the human world with the comfort of wealth.
"Della, we both know you are the strong one. You should have been Alpha, not me. You are brave, fearless, and I am going to miss you so much." Jared hugged her, and she hugged him back, letting a few tears escape. She hated it, but she knew she had to do this. To protect her family and her pup.
"It's not goodbye forever, silly. You can come visit, and maybe some day, I can come back to visit too. Maybe I will fall madly in love with a human, who knows?" Della laughed, the look on Jared's face, he looked as though she had suggested she might fall in love with a walrus!
"A human? Please, Della, don't fall in love with one of them. They are so, well, they just.." Jared tried to think of a polite way to say what was on his mind.
"They are pretty clueless," Della said, "I know. I've seen their newscasts, the way they govern themselves- yes, they are clueless. But they do make some great movies, and books! They can't all be bad." She would be living in an exclusive community in what was considered the entertainment mecca of humanity, among Americans. The house was beautiful, with views of the ocean, something she had never seen in real life. Her house backed to acres of forest, where Mila would be able to run without fear, where her pup would learn to run one day. She was running away to what most would consider paradise.
The knowledge that she would be forever alone, without a fated mate to share it with, tainted it with a sadness that she could only hope would fade with the passage of time.
"At least you will have Cori, and Sherry to keep you company," Jared said, seeing the sad expression darkening his sister's pretty face. A smile formed on her lips.
"Well, someone will have to help me with this pup, I'm sure he will be a handful." Cori was Della's best friend, and she had insisted on coming with Della. Della had not been able to keep her secret from Cori, who had been by her side since they were still in diapers.