I padded over to the door, my bare feet silent on the plush carpet and turned the handle. I opened the door to find Jiro exactly where I knew he would be.
"Is everything ok?" He asked in his deep gravelly voice. "Should I go get Alpha Marcus for you?" He was about to move when I shook my head.
"I am here to see you. Do you have time to talk?" I tilted my head to the side while I waited for an answer. Jiro nodded and stepped inside the room.
I waled back over to the bed and settled myself comfortably under the thick blanket and propped myself up on some pillows. Jiro looked like he was going to just stand there inside the door but then decided to come over and take a seat in the chair beside the bed. His eyes drifted over to the now closed case then back to me.
"I'm guessing you know who the owner of that case is." I started as I pulled out the letter. Jiro nodded once but didn't elaborate. I had a feeling I wasn't going to get much out of this giant being but I continued anyway. "What can you tell me about Kade?"
I watched his eyes as Jiro thought about the question. I had started to think he wasn't going to answer me but with a grumbling sigh he told me what he could. "Lord Kade is a powerful and cunning man, but he has never lied to me, not once, since I started working for him. He keeps his people safe but he does not leave the confines of the dark forest."
"He never leaves the forest?" I was a little surprised by that admission. "Is that by choice?"
Jiro shrugged. "I don't know. Lord Kade does not share much with me, only information that I need to know, and I do know that he wants to meet you."
"I got that from his letter." I replied as I placed it down on the blankets. "I was also told that you could take me to him. Why you and not Marcus?"
Jiro looked a little uncomfortable at the question. "Weather you like it or not Marcus has a claim on you thanks to your father, and he has taken that claim seriously by protecting you and trying to keep you alive. It took a lot out of him to ask Lord Kade for help and if he can keep you away from the dark forest he will."
I nodded as I thought about what Jiro had told me. I knew the contract was going to be an issue, but I didn't think Marcus would try to keep me once the issue with the Blood Dawn pack was taken care of and I no longer needed his protection. "Alright, I have a week, two at most before I need to go to Kade. We will need to plan for a time when Marcus is not at the pack house."
"Agreed." Jiro nodded. "I will check his schedule and make arrangements. Once I have more information on the time and day we are leaving I will let you know." With that the conversation was over and Jiro went back to his post outside my bedroom door.
Now that I had a better idea of where Jiro stood and the fact that he was actively working for Kade I had a better idea of the answers I would get from Marcus when I confronted him tomorrow. For now I tucked the letter back under the pillows and settled down to get a bit of sleep before the sun started to rise.
When Marcus entered my room late the next morning I was already awake and had shuffled over to the closet to look for some clean clothes. I had spent too much time in bed wearing nothing but a tee shirt and sweats and wanted the familiar feel of my jeans and a hoodie.
"What are you doing out of bed?" Marcus cried as he saw me struggling to get a hoodie down off a hanger.
"What does it look like? I'm getting dressed." I gave up with the hoodie and grabbed a clean shirt from a drawer instead.
"You shouldn't be pushing yourself yet, you're still recovering."
"I'm fine." I replied as I pulled the shirt down over my head and shuffled back over to the bed. I wobbled a little on the walk back and hoped that Marcus didn't notice. However the look in his eyes screamed that he saw I was still unsteady on my feet and he would make sure I didn't go anywhere without him.
I sighed and sat on the side of the bed. "I'm not made of glass Marcus. It's good for me to stretch my muscles every once in a while." The look Marcus gave me was not a happy one but he didn't argue. I nodded satisfied. "Good. I want to go for a short walk this afternoon."
"Absolutely not." Marcus started but I cut him off before he could go any further.
"I can't stay in this room forever Marcus. I'm starting to get bored and I want some fresh air."
"You know it's not safe for you to leave the pack house right now Riley." I knew he was going to bring that up to keep me hidden. No time like the present I guess to let Marcus know what I thought about him, the contract, and being forced to stay here for my protection.
I took a deep breath to centre myself before I began what would be a long and painful argument.
"Marcus I know you want to keep me safe and I appreciate everything you have done for me but I can't stay here forever. You know I never wanted to be tied down to an Alpha. Claimed like I'm an object and not a person. I want to finish college, have a place of my own, maybe travel."
I saw the hurt in Marcus' eyes as I spoke. He had become too attached in the short time I had been here. "Damn." I muttered under my breath. "I don't want to hurt you Marcus. I just need you to know the truth. I'm not attracted to you as a mate, maybe we could be friends but that's all."
He was quiet for a moment as I watched different emotions slide across his face. Anger, fear, sadness, then finally a weary acceptance. "I see." Was all he said before he turned and left the room.
A few moments later Quinn walked into the room with a confused look on his face. "I was told to keep watch over you and to escort you on a short walk. What happened in here? I haven't seen Marcus shut down like this in a while."
I looked up at Quinn as a lone tear slid down my face. "I think I broke him."