Josy It has been a year since Jazzy's parents showed up, and still everyone thinks they might show up any minute. I love our Pack-members, but I am getting annoyed by the fact that they all think I can't take care of myself. I will link Jazzy at the first sign of trouble, and she and Tychon will drop everything they are doing to come to my aid. I hear the ding from the door, and as I turn around I say, "Sorry, we are closed." I am staring at a broad chest, and as my eyes travel up I have to tilt my head backwards to look into his eyes. "Fuck, you're huge," I mutter as I realize that he must be almost a foot taller than me, and I see a small smile on his face. "Are you okay?" I ask him; something in his eyes tells me that he just went through hell, and I want to see if I can make it better in some way. He shakes his head, but before he can say anything, he collapses to the floor. "Jazzy, get to the diner. Take Argos and Kobal with you. I am not in any danger; I just need help." I know they will be here soon, and I try to see if I can find any injuries, but I am not a doctor. Alice will need to take a look at him; she can actually help him if it is a medical issue, and Alpha Lakota will be able to take care of anything else. All of them stop dead in their tracks when they see the male on the floor, and I quickly fill them in on what happened. "Argos, can you and Kobal take him to see Alice? I can't see any injuries, and something tells me he went through hell," I ask. Argos and Kobal pick him up gently and walk out the door of the diner. Tychon asks me what I remember, and I tell him what I remember from the moment Conan left the diner. "Tychon, I thought he was shaking his head, but right now I doubt it. I think he was looking towards the forest, almost as if he was looking for something or someone he left there," I say, and after I have closed up the diner, I walk towards the stretch of forest he had looked at. Jazzy sniffs the air, and Tychon and I follow her as she starts walking into the forest. It takes us a few minutes before she starts looking up a tree, and Tychon quickly makes his way up into the tree, but he returns quickly. "There are two young Pups in the tree; they are fast asleep. I doubt I can carry them down at the same time, and I would rather not have one of them falling down," Tychon says. "Take me up there; I can keep an eye on the one you leave up there," I respond, and Tychon turns to let me climb on his back. I stare at the two young boys and I decide to stay with the biggest of the two; he might cause more trouble than the smaller boy. I stare after Tychon as he starts climbing down. "Where is he taking my Brother?" I hear a voice behind me, and I slowly turn around to look into bright green eyes, just like the male at the diner. "Are the two of you traveling with your Father?" I ask, and Chai sighs in relief when he says No.He tells me they are traveling with their Uncle. "Well, your Uncle came to our Pack's diner, and before he could say anything he collapsed. Our Pack-doctor is taking a look at him, but I remembered him looking at the forest, and we decided to see if he left something here," I say. Tychon is on his way back up, and I ask the boy for their names. "My name is Malik, and that is my baby Brother, Ivan," he says as he points down at Jazzy. "My name is Josy, Tychon is the one climbing up the tree, and my Sister, Jazzy, is holding your baby Brother," I introduce us. Five minutes later we are all out of the tree, and Malik gets a piggy back ride from Tychon, but he keeps a close eye on his baby Brother. "Josy, did Uncle Romano have his backpack with him?" Malik asks, and I look around me to see if I can find a place where he could have hidden it. I find a tree trunk we sometimes use to place clothing for Pack-members that took a run in their Wolf form, and I decide to try my luck. "I found it, Malik. I will take it with us and I will get it up to your room. Is that okay?" I ask him, and he nods his head as he smiles at me. Lakota is waiting for us at the Pack-house, and I know that she isn't bringing good news. "Alpha, can we do this upstairs in my Quarters?" I ask; I want to get the boys inside and maybe into the shower before I am willing to listen to her. Lakota doesn't answer me; she just opens the door for me, and I take Malik's hand to guide him up the stairs. Jazzy places Ivan on the bed in my guestroom, and I tell Malik to take a shower, but I stop him when I see blood on Jazzy's arm. "Malik, how did Ivan get injured?" I ask him, and I see tears forming in his eyes. I wrap my arms around him, and I can feel him flinch; I think he has injuries as well. "Ivan and I went camping with Uncle Romano, just a few minutes from our home, and in the middle of the night he woke us. We ran in the opposite direction of home, and he told us to hide behind some bushes when we heard howling; Ivan and I stayed real quiet. But somehow a Wolf found us, and before Uncle Romano could reach us, he had attacked us. Uncle Romano killed him, and he lifted us into a tree not far from where we had been camping; we walked for two days after that. He told us we would reach safety soon, some hidden territory our Great Grandfather wrote about. He had described how to get into the territory in one of his journals; that is where Uncle Romano was taking us," Malik says, and even though Ivan is still asleep, he whimpers. I ask Malik what happened to his family, and when he tells me that a Pack of Wolves murdered them, I can't stop the tears from rolling down my cheeks. I gently remove Malik's clothing, and I gasp when I see the gashes on his back. "Alpha, can you get Alice up here? I think she needs to take a look at Malik and Ivan," I ask as I turn on the shower and lower the head as far as I can; it will make it easier for both of the boys. Alice walks into the room moments after I put Malik under the shower; Jazzy and Tychon had carefully removed Ivan's clothing, and my heart broke when I saw his injuries. "You needed me, Alpha," she says, and Lakota points her towards the guestroom."Alice, what is going on with their Uncle?" I ask, and as she is taking care of Ivan's wounds, she tells us there is nothing wrong with him physically, but that she has no explanation as to why he collapsed. "Could traveling for two days with two orphaned boys after your entire family got slaughtered do the trick?" I whisper. She nods her head, and I know that it will be a waiting game for Romano to wake up. I turn towards Lakota, and without asking a question she knows what I was about to ask. "Malik and Ivan can stay with you, Josy. Maybe we can place Romano in the other guestroom, if Alice thinks that is a good idea." "Alpha, I think it will be the best thing for all three of them. I can come here to check Ivan's injuries and keep an eye on Romano," Alice answers. "Alice, Malik got injured as well; he is in the shower right now. I'll go see if he is ready," I say before I walk to the bathroom. Malik is drying himself off, but he is careful when he reaches his back. "Let me do that for you, and once you are dry, Alice can take care of your injuries, just like she did for Ivan," I say, and I tell him how his Uncle is doing and what the plan is: moving his Uncle into the other guestroom. Malik wraps his arms around my neck. "Thank you, Josy. Thank you for caring for us," he says, and I tell him he is very welcome. After Alice has tended to his wounds, I place him on the bed next to Ivan, and soon both boys are fast asleep. I wake up in the middle of the night, and at first I have no idea what woke me, that is until I hear whimpering from the boys' room. Malik is tossing and turning in his sleep, and Ivan is no longer in bed. "Jazzy, who is on night shift? Ivan is gone." "Stay with Malik. Tychon and I will go look for him," she replies, and I crawl into bed to hold Malik in my arms; he snuggles into my side to fall into a deep sleep. It takes a few minutes before Tychon shows up with Ivan in his arms. "Hi, Ivan. Why did you leave the room?" I ask him as Tychon places him on my chest. "Find Uncle Mano," he answers, and I tell him where his Uncle is. "Tomorrow they will move him to the room across the hall; you will be able to see him as often as you want. You and Malik will stay here with me until your Uncle is all better," I say, and he falls asleep with a smile on his face.