Amelia had watched him turn fully into a large brown wolf and for the first time her she thought, "I guess werewolves are real." Though she had known of their existence since she was a child, it had still a bit mythical. They had all seemed so "normal" so far. Then she noticed the food still on the table. Her mind told her, "You should not eat that. You should walk to your room, grab your stuff and leave." But one of her long-time coping mechanisms had been to eat when she was upset and she was upset. She also told herself, if you eat this now, maybe you can skip lunch or something. She sat down to the biscuits and sausage gravy and quickly ate them. They tasted so good, but she knew she probably did not have much time, and she did need to get to town sooner rather than later. After a few gulps of the orange juice she left the office and the waiting area, and almost bumped into Reyna in the hall.
"What happened?" Reyna asked immediately, a shocked expression on her face.
"I upset Alpha Brendan," replied Amelia as she began walking back to her room.
"Honey, I already knew that," Reyna said as she walked with her.
"He thinks I am his mate, but I am not," responded Amelia.
"Why do you think you are not?" Reyna asked
"Because I am already married." Amelia said a little incredulously.
"What does that have to do with anything? You could get divorced." Reyna also sounded slightly incredulous.
"I am going to get divorced, but that doesn't mean I want to be with anyone else" said Amelia.
"But you are his mate." Reyna insisted.
"That can't be. I'm not even a werewolf," Amelia said exasperated.
"He could change you," Reyna interjected, trying to find a solution.
"No! He's wrong." Amelia whispered vehemently as they reached the door to her room.
Reyna stopped and looked closely at her, sensing that she wasn't going to be able to say anything at this moment that would change Amelia's mind.
"Do you know where my car is?" Amelia asked.
"Yes, but you should not leave." Reyna said, slightly panicked and mentally told her mate, Jeremiah, that Amelia was preparing to leave. "Amelia, look, I know this is all a lot to take in, and I gather you've been through a lot recently, but you are the Alpha's mate." She put her hand up when Amelia started to interrupt her with a denial and Amelia stopped. "If you try and leave, and he has not claimed you yet, then it will drive the Alpha crazy."
"He's already crazy," Amelia muttered under her breath and began collecting her things.
"No Amelia, you do not understand." Reyna explained. "I know that something happened between you this morning that was upsetting enough that Alpha Brendan left. I suspect that the reason he left is because he was becoming agitated and upset and did not want to hurt you. Once a wolf finds their mate, both of them will want to finish claiming each other and the longer they wait, the more their instincts take over and logic leaves. If you run from him, his instinct is going to be to drag you back here and forcibly claim you."
Amelia shuddered at Reyna's words, wondering if it would hurt as bad to be "forcibly claimed" as it did to be beaten up. Fear crept into her voice and her scent as she whispered, "Will he kill me?"
Reyna looked at her completely shocked, "No! Mates can't stand to hurt each other, much less kill each other."
Amelia let out a breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. "I can't stay here. Do you know if my car was able to be fixed?"
Reyna asked, "If it isn't will you at least stay until it is?"
"No," Amelia answered emphatically. "But if it isn't, then I need to change and I need to limit what I take with me. I am sorry, it looks like I will have to leave some of my things here for a while." She walked to the bathroom and began braiding her hair and then packing her things.
"What are you going to do? Walk to town? You'd never make it before nightfall. It's at least 15 miles and people drive crazy on that highway."
Amelia turned and looked Reyna directly in the eye and said, "What choice do I have. I can't stay here." She got some clothes and headed to the bathroom. Just before she closed the door she said, "Don't look so worried Reyna, there is a fair amount of traffic on that highway and I'm sure that someone will stop and offer me a ride."
Reyna's eyes nearly popped from her head as she imagined what the Alpha would do if he found his mate hitchhiking. She sent a panicked message through her mind to Jeremiah's and told him that Amelia was leaving and short of imprisoning her, Reyna didn't see how they were going to stop her. She also told him about Amelia's willingness to hitchhike if necessary.
Jeremiah responded that this would push the Alpha to do something rash and Reyna agreed, but she knew how determined Amelia was. Both of them could see a disaster about to unfold, but did not know how to stop it.
Reyna watched helplessly as Amelia came out of the bathroom in jeans and a t-shirt and knew they were running out of time. To buy a little bit of time she asked Amelia, "Before you start walking, can you give me a few minutes to check on your car?"
Amelia sensed her desperation, but would be much happier to have her car than walking so she said, "Yes, I can do that. But Reyna, I won't wait forever."
"I understand," said Reyna and ran to Jeremiah's office and rushed inside and shut the door.
Again she asked her mate, "What are we going to do? You haven't told Alpha Brendan have you?"
"Do I look like I want my head ripped off?" Jeremiah asked her.
"I don't think, given how things went this morning, that imprisoning her would be a good idea," Reyna remarked and Jeremiah agreed.
"I don't understand why she can't accept the Alpha as her mate," said Jeremiah and Reyna turned to look at him with disbelief.