19

"Ingrid?"

Jodie opened the door to Ingrid's bedroom and stuck her head in after several hard knocks went unanswered. It was the first time she'd entered the room, and with Ingrid nowhere to be seen, she didn't know what to do. Somewhere in the bathroom, the shower was running, and Ingrid's melodic voice was humming something classical.

Jodie stepped in and took a deep breath. The beautiful arrangement of cream and white furniture with matching aesthetics had escaped her notice as her thoughts were on the task at hand. Over an hour had passed since her conversation with Ares, and most of that time had been spent preparing for the conversation she was about to begin.

Since Esmeralda was her only friend on the Whispering Moon, love-related topics were foreign to her, but she hadn't informed Ares of her inexperience in that area. She couldn't tell him she had no one to talk to about boys, mates, or love interests. Other girls in her old pack had these conversations regularly, and she remembered feeling irritated at the eagerness with which this was done. Although the irritation probably stemmed from the fact that her ex-mate was usually the object of their wildest fantasies.

She laughed at the absurdity of it all. If only they could see Ares now, they'd find Kenneth unimpressive in comparison. The two Alphas differed in looks and character; she was sure of it. Kenneth was an unrepentant man-whore, while Ares, though she suspected something between him and the lady from earlier, wasn't.

She forced herself to focus back on what was important. It seemed ridiculous that she was starting such conversations now, and she only hoped that Ingrid wouldn't find it intrusive since their friendship was only a week old.

As Ingrid was busy having a bath, she cowardly decided to leave and return much later. But as she turned around, the humming stopped and the shower turned off. Almost immediately, the connecting door to the bathroom opened and Ingrid stepped out.

"I thought that was you," she said with a teasing laugh in her voice.

Jodie was surprised to find her fully clothed in a tank top and jeans. "And I thought you were taking a shower. I was just about to leave. "

"No need. Come in," Ingrid quickly urged her into the room. A large white towel wrapped her wet hair, and a familiar necklace hung around her neck. The pendant wasn't visible, but Jodie was sure what it was -- a hexagonal crystal pendant, the same one she had seen an hour ago.

She wondered when Ares had time to return the stolen materials safely, because immediately after she promised to find out who had sent them, he was summoned to a closed-door meeting by three of the pack elders. She felt weird scheming with him.

Ingrid sat down on the bed and tapped the seat next to her so Jodie could join her. "I was going to come over to your room as soon as I was done with my hair, but since you beat me to it, I've to apologize for Kyle's behavior earlier."

"No, it's fine." Jodie replied, joining her on the bed. "You shouldn't always apologize for other people's mistakes. Besides, I feel partly responsible for everything. Ethan was very clear that the Alpha wanted to see me first."

"Still," she insisted, "Kyle shouldn't have acted like you'd been caught committing a serious offense. He even yelled at Ethan and embarrassed the poor guy. Kyle's got a long stick up his ass, I tell you."

Jodie smiled. "All right, then Kyle's a jerk and I accept your apology."

"Thanks. I've spoken to him and I promise he'll be on his best behavior"

"I'll take you at your word." Jodie shrugged her shoulders. "I came to find out if the training will actually happen or not. Your brother hasn't given me an answer."

"I'll talk to him, don't worry about it." Replied Ingrid. "By the way, why did he want to see you? Oh, I hope he wasn't mean to you again. Those boys can be a bit hot tempered."

"No, it wasn't like that. He wanted to apologize for how badly he handled the situation in the office earlier," she lied.

"Really?"

Jodie nodded.

Ingrid was stunned by this news. The last time they had spoken in his office, Ares had sworn that it would definitely be a cold day in hell before he apologized. He'd even threatened to put Jodie in the dungeon if she continued to venture into places where she wasn't wanted. So the sudden change in behavior was quite surprising.

"He called you to apologize?" she asked.

"Not in the exact words," Jodie adjusted herself on the bed before elaborating on the lie. "But he implied it. He said he wanted me to feel welcome. Whatever that means... I'm sure I'm still not allowed in his office, though."

"I see," Ingrid replied with a thoughtful frown. "He's so strange."

"Well, he's your brother." Jodie's gaze fell on the necklace again. It was now or never. "That's a pretty necklace. Where did you get it?"

"Oh, thank you. Check out the pendant." Ingrid smiled as she pulled it from beneath her shirt and positioned it in front of the light. The white crystal glistened in the yellow light of her overhead lamp. "It's a natural, handmade crystal. A family heirloom of some kind from a very close friend. It's all he has left from his late mother, but he's letting me keep it for the evening. Oh, speaking about this evening, there's going to be a bonfire tonight,and you're definitely coming with me."

Jodie's surprised gaze shifted from the jewellery to Ingrid's glowing face. "A party?"

"Yes, and I plan to introduce you to a few friends. We should choose an outfit together!" She gasped. "Something preferably sexy to charm the boys."

"I'm sorry, but I don't think this is something I want to do." Jodie backed out.

"No, you will love it, believe me. You cannot stay indoors while everyone else celebrates tonight. I'll also introduce you to several essential pack members. I'm sure I have something nice for you." Ingrid got off the bed to her closet. "They've been willing to meet you, and I'm sure you'll love their company."

"Err, I'm not sure about parties, Ingrid. Wouldn't your brother be upset?"

"He wouldn't," she insisted strongly. "Life is too short, and he'll let you live it your way as long as I have a say. At least until Viola finishes preparing the sacrifice materials. God, I can't believe we're going to do this to you. You are such a--"

"What sacrifice?" Jodie interrupted abruptly. She got out of bed and took a step towards Ingrid, suspicion building in her heart. "And what are you people planning on doing to me?"

Ingrid froze mid-search, mentally damning her leaking lips to damnation.