The Uninvited Guest

Gina

My flat was rent-free and situated directly above A’s Diner and Bar. It had a separate entrance, and I could walk to work—such a bonus! My old Jeep was on its last legs anyway. I worked at the diner from Monday through Thursday and spent Fridays and Saturdays behind the bar. It was a win-win situation.

Today was Wednesday, and I was relieved when I finally locked up. Friday was around the corner, and I would have the whole day to laze about until I opened the bar at six o’clock.

The kitchen was just big enough for me—I mostly ate at the diner anyway. Pouring a glass of wine, I made myself comfortable in bed. There wasn’t enough space for a couch, but that didn’t bother me. I sat against the headboard and switched on the TV, flipping through the channels when my cell phone buzzed.

I rolled my eyes but grabbed the phone and answered, “What do you want, Al? I’m already in bed.” I mouthed off.

“I still haven’t found my key. Can you open up for me?” Alistair asked.

“Oh, hell no, that means I need to get out of bed and get dressed, and it’s freezing out there.”

“Please, Gina. I know it’s somewhere, but I clean forgot this morning,” he begged.

“Fine, when will you get here? We were expecting you hours ago.”

“Two minutes, five tops.”

“Okay, see you in five. And this is the last time…” Fishing my pants out of the hamper, I got dressed and waited at the window until I saw the headlights. Then I made my way to the bar. I trudged to the entrance, unlocked it, and turned to watch Al climb out of the pickup.

“Hells bells, Gina, it took me double the time to get here. I had to divert way too many times due to road closures. And you know how dangerous it is to operate a phone while driving. Could you stop blocking the pack link?”

After years of living in the human world, I blocked the pack link on principle. I liked my ME time.

“I wish you’d find your key… because being at your beck and call is getting lame, and no, after hours, I block the pack,” I responded sourly. “And don’t think I am going to help you unload.”

“Ah, come on, G, don’t be like that.” He walked to the back of the truck, removed the tarp, and stilled. “What the fuck?”

“What?” I asked curiously.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he repeated.

“Crying out aloud, what?” I snapped, trudging through the snow to Alistair’s side.

“Fuck!” I said when I saw the girl lying there. “Is she dead?”

Al pulled the girl gently off the flatbed. She was ice cold to the touch. “Her heart is beating, but it’s irregular.”

“Quick, bring her into my place. We need to get her warm.” I hurried back towards the side entrance of my flat.

“She’s human,” Alistair commented, his large steps keeping pace with my hurried ones while he gently cradled the girl.

“So fucking what? My great-grandmother was human; should we just let her die?” I retorted irritably.

“No, of course not, but you know the rules…”

“She could be passing through, humans are allowed if they’re not staying,” I said, running up the stairs. “Put her on the bed and get her clothes off,” I ordered. Alistair looked at me pointedly.

“I need to run a bath. We have to raise her temperature slowly. Goddess, leave her underwear on. I didn’t know you were such a prude.”

“I’m not a prude, but she’s human.”

“Yeah, well, same anatomy,” I threw over my shoulder.

With Al’s help, I got the girl into the bath, including her underwear, and slowly added warm water. Fortunately, she was slim and easy to carry. Every time I moved her, the girl would moan and flinch. The water was lukewarm, but I didn’t want to burn her. Her platinum blonde hair fell into the water, getting the ends wet.

“Right, lift her out so I can remove her underwear and wrap her in my gown, and then lay her on the bed. This would have been so much easier if you’d taken her underwear off in the first place.”

The bathroom was relatively small, and Alistair’s bulk made it difficult to move around. He picked the girl up and closed his eyes as I awkwardly removed her panties and bra, wrapping her in my fleecy gown. I pulled back the covers as Al deposited her on my bed and tucked her in, adding another blanket.

“We’ll have to wait for her to regain consciousness, but I’m telling you now, there’s a story here. No one would brave the cold like that unless they were desperate.” I knew this from experience.

Alistair nodded sagely. “I’m going to unload. I’ll come back afterward, but shit Gina, if the Alpha finds out I’ve brought a human into the settlement, he’ll have my head.”

“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s not like you offered her a ride.”

I sat on the bed and stared at the girl. I was no stranger to hardships; sometimes, you just needed a helping hand. I would be the one to do that, I decided. Alpha needed to get over his aversion. It wasn’t like there were no humans in the settlement. It just meant a whole lot of paperwork. Some of the males had human mates, and the Alpha accepted them. How was this any different?

I got into bed to provide extra body heat. The girl started moving. Hopefully, she would wake up soon. Judging by the pile on the floor, she had worn numerous T-shirts and stockings, which might have helped against the cold.

Half an hour later, I heard Alistair trudge up the stairs, carrying a plastic shopping bag. “Didn’t know you liked plastic shopping bags with sunflower motifs?”

“Not mine. Must be hers.”

He opened it and stuck his hand in, bringing out other shopping bags. He looked at them nonplussed when a piece of paper fluttered to the floor.

“What’s that?” I asked, still cuddling the girl.

“It looks like a birth certificate.” He picked it up. “Yep, her name is Carol. No, wait, Coral Wentworth, quite a mouthful…”

“Grab a chair, Al. You make the place look tiny.” I gestured to one of the kitchen chairs. “So, we know her name now.”

“Oh wow,” Al mused. “She turns eighteen tomorrow.” He hauled the kitchen chair closer and sat down. “Technically, we have a minor on our hands.”

“Just for a few hours, you should be ashamed of yourself, Al, undressing a minor,” I giggled.

“Shut the fuck up, that’s not funny.”

“It so is.”

Alistair threw me a dirty look and jumped up suddenly. “She’s awake.”

“What?” I turned my head and saw the girl’s eyes open. I almost jumped off the bed when she made eye contact. I had never seen eyes like that! They were the same color as my mother’s abalone shell on the windowsill—silvery white with blue, green, and purple hues.

“Wow,” was the only thing I could muster, wholly entranced.

Alistair moved closer and stared. “Wow,” he echoed.

“Don’t be scared. We found you on the back of Al’s pickup. You were practically frozen solid. How are you feeling?” I asked.

“I’m okay, I think,” she said, sitting up and looking at the gown.

“We had to change you. Well, we bathed you and then changed you, but I had to raise your body temperature,” I babbled, trying to explain. “You gave us quite a fright. We weren’t expecting anything but cases of beer.”

She crossed her arms and shrunk down into the bed. Yeah, she’d been through some shit.

“I’m sorry, but I had no choice,” she answered, her eyes fastened on mine. They were truly hypnotic.

“We gathered that. Why don’t you tell us what happened? Maybe we can help?” I asked gently, my heart contracting.

“Who are you?” she asked. “I mean, what are your names?”

“I’m Gina, and this is Alistair.”

“Pleased to meet you. My name is Coral.” She paused and straightened a bit. “Thank you for saving my life.”

“Why would you risk freezing to death?” Alistair asked gently. “You could have died. I can’t believe you survived four odd hours of exposure…”

“I was about to be sold, so I ran away, but when I got to Havelton, all the buses were canceled due to the weather. I couldn’t stay there. They would have found me,” she explained, blinking tears away.

“Did you say sold as in sold?” I asked, outraged.

“I don’t understand this. Where are your parents? Surely, they would have stopped this?” Alistair ran both his hands through his hair, shaking his head. “I need a drink, and I think you should tell us the whole story.”

She recounted the entire sordid tale to us, her confidence growing with each twist and turn of the story. She had managed to escape a living nightmare.

Alistair looked as if he had been shell-shocked. “Give me the address, and I will rip them limb from limb!” he shouted, his voice filled with anger.

“It seems like there are more people involved, Al. This is human trafficking, and you can bet your bottom dollar that syndicates are involved. They ensure the girls are orphans, and once they turn eighteen and the State stops checking up on them, they sell them.” I shook my head in disgust. “No one is any the wiser. Killing them won’t help, although I wouldn’t mind ripping them apart myself. Go home, Al. I doubt the Dixons will find her here. We can chat tomorrow.”

Al nodded and stood up, stretching his back. “Good night, little one.”

I locked the door and was horrified that I hadn’t offered her anything hot to drink. “Oh crap, I’m sorry I didn’t offer you anything. I’m going to make you some hot chocolate. Are you hungry?”

“I’d love some hot chocolate, but don’t go to any trouble on my account.”

“It’s no trouble at all. How about soup and toast? I’m sorry, that’s all I have. I usually eat at the diner,” I explained.

I made hot chocolate, soup, and toast and balanced the tray on the bed. She took a sip and moaned in appreciation.

For now, it was best to keep her a secret. I was certain the Dixons would be looking for her, and having too many people in the know was risky. Alpha was also a stickler for the rules, which meant Coral couldn’t stay in the territory until the paperwork was sorted—stupid but true. I planned to speak to him at the opportune time, but in the meantime, she’d be safe in the cottage, which was not on pack territory.

“Listen, I work at the diner downstairs but own a cottage not far from here. It’s well hidden, and you’ll be safe there. The thing is, I can only take you there after work. I don’t expect you to sit up here all day, so come to the diner around nine. I know this sounds strange, but let’s pretend we don’t know each other.”

She looked at me in surprise.

“It’s safer for you,” I added.

“Okay,” she agreed.

“I usually get up relatively early, but you can sleep in, okay?”

“Sure.”

“Right, as you can see, I only have a bed, so I hope you don’t mind sharing?”

“Of course not. I am eternally in your debt.”