“Willpower is the key to success,” Jake always spouts that motivational nonsense. Well, lucky him, he’s got those magical werewolf genes to rely on.

Meanwhile, I’m here sweating like a pig and questioning the life choices that led me to this torturous workout routine. Every morning, Jake does a 1-hour personal safety training with me before we go to our jobs, and he trains as if it is like medicine that must be taken daily. Always determined to make me run out of air throughout training, Jake leads the way and won’t let me rest, even if I promise to go into space and catch the moon just for him.

“A sequence of squats, crunches, and jumps,” Jake ordered.

“This isn’t even a workout. I’m going to die like this, Jake. Take it easy!” I whimpered. Usually, when I do his exercises, I can’t think of anything else because my body aches from the exertion. However, yesterday’s attack didn’t get out of my head, questions flooded my mind. “How did they get into the territory? This pack is supposed to be secure… What more was yet to come?” I murmured, my voice filled with confusion. I don’t need to say who I’m talking about. He knows. And I think he’s thinking the same.

Jake’s brows furrowed, his eyes scanning the park for any signs of further danger as if he were still on alert. “I don’t know, Katie. This shouldn’t have happened. I’ve reported this to my supervisor at the Elite Training Center… They said that the attack has been contained since yesterday and that it won’t happen again.”

A mixture of anger and concern swirled within me. How could our house be infiltrated so easily? The thought sent shivers down my spine, and I realized how weak I was.

“Let’s go! It’s only been half an hour since we started. And we haven’t trained at home one day because someone thinks that just because she’s off from the hospital, she’s also off from everything,” Jake said as he fixed my spine while I did the fantastic sequence of exercises. Ugh, my muscles were screaming for mercy.

Sometimes, I can’t help but feel a twinge of insecurity. What good am I in a fight if I can’t defend myself like Jake can?

As I did what he ordered, the events from yesterday replayed in my mind. The attack by those rogues, their overwhelming strength, and my helplessness. I couldn’t shake off the feeling of vulnerability, the nagging doubt that I would always be the weak link in our pack.

“Jake,” I said hesitantly as we continued our grueling workout routine, sweat pouring down our faces. I couldn’t help but voice my concerns. “I couldn’t do anything back there… I froze, and they pushed me down like I was nothing.”

Jake glanced at me, his gaze filled with understanding. He paused mid-push-up, his muscles rippling. He paused for a moment, his voice filled with earnestness, “Katie, in a fight between wolves, the best thing you can do is stay hidden,” he said softly. “You don’t have the instincts or the physical advantage we possess. It’s not a weakness; it’s just the reality of our differences… We train so that you can defend yourself to some extent, but your safety is my priority. If it ever comes down to it, find a place to hide, and I’ll make sure you’re protected.”

I rolled my eyes playfully. “Great, so you’re saying I should perfect my hiding skills instead of mastering the art of combat?”

Jake chuckled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Hey, being a master of hide-and-seek has its perks too! You never know when you might need to evade a pack of hungry wolves.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at his teasing. “Well, if hiding is my superpower, I better start practicing my ninja camouflage. Wait a minute, if all I need is to hide, why am I suffering from these exercises?”

Jake chuckled, his laughter blending with the sound of our heavy breathing. “Nice try, but keep going!” He chuckled, a mischievous glint in his eyes. “Well, Kitkat, if your hiding skills are as sharp as your sassy comebacks, then those wolves better watch out!”

I couldn’t help but laugh at his teasing as I pretended to flex my nonexistent muscles, striking a pose. “Oh, I’ll give them a verbal lashing they won’t forget! I’ll roast them so hard, they’ll be shaking in their skin, begging for mercy!”

We continued our grueling workout, this time with a lightness in my heart, our banter providing a much-needed distraction from the burning pain in my muscles.

“I’m dying, I’m dying,” I said while doing the crunches.

“Dead people don’t talk, Katie,” Jake lay down and continued his workout. As always, he offers me a few seconds of rest as a reward between a series of exercises. With 15 minutes to finish, we ran around the park and headed home.

“Kitkat, I’m having dinner with a friend later. Do you want to come?” Jake spoke as he typed on his cell phone, probably setting up a date with a professional weightlifter or something.

“Sure, who is it?” I said, trying to match his quick strides toward our apartment. If it’s another fitness enthusiast, I might as well bring a salad bowl as a gift.

“You don’t know him. I met him at work. And, oh, by the way, it’s already very late, so let’s put those Olympic running skills to good use, or we’ll be late. Too bad we won’t have time for breakfast. Get ready quickly, Katie, or you’ll miss the ride,” Jake declared, and we started to accelerate our pace, making me wonder if I had unknowingly signed up for a marathon.

“I’m going to put some snacks in our backpacks,” I announced, making a mental note to get granola bars and chips from the kitchen cupboard. Survival 101, ladies and gentlemen.

We got into our apartment. After showering, getting dressed, and gathering our essentials, we finally made it to the car. Jake took his place in the driver’s seat, and I settled in, adjusting my dress as I caught his compliment.

“I like the dress,” Jake said, his eyes briefly darting away from the road.

I smirked, enjoying the opportunity to tease him. “Oh, this old thing? It was a birthday gift from my dear friend. He’s a cruel trainer, but he certainly knows how to pick out stylish outfits.” I teased him, knowing full well that his fashion sense was impeccable, unlike his training methods that left me gasping for air like a stranded fish.

“I will remember this statement in tomorrow’s training,” he said with a wicked smile, and I rolled my eyes.

🐺 🐺 🐺

“Katie, welcome back. You take ward B rooms. Here’s the day’s itinerary and also patient information. Dr. Smith will be your supervisor this week.” Chloe handed me the papers, and I headed to the B ward.

Every week this semester, students will change the room letters and be supervised by a different doctor to test the skills they learned in previous years. This practice helps to get in touch with many different patient situations.

The hospital rooms are divided into letters, each floor of the building has two letters, and each letter has a certain number of rooms. Usually, each letter has 20 rooms, but it depends on the floor. For patients in a severe emergency, for example, there are fewer rooms, but they are more significant to allow for quick service if there is an attack in the pack.

Training at the hospital is very extensive and needs attention 100 percent of the time. My first patient was a teenager, according to her file, she was rescued during yesterday’s rogue’s attack. She was their prisoner. She arrived with significant injuries that many people thought she would not survive.

I put the medicine on her skin, I did some bandages, and for some reason, I decided to put my hand on her head and ask the Goddess Selena for healing. She is so young, she has a whole life to be enjoyed. After a few minutes, I started to see the recovery, the wounds healing. I think the credit is in the wolf genes. She suddenly opened her eyes, looked at me, and started to cry.

“Hi, it’s okay, you’re safe, don’t cry. How are you feeling? Is there any pain anywhere?” I asked as I put my hand over hers, but she just cried more, and after a few minutes, she hugged me.

“It’s okay. The worst is over. It’s going to be okay,” I tried to comfort her.

“My parents… they’re dead… all dead… I don’t have anyone,” she said, red-faced from crying.

“What’s your name?” I asked her

“Jasmine, my name is Jasmine, Katherine,” she said, looking at my badge. Only then did I realize I hadn’t told her my name.

“Jasmine! What a beautiful name! I’m sure your parents wouldn’t want to see you like that. I’ll call Karl from the pack’s registration system, and he’ll accompany you with everything you need. The Diamond Claw is a big pack and with many opportunities.”

I continued talking to her about the pack until she calmed down more, then I continued with the other patients. I am happy that they showed signs of improvement after all the inspections.

“Katie, tell me the secret?” Chloe asked as I handed her some reports.

“What secret? What are you talking about?” It’s such a secret that even I don’t know.

“The letter B room was the one that had the patients in the most serious condition. What did you do to not only make them better but also some patients were even discharged,” Chloe asked me as she stared at me.

“I just took care of them like anyone else would,” I replied without giving much importance but happy with the result.

“I can’t believe you’re human sometimes, Katie. No offense!” She emphasized the ‘human’ as if it were an infectious disease. But I’m already used to this warm reception for being human.

Suddenly, a student from another pack named Laila showed up to deliver the reports.

“Here’s the report from L rooms, Chloe,” She said and turned to me, looking me up and down. “Hi, Katie. Have you delivered your reports yet? With so many patients with such severe injuries, you must not be finished yet, right?”

“Yes, I did it, Laila. Fortunately, they are much better,” I said, getting ready to leave.

“Chloe, you won’t believe this, I found my mate, finally! I’m so happy I finally found him. My biggest fear was taking as long as the Alpha to have a mate, he’s been waiting 13 years, although he doesn’t even care about his future mate. What a waste! I would love to be his mate. That man looks like a Greek god,” Laila went on and on without giving Chloe a chance to interrupt.

“I wouldn’t like a mate like that,” Chloe approaches, whispering as if she were telling a secret that cannot be spoken out loud. “He’s cruel and murderous! He only thinks about conquering territory and doesn’t care about anyone! Do you know what the people in the packhouse say? That he turns into a beast every full moon and kills without a second thought. Omegas always found blood around the packhouse every month, like murdering someone is a sport for him!” Chloe lowered her voice even more so no one could hear her continuing the gossip.

I was about to leave, but seeing them talking about the Diamond Claw Alpha caught my attention. I never wanted to know about him. The truth is I never even saw him. I just know that everyone is terrified of him, and nobody wants to be around him, afraid of being the next victim of his cruelty.

Hearing Chloe and Laila talking about him just made me feel relieved for not working near the packhouse. That’s one of the perks of living within the big pack, if I’m lucky, I’ll never have to cross his path.