CHAPTER TWO HUNDRED & THIRTY
Talia’s POV
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Days went by and I adjusted to my new normal. After breakfast with Nolan that morning, he would go to the training grounds to train the warriors, and Della, Marco, and I went to the border to check the progress of the wall.
It had been a week since construction started, and we were making good progress. The wall was not finished, but it was already impossible to miss. The wall was much higher than it was only a few days ago.
Walden was observing the construction. Warriors moved in organized lines as they hauled supplies from trucks and stacked materials where they were needed. Villagers carried lighter loads and worked in smaller groups. When Walden noticed us, he began walking towards us.
“Good morning, Luna,” Walden greeted respectfully. “Beta Marco. Beta Della.”
“Good morning, Walden,” I replied.
“Checking progress, again?” Walden asked.
Marco nodded to him. “Yes, we want to make sure you’re fully supported out here.”
“How are the warrior shifts going?” I asked. Half of the warriors being assigned to wall construction meant fewer warriors training under Nolan each day. I wanted to know if that gap was causing resentment or weakness.
Walden nodded once. “I had to work out a few kinks in your plan to rotate warriors with Alpha Nolan, but so far it has been
working.”
“That is good,” I said.
“Honestly, the warriors are fighting with each other to work on the wall,” Walden added.
Della gave a short laugh. “Fighting?”
“They want to be here instead of training with Alpha Nolan,” Walden explained with a chuckle.
I looked at the warriors working on the wall. This was simpler work compared to dealing with Alpha Nolan. I’ve heard Nolan had created a more rigorous training schedule in response to my kidnapping.
Marco chuckled and said, “That sounds accurate. Alpha is a stickler when it comes to training. He’ll make you do something over and over until he approves.”
Della scoffed. “They act like he is going to bite their heads off for missing a step.”
“He might,” I said, and that made Marco laugh.
“They are only prolonging the inevitable. The warriors will have to train. There is no escaping it,” Walden added. “But for the time being, we are getting too many volunteers everyday.”
That surprised me. “Too many?”
“Yes. We have a surplus list every morning. People keep registering for construction shifts and it’s not just warriors,” Walden said.
“Why?” Della asked. “Weren’t they against it before?”
“Because they want to help and feel the urgency now. Now that everyone knows that Mad Rogues are a real threat, everyone is pitching in to get this wall up as soon as possible,” Walden replied. “Today there are even more people registered finished organizing them before you arrived.”
He pointed toward a group of warriors standing off to the side. Some were already in armor. A few shifted their weight like they
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were impatient to leave.
“That group is being sent back to the training grounds,” Walden said.
I scanned the group and that’s when I saw him.
One of the warriors stood among them like he belonged there. His armor fit him the same way it always had, like it was part of him and not something he wore. He was speaking to a warrior beside him, and then he looked directly at me.
For a second, everything in my body locked up. The memories came flooding back. I remember how he discarded me, how he attempted to force his mark on me, and how I had him gagged to bring him to justice in Shadowclaw.
‘Is that Jason?’ I thought. 1
“What’s wrong?” Della asked, causing me to jump. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.
I forced myself to turn away and look at Della. I cleared my throat and gave Della a weak smile. “It’s nothing,” I said too quickly.
I did not give Della an opportunity to question me and asked, “Walden, how are we looking on our timeline?”
“At this pace, I am confident the wall will be finished within a month, perhaps sooner if we continue to get a surplus of volunteers,” Walden answered confidently.
Della looked toward the wall again and then back at him. “That is great!”
“It helps that the villagers are cooperating,” Walden replied. “They want the wall too. It is definitely unifying the pack more.”
“You’ve handled this well, Walden,” I complimented.
Walden dipped his head to me. “I am just doing my job.”
“Don’t downplay your achievements, Walden,” Marco lightly teased. “This would not have gone as smoothly without your leadership.
“Thank you, Beta.”
Marco glanced toward a cluster of workers struggling to reposition a heavy section of material. “Come on. Let’s go help with that.” Walden nodded and followed Marco.
Della stayed with me. We began walking along the length of the wall while staying out of the way of the work crews. I watched my footing as the ground was uneven. Della was talking about something, but I wasn’t focused. I kept thinking about that
warrior.
Della waited until we were far enough away so that no one could overhear us easily. “What is wrong?”
“It was nothing really,” I repeated.
Della stopped walking. “Don’t lie. I saw that look. You looked scared.”
I kept moving for another few steps before I finally stopped. Della walked back up to me and said, “Tell me what it is. I am your Beta and your friend. I’ll protect you whatever it is.”
There was no point in lying to her. Della wasn’t about to let this go or worse she’d get Nolan involved immediately
“The profile of that warrior,” I whispered, “it looked too much like Jason.”
“What?” Della’s face darkened.
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