Wina wasn't a werewolf, she was an angel.

That small part of me that was afraid of another rejection vanished as soon as I saw her kind smile, a smile that reminded me of my mother.

Wina offered me a job as a kitchen assistant to keep me from coming into contact with the rest of the pack members. According to her, it would be the best for me.

And she didn't stop there. After asking me questions about the cabin they gave us, she offered me a room so I could live there with Faustina until we found a better place.

The move, if it could be called that, didn't take us much effort. Between the two of us we only had two small backpacks filled mostly with old clothes, and the blankets that Almec gave us. We didn't need more than one trip to carry all our belongings.

"I hope you like your new home," Wina said, opening the door.

Faustina entered first, she didn't put even a minimum of effort into controlling her curiosity.

"It is perfectly splendid," she shouted from inside.

That was one of her favorite phrases, since she heard it from an old woman during our trip she didn't stop using it.

"I feel honored to receive such a review. With your permission," Wina said before getting inside.

"You may enter." Apparently Faustina was in the mood to act elegant. "What happened to your face?"

And elegance went down the toilet.

"Faustina Delia Flores, you can't ask those kinds of questions." I went inside the room, my gaze focused on my sister.

"Why?" she asked, her small nose wrinkled, hiding some of her freckles.

"Because it's rude."

"It's okay, I don't mind the question," Wina defended her. "I was in a fire, I managed to survive but half my face was burned."

"Were you afraid?" Faustina asked; she always had new questions to ask.

"Very much," the innkeeper whispered as if she was telling her a secret.

Faustina took her hand, "It's okay, Valen says that everyone is afraid sometimes. That doesn't mean you're not brave."

"Your sister is very wise and you are very kind." Wina said as Faustina started to walk around the space, then she got closer to me. "I'm glad she liked the room, I hope you like it too."

"I do. Thanks for all the help, you didn't have to do all this for us."

"Anyone important to Almec is important to me, besides I can't allow two such sweet young people to live in a cabin that's about to fall apart. It's dangerous and I would be worried all the time," said Wina. "Well, I have a job to do, I'll let you settle down, you can start working today at eleven if you want. Don't hesitate to ask me if you need anything."

Important for Almec. Why did she say that? He was still a mystery to me, the kind of enigma that was running around in my head demanding that I solve it. I had so many questions about him that I wanted to answer, maybe Wina could help me with that later.

"I want the bed by the window," said Faustina, interrupting my thoughts. "Can I watch TV, porfis?"

"Let's watch something together, your choice." I sat next to her.

To no one's surprise, Faustina selected a Barbie movie. We used to watch them with our grandmother every weekend, I could repeat the dialogues from memory if I wanted.

We stayed that way, connected to our past, until it was time to go to work. The most complicated part was convincing Faustina to stay in the room while I went to do my work, so complicated that I couldn't win.

"I hope you don't mind Faustina keeping us company," I said to Wina as soon as we entered the kitchen.

The woman stopped peeling potatoes to look at us. "Of course I don't mind, can you continue what I was doing while I go get an apron and hat for our visitor? Yours are on the rack next to the refrigerator."

"I've got it covered," I replied to her.

"Faustina, come with me, we can find it faster together."

I put on my apron while I watched my sister out of the corner of my eye.

Wina guided Faustina toward the cabinet in the corner of the kitchen. I stopped looking at them and went to the counter to do my job.

"She has a lot to say, I like it," Wina commented after helping Faustina put on her uniform.

"Once she gains confidence it is almost impossible to silence her." I finished peeling the potatoes. "During our trip I was never bored thanks to her company."

"What is that thing?" my sister asked. "Why are there so many ovens? Why is the counter so long? Can I cook too?"

"One question at a time, princesa," I said.

With all the patience in the world Wina answered all of Faustina's questions while we cooked. In the end, she gave her cookie dough and some cutters so Faustina wouldn't get bored and promised her that she could keep the cookies after cooking them.

Lunchtime arrived and the dining room began to fill up. Not all of them were guests of the inn, the majority were inhabitants who wanted to eat one of the two menus of the day.

I sat on a stool after finishing cooking. Wina and Gregory, the inn's senior cook, continued plating the food as the waitresses passed out the orders.

"So, what was your first experience in the kitchen like?" Gregory asked, washing his hands.

"Exhausting, are there always so many customers?" I asked.

Wina handed a plate to the waitress through the serving hatch. "Yes. Many come to lunch on their break from work."

"Our food is the best in the pack," Gregory said, his black eyes seeming to be shining.

"I don't doubt that," I commented.

"It's true, this is the best food I've had in a long, long time," Faustina joined the conversation. She took another bite of her fries and then held out her arms. "This long."

I laughed at my sister's demonstration and Gregory gave her ice cream as a thank you. The atmosphere inside the kitchen felt cheerful, to the point where my protective barriers lowered a little.

Unfortunately, a single comment coming from the dining room raised my walls again.

"Did you hear what happened to Kilma? Looks like the trash sisters are under the alpha's protection," someone said from the other side of the wall.

"Why would he beat up one of the greatest warriors for two useless people?" a female voice responded.

"Maybe the oldest one slept with the alpha." A laugh interrupted the conversation. "At least I give her points for having the courage to approach that beast. I'm very grateful that he doesn't leave his mansion."

"Almec should continue as before, minding his own business. He can make sure no one touches his toys but he can't stop us from speaking badly about them."

"He should do his work first, I heard that every day there's more hunters in the borders of the pack."

My hands started to shake and I glanced at Faustina to check if she had heard any part of the conversation. Thanks to Moon Goddess my sister was too focused on her dessert.

"Do you want me to kick them out for you?" Wina asked me.

"No, you're going to end up losing most of your clients if you start kicking out everyone who has a problem with me," I answered.

"He's not as bad as they say, you know?" Wina sat next to me. "He's just misunderstood."

"I have no reason to think badly about him, Almec saved us and is still helping us. I don't care about their cheap gossip."

"You're doing the right thing, some invent crazy things just to have a story that seems interesting. Besides, most of the members of this pack never appreciated our alpha's work. They just see the monster they want Almec to be."

"What do they mean when they say he doesn't leave his mansion? It's not the first time I've heard a comment like that." I lowered my gaze, not wanting to see Wina's reaction in case she was offended by my question.

She sighed. "Almec has locked himself in his mansion since the death of his father. From that day on everyone began to see him as a beast."

"Why?"

"Have you ever seen a Lycan?"

I shook my head. "There are none left to see but Almec."

"Almec has two shifts, his wolf form, and his Lycan form. In the latter he becomes a hybrid between a wolf and a person, he has a body similar to that of a wolf but stands like a human and his height is two times that of his human form. His father, the previous alpha, lost control of his Lycan form and murdered several members of the pack. There was no choice but to finish him off and after that Almec took his place."

"So people are afraid that he is like his father?"

"Exactly. And Almec's rough personality doesn't help much." Wina took off her chef's hat, letting her gray hair fall.

"And what do they mean when they talk about his work?" Once one of my questions was answered I gained more confidence to continue.

"Almec concentrates on defending the pack, he is the only one who can ensure security. Every day he patrols to get rid of the hunters who are in our territory."

"Having the power of a Lycan, wouldn't it be better for him to declare war on the hunters at once and ensure that they won't do any more damage?"

"Honestly that's something only our alpha can know, he decides what's best." Wina stood up. "Enough talk, it's time to clean up."

***

When someone tells me about forbidden and dangerous territory, the first thing that comes to my mind is a gloomy, old, gun-protected area, not a beautiful two-story mansion.

I could better understand Almec's decision to lock himself in his home; having such a beautiful place, I wouldn't want to leave it either. With a wood and brick façade, giant windows, and a large terrace, it was a spectacular sight.

The sound of my footsteps on the stone path alerted anyone nearby about my presence. I didn't care, I didn't mean to sneak around like a thief, I just wanted to have a conversation with Almec. Surely he would understand.

Would he?

As a precautionary measure I left Faustina in Wina's care. I guess that was a sign that I wasn't so convinced about my plan. To be honest the idea of making the alpha angry scared me, no matter how nice he was to us that didn't take away his authority as our leader. And after seeing his wolf in action I had no doubt that he was very dangerous.

One knock, two knocks. Nobody answered the door.

It was also not possible to see what was happening inside since the windows reflected the outside.

Maybe he went on patrol.

I hit the door one last time, harder. No one answered, but the door opened.

Curiosity got the worst of me and I found myself breaking in. Being careful not to make noise, I crossed the hall and entered the living room.

No one was in the room but I thought I saw a little fire in the fireplace. I walked past the leather sofas to approach it. There were remains of logs that were still burning, which meant that the house was not empty.

I turned around to continue my exploration.

A hand closed around my neck and pushed me against the wall. I couldn't move but the grip was gentle enough for me to breathe.

I looked up, Almec's face was millimeters from mine. I could feel his breath against my lips.

"What are you doing here, treasure? No one can come near my house without my permission."