Chapter 251: After the Storm

The storm had passed. The winds that had ripped through the pack at night had died down, leaving only a faint whisper brushing against the treetops. If not for what was left behind by the storm, one wouldn’t believe that the pack had suffered from a rainstorm that had only stopped a few hours before.

Orion stepped out of the medical facility, the air still damp around him. His breath came in quiet clouds, mingling with the lingering mist that hung low over the pack territory. The Nightshade pack members were emerging cautiously from their homes, stepping into the soft light, inspecting their surroundings. It was a rare sight to see the pack moving with such care yet obvious curiosity; the storm had been fierce after all, and people feared what they would see.

He took a deep breath and immediately noticed the first effect of the storm: water gathering. It was not catastrophic—no lakes had formed overnight—and the sturdy houses had weathered the storm without issue, but small pockets of water had accumulated in the landscape. Where snow normally blanketed everything in crystalline stillness, shallow streams had carved their paths through the soft, wet earth, reflecting the pale morning light.

Orion paused at the edge of the courtyard. A shallow pool had formed where the usual footpath wound around the central gathering space. The water shimmered, catching the muted sunlight and giving the impression of a fragile mirror spread across the ground. He frowned.

The pack members were out, moving steadily from house to house. Some were inspecting roofs, brushing snow and debris off tiles; others were shoveling minor drifts of snow-rain slush to prevent further pooling. A few children, brave and curious, had ventured outside to play in the shallow puddles, their laughter echoing faintly over the wet earth.

Orion just shook his head at the kids. It was only a matter of time before the parents would call the children indoors, requesting they stop playing in the snow lest they catch a cold.

Orion moved through the courtyard, watching carefully. Every so often, he bent to inspect the water collecting near low areas, mentally noting where it might become a problem if it froze overnight. Snow, rain, and wind had collided in the previous night, leaving the terrain unstable in small ways that would require constant attention for the next few days.

Once he satisfied himself that nothing was immediately dangerous, he made his way home.

Immediately he entered, he was hit with the scent of Sophia. He chuckled because Brynhild was right after all; he never even bothered to mask her scent at all. He wore it like it was his own personal perfume, and no one in the pack had even noticed. For people who took gossip as their jobs, they were doing a bad job at it.

Orion did not waste time. He quickly changed out of his wet clothes, heated water, and had his bath before changing into dry clothes.

Once he was done with the day’s work, he would go back to the medical facility to check on Sophia. Although, he was sure that before he was done with work, she would have woken up. Marta said it was just a fever, after all.

Once he was done, he walked out of his home, but this time, he locked his door because he didn’t want anyone to see or even get a whiff of Sophia’s scent in his home. Actually, he just didn’t want anyone to walk into his home.

There were various questions he was going to ask Sophia when she woke up. One: if she actually wanted to keep their relationship a secret. He should have asked for her opinion from the beginning. She did not seem to mind when he brought up the suggestion, but what if she minded now?

And also, he needed to know what happened. This wasn’t the first time Sophia was having a dream like this. The first time, she had told him she saw Zena in her dream, and he had chalked it up to déjà vu, the mind playing tricks—but maybe that wasn’t the case after all.

Orion sighed. Those were all questions for later, though—later, when she woke up.

By the time Orion stepped out, he was fully in work mode. Despite sturdy construction, the homes and public areas of the pack’s territory had been tested. Roofs needed checking for shifted tiles, chimneys required clearing, and minor snow-rain slush had to be shoveled from walkways before it froze into hazardous patches. Orion moved through the pack compound like the leader he was.

He worked alongside Garrett, Daniel, Mary, Caspian, and Madam Tyler, since they were the only ones available.

He wasn’t going to disturb Lysander, especially after Brynhild had just given birth; he had disturbed them enough already.

But there was one person he was going to disturb later... Eldric.

The man had escaped work for far too long without Orion saying a thing. It was like it stopped.

Orion’s gaze drifted toward the shallow streams that had formed along the paths. A few members were diverting water with temporary channels of snow and soil, ensuring that it did not accumulate near the foundations of houses. Snow here usually absorbed moisture slowly, but the heavy rain had pushed the soil’s absorption limits.

It was meticulous work—detail-heavy and exhausting. Even minor miscalculations could lead to icy patches or waterlogged pathways.

As he moved, whispers began to drift through the pack. Orion caught fragments of conversations, pieces of news that spread faster than the streams:

"Did you hear? Brynhild has given birth!"

"She gave birth in the middle of the storm!"

"Oh, I’m sure the baby will be as strong as Brynhild!"

"Right?"

Orion shook his head when he heard the gossip. He wasn’t even surprised that news about Brynhild giving birth had traveled through the pack. He had kind of expected that, after all. And at least they were happy for Brynhild.

By midday, Orion had inspected every house, spoken with every team responsible for drainage, roof checks, and public paths, and issued further instructions where he deemed necessary.

"I think we’ve gotten everything under control," Daniel informed him when the elders met with each other again.

"Yes, I think so too," Orion told him. 𝒇𝒓𝙚𝒆𝔀𝓮𝓫𝒏𝓸𝙫𝓮𝓵.𝓬𝙤𝙢

Caspian, Daniel, and Madam Tyler exchanged a look, and Orion frowned. He knew they wanted to say something to him.

"What is it?" he asked them.

Mary just stared with a frown on her face.

Caspian cleared his throat. "You know... I heard Brynhild has given birth."

"Okay?" Orion asked suspiciously.

"So... we were wondering..." Madam Tyler said, but then pushed Daniel to the front.

The man sighed, then asked Orion, "We were wondering when you were going to get married and perhaps have a child of your own?"