Chapter 4: Loyalty
Elizabeth had woken up sore, but well rested. Her room had been made to her perfect living conditions, and after a healthy breakfast of fish, eggs and bagels. With lots of coffee on the side, she packed a hearty lunch, and was armed for another day.
She had only ended up using two of her five rooms at the Healer’s Rooms yesterday, so she actually had less chore work this morning. She only had to clean those two rooms, replace their linen and get them fresh and ready for the day.
However, since she hadn’t managed to clean her own healer room, which worked as her personal office and break room all in one, she would clean that today and sort through whatever she could find there.
It wasn’t any less than yesterday, and she expected she would be just as exhausted, but she was excited. She could tell she was making progress. Tomorrow, she would be done with everything, and the Healer’s rooms would operate flowingly and efficiently.
If she got done with all her work today, Elizabeth reminded herself, as she sorted through her mail and duties for the day.
Same as yesterday, but she had a plan, so she left for the healer’s rooms.
James had many, vitally important things to do as the Alpha. But today, he was determined to follow his new healer around.
This, James had reasoned with himself, was for a few various purposes. The first was to discover exactly what kind of healer she was, and more importantly, what kind of person she was. This, he told himself, was purely for the safety of the pack. This healer had to the potential to kill each and every one of them in a few days without much effort. He needed to be sure they were safe in her hands.
The second part was purely personal. He knew her from somewhere. But he couldn’t place it. He had travelled to many pack territories in his time as Alpha, though. So he could have met her anywhere.
He got the sense she was important, but he couldn’t say how. And if she truly were, she wouldn’t have been searching for a pack to join. Still, he wanted to know her better. So this morning found him, at eight in the morning, heading to the healer rooms.
Barring an emergency, where the healer could be sought out at her personal residence, the healer rooms opened at nine in the morning. So James reasoned that she would be there, at earliest, just half past eight, and he could talk to her before she got too deep into her work.
He found her outside the healer’s rooms, taking dried washing down from the line, piling it all on top of herself.
“Hey,” James called out, “Uh, hey, let me help you with that.”
He tried to take some sheets from her.
“Oh, that’s alright, I have them,” Elizabeth answered, but James started taking them anyway. “Oh, thanks, thank you.”
James piled all the bedding and towels into his arms, “Not to ask the obvious, but don’t you have a washing basket, or something?”
“Well for today, you are the washing basket,” Elizabeth laughed. “Yesterday that honor was mine, so you should be really grateful for the opportunity.”
“Then I thank you,” James answered soberly, then laughed lightly.
Elizabeth glanced to the last few stuff hanging on the line, “Mind if I pile more on you?”
“Go right ahead,” James offered.
Elizabeth darted to the other things, using her wolf speed, she gathered everything quickly, and dropped it on James.
“Where do these go?” James asked her, though she couldn’t see him behind every piece of laundry.
“These were the dirty ones of yesterday, but I put new ones on for today, so they’ll go in the cupboard,” Elizabeth led him into one of the patient rooms, and directed him to drop everything on the bed; she then proceeded to fold everything up.
James grabbed one of the towels and began folding it as well.
“Oh,” Elizabeth started. “You don’t have to do that, I got it.”
“I know I don’t,” James assured her. “I also don’t mind helping. You are the healer of the pack; everything you do here is for the good of the pack. Can’t I help with that, even in some small way?”
Elizabeth couldn’t fault him for that, and nodded her head in agreement.
“Well,” Elizabeth began, using her healer voice. It was much like her normal voice, only slightly more commanding and authoritative. “In that case, do I have work for you.”
James stood straight up, and mock saluted, “Anything you need, Ma’am.”
Elizabeth laughed, and directed him where to put the clean linen. She explained to him lots of things as she worked; how she’d arranged some things to allow for a clearer and efficient work flow. How she tried to keep the patient intermingling to a minimum, in case some of them were sick with something that could pass to another.
She explained a healer’s work, and James listened with rapt attention. He was a good worker, too. He followed everything she said to the letter, and barely questioned anything. If he ever did, it was just to know the reasons behind everything.
Elizabeth wished she could have him here every day, since it made the workload so much easier. He was also kind, and handsome to look at.
She’d immediately felt guilty the moment she’d thought it. She had promised her fiancé loyalty. Even if he had taken more than three years already to come back to her, she had to believe that he would keep true to his promise, and she had to keep true to hers.
So she tried to give her instructions with more authority and less laughter. She tried not to brush up against him as they labelled bottles and sorted through the medicines she had and the ones she didn’t that she would definitely need.
It was hard, though. James was so easy to be around; he was so easy to laugh with. But she remained firm on her promises.
It was easier once her patients started coming in. James stayed in her private healer rooms, sorting through the medicines and stock they had, and making lists for her of things she would request for the clinic, while she saw to patients.
With his help, she’d more than doubled the work she’d meant to do today. Just before her last patient came in, she made sure to thank James for everything, telling him how grateful she was for all his help. She was beyond impressed by his generosity, staying the whole day to volunteer in the clinic.
Then she went to see her last patient, promising to be back soon, and they could end the day.
“There you go,” Elizabeth said chirpily to her last patient of the day. “Good as new, and if it does bother you again, you know where to find me.”
The woman thanked her, and began to leave. At that moment, James came from the healer’s room, and the woman stopped dead in her tracks, staring at him.
Elizabeth frowned. The woman seemed confused for a minute, before she fell into a slight half bow, her right hand reaching to her left shoulder.
The woman then turned to leave.
Elizabeth recognized that sign of deference anywhere, and she turned to James.
“You’re the Alpha.” She immediately made the same sign of respect, bowing her head slightly deeper, and holding her place for a moment longer than the woman did.
“I didn’t realize,” she murmured.
She had known her Alpha’s name was James too, but the Pack was huge, and she hadn’t expected him to be here, helping her sort through her dusty cabinets and fold laundry. She hadn’t even once considered that it was him, or she would have shown much more respect that she had.
She burnt with embarrassment as the day’s events flowed through her memory in high definition.
“I should have told you,” James admitted. “But I’m glad I didn’t. I learnt a lot today, and I don’t think you would have been as free around me if you had known who I was.”
No, of course not. Elizabeth rebuked herself. What did he mean? What was he going to do now? Had he seen something he didn’t like?
Seeing that Elizabeth didn’t speak, James started to move to the door.
“Thank you for today, for letting me help you,” James began. “I’ll leave you to finish off for the day, and I wanted to say,” James paused, and waiting till she looked at him to continue. “Thank you for coming to Moirai. We are blessed by the Moon herself to have you.”