***
"Dinah." Sophie looked at the female lycan who was so close to tears. "What's wrong? I didn't think that you would cry this much… What seems to be the problem?"
Dinah shook her head and blinked back the tears. She was looking at the teacup in Sophie's hands and felt her throat was extremely dry. "I… I just missed my brother, that's all."
Sophie's eyes widened and this was the first time that she actually heard about Dinah having any siblings. It seemed like the lycans were all great at keeping secrets to themselves.
"You have a brother? Why didn't you tell me? Is he not here with us?"
"The situation never came up for me to talk about myself, Luna," Dinah explained. "It is irrelevant if I were to speak of it. I am only here to serve the pack and accomplish its goals."
Sophie shook her head. "Nonsense. I am assuming that he is not here with us in Livstad?"
Dinah smiled and shook her head. "No. My brother cannot come here even if he actually wanted to come. He is too injured to participate in the war and according to pack standards he is useless."
"That's a harsh assessment…" Sophie frowned.
"For a people that prides itself in strength and physical prowess, we can actually be quite… cruel to those who are weaker than us," Dinah explained. "My brother used to be a part of those who help the Alpha, he is strong, clever, and brave."
Sophie bit her lip. "But then he was injured? Were his injuries enough that a Lycan's regenerative abilities didn't suffice?"
Dinah smiled and yet her lips were pale white. "He had been captured by the humans before, they broke his legs and poured boiling liquid metal onto them continuously to reveal the whereabouts of Blood River Pack…"
Sophie felt her blood run cold. "What? I'm sorry, is he…? How did he survive?"
"The Alpha returned into the soldier's camp and saved Desmond while also killing all the humans there." Dinah coldly said. "It is good that they left no survivors there. All of them are meant to die."
Sophie bit her lip and nodded. "I… I can't believe that they could be that cruel."
Dinah shook her head. "That is why I initially didn't like you since you reminded me of everything that they've done."
"I'm sorry, Dinah." Sophie apologized.
"Sorry won't do him anything." Dinah's gaze was harsh on Sophie but then she sighed and hesitated. "It won't bring my brother's strength back at all but…"
Sophie smiled sadly and decided to open up a little. She wanted to open her heart as much as Dinah did, even if it was kind of difficult to say.
"However, not every human is like that. They've been raised to believe, brainwashed to think that you guys are monsters… I have no words to say about your brother. If I were to meet him, I would like to give him my thanks. He is brave and clever as you said."
"They said that there's a chance…" Dinah spoke softly.
"A chance?" Sophie batted her eyes and then they widened as she looked at Dinah. "Wait, you mean there is a chance that he will be healed again? How is that possible?"
Sophie was not a doctor or physician but she was familiar with what a human doctor could do. So, she was stunned that there was a chance for Dinah's brother to be healed from his immense injuries.
Wait… was Dinah referring to magical healing?
That was immensely rare and difficult to obtain.
Dinah swallowed hard and kicked at the wooden leg of her chair. She looked entirely uncomfortable but hopeful. "The witches… they can be expert healers. I believe they can heal my brother for a price."
"A price?" Sophie thought long and hard and then came to a conclusion. Since Dinah was an ordinary member of the pack, she thought that it was Dinah approaching her to ask for help.
As far as Sophie could see from lycan societies, there was no sense of ownership and private property from lycans because everything seemed to be placed for the benefit of the pack as a whole. The Alpha and Luna were the ones responsible to manage everything for the pack.
She started to think about how she could help Dinah and her brother. If the price was high, she could talk to her husband about this and, hopefully, Leland would agree to help.
Dinah was silent and closed her eyes. "Yes. A price."
"Then I think I can help you out with that." Sophie smiled. "If you are in need of money, then I think I can talk to Leland. His wealth is technically mine and I believe that he would be more than happy to help someone from his pack."
Dinah's eyes pricked with tears again. "I—"
"Are you going to cry again? Dinah, you don't have to cry like someone's attending a funeral," Sophie chuckled and finally raised the teacup to her lips and then looked down at the liquid.
She said, "Hmm, the tea seems to have gotten a bit cold now. I am sorry, I should have drunk this immediately after you poured it for me. You've made me a nice pot of tea. Let's not waste it."
Dinah's eyes widened and she couldn't take it anymore.
What kind of lycan would she be if she let her Luna drink from that cup? She started to reach out for the cup and looked directly into Sophie's eyes to plead with her. "Then let us throw that out, Luna. Cold tea does not taste good. Let me prepare you a new pot instead. A fresh one."
Sophie shook her head and leaned away from Dinah to avoid the insistent lycan. Was Dinah really avoiding the topic about her family and trying to distract her with tea?
What was it with lycans who all insisted on being strong and never letting their guards down around other people?
There was nothing wrong with being vulnerable around friends and families. Sophie was glad that Dinah seemed to trust her and start to confide in her.
The Luna shook her head. "No. How could I ask you to get up and do that? Tell me more about your brother or the fee for the witches."
"Luna please, give me that cup!" Dinah's voice was strained as she wanted to get out of this room without confessing anything. She didn't want to ruin her reputation by saying, 'Luna, please give me the cup because it's poisoned'.
How could she do that?!
However, it was Dinah's moment of hesitation and her inability to spit out the truth that made Sophie drink from the cup. She looked at Dinah and took a delicate sip from her cup and saw the look of horror plastered on Dinah's face.
Sophie blinked and said, "What? The tea doesn't taste so—"
Dinah watched in horror as Sophie's eyes rolled back from their sockets and she lost her balance on the chair. The teacup fell from her hand and shattered into the floor as Dinah barely caught the Luna.
"Luna...! LUNA!!!" Dinah's tears leaked out from her eyes as she gently placed her on the bed and before she knew it, she started to head out of the room to call for their lycan healers.
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