Chapter 148: The Orphanage

Winnie held Maya close as they made their way to the orphanage. More people than she could count shouted out greetings to Winnie as they walked through the town.

Eventually, they got to the edge of the town. At the slight hill overlooking the beach, there stood the orphanage surrounded by a wooden fence.

Maya slowed as a wave of nostalgia hit her like a tsunami. Without a doubt, this was the building where she had spent her earliest years. The wooden structure looked smaller than she remembered and memories of running through the halls coursed through her mind.

The orphanage was better kept than she remembered and the fence was a new addition. She turned around as the geography she remembered fell into place.

"If this is the orphanage," she mumbled, alerting Winnie, who had tensed up since the building appeared in their view.

"Yes?" She frowned.

"Then is the main house, where we came from, the abandoned building?"

"Wait, you know the huge abandoned building?" Winnie asked with wide eyes.

"Yes." It was one of the most vivid memories she had, no thanks to Alaina.

"Wow! You really grew up here. You are right. Alpha Keenan built it after he returned. He also moved most of the town further away from the beach. If you look closely, you can still see remains of destroyed houses."

"I see them," she replied, straining her eyes in the sun to get a better look around.

Wood and crumbling stone foundations peeked through the overgrown grass, marking where homes had once stood.

"The first six months were a lot of work but Verlassen is thriving better than it ever has right now. We really are grateful to Alpha Keenan."

"But the orphanage stayed here?" She asked, turning her gaze back to the wooden structure.

"Hmm. I don’t know why he left it here but it might be because the Alpha comes here often."

"He does?"

"Yes, I’ll show you why in a moment. For now," she gripped Maya’s arm tighter, "let’s get this over with."

Maya nodded, and the two women marched down the cleared path toward the fence. The closer they got, the tighter Winnie’s grip around Maya became.

She started to hear the voices of children coming from behind the fence and through the gaps in the wooden fence; she caught glimpses of them.

Winnie let go of her when they got to the gate, and she easily pulled it open with one hand. The children all stopped playing and their attention turned toward them as they walked through the wooden gates of the orphanage.

"Winnie!" Screamed the little ones at the top of their voices as they rushed toward them, slamming right into Winnie.

"You never visit us anymore," cried a young girl as she clutched Winnie’s dress tightly.

"I am sorry," she whispered in a baby voice. "I have just been so busy."

"That’s not fair," another cried.

"I am really sorry, and I missed you all so terribly."

"We missed you too, Winnie."

Winnie smiled and hugged the children, holding on to them as hard as she could. "Lily, won’t you come say hi?"

Maya lifted her head toward the direction Winnie spoke and a little girl stood on the corner. She was very young, with her curled brunette hair tied up in pigtails. She held a kitten to her chest as she stood alone in the empty space.

She pouted as Winnie spoke, then turned to Maya. "Who is that?"

"Yes," the rest of the children said in unison. "Who is that? We have never seen her before."

"This," Winnie announced with a bright smile as the children around her legs stepped away to get a better look, "is my friend, Maya."

"Maya," the children whispered and looked at each other.

"Is she from the town?"

"Better—she is Alpha Keenan’s mate."

"The bad one?" Another child asked.

"Bad?" Winnie asked and ruffled the hair of the boy who spoke. "No friend of mine is bad." She grinned.

"But," he pressed, "everyone says—"

"You should know better than to listen to rumors."

"Are you bad?" Lily asked.

Maya’s eyes widened as the child appeared in front of her. She was clutching the cat tighter than she needed to, but the kitten didn’t protest—rather, it seemed to like being held.

"No," she replied with what she hoped was a warm smile.

Lily turned around and faced the rest of the children. "She said she isn’t bad."

Winnie chuckled. "I don’t think that’s how it works but she is. Maya, could you stay with the children while I go see him?"

"You don’t need me to come with you?" She asked with wide eyes. She was a little self-conscious around them. She had never been around children.

"I’ll be fine," she smiled.

Maya nodded. There was a certain confidence in her smile. If Winnie felt like she could handle this alone, she didn’t want to get in her way.

"Okay," she nodded.

"Thank you," she replied and started toward the door of the orphanage.

She didn’t look back as she walked to the door and shut it. Maya felt cold as she turned to look at the children, who were staring at her with wide eyes.

"You’re Lily, right?" She asked awkwardly.

The young girl, who had already stepped away from Maya, shook her head. "Don’t lie," one of the children yelled.

"I am not lying," she whispered. "I didn’t say anything."

"Her name is Lily!" Yelled the boy who had called her "the bad one."

"What’s your name?" She asked him, bending forward slightly.

He blushed as she leaned toward him and stepped away. "I am not telling."

"Tim!" Lily yelled, smiling deviously.

"Don’t tell her!" He yelled at Lily.

"You told her mine," she replied with a satisfied look. "He is a troublemaker, Maya. He bothers everyone."

"Is that so?" Maya asked, keeping her face as serious as she could.

"I am not a troublemaker," Tim yelled. He looked torn from Lily to Maya.

"You are!" She yelled, clutching the kitten. "You hurt Kitten."

"It was a mistake. I didn’t see it."

"Hmph," Lily muttered and turned her gaze away from him.

"Is the kitten injured?" She asked.

"Yes," she replied.

"May I see?" She asked.

Lily stared at her suspiciously before she reluctantly said, "Okay."

She pulled the kitten away from her chest and handed it to Maya. It was lighter than she imagined. "Where is it hurt?"

"The back paw," Tim replied. "It’s not that serious. I stepped on it by mistake. I didn’t see it on time." The young boy was apologetic as he spoke. He seemed hurt that he was being accused.

Maya gently checked the back paws, applying a little pressure but the kitten didn’t fuss, it seemed more disoriented by the change.

She handed the kitten back to Lily, not wanting to distress it. "I think it’s fine. What’s its name?"

"Kitten," she said with pride.

Maya laughed. "That’s just the name of a baby cat."

"We just found it," another child said.

"Oh, would you like me to give it a name?" She asked with a smile.

"Yes. It’s a girl kitten," Lily said.

"You don’t know that," Tim replied.

"I am sure it’s a girl," she replied.

"Very well. What about Miss Mae?"