“Mmmmnn,” Penny squirmed against the sheets of her hospital bed, stirring awake finally. “Daddy?”
John was the first person that she saw when her eyes finally adjusted to the light surrounding her.
It was morning now, nearly afternoon when she finally woke up.
“Yes, sweetheart, I’m here! Daddy’s here!”
John grabbed her hand as gently as he could and wrapped his hand around hers, his eyes warm with concern.
It was disheartening to think about what I’d have to soon do about Penny when she was well enough to be released.
The doctor came into the room. “How is our girl doing?”
“Well, since that’s your job, I was hoping you could tell us.” John stood from his chair and said to the young and accomplished woman.
Doctor Cara was the best healer that Shadow Veil had to offer. She wasn’t sensitive either. So, when John approached a bit more snippily than he should have, she hardly reacted to it.
“With a small chuckle, she shrugged. “Well,” she said, looking at her charts, “According to these tests, she’s doing very well. Young Penny, here has responded remarkably well to the treatment. She responded well to the blood transfusion. Over all, she’s doing pretty well.”
“And how long before she’s on her feet again?” asked John.
“Well, considering the damage caused, I couldn’t advise in good conscience that you do anything besides rest for a bit. You took well to the transfusion, and your healing factor has responded well to it, but…you’re still at risk. I mean, your body took a substantial amount of damage. The veins in your heart, and your heart in general. It’s still weak, Penelope. So, it’s best that you take a beat for a bit, and heal.”
“I don’t…know if I can.” Penny murmured.
We all knew why she felt that way, but no one said anything. We were curious as to what her response would be.
“Why is that, dear?” asked John.
“Well, because, I-” her eyes widened when she realized that Toran and me were in the room as well. “Alpha…Be-beta Toran. I’m glad to see you.”
“We’re glad to see you too, Penny, and in better shape.” It was hard to display a smile, as I realized how insincere it was.
Part of me, and a huge part of Aziz was very upset about the news that we had come across in the role that Penny and Agnes played in Valene’s initial death. My wolf was very traditional, in that regardless of age, if one knowingly committed a horrific crime they should receive the punishment to match.
Admittedly, I felt the same.
However…the human side of me could not simply erase the fact that Penny was, still a kid.
“Her actions did not display that of a child, Alastair.” said Aziz in the back of my thoughts. “She knowing took a life. What is worse, is the life that she took was our daughter. She must be made to pay for such transgressions. Even John must realize this.”
“Does not change the facts, Aziz. Penny is his daughter, the only blood that he has left.”
Aziz was irritated by my reason but too understood it to be true. Didn’t make things much easier, however. In fact, it only succeeded in making things even more difficult to sort out.
“Why, Penny?” asked John finally. “Why can’t you stay in bed?”
“Daddy, things have happened and I…I just don’t know that I am safe anymore.”
“Then tell me…why, so that I can help you.” There was desperation in John’s voice as he begged his daughter to come out with the truth.
“Penny,” I stepped forward. I had grown impatient of her dawdling but I made sure not to display such emotions. John watched me with concern. “We need to know what happened. So that we can get to the bottom of this. Who did this to you?”
This was a test. I needed to see how lenient I should be based on what she’d say next. Despite her transgressions, I had hopes that Penny would do the right thing. That she would say the right thing.
“I was attacked. It was dark but…well…”
“Well, what?” John pressed.
“It was difficult to see.”
First lie.
Our eyes were made for the dark. Everyone in this room knew that, but of course, Penny wasn’t the brightest bulb in the bunch.
No one said anything, though. Not even John, but I could see the disappointment in his eyes from her lie.
“But I have a feeling that I know…” she began to sniffle, tears running from her eyes. “Who did this to me. As well…as why it happened to me.”
Maybe she would tell the truth after all. Suddenly, I was hopeful.
“You do?” John asked. I watched as his eyes began to mist and sadness fell across his face.
I didn’t envy his position. When she nodded, John closed his eyes, shaking his head as he seemed to ready himself for the worst of the news that she was about to confess to him.
“What happened, Penny, sweetheart?” he asked.
“She was angry with me,” she wept. “And rightfully so, after what I had done to her. She deserved to be angry. I…I can’t believe I did that to her. I betrayed her trust. I betrayed our friendship.”
“Penny, talk to me.” John pressed, slightly confused at this point. I had assumed that she was talking about what she had done to Harlyn by taking Valene away from her.”
“Harlyn,” she finally said. “I hurt her.”
She was far more broken over hurting Harlyn than she was over killing Valene. I should have expected as much. Penny was never a fan of Val.
“What did you do, Penny?”
She looked at her father, as he wiped the tears away from her eyes. He caressed Penny’s gingerly as he waited for her to speak again.
“I…everyone knows what I’ve done. Everyone has been talking about it!”
Huh?
“I deserted her that night! Left her to those horrible rogue creatures! She almost died! And…and she’s been angry with me ever since.”
Oh no.
“It’s because I knew that she was angry with me. Because I knew that we needed to talk about what happened that night that I followed her into the woods.”
She wasn’t going to confess.
John dropped his hand from her cheek, and his eyes fell to the ground, tears running down his cheeks as he realized what this meant, no doubt.
“I-I am so sorry, alpha. I…I apologized profusely! I really was sorry-am sorry for what I did, and I…I thought that sorry was good enough. It…it was good enough for.” She coughed a bit and John forced her to drink some water before she continued. “I didn’t know that…that Valene was spying on us the whole time. She…she said that the apology wasn’t good enough, and…and….” she began to cry.
John…John couldn’t seem to take it anymore. “Enough, Pen…” he said in resignation but she kept trying to plead her case. So, he said again, “Enough.” She kept on, and that was when he finally snapped. “I said enough!” he snarled.angrily.
Penny winced, surprised by her father’s sudden aggression. When he shot out of his chair and turned his back on her, she became even more afraid.
“D-daddy, what’s…what’s wrong.”
He turned to face her again. “You’re lying to me, Penny.”
“What? I..no, no I-”
“You’re lying. How could-”
“Daddy, I don’t-that’s the truth! I swear, it is! I-”
John looked at me, and at this point I knew that he wanted me to take over. He no longer seemed to have the stomach for this conversation.
“Penny, we know what happened. And I also…know who did this to you, and it wasn’t Valene.”
John stared at me suspiciously. “Who did this, Alastair. Who did this to her.”
“Me.”
Harlyn stepped into the room without an ounce of remorse as she stared into the eyes of who was once her best friend.
“Ha-Harlyn,” Penny shakily said.
“Yeah, me,” she said as Vale entered the room as well. “I see you’re still lying. Guess we have a lot