The Messenger( Iva) novel Chapter 47

Lycans-1

The days began to blur together.

+25 Points

Wake up in a narrow hostel bed with springs that dug into her back. Pull on worn clothes still faintly smelling of detergent and steam. Tie her hair up tight. Walk through streets that were slowly becoming familiar. Push through the heavy back door of the restaurant.

Work.

Keep your head down.

Do your job.

Survive.

The kitchen no longer shocked her system the way it had on the first day, but that didn’t make it easier. Heat still clung to her skin. The noise still pressed against her skull. The piles of dirty pans still seemed endless. Her hands were constantly raw now, fingers wrapped in cheap bandages she replaced daily.

Agonising.

Hard.

Relentless.

But she endured. Avalon helped her with the healing… but doing it too often would attract attention of the humans around her, so she kept it to the minimum.

For the people around her, this was just a job. A paycheck. A temporary inconvenience.

For Iva, it was everything.

It was the thin line between eating and starving.

Between having a roof over her head or sleeping outside.

Between staying free or being forced back into a life she had escaped with blood and fear in her throat.

No one here knew that.

They didn’t know she had crossed borders under moonlight.

They didn’t know she had severed a mate bond and run from an entire pack.

They didn’t know that each plate she scrubbed was another hour she bought for herself.

And slowly, something shifted.

After a few days, the novelty of her presence wore off.

The waiters stopped hovering near her sink. The snide comments came less often. The laughter faded when they realized she would not snap back, would not cry, would not rise to their bait.

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< Lycans-1

She worked.

She listened.

She endured.

And boredom replaced cruelty. And she was grateful for it.

+25 Points

By the end of her fifth shift, she could move through the chaos without flinching. She anticipated stacks before they landed. She learned which pans needed soaking and which needed brute force. Her muscles adapted, aching less, moving more efficiently.

Avalon watched quietly, pride humming beneath her words. You are learning how to stay.

At the end of the week, when the kitchen finally quieted and the last pan slid into its place with a dull metallic clang, Iva wiped her hands on her apron and exhaled.

“Done.”

As she reached for her bag, Sergio appeared at her side.

“Iva,” he said. “Come with me.”

Her body tensed instantly.

A

A million thoughts slammed into her mind. Did I mess up? Break something? Say something wrong? Is this

it?

Avalon stirred, alert but calm.

Sergio seemed to sense it. He paused, then added in a quieter tone only for her ears, “Relax, little wolf. I mean no harm.”

She followed him down a narrow corridor into a small office at the back. The space smelled faintly of coffee and paper. He gestured toward a chair.

“Sit.”

She did.

He opened a drawer, pulled out an envelope, and slid it across the desk toward her.

Iva stared at it, confused.

Sergio chuckled softly. “Your weekly pay.”

Her breath caught.

Slowly, as if afraid it might vanish, she picked it up. Her fingers tightened around it, and inside her chest something burst open.

My first money.

Inside, she was screaming. Laughing. Crying.

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