The task left little room for refusal. The fastest option was clearly the river: wash the vegetables, then return once everything was ready.
Normally, the elderly woman would have shown deference to the two Alphas, perhaps even fear, and would never have dared assign them tasks so casually. But after Zion approached her for help, and after witnessing the lighthearted banter between the two, she understood.
They weren't acting as Alphas right now. They were simply werewolves worried about their mate.
Because of that, the hierarchy no longer mattered to her. She knew that if the two of them were left standing idle, their thoughts would spiral, their emotions would fester, and their aggression would inevitably break through their restraint again. And if that happened, another fight was bound to erupt, one that would put the entire temporary settlement on edge.
