by A Lonergan
Granny’s chuckle echoed down the hall. “Valentina don’t give the Alpha a hard time. We need him on our side here.”
Valentina sized me up. Her eyes went from the top of my head to the bottoms of my feet. “Someone should give him a hard time every once in a while. He’s too cocky.”
Granny snorted. “Let the poor man through.”
Valentina shrugged.
I ran my hands down my face. “All these sassy women around here.”
Valentina closed the door behind me. “Apparently it gets worse as we age.”
A breathy laugh caught in my throat. Granny stood next to the stove where a caldron was sitting. Black bubbling goop sat inside of it. The worst part? It had absolutely no smell. Which to most would be a good thing but with witches? It was very bad. It meant they were masking the magic happening. She didn’t want me to smell the power brewing inside of her cottage.
“I’m teaching Valentina about potions.”
“You don’t teach the other kids?” I asked. I could smell Carden but he was nowhere to be seen.
Granny shook her head. “There is no point. Many of those kids will go back to their covens and they will be taught new things. Valentina might not have another coven to go to.”
My back straightened. “What are we going to do about that?”
Granny’s mouth twitched as she chewed on her cheek. “I have considered adopting her.”
I raised an eyebrow. “Do you think she would fit in here?”
Granny clucked her tongue from the roof of her mouth. “I’m not sure but it’s better than nothing. She has Soul magic.”
The color drained from my face. “The child will be hunted.”
Granny wouldn’t look me in the eyes. “She has affinities for other magic.”
“Is that why you’re teaching her about potions?” I shook my head and looked at the ceiling. “Dangerous ones at that.”
Granny planted her fists on her hips. “You don’t get to tell me what I can and cannot do. I had an agreement with the Alpha over a hundred years ago. It’s protected by blood. My place on these lands will stay until the day I draw my last breath.”
I took a step toward her. “You don’t have to worry about me telling you what to do. I am just trying to understand what is happening in this little cottage. You are one woman, but I know better by now than to underestimate one. You also have a healer here.”
Granny ground her teeth together. “Your father let me live here and never questioned what I did.”
My head ached. I pinched the bridge of my nose. “I’m not questioning you either.”
“That’s what it looks like,” Valentina said from the doorway. Two against one. Fantastic.
“If you have a healer here, like I think you do, then I want to ask him if he will help us. I know you will be on the front lines but he needs to be as well. Healers are rare. We don’t need them as much as the witches and humans do but they are valuable.”
Granny watched Valentina. “What if I told you the healer was the child?”
“I would tell you that I can smell your lies and whatever magic you have tried to use doesn’t work. You are bound to be honest by the Alpha decree that you signed in blood.” If she wanted to play this game, I would best her at it. I knew what the Alpha decree stated. I had read every single one as I had mourned my father. I wasn’t going to be surprised again.
“I’m the healer,” Carden said from the other side of the room. “I don’t want to fight in your war but I will heal your people if they need it. I know what they did to me and you cannot change my mind on this. I just want to live in peace.”
“You will not be able to do that until Damian is taken down.” How could I get him to understand?
“I will run away and hide if I have to. I will not fight in a war that isn’t mine.”
“Fine,” I shrugged. I couldn’t convince him and I wasn’t going to spend all day arguing about it. “But I will need you and if you help my people then we will make sure you are taken care of like Granny. You will always have a place with us.”
His eyes darted to Granny’s. She nodded her head. “You can trust him. He is good stock.”
Carden lifted his chin slightly. “Then I will help you.”
Chapter 24
Jade
Tracey’s parents were shocked and horrified. There hadn’t been issues with vampires for a long time. We reassured them that he had been taken care of, though we couldn’t explain how because we had no idea.
When Tracey mentioned Knox, Axel’s eyes got big. “He avenged you?”
Tracey nodded. I could have let her deal with all of this on her own but I didn’t think real friends did that sort of thing. I was going to defend her against Granny and everyone else if I had to. They would all get a piece of me. “Yes, he went super-soldier. Rafe went with him.”
“This can’t be traced back to this pack?”
“No, I am a better hunter than that and I know how to cover my scent,” Knox said from the doorway, his hair flopped over his shoulder. He held up a velvet pouch. “I don’t go anywhere without it. It masks my scent and makes me invisible.”
Axel placed his fist over his heart. “I owe you. Thank you for avenging my daughter.”
Knox’s eyes darkened. “I would do it again and again if I had to. I would fight wars for these two women.” He flashed a cocky grin. “Speaking of, Alpha business to attend to.”
Tracey watched him go with narrowed eyes. “He’s so strange.”
Vivian, Tracey’s mother, smirked. “I think you like him.”
“I think you would be insane to say such a thing,” Tracey frowned. She definitely didn’t like him but there was something else there. Something else that I desperately wanted to uncover but at the same time, I didn’t want to go near at all. I couldn’t afford to play whatever game they were tangled up in.
Axel frowned. “You would do best to stay away from him.”
Tracey’s eyes rolled to her father. “What do you mean by that?”
Axel straightened his shoulders under her stare. “Guardians aren’t bred for love and coddling. He was formed for the purpose to destroy anything and everything. His wolf was honed to be like a machine.”
Tracey sniffed. “And you think I want love?”
Vivian’s cheeks heated. “We don’t know what you want, you never talk to us.”
I pressed my back against the wall, wanting to disappear in it. This was a conversation I could do without. This was a conversation they needed to have alone, at another time, when I wasn’t around.
“We thought it would get better after Jade got back but you seem to be withdrawing altogether.” Axel’s shoulders fell with his exhale.
Tracey blinked like she couldn’t believe their words. “Do you honestly want to know what’s wrong with me?”
Vivian and Axel shared a look.
Tracey’s nostrils flared. “I am a wolf, first. I have been a wolf since I was a child. I was never enamored with anything that Lucas had going on in his magical world. I didn’t care about those things. All I cared about were my duties to the pack and the roles I had to fill. I knew it was dangerous to be as dominant as I am and I am one hundred percent okay with that. I love the danger. I like the thrill. I don’t mind being an outsider. Hell, I’m freaking mixed. I feel like an outsider everywhere I go.” She panted as her words flew out of her in a fit of rage. She threw her hands up. “Then one day I come home and my entire world is crumbling around me. I’m a witch and my brother is still alive when I spent five years mourning his loss. We have these little wise kids running around the property. We try to heal and things get worse. Ask me how I’m doing or why I’m withdrawing after all of this mess is over.” She looked her father in the eye, a challenge set in her rigid shoulders. “Don’t ever question my love life again.”
I blinked. “Love life? You have a love life?”
My question was enough to break the tension in the room. Axel chuckled as he ran his hand down the
back of his neck and Vivian gave me an appreciative nod. They didn’t know how to respond to everything she had said and I had given them an out. I had hoped I had given myself an out too.
Tracey shook her head. Her honey-colored curls bounced around her face. “I don’t have one now but maybe the time will come and all of you will mind your business.”
I smacked my lips together. “You keep spouting your business in front of me and I’m not going to be able to get out of it so easily. Plus, I don’t think you really want me out of your business anyway.”
Moisture glistened in her eyes as she looked at her parents. “I need time to find out who I am again. Just when I thought I had figured it all out, everything changed again. I feel like I’m on a rollercoaster.”
Axel kissed the top of her head while he patted me on the shoulder. “It’s different when you put it all into perspective like that.”
Vivian wrung her hands in front of her. “I need to go make sure all of the homes- remaining homes- are prepared for what’s to come. Rafe and your father won’t give many details but we need to make sure they all have shelter to get into.”
“Don’t you think it’s a little late for that? Shouldn’t they have evacuated with the elders?” Tracey’s brows pulled together as her frown deepened.
Axel shrugged. “There isn’t much we can do. They wouldn’t leave their homes even if we had somewhere to stay. Rafe took a vote from them. They would rather stay and fight.”
“Even the ones that just had babies?” Tracey’s mouth gapped open.
Vivian nodded. “This is their home, they want to protect it just as much as the rest of us.”
“They’re putting their children in danger!” I could agree with Tracey on that one.
“Your humanity is getting in the way, daughter.” Axel clenched his fists at his sides.
“My humanity makes me better.” Tracey grabbed my hand and yanked me out of her parent’s home.
After we had gotten far enough away from the house, Tracey looked at me. “Thank you for being there for me.”
All I could do was nod because I hadn’t wanted to be there at all, but not everything about friendships were good. There would be awkward and emotional times. I was there for the long haul, even if I was extremely uncomfortable.
“You could have talked to me about those things,” I whispered.
Tracey’s eyes crinkled with amusement. “Oh yeah? Just like you were gonna talk to me about what happened when you were held captive by Damian?”
I snickered. “Touché.”
“Maybe we should both just let it out over ice cream and romantic comedies.” Tracey bumped me with her shoulder.
“I think I would like that.”
“I never thought I would like therapy but maybe we can make it fun.” Tracey nodded her head like she had thought of the best idea ever. Her eyes sought mine for a second as she took a deep breath. “Can I stay with you for a little while? I want to say that’s been the first time I’ve been cornered like that but it’s not. They do that every time I come and I’m exhausted by it. I dread seeing them. I think I might need some space.”
I nodded my head. “Of course, you are more than welcome though your brother’s snoring could wake the dead.”
Tracey rolled her eyes. “Not much has changed then.”
Tracey wrinkled her nose as she eyed the two twin beds side by side in Lucas’s room. Leaving the Pack Lands wasn’t exactly ideal but I was thankful the Guardians had helped us move hers from her parent’s home. Her parents hadn’t said anything as we took it apart and carted it out of their home. They knew she needed space and they weren’t going to fight about it. It wouldn’t make the situation any better.
“I can’t believe I’m rooming with my brother,” Tracey leaned against the doorway and shook her head. Her pink sandaled feet were crossed at the ankle and her capris were almost rolled up to her knees. Being on the Pack Lands was nice during winter because it meant that we didn’t have to pretend for the sake of humans.
I smiled smugly. “I’m not giving up that beautiful bed.”
The gold rings on Tracey’s fingers twinkled in the light as she waved her hand at me. “I would never ask that of you. I wouldn’t give it up either.”
Rafe’s voice echoed down the hallway. “Do you mind if I steal my mate for a little bit?”
Tracey waved her arm for me to go through the door. “Sure, I have plenty of unpacking to do. I’m going to see if Mav will help me move my dresser over here. It matches the one we ordered for in here…” She paused and bit her bottom lip. “Somewhat.”
A snort escaped me. “Make yourself comfortable. I don’t care if it’s neon pink. I want you to be as at home as possible.”
Lucas appeared behind his sister. “Good luck with that. You can’t get that feeling without Dad yelling at the TV and my mom baking in the kitchen.”
I couldn’t picture Axel yelling at the TV but I had the pleasure of tasting Vivian’s pies. They were incredible. I wondered why she hadn’t opened a bakery for herself. As the Beta’s wife, she had more than enough funds to do so and the pack would back it. Mentally I went over the Pack Lands map in my head. One of the borders butted up against the Antique district. The land there wasn’t owned by anyone but Rafe.
I had almost forgotten about him and then he was there beside Lucas, staring at me over Tracey’s head. “Do we have to stay here and supervise?”
I managed to shoulder my way through my best friends and grinned. His hair was still a bit long but he didn’t wear it down when I saw him. There was only one time I had seen it down recently and it was when he had been training with the Guardians. We walked side by side each other outside of my home. There was still a chill in the air but the snow was completely melted now. Only some parts of the property were still holding water from the melt. We both didn’t say anything for a while but the tension wasn’t awkward. It was a nice, comfortable silence. When we passed trees I was no longer familiar with, I finally turned to Rafe and stopped.
“Where are we headed?”
A small smile pulled at the corners of his lips. “I want to show you something but I need you to trust me.”
I rolled my eyes. “I think we have come a long way since then. Don’t you?”
The smile that had been pulling on his mouth finally transformed into something beautiful. His canines elongated past his lips and something pulled in the center of my core. The grin changed the entire look of his face. The usual wrinkle in the center of his eyebrows smoothed out completely and the anger left the depths of his eyes. He looked younger.
Who was he before he had so many responsibilities on his shoulders? Who was he before he had to put his father down?
“There has been so much going on, we haven’t had much time to really be alone, but that isn’t what this is about.” He wove his fingers between mine and tugged me forward.
I smiled in return and let him pull me further into the woods. My heart felt lighter than it had in a while. It didn’t matter how we had started. It didn’t matter that he still had my panties in his drawer back at the house. It didn’t matter that I still felt nervous around him. It didn’t matter what anyone thought as people passed us. It didn’t matter that war was knocking on the front door. All that mattered was the gentle smile on his face and his warm hand in mine.
Chapter 25
Rafe
A new feeling coursed through my body as we walked farther into the woods. I couldn’t put my finger on it but I felt as if for once in my life I was feeling something like contentment. Or… Maybe not the first time in my life, I could remember the joys of my past but maybe it was the first time I had felt this way in the last few years. Since I had to put my father down. Darkness had wrapped itself around my heart and didn’t let go until that day I saw Jade. She was the light at the end of the dark tunnel I had been fighting for years. She was the thing I had been waiting for. She was my redemption and I knew that was a high pedestal to put
her on but it was the truth.
Jade’s face held curiosity and something else. I could have pinpointed it with a deep inhale of breath but didn’t want to embarrass her. We were still so new in this trust department. I didn’t want to screw it up with my wolf getting in the way. He had a way of messing everything up.
We came to a stop and I yanked her into my chest. Her pupils dilated as she tensed against me before she relaxed. A growl vibrated up my chest and she shivered in response. I trailed my finger down the edge of her jaw and her lips parted in a pant. She leaned into my touch and it took everything inside of me not to press her up against a tree again and forget about everything we had set out to do. My fingers tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and I took a reluctant step back. I didn’t take my eyes off of her as I parted the brush behind us.
Once the curtain of foliage was pulled back, the sound of the waterfall was deafening. The slapping of the water against the rocks was calming in its own way. I hadn’t come back here since that time my wolf had brought me. Her eyes widened as she took in the scene behind me. A blonde eyebrow inched up her forehead as she pulled her hand from mine. I let the curtain fall back behind us. It was our own oasis. I wondered who else knew about this place. Probably the Guardians that did patrols but I doubted many others knew. It didn’t seem like the place that people just randomly stumbled upon. My wolf had brought me here for a reason and I was too stubborn to ask him about it. All I could do was appreciate him for finding it.
Jade wasted no time before she walked into the edge of the water. The pebbles on the bank were smooth from the waterfall hitting them and stirring them up in the little pool. They were a varying of different colors that I hadn’t noticed before. I had been too preoccupied with getting back to the pack and finding out where this little paradise had been my entire life.
“How did you know this was here?” Her eyes searched the trees surrounding us like she could see something I couldn’t.
I shrugged. “My wolf brought me here a while ago when we were both restless and worried about you. I knew I would bring you here when I got you back.”