by Tl Reeve
Rapier glanced up at the wall and growled. Leave while you still have the chance, had been written in giant black letters across the antique china cabinet Mrs. Martin loved dearly. Each letter cut a swatch across the glass and hardwood before continuing on to the wall. Rapier clenched his fists at his side. He brought this upon them. If he hadn’t listened to Mackenzie. If he hadn’t wanted to check out Window Rock, he would have never brought the wrath of hell upon them. Sure, Kalkin and Caden had their own disputes with Quincy, but it hadn’t bubbled over like this until he brought Jasmine home.
He’d been responsible for all of this.
“Whatever you’re thinking, stop,” Kalkin said.
“Whatever,” he snarled. “I need to get out of here before I kill someone.”
He stomped out of what remained of the shop. He couldn’t be in there. Couldn’t see what his stupidity brought to their doorstep. He stopped by Mrs. Martin’s side once more and offered an apology before walking away. He didn’t care if his truck was at the courthouse. He didn’t care if it was a mile away. He had to go. Where and in which direction didn’t really matter.
What he did figure out as he trudged down the sidewalk, putting distance between himself and Mrs. Martin’s shop, was they didn’t belong there anymore. If he could get Jasmine and the girls to a safe location, he’d go hunting Raymond Quincy himself. And if you die, asshole? Well, he’d take Raymond with him. He hadn’t been lying when he said he’d kill Quincy.
What would Jasmine do without you? She’d find someone better. Someone stronger than him. She’d live for the girls. There was no other solution. Mates die with mates. Well, if that was the case, then Mrs. Martin was the exception. He knew Jasmine had a will to live. She’d survive because the girls would need her.
Selfish bastard. The lion showed Rapier his back. He didn’t care. The lion didn’t understand the complexities of what was going on. Not only was his mate being threatened, so were his cubs, and now Mrs. Martin. All because what? Raymond got his land. He got everything. When Rapier ran, he almost lost his company as well in the process. So, what could he have that Raymond still wanted?
The phone at his hip rang, and he stopped. Rapier glanced up and frowned. Just how far had he walked? The desert landscape lay before him, the hustle and bustle of Window Rock a distant noise. He pulled his phone from the clip and glanced at the screen. Kalkin. He should let it go to voicemail, but the asshole would continue to all him if he didn’t answer.
“What,” he snapped, after sliding his finger across the screen.
“First, get your panties out of a bunch then meet me at the diner. We need to talk,” Kalkin said.
“Kal,” Rapier sighed. “Now is no—”
“I don’t think I stuttered. Meet me at the diner in fifteen minutes or else I send Caden after you.”
He would too, just to piss Rapier off. “You’re a fucking asshole.”
“Among other things. See you in fifteen.”
The call ended as abruptly as it had started, leaving Rapier to stare at his phone. “Motherfucker.” Fine, if Kalkin wanted to meet him at the diner, he would. Then he’d tell him face to face. Rapier was taking Jasmine and the kids and getting the fuck out of Window Rock. He wouldn’t allow the community to suffer because of his own shortcomings.
* * * *
“You’re late,” Kalkin growled from a corner booth when Rapier stepped into the bustling diner.
It was packed and overly loud. His lion bristled, still needing the solitude he had sought earlier with his walk. “Fuck you.” Rapier snarled as he slid into the booth.
“How many times I gotta tell you assholes? I’m not Jace,” Kalkin lobbied back.
Rapier snickered. That stupid joke never got old. No matter how many times or who was saying the slur to Kalkin. Neither of them said a word as the young, overly busy waitress came to their table looking for their order. Rapier ordered a cup of coffee. He didn’t have it in him to eat anything.
“I’ll have a triple bacon burger. Extra bacon. I want it mooing. No lettuce or tomato and no mayo. Double order of fries and a fresh cup of joe when you get a chance,” Kalkin said.
“It’ll be right up, Sheriff,” the waitress replied before heading back to the kitchen.
“If Keeley heard you ask for your burger without those veggies, she’d have your ass,” Rapier remarked.
Kalkin shrugged, clearly not giving a shit. “Keeley isn’t here, neither are my pups, so I can eat whatever the fuck I want.” Kalkin finished the last of the dark brew in the large mug in front of him.
It was a well-known fact Keeley stayed on Kalkin, hell the entire Raferty clan’s ass about their eating habits and how they needed to eat more vegetables and less red meat. They were shifters for cripes’ sake. Meat was what they lived off and thankfully they didn’t suffer human maladies like heart disease or cancer. So, they could eat huge amounts of all meats. And often did.
“That’s what you get mating a human,” Rapier teased.
“My cross to bear. One I’ve willingly picked up. Everyone knows my mate has my heart and balls in her hands,” Kalkin admitted. “Same could be said for you, and need I remind you, Jasmine is a shifter.”
“True.” Rapier leaned back, ignoring the groan from the bench he sat on. “Why’d you call me here, Kal?”
“I need you to pull your head out of your ass, Rapier,” Kalkin snapped, getting right to the point.
Jesus, this fuckin’ guy. He couldn’t even let him wallow in his own self-pity. Yeah, Rapier knew exactly what he was doing and honestly…didn’t give a shit. He’d brought the black cloud to this small town.
“You don’t—”
“Get it?” Kalkin cocked a brow at him. “Fuck, I do, Rapier. Of everyone…I fuckin’ get it. This is my town…my pack. Everything that happens within the borders of my county is my responsibility. One I take seriously. And I know you do too. If you’d get it through your thick skull, it’d make zero difference,”—Kalkin made the shape of a zero with his fingers to illustrate the point— “if you never came here or brought your mate and cubs to Window Rock. Raymond Quincy is a douche bag who thinks he can lay claim to this town. My town. Or anyplace he fucking wants. Well, it’s not fuckin’ happening, not on my watch…not fuckin’ ever. Not if I’ve anything to say or do about it. Thought we were on the same page with this shit?”
The waitress came back, sliding the two massive plates in front of Kalkin. Then, she put down a mug of coffee and a slice of pie in front of Rapier.
“I didn’t order this,” he said to the young waitress before she could scurry away.
The young woman, a coyote he suspected, gave him a shy smile. “I know you didn’t, Alpha. Window Rock takes care of our own. Besides, hungry or not, no one can resist a slice of Hilda’s homemade apple pie. It’s on the house, I might add. It’s the perfect complement to your lonely cup of coffee.” She nodded to the mug on the table.
Rapier shook his head knowing he was moping around like a pussy. He’d never tell the other man, but it was this young shifter who had just reminded him of who and what he was, and why he’d sought Window Rock out for a place for his family.
“Thank you, August,” Kalkin said, his tone genuine and firm.
The waitress beamed, clearly pleased her Alpha had addressed her, directly, remembering and using her given name. Rapier would bet the large piece of pie sitting in front of him that Kalkin knew the name, age, occupation, and every ancestor of every member of his large pack. Because, Rapier had done the same with his own pride when it had been bigger than just his brothers. Before Raymond Quincy had laid waste to their lands.
He figured he’d know all of his new pack/pride members by the time he reached a hundred.
“You’re welcome, Alpha,” she said, her pretty grey eyes were filled with respect and loyalty. “You all look busy, so I’ll get back to my other customers. You need anything, give a wave and I’ll swing by.”
“Just the check when you get
a chance,” Kalkin said.
August snorted. “You and I both know Mrs. Hilda won’t take a cent in payment for your food,” the coyote said before trouncing off to another of her tables.
“Pays to be the Alpha.”
Kalkin grunted. “More like it pays to be the Sheriff. The owner, Mrs. Hilda, won’t take a dime from any of my deputies while we’re in uniform. Drives me bat shit crazy.”
Rapier had no doubt it did.
Kalkin doused his large burger with heaps of ketchup and mustard then squirted a healthy portion of the red goo all over the steaming pile of fries on the other plate.
“Help yourself.” Kalkin pushed the plate of French fries to the middle of the table before he got to work on devouring the now messy burger.
Unable to stop himself, Rapier grabbed a handful of fries, ignoring the heat emitting from them. The salty, tangy tomato-covered fried to perfection spud had his stomach growling in hunger.
“Bet you’re wishing now you’d ordered something other than a freakin’ cup of coffee,” Kalkin muttered around a full mouth of food.
“I got my pie,” Rapier reminded him before picking up a fork and digging in.
Sweet-tart apples, with a hint of vanilla and a heavy dose of cinnamon, exploded across his taste buds, and Rapier moaned in delight. One thing was for sure, the older women in this town were expert cooks and bakers. They never failed to blow his mind with what they produced.
He’d already figured out there’d be no conversation until the food was gone. Didn’t really bother him much, considering he really didn’t want to have this conversation anyway. In a time that would blow a competitive eater’s best record, their plates were cleared of every morsel of food. Rapier stacked his smaller round plate on top of the plates Kalkin placed on the edge of their table. August strolled by moments later, snagging them without stopping.
Kalkin leaned forward, dropping his voice. It was growly, rough and yet it was filled with concern. “You’ve let him get in your head, and it’s making you doubt every fuckin’ thing we’d have planned for our Pack.”
Rapier didn’t miss how Kalkin stressed it was now their pack, and no longer just Kalkin’s. “I can handle him fuckin’ with me, or my brothers, Kal. Jasmine’s off limits. Been three days, and she’s yet to bounce back. It’s killing me.”
Concern flashed across the other man’s face. “It’d kill me too, if Keeley shut down on me.”
Rapier rubbed his neck in frustration. He wasn’t proud of thinking his mate would be perceived as weak. Especially by any of the Rafertys. She wasn’t. She’d been beaten down so damn much, it made her skittish and she was having a weak moment.
“We’ve all forgotten how she ran on fear and fumes for the last ten years. At some point, something was going to throw her over the edge, and she’d shut down. Doesn’t equate to her being weak,” Kalkin said.
“Never said she was weak,” Rapier replied. At least not out loud he hadn’t.
“It’s normal to want to protect her, and your cubs. But at some point, we’ve all got to take a stand and stop running from Quincy. It’s getting old, and honestly, I’m fuckin’ tired of him and his bullshit.”
Rapier nodded. “You’re worried I’m going to leave you high and dry. Truth be told, if I was in your position, I’d be wondering myself.”
Kalkin chortled. “No, actually, I’m not worried you’re going to run, Rapier. It’s not in our nature to tuck tail and hide.”
“You sure?” Rapier challenged.
“Yeah. I’m sure about it. Thinking and doing are two different things. I think anyone in your position would be thinkin’ those exact same thoughts. But they’re only thoughts.” Kalkin leaned farther over the table. “And I’ll tell you, here and now, I’ve never had a single doubt when we face the motherfucker, it will be side by side.”
“Sounds like wishful thinkin’ if you ask me.”
Kalkin chuckled. “More like, we’re more the same than different in how we think and deal with things.”
“Us both being assholes doesn’t make us twins,” Rapier professed.
“Already got one of those, don’t need another one,” Kalkin stated.
Before either one of them could say another word, Kalkin’s cell phone started to ring. He reached into the front pocket of his shirt where the device rested and promptly answered it. Kalkin’s whole demeanor changed the moment after he said hello. His voice was now harsh, and ice cold. Rage was rolling off the other man in thick, heavy waves. It immediately sent Rapier into battle mode, and his lion roared in his head.
“Fuck me,” Kalkin mumbled under his breath. “No…No…Fuck, Jace, listen to me. You’re not calling Caden. I’ll make the call once I get to the hospital and get an assessment on him.” Kalkin’s silence could only mean Jace was talking. “I don’t really give a shit what you think. I know my twin. I’ll make the call, and that’s an order. Right now, I need you to go get Dani. She might be useful. No, Caden isn’t with her. He’s out on patrol. My mate, on the other hand, is with her sister. Bring her with you. And do me a favor. Try to not be the massive asshole you’ve been lately and say nothing to the girls about what you know. Simply tell them, I asked you to bring them to me.” Kalkin went silent again. “Fuck you. Stop arguing with me and do what I say, and they won’t question a damn thing.”
Kalkin disconnected the call while Jace was still talking.
“What’s wrong?” Rapier inquired.
Kalkin shook his head. “Not here. I’ll tell you once we get into my Enforcer.”
Kalkin moved quickly, sliding from the bench and making his way to the front door. Rapier was right on his heels. Once they were both in the Enforcer, racing toward the hospital Kalkin told him about the call.
“Everett’s been found.” Kalkin’s harsh voice sent chills down Rapier’s spine. The last time Everett had been seen was in Kalkin’s office when they had a meeting with Poppa and learned the small motorcycle club had taken some of Quincy’s pups when they left. They were now all in safe keeping at the orphanage. Everett had left that day to dig up more information on Quincy for Kalkin.
“How bad?” Rapier asked, knowing full well how Raymond Quincy handled those he considered to be traitors.
“According to Jace, who not for nothing tends to be overly sensational with this type of shit, it’s bad. I’ll know better when we see it with our own eyes,” Kalkin snarled.
They pulled up to the small hospital which serviced Apache County and one or two surrounding counties. Kalkin didn’t even bother parking his Enforcer. He pulled it right up front and was getting out before the immense all-terrain Police SUV even came to a full stop.
Rapier wasted no time and followed behind. Even then, the wolf shifter made it into the Emergency Room before him and was already talking to a very somber and very human doctor. He got there just in time to hear the doctor informing Kalkin that Everett’s injuries were so severe that they had to place in him into a drug-induced coma.
Not good.
“He was beaten, repeatedly. All of his fingers have been broken or dislocated. He’s got a broken clavicle, and the wrist of his right hand is completely shattered. He’s got a compound fracture of his left humerus. It, along with the other compound break on his left femur, will require surgery to repair the damage.”
“What about shifting?” Kalkin inquired, knowing if Everett could shift, he wouldn’t require any invasive treatment because he’d start to heal faster than a human. Shifting from human to animal form simply sped up their process. If Everett was unable to shift, he could become susceptible to human-like infections.
“Even if Everett was awake, he’d still be too weak to shift. He was half dead when he was brought in.” The doctor placed a hand on Kalkin’s arm. Rapier suspected what they’d been told was nothing compared to what the doctor was about to tell them. “Among his many broken bones, he was stabbed over twenty times and then melted silver was poured into those wounds. His body is in the middle of r
ejecting all of it.”
“Fuck,” Rapier mumbled.
“His throat was slit,” there was a visible drop in decibels when the man in the starched, white coat continued. “We suspect Everett might also be the victim of a sexual assault.”
“You suspect?” Rapier choked out because Kalkin was unusually quiet.
The doctor nodded. “There is significate trauma to his rectum. We’ve collected a rape kit for evidence.”
“Motherfucker,” Kalkin roared before delivering his fist through the closest wall.
Chunks of the drywall began to fall to the floor as Kalkin smashed his fist against the wall, making the hole larger and larger with each strike. Rapier moved, grabbing the doctor to keep him safe, knowing Kalkin was about to lose his shit in a big way. Kalkin kicked a wheelchair down the hall. It hit a door, shaking it so violently it shattered the glass window beside it. He then grabbed one of the extra hospital beds that were kept in the hallway and, within seconds, it lay at his feet, in pieces.
Rapier knew if the other man didn’t get control of his emotions, he’d rip the building down to its foundation. Moving quickly, Rapier wrapped his massive arm around Kalkin’s shoulders before he pushed him up against one of the walls that hadn’t gotten damaged in his shifter rage.
Rapier’s muscles strained as he fought to keep his feet planted while the wolf Alpha bucked and clawed for freedom. Fuck…was he strong.
“What the hell is going on here?” Keeley hollered at the end of the hallway. Beside her stood Cookie.
“Stay back, Keeley,” Rapier warned when the tiny, fae-like creature approached them as if he didn’t hold an enraged shifter who growled and fought like a madman.
Kalkin threw his head back and let out a long, loud howl filled with such soul-searing pain it caused both women to pause and made Danielle take a visible step back.